If you follow the site here you will know that we were recently wowed by the [$300 Meze 99 Classics Gold] with its very entertaining sound signature and upscale build. At this year’s Los Angeles CanJam, the Meze table was decorated with even more goodies and upcoming headphones for attendees listening pleasure.
While many of the items on the Meze table in the long tent of the show were still in prep form, it was apparent that the company is looking to capitalize on its earlier efforts while still remaining very conscious of its products price and value.
The 99 Neo pictured above cuts $60 off the retail price in lieu of the luxury-oriented wood ear cups. Pushing down into the $250 range cuts further into the competitive market of $200-somethings and may well tip the scales for the many lurkers in the arena. The prototype on display still had a nice texture and build to it overall, even without the premium materials. The rim of the prototype ear cup was even highlighted with a new silver trim that complemented the rest of the corresponding hardware nicely. Expect the new 99 version to hit the street in Q3 of this year.
The new guy joining the family is the Meze 77 Deco. Pricing is TBD but it may be safe to expect something in the $300 -$400 range. The initial design intent was to make the headphone a bit more portable this time around, the ear cups now swivel and allow the headphone to lie flat for easy transport. Materials may change from what you see above, as may the color scheme. Early specs on the driver will most likely end up as a 42mm paper and carbon fiber creation. No definitive date has been set yet for the release.
Meze also produces a few pairs of ultra affordable universal-fit IEMs that all fall under $100. The product line will mean even closer to $0 with the upcoming release of their 2nd gen updates referred to as the 11 Neo ($49) and 12 Classics (TBD, $69-$79).
For those not familiar, current line consists of the aesthetically similar 11 Classics ($79) and 11 Deco ($79). Good things seem to be coming out of Romania these days. I’m looking forward to seeing where this very interesting headphone company goes next.
https://www.mezeheadphones.com/
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018VZBH5M/