The Package

MP4Nation ships the HM9s in a fairly large box stuffed with goodies.


The HM9s come with an extensive bundle. It consists of a carrying case, a long cable, short cable, and short microphone cable.

Closer Examination

The HM9s look really good at a first glance. The aluminum cup forks and headband all looks sweet, but a closer examination reveals that the aluminum work leaves something to be desired—all sides are a bit off and there are inconsistent. It seems that all edges are filed to shape after being cast which gives a lot of variance on the parts.


Brainwavz HM9s can fold up, which is incredibly nice while on the go.


The internal construction of the HM9s is very simple, and the drivers point directly at your ears. The pads are really thick and quite soft, which creates a strange feel when you put them on for the first time. One cannot help but wonder how comfortable these headphones would have been if their designed were circum-aural instead of on-ear.


The adjustment system seems bomb proof.


The cables attach to the headphones via a slightly modified mini-jack plug, which actually works well.





There is a lot of padding on the headband, which is necessary since these headphones weigh a lot.


The mini-jacks are of good quality.


The microphone-enabled cable is a great addition.


The pads are made of protein leather and that, coupled with the closed-back design, make the HM9s quite a hot affair for longer listening sessions. The headphone's sound signature is also quite dark, which the pleather pads usually add to. One could then kill two birds with one stone by going for some velour pads to improve both comfort and brighten up tonality.