Dan Clark E3 Headphone Review

[staticV3]

If it require desktop equipment, than I am out.

It doesn't.

 

[oceansize]

If it require desktop equipment, than I am out. I only use DAP and Dongle - that is the way I listen to headphones

E3 would have been perfect

Torben

I can drive my E3s to a satisfactory level with a FiiO M11 Plus DAP using its balanced output. I'm afraid I can't comment on how your set up would work them.

 

[Ahmonge]

Two coherent sound sources will sum to +6dB, not +3.

Why? Isn’t the same as doubling the power applied to une sound source?

 

[TRDK]

I can drive my E3s to a satisfactory level with a FiiO M11 Plus DAP using its balanced output. I'm afraid I can't comment on how your set up would work them.

That is good to know - THX. I have the FiiO M23 (475mv @32Ω)

Do you use high gain?

Torben

 

[oceansize]

That is good to know - THX. I have the FiiO M23 (475mv @32Ω)

Do you use high gain?

Torben

Medium

 

[Ken Tajalli]

That is good to know - THX. I have the FiiO M23 (475mv @32Ω)

Actually, it manages 1W at 32 ohms, (perhaps slightly more at 27 ohms) using balanced output.
M11+ manages 600mW at 32 ohms, (perhaps slightly more at 27 ohms) using balanced output.
The E3 is $2000 already, do you want to add the cost of a new DAC/Amp on top?

Again, take your existing iBasso to a dealer with your own music and gear, try the E3 out.
It may work for you, with the type of music you listen to, at levels You consider normal. If it works, it works.

As I see it, you have three options:
1- Insist on E3, and your iBasso proves inadequate, then look for a quality DAC, with more juice (most expensive)
2- try E3 out with your own gear, if it is works . . . (a bit cheaper)
3- Buy a pair of headphones that works fine with your existing iBasso (possibly cheapest)

 

[Zoide]

I usually listen to my E3 on the RME ADI-2 DAC FS at -27 to -25 dBr (Lo-Power Auto).

What loudness (dB) and power (mW) is that equivalent to?
I'd like to know if the E1DA 9039S dongle would be powerful enough to drive them via its balanced output.

Thanks

 

[staticV3]

I usually listen to my E3 on the RME ADI-2 DAC FS at -27 to -25 dBr (Lo-Power Auto).

What loudness (dB) and power (mW) is that equivalent to?

It would be helpful if you could measure the output voltage yourself with a multimeter.

It's really simple and a multimeter is just $15.

I'd like to know if the E1DA 9039S dongle would be powerful enough to drive them via its balanced output.

The 9039S can output about 3.5Vrms into the DCA E3, which will drive it to about 110dB SPL Peak (8x my usual listening volume).

 

[megapro17]

I don't know how this power is calculated, I have a moondrop dawn pro that promises 150mw on both outputs. The 3.5 mm was not enough volume, and I thought I had to change it for some KA13 that promises 550 mW on 4.4 mm. But after I got the 4.4 mm wire, the moondrop was able to deliver sufficient volume, with an bit extra. Meanwhile, the K11 with 520mW over 3.5mm sounds loud as it is

 

[Mr Swing King]

It’s mostly about what volume levels the individual listens to and trust me, there are some wild differences between folks. This I learned by attending different headphone meets and from time to time trying on a headphone that literally tried to drill music into my brain. Some folks just can’t get enough volume. What is uncomfortably loud in my ears is obviously appropriate for some.
I imagine these people having spent most of their youth in front of the main speakers at punk rock gigs.
Anyhoo if it’s loud enough via whatever device you’re using, you should be good to go

 

[Ahmonge]

It’s mostly about what volume levels the individual listens to and trust me, there are some wild differences between folks.

Totally agree. That's why I don't quite understand why so few headphone aficionados measure the maximum listening volume and report it when asking for amp recommendations for a given model. All it takes is a handheld sound level meter of sufficient accuracy (there are many on Amazon with a margin of error of +/- 3 dB available for 20 or 30 € or $). Or, failing that, a mobile program that has this function. In addition, its use is more than recommended to prevent our ears from being exposed to dangerous volume levels when listening with headphones,

 

[TRDK]

All it takes is a handheld sound level meter of sufficient accuracy (there are many on Amazon with a margin of error of +/- 3 dB available for 20 or 30 € or $). Or, failing that, a mobile program that has this function. In addition, its use is more than recommended to prevent our ears from being exposed to dangerous volume levels when listening with headphones,

It would be nice if you could share a link or two some good ones at Amazon. THX

Torben

 

[sonitus mirus]

It would be nice if you could share a link or two some good ones at Amazon. THX

Torben

You can use an inexpensive sound level meter to check the volume of your headphones. A simple trick is to take a CD or DVD (which many of us have lying around) and remove the foam from the meter's microphone. The center hole of the CD/DVD usually fits perfectly around the mic. You can then push the mic through the hole and press the CD/DVD flat against the ear cup of your headphones. This setup helps simulate the sound levels as if the headphones were being worn. For more accuracy, you could cover one side of the CD/DVD with something like latex to better mimic the skin's reflection. It's a cheap and effective way to measure headphone volume.

