Meze 99 Classics Walnut Gold | Wired Over-Ear Headphones with Mic and Self Adjustable Headband | Classic Wooden Closed-Back Headset for Audiophiles

The Meze 99 Classics made a pretty good impression on me until they didnt: Sound: Overall, these headphones have a pleasant and coherent sound. Nothing is missing, but the sound signature isn’t the one I wanted. The highs don’t have that airy quality I like. The bass is too loud and too loose. When I have even the slightest headache, I can’t listen to music without cranking the volume way down because the bass becomes unbearable. Portability: These are the first headphones I’ve had in a long time that are closed (little sound leakage), light-weight, and require no additional amplification. But these headphones get so damn warm whenever it’s not chilly outside. I dont sweat a lot, yet my head is always drenched in sweat on my walk to work when Im wearing these headphones. I’ve worn some pretty big and clunky headphones (Fostex T50RP MKIII, Audio Technica M50s, etc.) and some not so clunky ones (e.g. Momentum v1 and V-Moda Crossfade M100), but I cannot recall a single pair of headphones making me sweat like these. Comfort: When I put these headphones on the first time, I was thrilled. They seemed to stay in place while clamping minimally and did not require me to fiddle with them to get them to fit nicely around my head. But as I started wearing them for hours at a time, I began to notice that my head would hurt a lot, especially at the top of my head and where the headphones make contact with my glasses. To make matters worse, they always felt like they weren’t fitting snugly enough to keep air from escaping so I’d awkwardly shift them forward on my head to form a better seal, which looked ridiculous and made them hurt even more. Im sure these are great headphones for a lot of people, but they’re just not for me…

Almost too realistic in projection of sound. I swear in some music I have almost a 360 degree listening range as I hear things coming from in back of me. Scares the shit out of me as I think someones there... lol.... These are NOT noise cancelling, and the highs arent quite what Id expect, however this is the best set of muffs Ive ever had.

I own an embarrassing number of headphones priced from $800.00 to $10.00. I own open back, closed back, semi open back, ANC, iems, bluetooth headphones, bluetooth iems. These headphones stand out in the crowd for their performance, build quality and outstanding looks. They are extremely comfortable and can be worn for hours without fatigue. They feature a enjoyable sound signature with a slightly boosted low end. While many headphones today boost their lows these dont sound muddy or boomy like most of the other companies. The bass goes deep but never bumps up against the mids or gets unnatural. Mids are well represented and very smooth and accurate. Highs sing a very nice song without sibulance or fatigue. For closed back cans their sound stage is impressive with good width and depth. Instruments are well placed and easy to pick out. These have become my favorite closed back headphones because they have such an enjoyable sound. I do have a more detailed and technicaly accurate pair of closed back headphones but they reveal every flaw in poorly recorded songs or dont sound good with lower bit rate recordings. The Mezes just shine no matter what the source, bit rate or quality of the recording they just make songs sound better. In addition they scale well with better sources and amps. Very nice with tube amps. Wow, beauty, comfort and just plain enjoyable sound. What more can you expect from a headphone.

