Austrian Audio Hi-X60 Headphone Review

[oratory1990]

This is a somewhat well-behaved entry into that line of products. Take a gander at the little brother, Hi-X55:

The X55 was a wild ride, and I'm glad it's over.

 

[Mr Swing King]

^Yup wild ride indeed. I remember listening to it when it first came out. Literally the only headphone I’ve ever listened to that made me laugh out loud.
I’ve since then contemplated what or who exactly the X55 was directed at…like in what market. Who could use a tuning like that? Aliens perchance…which made my mind wander and I ended up philosophising about the general idea of proclaiming aliens exist on the backbone of an überstrange headphone tuning…which incidentally was the cue for bed. Funny how nonsense creeps up on you. Austrian Audio may have experienced something similar back when they conjured up this madhatter of a can - couldn’t say for sure.

 

[DanTheMan]

I don't really think of a 44mm as being a small headphone driver. The distortion is good for any size driver I'd say. I've used It's a shame the cups aren't bigger and an easier fit. These seem pretty good otherwise--the site says they are supposed to be used in a loud environment and that might be the reason for the tuning?

 

[Postlan]

Hi-X65 (Open Air) are very underrated. They sound similar to the HD600, but I think it’s improved in every aspect. It feels like they are how the HD800 should have been.

 

[solderdude]

The X55 was a wild ride, and I'm glad it's over.

AA is still selling them though ... it ain't really over till all stock is exhausted I reckon... and that may take a while.

 

[MdeVelde]

@amirm
I just auditioned the Austrian Audio Hi-X60 and found something interesting.
It adds a substantial amount of crossfeed/crosstalk!
It must be intentional. (and I bet it's out of phase but didn't test this)

I personally think this is a bad thing. Especially for a headphone marketed for studio use and not informing people they're doing this.
And I wonder how many other brands pull this cheap trick?
I'd like to suggest adding a test for this to your testroutine.

Btw, the way I quickly tested for this was by playing noise and music in the right channel only while I had only the left earcup on my left ear (held the right earcup closed on the side of my head and stuck a finger in my right ear as well though that wasn't really needed to hear the effect).
The crosstalk/crossfeed was quite strong and clearly came from the driver in the left earcup.
I did the same test with my other headphones, cheap and expensive ones and none of them did this.


EDIT: It appears the crosstalk is unintentional and the result of unbalanced cabling. Thank you Solderdude for clearing this up!
My apologies for wrongly posting my suspicions of intent.

 

[solderdude]

sounds like a poor connection on the sleeve (common) or a defective headphone.

 

[MdeVelde]

sounds like a poor connection on the sleeve (common) or a defective headphone.

Sorry English is not my native language. I don't know what a sleeve is.
If it's the minijack connection then I guarantee this is well inserted and connecting, I checked.
Btw source is a Topping DX3 Pro+, it has no crossfeed/crosstalk. And none of my other headphones do this.
And I also checked the other earcup, both L and R have crossfeed/crosstalk.

I happen to work with HRTF's / binaural processing (hence why I noticed and checked).
I'm betting it's a deliberate 'feature'. But no, I'm not certain it's a not defective headphone but this seems unlikely to me given the amplitude and nature of the crossfeed/crosstalk.

edit: Anybody out there with a Hi-X60 that can check if theirs is doing it too?
Or another model by Austrian Audio, or perhaps even an AKG?

EDIT: It appears the crosstalk is unintentional and the result of unbalanced cabling. Thank you Solderdude for clearing this up!
My apologies for wrongly posting my suspicions of intent.

 

[CedarX]

Sorry English is not my native language. I don't know what a sleeve is.
If it's the minijack connection then I guarantee this is well inserted and connecting, I checked.
Btw source is a Topping DX3 Pro+, it has no crossfeed/crosstalk. And none of my other headphones do this.
And I also checked the other earcup, both L and R have crossfeed/crosstalk.

I happen to work with HRTF's / binaural processing (hence why I noticed and checked).
I'm betting it's a deliberate 'feature'. But no, I'm not certain it's a not defective headphone but this seems unlikely to me given the amplitude and nature of the crossfeed/crosstalk.

edit: Anybody out there with a Hi-X60 that can check if theirs is doing it too?
Or another model by Austrian Audio, or perhaps even an AKG?

