Mark Levinson No. 5909 - High Resolution Wireless Headphones with Active Noise Cancellation (Red)

Product Information

The ear cups are painted in a high-quality, automotive-grade metallic paint. The high gloss look of my radiant red review pair was simply gorgeous. The beveled edge of the Mark Levinson medallion on the ear cups is tinted red in a further nod to the brand’s visual design heritage. They live in an equally tactile travel-case, and are supplied with three cables that, thanks to their braiding and expensive-looking terminations, seem almost as upmarket as the headphones they accompany. Two lengths of 3.5mm to USB-C (1.25m and 4m) are provided, along with a USB-C to USB-C charging cable too. Features They designed these headphones very well. Nothing else needs to be said. It is both very comfortable, and extremely attractive, and also isolates very, very well. That passive isolation is still really good, and the active cancelation is even better. The headphones have a clarity of sound that few have, and the bass quality is among the best we’ve heard. If you need more fullness, it’s also possible to pull up a bit here. Conversely, the bass can be muted in case the recordings have too much of a good thing.

Exclusive construction, including beryllium-plated diaphragms (Photo: Mark Levinson) The Harman Curve

Specification and Design

Harman has developed its own frequency curve for headphones. The Harman curve is well known in the industry, and one that many headphone manufacturers aim to follow. It is not frequency linear, but instead attempts to mimic the frequency response of a pair of linear speakers playing in a room. By taking the room’s influence into account, the headphones will be perceived more as frequency linear, rather than actually being so. And should you get those thoughts – then yes, Mark Levinson also seeks to follow that curve as best as possible. Photo: Mark Levinson Three levels of noise reduction The 5909 headphones have been engineered to provide you with optimal sound for an over-ear headphone. Its sound profile has been expertly tuned to an acoustic response curve that achieved the highest subjective scoring across listening tests. Experience reference-quality sound, the culmination of decades of research into listening preferences and the science of acoustics. Mark Levinson No. 5909 review As the price tag demands, the No.5909 bring wired-standard sound to wireless convenience How can one credibly review a premium BT noise canceling headphone without being able to directly compare to category leaders such as Bose, Sony and Apple AP Max??

Well I don’t know what review you read, but I clearly mentioned there was a hefty case in my review here above. Here is a copy and paste of that paragraph.Very much like the HiFiMAN Ananda BT, the Mark Levinson No. 5909 can be used in a myriad of ways; users can opt to use it as a wireless headphone using Bluetooth 5.1 or as a wired headphone by using the supplied 3.5mm to USB Type-C cables or USB Type-C to Type-C cables for direct use with a computer or smartphone. Notice the much improved bass and matching of channels! Shoot, I could have saved half hour if I knew this. There was another major impact and that was in Group Delay: High-end audio gear—Mark Levinson products in particular—typically eschew bells and whistles, flashy features, and anything that might taint the audio signal path. As a result, the Mark Levinson companion app has a Spartan feature set compared to some of its competitors. The app tells you the headphones’ current charge and gives you the option to select noise-cancelling or ambient-aware modes, set the auto-off timer, enable on-head detection, and perhaps most importantly, set the Harman target curve bass contour. This must surely be a new record in terms of price for a Bluetooth headphone? I believe the previous record was 899 EUR/USD for a B&O headphone (H95?). Grab a neutral amp if you want a neutral tone, or a very warm one if you are like me and want a lot of warmth for your enjoyment time.