🔷 Dan Clark Audio Aeon 2 (MrSpeakers)

Haha…same story there. Honestly I’m trying to talk myself out of upgrading to the 2 since I have both the X and the CX and really enjoy them both

After hearing the 2 closed I’m returning the cx. While the cx isolates better, it falls very short of the aeon2’s sound imo. I need a lot of tuning (causing a drop in detail) to get the CX to have enough bass and tame the treble for my ear. Neither of the aeons need that and I really enjoy how warm they are. I’d keep them all if money were no issue cause I really get along with the Dan Clark house sound

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I just received my dan clark Aeon 2 closed backs two days ago as a fathers day present. My review of them going through SPIDF to the Schiit Modi 3 to my Asgard 3. comparing them to my Hifiman HE-400S with the A pads, Sundara, and a pair of beyerdynamic DT 990 Premiunm Edition 600 Ohm headphones on the same setup. For audio sound the Sundara for the same audio loudness has to be at 1130 on the amp, compared to the 930 for the same audio on the aeon 2. From all the headphones listed the Aeon 2 are more detailed and provide fuller sound throughout the sound spectrum. I honestly didnt think i would off seen a difference from how good the Sundara’s were to these but wow. Just a whole bunch of YES. They are that good when you listen to the music.

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Nice, glad you are liking them so far :+1:

Yo, happy Father’s Day! That is an excellent gift. I see your family shares my propensity for early presents lol. I am continually impressed with my aeon2 closed. Glad you’re enjoying them

Would the elegia or the aeon 2 be better for genres like pop, indie, and edm? Or what reasons would you choose one over the other? I was looking into getting a new pair of closed back.

I just bought an Elegia, as my former headphones, a Denon AH-D2000 and an Oppo PM3 both are falling apart. And I am disappointed: The Elegia may be neutral and my other phones more U-spaped. But in Jazz for instance I miss the bass lines and the high hats. The resolution may be better, but the general colour of the presentation is far too tame for Pop or Jazz for me.
And htey promise too much when they say “closed”. No, not much better than my Denon which also was only semiclosed.

I think the Aeon likely does a bit better with these genres, as there is a bit more bass slam and presence with nice, if slightly pulled back mids.

Make sure you’re getting a good deal, as they tend to lose a fair bit of bass and isolation otherwise.

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“Make sure you’re getting a good deal”
I got a good “deal” otherwise I would not have them bought untested. And of course the still have a stiff “seal” as they are new and my other phones pads are soft on my ears after all those years. But these are no iems, where tip rolling can help very often (I have a big bag full of the different tips). And even with a real super tight fit they will never sound Denon-like I am afraid.

Yeah, they are much more neutral than the Denon/Fostex/Emu wood cup line

Have you heard closed Audeze phones? The XC sometimes can be bought for roughly € 1000 and the LCD2 Closed Back even a few bucks cheaper. (Unfortunately they are the heavy wheights amongst closed earphones.)

I have the LCD-2 open, but have not heard the closed. What I’ve read is that they don’t sound nearly as good due to how the tuning of closed backs differs.

In general it seems to be a hard technical task to retain the sonic charakter of an open can when designing a closed one. One of the reasons why closed phones often are only semiclosed. But at home I cannot use open phones (I have two Stax earphones that are really open, as you probably know if you ever heard one of them)
How are the Aeon 2 Closed regarding bass reproduction, my next best bet after the Elegia?

Dan Clark is one of the best at tuning closed backs to not sound as closed. I haven’t heard the 2s, either open or closed, but they’ve been said to outperform the Ether C Flow, fixing some of the dynamic compression that existed with the OG Aeons. If they’re anything like the Aeon Open X, the bass is more present and has greater impact than the Elegia, but the Elegia has better dynamics.

The 2closed have much improved dynamics over the aeon x open. Quantifying that is hard, but it seems to no long be a problem where on the X i was able to hear it.

Can anyone recommend a portable dac/amp for these?

I’d say the XD05 likely pairs well with plenty of power on the neutral side. They’re not super demanding cans, but appreciate power. I’ve enjoyed my Aeon Open X (don’t have the 2s) on the Hiby R5 DAP.

Would something like the Hip Dac or nano BL have enough power for these?

Yes, I imagine so, especially balanced. Both are a little warmer leaning with Burr Brown chips, the Hip being the warmer of the two.

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These can honestly run off a phone without much trouble. They’re meant to be portable and their impedance and sensitivity are in a really drivable range

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