Checked both Hi-X60 and X65 and indeed, they do have some “built-in” crossfeed.

I checked the cables and the ground return is ~0 Ohm so, it’s not like the old Philips X1 where the common return ground was ~2 Ohm (measured by Tyll Hertsens) inducing some crossfeed.

 

[solderdude]

Interesting ... Now the question pops up if white noise is just attenuated white noise in the not connected channel.
When the return wire cable (connected to sleeve) is near 0ohm then either there is a resistance in the common path (which would widen the stereo image), or there is a mix from L to R with resistors on the hot ends.
That effect, however, would be output resistance dependent if they did something like this.
It would narrow the stereo image.

Sadly the only disassembly video I could find opened up the right cup only. The 'trickery' would be in the left cup.
The low impedance (25ohm) may only require a thin 1ohm wire from the sleeve to a distribution PCB inside to create a -30dB 'stereo enhancement' (phase flip).
Given the distribution PCB in the right cup and the usage of thin internal wiring this scenario might be a possibility.
A 0.3ohm wire would still give a -40dB crosstalk (not crossfeed) which could be audible if one channel does not have signal on it but is unlikely to be audible in music.

M de Velde suggests (former ?) Dutch or Belgian roots.

 

[MdeVelde]

Checked both Hi-X60 and X65 and indeed, they do have some “built-in” crossfeed.

I checked the cables and the ground return is ~0 Ohm so, it’s not like the old Philips X1 where the common return ground was ~2 Ohm (measured by Tyll Hertsens) inducing some crossfeed.

Thank you for checking and validating!

Interesting ... Now the question pops up if white noise is just attenuated white noise in the not connected channel.
When the return wire cable (connected to sleeve) is near 0ohm then either there is a resistor in the common path (which would widen the stereo image) or there is a mix from L to R with resistors on the hot ends.
That effect, however, would be output resistance dependent if they did something like this.
It would narrow the stereo image.

Sadly the only disassembly video I could find opened up the right cup only. The 'trickery' would be in the left cup.
The low impedance (25ohm) may only require a thin 1ohm wire from the sleeve to a distribution PCB inside to create a -30dB 'stereo enhancement' (phase flip).
Given the distribution PCB in the right cup and the usage of thin internal wiring this scenario might be a possibility.
A 0.3ohm wire would still give a -40dB crosstalk (not crossfeed) which could be audible if one channel does not have signal on it but is unlikely to be audible in music.

M de Velde suggests (former ?) Dutch or Belgian roots.

I still have the Hi-X60 at home and will run a test into the nature of the crossfeed/crosstalk later today. I don't have a headphone measurement system so I'll do it with certain constructed test signals. Will report back here.

Yes I from the Netherlands. Just noticed you are as well
I'd be tempted to send you the Hi-X60 for testing and disassembly if you're interested were it not that I have to return these headphones for a refund since they are of no use to me with the crossfeed/crosstalk.

 

[solderdude]

The crosstalk can almost certainly be eliminated.
I reckon it is just a thin wire causing this or deliberate (unlikely) in which case it is a matter of removing the resistor.

I can check it to see what the issue is without opening them up and get it back to you within 2 days or so or when you are close to Gouda swing by or pick it up.
I thought it was a comfortable and nice sounding headphone (a bit 'sharp')

 

[MdeVelde]

The crosstalk can almost certainly be eliminated.
I reckon it is just a thin wire causing this or deliberate (unlikely) in which case it is a matter of removing the resistor.

I can check it to see what the issue is without opening them up and get it back to you within 2 days or so or when you are close to Gouda swing by or pick it up.
I thought it was a comfortable and nice sounding headphone (a bit 'sharp')

Thank you for the offer. But I'm not interested in keeping this headphone in any case.
I really don't like the crossfeed/crosstalk whether it's intentional (as I suspect) or a design flaw. This, combined with the resonances in the top end which were not the easiest to EQ away completely makes me not want to keep the headphone in any case. Not interested in modding, I just need to get some work done with good closed headphones coming weeks.
I also already ordered a new set of closed headphones (Focal Azurys, will arrive tomorrow).
So since I'm returning the Hi-X60 I don't think it's appropriate to further test and disassemble them, it is the property of the shop that sold them in my opinion.

edit: btw I think there's a chance Austrian Audio may have carried over this trick from AKG. If you have any AKG headphones you may want to check them as well?
And it wouldn't surprise me if certain other brands do something in this direction as well. Especially modern noise canceling headphones with DSP.
Would also be good to implement a test for such things in the standard testroutines. ( @amirm )


EDIT: It appears the crosstalk is unintentional and the result of unbalanced cabling. Thank you Solderdude for clearing this up!
My apologies for wrongly posting my suspicions of intent.

