Fit and Comfort

Seen above is the Sivga SV023 on a headphone stand that is actually a set of two artificial ears, complete with soft-molded human ears and adapters acting as the top of the head. This has been mounted on a tripod, which also showcases how headphones would look on a human head, with the artificial ears spaced ~20 cm apart. As with all headphones, getting a good fit and seal is crucial, so make sure to properly use the pivot points and headband and ear-cup height adjustability. This section is mostly a summary of the points expanded upon in more detail on the previous page. The SV023 weighs 318 g without the cables and certainly does not feel heavy on the head if properly positioned. The SV023 also can be one of the most comfortable set of headphones in the market today due to the combination of a suspension headband, multiple swivel and pivot options, roomy and soft ear pads, and average clamping force working well together. However, this is contingent on the custom designed ear pads working well for you. See, the bracket these are installed on do the job correctly—unlike on the HarmonicDyne G200 as we recently saw—and thus there is already inward-facing clamping pressure distributed fairly evenly on the ear cups. The ear cups themselves are specifically designed with the new ear pads in mind, but the near-custom fit on the pads makes for a hit-or-miss solution, to where, if your head shape and where the ears are positioned on them deviate more than the pads can account for, there will be a poor seal with a gap at the top. I had a slight issue myself until I re-positioned the steel headband to provide slightly more clamping force, at which point I ended up with a satisfactory seal with no perceived leakage by the ear cups and pads. You may want to consider other ear pads too if you find yourself in a similar situation, perhaps the same YAXI pads that helped with the G200. Isolation in general is not the highest, owing to the semi-open nature of these headphones, but it's not like people around you will hear everything you are listening to either. I still recommend using this set in a quiet environment, lest the ambient noise affects your listening experience.

Audio Performance

Audio Hardware

One of the reasons I agreed to do this review is because Sivga has been impressive with its in-house developed drivers. We saw one such example put to two different use cases with the Phoenix and Robin before, and this time around it's a completely different dynamic driver, despite also using a 50 mm transducer. Sivga says the driver housing is composed of aluminium alloy, and the diaphragm itself uses a liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) composite akin to those being recently used in some popular IEMs too. The dome is plated with beryllium to explain the shiny central part seen above, this should add stiffness to the drivers, allowing for more uniform and faster movement back and forth in a magnetic field. Speaking of which, Sivga is using Nd-Fe-B (Neodymium-iron-boron, typical rare earth magnet with the Nd2Fe14B molecular formula) magnets capable of generating high magnetic flux. This new setup is clearly harder to drive than the typical dynamic driver given the rated 300 Ω impedance and and average sensitivity of 105 dB/mW. This also explains why the stock cable comes with a balanced connector by default, and I'd at least go with a decent portable DAC/amp to drive these, as opposed to a basic dongle. The SV023 is not marketed for portable use to be fair, and the 2 m long cable makes more sense now too.

Frequency Response Measurement and Listening

I will mention that I have a general preference for a warm-neutral signature emphasizing a slightly elevated bass and smooth treble range with detailed mids and good tonal separation. I also generally prefer instrumental music over vocals, with favored genres including jazz and classical music.


Our current headphones test setup uses a set of two custom in-ear microphones for the two channels. These microphones closely adhere to the IEC711 class, but have been tweaked to be more reliable in the >10 kHz frequency range, the precise issue with my previous setup, that is otherwise still very good and will continue to be used for IEMs and earphones. Two soft silicone pinnae are installed on the sides, separated by a distance matching my head, and multiple "height" adapters have been 3D-printed for further customization, based on fit, head size and shape. Each set of microphones has an XLR output I separately adapted to 3.5 mm. I used a transparent source—the FiiO K9 Pro—for measurements after confirming it was not a bottleneck in any way.

This artificial head simulator feeds the microphone lines into a reference USB sound card, which in turn goes to a laptop that has ARTA and REW running. I begin with an impulse measurement to test for signal fidelity, calibrate the sound card and channel output, account for floor noise, and finally test the frequency response of each channel separately. Octave smoothing is at the 1/12th setting, netting a good balance of detail and signal to noise ratio. The default tuning was used for testing, and no app or program-based EQ settings were chosen, unless specifically mentioned. Each sample of interest is tested thrice with separate mounts to account for any fit issues, and an average is taken of the three individual measurements for statistical accuracy. The raw data is then compensated based on a custom curve created after having worked with Crinacle from In-Ear Fidelity to get measurements with this setup, on par with a GRAS 043AG industry-standard measurement rig, especially by accounting for the slightly different pinna gain compared to the KEMAR anthrophometric pinna there.


