Meze Liric II Review

March 7, 2024 9:00 am

It’s been a while since the release of the Liric, and since then Meze has continued to refine its patented Isodynamic planar design. This gives the newest version of the Liric a lot to live up to. The original is still one of the best closed-back headphones you can get, accompanied by there Focal Stellia and Dan Clark Audio E3. The Liric II seems very promising, but just how much does it change from the original?

What You Get

Liric II Isodynamic headphones
Carrying case
Leather drawstring pouch
3.5mm standard cable
4.4mm balanced copper premium cable
Quarter-inch adapter
Airplane adapter

Look & Feel

Almost everything about the construction of the original Liric is kept unchanged except for the new wood paneling. These wood plates are made from striped ebony, and it gives the Liric II an even more premium look. What I appreciate the most about this change is how subtle the new wood paneling comes across. It makes the design pop a bit more than the previous version, but also fits with the Liric’s other aspects, like its frame.

With the Liric II, Meze has also created a way to potentially release new versions of these headphones with new paneling with different materials and colorations in the future. Since the basic structure of the headphones remains intact, that means they should have the same level of comfort. You can expect the same leather ear pads from the first Liric. They’ll be the same size, and you can switch them out with ease with its simple magnets. Natural isolation is easily achievable thanks to its great seal.

Design

The MZ4 isodynamic driver from Rinaro has been a staple for Meze’s open-back headphones and carries it over for the closed-back Liric. With the Liric II, Meze refines and innovates this driver. What stays the same is the dual-driver system, which combines spiral and switchback voice coils in its diaphragm. This is how the headphones achieve their accuracy with such purity, letting the acoustic waves arrive naturally to your ears. What’s new here is the Phase-X system, which has more to do with how the soundstage and imaging are presented in the Liric II. This system was implemented by Rinaro to combat the non-linearity issues that some closed-back headphones have. In effect, Phase X aims to add a more immersive spatial element to the Liric II, helped by faster transient decay and accurate phasing.

Soundstage

Closed-back headphones rarely reach the heights that open-back headphones even in this price bracket. The original Liric teeters on the edge of giving you that completely open headspace, supplying width and accurate placement. The Liric II takes everything further and opens with even more depth and dimension. The first thing that stood out to me was the separation and how much room each sound had in the mix. Each sound is placed accurately and feels completely individualized in its own space. Along with its holographic layering, this gives the Liric II a soundstage where everything is super easy to localize.

Its imaging gives each instrument an effect of a great amount of scale, making the appearance of each track a bubble of sound around your head. This is one of the few times that a closed-back headphone accomplishes the feeling that each sound has an origin that it’s blossoming from. What the Liric II does that I find most impressive, is that it distinguishes the proper angle the sounds are coming from. Some tracks have instruments sitting slightly above your ears, shooting down on you diagonally. The Liric II makes it so easy to wrap around your head, putting you in the middle of the sound field. It paints an incredibly immersive sonic environment, bringing one of the best soundstages you can hear on a closed-back headphone.

Low End

The original Liric possessed a pointed mid-bass that established good warmth but was very dominant. You don’t lose that warmth here, but the lows are a lot more balanced this time around. It features a ton of depth, but the body of the sound feels more reserved. It’s like the frequencies are more spaced out in the lows. While the bass might not come together with a consistent shape, you’ll still find satisfying textures and detail here. You can feel every vibration like a smooth layer of gravel underneath the sound. It does a great job establishing a solid foundation, but the power of it is brought to more even ground.

Mids

With most genres, the midrange comes across as very relaxed, but still able to provide sleek transparency. They’re given an equal drive throughout their response, and instruments have a lively display. Its timbre feels leveled though, rarely breaking out with much of an attack. This didn’t bother me at all, as I was consistently enwrapped in the Liric’s flavorfully detailed presentation. Maybe a bit more bite on certain notes would have given the instruments more physicality, but the Liric II provides enough room for sound elements to breathe and showcase depth. Tracks with very crisp vocals are layered with underlining textures that give them more emphasis, which is more pointed in the mid-treble.

Highs

Everything about the high-frequency content on the Liric II shows much character. It’s the kind of response that will make you blink when a track hits hard enough up there, like a detailed snare. It’s a highly expressive timbre that’s never harsh but doesn’t shy away from punctual details. This treble adds a ton of height to the mix, and it can shower over your head with sparks of excitement. It snaps and dissipates with a heightened tail, ringing out realistically while preserving its rich, sparkly texture. It feels like each instrument has a distinct tick that is accentuated by these lush high frequencies, and it gives the Liric II so much personality.

Summary

In terms of premium closed-back headphones, I rate the Liric highly. The Liric II pointed at the few faults it had, and completely flipped them around, all while adding new technology that expanded its abilities for a better sound. Meze didn’t have to change much about its build, but the Liric II adds a new character to its design in a way that’s more understated and artistic. All of these attributes combined make the Meze Liric II nothing short of one of the best closed-back headphones around.