(OLD, PRE-CORRECTION) MrSpeakers ÆON - Impressions, Review, and Measurements

Discussion in 'Headphone Measurements' started by Hands, May 20, 2017.

  1. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    THIS UNIT HAD AN ISSUE WITH TUNING THAT WAS LATER FIXED. SEE THIS THREAD FOR UPDATED IMPRESSIONS AND MEASUREMENTS. THIS POST CAN STILL BE USED AS A REFERENCE FOR TRAITS THAT HAVE NOT CHANGED.

    MrSpeakers ÆON - Impressions, Review, and Measurements

    [​IMG]

    The ÆON is a new, closed-back planar from MrSpeakers. Despite the smaller size, tear-drop shape, and lower price tag, it's clearly in the same family as the Ether Flow headphones. It retails for $800 but was available for $700 during the pre-order (first 250 units, I believe).

    You might recall that I was never particularly impressed with any of the Ether headphones for the following reasons:

    Ether Open - Even with minor revisions, it lacked low-end extension and "oomph," the upper-midrange and treble steadily climbed as you went up the spectrum and were fairly ragged sounding, and the staging performance was very poor. I found it simultaneously boring and fatiguing.

    Ether Open Flow - Extra mid-bass over the Ether Open, and also a lot of extra treble, too. It's possible the unit I heard was not up to spec, but I found it to be a very unpleasant listen overall. (Tyll's measurements make me think the relative differences I heard should have been up to spec.)

    Ether C 1.1 - Initially, I heard this without the correct damping scheme in place. That was about as close to a near-death experience as I've ever had. Once I corrected that, I found the Ether C to be more spacious sounding than the Ether Open, cleaner and sharper sounding, as well as more linear tonally. However, it had a distinct lack of body in the upper-bass and lower-mids and was somewhat bright sounding. When I applied some of the included damping material (two black felt disks being my preferred setup), I found it to be an overall decent listening experience. It was still a bit too lean sounding and slightly too bright, but it was neutral, balanced, and performed well overall. Were it a bit more fleshed out sounding in the upper-bass and lower-mids like the Ether Open (non-Flow), I think I would have enjoyed it more.

    I have not heard the Ether C Flow but have read plenty of horror stories. I know, I know...I'd need to hear it for myself to really judge it.

    Initial reports of the ÆON seemed to suggest it was a bit bassier than the Ether C and not as bright up top. That sounded like a good combination to me, and with the lower price point, I decided to jump in as early as I could to check them out. We might be too black sheep-ish over here to get an early review sample, but I got on board as quickly as possible for you all!

    Looks, Build, Comfort, and Other Non-Sound Stuff

    The ÆON, much like the Ether family, is a good looking, well-built headphone. The cups are beautifully finished, and despite me usually finding carbon fiber to look tacky, I think it looks fairly nice on the ÆON. The tear-drop shape is unique but works quite well in practice when worn on your head.

    The pads are plush and of high quality, but my two main concerns are that they're adhered to the baffle, rather than being removable (well, they are technically removable, but the included manual says it will ruin them and require purchasing a new pair of pads), and there are some minor inconsistencies in my pads that can slightly throw off the channel balance. On that latter point, I see this often in mildly similar pads from many manufacturers, so this isn't a ding on the ÆON necessarily. With a bit of fiddling with the pads themselves and when worn, it can be made into a non-issue. It is also possible the drivers just aren't perfectly matched, which seems all too common with planars.

    The headband too is pulled straight out of the Ether design, which is a good thing. With the overall design, shared headband design, spacious and plush pads, and fairly light weight, the Ether is very comfortable and easy to fit and wear. It's a handsome headphone and feels just as well built as its more costly siblings.

    The headphone comes with a nice carrying case, a decent 3.5mm cable with 1/4" adapter, and a microfiber cleaning cloth. Despite costing about half that of its older siblings, the ÆON shares the same premium feel across all non-sound criteria.

    Sound Quality

    The ÆON might be the overall best sounding, MrSpeakers headphone out of the box since the Alpha Dog (not Prime). In fact, I'd say the ÆON is tuned most similarly to the Alpha Dog...that is, once the Alpha Dog went through some tuning revisions and tweaks. I also hear some similarities in the ÆON to how the ZMF Ori, previously Omni, was tuned.

