Absolutely beautiful. - Meze Audio 99 Classics
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- Опубліковано 5 лип 2024
- Thanks to Meze for sponsoring this video! Meze is hooking our audience up with 20% off the 99Classics in both gold and silver, PLUS FREE SHIPPING. Just use code shortcircuit20 at: lmg.gg/99classics
We had Adam sit down with Meze Audio’s 99 Classics headphones. Their wood design is stylish and serviceable, but how do they sound?
Purchases made through some store links may provide some compensation to Linus Media Group.
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CHAPTERS
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0:00 Intro
1:18 What's in the Box
2:57 Reading the Manual
4:25 Build and Serviceability
5:30 Noise Cancellation and Comfort
6:25 Taking a Listen
7:45 Labs
9:54 At the End of the Day - Наука та технологія
An Ausy loud youtuber already told us about these
the Dankest account
These were well known long before Dankpods was even a thing.
@@scorpioassmodeusgtx1811 😑 great.... that's totally what this comment was saying
Yeah they've been ripping off his videos. He went to LTX so I know they know his content
Yeah I was like "Didn't they already do a video on these?" - "Aaaahhh, It was the drummy, nuggets-abusing Aussie"
If you've seen Meze 99 classic measurments in the past, and remember it having a lot more bass bloat that extended to 300hz, at the end of 2022, the 99 classics were updated with new internals and a new rubber gasket between the wood cup and metal headband, that sealed the cup better. This revision is based on the same design as the 109. This better sealed cup changed the tuning a bit and reduced the amount of bass bloat. If you remove that rubber seal, the bass returns to the older, more bloated sound of older models. I made a video on this topic, as well i contacted meze to confirm that they did made a silent build revision.
Are the parts upgradable? I'm interested in bringing my Mezes up do date.
@patriotbarrow the parts have different mounting holes, and also different grooves in the wood cups for mounting and tuning
Do you happen to know if this update extends to the Neos/Noirs? I've been looking to get a pair of Mezes but the 109s/99 classics are a bit out of my budget, and I've heard mixed things about the cheaper two.
@@apocryptia8734 I'm not 100% sure. But I have heard from others that the Neo sounds better now as well. The noire should be the same as the 99.
Silent revisions should not be a thing IMO.
That microphone sounds like what a person would hear during a visit to a proctologist, as the doctor have his head shoved deep inside a person's colon.
I have the 99 neo (it uses the same cable/microphone) and it sounds way better than that, they must have dome something wrong while recording.
Anyone else notice the cockroach walking up the lamp @8:25?
Yeah... burn in really isn't a thing that people need to worry about for headphones and most loudspeakers (there may be some exceptions for certain larger transducers). Any sort of driver settling would be achieved within a few hundred oscillations (or a few seconds of testing during production), and its more something that old school audiophiles believe in, but many on the more audio science side of the community feel its just a way to use up your return window.
You're more likely to hear a difference from your brain normalizing to the different sound signature, as well as from pad wear changing the sound and seal you achieve while wearing them
Good catch on the "maybe some larger transducers" comment, because I know my subs (Sundown, both SA-8v3 and U-15v2) both opened up greatly with some proverbial warning up... same though with my Modhouse Argon's....then again, I've had lesser quality audio not need anything, and some which have gotten slightly worse with use.
@johnnygeorgopoulos4072 mostly going off of Oratory1990 who is an acoustic engineer thats quite active in the audio community. He says from an engineering standpoint, there isn't much to support the claims of burn in changing a driver's performance for headphones and most speakers as per most audiophile claims. But there have been some cases where larger loudspeakers that have a complex spider, or silicone materials do show a measurable difference after it has been used or warmed up
Brain burn-in is the most powerful form of burn-in :)
burn ins are a great way for stores to scam their customers to use up the return window for sure. I got duped into that, but thankfully they were just cheap KZs.
I'll agree that burn in sounds false. But I will note that older speakers that have been sitting a while benefit greatly from a few minutes of higher volume payback. Kinda opens up the sound and makes it less tinny/bland.
LTT ought to give Dankpods a call. Get him in the studio to do a whole video on audiophile stuff.
Doesn't LTT have their own audiophiles though? Like Dan?
@@CtuchikYeah but it wouldn’t be hard to get ahold of Dank as he is one of like 2 creators on floatplane
@@Ctuchik yeah, but collabs are always good fun. Just look at the one with electroboom.
Yes
Please
2:58 I appreciate you calling them out on this despite it being a sponsored video
Did anyone realize, there is a cockroach climbing the middle leg of the light fixture on the right? @8:26 ?
Only since you pointed it out. Come on Linus. Creative direct those roaches out of the studio
You have zero clue that it's a cockroach. Lol. Could be any bug.
