Despite the budget materials, the construction feels reliably sturdy, with no creaks or weak points when handling them. The sound of B60 is actually a bit forward in the midrange too, and has a full, deep bass, but the treble of B60 has much less impact and also fatiguing edge when compared to Athena.

And I believe this discrepancy between measurement and perception is strongly associated with what ISO equal loudness contour around 80-90 phon suggests.Oriole is more warm in tonality, smoother in the treble and the upper midrange, and more relaxed in sound too. The HarmonicDyne Athena's dynamic driver handles demanding transient spikes with limited compression, aided by M-shaped venting openings that allow more air flow and displacement. The Athena's combination of great imaging, quick decay, and controlled drivers allows individual elements to snap into their own space.

I don’t mean to suggest that this is intentionally misleading, but it has the potential to confuse consumers, especially given that the name ‘Athena’ is featured prominently in the centre of the image. The Athena proudly claims to feature a novel driver design with ‘studio-grade tuning’, or at least that’s what the manufacturer’s advertisement suggests. The bass elevation isn’t overdone, however, and I didn’t pick up on any artificial warmth in the mids. Athena is much more forward, more aggressive, more punchy, but can become harsh and sibilant faster. It’s definitely a middle-ground, so if you like the idea of an open-back headphone for gaming or music but don’t like the sound leakage, these could be a good alternative to a completely closed set of cans.Nonetheless, it’s interesting to see that V-response can benefit my listening pleasure as long as it is carefully tuned. This creates an imbalance in tones within this range, accentuating sibilance and the more metallic aspects of the timbre of instruments. Adjusting the angle of the headphones doesn’t result in any notable changes in the sense of directionality. Given the build quality, package, cable quality and overall resolution / sonic presentation, I think Athena is an outstanding value for a headphone in the entry-level range, and it does sound superb, without breaking the bank. It's also not overly "airy" but I believe that to be more towards it being a semi-closed listen anyway.

This works to some extent and also manages to not come across as too sibilant, yet it is not enough to overcome that sensation of things being veiled.

At the end of the day, if you’re looking for a super punchy, dynamic sounding headphone that will be great for most music styles, and which has super good resolution, clarity, and a full, warm bass, Athena is a V-Shaped headphone that’s fully recommended in today’s review, and one that I found to be the most comfortable entry-level headphone out there at this moment.