Enjoy gold drivers without the golden price tag.
SJY Audio, a boutique headphone manufacturer known for their handcrafted wooden planar magnetic headphones, has released their most ambitious and expensive model to date, the SJY Horizon.
In a recent review by the popular YouTube channel Z Reviews, the Horizon have been praised for their exceptional sound quality, with the reviewer even comparing them favorably to the much pricier Abyss Diana.
The SJY Horizon’s ‘Golden Sound Quality’
In his review, Z Reviews focuses on the Horizon’s main feature: their pure gold planar driver. This rare and expensive part adds to the headphones’ impressive clarity, detail, and directness in sound reproduction.
“The gold brings up the price, but what gold does is it conducts the electricity across the planar differently.” he says.
“Did that bass note just hit? Oh my God, my nipples shattered. The vocal clarity is just… There’s an energy.”
Z Reviews also comments on the Horizon’s unique sound signature. He emphasizes the headphones’ ability to present music in a new way, leading him to discover new sounds on songs he’s heard ‘100 times’ before.
However, he notes that the sound staging also felt different. Instead of the typical experience of hearing the sound as if there’s no distance between the drivers and his ears.
Compared to SJY’s previous models, which had an impedance of 8 ohms, the Horizon have a 16 ohm impedance and a sensitivity of 90dB/mV. While this is better, it is still lower than the “stupid tungsten” at 150 ohms.
The higher impedance makes the Horizon easier to drive than some of SJY Audio’s earlier products. Yet, the reviewer notes that finding the right amplification pairing for the best performance may require some testing.
“If you say I don’t know what my sound signature preference is and you have $1,000 to spend on a headphone, you buy these.” he says.
“100 percent recommendation of the Horizons. Just know that you may have to play with a few different amplification options.”
Mixed Reviews With the Build Quality
The Horizon’s build quality is mostly praised by Z Reviews.
The Horizon depart from SJY’s signature wooden designs since they are mostly made of metal. But, despite being an open-back design, the Horizon have vents in the 3D-printed part that holds the pads.
According to ZReviews, this helps keep the drivers from getting “crinkly” when the pads seal.
However, he claims that the review unit he received isn’t the final version.
In his unit, the 3D-printed mounts for the earpads were still ‘not perfect’. He had to use some blue tack to keep the earpads firmly in place. The shape of the headphones also didn’t feel as secure as other models.
SJY Horizon vs Abyss Diana
One of the most notable parts of Z Reviews’ assessment is the comparison between the SJY Horizon and the Abyss Diana, which the reviewer considers to be the Horizon’s “real competitor.”
The Abyss Diana are much more expensive headphones, with a price ranging above $4,000.
Despite this big price difference, the reviewer suggests that the Horizon can deliver a similar level of performance. This makes them an appealing choice for audiophiles looking for top-tier sound quality without the high price of the Abyss Diana.
“Maybe I won’t say these words because I want to get other Abyss things in the future. But, let’s just say if you’re pulling out your pockets and you’ve only got like $1,000 and not $3,000-$4,000 for Abyss, this might be what you’re looking for.” he states.
“It does most of the things that I would expect from a from that level of planar.”
Availability
First announced on February 13, 2024, the SJY Horizon are available for pre-order on their official website. They are currently at a discounted price of $850, but will go up to their regular price of $1000 after the sale.
These come in many color options like Black, Silver, Pink, Purple, Blue, etc., as well as a wooden variant with Voronoi and Wave wood.
Deliveries are expected to begin in mid-April.