Headphones — Moondrop Psyche

The Psyche is a ten-driver universal in-ear monitor from Moondrop with a listed price of USD 2,399. Every shell houses a 2DD + 4BA + 4 planar array split by a three-way crossover, and the brand presents it as a reference-grade design tuned to its HRTF-aligned VDSF target response. The faceplate is made by hand with inlaid gold and silver, a method taken from Chinese Bronze Age metalwork, with rose and yellow gold set into a silver panel that depicts the MITSUKIYUKI character.

Key specs that matter

Impedance is 17.5 ohm plus or minus 15 percent at 1 kHz, and sensitivity is 115 dB per Vrms at 1 kHz. THD is rated at no more than 1 percent at 1 kHz and 94 dB. Moondrop quotes a frequency response from 7 Hz to 46 kHz, with an effective range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz within 3 dB when measured on an IEC 60318-4 coupler. Detachable cables plug into 0.78 mm two-pin sockets. The package includes an 18-core single-crystal copper cable and an 18-core pure silver cable, both terminated with a 4.4 mm fully balanced plug, and a 4.4 mm to 3.5 mm adapter comes with them. A storage bag is packed too, with an anime card, eartips in S, M and L and the paperwork.

Engineering and use context

Low frequencies go to twin 10 mm dynamic drivers in what Moondrop calls H.O.D.D.U.S., a horizontally opposed symmetrical arrangement of the two units. Four balanced armatures take the midrange, and four newly developed miniature planar magnetic drivers look after the treble. The three-way crossover assigns each group its own band, so the dynamic pair, the armatures and the planar units each work only in the range they were chosen for. Moondrop credits the planar tweeters with low distortion in the upper band. The effective range figure is the one measured to the IEC ear simulator standard, while the wider quoted span describes how far the drivers reach beyond it. A user guide and the MOONDROP Link app are offered as downloads for the model.

Pairing

The balanced termination suits portable players, USB DAC dongles and desktop headphone amplifiers with a balanced output, and the included adapter lets the same cable run from a single-ended socket. With such a low load, a source with a low output impedance keeps the electrical interaction between amplifier and the multi-driver network small. Swapping to a third-party lead with a different plug is possible through the same two-pin sockets.

Alternatives

The Moondrop Variations is a smaller five-driver tribrid in-ear monitor that pairs a single LCP dynamic woofer with twin armatures and twin Sonion electrostatic tweeters.