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Drop + Dan Clark Audio Aeon Closed X Headphones
$429
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Drop + Dan Clark Audio Aeon Closed X Headphones
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$429
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Customer Reviews
4.6
(240 reviews)
5star(178)
4star(37)
3star(15)
2star(7)
1star(2)
By Feature
Build Quality
4.7
(36)
Sound
4.6
(36)
Comfort
4.8
(36)
Music GenresPopular among reviewers
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keyboard_arrow_downbrickZA
2
Aug 27, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Metal, Rock, World
checkVerified Buyer
Detailed, Good Soundstage and imaging, Comfortable, Seems Well Made
I bought these cans since I wanted closed cans with good soundstage and imaging while also hoping to hear some of the "hifi" magic.
TL;DR: I got that, happy with the purchase even though they were, to my standards, quite expensive, even though there was a $430 sale when I bought. Not ideal for all my music but, on balance, better than any other cans I own (AKG K371, Shure SHR-440, Moondrop Quarks). Details below.
Sound Stage:
I don't own any open cans but of the closed cans I've personally listened to I definitely get the biggest sound stage and best imaging with these. Just a bit outside my head with pretty clear instrument separation. I usually evaluate soundstage by listening to Miles Davis's Kind of Blue album and comparing to what I experience on my speakers: each instrument on a clearly separate part of the soundstage that is slightly wider than my listening room. With these cans I get a similar experience except that the soundstage is smaller: slightly in front of my head and slightly wider than the phones themselves.
Frequency Response:
I won't go into too much detail since I don't feel qualified, but to my ears they have nice, balanced bass extension, relaxed but detailed midrange and good treble detail. It doesn't work that well for songs some that I like to listen very loudly. E.g. on White Stripes, Seven Nation Army I like the guitar to scream through to my soul (technical term, I know), and I don't quite get that with these. But then, the only place I reliably get that is on my hifi speakers, and I can't listen that loudly in my current residence. Even though I miss that aspect when listening to White Stripes I still enjoy the music due to the other things these cans do well, I just don't get the visceral enjoyment from some songs that I know is possible.
Detail Retrieval:
I'm definitely hearing more in my music than ever before, and I find it very enjoyable. Instrument transients (e.g. string plucks, drum hits) come through very clearly, both on the attack and the decay. Subtle ambient sounds come through. I also find that sometimes things that sounded like one instrument before is now clearly two different musical lines, or what sounded like a simple double-time beat is actually two subtly different drum beats talking to each other. It is this aspect that makes me feel that I got value for money since I don't get that with my other less expensive but still well regarded cans (e.g. AKG K371).
Comfort:
Comfort seems to vary between people, but I find these cans highly comfortable. I won't spend any time listening to uncomfortable cans -- it is a mininum requirement for me. I have a round, medium-large head shape and fairly large ears, and I'm close to bald.
For me the first priority is that the earcups are large and deep enough that my ears are not pinched anywhere and don't make contact with the grill. Tick.
I'm also quite sensitive to headband pressure, probably due to my lack of hair. The suspension strap works very nicely for me. I did have to adjust the tension on the one side using a screwdriver since the once side was much looser than then other, but now it is good. Tick.
Like some have reported I do find the clamp force slightly high, but I only notice that after some hours of wear. I hope it reduces over time. I have not tried bending the headband open, I feel a bit precious about doing that to, what I consider, pretty expensive cans ;)
Amplification:
People seem to have very varying opinions on the need for amplification with many headphones. My experience: On my Pixel 4a's headphone socket it plays loudly enough for me, but the sound quality is appreciably worse than when using my Schiit Magni+. On the Pixel the sound stage is not well defined, and the sound is much clearer and more "open" with the Magni+. I did find the sound on the Pixel OK for listening while doing tasks around the home, but definitely not for critical listening. I also used a Schiit Fulla E on my home-office PC (I need the microphone input), and while I did not listen critically I did find myself noticing sound stage and details in music when taking a cognitive break from my work, so I'd say a Fulla E should do fine as in inexpensive "first" amp to try.
Recommends this product? Yes
nismo270r
77
Aug 1, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening
Music Genres:Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Pop, R&B, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
Great sound at this price point
The Aeon Closed X are a great set for the money. I would say you probably get about 80-90% of the sound of the more expensive Noire with these. Don’t really see the need to upgrade to the Noire if you have these!
Recommends this product? Yes
Just632
125
Keyboard Club Member
Jul 30, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening
Music Genres:Pop, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
Great sound
Sounds great and is very comfortable. Can be worn for hours without realizing it
Recommends this product? Yes
tasdisr
4
Jul 29, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Country, Jazz, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
First Planars
I was currently using the Beyerdynamics DT 700 Pro & DT 900 Pro, both of which I really like. I also have the Sennheiser HD 560S. The Beyer sound signature sounds great to me and the Sennheisers were a great addition.
However I decided to look into purchasing a pair of Planar headphones and after researching I figured I would pick up a pair of the Drop + Dan Clark Audio Aeons.
I am by no means any type of expert, but these have to be one of the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn. Solid build and to me a great warm sound, bass is more than adequate. Might have to spring for a pair of the open back soon!
