Drop + Hifiman HE-R7DX closed back electrodynamic Review

Drop + Hifiman HE-R7DX closed back electrodynamic Review

Available here

Loaner courtesy of Drop




Gear
ipod touch 7 -> HE-R7DX
Pi2AES -> Tidal -> Yggdrasil -> Cavalli Liquid Fire -> HE-R7DX

TLDR;
These things are going to sell really well.

They are comfortable, easy to drive, extremely well tuned, and super cheap at $149. I like them better than the cheap Hifiman orthos I’ve heard, and I much prefer orthos.

A very balanced, expansive sounding closed back electrodynamic. Overall they have a slightly warm tone that makes them sound natural. From bass to treble, I hear no peaks at all, they’re exceptionally tuned. Nothing sticks out except maybe a little bump in the upper mids and one in the lower treble but they're not peaks and not harsh but just makes certain notes a bit louder than they ought to be (nit picking). Treble has good tone- cymbals sound like cymbals- and is perfectly balanced. Vocals are very neutral, not recessed, and have great, natural tone. Bass has great slam and goes deep with good control. Resolution seems quite good to me, though they seem to have better macro than micro detail.

I wasn’t expecting to like these headphones. I don’t like electrodynamics in general, electrodynamics sound grainy and mooshy to me, and usually peaky and resonant to boot with high distortion. Hifiman making an electrodynamic had me even less excited and it's closed back. I was very surprised when I reluctantly put on the first track with these plugged into my ipod touch. I was ready to send these back or send them to someone else to review.

First Impression
Very open sounding was my first reaction. I then went through some test tracks and not only was I not bothered, I found myself listening to the songs- songs I’ve heard a million times tuning orthos, and not really paying attention to the headphones. This is a good sign as you all know, especially for a picky bastard like me.

Fit
They fit a bit weird. They use the old school og HE-5/6/500 style Hifiman headband (come on guys, I like this headband personally, but you can design a new headband). This headband wraps around the top of the head pretty evenly. The weird part is that the cups/earpads aren’t positioned to put much pressure on your head, they just kind of touch gently, and the way the headband cradles the head, you can’t get more pressure or clamp. So when you first put them on it’s unlike most headphones that immediately pivot and find the right angle against your head. You have to move the cups into position. But once you do, I personally find them comfortable. They’re very lightweight and that weight is distributed evenly all along the headband and earpads. It’s just such a unique fit that I am picturing other head sizes/shapes maybe having issues, but I like how they fit my noggin.

You can see in this picture where I have drawn the green line, how the earpads sit flush with the headband so the earpads aren't allowed to clamp much at all.



It’s still a bit weird though, it feels more like wearing a helmet than wearing headphones.

There are two things I don’t like

1)
How shallow the earpads are, but with the very mild clamp I don’t notice any discomfort with my limited time with them. I imagine if I wore them all day my ears might get sore from touching the grill but i don’t know.

2)
The cable comes out of the cups basically at a straight down angle, instead of slightly angling forward. It works for the stock cable, but when I put an aftermarket cable on them, the 3.5mm jacks make the cable hit my shoulders. But the cable I’m using costs more than these headphones, so I’m not sure this is a legitimate concern. Still, seems like an oversight.

Treble
Maybe just a tiny bit more than neutral. But it’s done in a very even keeled, natural way, and the treble has excellent tone no plastic-y bullshit. No harshness. I actualliy think they have very good air too despite being closed back.

Midrange
It’s lovely. Neither emphasized or pushed back in the mix, midrange heads will love the vocal presentation of these phones. Very lifelike. Rich when called for, airy when called for. You can hear the timbre of breath coming out of a human being like you should be able to. It just sounds very right. Which is important. If the vocals are off, I could care less about anything else. But these phones nail it.

There is one spot in the upper mids that is a bit emphasized and picks up harshly recorded piano a bit too loud. But I only heard this on two of my test tracks. And it’s not quite to the point of being harsh. I would call this a flavor, bringing out electric guitar in a nice way for most people. I don’t see many people finding fault here. Though I would personally want a little less presence.

