Affordable headphones are always nice, if only “as a sidedish”. The Meters by Ashdown NOVU-1 Studio Reference certainly falls into the “very interesting” price category.
Admittedly: The Meters by Ashdown is known (in part) for its working VU meters on the earcups of some of their headphones. You won’t find this gimmick on the new NOVU-1 Studio Reference though. After all, the low price has to come from somewhere. Because the price indeed is low: $69, so that’s already perfectly manageable. The NOVU-1 is an over-ear wired headphone. Extras such as Bluetooth, ANC and others are not included. The newcomer does have custom designed 50mm dynamic drivers. The connection cable to the cans is equipped with a gold-plated 3.5mm cinch plug, also included is a gold-plated adapter cinch to 6.35mm.
Carrying case
A nice extra: The Meters by Ashdown also includes a NOVU-1 Studio Reference carrying case for the mentioned price. A very complete set, then, for anyone who doesn’t mind wired listening. And – let’s be very honest – that is actually still the best and purest listening method! After all, there are no intermediate electronics and – above all – no compression involved that can affect the audio signal in any negative way.