    The ÆON has fairly well-behaved midrange and treble. It's fairly balanced and smoother sounding than anything from the Ether line, if ignoring Ether damping tweaks. It shares the sharpness, speed, and cleanliness of the Ether C 1.1 without sounding as hard and bright. Relative to the HD650, the ÆON is still slighty bright and hard sounding, but not necessarily in a fatiguing way.

    The ÆON in particular seems to have a slight emphasis in the upper-midrange and lower-treble sections. This can make them a little hot and a little hashy sounding at times. For rock and metal, this can be a bit bothersome, but with the vast majority of music, it's a non-issue. I do not find them as "hot" as the HD600 but also not as smooth as the HD600. Note that how you wear the ÆON and where you place it on your head does affect the tonal balance in the upper regions.

    Bass up until about 100Hz is very good. It's a bit elevated, but I think this helps counteract the somewhat soft nature of planar headphones. The ÆON has plenty of slam and oomph and extends well down to 20Hz and below, unlike the Ether Open or C. It's clean bass, too, so texture and pitch variations come through nicely.

    Staging, layering, and air are surprisingly good on the ÆON. It does have some very mild closed-cup coloration, but it's mitigated fairly well. The ÆON does not suffer too much from planar staging weirdness, whether that be a hard left/right, hallway stage or a 3-blob stage. That's not to say the ÆON is as 3D, properly layered, and airy as a good dynamic headphone fed with a good tube amp, but I find it pretty darn competitive for a closed headphone. It's not too forward sounding, either. The ÆON has a few oddities with how it portrays depth at times and seems like it almost wants to display the usual planar staging weirdness, but without actually going to that point. Plus, with the ÆON's overall focused, clear, and fast sounding nature, everything seems to be in its right place.

    Detail and resolution are also quite good on the ÆON. Unlike the Ether Open, which seemed to trip over itself with extra hash and raggedness, the ÆON seems to cut through the mess and stay well composed no matter what you throw at it, even at high volumes. Again, something like a modded HD650 with a good tube amp will still be more resolving, and, albeit, slightly more veiled, but the ÆON is no slouch. It did not leave me wanting.

    Now, all of this seems pretty good, right? And it is...but there's one noticeable downside to the ÆON. It has a distinct lack of upper-bass and lower-mids. Yes, it has plenty of high-quality bass below 100Hz, and the midrange and treble perform fairly well too, but there's an audible disconnect between these areas.

    This bass-to-mids dip and disconnect gives the ÆON a somewhat lean and almost sterile sounding nature at times. Much of the true body and sense of foundation seems hidden in music. The ÆON has the muscle and toned body but lacks the curves. The Ether C had a similar issue, but the main difference was the C had less of a dip and more of a very slight, broad depression in that area. The Ether C also didn't have additional bass below 100Hz to make up for it.

    I mentioned that I found the ÆON tuned somewhat like the Alpha Dogs or ZMF Ori. These too had a sort of bass emphasis leading into a depression before the midrange. Both the Alpha Dogs and Ori could be somewhat bright, zingy, hard, and/or hashy sounding at times too, not unlike what the ÆON displays from time to time.

    The dip on the ÆON in this area also exacerbates any roughness or emphasis in the midrange and treble, making them sound a bit harder and brighter at times than they actually are. It contributes to a slightly hollow and nasally quality to the ÆON as well.

    Now, on a lot of material, this isn't a big issue, and you may not notice it. With any music that covers the full spectrum, you can hear that something is missing. Toss some well-recorded and well-mastered rock at the ÆON, which can be a sort of litmus or torture test for headphones, and you'll hear both that the foundation is a bit thin as well as how this characteristic accentuates any issues in the upper regions.

    I focus on this because this is a very important area to make music sound whole and right. That, and the ÆON actually does most things really well. I feel the ÆON is a much more well-rounded headphone straight out of the box than anything with the Ether title, and yet this one area holds it back from being a "wow" headphone in my mind (granted, it is hard to "wow" me, seeing as I can be very picky). I focus on issues like this because I have very high expectations at this price point and find it a disservice to those reading and researching to try to downplay issues, big or small, in any way.

    On the other hand, it's a closed headphone. It's hard to find legitimately good sounding, over-ear, closed headphones. They are very difficult to tune and nail everything down perfectly! The bass-to-mids transition is one area I find troublesome for many closed headphones. Thankfully, the ÆON does quite well in basically every other area and does sound good overall.

