Audeze Sine Review | 93 Data compared

The Audeze Sine is a highly regarded, closed-back headphone designed for portable use and optimized for Apple devices through an optional Cipher Lightning cable bundle. Priced at $450 (or $500 with the Lightning cable), it stands out as one of the smallest and most affordable models to utilize planar magnetic drivers. This advanced driver technology delivers an exceptionally clear, detailed, and spacious soundstage that elevates well-recorded tracks in genres like jazz, classical, and dream pop. Visually, the headphones boast a premium, swanky design featuring a leather-covered headband and earcups with sturdy metal components that fold flat into an included storage pouch. Furthermore, the Cipher Lightning cable includes a built-in digital-to-analog converter (DAC) that subtly boosts bass and volume while offering an integrated microphone for calls. Despite its high-end performance, the review highlights several drawbacks regarding comfort and accessories. At 8.1 ounces (230 grams), the headphone is notably heavy, making it comfortable but not ideal for extended, long-term listening sessions compared to over-ear rivals like the Oppo PM-3. Additionally, its highly revealing and transparent nature serves as a double-edged sword, as...

Audeze Sine Lightning Headphones The Audeze Sine Lightning headphones (£450) are on-ear, planar magnetic cans built with a tough aluminum frame and a "Cipher Lightning cable" featuring an integrated 24-bit DAC and amplifier. A major asset of this configuration is its ability to achieve exceptionally loud volume levels directly from an iPhone, delivering a spacious presentation with layers of clear detail and neatly defined note edges. The headphones boast rugged build quality and include a standard 3.5mm cable for legacy devices. However, despite the premium construction, they are heavy, do not fold inward for easy portability, and suffer from high clamping pressure that makes them uncomfortable during long listening sessions. While the initial sonic impression is rewarding, the upfront character ultimately sacrifices rhythmic precision, timing, and emotional subtlety. The muscular bass requires more depth and tautness, pushing sound forward rather than delivering precise, textured impact. Ironically, testing revealed that switching to the conventional 3.5mm cable yields a more engaging, better-timed performance than the Lightning cable, though at the expense of maximum loudness. Given these sonic flaws, high pricing, and ergonomic...

The Audeze SineGo to product viewer dialog for this item., reviewed on Headphone.ph, is a portable on-ear headphone featuring planar magnetic drivers that delivers a neutral, fast, and punchy sound signature, challenging traditional on-ear performance with its clean, well-extended bass. Key strengths include a seamless transition from linear bass to clear mids, creating a forward vocal presentation, though the design requires a manual boost to address a lean, slightly bright sound profile. identified in the review include a potential for "shouty" female vocals on specific tracks, leading to possible listening fatigue from elevated upper mids or lower treble. While highly capable, the headphone's flat, uncolored, and sometimes thin, lower-registry performance might not appeal to users seeking a warm or heavy bass sound without EQ intervention.

The Audeze Sine review on Major HiFi highlights these $449 closed-back, on-ear planar-magnetic headphones as a high-performing choice for both audiophiles and casual listeners. On the positive side, the headphones deliver exceptional raw sound quality featuring deep, warm, and highly articulated lows with controlled bass that prevents bleeding. They also boast a durable build, comfortable leather padding on the headband and earpads, decent passive noise isolation, a great volume output, and a wide frequency response of 10Hz–50kHz driven by an efficient 20-ohm impedance. However, the reviewer notes a few distinct performance trade-offs largely stemming from the closed-back structure. The mid-range shows a subtle hint of compression that may be noticeable to critical listeners, and the soundstage lacks fullness and depth, particularly when playing simpler music tracks like rock music. Additionally, the high frequencies can occasionally become piercing when handling extremely high notes on strings or falsetto vocals. Despite these minor setbacks, the review concludes that the rich, dynamic sound performance makes the Audeze Sine a standout option in its category.