So first things first this is going to be a bit long in the tooth but the TLDR version is as follows: For someone just starting to develop their ear for audiophile peripherals and devices who also happens to be leaning towards luxury stylings, this is an unbeatable package (that also doubles as an investment). These deliver a detailed and non fatiguing listening experience and damn do they look good doing it! Im going to begin by explaining a brief background on my listening habits and what devices I have experience with. First and foremost I am by no means an audiophile, but I am becoming more interested in HIFI audio as time has gone on. My very first pair of headphones I ever purchased were the Auvio 33-290 (A very apt direct comparison to the Meze 99s if only looking at the contents of the boxes haha!). I seriously thought they were the coolest headphones ever what with the ANC (powered by two AAA batteries as was the fashion at the time) and a hard case as well as two cable attachments 1 for a hifi stereo and another for an airplane audio port (the perfect set up for an angsty teen whos family moved around as often as mine did). I used these as my daily drivers for years and I never even considered there being a better alternative. So you could imagine my surprise the first time I tried on a pair of first generation Bose QuietComfort QC1s. Before then I never realized a pair of headphones could simultaneously be quiet (the Auvios being all plastic and rather cheaply made rattled like crazy), comfortable (the plush memory foam on the Bose was a treat to my head after the abuse the earcups and headband padding had taken on my Auvios), and actually make music sound better (the first time listening to a pair of high end headphones after only ever listening to a set of cans from radio shack is really only something you can experience for yourself). Now all that being said I never did buy that set of Bose headphones because I didnt really care much about the difference in quality once I saw how much more expensive they were than my Auvios. Even though I didnt buy them, that first experience with a luxury headphone still stuck with me and eventually lead me to the Meze 99 Classics over a decade later. I can safely say listening to the Mezes for the first time took me right back to that same feeling I got with the QC1s! For starters calling Meze headphones high end or luxury is to almost understate the actual beauty of the headphones themselves and the overall presentation. From the logo on the form fitting hard case to the gold accents and walnut ear cups, everything on these exudes confidence and quality craftsmanship (hell even the zippers are satisfying). Im going to break everything down to those three key areas I mentioned before: Quietness: These headphones have a spring steel headband which means theyre extremely solid (no rattle to be found here). You also wont find any plastic on these headphones and every piece is secured with screws so all you hobbyists out there can tear them down and replace components as needed with very little fuss! The cord also is part woven kevlar and part rubber coated which also contributes to a nearly noiseless headphone (the most noise Ive heard from them has been the earpads adjusting after slipping the headphones on, something that will change once theyre broken in of course). This cable can of course be upgraded to a balanced cable should you aim for a more audiophile focused listening experience. Comfort: The first thing I noticed when I picked up the box was just how light the entire package was, something that was a great indicator of just how comfortable these were going to be for extended listening. You couldnt imagine my face once I was actually holding the headphones solo, it was like some sort of antigrav technology (hyperbole I know, but theyre seriously light!). Then once I actually got them on I immediately knew I could never go back to a standard headphone band. Having a self adjusting memory foam headband coated in PLU with the lush earcups was a total treat! Again I have to express how weightless the package feels due to how comfortable it is! The fact that they dont majorly squeeze your head is a major plus as well. This is still yet another area that can still be improved further with the wide availability of differing earpads (I am honestly smitten with these ones though, the comfort and noise isolation is perfect for my tastes and I havent noticed the pads contributing to any sort of increased base presence as Ive seen mentioned in other reviews). Music Enjoyment: Again, I cant stress enough that Im not an audiophile but that I do thoroughly enjoy music and have a pretty decent ear for it (dont worry though, Im not about to go on about frequency response and things of that nature, better to leave that to the pros). So when I say that these improve the listening experience what does that mean exactly? Aside from the obvious comfort of the headphones themselves (a must for extended listening sessions) you also get a far more full bodied 3D audio experience from your music. This is a headphone that will seriously give you moments of amazement and joy as youre able to hear elements of your favorite songs that you might never have noticed before. If you pay attention you may even start to get this spatial awareness of where the different elements composing a particular song are coming from. Its really one of those experiences that will stand out to you the more time you spend with these headphones. That being said, you may be wondering if theres a particular genre that these excell at and so far I havent found one that stands apart from the rest. I listen to A LOT of music encompassing many genes (Id say my comfort zone is somewhere between punk and prog rock with a lot of new age jazz for some variety) and these headphones have truly improved the listening experience with every song Ive tried them with. They can even take some crunchier punk recordings and still pump some extra depth into them without really making you notice that lowfi quality in a bad way. Theyre just really great all around headphones delivering depth that you would normally need open backed headphones to even scratch the surface. They handle these different elements all while delivering a really fun listening experience that isnt going to fatigue your ears and doesnt require anything more than the device of your choice to achieve. Final Verdict: Given that my most recent pair of headphones prior to purchasing these was not my old Auvios I must admit my world was not turned upside down in the exact same way with my first listening session, my enjoyment more so built over time. These days I use a pair of Sony WH-CH510s for music and a pair of Skullcandy Hesh 3s for gaming and travel. Neither of these are particularly high quality headphones, but they can still deliver a pleasurable listening experience without being overly expensive or fussy. The 99 Classics, on the other hand, are in a class all their own in terms of the quality and engineering in comparison to their cost. Not only do they look the part of a premium headphone but they sound incredible to boot and are fully serviceable. This all boils down to these being more of an investment for me personally as Ill be able to keep these operating for years to come and even upgrade certain components as my needs change. The fact that these headphones can hit so many marks at the $300 price point is truly a remarkable feat and something to be admired (especially in the wake of planned obsolescence). All in all, Im overjoyed to own these headphones and if you find yourself looking to invest in a quality pair of headphones, I think these could fit your needs just fine!

These sound amazingly clear, are well constructed and beautiful. Most comfortable headphones I’ve ever owned.

These Meze 99 Classics Headphones work best with 5 Instruments in songs. The Meze 99 Classics Headphones allow Guitar, Piano and Bass to be fully represented. I hope to be able to afford Planar Headphones in the future but I will always hold onto these Meze 99 Classics Headphones.

The build quality is very good and the included cables are some of the best quality Ive seen included with a pair of headphones. Sound is overall decent with a focus on the low end. Impact is good, though it might be a bit too much for some people. Overall, a really nice product.

OMG -- these are without a doubt the most beautiful sounding headphones I have ever listened to; and, Ive listened to plenty. A firm believer in Sennheiser, I thought I would have to wait until I could afford around $1,600.00 to hear the ultimate headphone, even though I own two pairs of Sennheisers already. These cost me over $100.00 more than the 99s each!!! When I read the reviews that ultimately led to their purchase, I was expecting a very mellow, perhaps dark, sounding headphone. Not at all -- this headset needs only two adjectives -- perfectly musical. As a trumpet player, musician, and audiophile I honestly cant believe the accuracy of these cans. The cymbal crashes demonstrate harmonics and tone quality! Yes, thats right, not toneless splashes. Further, the bass is strong, clean and there is no coloration of tone quality in other instrumentation using those same frequencies. This review has been written after first listen out of the box. No break in. Lastly, I flattened the EQ in foobar to make sure I wasnt hearing boosted bass or lowered treble frequencies. Well, I wasnt. These Meze 99 Classics simply sound gorgeous!! You will not find a better sounding pair of cans on the planet for $300.00.

awesome headphones I own quite a few pairs of headphones more expensive,and if I had to give them all up and keep one pair these would be the ones I keep.im currently running these off of my sabaj d5 dac I recently purchased.running through my Mac via usb and using the boom 3 eq. I am able to get the most out of these headphones.im thinking on buying the Neo headphones also after hearing these. I cant believe how efficient these are once I tuned the sound where I wanted it I couldnt believe sound separation voice clarity and soundstage.everyone should experience these headphones.the one thing I did immediately was upgrade to a balanced xlr cable,build & sound quality perfect well done.

really loved these headphones but returned them due to cosmetic issue. In my opinion the headphones I received should have been sold as B stock or Blem as the wooden cup had a natural wooden knot at very edge but was filled in with some type of filler that appeared pinkish after final finish. Though it was a small knot/flaw it caught my eye everytime I picked them up and bothered me as I paid full retail with no discount. They sounded great so I may re buy them again and hope for better quality control.