    Summary

    MrSpeakers has done well with the ÆON overall. Sound quality aside, you get the premium looks, feel, and design of the Ether headphones at about half the price. In terms of sound quality, I'd say the ÆON sits somewhere in the good or very good category but doesn't quite hit greatness or awesomeness given some shortcomings that clash with my tastes. The bass quality is great and has a nice sense of power behind it, and the midrange and treble perform well for the most part. Staging, layering, air, and resolution are quite good, and the headphone sounds clean, fast, and focused. Where it suffers is a noticeable dip and disconnect between the bass and midrange that pulls some warmth, body, and foundation out of the music.

    There is no perfect, closed, over-ear headphone. They all have shortcomings, and they're just plain difficult to tune to perfection. Given that, I would conditionally, but happily given the right conditions, recommend the ÆON, so long as it lines up with someone's tastes and its shortcomings are found to be a worthy trade off. I do find the pricing to offer much more value than the pricier Ether headphones, not to mention I enjoyed the ÆON's sound more, but I am still a bit wary of this price point on anything I don't find to be near-awesome. That said, pricing and value is very subjective, and, thus, I will leave that up to other customers to decide.

    TL;DR Sound Impressions

    - Good bass. Tastefully emphasized. Nice extension and power.
    - Midrange and treble fairly balanced. Smoother and more natural than Ether stuff, but not quite at HD650 level.
    - Can be somewhat, slightly hashy and bright depending on material. Very minor. Not necessarily fatiguing.
    - Fast, clean, clear, and focused sounding. Good with details and overall resolution.
    - Good staging, layers, airy, fairly 3D presentation. Not too forward or too laid-back.
    - Bass-to-midrange has a large dip and disconnect, removing some foundation, body, and warmth I find critical for music. Can make upper response brighter or harsher sounding than it really is, as well as adding a slightly hollow timbre.
     
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2017
  2. Hands

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    MrSpeakers ÆON - Measurements

    As usual, we'll start with the frequency response measurements. Now, given my in-ear mic setup and method, I could only grab the left channel. Were the cups symmetrical and I could flip the pads around, seeing as they are slightly angled, I could have checked both channels. Unfortunately, my right ear produces slightly different results.

    Usually, I set 1KHz at 90dB as my reference. This time around, I thought it made more sense to show it like seen below, because the upper-mids and lower-treble to me did sound slightly emphasized. Either way, you can see that most everything in the midrange and treble is fairly good. Not super smooth, but no major nasties. You can see the bass is emphasized and then drops like a rock around 80-90Hz before bouncing back to the midrange. I would like to see the bass blend in with the mids here.

    MrSpeakers AEON Left Channel Frequency Response.png


    Here's how it looks with 1KHz set to 90dB as usual. It really is all relative. Nothing actually changed. But it's funny how this can shape our perception nonetheless.

    MrSpeakers AEON Left Channel Frequency Response Shifted Down.png


    I've said it before and will say it again: my mic can't get ultra low distortion results. This is pretty good. D2 is hovering right around, or slightly above, the limits of my mic. D3/D4 are low. No major spikes or anything, save for the one that corresponds with the null in the frequency response (just a coupler thing, probably not real). Bass distortion is low. Really nothing to worry about here.

    MrSpeakers AEON Left Channel THD.png


    CSD results at -35dB are not horrible but are not great either. There are no insane ridges, like on the M1060, and subjectively I did not hear any major ringing. As mentioned, it's a bit hashier sounding than, say, the HD650 or Audio Zenith PMx2. This could contribute to that. At the end of the day, it's still a bit dirtier looking than I'd like.

    Left CSD -35dB.PNG


    Here's another view with the floor dropped to -45dB, which I did on the Ether Open and C measurements. Still not the cleanest results, but at least we still don't see any tall, sharp ridges above 2KHz. Everything is decaying, just not as quickly as would be ideal.

    Left CSD -45dB.PNG


    Ether C v1.1 for comparison, without any of those additional front damping disks thrown in the mix. This is a little better than the AEON for the most part.

    Ether C v1.1 Stock L CSD.PNG


    At least the AEON is cleaner looking than one of the Ether Open (v1.1) headphones I measured...

    Ether open #2 1.1 Foam Left CSD.PNG
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2017
  3. Ice-man

    Ice-man Friend

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    If you haven't given them any cook time, it will be worth the effort.
     