 

[solderdude]

I have measured (and opened up) quite a few AKG headphones and none of them have any resistors or intentional crosstalk in them.
I'm also quite certain this would have popped up already and one would have found circuitry inside passive headphones.
Passive real crossfeed requires a lot of parts.
All headphones I ever opened up simply have wires connected directly to the drivers, none of them have had any deliberate resistors in it (which would have unexpected results on different gear).

Most low impedance headphones with a 3-wire cable (single entry) have this in some small way.
4-wire cables eliminate this issue in general being most dual entry and Sennheiser dual and single entry headphones.
All headphones that have the option to be driven balanced should not have this possible issue.

Could also be caused in an amplifier if is connected using thin wires to a PCB b.t.w.
Most HP connectors, however, are soldered directly to a PCB on a ground-plane.

DSP in wireless headphones of course is possible but would most likely be configurable in an app.

 

[MdeVelde]

I have measured (and opened up) quite a few AKG headphones and none of them have any resistors or intentional crosstalk in them.
I'm also quite certain this would have popped up already and one would have found circuitry inside passive headphones.
Passive real crossfeed requires a lot of parts.
All headphones I ever opened up simply have wires connected directly to the drivers, none of them have had any deliberate resistors in it (which would have unexpected results on different gear).

Most low impedance headphones with a 3-wire cable (single entry) have this in some small way.
4-wire cables eliminate this issue in general being most dual entry and Sennheiser dual and single entry headphones.
All headphones that have the option to be driven balanced should not have this possible issue.

Could also be caused in an amplifier if is connected using thin wires to a PCB b.t.w.
Most HP connectors, however, are soldered directly to a PCB on a ground-plane.

DSP in wireless headphones of course is possible but would most likely be configurable in an app.

Aah ok.
If this is indeed the case then I can perhaps expect it with the Azurys as well It is also low impedance and also not wired balanced.
Will check tomorrow.
Though somehow I can't really imagine it's normal for headphones to have crosstalk this badly.

 

[MdeVelde]

Ok I did another quick test.
I played mono pink noise in the right channel with only the left earcup of the Hi-X60 on my left ear (and the right earcup closed against my head).
And then increased the amplitude for the mono pink noise in the left channel from -inf to -36dB and at -36dB I get perfect cancellation of the crossfeed.
So the crossfeed has inverted phase as I suspected.

Now I'm not an electrical engineer but it seems to me my suspicion is now basically proven right.
The Austrian Audio Hi-X60 adds deliberate out of phase crossfeed. And it is not to my knownledge informing anybody about this.
So it seems like a cheap trick to me to get a slightly wider soundstage. And yes, this slightly wider soundstage is audible to me with a lot of music. (I noticed it right away when I put the headphones on for the very first time). This trick however also has downsides in other ways regarding sound quality, no free lunch.

For reference, I used a Topping DX3 Pro+ for this test.
The amp channel crosstalk is -90dB (DAC -137dB), and its output impedance is <0.1 Ohm.

Edit: Btw, I have no idea how they're doing this technically. Or if it is located in the headphones or in the chord/minijack (the minijack case is a bit big).


EDIT: It appears the crosstalk is unintentional and the result of unbalanced cabling. Thank you Solderdude for clearing this up!
My apologies for wrongly posting my suspicions of intent.

 

[solderdude]

I played mono pink noise in the right channel with only the left earcup of the Hi-X60 on my left ear (and the right earcup closed against my head).
And then increased the amplitude for the mono pink noise in the left channel from -inf to -36dB and at -36dB I get perfect cancellation of the crossfeed.
So the crossfeed has inverted phase as I suspected.

Good test which gives lots of info.

Calculations say there is a 0.34ohm resistance between the amplifier output and the cable split in the left cup (a break-out PCB)
Could be common/ground contact (sleeve) of the 6.3 or 3.5 mm contact area or even 6.3 to 3.5 connection (6.3mm adapter on 3.5mm connector) + return wire in the cable + connector losses in the headphone + internal wiring to the split inside in combination with the low impedance of the headphone. These resistances can all add up.
It is not impossible a different cable could make a difference here.