Bass
These are not basshead headphones at all. I can see a lot of noobs buying these - because of the price, being closed back and the Drop crowd’s preferences in general including lots of noobs - and wanting more bass. Bass is neutral, but high quality and has great extension and control. Extension goes all the way down flatter than most electrodynamics, though I’d say by 20hz they are down a bit from where they are at 40hz. Not bad by any means. Just not ortho flat. Punchy, layered and detailed. I don’t think I can ask for more from an electrodynamic headphone.

Bass never bleeds into the midrange at all. And they’re not bass light in the slightest. Bob Marley sounds excellent, and you can hear the little nuances and details of the bass riffs not just a big phat note like on many headphones when playing Bob Marley..

Dynamics
They have a very dynamic sound. Focus is on macro rather than micro, they lack a little finnesse or refinement for the last bit of microdynamics, but I’m quite happy listening to them.

Soundstage
Very open for a closed back as far as I remember them sounding. I guess I can tell they’re closed back, but they create the illusion of space very well. They actually have a sense of air and space to them. Instruments have good separation.

Power requirements
They honestly sound pretty similar straight out of my ipod touch compared to my Yggrdrasil -> Liquid Fire. So I’d say they are very easy to drive and not picky about amps. It’s too bad they don’t fold up or isolate better because they’d make great portable headphones. Drop should consider making a foldable version with a little second layer of plastic on the outside of the cups filled with styrofoam (like an earmuff). But then they’d have to clamp more too to isolate well.

Distortion
I’m guessing it measures pretty good with maybe an oddity or two. That’s all I have to say about that.

Weaknesses
There is a very slight plastic tone to the whole sound. I’m not sure where it’s coming from, because anywhere I look sounds natural. I’m guessing it’s from the little bumps in the upper mids or lower treble, or a distortion thing.

They aren’t the most resolving headphones I’ve ever heard. But they are actually quite good, and at $149 they are damn good. They sound about as resolving as Focals to me I’d say, from memory. Maybe not quite as resolving as the Clears. Not amazing but pretty damn good. Though I will admit that my dislike of electrodynamics may be clouding my judgement here.

Not as refined as something like the HD650 or Focal Clear

They’re pretty bulky for what people will probably want to use them for - portable phones. The design makes them home use headphones or I guess transportable. But they don’t isolate at all, they may as well be open or semi open back. Which makes the use case a bit weird.

I think the fit may bother some, it’s very unique but once I get them positioned right, I actually like it because there’s so little clamp. They’re very light and rest evenly and lightly all around from the headband to the earpads.

Conclusion
Very cheap
Closed but not isolating
Very balanced FR with great tone across the spectrum
Few faults
Spacious and open sounding for a closed back
Not picky about amps

I really like how these sound, and they are the opposite kind of headphones I usually like. I’m impressed by what Hifiman and Drop have pulled off here. I think these are going to make a lot of people very happy and sell extremely well. I think I would take these over any ortho I’ve heard under the LCD-2 Classic price range maybe. The LCD-2 Classic has lower distortion obviously, but these are more clear and neutral sounding. I’ve heard some cheap orthos (I won’t name names) that sound way way worse. Hifiman should make more electrodynamics…

I can confidently recommend these headphones for anyone wanting a budget headphone with a neutral/natural signature. Those who like the Focal Clear or HD650 are likely to enjoy these. If you like John Grados, you might miss upper midrange emphasis. If you like bass heavy headphones, you will likely want more bass than these have.

i want to get a pair of these for my friends. If only the fit wasn’t so weird. The way these sound, it would have been worth designing a new headband and cup size just for them. But for $149 I think it’s hard to complain.

 

Seems the driver is similar if not exact to the R10D, not sure if the difference in resistance could be result of another change.

Might have to grab these out of morbid curiosity, I have a sinking feeling these might be better than the R10D I've sitting next to me..

 

Oh cool. Nice to see you have checked these out as well, @rhythmdevils!

I also received a pair from Drop and... I have my own notes. Will start writing it all up now. Also... I have measurements. Not gonna say much for now but here's frequency response to illustrate what was written above. I do agree with a lot of the above.



Distortion profile (please don't mind the % too much):



Versus Sennheiser HD650 (pretty much a universal reference):



Versus ZMF Eikon w/ Hybrid Pads:

 

These would be killer if they were compatible with the Bluemini like the Deva and the R10 and you could go bluetooth with them. Seems like a missed opportunity

 

And here are my notes on this headphone. I listened to it for a bit over 2 days before I measured it this morning.



