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Meze Audio never stops striving for the ideal combination of sound quality, comfort, and durability when it comes to high-end headphones.
"With ELITE, we have created something that breaks the barriers of headphone design and technology, taking it to a new level of art and beauty. Following in the footsteps of our previous successful partnership, together with Rinaro Isodynamics we managed to exceed our expectations once again, creating something that will last. It is not mass production; it is craftsmanship that awakens the magical wonder in the ELITE model, making it exciting, and these are the values we choose over any shortcut." - Antonio Meze, Chief Designer and Founder of Meze Audio
ELITE takes Empyrean's renowned sound quality to the next level. The new Rinaro Parus® diaphragm is lighter and more powerful thanks to a new polymer treatment. The complex treatment creates a crystalline microstructure that is feather-light yet offers exceptional rigidity and stability.
ELITE packs a breathtaking amount of new thinking and technology into a pair of top-of-the-line headphones that are surprisingly light, incredibly beautifully handcrafted, and ultra-comfortable. You can tell the quality when you open the aluminum carrying case. A tear will well up in the corner of your eye at the latest when you put on your favorite song - not many people will hear such balanced, wonderful music in their lifetime.
Over 30 years of research and development led to the creation of the first isodynamic hybrid driver in the Empyrean. Based on the Empyrean headphone released in 2018, Meze Audio has continued the development of the driver together with Rinaro. The result is one of the lightest and most advanced planar magnet systems on the market. The unique driver, designed for the Empyrean and ELITE, features reciprocating spiral voice coils, the shape of which allows for more precise sound alignment based on the natural shape of the ear. The driver aligns the sound wave more precisely above 10 kHz, improving the sound image and instrument localization, reducing sound wave reflections and delays.
One of the many innovative features is the magnetic ear pad attachment, which uses the magnetic field generated by the driver to hold the pad in place. At the same time, the design directs the magnetic field back to the driver, improving its efficiency, but the stray magnetic field towards the listener remains small.
The level of finish on the ELITE's aluminum outer shell is second to none. This is not surprising considering the time it takes to CNC machine each ear cup; over 20 hours! The comfort of the headphones is second to none. Patented suspension wings expand the contact surface of the leather headband, relieving uncomfortable pressure points.
Meze Audio's core mission is to create durable products. The ELITE is no exception; from the easily replaceable ear cushions to the high-grade materials, every part can be serviced or replaced if necessary.
Each ELITE is handcrafted with the utmost craftsmanship in Baia Mare, Romania.
RINARO ISOPLANAR® membrane, new MZ3SE generation - The membrane weighs only 0.11 g (Empyrean 0.16 g), but its active surface area is as much as 4650 mm².
Hybrid Magnet Arrangement - Neodymium magnets are placed in a special shape symmetrically on both sides of the membrane. The arrangement ensures an effective Isodynamic magnetic field, which is needed to evenly activate the entire membrane surface.
Hybrid array driver benefits - Two independently designed voice coils are combined into a single diaphragm, ensuring more distinct acoustic performance all the way to the inner ear. Over 100 hours - that's the time it takes to build each ELITE driver from start to finish.
Exceptionally pure playback - Total harmonic distortion (THD) is less than 0.05% across the entire frequency range. This negligible distortion ensures not only pure playback but also an exceptionally effortless and relaxed listening experience.
Lightweight - The exceptional lightness of the elements helps keep the overall weight of the headphones low, so even long listening sessions go smoothly without fatigue.
Ergonomic Design - Ergonomically designed elements also allow for an extremely comfortable ear cup and cushion shape.
Exceptional frequency response ensures perfect clarity within the human hearing range
The upper limit of the frequency response is 112,000 Hz, with bass dropping all the way to 3 Hz. Even more important, however, is the accuracy and naturalness with which every micro-detail of the music is reproduced.
High sensitivity - 101db @ 1mw / 1kHz - high sound quality does not require high output power from the headphone amplifier.