  4. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    I'm not really a believer in burn in like that, but I usually do as a just in case measure...or at least so no one can complain with my impressions and say it's because I didn't. :)
     
  5. TMRaven

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    That is my biggest gripe with them sonically, is that there is a lack of body in the lower midrange-upper bass. Low bass extension is excellent though. There seems to be a mild treble spike in the 10khz range (s and z siblants), but it doesn't show up as often as with other headphones. Overall neutralish. If the Ether C and Ether are leaner than this, then I'm glad I never heard them.

    I made these armored core 2 inspired headphone charts of the aeon, elear, and pm3 last night. I'm finishing up writing my full review today, so hopefully I can attach the words with the pictures later on.


    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  6. Craigo

    Craigo MOT: Mage Audio

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    Nice! My favorite in the series after Nine Breaker.

    Thanks for the impressions. Gonna call Moon Audio this week to see if they have these to audition.
     
  7. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    For fun, here are some comparison measurements between the AEON and other headphones, in no particular order. Some of these will be left for your viewing pleasure, others will include commentary.


    MrSpeakers AEON vs Audeze Sine.png


    This is the absolute latest iteration of the Audio Zenith PMx2. I know it costs more than the AEON. I will post something separately about the PMx2 soon.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs Audio Zenith PMx2.png


    The AEON adds some much needed bass over the Ether C but unfortunately misses out in the 100-800Hz range. Neither have what I'd consider an ideal tonal balance, but for different reasons. This is WITH extra damping in the Ether C 1.1, namely two black felt disks in front of the driver.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs Ether C 2 Black Disks Extra Damping.png


    Ether C 1.1 without additional front damping. Too bright and sounded leaner than the AEON despite having more lower-mids.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs Ether C No Damping.png


    Comparing the Ether Open 1.1 vs the AEON, it's as if they have the opposite problems below 1KHz! Actually, were the AEON to have the Ether Open's response from 70Hz-1KHz and kept everything else the same, that would be awesome!

    MrSpeakers AEON vs Ether Open.png


    Comparison against my modded HD650. Once again, the HD650 and AEON are basically polar opposites when it comes to upper-bass/lower-mids. I wish the AEON could be somewhere in the middle. Both matched to 90dB at 1KHz, they actually have a fairly similar upper-end curve.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs HD650 Hands Mod.png


    Even if the AEON measured more like the M1060 in the midrange, that would be an improvement. The M1060 has more of a hashy, hissy midrange emphasis over the AEON.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs Monoprice M1060.png
     
  8. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    More headphone frequency response comparisons:

    I commented on the AEON vs ZMF Ori. I figured some visualization might help:

    MrSpeakers AEON vs ZMF Ori.png


    The OPPO PM-3 is another popular, closed headphone, albeit it can be more on-ear than over-ear. Also, the PM-3 may have unit-to-unit variance problems that contribute to varying impressions from person to person.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs OPPO PM3.png


    Here's the AEON vs the Meze Classic 99, before they switched it to pads with larger openings. The newer pads primarily seem to boost the response from 5-9KHz in comparison.

    MrSpeakers AEON vs Meze Classic 99.png
     
  9. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    BTW, first two posts updated with full review and measurements.
     
  10. Craigo

    Craigo MOT: Mage Audio

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    Wow your FR for the Sine looks more like what I hear than any other one I've seen.

    It seems like that dip in the Aeon would render electric guitars quite wimpy.
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2017
  11. Ice-man

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    Very nice write up Hands. Considering how hard you are on the technical performance of headphones and MrSpeakers in general, I'd say that this review is near glowing. ;)

    I appreciate what you said about the lower mids. I worked on the tuning and lower mids and cohesiveness with the rest of the spectrum is something that was discussed. But as we both know there is no such thing as a free lunch. Ultimately, small compromises and decisions have to be made and the limits of the technology must be addressed. Personally, I find the Aeon to be fantastic at it's price-point and IMO is a home run. Anyway, thanks for your remarks.
     
  12. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    Funny thing is, that big lower mid dip and other issues can be mostly alleviated by the following:

    1. Single or double ply toilet paper cut to fit inside pad opening and placed inside pads, over driver. In my case, I'm using cheap, thin, single ply TP. (Scott stuff, safe for septic...the softer variant, not their sand paper, super cheap stuff.)

    2. Open cell foam cutout of same size on top of TP. I'm using a medium density, 1/4" type, fairly soft, but it may be slightly too much with the TP underneath. Less dense or thinner foams may work better. Or cutting a hole out in the middle of the foam can help. Double ply TP may be fine by itself.

