One of the stars of this year’s show was Denon’s PerL Pro earbuds. Following the company’s parent’s acquisition of Nura, it was a foregone conclusion that Denon would be incorporating its sound personalisation tech in some way. When the PerL and PerL Pro were announced, it was a surprise to see how much they resembled the Nura True earbuds. Now that I have had some hands-on experience with them, it’s safe to say that they look, feel and sound almost exactly the same as the Nuras… 

The sound personalisation test is exactly the same, the visuals are exactly the same, and even the test track to listen to the differences when the sound personalisation is active is – yes, you guessed it – the same View2 by Sasha. As someone who has reviewed the NuraTrue, NuraLoop and NuraPhone products, I’m rather familiar with how Nura products sound. Fans of the brand who were worrying that the acquisition might be a bad thing can probably rest assured now, as the PerL Pro sounds very much like a Nura product that has been upgraded. 

Sitting above the base PerL model, the PerL Pro is packed with more features like aptX Lossless that offers 44.1kHz/16-bit playback, spatial audio support, wireless charging support, multipoint support, a claimed 32 hours of total battery life and very effective ANC. The PerL and PerL Pro have been released in Japan and the US at a retail price of US$199 for the PerL, and US$349 for the PerL Pro. Australian availability is slated for sometime in August 2023. 

The HIFIMAN booth was one of the most exciting for me, and I reckon a lot of headphone enthusiasts in Japan as well, purely because there were a few things on display that hadn’t gone on sale in that country – and even in others like Singapore – yet! One such example is the Svanar Wireless earbuds, which take bits and pieces from the company’s other flagship products like the Topology diaphragm from the wired Svanar IEMs, as well as custom HIFIMAN-exclusive Himalaya R2R ladder DACs used in the EF400 DAC/amp. 

I had a short listen to these earbuds, and on the first listen, they sounded great with good sparkle in the treble and a punchy, textured bassline. The earbuds also sat well in my ears thanks to the moulded shape of the shell, although I reckon fit and sound will be affected by the eartips, which is the case with almost every pair of TWS earbuds out there. The Svanar Wireless are already on sale in the US and Japan at US$499 or ￥79,860, although we’ve yet to see them in Singapore. 

Another exciting product that might not have as much buzz yet is the HIFIMAN Arya Organic headphones, which were first teased at High End Show in Munich in May and released just over a month ago in the USA. However, the Arya Organic hasn’t started selling in all that many places yet, not even in Japan and Singapore. We hear that the company is looking to start retailing the headphones in Japan around the end of August to September though, so we’re definitely keeping an eye out for that…

After taking a short demo on the show floor, it became clear where the ‘Organic’ in the name came from. Unlike the Arya Stealth Edition (SE), which has stealth magnets, the Arya Organic doesn’t come with organic materials as it uses the same magnets as the SE, but does feature the Nanometer Thickness Diaphragm. Perhaps the Organic in the name refers to how the headphones have a more organic, natural sound compared to the Arya SE, with more warmth and liveliness? The Arya Organic actually retails for slightly less than the Arya SE, selling at US$1,299. We’ll certainly be looking forward to hearing this product again, hopefully in a quieter environment so we can fully enjoy the experience. 

The new Ananda Nano headphones were also announced, and availability has been better for these than the Arya Organic, with the product already starting to sell in Singapore. In Japan, they’re slated for a combined release with the Arya Organic in August or September. With the Nanometer Thickness Diaphragm inherited from the company’s flagship SUSVARA headphones, I found the Ananda Nano to have a natural, spacious sound that managed to tame the treble down slightly more from its predecessor, the Ananda Stealth. From my short time on the show floor, I was struck by the clarity and comfort on the head, although I did feel the sound was a bit too clinical and focused on accuracy and speed.

First impressions should always be taken with a pinch of salt, especially when performed in a noisy (show) environment, so I hope to get a better gauge of the sound in a quiet space one day. The Ananda Nano retails at US$599 or S$949, which is a slight discount compared to the original Ananda, but a rather significant one when compared to the retail price of US$999 for the Ananda Stealth – although those are more commonly found these days at US$549. 

Final Audio’s X8000 is another interesting product, or should I say prototype? Unlike the rest of the exhibits at the show, nobody was allowed to listen to this, and I wasn’t even allowed to pick it up for a better look or to take a photo! First showcased at High End Munich 2023, these headphones are some of the most unique I’ve seen, with hollow, apparently 3D-printed earpads that seem to cover the ear rather than sitting on-ear. 

They sport planar magnetic driver arrays that are suspended in metallic cages without the usual damping materials, plus a super thin headband since there’s no need for padding when the headphones are so light. It will definitely be interesting to check out the finished product, as it’s rather rare to see a pair of planar headphones that are this light. With the D8000 Pro priced at US$4,299, I reckon we’ll most likely see an even higher price tag for the X8000 when it comes to market. The current timeline for release appears to be in December 2023, so that’s something to look forward to for the holiday season! 

Overall then, with all these products releasing soon, the second half of 2023 is definitely shaping up to be packed with plenty of exciting new head-fi gear.

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