Kiwi Ears Atheia Headphones Review – Planar Dynamic Dual Driver Brilliance
Kiwi Ears Atheia is a $349 USD pair of over-the-ear headphones with a dual driver combo, sporting both a dynamic and a planar magnetic driver, integrating a powerful 50mm dynamic driver, and a 14.5mm planar magnetic driver, designed to deliver a truly refined listening experience. Today we will review the Atheia and explore their sound signature, also comparing them with other headphones from the same midrange class including Audeze MM-100 (399 USD), Aune AR5000 (299 USD) and Dekoni x HIFIMAN Cobalt Headphones (399 USD).
Introduction
Kiwi Ears is a Linsoul favorite company, with many entry-level IEMS available for music lovers, but today we review one of the few full-sized headphones they make. Kiwi ears IEMs and headphones are available for purchase through all the usual Linsoul favorite channels, including their own website, Aliexpress, Amazon, but Kiwi Ears also has their own website up and running if you want to order directly, although Linsoul usually offers a better price and offers sales more often.
As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. Audiophile-Heaven has no Ads and our Youtube Channel has no midroll ads, and our work is supported by Affiliate Links and Donations. Huge thanks to Linsoul and Kiwi Ears for providing the sample for this review, in exchange for my honest opinion.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4506OUP
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_op22bwc
Build Quality / Design
Starting this time around with the geeky tech parts, Kiwi Ears Atheia has a frequency response between 20 Hz and 40 kHz, and it has a Sensitity of 102 dB, paired with an impedance of 32 OHMs, with a deviation of 10%. THD is kept quite low at 0.5%, and that is quite nice considering that it has a combo of two drivers, one that is a powerful 50mm dynamic driver, and a 14.5mm planar magnetic driver.
Kiwi Ears tuned the Atheia for precision, it has walnut wood in the earcups, vegan leather in the earpads and headband, and we can find the frequency response graph on the Linsoul and Kiwi Ears websites. This is pretty much all of the information you can gather from the Linsoul and Kiwi Ears websites.
Subjective Usage
Kiwi Ears Atheia feels really lightweight and comfy on my head and ears. It has a unique single ended cable that has a textile sheathing for the lower part, and a silicone sheathing on the upper part. This cable is not very microphonic and it does not transmit noise on the lower part, but it is very springy and kinky, and does not straighten. Although the cable is made to sit very stiff on you and you are not likely to touch it, it is extremely sensitive to touch noise, it will transmit that noise.
Kiwi Ears Atheia is rather comfortable, has huge earpads, very soft, and they feel lightweight, and have a light, flexible headband. Weight is very low, and they feel comfortable, tightness and clamping force is low, so it will not feel tight ever, although this means that Atheia is a bit more suited for larger heads than smaller heads. Atheia also has detachable cables, which is great, and you can adjust the size of the headphones quite a bit.
Passive noise isolation is minimal, it has around 10 dB of passive noise isolation despite being closed-back, and it leaks very little. Earcups are made of wood, actual walnut, and it feels premium.
Sound Quality
Pairings – For today’s review I’ve been pairing the new Kiwi Ears Atheia with a selection of sources, including FiiO K17, FiiO K9 PRO ESS, iBasso D16 + iBasso PB5, iBasso DX340, Burson PlayMate 2, JDS Labs Element III, Rose Technics RT-5000, TempoTec March V, Surfans F28, Singxer Sa-1 V2 driven by a Musician Pegasus II R2R DAC, Dethonray Clarinet. Kiwi Ears Atheia is easy to drive, responding to increases in source quality, but not the most sensitive to source quality. This being said, they are single ended only with the original cable, which pushes the source list quite a bit. This is because most sources have between half and a quarter of the driving power for the single ended compared to what they have for the balanced output. Despite being a full-sized headphone, Kiwi Ears Atheia is quite sensitive to source background noise and needs a clean source for the best sound.
Overall Signature – Kiwi Ears Atheia mentions that it is tuned for neutrality, but hearing it and looking at the graphs on both the Kiwi Ears and Linsoul websites, this is a rather colored sounding headphone, with a certain amount of extra sub-bass, a recess in the upper bass and lower midrange, then with a comeback in the upper midrange. Somehow, that dip is so specific that you could still technically quantify Kiwi Ears Atheia as Natural-Neutral instead of V-Shaped, there simply isn’t enough bass emphasis and extra strength to make them V-Shaped or U-Shaped. They have an excellent resolution, detail and overall revealing ability. You will be surprised by the natural soundstage and instrument separation, and atheia is great for EDM, Rock, Metal and also for classical and jazz. Ironically, because the sub can be bombastic, and midrange has that specific recess, Kiwi Ears Atheia sounds best with GoreGrind, Grind in general and outlier extreme metal music styles.
Bass – Starting from the bottom end, Atheia has a bit of extra oomph in certain frequencies, including the extra sub bass, but it has a specific resonance point where it has that extra punch and kick, and anything above it will not be presented with extra strength. This kind of presentation and tuning means that Metal, Pop and EDM can have a full sub-bass and low-line, but classical, rock and music that’s just supposed to be warm does not come through as sounding colored and the tuning stays balanced and natural.
