Write a commentThe SoundStage! Network has just announced the winners of our Product of the Year awards, along with three new recipients of our Outstanding Achievement awards. Cruise on over to SoundStage! Hi-Fi for a full list of winners, or check out the video presentation on our YouTube channel. Among the award winners are two headphones and two earphones, one each in the Outstanding Performance and Exceptional Value categories, and all reviewed during 2025 on SoundStage! Solo. Suffice it to say they’re all great.
However, the award winners aren’t the only great products we reviewed this year. I want to highlight some others that were standouts, but just missed getting the top accolades. The best of the rest, if you will.
Audeze Maxwell gaming headset
I’ve been using the Maxwell headset a lot since my October 1 review. It’s become my main gaming headset, despite my fears that weight might be an issue. Maybe I got used to the Maxwell. Maybe wearing it so much bulked up my neck muscles. Who knows, but even so, this headset is unquestionably heavy.
Being fully absorbed into Battlefield 6, the inaccurately named tenth main installment of my favorite game series, I’ve appreciated the Maxwell’s high-frequency reproduction, which is noticeably better than my previous gaming headsets. This makes it far easier to localize where footsteps are coming from. When playing Jump Space with friends, the better mike is also welcome, I’m told.
Occasionally, I’ve used the Maxwell to listen to music, mostly because I can reach it without getting up, and being wireless there are no cables to get caught on my chair. That doesn’t happen often though, as when I’m not reviewing something else, for casual listening I usually reach for the FiiO FT1 headphones.
I still think the Maxwell headset is expensive and heavy, but I don’t regret buying it.
Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 headphones
B&W’s Px7 S3 headphones, which I reviewed in August, are a bit too idiosyncratic to win a Product of the Year award. They’re not for everyone. They are, however, for me. Well, not literally, but they closely track my preferred sound profile. They’re unquestionably bass-heavy, but that bass is well controlled and not bloated. It’s balanced by some detailed treble. Are they the most accurate and balanced headphones out there? Nope. But they are super-fun to listen to, especially if you enjoy music that benefits from some extra bass. Crank up some Chvrches and enjoy the ride.
I actually liked them better than the Px8 headphones, which I reviewed on December 1, though I’d recommend the higher-end Px8s to more people.
Creative Aurvana Ace Mimi earphones
The Aurvana Ace Mimis, which I reviewed last February, are on this list more for their technology than their overall performance. Don’t get me wrong, they sound really good, especially for the price. What’s inside is more interesting, in my opinion. Instead of dynamic, balanced-armature, or even planar-magnetic drivers, they have MEMS, or micro-electromechanical systems. These are essentially “speakers on a chip” and have found wide use in smartphones. Recent developments have improved MEMS drivers to the point where they can be used in situations where fidelity is more important than size, water resistance, and other non-audiophile benefits.
These were a direct runner-up to this year’s eventual winner for Exceptional Value. For the price (US$129.99), they sound great and offer decent noise canceling. Highly recommend if you’re looking for budget true wireless earbuds.
HiBy FD5 DAC–headphone amplifier
If the Aurvana Ace Mimis are on this list for their tech, the FD5, which I reviewed in May, is on this list for its design. With its lights and screen, the angular, two-box design looks smartly high‑tech and vaguely sci‑fi. I dig it. In a market rife with bland boxes, HiBy regularly goes in a different direction. Last year I reviewed their R4 media player for a different website and its Evangelion theme was also spot on.
Design only gets you so far, of course, so thankfully HiBy packed a lot of hardware into the FD5, including a powerful amp and a quad‑chip DAC setup. It’s not portable in the sense that you can put it in your pocket, but it’s small enough that if you want to bring it with you to use at work, it can fit in a backpack or purse. Pretty cool overall.
The hunt continues for new go-to earbuds
In my “A Eulogy for Great Headphones” article, I mentioned I was on the hunt for a replacement for my beloved Sony WF‑1000XM4 true wireless earbuds. Are there better-sounding earbuds? Sure. Are there earbuds with better noise canceling? Yes. Are there earbuds that have great sound and great noise canceling, and fit well in my ears? Theoretically.
I’d hoped the excellent Noble Audio FoKus Rex5 earphones might fill that bill as they sound fantastic and their noise canceling is good enough. However, for my particular and peculiar ears, they don’t stay in place as solidly as I’d like. I have small ear canals and the Rex5s work their way loose far too often. I don’t think most people would have this issue, especially if they’re not using them when out and about.
So for the time being I’ve fallen back on the B&W Pi7 S2s, which I reviewed back in 2023. Amusingly, I bought the XM4s two months later. I like the Pi7s’ sound far more than the newer Pi8s. My concern is the XM4s are a stopgap for me. They’re now nearly three years old, and I can’t imagine their batteries have as much life in them as they did when new. So how much time will I really get out of them? I guess I’ll see if I don’t find something I like better. The annual Consumer Electronics Show is a few weeks away. Hopefully I’ll spot something there.
. . . Geoffrey Morrison
