Real owners lean toward the ATH-R70xa: 63% of 27 owners recommend it, vs 53% of 352 for the HiFiMan Sundara.
Verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube owner comments — affiliate reviews excluded. Sample sizes differ; judge accordingly. How we score
“I listened to a bunch of highly rated headphones at the last CanJam in NYC and none of them made me want to upgrade from the R70xa.”— this_is_me_drunk on Reddit
“I got the r70xa as well, but had to get a new amp to give it more juice to make it sing. But man, being so light i hardly reach for my other cans now and using these as daily drivers.”— Waste_Search2125 on Reddit
“it has this really arfticial, unnatural sound to it that's neither analytic nor is it a smooth, rich entertaining sound”— Overall-Cupcake7073 on Reddit
“They won't break. I've got a opair of the 2020 Sundara's and a recently purchased set of Arya Stealth. They're both perfect. Sound wise and build quality too.”— Kevbassman on Reddit
“Absolutely the Sundara gives you way more than its price suggests clean planar bass, great detail and a neutral tuning that honestly captures most of what people love about higher end cans.”— Ornery-Ad-9419 on Reddit
“I think the. Sundara is super overrated. It's fine, nothing special, has some quirks/problems that many better headphones in and above its class don't.”— drwafflefingers on Reddit