MrSpeakers ÆON Flow Open - Early Impressions and Measurements

Discussion in 'Headphone Measurements' started by Hands, Oct 14, 2017.

  1. monacelli

    monacelli Friend

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    Could you share some impressions of the Aeon 2 closed when you've had enough listening time with them? Their ergonomics, especially their relatively light weight, is appealing. I'm not sure we even have a proper Aeon 2 thread yet.
     
  2. Ice-man

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    Yep, sure will. I type some up and post it today if possible. Have to take the wife out for dinner, so it might be tomorrow. Ping me if I forget.
     
  3. Ryanr1987

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    Got these on loan from a mate, I know Dans gear is polarising on here, some justified, but despite what people still think of Dan or his products all headphones deserve a shake. Some won't care, but data and impressions is always important for potential buyers.

    These are early impressions by some standards, a few days which I value a lot, firstly fresh impressions make us less tolerate to imperfections of the response. When we adapt to a certain sound we always adapt to peaks, bass level etc, at least in my personal experience. My thoughts also rarely change over time because I listen to multiple headphones throughout a session so never get time to adjust to certain issues or characters.

    Gear used for the time with Aeon is my trusty SDAC + Asgard 2, why such a cheap set up?because it matches my taste, smooth, slightly warm, lush, dynamic. I favour a warm sound, a hint of lushness to voices, warmth of an acoustic guitar is something I appreciate as I play.

    I prefer it without the filters as the mid bass plus any filter whether it's 1 notch, 2 notch or black filters, they all sound too muted. They're warm, they're fairly smooth, the timbre is nice and the lack of grain is appreciated, those who found the HD650 too grainy on mid level gear and don't like mods won't find the same problem with this. The bass is a mix between the HD650 and LCD-2, good extension but mid bassy, much more warmth and bass than the HD650. The LCD-2 in comparison sounds bass light but has unbelievable heft, low bass extension so you get hit with these ultra low solid notes with some tracks and it's an awesome experience. The mids on the Aeon are quite smoothed over due to the mid bass, voices have that lush tilt I like, it can sometimes sound a bit floaty, not very solid but I find it helps me zone out and listen to the music in a more relaxed state but there's times when I wanna be banging my head to some hard hitting drums.

    There's some peaks in the treble that the tuning filters fix but they added more issues in other areas so I prefer them bareback. The first day I was constantly switching back and fourth between them and my LCD-2 and the cleaner, snappier sound of the LCD-2 was more show stealing than the warmer, lusher aeon so I decided to just let the Aeon have some personal attention. This is where they started to shine, letting them have their time they began to surround me with their lush, thick tone and they began to feel comfortable. It became less important that the LCD-2 is snappier because the comfort physically and musically took over. I've not switched back to the Audeze yet, prob because these are going back tomorrow but it's making it harder.

    Immediate resolution is in the LCD-2s favour, it will point it out first but when you let the Aeon sit and sing for a bit it is close to being as resolving as the Audeze. The lack of mid bass on the LCD-2 is probably why I hear it as more obviously detailed. The LCD-2 due to the upper mid recession and lack of mid bass gives it the sense of being more spacious, more depth. If someone gave me the option to swap, would I? sound wise probably not, but when you factor in the comfort, the smooth liquidity of the Aeon I would consider it, when you adjust to the weight of a certain headphone then swap to something lighter you appreciate it and almost forget.

    I heard the closed a few years back, thought it was compressed, lean, I actually think this headphone is solid if you like this type of sound.
     
  4. redrich2000

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    I don't think many here have these. I like mine for what they are. But I've always felt they could potentially benefit from modding. Of course, unfortunately, they're not reversibly moddable. But there's a lot of damping in there. I'm always tempted to see if I could remove some of the foam from under the back grills with tweezers. I wonder if that would improve the soundstage and midbass bloat and general over-smoothness?

    The problem is the pads are glued on. But I wonder if you could get at them if you were willing to stick the pads back down with reversible tape. I am not remotely experienced with this stuff though, so have no idea whether i'm on the right track here or not.
     