Specifications:
Meze Audio never stops striving for the ideal combination of sound quality, comfort, and durability when it comes to high-end headphones.
"With ELITE, we have created something that breaks the barriers of headphone design and technology, taking it to a new level of art and beauty. Following in the footsteps of our previous successful partnership, together with Rinaro Isodynamics we managed to exceed our expectations once again, creating something that will last. It is not mass production; it is craftsmanship that awakens the magical wonder in the ELITE model, making it exciting, and these are the values we choose over any shortcut." - Antonio Meze, Chief Designer and Founder of Meze Audio
ELITE takes Empyrean's renowned sound quality to the next level. The new Rinaro Parus® diaphragm is lighter and more powerful thanks to a new polymer treatment. The complex treatment creates a crystalline microstructure that is feather-light yet offers exceptional rigidity and stability.
ELITE packs a breathtaking amount of new thinking and technology into a pair of top-of-the-line headphones that are surprisingly light, incredibly beautifully handcrafted, and ultra-comfortable. You can tell the quality when you open the aluminum carrying case. A tear will well up in the corner of your eye at the latest when you put on your favorite song - not many people will hear such balanced, wonderful music in their lifetime.
Over 30 years of research and development led to the creation of the first isodynamic hybrid driver in the Empyrean. Based on the Empyrean headphone released in 2018, Meze Audio has continued the development of the driver together with Rinaro. The result is one of the lightest and most advanced planar magnet systems on the market. The unique driver, designed for the Empyrean and ELITE, features reciprocating spiral voice coils, the shape of which allows for more precise sound alignment based on the natural shape of the ear. The driver aligns the sound wave more precisely above 10 kHz, improving the sound image and instrument localization, reducing sound wave reflections and delays.
One of the many innovative features is the magnetic ear pad attachment, which uses the magnetic field generated by the driver to hold the pad in place. At the same time, the design directs the magnetic field back to the driver, improving its efficiency, but the stray magnetic field towards the listener remains small.
The level of finish on the ELITE's aluminum outer shell is second to none. This is not surprising considering the time it takes to CNC machine each ear cup; over 20 hours! The comfort of the headphones is second to none. Patented suspension wings expand the contact surface of the leather headband, relieving uncomfortable pressure points.
Meze Audio's core mission is to create durable products. The ELITE is no exception; from the easily replaceable ear cushions to the high-grade materials, every part can be serviced or replaced if necessary.
Each ELITE is handcrafted with the utmost craftsmanship in Baia Mare, Romania.
RINARO ISOPLANAR® membrane, new MZ3SE generation - The membrane weighs only 0.11 g (Empyrean 0.16 g), but its active surface area is as much as 4650 mm².
Hybrid Magnet Arrangement - Neodymium magnets are placed in a special shape symmetrically on both sides of the membrane. The arrangement ensures an effective Isodynamic magnetic field, which is needed to evenly activate the entire membrane surface.
Hybrid array driver benefits - Two independently designed voice coils are combined into a single diaphragm, ensuring more distinct acoustic performance all the way to the inner ear. Over 100 hours - that's the time it takes to build each ELITE driver from start to finish.
Exceptionally pure playback - Total harmonic distortion (THD) is less than 0.05% across the entire frequency range. This negligible distortion ensures not only pure playback but also an exceptionally effortless and relaxed listening experience.
Lightweight - The exceptional lightness of the elements helps keep the overall weight of the headphones low, so even long listening sessions go smoothly without fatigue.
Ergonomic Design - Ergonomically designed elements also allow for an extremely comfortable ear cup and cushion shape.
Exceptional frequency response ensures perfect clarity within the human hearing range
The upper limit of the frequency response is 112,000 Hz, with bass dropping all the way to 3 Hz. Even more important, however, is the accuracy and naturalness with which every micro-detail of the music is reproduced.
High sensitivity - 101db @ 1mw / 1kHz - high sound quality does not require high output power from the headphone amplifier.
Specifications: