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- Sep 4, 2019
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So I have had a set of HD 58x headphones for about 3 years. I have always liked the Sennheiser sound and prefer open back to closed headphones (I don't like the in can feeling, ears sweating, and not being able to hear my surroundings of closed backs). Recently I upgraded my desktop to a Topping DX1 from a Schiit Vali which gave some additional clarity. At the same time, I implented applying a Harmon Curve to my Sennheisers which make a nice upgrade to their sound, opening up the sound a bit. There is one thing I don't like about the Sennheisers, they clamp pretty tight and I can only way them a couple of hours.
Memorial day weekend Drop had the Dan Clark Aeon Open X headphones on a good sale ($419) so I figured why not. They finally showed up over the weekend. Wow, talk about a completely different presentation. Just so completely different with equalization off, you can't begin to compare. I then applied the Harmon Curve and gave a listen. Very open sounding, but a bit bright, and strangely lacking in Bass. I ended up tweaking the balance a bit taking out a couple of db in the treble and adding a couple of db in the midbass which made them much more to my liking (I prefer a bit of a laid back speaker).
With both equalized they still sound very different. The best way I can put it is the Sennheiser's sound like they have significantly more bass, but I think it is actually second harmonic distortion making it sound louder (I remember this when I tried my first Velodyne in comparison to other subs in the early 1990s). From the midbass up, the Dan Clarks sound much more open, without being bright or harsh. In terms of comfort, the Dan Clarks are miles ahead in the comfort and not squeezing my head, but don't breathe as well (and also filter out more external noise than the Sennheiser's). All in all, I feel like I got a good value with Dan Clarks and given the amount I listen to headphones, don't see myself upgrading.
Memorial day weekend Drop had the Dan Clark Aeon Open X headphones on a good sale ($419) so I figured why not. They finally showed up over the weekend. Wow, talk about a completely different presentation. Just so completely different with equalization off, you can't begin to compare. I then applied the Harmon Curve and gave a listen. Very open sounding, but a bit bright, and strangely lacking in Bass. I ended up tweaking the balance a bit taking out a couple of db in the treble and adding a couple of db in the midbass which made them much more to my liking (I prefer a bit of a laid back speaker).
With both equalized they still sound very different. The best way I can put it is the Sennheiser's sound like they have significantly more bass, but I think it is actually second harmonic distortion making it sound louder (I remember this when I tried my first Velodyne in comparison to other subs in the early 1990s). From the midbass up, the Dan Clarks sound much more open, without being bright or harsh. In terms of comfort, the Dan Clarks are miles ahead in the comfort and not squeezing my head, but don't breathe as well (and also filter out more external noise than the Sennheiser's). All in all, I feel like I got a good value with Dan Clarks and given the amount I listen to headphones, don't see myself upgrading.
