HiFiMAN Susvara Vs Susvara Unveiled Comparison Review

With the release of the Susvara Unveiled, there’s bound to be a conversation about whether it’s better than the original. The Susvara Unveiled is bound to be compared to its previous iteration for its entire run, so a full comparison review is more than appropriate. These headphones are some of the priciest you can get, so most of their differences will come down to personal taste. The Unvield is still two thousand dollars more than the original though, so let’s see if it’s genuinely more worth it.

What You Get

Look & Feel

By far, the biggest change that the Unveiled made from the original is its grille-less design and magnetic veil. This has more advantages to its sound properties than it does to aesthetics or comfort. It also makes the Unveield a much more high-maintenance headphone than the original with its driver all but exposed. The original Susvara has a much more common open-back design that you can easily identify as part of HiFiMAN’s catalog. It’s also slightly larger than the Unveiled and feels it has a much stiffer frame. Both Susvaras are expertly crafted though, with a level of build quality that exemplifies the height of HiFiMAN’s design. If you’re worried about weight, the Unveiled is slightly lighter than the original, but both are still lightweight and comfortable with hardly any force that needs to be applied to obtain the best seal.

Design

With the original Susvara, HiFiMAN established their Stealth Magnet technology that’s been a part of most of their headphones since. These magnets are known for allowing acoustic waves to pass through them without generating interference. What the Unvield adds to this design is maximizing the space between those magnets within the diaphragm to increase precision and spatial properties. What will make the most difference though is what it takes to drive these headphones. The original Susvara is notoriously hard to drive, requiring a powerful amp to get to a comfortable level. With the Unveiled, a good amp is still recommended, but I find it a bit more versatile than the original. Usually, I wouldn’t use products like the Chord Mojo 2 or the Fiio K19 with the Susvara, but they power the Unveiled very efficiently.

Soundstage

Where these headphones intersect the most is in their soundstage and imaging. It’s extremely hard to compare their intricacies when both headphones are the best of their kind here. No other headphones can so effortlessly reproduce the exact positioning and graceful pan movement of each sound. The Susvara’s can communicate an incredible amount of stereo realism and breathability with every instrument and effect played through them. I can’t discern any significant differences between these two headphones and how they go about presenting their phenomenal soundstage and spatial imaging presentation. If anything, the Unveiled might have less height than the original due to its smoother treble which lessens the airiness that the original has. However, you can expect similar depth and layering with both Susvaras.

Low End

The bass frequencies have the most immediate clash in tone, bringing forth the most discernable difference between the two Susvaras. I would consider both headphones neutral in their timbre across almost the entirety of their frequency spectrums, but the Unveiled has more of a consistent warmth. There was a more apparent bloom of sub-bass and mid-bass texture that coated the frequency response, while still presenting its bass with the same amount of finesse as the original. Both headphones dive deep, but the foundation of the bass is slightly elevated with the Unveiled. Sometimes the specific amp combo you use with the original can offer you a similar response, but it feels more like a consistent tone with the Unveiled. This might not fit with the realism that the original Susvara is known for, but both headphones offer full bass clarity with neutral tuning.

Mids

It’s hard to find many elements of the midrange that one does better than the other. Both Susvaras showcase incredible transparency, with detailed instruments that feel like they’re put directly under a microscope. Again, they feature a strong neutral tuning, but the sound elements always have a clear body to them. I think the Unveild appears a bit lusher than the original, enunciating notes with a bit more strike to them. This could be seen as taking away some subtlety and articulation, but I feel like it enhances the experience for me. It offers a different flavor of tone compared to the original, which can be seen as lacking edge, especially with vocals.

Highs

Both Susvara’s are smooth and sparkly in their highs. They present easy-to-digest tones that never overly brighten the sound signature, but still keep its exquisite detail. I feel like the Unveiled might feature the most smoothness, as the original can still enter airy territory. The Unveiled brings the highs down to a more surface foundation while still featuring tons of depth. With the original, the highs have more of a crisp sheen to them that never exert any peaks. I can’t say which one I prefer, as glistening details exist with both Susvaras.

Summary

Comparing two of the most prestigious headphones in the audiophile market can be a daunting task, but the similarities and differences between the Susvaras became pretty clear to me. I always appreciated the original Susvara for its unbelievable realism and natural detail, but the Unveield feels a bit more expressive to me. The bass and mids give me something more to bite on than just standard neutrality and with the headphones being easier to drive, the sound signature has more of a consistency to it. That is what I can see people spending more on, as their current system might already be able to run it. This makes the original Susvara more of a potential investment that will match the price of the new one anyway.

The HiFiMAN Susvara and Susvara Unveiled are available at Audio46.