Dan Clark NOIRE XO Headphone Review

[netanio]

New Noire XO owner here. Great comfort & sound so far (just got them this morning). I've been testing them in Roon using Amir’s EQ profile, but I found the top end a bit fatiguing. I’ve since tweaked the settings to personal taste: another +1dB bass boost, a notch at 13.5kHz for that treble peak, and a -2dB high shelf. This feels much more balanced to me.

Has anyone else had a similar experience, or what EQ settings are you using?

I’m also hoping Roon adds an official profile to the OPRA database soon; currently, only the Noire X (closed back) is available.

 

[CedarX]

Has anyone else had a similar experience, or what EQ settings are you using?

I don’t have the Noire XO, but what you did is absolutely correct: start with a HP most will like, and EQ it to your taste. That’s also why others’ EQ settings are… interesting… but largely irrelevant.

 

[Cecill]

New Noire XO owner here. Great comfort & sound so far (just got them this morning). I've been testing them in Roon using Amir’s EQ profile, but I found the top end a bit fatiguing. I’ve since tweaked the settings to personal taste: another +1dB bass boost, a notch at 13.5kHz for that treble peak, and a -2dB high shelf. This feels much more balanced to me.

Has anyone else had a similar experience, or what EQ settings are you using?

I’m also hoping Roon adds an official profile to the OPRA database soon; currently, only the Noire X (closed back) is available.

I bought mine about two months ago, and straight out of the box the tuning didn’t suit me, too shouty, with an unnatural midrange. After some experimenting, I’ve settled on the EQ below.
The 100 Hz bass boost Dan includes is intentional—he’s mentioned it’s there to restore a sense of slam. Because his headphones have such low distortion, some listeners perceive the bass as lacking, so this boost compensates for that. I have reduced that boost.

In my case, I’ve mainly tamed the shoutiness by reducing the 1 kHz to 6 kHz region. With these adjustments, they’ve completely transformed—now they sound phenomenal. Very much like a studio monitor in an acoustically treated room, just without the physical impact of bass vibrations.

The EQ is applied directly through the RME DAC. I can also adjust the 60 Hz bass and 8 kHz treble on the fly using the RME remote control.

 

[Bertdoozer]

Hi guys, I have just ordered a pair of these in Australia.. looking for recommendations for good headphone Dac/amps to get the best out of these.
Any suggestions gratefully received. Will also need to be a pre amp for my power amps.

Stu

 

[theBoomer]

Hi guys, I have just ordered a pair of these in Australia.. looking for recommendations for good headphone Dac/amps to get the best out of these.
Any suggestions gratefully received. Will also need to be a pre amp for my power amps.

Stu

I'm not writing from experience because I don't have the XO's, but I think you should check out the Luxsin X9 DAC/Amp. It should be powerful enough to drive them without problems and has great EQ capabilities should you feel inclined to tweak things. As can be seen from attendees' pictures, DCA takes one or more of those to trade-shows, to showcase their headphones.

 

[Bertdoozer]

Many thanks the boomer for your reply, I have been looking at the luxsin x9 and its good to know that DCA use these. It gives confidence as there are so many makes and models out there but the Luxsin gets close to the holy grail for me with DAC, Amp and eARC for my TV. It will also drive my power amps.

 

[Cecill]

I hadn’t listened to the Noire XO for a few days, so I put them on today with no EQ, and they still sounded great. It made me wonder if I’d even be able to tell whether I was hearing the EQ’d version or not without looking.

Without any EQ, vocals come through more clearly and feel a bit more forward, nothing extreme, just a bit like listening to speakers in a room. With my “shoutiness” cuts, the vocals sit further back in the mix. But since music varies so much from track to track, keeping up with EQ adjustments would mean constant tweaking. At that point, it almost makes more sense to just leave it alone and enjoy the music.

Edit: I’m listening to Hannah Featherstone’s new album The Space in Between right now, especially the track “Heart, Soul and Body.” Such bliss, her voice feels so intimate and sensual, like she’s whispering right into my ears. It sounds even better through the Noire XO without the EQ. Beautiful.

Also, Noire XO are so comfortable that I can wear them for hours, unlike HD650.

 

[Cecill]

New Noire XO owner here. Great comfort & sound so far (just got them this morning). I've been testing them in Roon using Amir’s EQ profile, but I found the top end a bit fatiguing. I’ve since tweaked the settings to personal taste: another +1dB bass boost, a notch at 13.5kHz for that treble peak, and a -2dB high shelf. This feels much more balanced to me.

Has anyone else had a similar experience, or what EQ settings are you using?

I’m also hoping Roon adds an official profile to the OPRA database soon; currently, only the Noire X (closed back) is available.

Opra is now updated with the Noire XO

 

[frogmeat69]

Just started listening to these about an hour ago, came yesterday, no EQ and I think these sound great. played some Jethro Tull, Myrkur, Tool, and Porcupine Tree, very familiar sound to my ears since I already have the Drop + Dan Clark Aeon X Open phones, but so far these just seem to be much more clean sounding in the bass, can hear every note, where the other pair are, for lack of a better term, fuzzy sounding, not bad, just not as clean. Very enjoyable sound, I am very happy so far.