Fit/Comfort:
The headphone is extremely light for what it is, and the headband makes for extremely low clamping force. On one hand, that's the perfect recipe for comfort. On the other, it's disastrous for sound quality, because there's no easy way to fit them without breaking seal and having bass dropping off a cliff. I think more clamping force will help bass here. It took me quite a while to measure bass properly due to the headband not allowing a good fit with EARS.

I tried to press the headphone onto my head and was able to get more bass, so... there is some opportunity here for bass improvement with a headband swap. Please note HiFiMAN does sell the new style of headband separately.

Sound:
What I'm using: new 14" MacBook Pro. This one can drive 300-ohm HD650 just as loudly as the 32-ohm HE-R7DX.
Tried putting this on Zana Deux (OG) and... nope. 32 ohm is too low.
Compared against Senn HD650 and ZMF Eikon because... well, I only have Eikon handy. I also have a ATH-M50 but I need to assemble it.

Tonality: okay-ish. Pretty bright. More so than my personal preference.

Bass: I think these sound pretty good. Bass has decent impact. There's not much weight, and it kind of is just about on par with HD650. Measurements kinda confirm this. ZMF Eikon gives much deeper bass. HD650 does give a bit more "body" to bass (but then again, HD650 gives more body to everything) and seemingly sounds a bit more congested, but upon closer listening, I think it's just the treble tonality making bass sound a bit wimpy here. See my notes on treble below.

Midrange: wow, a closed-back with midrange that sounds... not wonky! There's still a bit of reverb/shoutiness, but it's fairly well-controlled. For the most part, I can get behind this midrange, although it's somewhat lacking the warm/full-bodied tone that the HD650 and Eikon are capable of. On the other hand, HD650 and Eikon can sound somewhat congested with certain tracks, whereas this one just keeps trucking even through those tracks. I don't think I heard as much upper midrange as 650 or even Eikon. Both of the other headphones have a bit more "shout" when called for. The "shoutiness" of this headphone is at a lower frequency.

Treble: there's plenty of air here. I think there is an emphasis in the treble region pretty high up... around or past the 10KHz range or so (and measurements kinda confirm this). This emphasis seems to allow for "clarity" and "definition" with this headphone. Generally, it does not offend or cause sibilance even though I'm not really a fan of how bright this region sounds. It's a "healthy" amount of emphasis, I would say. Treble-heads will have plenty to love here.

Soundstage: decent for a closed-back. I think it's competitive against HD650 and Eikon. At least this headphone doesn't sound too boxed in for being closed back. No "cavernous" reverb detected either, which is a nice bonus.

Imaging: I think this is the one weakness with this headphone. Due to lack of body, I find that everything sounds a bit... thin and flat. Eikon images slightly better here... giving a bit more body and 3D-ness. HD650 is the best, of course, as it gives "solidity" to vocals, instruments, etc... in the soundscape.

Overall, I think... this is very good effort at $149. Both HD650 and Eikon are better in some ways but... both of those cost quite a bit more. The cheapest HD650 is HD6XX by Drop and that one goes for like... $220 now. Eikon is like... $1400. This headphone pretty much matches most of what 650 and Eikon are able to do. In fact, I think it's closer to HD600 in tonality and overall sound than it is to HD650. Considering the price and knowing my own preference, I think this headphone will be a good fit for many people who prefer something that's slightly "cleaner-sounding" than HD650.

So yeah, I'd highly recommend that anyone looking for a HD600-esque headphone in closed-back form pay a bit more attention to this one.

Bonus: I took off the earpad on one side and took a peek:



Let's say: I'm not a fan of the new pad mount. It's quite hard to take off without... breaking/snapping anything. Pad-swapping is pretty much impossible for mortals. I'm mad enough to try and luckily, I didn't break anything but... please be warned. This is not a super moddable headphone. If you're thinking of getting this to mod/pad-roll, I would think twice. I didn't open it up either because I think the tuning is already quite good for what it is.

 

Drop specs give impedance as 16 Ohms, not 32:

https://drop.com/buy/drop-hifiman-he-r7dx-closed-back-headphones/details#details

If correct, that might limit amp choices even more.