This does not seem much but lightly increases (widens) the stereo image.
Mono signals are attenuated 0.11dB where stereo information is widened.

There are NO extra components used to do this in a deliberate way.

So clearly not deliberate and certainly not crossfeed either but (I reckon) un-intentional crosstalk.

It is not a 'trick' but merely a downside of 3-wire headphone cables,

 

[MdeVelde]

Good test which gives lots of info.

Calculations say there is a 0.34ohm resistance between the amplifier output and the cable split in the left cup (a break-out PCB)
Could be common/ground contact (sleeve) of the 6.3 or 3.5 mm contact area or even 6.3 to 3.5 connection (6.3mm adapter on 3.5mm connector) + return wire in the cable + connector losses in the headphone + internal wiring to the split inside in combination with the low impedance of the headphone. These resistances can all add up.
It is not impossible a different cable could make a difference here.

This does not seem much but lightly increases (widens) the stereo image.
Mono signals are attenuated 0.11dB where stereo information is widened.

There are NO extra components used to do this in a deliberate way.

So clearly not deliberate and certainly not crossfeed either but (I reckon) un-intentional crosstalk.

It is not a 'trick' but merely a downside of 3-wire headphone cables,

Oh really.
Thank you for the information and my apologies for posting my suspicion of deliberate intent.
Never would have guessed one can get un-intentional out of phase crosstalk.
I'll edit my previous messages to reflect my error in my accusations.

And I guess I'll probably get the same problem then with the Azurys tomorrow..
It's turning out to be quite a search to find a closed back headphone for my specific purpose that does everything right.

 

[solderdude]

Could be... but if the cable is lower resistance the effect could be much smaller, say -50dB or so or lower and then be inaudible.

Did you try the X60 with the 3m and the 1.2m cable ?
If the effect is the same then the 'secret' lies in the resistance of the cable in the cup.

Just make sure to use the cable without the mic as there are 2 different constructions.
Those cables are short so resistance could be lower.
One has the sleeve as common and the second ring for mic/remote where the other standard is the second ring is common and sleeve is the mic/remote.

You should read the bottom part of the AQ NightHawk review.

AudioQuest NightHawk

back to measurements home published: Mar-03-2016, updated: Jul-11-2021 NO SMOOTHING is applied to the shown plots. Most measurement sites have some smoothing applied which ‘irons flat’ …

diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com

AQ being a cable manufacturer pushing silver cables just see what I found out and was deliberate.
You'll love this...

Your suggestion to add check cables for resistance is not such a bad idea as is testing for crosstalk.
Now... I only need to get this in my testing routine.

 

[MdeVelde]

Could be... but if the cable is lower resistance the effect could be much smaller, say -50dB or so or lower and then be inaudible.

Did you try the X60 with the 3m and the 1.2m cable ?
If the effect is the same then the 'secret' lies in the resistance of the cable in the cup.

Just make sure to use the cable without the mic as there are 2 different constructions.
Those cables are short so resistance could be lower.
One has the sleeve as common and the second ring for mic/remote where the other standard is the second ring is common and sleeve is the mic/remote.

You should read the bottom part of the AQ NightHawk review.

AudioQuest NightHawk

back to measurements home published: Mar-03-2016, updated: Jul-11-2021 NO SMOOTHING is applied to the shown plots. Most measurement sites have some smoothing applied which ‘irons flat’ …

diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com

AQ being a cable manufacturer pushing silver cables just see what I found out and was deliberate.
You'll love this...

Your suggestion to add check cables for resistance is not such a bad idea as is testing for crosstalk.
Now... I only need to get this in my testing routine.

Aah yes I used the 1.2m cable and just redid the test with the 3m cable and it got worse. Now it takes -28.5dB to cancel the crosstalk.
Btw, I assumed that my headphone amp having a <0.1Ohm resistance is always a good thing. Does it matter in this case? If so would it get worse with a higher output impedance of the amp?

Fun to read the AQ NightHawk cable review indeed
Big fan of your website btw!

If it's ok I'll send you a PM to ask for advice on which closed back headphone to try for my purpose.