Areal SR1 — studio headphones for immersive monitoring

Areal has introduced a versatile headphone monitoring system with a distinctive driver design.

Photo: official website areal

Each earcup has four special drivers, one full-range and three spatial, using Acoustic Image Mapping (AIM). Separate drivers reproduce front, rear and height channels, maintaining controlled, consistent spatial separation. Unlike systems using binaural emulation or personalised head-related transfer function (HRTF) files, the SR1 provides a repeatable soundstage that remains consistent between users.

Photo: official website areal

Areal SR1 specifications

Type: closed-back, on-ear, immersive
Frequency range: 40 Hz–20 kHz
Impedance: 32 ohms
THD: <0.2%
Weight: 320 g without cable.

Photo: official website areal

An additional eight-output controller performs the required processing. It has a rotary level control and switches for stereo, 5.1 and 7.1.4 formats. It also works as a high-quality headphone amplifier with a built-in DAC. USB-C connects to a computer, where the controller appears as a multichannel audio interface.

Photo: official website areal

Areal SR1 is available for around $1,500.