Amazon.com

 

[Ahmonge]

It would be nice if you could share a link or two some good ones at Amazon. THX

This is the one I have.

Amazon.com

 

[DantonIzzo]

Was about to pull the trigger on the Audeze MM-500 then I saw this. Should I get this instead? I currently own the Focal Clear og, Sony IER M9, Belling w Dusk, and Sennheiser IE600.

 

[Chagall]

Was about to pull the trigger on the Audeze MM-500 then I saw this. Should I get this instead? I currently own the Focal Clear og, Sony IER M9, Belling w Dusk, and Sennheiser IE600.

Do you want closed-back or open-back headphones?
Do you like Harman-tuned headphones?
Do you EQ headphones or not?
Like with most closed-backs, ears get very sweaty during long listening periods, especially if you live in places with warmer climates.
Closed-back headphones are more susceptible to bass seal and HRTF issues.

Bottom line: If you want a closed-back headphone, like Harman tuning, and don't EQ - E3 is the best choice.

 

[DantonIzzo]

Do you want closed-back or open-back headphones?
Do you like Harman-tuned headphones?
Do you EQ headphones or not?
Like with most closed-backs, ears get very sweaty during long listening periods, especially if you live in places with warmer climates.
Closed-back headphones are more susceptible to bass seal and HRTF issues.

Bottom line: If you want a closed-back headphone, like Harman tuning, and don't EQ - E3 is the best choice.

I do EQ my clear to harman (based off of oratory settings), but I don’t EQ my IEMs. I don’t live in hot climate so I’m not too worry about that. I did want an open back but I heard that the E3 is very open back like. I don’t plan on using EQ but don’t mind doing it either (I have the Topping D50 III and can store Eq profile right on the it). I’m looking to be wow’ed by the technicalities of planar which of the two will give me that?

 

[Robbo99999]

I do EQ my clear to harman (based off of oratory settings), but I don’t EQ my IEMs. I don’t live in hot climate so I’m not too worry about that. I did want an open back but I heard that the E3 is very open back like. I don’t plan on using EQ but don’t mind doing it either (I have the Topping D50 III and can store Eq profile right on the it). I’m looking to be wow’ed by the technicalities of planar which of the two will give me that?

I don't think you need to concern yourself with whether a headphone is planar or dynamic driver, albeit open backed planar headphones tend to have lower bass distortion than dynamic driver open backed headphones, but you can still get open backed dynamic driver headphones with low bass distortion, just it's not as common. You might find smoother treble on average from dynamic driver open backs than planar open backs, but again it's a generalisation. If I was you I'd place more emphasis on the actual measured frequency response & distortion measurements which is the two important parts. The E3 is pretty spectacular on those two areas!

 

[lowmagnet]

back on my pair after a few weeks of not wearing them (got urushiol on them, had to order new pads, in the meantime, got a pair of Neumann KH-80 DSP monitors) I can feel the bass in my skull again.

 

[evanft]

I thought I'd post this here since there's a lot of discussion around this headphone.

I find the E3s to be a bit brighter than Amir's measurements. There's a bit of extra heat in some vocals and distorted guitars sometimes have some edge to them. When I took a look at other reviewer's measurements, I noticed that some seem to pick up a bit of extra energy in the ear gain region from around 2k to 5k. Oratory1990, GadgetryTech, and DMS all appear to show this in their data, while VSG, Amir, and Jude don't.

I'm obviously no expert, but there could be a number of reasons for this:

• HRTF variation among different measurement setups and people
• Different positions for the headphones on different rigs. I know some people take multiple measurements with different positioning to get a feel for how the headphone changes, while others may not
• Minor sealing differences. I believe Dan has said these are more susceptible to seal issues than other headphones, though I could be mistaken so don't take that as gospel
• Unit-to-unit variation, though Dan Clark seems to have pretty good driver consistency
• It could be something as simple as how different people choose to display their data.

Whatever it is, I've found that my experience with the E3 matches the way Oratory has measured it, so I took his data and plugged it into AutoEQ. Here's what it looks like (I have smoothing turned on):

The blue line is the Harman 2018 target, while black is the actual measurement. It's still obviously very close to the target (stunningly so, as Amir and others have pointed out), but you can see the extra energy in the areas I was talking about above. I can also detect these peaks/valleys when I run test tones, so they're not just measurement quirks.

I then used AutoEQ's custom EQ function to develop the following filters.

Preamp: -0.10 dB
Filter 1: ON PK Fc 2604.0 Hz Gain -1.6 dB Q 3.63
Filter 2: ON PK Fc 4025.0 Hz Gain -0.6 dB Q 3.87
Filter 3: ON PK Fc 6012.0 Hz Gain -1.0 dB Q 6.00
Filter 4: ON HSC Fc 10000.0 Hz Gain -1.5 dB Q 0.70

This is the result:

This makes the sound just a bit smoother overall and helps lessen some of the extra bite that can exist on some vocals and guitar tracks. I don't bother EQing the rest of the frequency range as I don't notice the deviation from Harman in those areas as much in the treble. The small drop from 600 to 2k or so can also a bit of spaciousness to the sound, which can be a positive thing for headphones.