The Athena headphones have 50mm dynamic drivers that deliver a frequency response range of 10Hz to 40kHz. It shares similarities to the legendary HD800's treble tonality, both exhibiting spacious air and energized sparkle up top. When I listened to acoustic bluegrass or jazz music, with a lot of strings, there's a false resonating sound that peaks quite high at times.

With a neutral and balanced sound signature, they're an excellent choice for audiophiles and music enthusiasts who demand high-quality audio performance. It's easy to drive but does take advantage of different amp flavorings as I tried it with different pairings. HarmonicDyne has, in the past, produced some excellent headphones like the Zeus, which, I believe, satisfied a specific tuning niche whilst maintaining overall technical competence.One of the standout features of the Athena headphones is their detachable cable, which allows you to easily replace the cable if tragedy ever strikes it. These are the first HarmonicDyne headphones I have tried but I am always looking out for a decent closed back set and if they are budget orientated, even better. It could use some dampening, or something, to help with the fatiguing I am experiencing listening to it. They feature a closed-back design which means when you put these on, it shuts out the rest of the world. However, for genres demanding a higher degree of timbre accuracy and an overall sense of naturalness, I wouldn’t recommend the Athena.

Our reviews are not the work of a single individual, but the collective effort of our passionate team. The ingenious introduction of glass adds the richness of texture and transformed the Athena into not just a competent HiFi headphone, but also a sophisticated decoration piece. The clamp force is very low, meaning that all the pressure is right on top of your head, I would much prefer a more even distribution. I know I don’t usually refer to EQ in my reviews but I did play around with some simple equalization in the 1kHz to 4kHz range to see what the response was like and I have to say that it really brought more life to these headphones. HarmonicDyne tuned the Athena with a mildly V-shaped signature that elevates both bass and treble, yielding an engaging, lively sound.Timbre is unique - more digital and articulate than the HD650, but richer and more emotional than the HD560S.

The two clips that hold the padded part of the headband on to the structure are the only part that looks a little “delicate” to me but I don’t think this is something you will be removing often anyway. The headphone can easily be mistaken as a closed-back headphone, but there are several vents and ports on the side of each cup, making this more of a semi-open back, as you can hear outside noise with this on, and it does bleed a little bit of audio to the outer world as well. New generation 50mm large metal-ceramic composite diaphragm: ultra-light and tough with exceptional tension and oxidation resistance, all of which contribute to the commendable naturalness and accuracy of Athena, since thinner and harder diaphragm offer a larger linear dynamic range with less distortion while still preventing cone breakup. There’s no particular coloration in the midrange, like a specific dip or peak, Athena having a very clean sound that has a good timbre.

HarmonicDyne have provided a pretty fancy box which unfortunately is unsuitable for daily storage, due to the awkward way it opens and that you have to remove the cable to put the Athena inside, I wish they had provided a useful box like Sennheiser did with the HD 650. I’ve had the chance to extensively test out the Athena over the past couple months, and I’m excited to share my thoughts in this review. For example, in “ The Room”, the bass and lower end of the guitar can seem to blend together and not come across as clean individual instruments. I listened to familiar recordings and tracks as if for the first time,and had to enjoy almost everything with a fresh mind. The opening comfortable for my ears, but it is probably on the medium size, and perhaps larger ears may find it less comfortable.

Every manufacturer seems eager to claim that their tuning faithfully replicates the ‘original sound’, but they might in fact fare better by being honest about their product’s true characteristics, allowing the consumers to choose based on their preferences. They’re already larger than the 40mm (or smaller) drivers you’ll find populating most mainstream headphones from the United States, and can create a large, full-bodied sound.

However, the reality that the upper-mids and lower treble are so subdued results in an uneven transition from mids to treble. At only 320 grams, they’re already on the lighter side, but the company did a great job of balancing clamp force with distributing the weight across the headband.