Meze - 99 Classics

Meze is relatively new Romanian company and 99 Classics is their much talked about model in several forums. They are carefully designed with choice of premium materials like wood and metal. Having spent about a week with them here is my opinion about them:

BUILD QUALITY, COMFORT AND AESTHETICS: I ordered Walnut and Gold model. The headstrap is self-adjusting. At about 260 grams, they are fairly comfortable to wear for a long time. Earcups and headstrap are clad in artificial leather. It's soft and seems durable but genuine leather would have been definitely plus point at this price point. Wires are detachable and made up of OFC reinforced with Kevlar. Connectors are metal with gold plating. Hardcover casing is also good but not portable due to size. Meze claims that every part of 99C is serviceable and replaceable.

Golden parts accentuates the look which sometimes feel overly done. However overall look is classy and goes by their name - "99 Classics".

SOUND QUALITY: Here is the core. I burned them for about 15 hours. At 32 Ohm they are easy to drive with a mobile but will respond well to better sources. Meze claims flat frequency response and it’s not far from truth. 99C is fun to listen. Sound is balanced across all frequencies. Nothing over-powers.

BASS: It’s well defined and controlled. Might feel bit excessive in quiet room but that’s a closed-back headphone.

MIDS: Mid tones give lot of details and instrument separation. Sounds of pianos and guitars are lifelike. Vocals too are presented well and in detail. You can hear every whisper and breathe. They appear a bit forward of soundstage.

TREBLES: Highs are soft, sweet and airy without being harsh.

SOUNDSTAGE: Its average for a closed-back. Nothing outstanding here.

OVERALL: Overall 99C presents a pleasant, mature and well-balanced sound. It’s fun to listen, musical, well-built and stylish.

I found the Meze to be very musical and enjoy listening to them for many hours, whether in the studio, listening to my mix work or enjoying listening to music. Amazing detail and frequency response with no mid band harshness or the brittleness of the high frequencies. I am very happy with my decision to buy them and thanks to Headphone Zone, who first introduced it to me by sending one demo piece across.

Worst headphone

First of all my sincere thanks to Headphonezone for such excellent service. Within 1 days received the headphone. Raghav is spoiling me day by day. Day by day i am becoming poor.
Jokes apart here is my review.
Pros: Awesome build quality with classic walnut cups, warm dynamic sound, easy driving headphones with any audio source.
Cons: Earpads are little shorter, some times bass is overemphasized
Boy oh boy this headphone drive any audio source with elan.Very easy driving headphone. This headphone is perfect for rock music. Mid is so awesome. Bass is very good but sometimes feel overemphasized. Awesome treble. It is not easy to impress me with headphone. Even though Raghav brought those headphones in Headphone connect in Bangalore But never tried. After reading all the reviews in Head-fi, Headphonics, Headphoneguru,i became too curious to try them. Unfortunately only option is buying. I am not regretting for my decision. From the beginning itself i am fallen in love with this gear. The build quality is so classy. Nothing cheap about it. With metal,wood such a wonderful combination. After burning the headphone more than 60 hrs, it is opening very well. The provided cable is awesome, My only regret about 3.5 mm termination. Meze could provide the 2.5 mm terminated balance cable with this headphone. My all IEMs are terminated in 2.5 mm balance cable. Everybody is complaining about the narrow sound stage. A 3.5 mm unbalanced cable can not give wide sound stage which is only possible through 2.5 mm balanced cable . I think Meze took all the feedback from all audiophile sites and take the matter in their hand. they are now coming out with their own customize custom cable . 8 wires OCC copper cable with 2.5 mm termination and 2.5 mm TRRS to 3.5 TRS connector with just $149 and 8 wires OCC silver cable with 2.5 mm termination and 2.5 mm TRRS to 3.5 TRS connector with just $199. Custom cable will give awesome sound signature

Tried these for 2 weeks. I must say I got unexpected stunning results. Clear audio, extremely comfortable for long sessions. Fully satisfied with the headphones

Wow...I mean wow they are...Starting with the delivery...it was quicker than quick...Then comes the unboxing experience...it was wonderfull...everything very thoroughly packed...nd the box was very good looking...opening the box came the hardcase very good in which the headphones were pretty nicely placed...opening the hard case came the headphones themselves...all i could say is premium......they are very handsome lukin headphones...the built was very sturdy...very good...with no plastics...all wood...leather nd metal...the wood with gold luks like u have something very expensive...it had a small pouch in which the 2 cables,a quater inch adapter nd a flight adapter were there...
Now the comfort...it fits to i guess every head size...no adjusting bands... you just wear it nd it adjusts itself...
Now the real thing...sound...its just perfect...the bass is thumpy...the kicks kick...the mids crisp nd clear...nd the highs nice nd broad without any harshness...the stereo imaging is very wide...nd with my samsung note 4's equilization...it feels like im there where the music is being played
Conclusion...a must buy for the price...a premium lukin nd sounding headphone

If u have any volume issues with ur music player please go for a headphone amp...it will make ur listening experience much better with no volume issues

First of all a great thanks to Headphone Zone to get such a great product within my reach and to Yash who helped me decide between Meze & VModa as a gift to my wife. Although a bit pricey, but worth all the money, every single paise. This is the best headphone I've had until now. You hear sounds which you might not have heard normally and it does let you hear how it was meant to be heard.
This is not a Bass heavy headphone and hence anyone looking for the extra boom might not like it, but if you enjoy music, you will love this headphone.
The ear cushions are great and doesn't press hard on the ear. And the whole thing is light on the head as well.
The structure of separate head rest and the steel band does at times move differently when your head shakes and it might just put you off sometimes. For me that was the only niggle i faced.
Overall a great experience and full satisfaction. Nothing less.

These headphones are the best in class. I use the Apple lossless format music on my iPhone and they sound very nice. The sound was a little bassy when I started using them, but that was easily corrected by setting the phone equaliser to "Flat". Very comfortable to use too, I would highly recommend them to anyone looking to buy portable headphones in the price range.

The Meze 99 Classics have a very unique look. Beautiful, but different. And the same goes for they're sound. I mean this in the best way possible.
No other Headphone that I've ever used matches the 99 classics in build asthetic, sound, isolation and comfort. I sound like im advertising this love child between steampunk and sheerbl audio bliss, and I wish I was cz that would be tje worlds easiest job.
Build and Comfort- At first I found the clamp force a bot excessive, but after the first week, it adapted to the size of my head for a snug and cosy fit( i wear glasses so this was a big plus) Sturdy, solid and apparently every part is individually replaceable. 9.5/10
Sound- I don't know much audiophile lingo, but I'd best describe the 99's as headphones with extremely satisfying bass, no bleeding into the kids AT ALL. I was pretty amazed, the highs seemed rolled of amd the headphone seemed very dark straight out of the box. The bass was all over the place, claustrophobic soundstage etc. I burned them in for About 30 hours and then I spent about half that time listening to almost every song in my library and it felt like I was rediscovering them. The minutest microdetails were retrieved perfectly. Bass can rumble, it can punch and can kick a drum like it's right next to me. Very responsive to EQ, I saved diff presets for diff genres and the 99's deliver every time.
Price- The most expensive headphones I've bought yet, true. They aren't easy on the pocket but for the quality they give, im inclined to call them a bargain.
In Summary, sound 9/10 too ( comparing it to headphones double thier price) Prominent buy very controlled amd detailed low-end, crystal clear mids(female vocals sound like drops of ambrosia) and just the right amount of trouble. They're very responsive to eq, so you can customize them as per preference. A big thanks to headphone zone for introducing this product to me. Prompt delivery and help 10/10