This is a review and detailed measurements of the Audeze SINE closed-back, on-ear planar magnetic headphone. It is on kind loan from a member. I think it came out back in 2016 (?) and cost US $450 then. Seems to be discontinued now.
The metal and soft material feel good in hand but don't look luxurious:
Specialized angle connectors are used to mate to a short and flat cable. Cable seems to have silicone insulation that keeps it from tangling and feels good in hand.
Being a small headphone, it is rather lightweight:
The cup is odd-sized so I did not try to measure its dimensions.
Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by definition are approximate and variable so don't be surprised if other measurements even if performed with the same fixtures as mine, differ in end results. Protocols vary such as headband pressure and averaging (which I don't do). As you will see, I confirm the approximate accuracy of the measurements using Equalization and listening tests. Ultimately headphone measurements are less exact than speakers mostly in bass and above a few kilohertz so keep that in mind as you read these tests. If you think you have an exact idea of a headphone performance, you are likely wrong!
Fitment on the fixture was Challenging. The cups don't cover the artificial ear much so it is a crap shoot as far as seal you get and its impact on bass response.
Audeze SINE Measurements
Let's start with our usual frequency response:
As noted, bass response is not reliable as there is no way to achieve a seal on the fixture. Past that though, we have surprisingly good compliance with our target up to 3 kHz. This should bode well for out of box sound. Past that we have a dip and that is about it.
Relative response that is better to use to develop EQ reflects the same:
Distortion in bass is typical but there is also something amiss where we unfortunately have a response hole:
I don't mind distortion were we have excess energy as post EQ, that gets better. Here it will be the opposite. Fortunately the frequency is rather high so the impact won't be too bad.
Group delay is very clean showing little interference:
Planar magnetic headphones usually have a flat response so I was surprised to see a rise here:
Finally, here is the sensitivity:
Audeze SINE Listening Tests and Equalization
Story of measurements directly translate into listening results. We no EQ the sound is pleasant but with little bass and high frequency energy. You could certainly listen this way and be OK. But "OK" is not in our vocabulary so out came the EQ tool:
Now there was decent amount of bass and sparkle in highs. Spatial qualities were also lifted and fun to notice from time to time.
Conclusions
Objective faults of this headphone is just limited to two areas that were easy to fix with equalization. Many headphones that deviate from the target do so in such extreme ways that I can't listen to them without EQ. Not so with SINE. It gets a large portion of the spectrum right. You do need EQ however to create a true hi-fi experience out of it.
Being discontinued, it is not a headphone I would go and chase on used market to buy. If you have it, you can use the above EQ to make it sound better (and refine it as needed for your taste).
----------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
The metal and soft material feel good in hand but don't look luxurious:
Specialized angle connectors are used to mate to a short and flat cable. Cable seems to have silicone insulation that keeps it from tangling and feels good in hand.
Being a small headphone, it is rather lightweight:
The cup is odd-sized so I did not try to measure its dimensions.
Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by definition are approximate and variable so don't be surprised if other measurements even if performed with the same fixtures as mine, differ in end results. Protocols vary such as headband pressure and averaging (which I don't do). As you will see, I confirm the approximate accuracy of the measurements using Equalization and listening tests. Ultimately headphone measurements are less exact than speakers mostly in bass and above a few kilohertz so keep that in mind as you read these tests. If you think you have an exact idea of a headphone performance, you are likely wrong!
Fitment on the fixture was Challenging. The cups don't cover the artificial ear much so it is a crap shoot as far as seal you get and its impact on bass response.
Audeze SINE Measurements
Let's start with our usual frequency response:
As noted, bass response is not reliable as there is no way to achieve a seal on the fixture. Past that though, we have surprisingly good compliance with our target up to 3 kHz. This should bode well for out of box sound. Past that we have a dip and that is about it.
Relative response that is better to use to develop EQ reflects the same:
Distortion in bass is typical but there is also something amiss where we unfortunately have a response hole:
I don't mind distortion were we have excess energy as post EQ, that gets better. Here it will be the opposite. Fortunately the frequency is rather high so the impact won't be too bad.
Group delay is very clean showing little interference:
Planar magnetic headphones usually have a flat response so I was surprised to see a rise here:
Finally, here is the sensitivity:
Audeze SINE Listening Tests and Equalization
Story of measurements directly translate into listening results. We no EQ the sound is pleasant but with little bass and high frequency energy. You could certainly listen this way and be OK. But "OK" is not in our vocabulary so out came the EQ tool:
Now there was decent amount of bass and sparkle in highs. Spatial qualities were also lifted and fun to notice from time to time.
Conclusions
Objective faults of this headphone is just limited to two areas that were easy to fix with equalization. Many headphones that deviate from the target do so in such extreme ways that I can't listen to them without EQ. Not so with SINE. It gets a large portion of the spectrum right. You do need EQ however to create a true hi-fi experience out of it.
Being discontinued, it is not a headphone I would go and chase on used market to buy. If you have it, you can use the above EQ to make it sound better (and refine it as needed for your taste).
----------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
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