Midrange – There’s a clear dipping point in the lower midrange that is continued from the recessed upper bass, and it takes away some strength and thickness from male voices, but it also cancels veiling and overthinking of the sound, making Atheia sound rather transparent and clean. It helps female voices and guitars shine through with exceptional punch in the upper midrange. Thinner male voices, sopranos, guitar solos and pianos have a natural body and a strong presence. There’s a certain level of clarity and crispness that is not usually possible with a thicker and warmer tuning, and my best guess is that Kiwi Ears and Linsoul decided to call Atheia neutral due to this upper bass / lower midrange recess.
Treble – With a bit of treble bite and sparkle around the 9 kHz – 11 kHz range, but it is tame, and the overall treble is on the smoother side, relaxed and lean. Atheia does have what could be called a neutral sound, there is no strong roll-off in the treble above the peaking point, and it just generally sounds controlled and has a nice body. There’s a really good separation between cymbal crashes and distinct cymbals, as Atheia has quite a bit of air, sparkle and energy in the treble.
PRaT / Textures / Dynamics – Atheia has two distinct note decay and attack speeds for the dynamic driver and the planar magnetic driver, and for the lowend, it sounds much fuller, smoother, slower with a slower decay and more bumpy attack, while the planar magnetic driver which handles most of the upper midrange and treble, sounds dry, focused, but manages to steer away from sounding too technically forced. Total result is a dynamic and engaging sound that’s ever so slightly romantic and relaxed in the bass, and has a tighter attack and faster decay up top, but still within the realm of relaxation.
Loudness Saturation Gradient – Kiwi Ears tuned the Atheia to be rather sensitive to loudness changes, it sounds best at high and medium volumes, and becomes a bit vague, warm and too laid-back at low volumes. Basically, instead of an increased distortion, you just generally notice an increase in clarity, dynamics and engagement factor, if you pump the volume higher.
Soundstage – This is one of the most surprising parts of the Atheia sonic experience, it is a pair of headphones with exceptional resolution, and definition, but the soundstage is just about rounded and natural, with a similar depth as it has width, it has an outstanding instrument separation and layering, you can hear multiple layers of cymbals in rock, and drums are really neatly separated from voices and other instruments. All in all, it is quite capable technically.
Comparisons
Kiwi Ears Atheia vs Aune AR5000 (349 USD vs 299 USD) – The build quality of both headphones is excellent, but AR5000 is a bit more tight in the build quality, while the earcups of Atheia flap loosely while you’re not wearing them. AR5000 and Atheia both are relaxed for fit and lightweight, but AR-5000 is much lighter, more relaxed fitting, while Atheia has a tighter, more secure fit, especially thanks to the earpads with leather, and no textile material. Sonically, Atheia is neutral, crisp and precise, while AR 5000 is warmer, smoother and more natural. Atheia is more technical in the sound, can reveal more information and details, while AR5000 is better for relaxing and if you want to listen to a romantic, more laid-back tuning.
Kiwi Ears Atheia vs Dekoni Cobalt Headphones (349 USD vs 399 USD) – Cobalt is larger, much lighter and fits more loosely. In contrast, Atheia comes with a better cable, it feels more premium, has wooden earcups, it fits better, has a slightly heavier build, and feels more premium in person. Sonically, Cobalt is much brighter, it is hard to listen to and enjoy at normal and loud volumes, and it is only fun at lower volumes, while Atheia feels much more natural, and despite being neutral, it is nowhere near as fatiguing and bright. Atheia is a much better overall headphone for most customers who just want to enjoy music, and Cobalt is a uniquely boutique pair of headphones with a very specific tuning.
Kiwi Ears Atheia vs Audeze MM-100 (349 USD vs 399 USD) – MM-100 feels like it has a better build quality, it is much heavier, tighter, more compact, and has a cable that connects on just one side, needing something more complex to replace the default cable. In contrast, Kiwi Ears Atheia is a headphone that feels more rustic, with the wooden earcups, it is looser fitting, has a more relaxed wearing style, but both have a similar degree of passive noise isolation and leakage, despite MM-100 being open-back and Atheia being closed-back. Sonically, both are precise, technically powerful, and mostly neutral, but Ateia is more relaxed, smoother sounding, more rustic and romantic, despite the neutral tuning, while MM-100 is cleaner, more crisp, more precise, and also better for mixing, mastering and music production, while Atheia is a more musical, softer, more liquid sounding pair of headphones.
Value and Conclusion
Linsoul strikes gold with Atheia, they manage to produce and sell it for just 349 USD, but this is actual technological innovation, as those headphones are one of the very few models on the market, or what we typical call first generation hybrid driver over-the-ear headphones, with two drivers, one dynamic and one planar. A neutral, detailed headphone with a nice transport case, with a strong price / performance ratio, Atheia is a great deal you’d be sad to miss.
At the end of the day, if you are looking for technical precision, neutrality, and a high-end build quality, along with a removable cable, single-ended cable, and with a hard transport case, Kiwi Ears Atheia is one of the more unique, technologically advanced pairs of headphones you can grab even today from Linsoul and their wonderful shop of Chifi magic.
PROs
- Neutral, balanced sound
- Clean and crisp
- Removable cables
- Excellent precision and technical ability
- High price / performance ratio
- Beautiful walnut earcups
- Thick and soft earpads
- Low clamping force
- Comfortable
Cons
- Stiff and single-ended only cable
- Neutral signature can be too revealing and bright
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4506OUP
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_op22bwc
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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