Austrian Audio Hi-x55 The Best Headphones for Mixing and Mastering
Published at Aug 8, 2023
Austrian Audio Hi-x55: The Best Headphones for Mixing and Mastering
A few years back I heard about the Austrian Audio Hi-x55 from a video by Archie Beats. He has plenty experience on headphones and gear so thought I might give it a try as well. I looked up more and more about these headphones and soon enough I was convinced that I needed this addition to my studio.
Comfort
The Hi-x55 are the most comfortable headphones I’ve ever used in my life. Cushions are light and soft, the texture is soft to the skin and I can see how anybody could use them even if they have a big head like mine. The headphones have cushions at the top and on the earcups. The cushion at the top has a split design were it let’s air through the center, which helps with preventing the top of your head getting too hot. The earcup cushions are very tall and have enough room for people with big ears. They are very light and provide good space between your ears and the earpad at the driver. The driver has a very nice foam with the letters L and R corresponding to the side of the earcup.
Looks
Looks are great, they look modern yet fashionable. They do catch an eye as they are a bit big and bulky. The color scheme they have is very modern with gun metal-like colors with black accents. This is definetly one the most eye catching headphones with it’s modern design and tall cushions. Most studio headphones are plain, but these look very modern and expensive. I would love to give the DJ lineup of headphones a try, as they look great as well. Austrian Audio Hi-x50
Materials
The headphone is made of platic and some aluminum or metal parts. It doesn’t feel cheap at all, but wouldn’t take them on a bag without a proper case as I wouldn’t risk to scratch a pair of headphones this expensive. I believe all of the materials are durable, but I have to admit one of my earcushions broke apart (Mind you Austrian Audio sent me a new pair in no time).
Sound
The sound in these headphones is very unique. I would really like to say that these are “surgical headphones”. What does that mean? It means that these headphones provide you with every little detail in your mix. They seperate the elements in such a way that everything can be looked at much clearer. Before using these I had no clue about the position of certain sounds on the stereo field, or the texture. With these headphone I was able to see. I’ve tried other headphones like the HD 600 or HD 650 by Sennheiser but none get to the level of detail that these headphones can provide. In a sense I feel like it takes out a bit of the enjoyment when casually listening to music, as I can feel more the elements of the mix and spot unpleasent things, but then again these headphones are for mixing. Rest assure that if a mix sound great on these headphones… you are golden.
About Austrian Audio
Noise Isolation
To be honest, I wanted to give these headphones a try for DJing, but soon enough I figured out two things. First, these headphones are too expensive to throw them at those paces. And second of all, they are not the best when it comes to noise Isolation. They manage to handle room noise activity, maybe your laptop and stuff like that, but I wouldn’t recommend them for going on a train or any other environment louder than that. Then again, they are build for the studio, and for that they are perfectly fine. Better than a pair of open air headphones, but not as good as a pair of DJ headphones like the HD25 for example.
Cushions Issue and response
After less than a month one of the cushions split open on one of the seams. I was pretty distressed as I had spent an extra $30 on a magma case to protect them at all costs. I contacted Autrian Audio and in no time they helped me and sent to the address I provided a new pair of cushions free of charge. I’m in Honduras, to get assistance from a company in Autria, so efficient and promptly was astounding. I am more than happy with how they have responded and helped me in that case.
What’s in the box
These headphones come in a big box. As you open them you get your headphones tightly packed, a very long cable (wish they included another shorter cable), and a fabric bag for you to store your headphones in. Personally, due to it’s price I bought a Magma hardcase for them. https://shop.austrian.audio/products/hxhc-headphone-case