In today’s hybrid production environment where sessions happen everywhere from acoustically treated rooms to hotel suites to mixing on a laptop on an airplane, monitoring accuracy needs to translate accurately no matter where you may happen to be working. For decades, Neumann has been known for microphones and monitors that define sonic clarity. Designed as a reference-grade alternative to nearfield monitors, the NDH 30 is ideal for stereo, binaural, and immersive mixing tasks where accurate playback and spatial transparency are essential.
From the first impression, NDH 30 looks and feels like a premium product. We have tested or owned most of the premium headphones on the market and after putting on the NDH 30, we were immediately impressed with the quality and comfort of these headphones. The housing is milled from anodized aluminum and spring steel, offering durability and a reassuring heft without being uncomfortable. Unlike the NDH 20, the NDH 30 does not use memory foam. Instead, they utilize specially selected “normal” foam material. Also notable, the folding design makes transport easy for mobile engineers. Weighing just 352 grams, the NDH 30 strikes a balance between rugged studio utility and portability.
At the heart of the NDH 30 is a pair of precision-engineered 38mm dynamic drivers with neodymium magnets, optimized to deliver a wide frequency response from 12 Hz all the way up to 34 kHz. This extended range helps to give the headphones incredible detail and clarity, especially in the upper registers where air and spatial cues are most noticeable. With a sensitivity of 104 dB SPL at 1 VRMS and impressively low distortion (less than 0.03 percent at one kHz, 100 dB SPL), the NDH 30 delivers sonic accuracy. The impedance sits at 120 ohms, meaning they pair beautifully with professional headphone amps and interfaces.
Neumann has voiced the NDH 30 to match the same flat, diffuse-field response used in their KH-series studio monitors. The result is a color-neutral, honest presentation of your source material that translates reliably to speakers and other listening environments you may happen to be in. The bass is tight and accurate while the midrange remains clear and uncolored. The top end is detailed without harshness, and the stereo imaging is excellent. All of this sonic consistency makes the NDH 30 a great solution for on-the-go tracking and mixing. You can be assured that whatever you track and mix on the NDH 30, it will accurately translate to whatever pair of Nearfield monitors you have back at your studio.
Every pair of the NDH 30 is individually calibrated at the factory to ensure extremely tight driver matching, making them ideal for mastering, surgical editing, and immersive audio applications. When paired with a high-resolution audio interface like a Universal Audio Apollo x8 Gen II or an RME Fireface UCX II, the NDH 30 reveals a level of accuracy and clarity that’s truly exceptional.
One of the things that immediately impressed us about the Neumann NDH 30 is the spatial openness which for lack of better way to describe it, really did feel like we were sitting in a correct mix position with a pair of correctly placed pair of nearfield monitors in front of us. This experience was so noticeable and transparent that we found ourselves taking off the headphones to confirm the sound was coming through the headphones and not our Nearfield monitors. Seriously, these headphones have a spatial openness we can’t remember experiencing.
What makes the NDH 30 even more powerful is its integration with Neumann’s RIME (which stands for Reference Immersive Monitoring Environment) app. This Mac and PC compatible software emulates the acoustic behavior of Neumann KH-series monitors.
Neumann’s RIME software is designed to bring a finely tuned, three-dimensional monitoring experience directly to your headphones. Available as a DAW plug-in for formats like Dolby Atmos, RIME leverages Neumann’s state-of-the-art hardware and Sennheiser’s AMBEO virtual acoustics algorithms to create a stunningly realistic 3D sound field. Instead of overwhelming users with multiple virtual rooms, RIME offers a single, ultra-accurate reference environment—captured in a purpose-built studio using Neumann’s KH Series loudspeakers, subwoofers, and the state-of-the-art KU 100 Dummy Head Binaural Microphone.
What truly sets RIME apart is its integration with Neumann headphones, making it an ideal solution for immersive mixing and mastering when a full multichannel setup isn’t available. The software is custom-tailored to Neumann’s headphone acoustics, allowing for dependable, consistent monitoring in stereo and spatial formats. With AMBEO algorithms at its core, RIME avoids the phasiness and colorations common in other virtual solutions, delivering razor-sharp imaging and emotionally rich audio experiences. And for those seeking even greater realism, RIME supports OSC-compatible head-tracking devices—so your sonic perspective shifts naturally with your movement. Whether you’re in the studio or on the road, RIME lets you create immersive content with Neumann precision, anywhere.
In practice, RIME shifts the phantom center image out in front of you, just like in a speaker setup. Panning becomes more precise, reverb tails are easier to judge, and EQ moves translate with greater consistency across playback systems. Unlike generic spatializer plug-ins that often exaggerate width or smear the stereo field, RIME is surgical and transparent. When activated, it transforms the NDH 30 from a high-end headphone into a full-fledged portable monitoring system.
For immersive formats like Dolby Atmos, RIME is even more impressive. It simulates multichannel speaker arrays in 360 degrees, allowing you to place and preview objects in three-dimensional space—front to back, side to side, and overhead. In combination with the NDH 30’s exceptional phase coherence and linear frequency response, RIME provides a reliable way to produce spatial audio without needing an expensive multi-speaker setup. Whether you’re building an immersive podcast, a live mix for in-ear monitors, or a full Atmos mix for streaming platforms, NDH 30 + RIME gets you there with clarity and confidence. We should mention that as of this writing RIME only works with Neumann’s open-back NDH 30 and closed-back NDH 20 Headphones.
It’s worth noting that the NDH 30 is built around an open-back design, meaning it leaks sound and doesn’t completely block external noise which, depending on where you’re working, may make them not an optimal choice, for example, if you are tracking vocals and drums. NDH30’s are best used in quiet environments where isolation isn’t critical. Like many reference headphones, they benefit from a short break-in period.
The Neumann NDH 30 Professional Headphones are available for $649. RIME is available for $99 and can be downloaded directly from the Neumann website. More at neumann.com/en-us/products/headphones/ndh-30 and neumann.com/en-us/products/software/rime