    3. Since this makes them warmer sounding overall, you can tape up the vents by the cable jack about half way, or to taste. I'm covering the vents up half way in this example and could probably go a bit further.

    Very crude and quick measurement tests show this really helps that dip, as well as apparently boosts bass, but does make them more laid back around 3khz. Subjectively they sound a bit too veiled in the upper mids now and have lost some air and crispness, but for 2 minutes of testing with random material, I'll take it. I think with the right material and such, it could be just what the AEON needs.

    That bump around 5.5KHz, seen below, is VERY dependent on headphone placement. When you're listening, it's very easy to position the AEON both for comfort and optimal sound quality, but that's harder to nail down with measurements. I spent a lot of time finding that sweet spot with my stock measurements to keep that peak in check, so it's not that the mod added that. It's there in most measurements, stock or otherwise, but I didn't have time to try a million positions to get the perfect looking response for the mod check. Subjectively, it's not something I notice too much stock or modded. The HD650 has a tiny bit of emphasis there too anyway.

    AEON Mod Experiment FR.png

    CSDs may or may not be cleaner. Hard to say since there were relative changes at the top levels that can make some things look better or worse.

    AEON Mod Experiment CSD.PNG


    Now, were the pads not adhered, we could have a lot more fun with front damping tweaks. Or at least apply them and put the pads on top, so they're not visible. :)
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2017
  13. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    This one actually looks good. Did the Aeon exhibit the Ether's cloudy hazy monotone bass? Also, how was plankton compared to Ether? What about compression? If technicalities are close, might be the best Mrspeakers headphones yet regardless of price.
     
  14. Craigo

    Craigo MOT: Mage Audio

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    That's a shame about the pads.

    I wonder how felt and TP would do against the foam. I use a combination of felt and TP (single ply, Angel Soft I think) to tame the treble and bass in my Beyers. I cut a fat cresent shape so that the hole is offset and the material still covers the center of the driver. Size the "port" to taste. Felt could tame some of that bass maybe.

    Still pretty new here so I'm not speaking from authority, just trying to share and learn. Thanks for all the info.
     
  15. TMRaven

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    My review is done.

    Dan at MrSpeakers is definitely a wonderful story. He's taken a hobby of his as means to successfully grow a brand through smart business decisions and a strong, almost personal relationship, with his target audience, and he's done so in such a short amount of time to boot. My first experience with one of his products was the Mad Dog 3.2. At the time of hearing the Mad Dogs my headphone was the HE-400, and I was impressed with the Mad Dog enough to consider it the best overall package one could buy at its price point. Fast forward several years and Dan is making planar headphones from the ground up all in house, and here we have his newest creation, a headphone that actually makes sense compared to many other offerings on the market, the Aeon:


    [​IMG]


    I was one of the few who decided to get the Aeon before Dan could ship it with its intended product box and carrying case, but Dan was kind enough to include the Ether carrying case, which fits the Aeon just fine. The case is almost as small as it can get while still being robust enough to comfortably fit the Aeons inside; no complaints there. The build of the Aeon is top notch: there's only one point of articulation on each side of the headphone, and it's the point where the gimbals attach into the side of the cups. The majority of the headphone is constructed with durable yet lightweight materials; the headband is comprised of two nickel titanium shape memory alloy rods that are responsible for maintaining clamping pressure and adjusting the height of the suspension strap. These nitinol rods are malleable enough to allow for enough fidgeting once the cups are on your head. The gimbals are solid pieces of what looks to be powder coated aluminum, as are the baffles which make up the structure for which the drivers are housed in. The baffles extend to the exterior of the cups and create the black ring along the side of the cups. These rings are what you normally grip when handling the headphone once it's on your head, and their rigidity makes the Aeon feel incredibly solid. The backing of the cups consist of carbon fiber, while the dark blue portions are one of the only plastic components of the Aeon, and they're finished in a high gloss metallic paint. My biggest criticism of the Aeon's build (which I guess can extend to the Ether series) is that there's no visible detents or marks to signify which position the headstrap sliders are on the nitinol rods. This can become a little annoying at times, as adjusting clamping pressure requires subtle movements of these slider along the curvature of the rods, and eyeballing both to match for optimal fit and comfort is less precise of an ordeal than actually relying on some sort of markings. This problem is also emphasized by the fact that the left slider on the headband is slightly more loose than the right, so it tends to ride up a little easier if I'm trying to adjust the fit on my head, causing imbalance. Besides the slight annoyances with the headband adjustment, the build of the Aeon expires confidence in durability, and exemplifies smart engineering and material choices. The overall look of the Aeon is one that looks futuristic, streamlined, yet organic. Its ear-shaped cups are elegantly curved and asymmetric, while its ones-sided gimbals reinforce this aesthetic. I can see this look being highly contentious though, as many might prefer much more symmetrical shapes like circles or ovals-- the sleek and organic curvature is a welcome change for me though.



