Planar Magnetic Drives to Win – Review Geek

Headphones with planar magnetic drivers are usually (but not always) very expensive, but Edifier’s Stax Spirit S3 boxes offer a relatively affordable, compact alternative. These headphones boast quite a bit and I’m happy to say they live up to the hype.

Compared to the rest of the company, Edifier’s Stax Spirit S3 headphones are quite expensive at $400. Anyone involved in technology knows that price does not always equate to quality. Fortunately, that’s not the case with these headphones! You can use the stunning sounding Stax Spirit S3s wirelessly or wired in either mode. The only missing feature I would like to see is ANC, but more on that later.

Design and build: Premium look and feel

With a $400 price tag, Edifier’s Stax Spirit S3s looked and felt exactly as I expected. This product sounded premium, from the packaging to the extra flavors and the actual headphones. Of course, while there are headphones out there that cost over $1,000 and are usually reserved for true audiophiles and music professionals, the Stax Spirit S3s are premium for the average everyday user.

The first thing that caught my eye was its compact form factor, as the headphones pack neatly into a travel case. Looking at them folded up, it was pretty impressive that Edifier put planar magnetic technology in there. They don’t look much bigger than a pair of dynamic driver headphones.

Slipping them out of the travel case, I noticed the outer design of the ear cups glinting in the light; it’s an almost glossy, checkered design with the Edifier logo in the center. A lot of headphones with planar magnetic drivers inside aren’t very attractive, so I liked seeing a cool design that wasn’t too flashy on these bad boys.

When I first saw how plump the leather ear cushions were, I was worried that they would feel awkward on my small head. Thankfully, they felt perfect. I also have small ears, so most headphones don’t touch the top or bottom of my ear, but they squeeze them and cause discomfort after an hour or two. This didn’t happen with Edifier’s Stax Spirit S3 headphones, and I can wear them for long periods of time with absolutely no discomfort.

I replaced the leather ear pads that come with the headphones with the cooling mesh ear pads that Edifier includes with your purchase. I prefer these cooling mesh ear cushions because they feel soft, foamy and fit my head better. I imagine most people would probably choose cooling mesh pads over leather ones; I even had my husband try both and he loved the mesh ones better!

In addition to the two pairs of earbuds you get, you get a travel case, audio jack converter (3.5mm to 6.35mm), aux cable for wired use, USB-A to USB-C for charging you will also receive ear pad “guitar pick” that helps you change cables and pads. I tried changing the ear pads by hand, but gave up after a few minutes and used the included Edifier; it was so easy and i changed them in seconds.

The left earcup has a USB-C port for charging. I love seeing USB-C slowly become the standard for all technologies because it’s quick and easy to swap with other devices. Then the right earcup has everything you’ll use regularly. There are volume up and down controls and an on/off button between them. If you press and hold the power button, it goes into Bluetooth (5.2) pairing mode. There’s also an audio jack on the right side if you want to use the headphones in wired mode.

While its external components are quite stylish, the internal components are even more impressive. Many of the most popular headphones on the market today use dynamic drivers, which aren’t bad and usually thrive in the bass department, but Edifier’s Stax Spirit S3 headphones use planar magnetic drivers.

If you want to read a more in-depth explanation of planar magnetic drivers, we’ve got you covered. But essentially, planar magnetic headphones produce sharper, cleaner sound with less distortion and a wider dynamic range. It sounds fantastic on paper, but how good do these headphones actually sound?

Sound quality: Well balanced and full

The newest headphones I have to compare the Stax Spirit S3s to are Sony’s WH-1000MX4s, which were considered one of the best until the latest version came out, the WH-1000MX5s. (Sony, please call your headphones easier to write, say, and remember.) The Stax Spirit S3s sounded fuller with no detectable distortion.

Every song I listened to sounded incredibly clear. These headphones distinguish between bass and midrange notes and give you a full picture of how a song sounds. The highs can be a little aggressive on certain songs if you’re used to bass-heavy headphones, but I enjoyed the well-balanced sound and hearing all the nuances of my favorite songs.

Many headphones with planar magnetic drivers have an open-back design, like the Audeze LCD-1 boxes we reviewed. However, the Stax Spirit S3s are closed back, but there is still some sound leakage due to the small open area set aside when the ear cups are fully retracted. When you put the headphones on to listen to music, this small open area is covered by a plastic piece on the frame. I had to turn my music down to a volume I never used before my husband could hear the song through my headphones.

These headphones make you feel like you’re in the studio while recording or mixing. Instead of listening to a song as a whole, you can pick out individual instruments and then hear how they fit together. I wouldn’t call myself an audio fanatic, so take that as you will, but listening to music with the Stax Spirit S3s is the best and clearest I’ve ever heard in my life.

With the Edifier Connect app (Android/iOS), you can switch between three different sound effects: Classic, Hi-Fi and Stax. The sound effect when you first turn on the headphones is Classic and honestly, it’s my favorite. The classic sound effect is the most balanced, although it offers the most clarity with bass and gives songs a fuller feel. Hi-Fi makes the mids clearer, but reduces the power of the bass and treble. The Stax effect focuses more on the high notes, but balances it with more bass than the Hi-Fi effect.

The app also lets you easily toggle Game Mode on and off, which controls the amount of lag you’ll experience. However, you don’t need an app to enable and disable Game Mode. Using the button between the volume up/down buttons on the right earcup, you can press three times to turn Game Mode on and three more times to turn it off. You will hear confirmation when the headset is turned on or off.

Battery Life: Incredibly long

While the sound quality is the highlight of Edifier’s Stax Spirit S3 headphones, its battery life is second best. These headphones have a 1,500 mAh battery with an estimated 80 hours of battery life, which is more than what you’ll see from well-known brands like Sony or Beats.

While I’ve never run the headphones to the end of their battery life, I can definitely say they’ll last a while without needing a charge. Battery was around 90% after a full day of unplugging and listening to loud music. If you’re on a long flight or road trip (or don’t want to charge your headphones every day), these headphones are a great choice.

The extra battery life comes in handy when you want to use the headphones in wired mode, because unlike many other headphones that offer both wireless and wired modes, the Stax Spirit S3s require battery power in wired mode. This is due to the planar magnet design which needs battery power to function properly.

Conclusion: If you’re fine without ANC, check these out!

Overall, the Stax Spirit S3 is an amazing pair of headphones that puts high-end planar magnetic drivers at a price that the wider population can afford. Since there are great headphones out there for $50, I can’t say that these headphones are affordable as a blanket statement, but they are relatively affordable compared to other high-end planar magnetic headphones.

They have a well-balanced sound (right out of the box!) that immersed me in a way I hadn’t experienced before. If all you want are headphones with really loud bass, you can probably find a cheaper option out there that’s good enough. But if you want a full, studio-like sound, you won’t regret getting these. The only time I don’t recommend them is if you want Active Noise Cancellation in your headphones. Otherwise these are great.