The Audeze Sine stands out as an innovative, travel-friendly, on-ear headphone option featuring custom-designed 80 by 70mm planar-magnetic drivers. Designed by BMW Group Designworks and manufactured in Southern California, these slim headphones feature earcups that fold flat for easy storage. A major highlight of the product is its dual cable functionality: a standard 3.5mm analog cable and a Cipher digital Lightning cable. The Cipher cable notably enhances performance by integrating a built-in microphone, playback controls, and its own 24-bit/96kHz DAC, DSP, and headphone amplifier powered directly by an iOS device. Sound-wise, the headphones deliver exceptional pros, including a highly neutral, uncolored, and clinical midrange presentation that reproduces voices and acoustic instruments with extraordinary realism and zero fatiguing sibilance. However, the headphones suffer from significant comfort and sonic cons. The combination of a strong headband clamping force and thin, firm earpads makes them uncomfortably tight, mashing the user's ears and requiring frequent breaks during extended listening sessions. Though the manufacturer suggests stretching the spring steel headband, the reviewer noted this could risk ruining the seal or breaking the device. Sonically, the...

The Audeze SINE is a discontinued, lightweight on-ear planar magnetic headphone that originally retailed for US $450 in 2016. In terms of performance pros, the headphone exhibits surprisingly good native compliance with the target frequency response curve up to 3 kHz, offering a pleasant and largely neutral out-of-box sound signature. It features exceptionally clean group delay, high sensitivity for a planar magnetic driver, and premium-feeling physical materials like a tangle-resistant silicone-insulated cable. However, its primary acoustic cons include an apparent deficiency in sub-bass response and high-frequency sparkle, alongside a noticeable distortion hole at a higher frequency range. A major physical flaw highlighted in the review is the small, oddly shaped on-ear cup design, which makes achieving a proper acoustic seal on measurement fixtures and human ears highly challenging. This poor seal directly contributes to the measured bass anemia, though users can resolve this by applying a Parametric Equalization (PEQ) profile or swapping to aftermarket over-ear pads. Community discussions note that Audeze integrated an internal LRC filter circuit to tune frequencies—explaining a unique impedance rise—and originally packaged the headphones with a...

The Audeze Sine is a closed-back planar magnetic on-ear headphone originally retailing for around €550, designed primarily for travel and portable use due to its compact, folding design. Structurally, it features a high-quality build with an aluminum frame, leather-covered cups, a soft leather-padded headband, and a proprietary flat, tangle-free 1.2m cable. Acoustically, it offers a remarkably flat and linear frequency response when a perfect seal is achieved, displaying high efficiency and low impedance (21 Ω) that makes it easily driven directly from mobile devices. It features an internal equalization circuit that controls a driver peak at 2.5kHz, though this compensation becomes less effective if paired with high output impedance amplifiers. However, the headphone suffers from significant ergonomic issues because its form factor favors aesthetic design over user comfort. The ear pads are awkwardly sized—too small to be over-ear yet too large for standard on-ear use—and when combined with a high clamping force, they quickly cause physical pain, particularly for users wearing glasses. This poor fit makes achieving a proper seal difficult in real-world usage, leading to a "honky" or nasal...

The Audeze Sine review by Stuart Charles Black highlights a rugged, utilitarian closed-back, on-ear planar magnetic headphone designed by a BMW subsidiary, utilizing premium metal and genuine leather components. On the positive side, the reviewer highly praises the headphone's smooth, accurate, and balanced sound signature, noting that its planar drivers deliver a phenomenal timber and realism. The bass is described as flat and bottomless without any unnatural roll-offs, while the mid-range remains honest with superb instrument separation, and the treble strikes a pleasant balance that is crisp yet rarely harsh. Additionally, its rugged build, fluid headband adjustments, angled cord wires that prevent accidental unplugging, and good overall sound isolation are major pros. However, the headphones suffer from prominent design and usability issues that hold them back from long-term comfort. A major con is the tight clamp force and on-ear (supra-aural) design, which causes physical ear fatigue and soreness after only a short period of use. From a material standpoint, the choice of genuine leather on the outside of the earcups is highly criticized because it easily gets nicked, scratched, and...