 

Ah, I didn't realize it was 16 ohm. I thought it would be the same as HE-R10D, which is listed as 32 Ohm...
https://www.hifiman.com/products/detail/308

I also realized just now that there's the HE-R9:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003648699181.html

Hm... so the R7DX may be using a different driver from both the R9 and R10D.

 

Would love to know how it compares to something like AKG K371 - another crowd favorite $100 closed back

 

Would love to know how it compares to Emu (purpleheart / walnut) which is pretty much a staple at Drop and even cheaper (commonly around $79).

P.S. I adore the Emu. AKG 371 is alright.

 

I don't have the Purple Heart to compare directly but... from memory, I'd say the Purple Heart is much more bass-emphasized, and not as open-sounding. This one is all about midrange, with... just about enough bass so as to not sound anemic (but it's not warm!), and treble is not offensive but very emphasized as well. It's upward-tilted.

 

Rolled bass, recessed upper mids and spiky highs vs a 6XX? At $150, it begs direct comparison to M50/M50X, T50RP, D1200, DT250 and DT770, HD280, and (I guess) MDR7506. Lack of pad rolling options and hard-to-tweak build quality... I suppose this point is moot if you like the sound as-is, but the overlay vs the 6xx makes me yawn and keep scrolling.

 

Yeah, it's not for bassheads... This is more of a midrange-head or treble-head headphone. Think like... "reference" Beyers, or MDR7506 or M50. All of those have recessed upper mids, rolled bass and spiky treble. But none of them kinda sound as open.

 

I'm curious how these stack against Senn PC37x/38x. They are all in the fairly similar price zone. As per both reviews sound should be decent for what they are and cost to say the least. Price doesn't look daunting by any means. Good to see another office headphones candidate (sound leakage might be concerning tho).

Prol not what can wow me, but maybe I can throw in the drop link to several non-audiophile pals.

 

Like... to be fair, if these had the right headband with more clamping force that will push the drivers closer to the ears, it'll be... "amazing" to some folks. The measurements I made are with the cups just... floating on EARS. If I use rubber band to provide more clamping force... the balance shifts significantly and it gets more... downward-slanted.

It's too bad but I think the headband design really holds these back from being "excellent".

 

Come one man, graphs need to be interpreted correctly. Not just read straight off. If you read @Bill-P 's post, he says that the headphones were "hanging off the dummy's head" while taking the measurements. Obviously that is not how they are supposed to fit. The measurements are indicative only of how they will sound if they fit you that way, which no doubt, they will some, but not all. They didn't fit me that way and didn't sound like that either

comparing the graphs measured this way to other headphones that fit correctly is pretty meaningless too.

I'm guessing the distortion measured in the bass is too high and comes down with a better seal too, they didn't sound like they had super high distortion in the bass like that to me.

The difference between your review and measurements and my impressions obviously comes down to the fit with the headband. I went into this in quite a bit of detail too before even seeing your posts. They were not hanging off my head. The earpads made contact, though it was light contact. Thus they did not sound the same to me.

This is going to be a polarizing headphone depending on how they fit each person, and how good a seal is made.

They were not thin to me, and I wouldn't describe them as "treble'y" either. Just a mild treble emphasis. But overall, they were warm sounding with neutral bass.

It's a damn shame a more suitable headband wasn't put on these. Even the old suspension headband for the HE6SE V1 probably would be really great for them. They're boardering on greatness here, with so many bad sounding headphones on the market to make one that actually sounds good and then f**k them up with a 15 year old headband design is sad to see.

Do the people at Hifiiman ever try to wear the headphones they make? This and the HE6SE V2 headband that literally hurts in 30 minutes makes me wonder....

 

I just want to share this measurement that @Resolve did here.

In his video review of those he said something like "I had to press against the measurement rig to make them seal which is not representative for most people".

 

I bet that little peak at 4.5k in @Bill-P 's measurement is actually mild ringing

 

You are precariously perched my friend.
@E_Schaaf would not be wrong if those measurements are properly representative. Guessing based on Hifiman's pricing schemes, a $150 Hifiman headphone with that frequency response is yawn.

 

I think RD is right. I'm jaded and grumpy, and I do trust impressions over graphs most of the time. If both he and Bill think it's a good sounding product and a frontrunner at the price, I think it's worth a listen despite my skepticism

 

If you are not a liar then you will sign up for the loaner tour and post impressions.