  5. will_f

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    I had a pair of AFOs a year or two ago. I pretty much agree with your assessment @Ryanr1987. It’s not a bad headphone, but it’s got solid competition in its price range and it’s not quite good enough to compete with the next tier up.
     
  6. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    Pads just use a strong, double-sided adhesive. Carefully peel them off, set them on something clean (wax paper, plastic, etc), and pop back on when done.

    Removing back damping will only serve to make them more bloated. You'll actually want to add damping to even out the tone.

    On the other hand, you could remove the filter over the front of the driver, if one exists, and then try removing rear damping.

    But, really, the best you'll probably get is adding just a little bit more damping in the rear to tone down the mid-bass and slightly bring up upper-mids. But there's not a ton of tuning you can do without really messing with overall balance.
     
  7. Noodlz

    Noodlz Almost "Made"

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    Hope this is the right place to put this & hope im not necroing a totally dead thread. I had sold my AFC a while back and just bought an original AFO that should be coming in, got them at a great price since the cables are frayed and the pads are in bad shape.

    Now the question is, does anyone have any experience pad rolling with these? Ive gotta replace the pads and i can either just get the standard, or the perforated option, or even some of the dekoni stuff.

    from what i've read the perforated version is the one from the AFO 2, and is supposed to provide a bigger soundstage and livelier mids?

    As far as the Dekoni, there's 3 options, the hybrid, fenestrated, and sheep skin. I assume i'd want the fenestrated?

    Any insights as to how the sounds changes with any of these pads would be greatly appreciated =)

    EDIT:
    For ref, the Dekoni Pads are $79 and the Aeon official pads are $59. I assume (hope) that the Aeon pads have been fixed now from the earlier pad issues where the foam would deform and have to be moved back in place. Can anyone confirm this?

    Links:
    https://dekoniaudio.com/product/eli...ear-pads-for-dan-clark-audio-aeon-headphones/
    https://dekoniaudio.com/product/elite-hybrid-ear-pads-for-dan-clark-audio-aeon-headphones/
    https://dekoniaudio.com/product/elite-sheepskin-for-dan-clark-audio-aeon-headphones/
    https://danclarkaudio.com/catalog/product/view/id/36/s/aeon-ear-pads/category/92/
    https://danclarkaudio.com/aeon-standard-ear-pads.html

    from what i can see looking at the freq. response charts on the Dekoni:
    - Elite Sheepskin is the closest to stock, slight boost in the mid bass and slightly reduced treble?
    - Hybrid would reduce the bass and elevate treble? make it sound more neutral?
    - Fenestrated would drastically reduce the bass?

    [​IMG]

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    [​IMG]

    If i had unlimited funds i'd just buy all of them to test out but for that price i could buy another pair of these lol
     
    Last edited: Dec 14, 2021
  8. RedFuneral

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    Do you have to replace the pads before you can listen to them? It's been a long time since I owned the AFO but they were quickly ejected from my ears due to the elevation in the high-treble. If I were pad rolling I'd jump on the Elite Sheepskins based on the graph there.. BUT I don't see all that many reviews criticizing these phones for that trait hence why my real recommendation would be to try them out before you start making any changes.
    Same thought follows for the bass, the bass elevation is a large part of the sound for these and personally I liked it(I don't generally like big bass.) I wouldn't be so quick to discount it.
     
  9. Noodlz

    Noodlz Almost "Made"

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    ah fair point, i'm still waiting for them to get here. the pads look like they're in pretty rough shape with pieces kinda chipping off already. so i'd definitely replace it with a new pad, the question would just be which. I guess i'll wait till i get them in, and then if like it even with the crappy condition stock pads i'll just buy the OEM stock replacement and call it a day. Will post updates after i get them in
     
  10. Noodlz

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    Update: got these in and have now ordered the Dan Clark Audio fenestrared pads. The stock pads are in bad shape indeed, they still work but I don’t know much the sound has been changed because of it. The synthetic leather is literally falling apart with chunks missing and the foam is pretty warped.