Anybody else notice the bug that kept going up and down the legs of the lamp in the background?
Got a set of Neos last year around Black Friday. Been having a blast with them ever since.
I have owned a pair of these since this spring, so roughly 6 months.
I have no physical wear or damage so far, despite not babying these. I have worn them around the house for chores, taken short naps with them (I would not recommend sleeping with them), and worn them for light yard work.
For sound signature, they are definitely coloured. While they are very fun to listen to, they are certainly not reference headphones. The cables are nice, even though the top silicone part is noisy in specific situations.
They come with the shorter cable with the inline mic and controls. The inline controls leave much to be desired. It looks and feels like a long control module, similar to the Apple earpods with volume, play/pause, mic, etc. This is basically one big silicone button that is only in the middle of this much longer, awkward feeling "button". I have not gotten anything more than play/pause/next to work. Triple tap for previous has not worked, and I cannot call the assistant with them. The mic quality is pretty good, but nothing impressive. I'm not sure what they recorded these on. It doesn't sound like that over phone-calls.
They are *so* comfortable. The self-adjusting headband is very similar to AKG's offerings, and the earpads are very soft and replaceable with different sizes, and are a standard shape so you can find others online. They feel so durable with the steel headband, brass couplings, and wood cups. They are repairable, with Meze making parts available (through customer supprt, so meh) and they use similar screws throughout making user repair easy.
I don't really have many gripes about them. Sitting here wearing my Grado SR80Es trying to think of what I don't like. I guess it's just that they're closed backs, but.... they're closed backs, sooo. They are precise, but not accurate so I can hear a lot of detail, but not like my Grados.
Which Grado you have?
“And if you didn’t like it, tell your enemies” got me. Lol
I've been rocking a pair of Meze 99 Classics since 2017 and I love then every single day
The thing about the wood is something that I feel is actually kind of important. Trees don't live forever, for a walnut tree you're typically looking at 150-250 years, they're not coastal redwoods that can live for millennia. Part of good forest management is knowing when to cut down an old tree to make room for new growth, and it seems like that's what they're trying to practise with that policy
I've been wanting a pair of neo's for a bit since they have the same drivers as these but wanted to wait for my old headphones to break. This sale gave me the excuse to splash that bit extra for the classic's.
8:28 What does Mr. Roach climbing on the lamp think? 😆
At 8:25 you can see bug climbing up the lamp pole. Time for an exterminator.
I love this type of headband, I used AKG headphones for years now and it's just the best way for me regarding comfort, durability and fixation.
Been using these for the past 2-3 years. Been a great buy in my opinion.
I have the empyrean and the build quality of meze is amazing their customer support is also excellent . All their headphones are fully repaiable and they will send you parts for free if they minor like screws, gaskets etc
The MASSDROP X MEZE 99 NOIR is identical sounding for $179. Drop themselves say on their website that they kept everything the same with the sound. I just ordered them.
Idea: Compare the "ultimate premium" headsets throughout the ages. What's the *real* difference between the highest quality in the 80s, 90s, etc., until now?
Koss has been constant, and in the 90s hd 600 lineup took over
the biggest difference is convenience, back in the 80s you could already get amazing sounding headphones but you'd need to live in a studio to run them. nowadays you usually just need a bluetooth connection
Its funny our newest high end phones blow the 70 80 and 90s away but our mid price headphones sound like trash compared to the older ones. That is pretty much the same thing with all other speakers too
@@KillaMilla0513 it's almost like the biggest companies make the worst crap
@Suzumi-kun crap products for alot more money and a lot less life. Got to love it
that bounce visual effect was on point 100%
I got the Meze 99 Noir's, which are basically the Massdrop branded version of the Classics, but for $100 less. Honestly they are great for the price. Super comfortable and nice sounding to most people. That first part is particularly important since I came from a pair of M40X's that I couldn't wear for more than 1h without the headband hurting my head
It's quite less when they are on sale. I got my pair for $180. Sure, I would have liked to have gotten the walnut and gold design but for less than $200 these are a steal. They are my favorite pair to use; not that I have used many.
I hate the term good for the price. Are they good or not?
@@madd5Value is something nearly everyone considers in every purchase.
If you're looking for a cost-no-object headphone, this isn't it.
I do appreciate your pedantism around "good for the price" but you don't specify what "good means". Yes they sound "good".
Does "good" mean... spectacular? Life-changing? Meh, they're good?
Hysterical.
