Dan Clark Audio AEON RT Review (closed headphone)

[Merkurio]

I will test it soon. For now, it does not have the same performance as RT.

The Aeon 2 Noir seems to follow the harman target pretty close, I hope you've the chance to try them in the future (and see how the new driver compares with the RT).

Plus, it's the best looking Aeon that @Dan Clark has made.

 

[Dan Clark]

@Dan Clark

Was the Qudelix 5k included in your dongle review? If not, you might want to take a look at it, too. Same $110 as BTR5

Nope but we'll check it out...

 

[sherm137]

The Aeon 2 Noir seems to follow the harman target pretty close, I hope you've the chance to try them in the future (and see how the new driver compares with the RT).

Plus, it's the best looking Aeon that @Dan Clark has made.

FYI, it's the exact same headphone as the Aeon 2 but with perforated pads.

 

[Merkurio]

FYI, it's the exact same headphone as the Aeon 2 but with perforated pads.

I know, that's why I linked to the measurements of the Aeon 2 with perforated pads from oratory1990.

 

[sherm137]

I know, that's why I linked to the measurements of the Aeon 2 with perforated pads from oratory1990.

My bad! I should have clicked the link.

 

[Merkurio]

No problem!

 

[50°F=Hellfire]

@Dan Clark
Kind of off-topic, but are you planning on giving the Ether 2 a closed-back sibling? Also, I may or may not have squealed like a high school girl upon seeing the MrSpeakers in this forum

 

[richard12511]

There is of course the question of which EQ. Using EQ/DSP based on who's measurements ? When comparing EQ generated by various sources they all differ. It's not that only one of them is correct.. they all are kind-of correct.
Easier to just leave the EQ up to the owner... they can decide which they prefer.

The problem with this is how do I EQ with an Iphone(my only source for headphones)? I can use Roon to EQ, but that only works when I'm at home, in which case I'll be listening to loudspeakers. I use headphones only while out on walks. A headphone with built in EQ would be great, for me.

 

[pwjazz]

The problem with this is how do I EQ with an Iphone(my only source for headphones)? I can use Roon to EQ, but that only works when I'm at home, in which case I'll be listening to loudspeakers. I use headphones only while out on walks. A headphone with built in EQ would be great, for me.

If you're okay with using Bluetooth, you can get something like a Qudelix 5K that had built in DSP. That way anything you play over the Qudelix will get the EQ treatment.

 

[solderdude]

The problem with this is how do I EQ with an Iphone(my only source for headphones)? I can use Roon to EQ, but that only works when I'm at home, in which case I'll be listening to loudspeakers. I use headphones only while out on walks. A headphone with built in EQ would be great, for me.

To me the AEON 2 closed was perfectly enjoyable even without EQ. The RT has a bit more upper mids. You can adjust the treble using the felt inserts.

It is one of the few headphones I would not hesitate to use out of the box. For critical listening You could EQ up the small upper midrange dip.
When listening to pop music I find a small dip around 3kHz quite welcome b.t.w.

 

[bobbooo]

If you're okay with using Bluetooth, you can get something like a Qudelix 5K that had built in DSP. That way anything you play over the Qudelix will get the EQ treatment.

The Qudelix 5K isn't restricted to just Bluetooth - you can also use a wired USB connection for lossless playback.

 

[bloodevil]

The problem with this is how do I EQ with an Iphone(my only source for headphones)? I can use Roon to EQ, but that only works when I'm at home, in which case I'll be listening to loudspeakers. I use headphones only while out on walks. A headphone with built in EQ would be great, for me.

I'm on iPhone too and with neutron player you can use up to 60-band parametric EQ (not that you need 60-bands anyway), it also supports hi-res files, I pair it with a FiiO Q3 and works perfectly fine

 

[richard12511]

I'm on iPhone too and with neutron player you can use up to 60-band parametric EQ (not that you need 60-bands anyway), it also supports hi-res files, I pair it with a FiiO Q3 and works perfectly fine

Does this work with streaming services like Tidal/Qobuz? I don't own any music.

 

[PeteL]

Does this work with streaming services like Tidal/Qobuz? I don't own any music.

