Grill launched its OAE2 open headphones in the global markets after previously unveiling them in the German market. Axel Grill, a former engineer at Sennheiser, designed these headphones to rely on tilted acoustic drivers that help reproduce sound so that it appears as if it is coming from in front of the listener during a musical performance. These headphones are currently available for purchase through Grill, Bloom Audio, and Audio 46 stores at a price of 499 US dollars.
Traditional headphones place the transducers directly to the right and left of the listener’s ears. Although this design has been successful for decades in providing high-quality sound, Grill believes that it fails to simulate the actual feeling of being in a live show, as the sound comes from the front and interacts with the outer ear before entering the inner ear. Therefore, the company uses FSFM technology, which relies on 40 mm tilted transducers, to create this lost experience and make the listener feel as if they are in front of a live performance.
Made in Germany, these 378-gram headphones feature bio-cellulose diaphragms that deliver a frequency response between 12 Hz and 34 kHz with a total harmonic distortion of 0.05% at 1 kHz. The headphones come with 3.5 mm unbalanced cables and 4.4 mm balanced cables to provide various connection options with different audio sources.