@@madd5 In absolute terms, yes, they are good. But consumer products don't exist in a vacuum and usually people are looking to get the most value in a certain price range
@@madd5you don't make sense 😂😂😂
Just watching this with my 99 classics
no one is gonna mention the bug crawling up the lamp at 8:25? dang
The mic picking up the AC ia a massive problem, don't ignore it, it should have a high-pass filter. most offices, have AC's you don't want your microphone to pick-up that thing.
the office I work at has an AC that's barely audible so idk what ancient place you work in
@@Suzumi-kun the office at ltt is clearly audible. So there is that
These would go good with The all wood setup 😊
I bought my meze 99 classics about 3 years ago! I bought large sheepskin brainwavz Earpads that make them more comfortable and add more spacious soundstage!
I enjoyed the explanation about the technical details
Nice touch regarding the sounds the mic fails more at
What rig are you guys using again? Would be nice if you could add it to your graphs please.
B&K 5128
I'd love for you to get your hands on the Meze 109 Pros as well, preferably the Primal version
I hope this was filmed before November.
editing is awesome!
08:23 - THERE IS A BUG ON THE LAMP
Am I the only one that saw the bug climbing up the lamp?
I'm wearing some right now.
When I first saw this video in my feed, the first thing that popped into my head was "What year is it?"
"no one want's their lobes pushed"
Ferengi would beg to differ...
I got my 99 Classics 4 years ago back when the price was lower (and also on special) for I think AUD250? They've been generally excellent since then! My only complaint is that the leather on the ear cushions has since started to flake off but they're no less comfortable or good sounding to me for that.
earpads that only starts flaking after 4 years? thats pretty good
The microphone sounds like Tesco headset from 15 years ago.
Please do more audiophile stuff LTT !
I have the gold version
Its amazing
Zenfone spotted. It's so nice to have a 3.5mm jack in your phone:-)
3:29 got a bug problem?
These are fantastic /w Fiio BTR5.
Also, aftermarket earpads dial back the bass, which I found to be a bit much.
I believe meze sells microfiber ear cups.
why not use EQ to correct the Bass?
the fiio audio nugget 😲
I love my btr5 2021 with the 770 pro studio (80ohms). I am looking forward to the black Friday sale to maybe upgrade the fiio but I wonder if the setup even needs andl upgrade
@@encelade8616a fellow DankPods fan in the wild
8:26 three's a cockroach on the lamp
any1 else notice the bug crarling up the lamp? wtf was it? @8.24
Our AC came so ignore that... Why would you not redo the test?
Burn in actually is a thing on planars just a heads up
Nice, I have these
Me and my good friend split for a pair of these for fun because they were cheap compared to what we usually listen to. He liked them and found them fun every now and then. I really dislike them. Too much muddy base and no air to the trible. It also sounds to me to be a bit of a slow driver. But for bass heads this would be the dream
Nothing against Adam, but this felt very very uninspired and just not useful as a review or showcase
there is a bug at 8:24
on the lamp post in the back xD
whats the float value on this wood pattern lol
6:52 i don't know what device you used to record this, but the microphone sounds way better than this even when plugged into my laptop.
Let Dan do the audiophile reviews
Dan doesn't like headphones all that much.
Also i most point out, this is not a review its a showcase as they make clear
dan is a busy person ! also adam does a great job imo
@@a3-radiothey call it a show case but cover all 5he shit they would in a review and even give a conclusion. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck....
How would these compare to Fidelio X2? (less than half the cost)
I've owned both and the x2s are better. The 99s are very very dark sounding. They are recessed absolutely everywhere except for the bass region, whereas the x2s have pronounced highs and lows. The 99s are louder in the bass (and if I remember correctly they also reach lower) than the x2s but the x2s are way more detailed and punchy. For mids they are both recessed compared to their contemporaries from the sennheiser 6 series, but the noir is way darker through the mids compared to the x2s. The x2s have a very metallic timbre through the mids (which is their weakest point imo), while the 99s beat them for both detail and timbre in that region, likely due to the 5k spike. For highs the x2s were both clearer and better detailed. They are way more present while the 99s were very recessed. The x2s are built like a brick shithouse where the 99s are much more delicate. Both are well designed, but the x2s are much more durable while the 99s feel more premium.
I should also note that I've had issues with the drivers in the 99s completely shitting the bed on bassy tracks, especially ones with a lot of complexity. Under heavy bass, even if I'm not pushing them hard, they will occasionally start distorting really really badly across the entire frequency range. My best guess is that it's the structure of the light weight driver material deforming under the strain of trying to maintain its heavy bass response tuning while still being light enough to produce detail in the highs. It happens even under light to moderate power.
I've had those for 5 years and exept for the original earpads that come with them they are perfect in everyway.
Haha tell me about it, just replaced mine today because they peeled so much
Lol ye I had to replace my earpads at some point also on the neos, but the build quality is outstanding, I dropped this thing many times and its still completely fine
my ear pads wore out after like 1,5 years which is slower than my bose qc35 earpads used to wear out. got aftermarket leather replacements which are really nice.
