Meze 99 Classics Walnut Gold Headphones (Gold & Black)

Product Information

Some Impressions (All songs were listened thru the Revised Original (RO) pads. Some songs were also auditioned thru the new pads (and the impressions are denoted as " (NP)" below): Then, the process of shaping just a single pair of earcups takes up to 8 hours. The whole process of sanding, lacquering, and finishing lasts 45 days. We could cut corners, but we don’t sell ice cream. We fight time: this is the pride of the creator. The Meze 99 Classics, for the price and beyond, are wonderful headphones that do perform up to there with much more expensive headphones. The next two comparisons are basically copied+pasted from my 99 Neo review ( here) because the Neo and 99 Classics are so very alike in terms of sound quality.

Many companies do this; they buy cheap headphones from a mass manufacturer and rebrand them. Some are quite open about it and have gained respect throughout the headphone world. Nice bass impact but mids sound thinner and too much upper mids/lower treble shimmer, gets hot easy. Least favorite desktop setup with the Meze Audio 99 Classic.I called them out, something I hadn't done since I ripped apart my expensive Hisound Audio Studio Anniversary player. Cables are "Y" type with 3.5mm mono plugs at the headphone end and a straight 3.5mm plug at the amp end. Though I would have preferred an angled plug at the amp end, I find the cable build very esthetically pleasing; the shape and gold accents of the plug and "Y" junction are very tasteful.

As soon as I put these onto my head I knew the comfort concerns were not going to be a problem. My main concern would be with the earpads getting warm and they do a bit. However providing the ambient temperature isn't too high and you are not doing anything too strenuous they're not too bad. Head clamp force seems fine to me, although after the FSP's I was used to this and the 99C's are much nicer to wear. Not Sennheiser 558 comfort, but close enough. They are nice and light too! Opening the box we find a very nice, contoured, clam-shell carry case with a smooth matte texture and finish. I actually like this more than the one that comes with the Neo although they're essentially the same albeit with a different finish. The 99 Classic is available in three colors: a dark walnut with gold or silver (not shown) accents, and a light maple with silver accents.Really strong bass elevation with only moderate roll-off towards the sub-bass. Lots of impact and punch. The DT990 is well known for its strong V-shaped signature so it has similarly boosted bass levels but also has a lot more treble as well. It’s more resolving than the Classics and reveals more small details but can get a little strident or overenthusiastic on the high frequencies. The DT990’s bass notes are more defined and controlled bringing more punch where the Classics brings the thump. Both headphones are exceptionally comfortable and well worth their respective prices.