Having been thoroughly impressed with some of the more recent HiFiMAN planar magnetic headphones, namely the Ananda and the Arya, I've become increasingly interested to hear what a top of the line f lagship from the same company could do. I was never able to get into the HE1000 line of headphones - mostly because of the sheer size of the cups - but now that I've had a bit more experience ...The HE1000 V2 is definitely a step forward from the V1. There are changes all over the place when compared to the V1, with the most substantial being the slimmer cups and fatter, more angled pads. Subtle changes in its frequency response have made it slightly more mainstream, there being more of an emphasis on 70-80 Hz and increased sensitivity ...