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Though you may not know it, chances are you’re not listening to music like you should be. Artists pour themselves into their work, yet many listeners don’t get the raw effect that was intended to be experienced. Why? The problem lies in your headphones. Consumers are often okay with the included headphones with the product they buy, say the Apple headphones that come included with the purchase of an iPod or iPhone. This isn’t a knock on the consumer, they generally aren’t informed about the better options available. Enter HiFiMan, producers of high fidelity audio equipment, to cure your audio woes. I recently got my hands on the HE-300 Over Ear Dynamic Stereo Headphones.

Hit the jump for my thoughts.

Design

The HE-300′s are an over the ear headphone sporting an open back design. The first thing you’ll notice about the HE-300′s when you put them on is the monstrosity of the ear cups. These things will feel uncannily huge at first, but normal during subsequent uses. The ear cups themselves are a silver plastic, that don’t feel exactly durable but seem to be able to withstand general use. What’s more, the HE-300′s weigh in at a cool 270 grams, an extraordinarily light weight considering the mass of the headphones. The ear cups are lined with a velvet-esque material that feels nice during long periods of use and doesn’t make your ears feel clammy. The cups themselves are positioned on a metal band that, while isn’t greatly adjustable, is ultra-durable and provides a wide enough range for just about anyone.

The headband of the HE-300′s is covered in a faux leather material that feels great. Instructions included with the HE-300′s suggest that you bend the band so that the top portion completely rests on your head. This ensure comfort for extended periods of use. Overall, the HE-300′s are amazingly comfortable when you consider their size.

The included cable with the HE-300′s screws into each ear cup to ensure great stereo sound. The cable itself is monstrous: sporting the thickness of a coaxial cable and six feet in length. I don’t suspect that you’ll be toting this around on the subway. These are strictly home headphones to be used while listening to music or watching movies on your gadget.

Simply put, the HE-300′s are beautifully designed headphones that are sure to turn heads of your guests.

Specifications

One of the great things about the HE-300′s is the balance struck between great sound and needed power. The headphones put out a nice 93 dB at 1 mW of power, an indication that they can be powered by many portable devices, such as an iPhone or iPod. The HE-300′s also sport an impedance of 50 Ohm’s, furthering support for portable devices. That is, less power is needed to get louder sounds. It’s worth noting that if you were to use a headphone amplifier or a device with a better audio driver, you’d get better sound. This is one of the great things about the HE-300′s: it possesses versatility that allow you to use them in a variety of environments.

The sound of the HE-300′s comes from the dynamic 50mm drivers. These sport a much larger driver than basically any in-ear headphones you’d use. The result is a larger, more dynamic sound. What’s more, the HE-300′s offer an open back design. Open back design lets a lot of noise into your headphones, while also letting a lot out. The result is a more “pure” experience. That is, the aim is to reproduce a sound you might experience if you were listening to the selected piece live. The fact that these headphones leak a lot of sound further support that these are home-only (or studio-only) headphones.

Performance

Of course, performance is everything when it comes to headphones. All design positives are thrown out of the window as soon as a user decides that the sound quality is sub par. As is true with most products (I’m looking at you, Beats By Dre), the quality of headphones will increase when the amount of money you spend increases as well. The HE-300′s retail for $299.99, and while this may seem like a substantial investment, I can assure you that you’re getting fantastic music quality for the price.

Particularly, the HE-300′s excel at acoustic music, along with piano, jazz, and most “classic” genres. The high sound quality you get can be attributed to the open back design of the headphones, which substantially make your experience more pleasurable. In fact, these are the best headphones I’ve ever used for said genres.

The HE-300′s also excel at indie/alternative rock. I was amazed at the ability to pick out single instruments, and be able to focus on that individual instrument for the entire song. Never did the HE-300′s seem muddy; each instrument was clearly represented to the listener. This turned out to be quite the pleasure, as many indie bands that I love use unconventional instruments that were a thrill to listen to individually within the context of the song.

However, the HE-300′s don’t stand out when it comes to genres like rap, techno, or dub step. The bass isn’t quite up to par with other headphones at a similar price point. The thing is, the HE-300′s aren’t bad at bass. In fact, it’s quite prominent when it needs to be. However, if you’re looking for a bass heavy pair of headphones, look elsewhere.

Conclusion

The bottom line is the HE-300′s are an incredibly balanced pair of headphones. While they aren’t jaw-dropping at any one genre, they do a brilliant job of handling just about any genre you could throw at it. At the end of the day, that’s what you want in a pair of consumer headphones. It would be disappointing to spend $300 on a pair of headphones that handled rap very well, but was subpar on any other genres (I’m looking at you again, Beats by Dre). The HE-300′s are HiFiMan’s most affordable over the ear option, with the next model (HE-4) coming in at $450. It’s clear that HiFiMan is marketing toward the audiophile, and if you give the HE-300′s a listen, you may find that you may be turning into one yourself.

You can learn more about the HE-300′s here.

MSRP: $299.99

PROS: Well balanced sound, attractive design, high quality construction

CONS: Doesn’t excel at any one genre, but this could be seen as a pro.