MOONDROP Old Fashioned 40mm On-Ear Headphone

What is old is new (and cool) again!!

The Moondrop Old Fashioned is a nice retro design on-ear headphone and one that is very reminiscent of the classic Koss on-ear headphones like the Porta Pro or KPH30i. I find the naming is great and I had to laugh when my wife spotted it, and she said that seems like a very “old fashioned” headphone. I don’t think there is a more appropriate named audio product.

In general, this is one of the best tuned on-ear headphones I have ever listened to. While it will lose the sub-bass due to the open on-ear nature of the headphone, in most respects, this is a exceptionally well tuned headphone that punches well above its weight.

But before I get into the sound profile lets look at the unboxing experience:

Unboxing and Build Quality

The unboxing experience is straightforward and matches Moondrop’s typical clean aesthetic.

The back of the box lists the technical specifications, and I love when audio companies include the Frequency response on the back of their boxes:

Inside the box, you get the headphones, the cable, and the documentation.

Build and Design

The design is clearly inspired by the lightweight, open on-ear headphones of the past. It uses a simple but effective headband and a 40mm driver.

One of the standout features for an on-ear at this price point is the use of standard 0.78mm 2-pin connectors:

The cable itself is of reasonable quality and fits securely into the headphones

This allows for super easy cable swapping:

Fit and Comfort

Being an on-ear headphone, comfort is always subjective, but if you are a fan of the classic Koss Porta Pro style, you will feel right at home here. It is extremely lightweight and doesn’t have a high clamping force, making it suitable for long listening sessions.

Features

Driver Architecture

The Moondrop Old Fashioned features a 40mm dynamic driver with a three-layer rigid-flex composite diaphragm. Moondrop’s marketing material shows a sophisticated internal structure for such a simple-looking headphone:

2-Pin Versatility

Given it is standard 2-pin, you can obviously swap cables. I did have a little bit of fun connecting my FiiO UTWS3 bluetooth adapter to ‘wirelessly’ enable this headphone.

While this was a fun experiment, I feel in general it was more comfortable and sounded better (louder) with the provided cable wired, and that is how I did my listening impressions.

Sound Impressions

This is easily one of the best tuned on-ear headphones in my collection. Moondrop has applied their expertise in target curves to a form factor that usually suffers from wonky tuning. Critical listening was conducted using the stock cable connected to a FiiO K17 DAC/amp, with a variety of lossless and hi-res tracks to evaluate performance across different musical genres and recording styles.

Bass

The bass is well-defined and has a nice punch in the mid-bass that delivers satisfying impact on well-recorded material. However, as expected with an open on-ear design, there is a noticeable roll-off in the sub-bass. You won’t get that deep rumble that you might find in a closed-back headphone or a well-sealed IEM, but the bass that is present is clean and provides a solid foundation.

On Massive Attack’s “Angel,” the kick drum maintains its rhythmic drive and texture in the mid-bass, though the sub-bass weight and rumble that underpin the track are diminished by the open design. The bass guitar on Donald Fagen’s “The Nightfly” is articulate and well-timed, with excellent note definition that reveals the playing technique. Steely Dan’s “Aja” demonstrates the Old Fashioned’s controlled mid-bass: the kick drum has appropriate snap and body without bloom, and the bass line remains distinct throughout complex instrumental passages. The low-frequency limitation becomes most apparent on Hans Zimmer’s “Time” from the Inception soundtrack, where the deep orchestral bass and sub-bass synth rumble lose much of their foundation — though this is an inherent trade-off of the on-ear form factor rather than a driver deficiency.

Midrange

The midrange is where this headphone shines. Vocals are clear and natural, with no bleed from the bass. It has a very transparent quality that makes acoustic tracks and vocal-centric music a joy to listen to.

Patricia Barber’s “Code Cool” showcases the Old Fashioned’s midrange transparency: her voice is rendered with natural timbre and texture, sitting front and center in the mix with appropriate body and presence. The piano accompaniment has realistic note weight, and the subtle harmonic detail in her vocal delivery remains intact. On Dire Straits’ “Brothers in Arms,” Mark Knopfler’s vocals are intimate and emotionally engaging, while the guitar texture and finger-picked detail come through with clarity and naturalism. The acoustic guitar on Eric Clapton’s “Tears in Heaven” is beautifully reproduced — string resonance, body tone, and picking dynamics are all conveyed convincingly. Norah Jones’ “Don’t Know Why” reveals the Old Fashioned’s ability to handle vocal nuance: breath control, dynamic shifts, and the warmth of her lower register are all present without coloration or midrange congestion.

Treble

The treble is detailed and adds a nice sense of air to the presentation. I did notice a little bit of peaky treble on certain tracks, but it’s nothing fatiguing for me. In fact, it’s much better tuned than every other open on-ear headphone I have listened to.