The Audeze Sine wired on-ear headphones deliver exceptional, audiophile-grade audio quality, earning a near-perfect sound score of 9.5/10 for their incredibly balanced, clear, and detailed reproduction across all frequencies. Designed in collaboration with BMW's Designworks U.S.A., these premium cans stand out because they use ultra-thin planar magnetic drivers inside a closed-back, triangular earcup shape that mimics the human ear. Reviewers praised the precise and punchy bass, beautifully balanced midrange, and clear, non-piercing high end. Additionally, the inclusion of a specialized Lightning cable alongside standard 3.5mm cables allows iPhone users to bypass dongles and experience a slightly cleaner sound. Despite the superior sound and premium leather aesthetics, the headphones suffer from notable comfort and isolation flaws. Priced between $449 and $499, they feature an on-ear design that presses firmly against the very edges of the ears, leading to physical discomfort after a few hours of continuous listening. The unit's 230g weight also makes them feel a bit heavy, though Audeze attempts to counter this with extra headband padding. Furthermore, the headphones lack active noise cancellation and provide poor passive sound isolation,...

The Audeze Sine on-ear headphones feature a sleek, minimalist industrial design styled by BMW’s Designworks, constructed with premium leather and a matte black metal enclosure. They utilize proprietary 80mm-by-70mm Fluxor planar magnetic drivers to deliver a highly accurate, low-distortion sound profile with tight bass, crisp highs, and a clarified midrange. The headphones stand out by offering a detachable cable system that allows users to connect via a standard 3.5mm plug or a premium Lightning cable featuring an integrated "Cipher" module. This module bypasses Apple's internal hardware to supply a pure 24-bit digital signal to its own amp, DAC, and DSP engine, all manageable through a dedicated iOS equalizer app. The main benefits (pros) of the Audeze Sine include its exceptionally accurate spatial imaging, superb transparency, and a high-fidelity output that rivals dynamic headphones double its price. However, these headphones have distinct drawbacks (cons). The tight, on-ear clamp design can become physically uncomfortable during long listening sessions, particularly for users who wear glasses or have larger ears. Additionally, their brutal sonic transparency makes low-bitrate or poorly mixed audio tracks sound harsh...

Reviews for the Audeze Sine on Head-Fi describe a premium, portable, closed-back on-ear headphone featuring robust aluminum and leather construction, paired with a near-neutral, balanced sound profile, tight bass, and consistent mids. While the optional Cipher Lightning cable improves performance through enhanced DSP and DAC capabilities, the headphone is widely noted for having a narrow soundstage due to its design. Conversely, the primary cons revolve around significant comfort issues, including high clamping force leading to fatigue, alongside a sharp 10kHz treble peak that can cause sibilance and a notably fragile stock cable. These factors highlight a device with impressive planar magnetic sound quality that is heavily compromised by its physical design.

The Headfonics review highlights the Audeze SINE as a premium, down-sized planar magnetic headphone featuring exceptional build quality, utilizing a solid aluminum frame and genuine leather. Sound performance is characterized by a detailed, fast-transient midrange and a disciplined, accurate bass that avoids bleeding into the lower mids. YouTube · Conversely, the SINE suffers from significant ergonomic issues, specifically a heavy 230g weight that hinders long-term portability. Additionally, the review notes underwhelming accessories, specifically the lack of a hard-shelled protective case to accompany the premium, leather-focused design.

The Headfonia review praises the Audeze Sine as a durable, portable on-ear planar headphone that delivers high-end sound, characterized by exceptional midrange clarity, impressive depth, and a tight, linear bass response. Key design advantages include a sturdy build, a practical tangle-free cable, and a surprisingly wide soundstage for its size, making it a compelling, budget-friendly option for the brand. However, the review notes significant ergonomic limitations, specifically an intense clamping force that may cause discomfort, alongside sparse packaging that lacks a hard-shell case. Sonically, the headphone features a lean lower registry that may not satisfy bass-heavy listeners, accompanied by an upper midrange and lower treble that lack the necessary sparkle to fully highlight vocals.