Mark Levinson No. 5909 - High Resolution Wireless Headphones with Active Noise Cancellation (Red)

Product Information

Samsung, JBL, and AKG have a strong focus on the headphone and wireless categories and it was only a matter of time before a brand like Mark Levinson ventured into the space. Such is not the case here. The No. 5909 is wildly coherent in every direction. And when everything meshes just right like this, the experience feels broad and engaging. It feels interesting, and you don’t focus on one part of it like you would the HD800, for example. Theo Nicolakis is a C-Level technologist and digital communications professional. He's also a passionate audiophile and home theater aficionado. Mark Levinson, as a Harman company, has access to the minds – and ears – that created the Harman curve, which is a representation of the sort of sound supposedly preferred by most of the people most of the time. Usually this sort of marketing-speak suggests nothing more than endless focus groups and a result that’s inherently compromised; but in this instance, the goal is to reach an ideal.

What makes this headphone special isn’t necessarily its pedigree, premium materials, onboard tech, or noise-cancelling performance (though it has all of those, too). Rather, what’s notable is the No. 5909’s voicing to the so-called Harman target curve for headphones. The result? A gorgeous headphone worthy of the Levinson heritage that will exceed the sonic expectations of even the most demanding music lover. Do you like sports cars and expensive-looking audio products? Well, look no further because the Mark Levison No. 5909 looks like a Ferrari with earpads…and I love it. Mark Levinson has been one of the leading brands in high-end audio for almost 50 years and its transition under the stewardship of Harman International has been rather interesting to watch. Harman is now owned by Samsung and part of a much larger group of companies that includes Harman Kardon, JBL, Lexicon, Infinity, Revel, and AKG. The growth of wireless headphones and the connection to Samsung and AKG is not a coincidence in regard to the Mark Levinson No. 5909 Wireless Headphones. Mark Levinson components have had a particular look for over 50 years and it was clear during the unboxing that the brand has not deviated too far with their first pair of headphones. The industrial design will feel very familiar to a lot of audiophiles and the build quality and components are all first rate. Unfortunately, the 5909’s ANC doesn’t handle high frequencies too well. Trying to avoid ambulance sirens on walks or infant cries around the house wasn’t an option.

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With such a high asking price, it is not unreasonable for consumers to expect great sound quality from the No. 5909 and it certainly doesn’t shy away from that ask. I did my listening using both the wireless and wired modes and while there are some differences between the two, the gap when using LDAC and aptX Adaptive was not as wide as you might expect. The No. 5909 has Bluetooth 5.1, as well as wired potential. As I’ve recently said a few times, the modern era BT tech is advancing to the point that wires aren’t going to be needed soon, even on audiophile products. I’ve been testing noise cancelling and wireless headphones for a number of years now. In that time, they’ve made huge progress and much of it has been evolutionary; model year on model year, some aspects of the performance have moved on. At the same time, there have been points that have to be seen as evolutionary leaps. The PSB M4U2 (so venerable, it wasn’t wireless) had noise cancelling that both worked and was conducive to listening to music at the same time. The Sennheiser PXC550 had wireless that was functionally bulletproof and sounded good when you used it. The Bowers & Wilkins PX was equipped with a battery life that could cover any scheduled international flight on Earth and was the first outing for the dark magic that is voice passthrough. Then, more recently, the Philips Fidelio L3 was the first of these headphones that delivers a better music performance with the ANC on than off. The Mark Levinson No. 5909 have a USB-C port for charging, but the headphone can also function as a USB audio device. A USB-C-to-3.5mm audio cable for connection to an analog audio source is also provided. The headphones use Bluetooth 5.1 for wireless connectivity, with SBC, AAC, LDAC and aptX Adaptive codecs supported. Sound is served up by a couple of 40mm beryllium-coated full-range drivers, and they’re said to adhere more closely to the Harman curve than any alternative.

I prefer musicality in tone to clinical on this headphone, but you can get more of either depending on your rig, so rig-pair carefully with your preferences.

Reviews

The Harman target curve is a sound curve that both trained and untrained listeners preferred for headphone listening. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this response curve closely resembles the in-room response of an accurate loudspeaker in a semi-reflective room, as shown from Dr. Toole’s research. Comfort: very good to excellent. Slightly heavier than expected but well balanced with comfortable headband and very comfortable pads, which I believe are leather. EDIT: The pads ARE removable.