Dan Clark Audio AEON RT Review (closed headphone)

[Shazb0t]

Still haven't found a conclusive answer to this: Are these (DROP Aeon closed X)the same or ar they a different product?

They are the same minus the cable options you get from DCA.

 

[SonicallyDeaF]

I'd prefer a true solid state solution like magni heresy, atom or L30, in that order of power delivery. A THX 789/887 should be very good, too.

Found a THX 789 used by an elderly gent with minimal use for a really good price. With that, I will be comparing the LS amp and THX when my Aeon RT arrives. However, my hearing tells me that the LS is more compressed and the THX is more open soundstage-wise, sonically since the LS is more compressed everything sounds closer to the ear which is neither a good or bad depending on who is listening this test was done using my HD650, but the dynamics on the 990 pro has opened up which added more depth and body and the thinness went away.

So this will be an interesting conclusion on what the AEON RT (OPEN) will sound like on both the LS and THX and which one I will prefer. I will give an update once the entire rig is set-up as I plan on running everything balanced. PC->Grace balanced->THX 789 balanced-> AEON RT w/ balanced cable. And then I will go back to single ended with the PC-> LS DAC->LS AMP -> AEON RT SE.

 

[Veri]

PC->Grace balanced->THX 789 balanced-> AEON RT w/ balanced cable. And then I will go back to single ended with the PC-> LS DAC->LS AMP -> AEON RT SE.

Sounds like a sweet set-up, really! Be sure to compare LS vs THX single-ended too, the balanced might simply sound much louder (for better or worse..)

 

[RHO]

They are the same minus the cable options you get from DCA.

Aha, good to know.
These are on my short-list for my next HP purchase.

 

[SonicallyDeaF]

Sounds like a sweet set-up, really! Be sure to compare LS vs THX single-ended too, the balanced might simply sound much louder (for better or worse..)

Yes, I will definitely compare the two single ended on both amps. However, I have a feeling that the LS will outperform the THX on single ended performance and to be honest if that is the case then maybe the entire balanced set-up is no longer a viable option for audiophile beginners as many of these so-called "budget" amp/dac stacks are powerful enough.

 

[Fish17]

I finally got my Qudelix 5k so I could finally listen to my RTs.

I can confirm it has enough power to my liking however with PEQ enabled and running Amir's settings moving the headroom to 0 dB in the DSP settings helped. I can also report the bass is excellent with Amir's settings.

After listening to them for about 30 mins yesterday I noticed my ears were kinda sore. I didn't have the volume loud at all so I'm curious what could be causing this uncomfort.

I attributed to not being used to planers, so I gave my ears a rest until this morning. I was even more careful to keep the volume low however I still experienced uncomfort after about 1 hours of listening.

It's hard to describe the feeling but the best way I can is the feeling you have the next morning after a concert. No ear ringing sensation but definitely uncomfortable.

This is the first time I have listened to a planer headphone. Please also note I have no filter installed currently, perhaps I need to work up to listening without a filter?

Could it be the higher frequencies that are causing uncomfort? I removed the filters as this was what Amir's PEQ was based on.

EDIT: To clarify these are the RT closed, the discomfort is not while listening to music or the headphones itself it's my ear drums that are sore after listening.

 

[SonicallyDeaF]

I finally got my Qudelix 5k so I could finally listen to my RTs.

Did you get the closed or open back?

Is the discomfort from listening to music or from the headphones itself i.e. the ear cups and maybe weight?

 

[Fish17]

Did you get the closed or open back?

Is the discomfort from listening to music or from the headphones itself i.e. the ear cups and maybe weight?

Closed, the discomfort is not while listening to music or the headphones itself it's my ear drums that are sore.

 

[Maes Hughes]

I finally got my Qudelix 5k so I could finally listen to my RTs.

I can confirm it has enough power to my liking however with PEQ enabled and running Amir's settings moving the headroom to 0 dB in the DSP settings helped. I can also report the bass is excellent with Amir's settings.

After listening to them for about 30 mins yesterday I noticed my ears were kinda sore. I didn't have the volume loud at all so I'm curious what could be causing this uncomfort.

I attributed to not being used to planers, so I gave my ears a rest until this morning. I was even more careful to keep the volume low however I still experienced uncomfort after about 1 hours of listening.

It's hard to describe the feeling but the best way I can is the feeling you have the next morning after a concert. No ear ringing sensation but definitely uncomfortable.

This is the first time I have listened to a planer headphone. Please also note I have no filter installed currently, perhaps I need to work up to listening without a filter?

Could it be the higher frequencies that are causing uncomfort? I removed the filters as this was what Amir's PEQ was based on.

EDIT: To clarify these are the RT closed, the discomfort is not while listening to music or the headphones itself it's my ear drums that are sore after listening.

It could possibly be sensitivity to the front volume sealing pressure that these and other planars use. I cannot use the dan clark headphones without pain for this very reason. (which is a shame because the form factor and weight is class leading) I have also encountered this on audeze lcd type headphones as well. I had to add vents under the pads to be able to wear those. You can test this by just wearing them without music and see if the same thing happens, you might also want to test very low volume music as well.

 

[Fish17]

It could possibly be sensitivity to the front volume sealing pressure that these and other planars use. I cannot use the dan clark headphones without pain for this very reason. (which is a shame because the form factor and weight is class leading) I have also encountered this on audeze lcd type headphones as well. I had to add vents under the pads to be able to wear those. You can test this by just wearing them without music and see if the same thing happens, you might also want to test very low volume music as well.

