Audeze - MM-100

Specs & Comfort
Transducer size: 90 mm (advertised)
Transducer type: planar magnetic
Earpad size: 100 mm
Earpad fitting mechanism: glued-on
Sensitivity: 98 dB/mw @1kHz
Impedance: 15Ω @1kHz (measured), flat with slight tilt <300Hz (18Ω @20Hz)
Connector: single 3.5 mm TRS
Weight: 474 grams
Clamping force: medium-high
Headband swivel: YES (approx. 120°)
Comfort: 4/10 (clampy; slight weighty; tricky headband adjustment; strong pressure-like feeling when worn, similar to ‘eardrum suck’)

Tonal balance:

The bass is clean and tight, with a decent sense of immediacy. It doesn’t match the scale of impact of top-tier planars, but is competitive within its price range. Compared to the Hifiman Sundara, the MM100 hits a bit harder, although the bass may not be as atmospheric as the Moondrop Para. Among budget to mid-fi planar headphones, the MM100’s bass performance is exemplary, though it doesn’t quite reach the heights of the LCD-2 or the Hifiman HE6se.

The midrange is articulate and forward. The midrange presence feels mostly realistic, but there are a few quirks in its way of presentation. It leans towards the ‘shouty’ and ‘breathy’ side, which perhaps is in line with what one might expect from a tuning designed for professional use.

Vocals generally do not come across as particularly coloured, but some female vocals can seem ‘polished’ yet ‘dry’. This can be explained by the MM100’s frequency response. The lower mids are mostly linear, but there’s a discernible imbalance between the lower and upper vocal frequencies. The dip around 4-5kHz, characteristic of Audeze’s ‘house tuning’, imparts a ‘polished’ quality to vocals, subtlt reduces the sense of texture and bite. This feature is seen on most Audeze headphones including their more ‘musical’ offerings like the LCD-2/3/4, and even their earlier ‘pro’ model, the LCD-X. By comparison, vocal texture on the Sennheiser HD600 is still quite a bit more realistic, although it’s not as articulate as the MM100.

The treble is generally clear but somewhat uneven. It leans to the sparkly side but there’re a few regions of recession, making it a tricky headphone to describe in one sentence.
Instruments are generally clean and crisp, but others, like the violin, may lack a bit of sharpness. The MM100 is quite linear up to about 4kHz, but then becomes quite uneven. As a whole, the mid-treble region around 5-8khz is relatively recessed, a feature also seen in the flagship LCD-5. The result is that some percussion instruments, like the ride cymbal, can appear dry and brittle. While so, there’s a discernible peak around 6kHz (personally I hear it around 6.3kHz), which accentuates some vocal sibilances.

Other qualities:
• Soundstage and Imaging:

The soundstage of the MM100 is mediocre at best. Its lateral definition leaves much to be desired, almost creating a ‘three-blobed’ effect where elements of the music are divided into side images rather than being diffused across the field. Vocals and midrange instruments tend to be very intimate. The portrayal of depth is not impressive either. The layering, particularly of instruments, tends to congest, especially noticeable in orchestral pieces. The Moondrop Para is a better headphone in this aspect, followed by the Hifiman Sundara.
When it comes to imaging, the MM100 is satisfactory for the price. The central image is solid and well-defined, though it may lack the ‘sharpness’ necessary for distinctive separation. Midrange instruments and vocals often dominate the imaging space more than usual. Aside from these nuances, the imaging quality of the MM100 is decent, aligning closely with that of the Moondrop Para.

• Clarity:

The MM100 offers commendable clarity and resolution, particularly for the midrange sounds, like acoustic guitars and male vocals. Most female vocals are fine. However, as we move up to the upper mids and treble, a sense of compression emerges. Lower pitched instruments tend to have their presence emphasised, while it’s the other way around for higher pitched ones. For example, electric guitar distortion may come across as a bit thick, while violins may seem a little lackluster. The level of clarity comes back up in the upper treble, especially with instruments like crash cymbals. The sense of air and extension is admirable for its price.
In its price category, the MM100 holds its ground very well, competing closely with headphones such as the Sundara, and even those in a slightly higher bracket like the LCD-2C and the Ananda. The Moondrop Para is a formidable rival, offering superior resolution especially for complex passages.

• Pros: neutral-ish tuning; tight and linear bass; excellent midrange clarity and articulation; air and sparkle; solid build quality;
• Cons: somewhat compressed sounding; potentially overbearing midrange; uneven treble and upper-treble can offend some; small soundstage; clampy fit;

Audeze mm100 is a Flagship phone at a budget price. Superb build quality and music delivery is Pristine and crystal clear. Eargasmic headphone when combined with Fiio k11 (honest suggestion by Headphone Guru) .

First thing first I'm not an audiophile from any stretch of the mark, but what I am is a proper Cinephile and a Seasoned Gamer. This headphone was purchased after I got tired waiting for the Audeze Maxwell to launch in India. And while I wasn't really familiar with Open Back Headphones in general, I spent many hours testing out open back headphones at headphone zone (they put up with me and my continuous barrage of questions) Going through Audio Technica, Beyerdynamic (my previous headphones) to Fiio and Hifiman only to fall in love with the Audeze MM-100 which sound's amazing.

There are various things about the MM-100 and going through them : it has a wide but very accurate sound stage. I play alot of First Person Shooter's and can just take aim with sound alone now (if that makes any sense to you)
Clubbing it with The Meta Quest 3 for Virtual Reality Shooter's is a truly next level immersive experience as the sense of hearing sound's expands as your no longer just getting direction but also distance. No I'm not talking about loudness (loud When near and a bit faint when Distant but actual distance.
I played older games that have been supposedly mastered with this tech and Dice With the Battlefield series really Excel at this.
RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 really rocked at this aspect. I'm probably gonna replay the game just to hear these various audio layer's.
You can hear the wind when you go beyond 220 kmph In f1 sim racing titles. Now I'm not saying you can't hear this with other headphones. But I never heard it before on my beyerdynamic or audio technicas, the MM-100 just brought out what's already there…. I mean sure you tend to focus on the Car engines and road surface sounds, but the wind is there as well just completely covered up by the engine roars.

Coming to movies I love my Surround Sound System with active subwoofers, when I get a big budget movie with proper use of 5.1 or dolby atmos implementation. This and I'm not exactly sure but I think this set of cans just beat my speaker setup. I keep going back and forth on this alot. But still if it's making me debate so much it's a genuine testament to its abilities.

Music sounds beautiful that's a thing for sure. My mates who are into music talk about texture to sounds… I still don't get it.. but they love this Headphone and refuse to return return it back to me

Build quality. My Beyerdynamics have lasted since 2016 as they are truly built like a tank. This headphone is a full metal build that'll very likely outlast me.

Comfort wise it's definitely heavy and took a week or 2 to get used to. But then again I'm the guy who put an almost Half kg Headphone on his head along with another half kg of VR headset…. So I think logic went out the door. But it's not like Neck Workout at all as the weight is distributed and not focused on a few spots causing discomfort.

All in all a properly educational + exhaustive testing at headphone zone helped me get a great birthday gift for myself. One I intend to enjoy my Movies, Games and Music with for a long time to come.

Audeze - MM-100