Lily Audio Genesis One Review
I wasn't really sure what to expect before I got the Lily audio G1. I first saw this headphone from GadgetryTech’s Canjam NYC 2026 video, and after watching some information about it (especially oratory’s) I decided to go on a blind purchase.
So after a few months I finally got mine a few days ago, and these are my thoughts on them. Before going forward these headphones definitely benefit a lot from some simple eq.
30hz -4db q0.7
2500hz -2db q1.0
7000hz -2db q1.0
This is my current eq settings but I change it by a few db depending on the mood/music.
When I first got these headphones they sounded a bit too extreme. A lot of treble, bass, and ear gain. But I couldn't hear any annoying peaks or weird dips that I found in many "extremely resolving” headphones that I used in the past. After just 5 minutes I was able to get an eq profile that was just perfect for me. And that moment I think I found my endgame. This probably isn't for everyone but for my ears and taste I can't really remember something that I liked as much as the genesis one after eq.
My impressions
All of this is after eq btw.
Detail / resolution
The strongest point of these headphones. The G1 sounds incredibly detailed,and snappy. They sounded much more detailed than my Tanglaoshi Immortal 16 ultra (a lesser known very resolving planar headphone from china). Even when I compared it to my estats the G1 was more detailed than my old stax SR-007 and similar to the X9000. Also I know it is hard to compare iems and headphones directly but the closest thing I’ve ever heard in terms of the raw detail presentation was the qdc anole vx.
Treble
This was the part that was the most interesting for me. I heard enough bright headphones and most of them had weird peaks and didn't sound “normal”. But these were actually very different. Without eq they are very bright but they at least for my ears and hrtf they don't seem to have any kind of narrow peaks and dips. They sounded smooth but incredibly airy and detailed with great extension.
Mids
Actually very normal in a good way. No weird timbre or strange behaviour here. Nothing more to say.
Bass
This is the part that made me seriously think about just selling all my estats. The bass on these headphones are huge and tight. I don't know how they are doing this but they somehow merged the speed of a estat and the punch of a dynamic driver in one.
Feel / Comfort
It is very light and comfortable. The ear cups are huge and deep so nothing touches my ears. But the pads could get a bit hot in the summer or in a hot climate. For the feel they kinda feel like HD800s with stronger clamp force. Also they surprisingly block out more outside sound than most open-backs I’ve tried.
But it still has some cons
First, it is really hard to drive. 75db/V is the official spec for them. This makes them harder to drive than the infamous Modhouse Tungsten and the He-6’s don't even come close. Also because of its piezoelectric drivers some amps might oscillate and be unstable. I'm currently using the Leaf Audio PA-05mkii (which can output up to 99vpp) that was adjusted to be stable with capacitive loads and Xduoo XD-05 pro to drive the G1.
Second, the pad swapping mechanism isn't easy. Even though there are 4 pad options available officially it doesn't use any locking or magnetic mechanisms so It isn't super easy to try how different pads work out for me.
Third, even though it really isn't a problem for me, for those who don't like using eq, I just can't recommend the G1. They don't need a lot of eq and some people probably will find them ok with how they sound without eq. But they really shine with proper eq.
Thanks for reading! This is my first time writing a review in my 8 years of journey in this hobby! Feel free to ask me about anything