Interesting, so just keep them on my head without anything playing? How would this hurt my eardrums?

 

[Maes Hughes]

Interesting, so just keep them on my head without anything playing? How would this hurt my eardrums?

The air pressure generated from the seal and clamp pressure exerts force on your eardrum. Normally this is self regulated, but if you have a sensitivity to this pressure it will cause some pain and discomfort. For me the only solve was making vents for headphones that did this. (if they don't have severe performance loss from venting) It may be something you could get use to if you are encountering it for the first time, but in my case it has never gotten better.

 

[Jimbob54]

They are the same minus the cable options you get from DCA.

@Dan Clark himself has said on here (can't find the post) that they are very similar. I'm paraphrasing but he didn't say identical. I would guess they are the same except for drop branding and cables.

 

[Fish17]

The air pressure generated from the seal and clamp pressure exerts force on your eardrum. Normally this is self regulated, but if you have a sensitivity to this pressure it will cause some pain and discomfort. For me the only solve was making vents for headphones that did this. (if they don't have severe performance loss from venting) It may be something you could get use to if you are encountering it for the first time, but in my case it has never gotten better.

Thank you, I will give this a try and report back.

Going to give them a rest for now as they are still thrown off.

 

[sharock]

These or the Noire look quite interesting to me. I wonder if they'd be much of an improvement over what I've got? Another case of upgraditis!

I've previously owned LCDv1s back in the day (I guess the now "classic"?) and still own the HD650 and Denon D7000 which are EQ'd towards the Harman target.

 

[Fish17]

The air pressure generated from the seal and clamp pressure exerts force on your eardrum. Normally this is self regulated, but if you have a sensitivity to this pressure it will cause some pain and discomfort. For me the only solve was making vents for headphones that did this. (if they don't have severe performance loss from venting) It may be something you could get use to if you are encountering it for the first time, but in my case it has never gotten better.

Yup you called it, still discomfort without any music. It is the sealing pressure so disappointing I really liked the sound of these.

I’m going to reach out to Dan Clark to see if there is anything they can do. I wonder if like you said overtime my ears could adjust to it.

 

[deepblue]

Yup you called it, still discomfort without any music. It is the sealing pressure so disappointing I really liked the sound of these.

I’m going to reach out to Dan Clark to see if there is anything they can do. I wonder if like you said overtime my ears could adjust to it.

This is really interesting - but also very dissapointing to hear!

I've experienced exactly the same sensation you've described when using my Audeze LCD-2. I'd advise extreme caution with continuing to use your headphones as I believe this issue is what caused or triggered my tinnitus, which is unfortunately irreversible.

From my reserach into the matter, it seems like Planars exert more pressure on the ear drums than dynamic drivers do. This is further exacerbated by the tight seal formed by headphones like the Aeon and the LCD series.

I'm really curious to know what Dan Clark has to say on the matter (please share if he gets back to you!) - or if you find any solutions that alleviate the issue, otherwise I might have to give the Aeons a miss even though I was really looking forward to them

 

[Fish17]

This is really interesting - but also very dissapointing to hear!

I've experienced exactly the same sensation you've described when using my Audeze LCD-2. I'd advise extreme caution with continuing to use your headphones as I believe this issue is what caused or triggered my tinnitus, which is unfortunately irreversible.

From my reserach into the matter, it seems like Planars exert more pressure on the ear drums than dynamic drivers do. This is further exacerbated by the tight seal formed by headphones like the Aeon and the LCD series.

I'm really curious to know what Dan Clark has to say on the matter (please share if he gets back to you!) - or if you find any solutions that alleviate the issue, otherwise I might have to give the Aeons a miss even though I was really looking forward to them

There’s a nylon screw on the folding gimble design you can remove that is supposed to alleviate some on the clamping force but looks like there’s not much to be done with the RTs. I guess I’ll just have go with a open design headphone to prevent this pressure.

 

[HEPBO3AH]

With the advice @Dan Clark gave me, I'm looking into getting an amp for the headphones. I was looking at iFi ZEN CAN but I'm uncertain due to impedance mismatch. From what I gathered, the ZEN CAN is rated for 16ohm minimum output impedance. I heard about the 8x rule, but I'm starting to think this does not apply to AEON. I even managed to find a comparison of the source impedance impact on the AEON RT and it seems safe.

Do you think that amp is ok or should I look into something else such as JDS Atom?

 

[deepblue]

There’s a nylon screw on the folding gimble design you can remove that is supposed to alleviate some on the clamping force but looks like there’s not much to be done with the RTs. I guess I’ll just have go with a open design headphone to prevent this pressure.

You could look into a dynamic closed back, if you're keen on staying within the realm of closed backs, such as the Drop X Beyerdynamic DT177X Go. Far easier to find exceptional open backs than closed backs though.

 

[Racheski]

With the advice @Dan Clark gave me, I'm looking into getting an amp for the headphones. I was looking at iFi ZEN CAN but I'm uncertain due to impedance mismatch. From what I gathered, the ZEN CAN is rated for 16ohm minimum output impedance. I heard about the 8x rule, but I'm starting to think this does not apply to AEON. I even managed to find a comparison of the source impedance impact on the AEON RT and it seems safe.

Do you think that amp is ok or should I look into something else such as JDS Atom?

It most definitely applies. FWIW, I experienced "muddy" bass when using the Aeon 2 Open with my old A50, which has output impedance of 4.7Ω (unbalanced) / 9.4Ω (balanced). Ironically the next amp I tried was the Atom, and the bass response was immediately improved.