headphones
Listen to your most-loved music in the most spectacular quality possible, anywhere, any time
1 AKG N5005
The reference-quality nature of these in-ear headphones comes from their five-driver hybrid design. One dynamic driver and quadbalanced armature drivers in each ear bring you the music just as it was in the studio. You can tailor the sound to taste, though: filters let you adjust the frequencies to colour the sound the way you prefer. It comes with both wires and a Bluetooth option. £799, akg.com
2 HifiMan Susvara
Planar magnetic headphones can produce more precise audio than regular ’phones, but have their own issues: the magnet structure that drives them can interfere with the sound. The Susvara uses magnets that are acoustically invisible, so you get nothing but purity. The driver itself is a millionth of a millimetre thick – everything about this screams precision engineering. £5,295, hifiman.com 3 Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000
The Japanese masters of hi-fi have designed these open-backed headphones to carefully optimise the airflow around the 58mm driver. The driver itself combines as many components as possible into one unit, to reduce vibrations. The end results are packed into a magnesium frame, with soft Alcantara earpads and headband, all hand-assembled in Tokyo with an artisan’s finesse. £1,990, audio-technica.com
4 Ultimate Ears UE-18+ Pro
Perhaps the ultimate in in-ear monitors, these are loved by musicians for live and studio performances, but why wouldn’t you want your music to sound exactly like the original performance too? The shape is moulded to perfectly fit your ear, blocking all outside sound. It uses UE’s unique True Tone drivers for an extended frequence range, and the brand’s speciallytuned sound engine. £1,725, ultimateears.com