    I will say though, this is the first time a pair of headphones have put me to sleep in the middle of the day. (Literally fell asleep for like 5 min) While listening to hip hop… not a great first impression. That does mean these are amazingly comfortable tho. So pros and cons?

    they sound fine, smooth and warm, but not exciting. I’ve tried swapping the filters, and found that without the filters it tends to sound a bit up front but also more grainy and sharp especially in the top end. With the one notch or two notch these sound way more refined to me, and I can push the dials up just a bit and I get a nice textured sound from top to bottom.

    that being said, it’s just not terribly exciting of a listen, when compared to the hd650 / hd580. This is also being fed from the jot 2 and modius which usually has plenty of attack and energy. Tried it with my wa6se and also mcth and both were ok, but the jot2 was the only one that can feed it the “energy” to make it less sleepy sounding. Out of the shanking m6 dap it felt strained.

    I’m hoping it’s just the pads plus im still getting used to the tone of the headphones. I also read up and saw that the official fenestrated pads actually contribute a huge part to the new sound of the RT version, which is supposed to have a much better soundstage and better mids.

    will update after I get the new pads in. In the meantime, does anyone have experience in a nice synergistic pairing amp/dac with these? I love the form factor and weight i just need to wake them up from their sleepy selves lol


    ** Edit. I just tried out the stock se cables and it sounds SIGNIFICANTLY better than the Venus audio xlr cables, im thinking those might just be defective because it sucks up all the energy and vibrancy of the headphones which I have so,e back with the stock se cables. (Still a bit tame and sleepy but more like “chill” as opposed to “passed out” like before) guess I need to get new xlr cables now to make the most out of the jot.
     
    Last edited: Dec 19, 2021
  11. Wilewarer

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    I feel like this sort of restraint is maybe an inherent quality of the original Aeons in either flavor? I know the AFC are kinda like that to me (probably you remember that too), and despite the differences in tuning between the open and closed versions what I've read makes me suspect you should just kind of expect them to sound like that. Not very dynamic, not especially engaging. They do plenty right (these aren't necessarily bad qualities anyway), but that's not part of the deal. Especially not with white filters.

    Those pads have to be doing something to the sound though. Headphone pad wear can impact the sound well before it gets to that degree. Those actually sound impressively messed up, like it took a lot of work to get them like that. The Aeon pads aren't that bad to me as far as protein leather goes, it's not like, say, the MSR7 pads that quickly degrade in a way that both messes with the sound and also makes anything you write in the vicinity of the headphones look like you did it while operating the deep fryer at a chicken shack.
     
  12. Noodlz

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    lol the pads are in epically bad shape, so much so photos don’t even do it justice. like literally flakes of the pads fall off every time i touch them. upon switching to the stock cables i also realized that there’s a channel imbalance most likely because the pads are so warped that im not getting a proper seal in the left cup. squishing them tight i can hear the vocals centering back.

    it does make me wonder how the previous owner managed to make the pads so bad, or if it’s simply the earlier pads being that bad. supposedly the new pads are way better tho

    also yea from what i remember the AFC also had this restrained sound, and the AFO as i expected is similar and a very nice and easy listening (now that i figured out the venus xlr cables be the culprit of much of the sleepiness). it still could use a bit more excitement, but maybe you’re right it’s just not what this thing is meant to do, maybe it’s just really to relax and chill with.
     
  13. Noodlz

    Noodlz Almost "Made"

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    just got my DCA perforated pads. Ok these things are now waaaay better sounding. not sure if its simply the old pads being in horrible condition (i lterally just threw these old ones away into the trashcan right now), but there's way more energy in the sound (the mids are more forward), the soundstage is much better, less muddy bass, and it seems like the bass quantity & quality have improved too. The timbre overall is very natural, still polite, but way less restrained. Easy listening and comfy without being sleepy.

    Very very happy, would recommend anyone who has the the V1 AFOs & the old pads to the new Perforated version.

    **Also, currently liking it either without any tuning foam or the black foam. the black foam seems to soften everything just a tad to make it more organic. (though you do lose a tad bit of the soundstage as well as some of the bass. YMMV depending on your chain.)

    Edit: the black foam seems to reduce the overall dynamic range. will be going without tuning foams.
     
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2021

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