Abyss JOAL Headphone Review

February 12, 2025 5:30 pm

Abyss has long had an eye on shaking up the world of high-end audio. With the AB-1266 Phi TC and Diana range, their headphones have become staples for the modern audiophile. But with their foothold in the high-end space, the New York-based company challenged themselves to develop a product in a more competitive price bracket. The Abyss JOAL headphones (short for jack of all listening) has two goals. 1) to serve as an entry-point into Abyss’s product line and sonic capabilities. 2) to faithfully reproduce music of all genres in a musical and detailed manner. Those are some lofty ambitions. So, at $1,895, does the JOAL succeed in its mission? Let’s find out in this review.

Unboxing the Abyss JOAL headphones:

Abyss JOAL Headphones
Pillow Top Ultrasuede Ear Pads (attached)
Black Protective Shell case with velvet interior
2 meter (6.6 ft) length premium 16 core super soft cable with 4.4 mm plug
Quick start instruction card

Build:

Abyss headphones are always exquisitely built. Crafted in the USA at their New York facility, the JOAL references the overall design language of the Diana series. However, there are some unique features that give the JOAL its own distinct feel as well. The most obvious changes are in the grills and ear pads. The grills are constructed with wavy lines that hover over the back of the ear cup. This is different from the Abyss Diana, which uses perforations in the ear cups to dissipate air. Abyss employs their new “pillow top ultrasuede ear pads” which attach magnetically, and can be swapped out for other material ear pads such as hybrid suede, lambskin, and bass ported options.

I’ll note here that the JOAL is compatible with ear pads and cables made for the Diana. On that note, I’ll also mention that the JOAL introduces a new cable, a 2 meter 16-core super soft OFC copper alloy headphone cable that terminates with a 4.4mm balanced plug. I personally like this new cable for its more fluid and responsive nature, and I found its connector points to be solid, even if they are budget-minded.

At 390 grams with the ear pads on, the headphone sports a CNC machined aluminum chassis and its “Twist and Flex” headband features a magnetic headphone adjustability system, making it easy to get a good fit and seal. One other thing to know is that the JOAL is vegan friendly. No animal leathers were used in crafting the headphone, though the ultrasuede and other leather substitutes used feel fantastic.

Design:

Driving the headphones are Abyss’s custom JOAL 63mm Planar Magnetic drivers. It has an impedance of just 30 ohms, though its sensitivity is a moderate 93 dB/mw. All told, that translates to a headphone that can run off of any amplifier, but one that scales with better sources of power. For reference, it sounded great on a dongle like the iBasso DC-Elite, but it really came to life when I paired it with a higher-end DAC/amplifier like the Hifiman Goldenwave Serenade. Abyss themselves recommend a minimum of 250 mW to drive the JOAL, though they note that 1-3 watts of power is most optimal for getting the best performance from these headphones.

Sound Impressions:

The Abyss JOAL Headphone’s ability to shapeshift and bring different parts of music to life became apparent through extended listening. It ultimately sports a neutral frequency response with just a little added heat in the midbass area. This gives the headphone a little excitement and room to really play with all sorts of music. I think Abyss succeeded in creating a “jack of all listening” and it all starts with that bass response.

Low End:

Like I said, there’s a bit of a midbass elevation that allows these headphones to really attack on bass hits. There’s a visceral sense of slam that becomes apparent on any type of music, but is especially present in kick drums and short low end notes. But the JOAL isn’t limited to its heft – there’s plenty of low end resolution here too. Underneath the body of each bass hit is a wave of subtle information. This adds detail and texture to the overall strength of the bass response. Listening to Caroline Polachek’s remix of the Charli xcx song “Everything is Romantic,” I got an excellent presentation of the song’s muted bass hits that contrasts with a low-end synth that has a warm and fuzzy sheen to it. This ability to differentiate textures and present conflicting information with ease is what helps with the JOAL’s versatility.

Midrange:

The midrange really unlocks the full potential of the JOAL. It was on the album “Promises” by Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders that I understood the power of this midrange. The album, which mixes classical and jazz elements, puts Sanders’s saxophone at the center of the mix. Its timbre and dynamic qualities were immediately apparent. The sax cracked with information, fluttering with the musician’s unique sense of feel. Every little fluctuation in the wood that composes the instrument can be felt, while the soft supporting instruments, consisting of piano and strings, stretches out the overall confines of the frequency response. Separation is excellent and the balance between the sax at center stage and the backing orchestra is phenomenal. Sounds fade into the remaining nooks and crannies creates a beautiful atmosphere that oozes with both detail and musicality.

Top End:

It’s in the top end that the JOAL does its greatest trick. There’s an immediate feeling of smoothness from the treble response that mutes harsher tones and reduces apparent micro-detail retrieval. But over time, the higher frequencies came forward as more present and brilliant. The trick is in its emphasis of musical detail over what I’ll call “informational detail.” For example, when listening to “In Walked Bud” by Art Blakey and Thelonius Monk, there’s a contrast between harsher cymbal crashes which feel muted on the JOAL, and bright piano notes that have a more ecstatic glimmer to them. I don’t know exactly how Abyss pulled this off, but the JOAL is able to provide micro-detail so long as it serves the feeling of the music, rather than interrupting the performance with a quantity of small sounds.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s something to be gained from the broader inclusion of information which Abyss makes available in their higher tier models. But Abyss has found a sweet spot where they prioritize the most musical of details, while including the more spatial sounds in a more subtle way. And like I said, scaling the JOAL with better sources and amplifiers will help increase the detail retrieval of the headphones. This helps to maintain the balance between the various pieces of information that live in any given track.

Soundstage:

Abyss has always done soundstage quite well, and that’s the case here too. In terms of width and imaging, the JOAL holds up to the standards of its older siblings. While it may not feel as endless as the AB-1266 Phi TC, it manages to present an expansive stereo field. Inside that field is a precise sense of imaging, which puts sounds in distinct areas, allowing for an immersive experience. I always got the feeling that instruments were spatially separated from each other, allowing for the instruments to find their own spaces. By presenting room details in its soundstage, it helps take overall resolution off the plate of its frequency response, and allows for a more natural recreation of information.

Final Verdict:

Abyss has hit a home run with the JOAL. Its versatility and sonic capabilities make it an impressive offering at the sub-$2,000 price point. Abyss built the JOAL with care, designed it with the intent of maximizing sonic capabilities, and created an excellent sounding headphone. We’re going to give the JOAL MajorHifi Silver. Definitely give these headphones a try if you’re interested in Abyss’s offerings or if you want to hear a headphone that balances musicality and technical precision in a way you don’t always hear in this class of headphones.