Aeon 2 Noire - how close to Stealth?

[KomoGomolaa]

How close they're in sound signature? I realize that Stealth has many technical / acoustical "properties" that Noire doesn't have and I understand that it will sound, ehm, different. But if Noire can be a poor-boy's Stealth, that would be awesome Anybody heard these two side by side?

 

[Mhoomans]

I made an account to be able to reply, as I've been comparing them last week extensively (among other headphones). I used default pads/filters (noticed them when I was about to leave so couldn't play with them). While the Stealth is outside my budget, the Noir luckily is within reach. I say luckily because I really like the headphone. So what about the differences. To my ears, the Stealth is very transparant/neutral/analytical with an impressive open soundstage. I've not experienced a close headphone before to have this open airy sound. But, it's also a bit sterile or dry at the same time, which is perhaps perfect when you use it for mixing/mastering tasks, but for music listening it's sometimes a bit boring. (Now it sounds like I don't like to listen to music with the Stealth, I really do though!)

The Noir sounds really good to my ears. It seems to have a more exciting tuning, with a very impressive low end, like a very good integrated subwoofer in a stereo set, but never too much or fake. The mids sound smooth and articulate at the same time and the highs are crystal clear. I really couldn't find a quality in them that I didn't like. Everything about the Noir sounds fantastic to my ears. Soundstage is wide and big and pretty airy, especially for a closed back. Not as expansive as the Stealth, but I don't mind that to be honest.

For studio work with mixing/mastering tasks in mind I would pick the Stealth (if I had the budget), but for pleasure and simply enjoying music, I prefer the Noir. And I'm not saying this because I want to like the more affordable headphone, I'm unbiased, I have no issue at all liking something better even when it's unobtainable for me.

I've tested these headphones on a desktop headphone dac/amp but I forget the brand. It was a $1000 something unit. Not ultra fantastic but not bad at all I imagine.

 

[KomoGomolaa]

Thanks very much for your detailed reply, really appreciated. I think I'll try them
Regarding distortion on Aeons, did you find it collapsing somehow when pushed quite a bit?

 

[DJBonoBobo]

Stumbled upon this comparison: https://crinacle.com/graphs/headpho...Harman_AE_OE_2018_Target,Aeon_2_Noire,Stealth

Looks surprisingly bad for the Noire. I don´t know why this measurement of the Noire is so much apart from other measurements i´ve seen from Oratory (too lazy to search for the corresponding graphs).
I have both of them but did not have the time to compare them half "properly".

EDIT: This measurement is invalid (see post #8), i removed the screenshot.

 

[david.aj.silva]

Don't have the Stealth, but I have listened to the Noire. Looking at that graph I'd say looks can be deceiving. To my ears treble is not recessed.

 

[DJBonoBobo]

To my ears treble is not recessed.

Also not to mine - more like the opposite. For me, the Noire is too hot in treble (other than the Stealth). I don´t know why the measurement looks that way...

 

[DJBonoBobo]

Ok, here are Oratory´s measurements. The graph comparison tool does not work for me, so i made an quick and dirty overlay. Greyish is Stealth, reddish the Noire.

 

[staticV3]

Stumbled upon this comparison:

Crinacle's Noire came with the non-perforated pads of the regular Aeon 2 Closed instead of the perforated ones that the Noire is supposed to come with.
That's why his measurement of the Noire is different than everyone else's and should be seen as invalid.

 

[DJBonoBobo]

Crinacle's Noire came with the non-perforated pads of the regular Aeon 2 Closed instead of the perforated ones that the Noire is supposed to come with.
That's why his measurement of the Noire is different than everyone else's and should be seen as invalid.
View attachment 242613View attachment 242614View attachment 242615View attachment 242616

Thanks and *facepalm*
He should remove it from the database then...

 

[KomoGomolaa]

Thanks guys for all your replies. Anybody seen Noire's distortion measurements? I can't find any.

 

[Jimster480]

This has long since been a Hot Topic here and people have constantly asked for this headphone to be tested but it has not yet been tested.

 

[PGAMiami]

Don’t have the Stealth, but I have been looking for a closed headphone that would be the equal of my Focal Utopia. These sure sound fantastic, right out of the box, with no EQ. Topping 5G drives them perfectly. I don’t feel like I’m missing anything at all. In fact, they sound more natural to me than the Utopia. In many ways these remind me of Quad 57 or 63s with a great sub, listening in the perfect sweet spot. They are superb.

 

[Jimster480]

I have not heard either of them, but just want to send out a small reminder that for headphones, in contrast to IEMs, frequency response graphs only tell a very limited story and even if FR is close for two headphones, they still may sound very differently, as clearly demonstrable with the Beyerdynamic DT 880 Pro and the Sennheiser HD 800S.View attachment 248330

Well this is also because they can be influenced by pads, glasses, fitment, ear lobe type, etc

 

[JanesJr1]

Thanks very much for your detailed reply, really appreciated. I think I'll try them
Regarding distortion on Aeons, did you find it collapsing somehow when pushed quite a bit?

Regarding your question about pushing the Aeon 2 Noire, I have used them for a year and a half, and before that the similar but budget Aeon Closed X. These two closed, planar headphones changed my expectations for good bass headphone sound. I have now become so attuned to low-distortion bass, good separation, nearly-faultless FR integration from sub-bass on up, and deep headroom (when adequately powered) that I have trouble listening to my Senn HDXX (HD850 clone) phones, primarily due to the easily-audible bass distortion of an older dynamic driver design, especially if I try to EQ the bass.

These planars re-trained my ears. To be specific, the bass is tight, ample, able to be pushed, and easy to EQ. Mine keep their composure well beyond the SPL that my ears can tolerate. (I have heard them when under-powered with AudioQuest dongles, and that is not pretty. But my Topping D50s (balanced output), JDS Labs Atom, E1DA 9038 G3 dongle (balanced) and Hidizs S9 Pro dongle (balanced) can all generate subjectively low-distortion bass for any SPL I want to hear.)

I don't have the power-handling measurements in front of me, but I believe there are ASR forum posts sprinkled around that confirm the good headroom of the Noire and other Aeon closed headphones. I know some people have trouble with the fit of these and perhaps other closed-back headphones, but I don't, and I love these headphones. But if you're interested specifically in good bass, I infer from other ASR posts that making sure of the seal on your own head is prudent.

 

[holdingpants01]

I have DCA Aeon 2 Noire and compared them directly to Stealth. First thing that it's obvious is that Stealth are much darker, not overall dark but because Noire are very bright above 10kHz (I don't pads, just -7.5dB shelf at 10kHz) and Stealth don't need any EQ. Low frequencies are somehow tighter, it seems like they decay faster, a good analogy would be close speakers (stealth) vs very good bass reflex design (noire). The whole build feels more solid too. Spaciousness seemed comparable, which means amazing for both. There's just everything right about the Stealth, they are drier sounding (less highs, tighter low end) but Noire are extremely good as well and after a year of use I still enjoy them, especially in the low end.