@@doobyscoowhat did you get? I need to replace mine
I just took some off an old Hyper X headset I had from years ago. They don't fit the best though so it's a short term solution. I've heard brainwaivz HM5 pads are pretty good replacements though and its what I think I'm going to go for.@@AljosaAsanovic
"burn in" is the average time for a person to get used to the sound of the headphones
How is wood more 'premium' than metal?
in the case of audio products, it is. Because wood reverberates, and gives the audio device it’s tone.
THANKS, JOSH!
Cool !
8:23 am I the only one staring at that unusually large roach on the lamp
Enjoy it! - a Romanian sub
LTT now has audio testing thingies. Maybe they can have a look at the burn in claim.
maybe, but rtings is very well regarded for their technical tests so unless LTT somehow does find some difference they aren't adding anything new to the conversation.
They literally did, they showed graphs from 0 hours to 120 and they were the same
The old meze is just beats by dre in a fance shell
We got thick linus now
had this for 2 years now, the clamping force is killing me, idk what to do, every day it hurts, it's been years.
"Killing me" and "using it for TWO YEARS". Buy another headphone, jesus christ lol
@@TheNerogarden I'm deep into sunk cost
@@lynxlagoon you know you can unbend the steel headband to reduce the clamping force?
@@Chipsaru I'm scared I might break it
$300....big oof, especially when something like the $199 hd6xx is out there(I've seen $179 last week). I don't think these look that nice either😂😂
Greetings from Romania 🇷🇴
Look at the lamp leg at 2:30
Most audiophiles also do CrossFit and live the vegan life but get headaches trying to figure out which one to tell you about first.
Aren't trees at the end of their lifecycle really important for most ecosystems? I thought removing those were worse than removing younger trees.
My AKG 240s were hard to drive on cheap Xiaomis and Huaweis. Yet my S10e was fine with them. And i'm telling about 1yr cheap phones vs almost 5yr old "cheap" premium.
8:24 anyone else notice the giant bug on the lamp on the right???
Review the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless please.
Does anyone else notice the "bug" crawling down the lamp throughout the video?
1:40 Jack or PLUG?
Should test the frequency response again after forty hours of crab rave.
the only thing i think of when i see mezes is dankpods
I have a Meze Liric and they're incredible. As a Romanian, I enjoy them even more.
8:24 bug alert
0:17 So only the outer ear cup plates are wood. Everything else is plastic and metal like the so called non-premium materials Adam mentioned.
I wish there was a bit more talk about your subjective take on the sound quality, but other than that, good video.
Are they living in 1990 Wtf the Meze 109 would've made way more sense
These "green" companies always make me laugh. "The trees we used were at the end of their life cycle so done get mad at us tree huggers, but we are gona use PU leather instead of environmentally friendly real leather as well".
There is hardly any difference between the Classics and the Neo, in fact a small issue in the bass has been fixed in the Neo. Unless you REALLY want Walnut get the 99 Neo. I have a pair and they sound amazing (I like a warm sound). They punch above their weight. Though if you are in the US the free shipping plus the discount would be enough to still make the Classics worth getting.
Overall I found the video somewhat underwhelming. The presenter could have gone through some more different music. And the Fiio he was using does in fact have the balanced output so…..
Burn in isn't a thing, but people rating familiar things as more pleasing definitely is.
You are much more likely to say you like the sound after hearing it for 40 hours as opposed to at first, but it has nothing to do with what's outside your ears, just what's between them.
What exactly is the end of a trees life cycle?
Wood. About time. CNC can cut those faster and cheaper than any injection molded crap can be done on a less than 'everyone will need one' scale.
8:25 ANYONE ELSE see that BUG!
Burn in depends A LOT on the product. For instance, I've had headphones that I didn't hear the difference on, and others that was pretty easy to hear the difference on. On subwoofers, I've had a car sub that was NIGHT AND DAY difference, but only after two hours. I was so close to change it out after the first hour, but it completely turned on me.
Not all products sound better from burn in / don't need it. But some _really_ do.
hey @dankpods ,any opinion?
Mic aint bad
I literally own this exact pair of headphones and they are the best headphones I've ever used and it's not even close. They are spectacular!
There was a spider crawling up the lamp post around 8:35 then it vanished. Hope yall are okay.....
I love my 99 Neo's. Running them balanced is required.
300+ dollars is sure past what i'm willing to blow on a headset.
some headphones may benefit from burn in in "strange ways". some of mine need to flex their muscles for 10-15 minutes if i didn't use them for maybe a month before sounding a 100% while some IEM are tuned to sound good after a few hours of actual use so their filters can absorb "moisture and dirt" thus sounding less tinny