On Jennifer Warnes’ “Bird on a Wire” from the Famous Blue Raincoat album, the cymbal shimmer and tambourine detail are well-extended and airy, though the upper treble peaks can add slight sharpness to certain transients on brighter recordings. The snare snap and cymbal work on Eagles’ “Hotel California” (Hell Freezes Over live version) are crisp and detailed without becoming harsh, and the harmonic decay of the acoustic guitar strings is reproduced with convincing naturalness. High-hat detail on Miles Davis’ “So What” from Kind of Blue retains appropriate bite and clarity, and the trumpet’s upper harmonics are rendered smoothly without artificial glare. Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” performed by the Academy of St Martin in the Fields demonstrates the Old Fashioned’s treble composure with orchestral strings — violin sections have appropriate brightness and air without the edginess that plagues poorly tuned on-ear designs.

Soundstage & Imaging

The open nature of the design allows for a surprisingly wide soundstage. Imaging is also quite good for the price, allowing you to place instruments with reasonable accuracy within that stage.

Pink Floyd’s “Time” from Dark Side of the Moon in hi-res reveals the Old Fashioned’s spatial capabilities: the opening alarm clock effects are positioned distinctly across the stereo field, and the subsequent drum fill maintains stable placement and depth. On Yosi Horikawa’s “Bubbles,” the binaural recording cues and spatial effects are reproduced with convincing width and layering, demonstrating that the Old Fashioned can handle demanding spatial material effectively for its form factor. Orchestral works such as Holst’s “The Planets” — particularly “Jupiter” — show reasonable front-to-back depth and left-right separation, though the soundstage dimensions are naturally more constrained than what a full-sized open-back like the HD600 delivers. Instrument placement within this stage is stable and coherent, with good channel matching that keeps the stereo image centered and balanced.

Specifications and Measurements

Measurements

The frequency response shows excellent channel matching between left and right — a good sign for build consistency at this price point.

Three characteristics are worth highlighting from the annotated graph. First, the sub-bass rolls off below roughly 100Hz — this is the inevitable physical trade-off of an open on-ear design. The pads cannot form a seal against the ear the way a closed-back or over-ear can, so deep bass simply bleeds out. It is not a tuning flaw, just a format limitation, and it can be addressed with EQ if you need that sub-bass foundation. Second, there is a slightly forward vocal midrange around 2kHz that gives the Old Fashioned a pleasing intimacy with voices, followed by a mild recession in the presence region roughly 3–5kHz. In the EQ profile I put together I actually chose to lift this recessed area — adding a touch more bite to transients and clarity to upper harmonics. Third, there are a couple of treble peaks in the upper registers around 6–9kHz. They add sparkle and air to the presentation but can be mildly sharp on certain bright recordings.

Distortion

The distortion measurements with EQ applied show that the driver handles the bass boost cleanly, with THD remaining well below audible thresholds across the frequency range. This indicates good driver linearity and headroom for EQ adjustments.

Comparisons

The most obvious recently released headphone for a comparison is new FiiO EH11, while the EH11 has a similar retro vibe FiiO went for a bluetooth design (with on-board PEQ / DSP ):

The comparison against the FiiO EH11 is also illuminating. The EH11 requires its onboard DSP (Neutral EQ mode) to reach a comparable frequency response to the Old Fashioned’s entirely passive tuning. The Old Fashioned simply gets there out of the box.

The Old Fashioned uses noticeably softer, more accommodating earpads that distribute pressure more evenly across the ear, resulting in superior long-term wearability compared to the firmer pads on the EH11.

The build approach also differs: the Old Fashioned employs a minimalist, lightweight headband and standard 0.78mm 2-pin connectors for easy cable replacement, while the EH11 doesn’t have a cable and relies on bluetooth for its audio:

I found the Old-fashioned larger flatter earpads both to be more comfortable on my ears but also more consistent allowing a less ‘precise’ placement on each ear to get decent audio quality.

Some other on-ear wired headphones:

Stacked against two other open on-ear headphones — the OKCSC M1 Pro and the Roseselsa Distant Mountain — the Old Fashioned is clearly the best-tuned of the group. Both competitors exhibit a more pronounced presence-region hump around 2–3kHz and neither tracks the diffuse-field target as cleanly through the midrange.

A different type of headphone comparison

For a little bit of a fun comparison, here is the legendary HD600 compared:

Obviously, the open back design compared to an on-ear design makes the HD600 sound more consistent, and even though the HD600 has less bass roll-off than the old-fashioned it is an interesting comparison when trying them side by side.

EQ Correction

The following EQ was derived using eqMac while listening on my MacBook Pro. It basically tries a sub-bass shelf to recover the low-end foundation, a presence-region lift through the 3–5kHz recession:

Rating Explanation

Pragmatic Rating: 5/5

While I personally would not use it as much as a full-sized headphone or an IEM, if you are in the market for an on-ear headphone, this is one of (if not the) best for its price. It combines excellent tuning with a retro cool design that will appeal to many.

Ideal for:

• Fans of retro aesthetics and “Koss-style” headphones
• Listeners looking for the best tuning in the on-ear category
• People who want a lightweight, open listening experience at home

Conclusion

The Moondrop Old Fashioned is a delightful surprise. It takes a classic form factor and brings it into the modern era with sophisticated driver technology and expert tuning. It’s comfortable, versatile (thanks to the 2-pin connectors), and most importantly, it sounds great.

What is old is new (and cool) again!!