Author: Sword of Damocles
Many have surely noticed Kuulokenurkka collaborating with Helsinki-based Mareksound as we occasionally receive products from them for testing. Since I live in Joensuu, I had not yet visited Mareksound's store in Munkkiniemi, Helsinki, until we managed to align our schedules right at the beginning of 2025. My headphone contact person Janne Pietinen invited me to visit on Friday, January 3rd, and as a nice gesture, I was also offered train tickets and a hotel stay near the store for the occasion.
In return, the travel summary/store presentation I wrote can therefore be considered a small-scale advertisement, but I would have actually wanted to tell Kuulokenurkka's readers anyway what headphone models are available for testing in the store. I also took my measurement equipment with me on the trip, so I was able to capture the frequency response of many headphones that I otherwise would not have gotten my hands on. The measurement results serve the Squiglink database the entire headphone community, both in Finland and worldwide.
Let's start, however, with the store's other offerings before moving on to headphones.
From the customer's perspective, Mareksound's dark-toned and stylishly lit store consists of a large and open lobby area (a separate section for headphones) and three floating studio rooms. Firstly, the lobby displays speakers and peripheral devices from several different brands, some of which are ready for listening. One of the store's main attractions is also a large Genelec wall, featuring almost all of the manufacturer's speakers. These are even connected to the same system for easy comparison.
Studio Rooms
In the store's three acoustically treated studio rooms, it would be possible to listen to and compare speakers, immerse oneself in a home theater atmosphere by exploring video projectors, and delve deeper into the secrets of a home studio. These rooms were so comfortable in their ambiance that I would have enjoyed staying in them for much longer.
I ended up spending the most time in studio room number two, which had a practical home studio built as a model. Since closing the door created a quiet space, I measured the frequency responses of headphones in the room with the equipment I brought. I would almost need a similar space for the Headphone Corner as well, if I could find room for it in my apartment. In that case, however, I would swap the music production equipment for a large number of different headphone amplifiers and headphones, similar to Zeos Pantera, who makes YouTube reviews.
Headphone Wall and Listening Booth
From a headphone enthusiast's perspective, the most interesting area of Mareksound's store is found in the lobby, behind a partition wall. A large number of demo headphones are hung on the extensive headphone wall – at the time of my visit, there were as many as 45 (+ Yamaha YH-5000SE on the other side of the wall). Available were Hifiman, Audeze, Focal, Denon, and Meze Audio, as well as rarer T+A headphones and a step up in noise-cancelling headphones. On the other hand, the sleek Mondo Freestyle (price €70) was amusingly included. I also felt a little proud seeing the Kaiku Tone headphones, whose DSP profile and tuning are coincidentally my own work. Mareksound now acts as a Kaiku reseller.
If someone doesn't find suitable headphones from this selection, I consider it a small miracle. Of course, going through all the models would take quite some time.
Speaking of listening, it's possible in the store in a separate soundproof booth, so that speakers placed in the lobby don't disturb the experience or the evaluation of headphones. In my opinion, this is an excellent solution, and the booth doesn't ultimately take up many square meters of floor space in the store. I managed to test two new Hifiman models in the booth: the HE1000 Unveiled and the Arya Unveiled. Mareksound also exclusively displays the Susvara Unveiled in Finland, which costs a whopping 9000 euros.
The listening booth featured a surprisingly wide selection of DACs and amplifiers, ranging from just over 100 euros all the way up to 13,000 euros. True enthusiasts will likely be particularly interested in Chord's comprehensive range of devices. Everyone can also listen to their favorite music streamed via a computer located in the booth. I didn't try Bluetooth headphones, but I would assume they are already connected to the computer. Of course, anyone can alternatively connect them to their own phone.
Measuring headphones
Mareksound allowed me to measure headphone frequency responses, so I was able to give them a small lesson on the topic at the same time. Before this, I had done frequency response measurements a couple of times at the local Joensuu Kuva ja Ääni, but this time I got to see how my equipment packed in a briefcase travels with me across Finland. Its transportation ultimately succeeded well, so I must consider similar trips in the future.
I finally managed to carefully measure the frequency response of 13 headphone models, of which I am most proud of Hifiman's three new Unveiled models. I wouldn't have believed I'd see the trio side-by-side so quickly in Finland, let alone get data from them into my Squiglink database.
I found my listening observations to align well with the measurement results. The most affordable Arya Unveiled convinced me with its calmest treble and, by Hifiman's standards, more present mid-frequencies than before. The more expensive Hifimans, in turn, still offer a more spacious and brighter sound. Of the trio, I would still find it easiest to recommend the Arya Unveiled, as it initially seemed to be the most balanced open Hifiman model I've heard. The manufacturer has finally made a suitable headphone model also for those who prefer less emphasized 10-15 kilohertz reproduction and generally calmer treble.
In addition to the three Hifiman Unveiled models I mentioned, I measured the following 10 headphones:
- Audeze LCD-2 Classic
- Audeze LCD-X
- Audeze MM-500
- Denon AH-D9200 (previous measurements with older silicone ear tips)
- Focal Clear MG
- Focal Utopia 2022
- Hifiman HE1000SE
- Meze Audio 105 Aer
- Meze Audio Empyrean Elite
- Meze Audio Liric 2
In conclusion
Mareksound's store was, in my opinion, a place worth visiting simply because its design had been fully invested in. Of course, even greater benefit from the visit and the expertise available would be gained when making new purchases. I myself got to explore the store in peace already in the morning before it opened. I would also like to thank Mareksound in this context for arranging the trip and for an interesting day.
During the trip, I realized that Finland has a really large number of hi-fi stores relative to its population, which is surprising also in the sense that constantly increasing online shopping reduces the need for brick-and-mortar stores in many other sectors. Even Joensuu has two stores, which is at least somewhat surprising in my opinion. Perhaps we Finns are a hi-fi nation, or then we have fierce entrepreneurs. The subjectivity of sound reproduction at least presumably maintains the need for pre-testing future purchases. For example, suitable speakers cannot be bought based on specs alone as easily as, say, a computer or a mobile phone. The industry is clearly still in some kind of turmoil, because in 2024 Hifistudio became Hifiklubben and Hifi.fi & Autostudio became Audio Forum. Before this, Hifitalo went bankrupt just over a year ago. I wish every Finnish hi-fi retailer good luck for 2025!
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