Meze Audio is perhaps best known for the way they combine sound quality, visual design, and ergonomics into incredible audio experiences. Whether it’s the 99 Classics, which impressed many listeners upon their release nearly 10 years ago with solid wood appointments and a comfortable suspension system, or the Empyrean, which took the heart of the 99 Classics and elevated every aspect to the absolute limit. The brand also continued to evolved their sound along the way, with headphones like Elite, Empyrean 2, and 109 Pro. Now, with the release of 105 AER, Meze seems to be taking the improvements in tuning and performance that they executed with the Empyrean II and 109 Pro, and bringing them back down to a more affordable level. Will 105 AER be another game changing headphone for Meze?
Build and Design
105 AER’s design serves as a bridge between Meze’s 99 Series and 109 Pro. The headband and basic structure matches the shared design elements between the 99 Series and 109 Pro, and because 105 AER is open-back and uses the same velour earpads as the 109 Pro, the profile is nearly identical. There’s also a taste of the 99 Neo in its design, partly from the darker color scheme, and partly because, like the Neo, AER doesn’t use wood for the earcups. At a glance, it’s almost like a “109 Neo.”
What that all means from a practical perspective is that 105 AER is a very attractive looking and comfortable set of headphones. The suspension and pad design makes the headphones melt onto your head and are great for all day listening without fatigue. 105 AER uses the same dual 3.5mm TS cables as the 99 Series and 109 Pro, but the jack is the most accommodating 3.5mm design that we’ve gotten yet from Meze. Previous Meze headphones have a very thin recessed jack which only worked with Meze’s cables. The 105 AER jack isn’t recessed, so you can use them with a wider variety of headphone cables.
Sound
Meze Audio’s house sound has experienced a bit of evolution over the last few years. While the 109 Pro and Empyrean both have a noticeable warm coloration to the tone, more recent releases like the 109 Pro and Empyrean 2 have leaned a little more towards a neutral, transparent sound. 105 AER is a step back towards the warmth of the earlier Meze headphones, but not so far back that it loses the more transparent character of the recent designs.
In the bass, there’s a slight emphasis, with good impact and decent low bass extension. Kick drums kick, and synth bass rumbles, but everything feels natural, balanced and in its place. This isn’t a “basshead” headphone, but it delivers significantly more low end presence than your average open back headphones.
The midrange is full and rich, offering natural timbre and nice layering and balance between instruments. There’s a nice warmth to the low mids, that offers a relaxed presentation without feeling bloated or washed out. Vocals are well-placed, but male vocals sometimes lack a little bit in clarity.
At the top, AER has a little bit of upper extension, but maybe not quite as much as the name would have you imagine. The treble is largely restrained and slightly smooth, providing fundamentals, but not a lot of bite or energy.
In terms of the imaging, 105 AER has a nice sized soundstage, with a three-dimensional feeling, and good overall imaging performance. While instruments and sonic elements have good separation between them, the sound tends more towards cohesion than strong, holographic separation between instruments.
105 AER is very easy to drive and can be used with pretty much any device with a headphone jack. The dynamics, imaging, and clarity, however, are all improved by giving it a little more power. Even just using the 4.4mm jack in an iBasso DX180 was a noticeable improvement over a standard headphone jack, and OTL tube amps were my favorite pairing. Considering AER is only $400, there’s no need to go all out with a Feliks Euforia though, as options like the xDuoo TA-66 offer an excellent pairing.
At the start of “Walking on the Moon” by the Police, there’s a nice sizzle to Stuart Townsend’s hi hat work, and bassline is warm and smooth. 105 AER gives Andy Summers guitar a warm, but fast attack to the percussive up-beat chords. There’s a surprising sense of scale and space to the song, with the sparse instrumentation feeling spread out across an open space – almost as if the band was indeed playing in low gravity on the moon.
105 AER has no trouble keeping up with the energy and aggression on Linkin Park’s nu metal revival track, “Two Faced.” Emily Armstrong’s clean and harsh vocals, along with Mike Shinoda rapping each stand out in their own way and demonstrate solid vocal imaging. The guitars hit like a ton of bricks in a stacked attack with the bass and drums. There’s enough detail and resolution in 105 AER to notice elements like the heavily compressed drums or the double-tracked guitars of Shinoda and Brad Delson panned left to right, but the tonal balance gives you the fun and engagement that you’re looking for in this kind of track.
With a track like “Ruby, My Dead” by Thelonius Monk and John Coltrane, 105 AER feels transportive. The natural timbre and subtle warmth transport you to a smoky jazz club, while the imaging arranges the band nicely around you. Monk’s piano is warm and inviting, while Coltrane’s smooth solos soar. Part of what makes AER stand out here is that little bit of extra impact that adds the extra edge of a live performance. The instruments have some space, but don’t feel artificially separated, and the lush delivery of the headphones adds to the sense of ambience.
Comparisons: HIFIMAN Edition XS, Meze 109 Pro
Probably one of the most important comparison points for 105 AER is its big brother in Meze’s lineup, the 109 Pro – which begs the question of exactly how close 105 AER’s sound to 109 Pro. The second one I wanted to focus on was the HIFIMAN Edition XS, which has largely unseated Sundara as the entry point into competitor HIFIMAN’s lineup.
Compared to the 109 Pro, 105 AER comes off a little more relaxed, a little warmer, and a little less detailed. Typically I found 105 AER to be more satisfying with genres like hip hop or EDM where bass quantity is absolutely essential, however, 109 Pro still presented better detail and texture in the bass, even if it doesn’t hit as hard. If you’re among those who found aspects of 109 Pro’s upper mids and treble to be a little fatiguing, 105 AER pulls things back a bit, and gives you a more relaxed upper end at the cost of some resolution, and also some vocal clarity. I’d say on a technical level that 109 Pro is clearly better, but some listeners are likely to prefer the warmer, more relaxed sound of 105 AER over the more refined, detailed 109 Pro.
Edition XS provides a closer comparison in terms of capabilities, but ends up also making the difference more about sound preference than pure performance. Edition XS has a more transparent overall presentation, and provides a wider stage and stronger separation. However AER has a more natural timbre, and more midbass, along with less possibility or potential for fatigue. Edition XS can be a little sharp in the treble at times, while AER has a more relaxed top end. It’s also worth noting that 105 AER’s build is noticeably better and the headphones are without a doubt more comfortable than Edition XS.
The Bottom Line
105 AER fits perfectly into Meze’s lineup fitting in perfectly between the warm sound of the 99 Classics and the more detailed, refined 109 Pro. Considering the build quality, comfort, and level of performance, the $400 price tag is actually lower than I’d anticipate and makes these a great buy for listeners craving a headphone that balances strong detail with a lush, natural sound.
