Kennerton Odin is a pair of Planar headphones that shows the importance of premium feel and sound as well as staggering and remarkable build quality. It will cost you $2250.
Sound quality for the price
Build quality
Value
Packaging & Accessories
Honestly, I think this was the greatest unboxing experience I’ve ever had in my life. First up, you’re getting this huge wooden chest. You open it and what you find inside looks like something definitely made about 3-5 decades back. The headphones, a tin can with a wooden engraved top, and all of that covered in Kennerton signed fabric. That lid has small magnets built-in so every time you close it you get that satisfying shunt.
What about that tin can? On the top of it, you also have a wooden lid.
It has an engraved Kennerton logo as well as the most important aspects of headphones. Inside you’ll find your cable. Ended from one side with 6.3mm Jack and on the other with two Mini-XLR’s. Cable itself is actually pretty hefty, thick, hard, and very robust. The only complaint I can give it is that after splitting into two Mini-XLR’s cable is actually getting much thinner and because of that this hard material is very microphonic so you should keep that in mind. However, if I’d like to say anything about durability, I don’t think this cable will break anytime soon and you also have to keep that in mind because if you have some lighter amp and you accidentally pull that cable while it’s being plugged in, you can actually drag your amp with you. I’m not joking. From other positive aspects of that cable, it’s very nice to touch and never tangles, rolling it is simply a joy.
Build Quality & Comfort
The greatest part of these headphones. They are built like an actual tank. It’s a combination of aluminum, steel, real leather, and real wood. Because of that, these headphones are very heavy, and I mean VERY heavy. About 700 grams and that’s without a cable. When I first put them on I thought my neck is going to give up but after few hours I started to get used to it. By any means, I’m not saying you can get used to wearing such an amount of weight. Even if you wore them for more than a week you’re still going to feel a slight ache in your neck every time you’ll put them off. I even have fallen asleep in the chair while listening to them. Not recommended.
Now onto the pads. 105 mm lambskin leather soft pads that are literally sucking your ears in and I have no issues with them whatsoever. They are huge and because of that, I’d also recommend these headphones for people with larger heads. The hinge is also pretty unique because you have this big knob which you can twist to set them properly to your head. There’s no clicking, just a sliding metal. The headband does not have any sort of padding. I can definitely feel it after some time but definitely, it’s not painful. I can’t say the same thing about the clamp of the headphones overall. From the box it’s very strong and tight. You’re basically dragging your skin with those pads while even trying to adjust them. I can recommend stretching them a little. At the bottom of the headphones we have those Mini XLR ports and cups have this really nice arrow style metal grill that in my opinion simply looks amazing.
Sound
First of all, I need to clarify one thing – I’ve seen many people describing the Odin as “easy to drive”. My observations tell me the absolute opposite – Kennerton Odin is in my opinion one of the hardest headphone to drive on the market. They didn’t perform too well with amplifiers like JDSLabs Atom, Fezz Audio Omega Lupi or anything similar. It all changed when I plugged them into the Little Dot MK VI+. I invited my audio friends, and we were all quite astonished with the results. Oh, a friendly reminder – the MK VI+ has 5W output power into 120oHm!
Having that in mind, I strongly recommend trying the Odin with a beast of an amplifier, they really do open up then.
I won’t be describing them in our standard fashion, splitting the impressions by the bass, midrange, treble and soundstage sections. I believe the Odin is an extraordinary pair of headphones but it also tells the story with its sound. That kind of products create a sensation of dealing with a lifelike sound, that is tailor-made for some music genres.
So, what does the Odin sound like?
Natural. These are not the most accurate, fast, or resolving pair of headphones ever made. Not even close actually. It doesn’t have the hardest slamming bass, nor the most sparkly treble response. The soundstage also isn’t very wide, but it’s also not shrunken down. It is just…right, the way it’s supposed to be regarding the song currently played.
Here’s the thing – I’m a headphone-related audio reviewer, and I’ve been reviewing this kind of equipment for about 8 years. But I’ve been into stereo gear for even longer, both as a hobby and by the profession.
Why do I mention this? Well, I actually think that the Kennerton Odin is like a well-assembled, good stereo setup. It just sounds right. Have you ever heard a hi-end stereo gear? Something like Vivid Audio Giya, Ayon Vulcan Evo power amplifiers, or even Trilogy 925? In this kind of setups, you stop listening to specific sections of the sound, you’ll never say – wow, that upper midrange has a nice boost. Nah, you listen to it as a whole, focusing more on an overall timbre or key characteristics of this specific setup.
It’s also just the thing that made BBC speakers so famous – they made you listen to the music, not to the sound, which is quite rare nowadays in my opinion.
If you’re one of those guys, who really like that BBC sound (so you basically like Spendor, Harbeth, etc) then you’ll probably gonna ask that question: “Should I buy the Odin then?”.
The answer is… yes, definitely. See, I’m currently having fun with vintage Spendor SP 2/2 BBC speakers, I’m a fan, definitely. The Odin is very similar to that, it gives you that sensation of the music sounding…right, easy, true and involving in a romantic manner.
The Kennerton Odin shows its strength in acoustic, jazz, and overall vocal-oriented music. Do not expect them to shine in electronic, metal etc. They might lack speed, attack, and an overall “crazy factor”. Those are meant for chilling – grab a glass of nice whisky, kick back, and get lost in this cozy, effortless, and beautiful sound.
I know that you probably came here for a more direct and informative sound impressions, but I truly believe it won’t do any justice to this great pair of headphones. But I hear you, so I’ll give you something.
The bass has a decent slam, but it’s way more about the texture and creating the rhythm. It kind of reminds me of the bass from Audeze LCD3, minus the hard-slamming. It’s still rich, deep, and saturated, but it’s not crazy fast and punchy as you could expect from a hi-end pair of planars.
The midrange is where the magic happens – moist, lush, and beautifully resonant. The timbre is truly spot on, creating that wonderful mist around the vocals. It’s not veiled, not even close. It’s just not sharp or dry sounding. The whole mid frequency has this wetness, softness and charm to it, which is very easy to fall in love with. Magnificent.
The treble is soft and delicate, but I wouldn’t call them “dark”. You’re simply getting a staggering resolution and timbre, that with this slight sweetness to it creates a very pleasing and rich sound. Analog-like in the best possible way. If you’re into a strong and forward treble response, you’ll probably won’t like the Odin. But you’ve got plenty of choice on the market.
I definitely won’t recommend the Odin to be your sole pair of headphones to use everyday with everything. Not only they are quite heavy and unforgiving for the rest of the setup, but also their sound is specific and surely not for everybody. If you’re looking for something special though, for a headphone that has this natural and chill sound signature, then you should most definitely try them, as you might simply fall in love.
Summary
At $2250 the Kennerton Odin definitely doesn’t come cheap, but you know what you’re paying for in every single aspect. Beautiful, boutique-like packaging and attention to detail, fantastic and beautiful build, and the sound that is so well-tuned that it reminds me of the golden age of British HiFi in the 70’s. Truly remarkable headphone.
Gear used during this review for the sake of comparison and as an accompanying equipment:
- Headphones – DT 1990, Audeze LCD3, Hifiman Susvara, Focal Clear, Abyss 1266 Phi, Dekoni Blue, Sennheiser HD800,
- Sources– JDSLabs Atom, Little Dot MK VI+, Chord Dave, Cayin HA-300, Cayin iDAC-6,
About Author
