Music All Around Your Head!
Are you searching for the headphones of your dreams? Perfect! Have you clearly defined your needs and set a budget? You’re now ready to embark on a quest to find the ideal model, at the right price, just for you. To assist you in your shopping journey, I’m introducing you to a very interesting pair of headphones: the Meze 109PRO. Handcrafted in Romania, these headphones showcase unparalleled build quality for their price range and absolutely deserve a spot on your shortlist. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but you can already see the classy look and impeccable finish. Follow along as we unveil the secrets of this exceptional product in this review.
Tech enthusiasts familiar with the headphone market may already know Meze, but for the general public, this is a rising brand still waiting to be discovered. Indeed, with the manufacturing quality of the different models and especially their sound qualities, this young brand could well become the darling of the world of headphones. Founded in 2011 by Antonio Meze, this Romanian company specializes in high-quality headphones.
Their product range spans a wide price spectrum, from under $300 to over $5,000 for the prestigious Elite model. Meze’s breakthrough came with the 99 Classic — a stylish, affordable closed-back headset. These affordable headphones, with a splendid design with their walnut wood shells, continue to be a hit with customers looking for closed headphones, beautiful, comfortable, and with a divinely warm sound.
The Meze’s 109PRO, however, is a much more ambitious product designed primarily for home use with high-quality audio systems. Positioned as Meze’s most advanced dynamic driver model. Indeed, above the 109PRO, Meze‘s offering focuses on helmets using planar-type isodynamic technology. Obviously, these are much more expensive products and will require amplification accordingly, aimed at customers looking for absolutes. The 109PRO strikes a balance between quality and price that many music enthusiasts seek. Let’s delve into its technical aspects and performance.
Technical Description
The Meze 109PRO is an open-back headset incorporating innovative technologies. For audiophiles, open-back designs are the gold standard, delivering maximum detail and ambiance. At its core, the 109PRO features dynamic drivers designed by Meze, these are of the electrodynamic type and work on the same principle as a conventional speaker with a moving coil and a magnet.
The driver adopts a W-shaped dome design and has a rather high sensitivity. Its center is crafted from carbon fiber-reinforced paper, while the outer edge acts as a suspension system made from a polymer with finely angled cuts.
This section which constitutes the periphery of the transducer is covered with a tiny layer of beryllium deposited by vaporization. This layer ensures a good level of rigidity and the flexibility necessary for the proper functioning of the transducer. The addition of beryllium makes it possible to control surrounding resonances and considerably reduce distortion. As far as I know, this technology is rather unique and the use of a material like beryllium is a first in this price category.
The transducer is encapsulated in a cast aluminum bracket and the magnet is neodymium based. With a frequency response that extends from 5 Hz to 30,000 Hz, the 109PRO headphones have nothing to envy technically from much more expensive models. The 109PRO is assembled around a pair of aluminum hoops fitted with zinc fixings for the most beautiful effect. The whole thing is incredibly simple and extremely effective. The earphone shells are made from walnut wood, which not only looks great, but contributes to the warm, natural sound of the 109PRO. The earpads are made of very soft velvet and can be replaced easily. A detail that adds a touch of luxury to the Meze 109PRO is this internal gold metal grille, which aims to protect the transducer from overly curious fingers.
The headphones include a quality detachable cable with connectors for each ear cup. An included adapter supports both 3.5 mm and 6.3 mm jacks. For further upgrades, a balanced cable is available as an option. It’s an upgrade well worth the cost, especially if your headphone amplifier has a balanced 4.4 mm output. With an impedance of 40 Ohms and a sensitivity of 112 dB / mW, the 109PRO can deliver impressive results even when paired with a mobile device with a 3.5 mm input.
Unboxing and Comfort
The Meze 109PRO arrives in stunning packaging, demonstrating all the attention to detail that the manufacturer can demonstrate. A rigid carrying case is included and will be very practical, allowing you to carry the 109PRO safely in your luggage. The included cable is generous in length (around 10 feet), reducing the need for extensions.
Fitting the headphones is effortless thanks to the self-adjusting headband —just place them on your head, and they settle perfectly.
This headphone model is extremely comfortable with its velvet pads, which are fortunate enough to be soft enough to allow the temples of glasses to pass through without too much problem. The Meze 109PRO can be easily worn for hours without generating irritation to the ears. The velvet earpads of the 109PRO still remain quite cool, unlike many earphone models with vegetable leather earpads, which have the disadvantage of becoming too hot to wear.
However, as an open-back headset, the 109PRO doesn’t isolate against ambient noise, making it unsuitable for mobile use. It also leaks sound, which may disturb nearby listeners.
Like an Audio Hologram
Here is a pair of headphones whose sound is full of space, ventilation and spatialization. The Meze 109PRO excels at delivering a spacious, airy, and three-dimensional listening experience. While many headphones tend to compress stereo imaging toward the center, the 109PRO creates a vast and immersive soundstage. This is largely thanks to its open-back design, which enhances its holographic audio rendering. For its price, it competes with ribbon-driver headphones costing nearly twice as much.
The various instruments of the album Life Of by guitarist Steve Tibbetts can be listened to with a magnificent and very delicate shimmering side. The reproduction is remarkably detailed, to the point where one is entitled to wonder if there is still information to discover on this album. The result is similar with listening to great classical music. Meze‘s 109PRO literally transports its listener to the concert hall as with this superb version of Bach‘s Brandenburg concertos, performed by the Concert of Nations under the direction of Jordi Savall. What a beautiful experience where each group of instruments in the orchestra can be listened to in a very convincing holographic space. It is still remarkable to see the extent to which headphones have evolved in terms of stereo image rendering. The 109PRO is a good example of this. Although it is only able to accommodate a mobile device, it will also be able to highlight a high-quality source several times its price.
Perfect Balance and Dynamics
Another standout feature of the 109PRO is its flawless tonal balance across bass, mids, and highs. The engineers at Meze clearly knew what they were doing: the result is a fatigue-free listening experience perfect for extended sessions.
In addition, with its excellent sound balance, the 109PRO allows you to consume music without imposing limits on style or recording quality.
Comfortable with country music, even at high volume, Meze‘s 109PRO literally had fun with Chris Jones‘ Moonstruck album. The bass lines of the piece Long After Your Gone are delivered with an incredible aplomb and solidity that very few acoustic speakers will be able to deliver. Everything is easy to consume, without any restrictions, with this headset designed to reproduce music with a realistic, credible and always pleasant tone.
Conclusion
So here we are in the presence of a headset, which as the expression says so well, manages to tick practically all the boxes. The Meze’s 109PRO is beautiful and superbly put together. It is based on innovative technologies that really give excellent results from a sound point of view. Its price is still reasonable and perfectly in line with what it offers in terms of quality. All around you, it will recreate a magical musical space, worthy of headphones costing several thousand dollars. In addition, it offers a soft and easy-to-listen tone. Its comfort is exemplary and it will work well with a simple laptop, but will shine brightly when connected to high-end equipment. Like an excellent vintage chocolate, Meze’s 109PRO is a luxurious treat to treat yourself and consume without restraint.
GENERAL INFORMATION:
Price: $1,099 CAD
Warranty: 2 years, parts and labour
Distributor: Asona Ltd., richard.k@asonaltd.com
Mediagraphy
Steve Tibbetts, Life Of, ECM, Tidal file
Bach, The Six Brandenburg Concertos, Le Concert des Nations, Jordi Savall, Alliavox, Tidal file
Chris Jones, Moonstruck, Stockfisch Records, CD, SFR 357.6020.2