HEAVYS Heavy Metal Headphones Review
In early 2022, a Kickstarter was launched for some new headphones that claimed to be built for heavy metal1. They were given credibility by being designed by Axel Grell, a former chief headphone engineer at Sennheiser.
I was skeptical that they would be released as expected later in 2022. In fact, they really didn’t start shipping to most backers until late 2023. And now the Heavys are readily available, with a bundle containing the headphones, case and cable that retails for $300. I picked them up for $220 in a Cyber Week sale (with free shipping) after being inundated with ads for them on Facebook2.
I ordered them on December 4 and they arrived on December 10. From Hong Kong to Maine in less than a week! Not bad, but seems like it would be worth having some stock in the US, not that I can complain since shipping was free.
Unboxing
The box itself is thin cardboard with some promotional material printed on it. Technically the model is the Heavys H1H.
Inside the box is a notice about removing the shells, a certification, a note from Axel Grell, and a User Guide that is just a bunch of warnings, languages and a QR code to download the actual User Guide as a PDF.
There are also two cables in the box, a 2.5mm to 3.5mm analog audio cable and a USB-C to USB-C cable which can be used for charging or for digitally playing audio from a device.
Of course, the primary item in the box is the Heavys themselves, enclosed in their case. It is an odd-looking case because it is not flat, so the curved parts of the ear cups stick out. The case seems well made and tough with a recessed zipper. However, the case does not have an extra compartment for storing cables, although there is just enough room for you to kind of shove them in there.
Upon opening the case you can immediately see the headphones are folded up. They do fold at hinges, but do not fold flat, which is the reason for the odd case design. Other headphones I have, such as the Bose 700 don’t fold at a hinge, but do fold flat. My older Bose QC35 headphones would both fold at a hinge and fold flat, making them very compact.
Build Quality and Fit
Taking them out of the case, the first thing I noticed is that they are, well, heavy. These definitely weigh the most of all the headphones I have. The hinges sturdily snap into place.
The Heavys are all plastic and don’t feel particularly premium in any way. The ear cups don’t adjust much side-to-side, but I did not find that to be a problem. There is a slight creaking sound when stretching out the head band.
The controls feel lackluster. The volume dial is a nice idea, but it is small and you have to turn it more than I expected to get the volume to change. It just doesn’t feel all that precise. You can push the volume button in to pause and this works well and felt solid.
The previous song button is tricky to press since it is so small and tucked just below the big flap for the ear cup shells. The next track button is also small, but easier to find and press. Frankly, none of the controls have a great feel to them. The ON/OFF switches, for example, are all stiff and hard to move.
Placing the Heavys on my head reveals that they are rather comfortable. They have a significant amount of clamping force, but I did not find it an issue, even with my glasses. I don’t really notice the weight. They are made for big heads it seems as I have to have them adjusted to their smallest size to fit my head. These may not work well for women or anyone with a smaller head.
The ear pads are soft and provide a good amount of noise isolation on their own. My ears easily fit inside the cups and did not touch the fabric in the back, which is nicely labeled with a big L and R for each ear.
The outer shells of the earcups are removable so that you can replace them with band-styled ones that Heavys sells in their store (from $30 to $40 per set, which is grossly overpriced3). I think the stickers I got at the Linkin Park From Zero listening party might fit on the included shells, should I get the urge to customize them. Unfortunately you won’t want to use the headphones without the shells to save weight as that exposes some foam padding underneath (probably to reduce sound leakage) .
There is also a small blue LED that remains lit when connected to Bluetooth. I don’t normally like LEDs like this, but it did not seem too bright in the dark.
Not only are these headphones heavy, but they are also big. As in large, perhaps even gigantic. The ear cups stick out a lot. These are best used when stationary.
Usage
For testing, I connected them to my iPhone 15 Pro via Bluetooth. When turning them on, you hear that the Heavys have some serious, mean-sounding voice prompts spoken in an impressively deep voice that sounds like a demon. Phrases include:
Power On. Connected. Pairing.
Pairing successful. Connected.
Power. Off.
HellBlocker Activated.
These voices are cheesy, but fun.
The headphones connected quickly and easily. They also showed 100% charge right out of the box, which was nice — the battery level also shows in the iPhone battery widget.
For the most part the headphone controls are straightforward and easy to figure out, although I was puzzled at first regarding the two OFF switches. To be clear, the “OFF, ON, HB” switch turns the headphones off, on and the HB (for HellBlocker) position activates noise cancellation.
The other switch, labeled “OFF, B, PAIR”, turns Bluetooth off, on and activates Bluetooth pairing mode. To use the Heavys wired you will generally want to turn them ON, but have Bluetooth OFF. I did not test them wired.
I have not and won’t be testing this for phone calls. I prefer my AirPods Pro 2 for phone calls and I don’t see any pair of over-ear headphones beating them.
Sound
I decided my first song to test would be Panic Attack by Judas Priest, one of my top songs of 2024.
