Audio Technica ATH-WBLTD vs. Meze Liric II Comparison Review

Meze and Audio Technica are 2 brands who are dedicated to providing quality audio products at multiple price points. The anticipated release of the Audio Technica ATH-WBLTD has been met with positive reviews. Selling for $1599, this is definitely in the hi-fi price range and provides a unique listening experience. Meze is a relatively new company when comparing to Audio Technica. Don't be fooled by their short lineage, because the innovative products have propelled them into premium hi-fi conversations. Their Liric II is an extremely popular high-end closed back with similar wood styling and premium comfort. At $1999, people shopping for a closed back will undoubtedly want to compare them head to head. Let's find out which product is better for you in the ATH-WBLTD and Liric II comparison review.

What's in the Box? - ATH-WBLTD vs. Liric II

Looks and Feel

I feel as if the looks of the ATH-WBLTD are the most striking and exciting feature of this headphone. The flame maple driver housing and leather headband make this a luxurious looking headphone. These premium materials make this headphones one of the best looking audio products in the field. My gripes with the headphone don't have anything to do with the looks, but rather the narrow headband. I have a large head, and this headband is flexible enough to fit. At only 320g, this headphone doesn't have a lot of pressure to clamp. The top of the earpad did sit well, but because my temples bulge further than my ears, the bottom of the pad didn't sit right. When I did press them tightly around my ears, there was a greater clarity in voices and midrange.

Unlike the ATH-WBLTD, I don't have much to say about the Liric in terms of looks. I think the ergonomic design looks a bit disjointed and the wooden housing covers pale in comparison to Audio Technica's styling. Although the ergonomic looks don't speak to me personally, it's a great tradeoff considering how comfortable the headphone is. Meze and Dan Clark Audio are currently producing the most comfortable headphones on the market in my opinion. Comfortable models like the Liric are the reason the brand has grown so quickly in the past decade. Although this headphone is considerably heavier, the way it sits across the head is even and cozy. The ATH-WBLTD wins in a landslide in terms of looks, and the Liric II is decisively more comfortable.

Specs - ATH-WBLTD vs. Liric II

Soundstage - ATH-WBLTD vs. Liric II

The Liric II has an impressive soundstage for a closed back with a pronounced vertical dimension. This means that they're able to create a sense of height and layering in the audio experience. Its proprietary "Phase X" spatial imaging technology gives them a holographic quality, allowing listeners to get the most out of their Dolby Atmos and 360 compatible tracks. This resulted in a more natural representation of depth and height, allowing me to get more immersed when compared to the ATH-WBLTD. The Liric II excels in presenting a cohesive and realistic soundstage, where each element occupies its own space without artificial reverb.

In contrast, the ATH-WBLTD offers a notably wide soundstage, recreating expansive trailing sounds that stretch horizontally. This width provides a spacious listening experience, with sounds seemingly extending beyond the physical constraints of the headphones. However, the ATH-WBLTD introduces an added reverb to the soundstage. This can enhance the perception of space but may slightly compromise natural sound reproduction. While this reverb effect particularly shines with trailing sounds, adding a pleasing ambiance, it may not match the Liric II's more accurate depth and height representation. It's more noticeable on recordings with a small acoustic ensemble, where things spread further than they naturally would. The ATH-WBLTD's presentation might appeal to listeners who prefer a more expansive, hall-like sound.

Listening Impressions - ATH-WBLTD vs. Liric II

Bass

Bass is without a doubt the focus of both of these sound signatures. Both of these headphones are 'warm-leaning V' sounding closed backs and the similarities don't just end there. There's a lot of "thudding" and cracking that the bright highs and boosted bass give us. If you're a percussionist who focuses rhythmic elements while enjoying music, there's a fantastic palpable quality you get from both of these headphones.