Your use case is the same as mine, and quite honestly it is my belief that it is the use case for headphones for the very vast majority of music listeners that being: on the go with streaming services, the flexibility of not having to transfer file, use storage on the phone, etc vastly outweight the small, if any fidelity concerns. Still, here, we often feel that it's a given, a must, like it's almost nonsense to listen to unEQed music, but in real life I find it is not that obvious or straight forward. I do like the trend of app friendly small BT amps, and yes that is to me the most convenient way to have EQ and decent power. But if you don't own one as far as I know, there is not a real easy way to just open up your Tidal app, press play, and have the output EQed, and this is what listening on the go is about. We are in a thread here that feature a great headphone, that needs more than a regular phone output to drive so it might be of less relevance for this specific, but at the end of the day, in more general terms, yes, It is my opinion that headphones should sound good without Frequency response digital manipulation. That's what people need most until Android and Ios adress this in their audio drivers and offer easy access to PEQ on their portable OS.

 

[jannek]

Closed headphones store energy in the cup which often shows as group delay issues, with time and frequency impacts. Open headphones radiate the same energy into space. Inherently this gives opens an advantage in some areas like soundstage, and they can be easier to keep the response smoother. Closed headphones do have a leg up in bass, though, where the stored energy can work to your advantage.

I’ve always tried to build closed headphones that sound open but Keep the isolation, and bass, benefits. Of course as soon as you try to communicate the benefits it becomes marketing...

@Dan Clark : If I get you right, open headphones have the advantages mentioned above, but lack bass energy. In your first post you mentioned you prefer a more natural frequency response with the ability to push the top and bottom without breaking it. So - if isolation is NOT a requirement, but sub bass IS (from time to time...) - would the open headphone used with EQ reach the bass performance of the closed version but with better soundstage?
And - since I think a bit like @Francis Vaughan and his idea of an Aeon DSP - which version of the Aeon headphones is best concerning THD and group delay? Aeon RT or 2? Open or closed? Since these factors cannot be modified with an equalizer...

 

[BrokenEnglishGuy]

Closed headphones store energy in the cup which often shows as group delay issues, with time and frequency impacts. Open headphones radiate the same energy into space. Inherently this gives opens an advantage in some areas like soundstage, and they can be easier to keep the response smoother. Closed headphones do have a leg up in bass, though, where the stored energy can work to your advantage.

I’ve always tried to build closed headphones that sound open but Keep the isolation, and bass, benefits. Of course as soon as you try to communicate the benefits it becomes marketing...

I always have a question about this, as a noob
If the closed back headphone have a group of delay issues, why the ether c flow have this nice graph:

And the Ether flow this:

My ears agree with you, but my eyes are confused
I'm using a EQ to tame that 6.5khz, so i kinda trust that graph
ty

 

[Dan Clark]

@Dan Clark
Kind of off-topic, but are you planning on giving the Ether 2 a closed-back sibling? Also, I may or may not have squealed like a high school girl upon seeing the MrSpeakers in this forum

Hi we don't talk futures... Best way I know of to kill a company is to discuss products you don't ship.

I always have a question about this, as a noob
If the closed back headphone have a group of delay issues, why the ether c flow have this nice graph:

My ears agree with you, but my eyes are confused
I'm using a EQ to tame that 6.5khz, so i kinda trust that graph
ty

I don't comment on measurements where I don't know the measurement system but in general an open headphone will have a higher noise floor because there's less attenuation of ambient noise.

Regarding 6.5k if you slide the headphone a little further back on your head that may reduce pina gain in that region, if you feel there's an issue there try that instead of EQ.

 

[BrokenEnglishGuy]

Hi we don't talk futures... Best way I know of to kill a company is to discuss products you don't ship.



I don't comment on measurements where I don't know the measurement system but in general an open headphone will have a higher noise floor because there's less attenuation of ambient noise.

Regarding 6.5k if you slide the headphone a little further back on your head that may reduce pina gain in that region, if you feel there's an issue there try that instead of EQ.

Oh yeah im using EQ, Ether flow have impresive low distortion even at 20hz, i just set my EQ profile and i'm done, i like my headphones , i found a lot more easy to set a proper EQ than find a very special match for tame the 6.5khz, the EQ just fix the problem
i just found these measurements in https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/headphones/measurements/mrspeakers/ether-flow/, sadly in head fi we only have the THD and FR
Thank you for your answer

 

[Kgtree]

@amirm How would these perform paired with an amp like the Topping DX7? Have any measurements been taken with a high output impedance amp? I take it that using the XLR output of the DX7 would provide enough current, however I'm wondering if there would be any frequency modulation considering the impedance rating of the DX7 via XLR is 20 Ohms.

 

[SimpleTheater]

Hi we don't talk futures... Best way I know of to kill a company is to discuss products you don't ship.

I'm still waiting for my 2010 Pontiac Firebird