Over-Ear
Meze Empyrean Ii
84Great
$2999
Full review dataMeze Empyrean Ii vs STAX SR-X9000: which should you buy?
On aggregated review scores the STAX SR-X9000 comes out ahead with an HearWiki score of 88. The full breakdown - sub-scores, specs and what reviewers actually said - is below.
Our pick: STAX SR-X9000 - Outstanding overall at around $5050.
Over-Ear
STAX SR-X9000
88Outstanding
$5050
Full review dataScore breakdown
Each axis is a 0–10 blend of what reviewers scored, not a lab measurement.
Meze Empyrean Ii
Sound9.0
Value6.0
STAX SR-X9000
Sound9.5
Value5.0
Specifications
| Spec | Meze Empyrean Ii | STAX SR-X9000 |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Over-Ear | Over-Ear |
| Price (USD) | $2999 | $5050 |
| HearWiki score | 84 / 100 · Great | 88 / 100 · Outstanding |
| Released | 2023 | 2021 |
| Audio | ||
| Driver | planar | electrostatic |
| Driver size | 102 mm | - |
| Drivers per side | 1 | 2 |
| Frequency response | 8Hz-110kHz | 5Hz-42,000Hz |
| Impedance | 32 Ω | 145000 Ω |
| Sensitivity | 90 dB/mW | - |
| Sensitivity (dB/Vrms) | 105 | - |
| Wireless | ||
| Bluetooth | none | - |
| Multipoint pairing | No | No |
| Battery | ||
| Wireless charging | No | - |
| Features | ||
| Active noise cancelling | No | No |
| ANC type | none | - |
| Transparency mode | No | - |
| Companion app | No | - |
| Custom EQ | No | - |
| Wear detection | No | - |
| Controls | none | - |
| Voice assistant | none | - |
| Design | ||
| Weight | 385 g | 432 g |
| Water resistance | none | - |
| Detachable cable | Yes | - |
| USB-C | No | - |
| Balanced connection | Yes | - |
What reviewers said
Meze Empyrean Ii
The Meze Empyrean II is a premium open-back planar headphone that refines the original's character with a more accurate and engaging sound, appealing to a wider audience. It impresses with its build quality, comfort, and technical performance, though its treble can be sharp and its dynamics slightly constrained, while the open-back design offers no isolation. It is a wired-only, non-wireless flagship that excels in spaciousness and musicality but requires a quiet environment and a capable amplifier to shine.
- Pro:Excellent build quality and premium materials
- Pro:Very comfortable for long listening sessions
- Pro:Engaging, musical sound with wide soundstage
- Con:Upper treble can be bright or harsh at times
- Con:Dynamics feel somewhat restrained or polite
- Con:Open-back design leaks sound and offers no isolation
STAX SR-X9000
The STAX SR-X9000 is a top-tier electrostatic headphone that excels at revealing fine detail, ambient cues, and instrumental nuance, delivering an exceptionally transparent and spacious soundstage. It offers outstanding speed, transient response, and realism, making it ideal for classical and spatially demanding music. However, it requires a dedicated energizer/driver unit, pushing the total system cost far beyond the already steep headphone price.
- Pro:Exceptional detail retrieval and transparency
- Pro:Huge, three-dimensional soundstage with precise imaging
- Pro:Fast transient response and realistic timbre
- Con:Requires separate electrostatic driver unit
- Con:Very high total system cost
- Con:No noise cancellation or wireless convenience
Summaries are AI-condensed and paraphrased from published reviews and specs - not original hands-on testing. More on our method.
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