Starting off with the Meze Liric II, the sound signature is not totally dominated by bass sounds, but there's a comfortable roundness that low frequencies have. The Meze sound signature supplements this bass by boosting some low mids and the 1kHz range. At times, low-end sounds can overtake other layers like voices. This doesn't happen offensively often, and only a discerning ear will notice slightly pushed back vocals. For what you sacrifice in subdued vocals, you get a great warmness in digital and modular sounds. "Pain" by Boy Harsher took on a triumphant quality in the synths that's hard to find in a lot of headphones. The often harsh sounding layers became simultaneously more tonal and palpable because of this sound signature.

The ATH-WBLTD has similar characteristics but takes bass to an even further extreme. The same idiosyncrasy occurs on these, where voices drop further in the mix than they do on the Liric II. I have a feeling the low-end deviates much further than the mids do, and for this reason, drums, synths, and bass poke out that much during the listening experience. This can be a great thing for bassheads, who seek out the maximum tangibility in their listening experience. For some this may be overkill, but Audio Technica is a brand well known for its bass extension. At the same time, all this low-end information didn't cause the headphones to distort, which is a feat in it of itself. For my preferences, I would have to choose the Liric II. I must concede the ATH is undoubtedly impressive in it's bass presentation and will give you the maximum low-end.

Mids

I don't have much to say in either of these mid signatures, because there's very little to be excited about in both of these. As I said before, there's a recession that happens between 300Hz and 3kHz with some bumps in certain places. Bass on the Liric II slowly tapers off and bumps up some lower mids. There's a good roundness that sounds have, but there isn't enough of a boost to create muddiness in sounds. Another bump between 600Hz and 1800Hz which peaks at 1kHz combats the voice drop which I noticed. This becomes even more noticeable with female voices.

The ATH-WBLTD has a very hollow quality to mids that may be suitable to certain people, but lacks a character for me. As I previously mentioned, the recession on the ATH-WBLTD is even greater than on the Liric. There's a slight extension into the low-mids on the cans, but that's the most I noticed when listening. This can be nice if you're dedicated to listening to the instrumentation on songs, because instruments take the forefront of a mix. Guitars and voices lack depth.

Highs

Since both these headphones have "warm-leaning-V" sound signatures, the gripes in the mid-range quickly dissipates with the treble. The ATH-WBLTD supplements a lot of the bass' sonic dominance with sharpness and body. Sounds have a scooped quality because of how dramatic the "V" signature is on here. If you're a big fan of either "V" sounding headphones or classic Audio Technica sound signatures, this headphone brings it to a new level. There's a nice sharpness brought out by bumps at 4kHz and 8kHz. It's not enough to compete against the bass, but rather supports this warm sounding headphone in a way that fills out the shape of these fat sounds.

The Liric 2 is a more subtle example of a v-shape, and there's less competition going on between bass and treble. Competition may be the wrong word, because although more balanced than the ATH-WBLTD, it's still disproportionately bassy. Nevertheless, a reported frequency response spanning to 92kHz means that these headphones will give you imperceptibly high pitches. Past 5kHz, there's a plethora of airiness and laser sharpness that make this headphone a pleasure to listen to. "The Boy With Death in His Eyes" by Uniform & The Body ends in a drone of feedback and noise. These headphones not only accurately depicted this sound, but I also wasn't too fatigued or off put by this very noisy record. Sibilance isn't as much of an issue on the Liric II, and I'd have to choose these when put head to head.

Summary

Between both of these headphones there's a lot to be excited about. At the same time, my preferences led me to believing the Liric II would be more suitable for what I like in a set of cans. That being said, dedicated bassheads and fans of Audio Technica will still have a lot of positive things to say about the ATH-WBLTD. Similarly, those who get a comfortable fit with the ATH will also appreciate how light and pretty they are. Simultaneously, if you asked me, I'd tell you to pick the more balanced sounding and feeling headphone. Meze's premium comfort justifies the $400 price difference. Regardless, both of these are great headphones and you won't be disappointed in either one.

Get the Liric II and the ATH-WBLTD at Audio 46