Berlin-based, HEDD Audio charmed the pants off of the Head-Fi community a number of years ago with the introduction of the HEDDphone; we spent a fair bit of time with the rather innovative headphones that use an air motion transformer (AMT) instead of the more common headphone drivers (dynamic, electrostatic, and planar magnetic) that consumers are familiar with.
An AMT differs from all of the common drivers but is probably most closely related to a planar or true ribbon driver. Instead of a flat membrane though, the AMT uses a pleated membrane and air is moved laterally in much the same way that an accordion bellows works.
The traces on the back of the membrane act as the voice coil and the diaphragm sits between rows of magnets. An AMT acts as a dipole speaker and with its very small range of motion has a very high response rate similar to or surpassing planar magnetic drivers in this regard.
AMT drivers are often seen in tweeters and midrange drivers as they are best suited to move a smaller volume of air very quickly. For many, the HEDDphone was the first time the AMT had been seen in a headphone and the integration offered excellent sonic results.
But not everything about the original HEDDphone was perfect; we have leveled criticism over the years at some of the planar magnetic designs for their weight and cumbersome “suitcase on your head” experience and it would be legitimate to tag the original iteration of the HEDDphone with that as well.
But not anymore…
HEDDphone Two
The HEDDPhone Two is already available for pre-order and offers a number of improvements in regard to the AMT driver and the construction of the headphone itself.
The new HEDDphone Two features a new carbon fiber headband designed to improve comfort and provide a wider range of adjustments via the new smart strap system.
The padding beneath the headband has been redesigned as well to improve the distribution of weight across your head and ultimately provide greater comfort for longer listening sessions.
The headband and ear pads are fashioned from vegan leather and were redesigned to offer a much better experience for those of us who wear glasses; which is actually a much bigger issue for consumers who may require reading glasses for work whilst listening to music at their desks.
The connections have also been moved to the front of the ear cups.
But what about the weight?
HEDD Audio has trimmed some of the fat and the new model now weighs 550 grams which is similar to the Audexe LCD-4z and 25% lighter than the original model.
New AMT Driver
Internally, the HEDDphone Two uses an upgraded air motion transformer with a folded Kapton polyamide film diaphragm and utilizes variable velocity transformation (VVT).
This combination provides up to three times the surface area of common drivers and a more linear response across all frequencies; the result is a headphone with a frequency response of 10Hz to 40kHz.
The new model features a nominal impedance of 41 ohms with a 89dB/W sensitivity rating; one caveat with AMT drivers is that they need a lot of power to really demonstrate what they can do and the HEDDphone Two does not depart from that reality.
The headphones require a minimum of 200mW of power (Dongle DAC) and it is the recommendation of the manufacturer that users look for a headphone amplifier or DAP that can output at least 1 watt of power.
The voicing has also changed somewhat; HEDD developed the new model with mastering engineers and mixing editors in mind who require an extremely accurate and linear sonic signature.
Transient response has also been improved and HEDD claims that the new design offers the same strong bass response of the original design with improved speed and clarity.
The HEDDphone Two ships with a carrying case, spare pads, a 2.2 meter single ended cable with 6.35mm jack, 6.35mm to 3.5mm adapter, 2.2 meter balanced cable with a 4.4mm pentaconn connector, and a 4.4mm to XLR adapter.
Specifications
- Concept: Open-back over-ear
- Driver: Full-range Air Motion Transformer (AMT)
- Diaphragm: Kapton polyimide film
- Frequency range: 10Hz – 40 kHz
- Sensitivity: 89 dB/W
- Impedance: 41 Ohm
- Weight: 550g
- Power Requirements: minimum 200mW, recommended 1000mW or more
- Cable: Kevlar-infused, graded
- Vegan-Leather ear pads and head cushion
In the Box
- Travel case to fit HEDDphone® TWO and Accessories
- 1x additional set of spare ear pads
- 1x 2.2 m unbalanced cable with 6.35 mm termination
- 1x 2.2 m balanced cable with 4.4 mm termination
- 1x unbalanced adapter from 6.35 mm to 3.5 mm
- 1x balanced adapter from balanced 4.4 mm to XLR
Price & Availability
HEDDphone Two is available for pre-order now for $1,999 at Headphones.com.
All HEDDphones are handmade in Berlin, so initial supplies will be limited with deliveries starting in September for Europe and North America and slightly later for other regions.
For more information: hedd.audio
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