As expected, there is a lot of bass. But it doesn’t seem to overpower the rest of the sounds. On first listen, I enjoyed the sound. These seem like very lively and fun headphones. To be honest, I was skeptical they would live up to the hype and was more than a little worried that I would hate these, but I’m pleasantly surprised by their sound.
Next track to try was Phantoma by Unleashed the Archers.
Two songs in and I remain impressed. The bass is tremendous, but the vocals are super-clear. I ended listening to most of the Phantom album and it sounded wonderful.
Normally I’m not a big bass-head. After all, I use my aiaiai TMA-2 headphones with the “Reduced Bass” EQ setting on my iPhone.
Next, I tried some Linkin Park since I’ve been listening to the new From Zero album a lot lately.
In The Emptiness Machine, I can tell the mids are boosted, but again the bass and vocals are solid. I’m not going to say the bass is tight, but it is there, not overwhelming and adds a lot to the fun factor.
Over Each Other is a slower song with some low bass drum sounds. This is more of a pop song, but it also sounds great.
I have no complaints about the sound. I don’t think anyone will like these for critical listening, but they are absolutely fun and lively, something that actually does work well for most hard rock and metal music.
I did a 3-hour listening session, primarily going through my “Headphone Test” playlist which is a variety of pop, hip-hop, rock and metal, but also listening to other more metal tracks. My summary is that these headphones are fun to listen to. I enjoyed everything I tried with it, although perhaps Linkin Park’s From Zero didn’t quite sound as good as I’d hoped.
Additionally, I found them comfortable for the entire three hours. They did not get too hot or feel too heavy on my head.
Using the App
The app only just came out last month. It had been promised for years and I know some purchases were probably thinking it was never going to appear.
To use the app you have to create an account and wait for an wait for an activation code, which arrived in seconds.
To connect to the app, I had to first disconnect it from Bluetooth in the iPhone settings.
It immediately told me there was a new firmware version (V2.6.4) available, so I tapped the button to update it, which took about four minutes.
The EQ tab lets you change various EQ settings, up to 9db in either direction. Oddly, you can only change the EQ settings while music is playing.
The EQ works fine, but I have left it at the flat setting for testing. I may drop the bass a bit at some point, though.
But that’s about it for the app: firmware updates and an EQ. They should probably consider adding a way to disable the loud “demon” voice prompts, which do get old after a while.
HellBlocker Mode
For my three hour listening session, I’d say about half of that was in HellBlocker (active noise cancelling) mode. This was in the evening and there were two sounds that can annoy me in my otherwise quiet living room: an air purifier in the next room and the refrigerator in the kitchen. Both are normally clearly audible and were also audible with HellBlocker off. With HellBlocker on, I could not hear either.
I seriously doubt the ANC on the HEAVYS could possibly be as good as Bose, Sony or Apple, especially on something like a plane, but it won’t matter since I don’t plan on traveling with them — they are just too big and bulky.
Other Notes
Transparency mode is activated by holding down both the previous and next track buttons at the same time. This is certainly an odd control choice and not easy to do. I would rather it was a dedicated button that would be easier to press.
Transparency mode worked fine, however. I was able to have conversations with my wife (without music playing) easily enough with it enabled.
Battery life seems exceptional. After listening to them for about four hours, the battery remained at 100%. After about five hours of listening it dropped to 90%, so extrapolating out that would get me 50 hours of battery, using it mostly with HellBlocker off.
Comparisons
When comparing to my other over ear headphones (Bose NC700, aiaiai TMA-2, and B&W Px7 S2e), these have the most bass, but not the best bass. There is definitely more bass than the TMA-2, but the Heavys present the bass better. Mids are also boosted a lot. I’d say the Heavys are the least detailed. The B&W have better, tighter bass in my opinion.
These definitely have the worst overall fit and finish. Even the modular TMA-2, which you assemble by snapping pieces together, feels better designed and more robust.
Overall, I rank the Heavys 3rd, behind the B&W and Bose, but ahead of the TMA-2.
Wrap Up
When the Kickstarter for the Heavys first appeared (in 2022!) I was intrigued. I’m glad I waited because, even at the discounted $170, I would have been super-annoyed to have waited over a year for them. Instead I spent $220 (so $50 more), got them in a week and also got a case and cables.
I think these are good headphones for $220. They are lively and fun. I have been enjoying listening to music and hearing the different way these headphones present things. They are probably not worth the retail price of $300, so if you’re considering these I’d wait for a sale.
Since these are large and bulky, I don’t think these are good headphones for traveling. Plus the case doesn’t fold flat, so they just take up too much space.
If you only have the $$ for a single pair of ANC headphones, then these are not the most well-rounded ones to get. You’d probably be better off with something from Bose, B&W, Sony or Sennheiser.
I suppose much of that may not sound positive, but I am pleased with the Heavys and expect to use them regularly, especially when I just want to chill and rock out!
Rating: 🤘🤘🤘
Kickstarter price was originally $170, but that did not include a case or cable.
Yes, the Facebook ads got me, but I’m actually glad as the ads reminded me that I was still interested in the Heavys.
None of the ones they had in the online store interested me, although I would totally get some for Unleashed the Archers, nudge, nudge.