As per usual, you can find my headphone frequency response measurements on VSG.squig.link, along with all the earphone measurements. Scroll to the bottom and choose different targets there, including two from Harman Kardon developed after years of R&D. The Harman 2018 over-ear target in particular, is a reference curve many headphone makers aim for now, but I find it too bass-boosted. As such, I am opting for the Harman 2018 curve with the bass target from the Harman 2013 curve, which is what is referred to as the "Harman Combined" target. Before we get talking about the sound signature of the Sivga SV023, I want to briefly talk about the channel balance achieved here. You will notice how the left and right channels are pretty much identical all the way through to the coupler resonance itself, so take the discrepancy following this at ~8 kHz with a grain of salt. In practice I noticed little imbalance, with only the 10 kHz peak—or lack thereof—showing up differently.

Sivga describes the SV023 as having "well-controlled bass with enough quantity", mild mids with "warm vocals", a "natural and exquisite" treble, and goes on with more flowery marketing as per usual with such products. I'd describe the tuning as a mild V-shape with a warm emphasis in the mids, so in that regard, some of the marketing holds up. Indeed, there is not much in the way of SPL drop off in the bass heading to the sub-bass, akin to what I would expect with a more expensive open-back planar set. So while this is still not a set I'd use for purely sub-bass head-thumping music from your favorite electronic music, it is still energetic enough to appeal to bassheads who want an open-back set to accompany their favorite V-shape-tuned closed-back. Bass guitars in particular play well here given the drivers themselves are technically competent and resolving, and the SV023 handles layering efficiently with kick drums too I found. The increased dynamic range was also noticeable over the Sivga Phoenix, thus addressing one of the complaints I had there. I personally would not EQ the bass further, but there is some room left for people to try, without distortion getting in the way.

The warmer tuning extends fully into the lower mids, which will be a love/hate affair, depending on how you prefer your male vocals. They are front and center, but pronounced to where instruments take a back seat. This part seems to be a Sivga house tuning feature, but thankfully, the drivers handling dynamics and enabling good micro and macro contrast between notes helps distinguish instrument classes easily enough. It aids in imaging too whereby I can actually see this being a decent set for FPS shooters too in distinguish explosions, gun shots, and footsteps alike. General media consumption is also a key application here, with podcasts and movies playing well on the SV023, although I thought the soundstage was smaller than with typical such open-back headphones too. Perhaps it's the semi-open nature of the cups, but don't expect to get a grandiose sense of space and staging here. There is some SPL recession into the mids proper, but it isn't perceived until female vocals come in, before thankfully there is some ear gain incorporated. Potentially too much gain for some though, as I did notice some K-pop singers coming off honky and nasally. The treble response is overall controlled too, and extends fairly well throughout the 20 kHz limit I care about. If anything, the SV023 felt a touch over-damped at points, and I'd rather Sivga lay off the aggressive filters that also affected the treble on the Phoenix. This can make some instrument fundamentals clash with second order harmonics, which makes for a rough experience listening to complex orchestral pieces. However, it's still detailed, and with enough energy for most users, and I still had a good time overall, with the caveat of poor layering of the same or similar instruments.


The obvious comparison would be with the Sivga Phoenix, that utilizes a similar open-back principle and an older driver, I am happy to report that the SV023 is an improvement pretty much everywhere. It adds ear gain to especially make female vocals come off more natural, the tuning is more balanced, and the drivers themselves are more resolving, while allowing for a wider dynamic range to experience your music in. I do think the Phoenix is more comfortable though, and it certainly does not rely as much on how well of a fit/seal you will get with the semi-custom pads in the SV023. Another dynamic driver set in the same price as the SV023 is the HarmonicDyne Poseidon—when not on sale anyway—and I found it similar enough to the older Zeus to not warrant a dedicated review. It uses nickel-plating rather than the beryllium here, but ultimately is a poor mixture of tonality and technicalities to where even those wanting a warm sound signature will be generally better off with the Sivga SV023. The real challenge, however, comes from the HIFIMAN Edition XS. This is also open back in nature, however it employs a large planar driver instead that makes for an extended bass response but not one that is elevated. I would say the Edition XS is a safer bet for most music genres too, although the SV023 is easily better built, has more premium accessories and aesthetics, and there's always going to be room for a dynamic driver set simply due to the timbre preferences many people have.