The difference between the Denon 5200 and AKG K371

[Snoopy]

ANYWAY I think this thread clears up all my doubts.

Denon 5200 it is.



£478 .... ARRRRRRRRRRG

I've seen them often enough as Amazon warehouse deal for 330€... I wouldn't spend £478 on them.

They are currently available as warehouse deal for 316€ or new for 424€ (368 GBP)

 

[Jimbob54]

ANYWAY I think this thread clears up all my doubts.

Denon 5200 it is.



£478 .... ARRRRRRRRRRG

JUst in case you didnt pull the trigger- £243 very good condition amazon warehouse

Denon AH-D5200 Premium Over Ear Headphones with Zebra Wood Earcups, Hi-Fi Headphones, Hi-Res Audio, 50-mm FreeEdge Drivers: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

Shop Denon AH-D5200 Premium Over Ear Headphones with Zebra Wood Earcups, Hi-Fi Headphones, Hi-Res Audio, 50-mm FreeEdge Drivers. Free delivery and returns on eligible orders.

www.amazon.co.uk

 

[sssn]

I own a pair of 5200s and compared it to a pair of 371s of a friend. I usually hate to use vague, audiofool terms like that but the 5200 is just better and more advanced. They sound much more open and clear than the K371s which sound hollow, boxed in in comparison.

I do however prefer the fit of the AKGs. The Denons are pretty loose on my head.

 

[nyxnyxnyx]

FWIW I owned both the 371 and d5200 at the same time, and the d5200, in my experience, is miles better than the overrated 371, both in original FR and after DSP.
To the question OP asked in the previous page, which I presume some other people might wonder too: "well if we EQ headphones A and B to said target then HOW can one sound different/better than the other? They should sound literally the same!!!"

I am very keen on the idea that FR is not the "be all, end all" of how and why we could perceive differences, whether it's reliable or not. Just think about it, if all it takes is proper EQ to make all headphones sound the same, then why don't all of us in the objective-camp here buy anything other than the cheapest headphones available? (yes I know there are other factors like usability, comfort, etc...) Doesn't that make the 371 or any other headphones obsolete because we *only* need to EQ it precisely to the *target* we want? Even with all the BS and shadiness in the audiophile community/industry, they all would have gone bankrupt if a $10 headphones can sound exactly identical to $100, $1000, $10000 or whatever prestige level, design pattern there is.

 

[asrUser]

I do however prefer the fit of the AKGs. The Denons are pretty loose on my head.

You just bend them carefully. I also did that on my headphones and the result is an improvement. I don't own a Denon, but other Foster headphones are quite similar. They definitely sound a lot better than AKGs even if you eq them to the same target.

 

[dazedandconfused]

I've got the Ah-D 7200 and with Crinnacles EQ from Auto EQ and an SMSL DO100 feeding into an Arcam rHead they are absolutely wonderful. I can just lose myself in the music.
I find out tomorrow what they sound like off a Chord Mojo

 

[Hamrin]

I've got the Ah-D 7200 and with Crinnacles EQ from Auto EQ and an SMSL DO100 feeding into an Arcam rHead they are absolutely wonderful. I can just lose myself in the music.
I find out tomorrow what they sound like off a Chord Mojo

I've been using D7200 with Mojo+Poly for years... Great pairing.

 

[dazedandconfused]

I've been using D7200 with Mojo+Poly for years... Great pairing.

Tried them with the Mojo now and I wouldn't say better than the DO100/rHead combo but different. The Mojo is the more musical, the other stack is more detailed. Love both combos

 

[Cote Dazur]

headphones A and B to said target then HOW can one sound different/better than the other? They should sound literally the same!!!"

No one in this thread has objectively dismissed that they sound “literally” the same. Doing an ABX with headphone is a little tricky due the headphone physically feel different on our heads. What we have had in this thread is people subjectively commenting on difference they perceived. Nothing new here.
FR is the most important factor for any headphone, once equalized a headphone will sound very close to any other headphone, so once discarding the fit, comfort factor, we can safely believe that if properly equalized, the experience will be the same, negating any reason to spend more just to get “that sound”.

 

[dazedandconfused]

No one in this thread has objectively dismissed that they sound “literally” the same. Doing an ABX with headphone is a little tricky due the headphone physically feel different on our heads. What we have had in this thread is people subjectively commenting on difference they perceived. Nothing new here.
FR is the most important factor for any headphone, once equalized a headphone will sound very close to any other headphone, so once discarding the fit, comfort factor, we can safely believe that if properly equalized, the experience will be the same, negating any reason to spend more just to get “that sound”.

A major factor is the design and capabilities of the driver. I have 5 different headphones all EQ'd to the Crinnacle settings from Auto EQ which should put them as close to each other as they are possible to get and while mosty the sounds are similar there are still definite differences. I agree that if you could EQ them identically they should in theory sound the same but you're not taking into account driver differences. Even between different drivers of the same type that can differ and if you bring Planar vs Dynamic into it it's even greater and then you've got electrostatic as well. All these things may not make a difference to the frequencies you hear (assuming the perfect EQ) but they will make a difference to the way those frequencies are delivered to your ear and therefore to the perceived sound of the headphone. FR is not everything, soundstage, instrument seperation and imaging all matter and can be very different between different headpohones

 

[nyxnyxnyx]

No one in this thread has objectively dismissed that they sound “literally” the same. Doing an ABX with headphone is a little tricky due the headphone physically feel different on our heads. What we have had in this thread is people subjectively commenting on difference they perceived. Nothing new here.
FR is the most important factor for any headphone, once equalized a headphone will sound very close to any other headphone, so once discarding the fit, comfort factor, we can safely believe that if properly equalized, the experience will be the same, negating any reason to spend more just to get “that sound”.

You dismissed the ABX test no matter whether it was volume-matched and blinded or not because different headphones feel different on our head -> it invalidates the testing while confidently claiming FR is the ultimate factor to make headphones sound very close to any other? Is it not too convenient for that theory, one that does not have enough substantial evidence to back it up?

You guys said the same thing about soundstage and "punch", but even experts like Amir and Sean Olive did not make surefire statement on what exact factor dictates it, because they don't know for certain. I think a lot of us going this way is a good thing, but not truly understanding something and saying as gospel is not that different from the audiophiles people make fun at times. It's just parroting what you think is factually correct.

Durability, comfort and fit factor aside, why would you ever use or buy anything that is above the freebie earpiece if you can just EQ it to sound as good as whatever benchmark you use? Sound-wise, AKG K371 (or any headphones that have okay-ish CSD and distortion level) would NEVER gain and relevancy if we go with your logic because what's the point of tuning Harman, or anything else really because we can just EQ it just like EQ that $2 taobaoheadphones and it will sound just like DCA Stealth out of the box