Recommends this product? Yes
Auscule
5
Jul 21, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening
Music Genres:Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Metal, Pop, R&B, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
The Upgrade I Wanted
I started my headphone journey with the DT770 Pro X and while I did enjoy them, at times the sibilance was painful and I struggled to use them for long periods while I was working.
I started looking for an upgrade that had more balance but that was also a little less clinical and a little more musical - enter the Aeon X.
These have been everything I was looking for since the moment I put them on. Warmer, engaging and just enjoyable to listen to. Even when powered directly from my MacBook’s headphone jack while I’m out, these sound immersive and wonderful.
The amp and balanced cable is definitely overkill in terms of requirement for these, I have the volume pretty low at all times, however the DAC does help with the detail retrieval. I’d say these would run well off a dongle like the QUDELIX-5K rather than needing a full stack. The comfort is also incredible, earcups are super plush and clamp force doesn’t feel tight but they’re very stable.
Ultimately I wish I’d started with these rather than buying the Bayers. They’re amazing and I can’t see myself upgrading to another closed back for years. My only criticism would be that the pads were slightly rolled when I got mine, but that’s easy to fix if you google it and from what I’ve read DC support are great if you need replacements.
if you’re considering these, do yourself a favour and just get them.
Recommends this product? Yes
g4mn
2
Jul 12, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Jazz, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
worth your money
It's well balanced quality headphone. Had Hifiman Sundara, Edition XS, Ananda Stealth and HE6se V2 headphones and Sennheiser HD 600, so I make comparison to these and say Drop + Dan Clark Aeon Closed are all wrapped into one. Not annoyingly or overly bright and has the right amount of bass. These look and feel like they will outlast the Hifiman headphones sound output and construction with ease. Hifiman's QC lacks
Recommends this product? Yes
ChristoLJ
3
Jun 26, 2024
Activities:Critical Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Electronic, Jazz, Rock, World
checkVerified Buyer
DROP + DAN CLARK AUDIO AEON CLOSED X HEADPHONES
These are attractive and built well for the price. They are fairly comfortable and could be used for longer listening sessions, possibly. I do wish they had a longer cable. My main caveat, at least in my situation, is the fact that I can hear my pulse/heartbeat over the music. If I pull them slightly off my ears it goes away, but I can't hold them like that for very long. From what I can tell the audio quality is nice, but for me it's a moot point, as I just can't concentrate on the music. My other headphones don't do this, at least not to the same extent where it's unusable. My Meze Audio 109 Pro, Beyerdynamics DT770 Pro, and AKG K240DF headphones are all just fine. I'm assuming it's the shape of the cups that contact my head in just the wrong way. Anyway, this could just be a one off oddball situation and others may never have the same experience. Enjoy them if you are luckier than me.
Recommends this product? No
Lostsolo
2
May 13, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening
Music Genres:Electronic, Jazz, Metal, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
One of the best
And once again for fairy low price you can get an excellent headphones. Very comfortable and quite compact - in fact they are more compact (including case) then hundreds of others. As for sound they are very open (despite they are closed by construction), crisp and full in background. I would say that for bass heads there will be not enough bas but for true audiophile it is just sounds right. I am really enjoying. And yes, as you can see, decent player will drive them without problems.
Recommends this product? Yes
Spearthrower_Owl
29
May 11, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Jazz
checkVerified Buyer
Excellent closed-back planar
IMO this is one of Drop's two best headphones (taking into account performance and value), the other of course being the Sennheiser 6xx. And I actually like this closed-back version better than the open version of the Aeon. The sensitivity is fairly low, however, so you will need some power to drive it properly. With that, you'll hear great detail, proper dynamics and tuning. Very nice overall
Recommends this product? Yes
Cloudrift
0
Apr 25, 2024
Activities:Casual Listening, Gaming, Movies & TV
Music Genres:Classical, Electronic, Hip-hop, Pop
checkVerified Buyer
Great headphones that needs some breaking in
I wouldn't say I'm an audiophile, but I do appreciate having a good pair of headphones. My use case was very specific as I needed a headphone with a suspension band (for comfort) and it had to be closed because these headphones are primarily used for monitoring, while I'm voice acting, gaming, and streaming live.
This is the first time I'm using these proprietary drummer cables that are included. Usually with previous headphone, a simple 3.5mm cable was what I used. The drummer cables can be finicky with connecting to the headphones because they have to be put in a certain direction. Pulling down the sheath does make it somewhat easier to identify the proper orientation.
My other issue is that out of the box, the clamping force on these headphones were pretty strong. I'm not sure if my head adjusted to it or it has loosened up over the first one or two weeks, but eventually I become used to wearing it and no longer feel it. Keep in mind I do have a sensitive head (why I don't typically use headphones unless I have to) so for others this may not be much of an issue.
Otherwise, the sound quality (especially with feeling the bass) is great like everyone mentioned along with the build quality - it was what I hope when you're dropping $500 on some headphones. You do need an amplifier or a good audio interface(I use the Motu M4) though or the volume will be rather low.
Recommends this product? Yes
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