    Comfort is where the Aeon's choice in materials and engineering really pay off. The Aeon is the lightest planar magnetic I've experienced; its light weight combined with a suspension headband makes for a very natural fatigue free experience for the top of one's head. In its current market of high end headphones, the Aeon is the welcome bantamweight in a grouping of heavyweight behemoths, many of which I find completely unwearable. The ear-shaped cups of the Aeon are perhaps its biggest strength, as they allow the Aeon to be as light as possible while maximizing earpad space for one's ears. At roughly only 2/3 the width of most fulls-sized cups, the Aeon's pads have as much if not more space for your ears to fit into. The pads are graciously deep as well, allowing for a very spacious fit. The pads are not memory foam though, so I worry that over time the pads will eventually compress and cause for a more intimate fit, which is cause for concern, because the pads are glued on for optimal seal. With many headphones today seemingly ignoring fit and comfort for a sole priority in sound quality, it's nice to see a headphone maker seemingly build a headphone around comfort first. The Aeon however is still a closed and well isolating headphone, so your ears will get hot over time, mitigating a completely natural experience. If Dan were to ever make an open-version of the Aeon, and calibrate it to clamp slightly less as it wouldn't have to rely on a tight seal, it would be perhaps the most comfortable headphone on the market, and one that I would surely grab with no hesitation.



    The sound of the Aeon is very balanced with incredible extension down low and good extension into the treble. It has a slight lower-midtreble emphasis around 8-10k, slightly exaggerating s,sh, and z sibilants in certain recordings, but it's more mild than many headphones, as the effect doesn't show on as much recordings as other headphones I've owned through the years. Upper midrange is very robust, with a healthy and smooth rise from 1khz to 3khz, without showing many colorations are aberrations that would otherwise give the Aeon a closed-cup sound. Lower treble from 4-7khz seems to be wonderfully present yet balanced. Most headphones either have too little treble in this area or just just a complete mess. Percussion on the Aeon is rendered with a good deal of depth and tangibility due to the well-balanced treble presentation, while never becoming annoying or hissy. Room ambiance cues are easy to pick out, and vocals have plenty of breath to them as well. The bass of the Aeon extends down to the lowest notes with ease, without showcasing any excess bloat or distortion. I tested the Aeon's bass to extend down to about 32hz before rolling off, which puts it in line with the audeze LCD series. The balance of the bass in the Aeon isn't as exaggerated as I thought it would be given the Harman bass boost in its frequency response graphs. Low to mid-bass is in healthy balance, but the upper bass and lower midrange transition area around 200-400hz lacks the body, heft, and sweetness that I've grown accustomed to from other high performing headphones. I can't tell whether this lack of lower midrange heft is either a tuning choice, or a side effect of the Aeon's closed back nature, as closed back headphones usually lack the inherent inner-warmth that open-backs do. Cellos tend to lose some thickness and bloom to them, while vocals lose a little bit of guttural fortitude, and pianos lose some of their warmth and resonance that usually give them a robust and romantic quality. A slight lack of warmth and weight to its lower midrange aside, the timbral balance of the Aeon remains very good, and it throws a decently sized image with open sound despite being closed back. The Aeon's sound is very focused, with one of its inherent strengths being its instrument separation and microdynamics, allowing many different instruments and elements in complex passages of songs to be followed with ease. However I think it still doesn't compete with the best open-backs for sheer clarity though. Its presentation lacks that last bit of inner warmth and airiness that gives other open-backs an edge when it comes to rendering a believable acoustic performance around you.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]



    Compared to the Oppo PM3:

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]



    The Oppo PM3 was gifted to me from Oppo as a thank you for participating in their beta program to help sculpt the final production tuning of the PM3. I didn't want to sell it off to essentially make money, so it was gifted to my brother and I always borrow it in situations like these to compare with other headphones for reference, as I feel that its frequency balance is among the best in the market. Tyll and Bob Katz seem to mirror these impressions as well.

    Compared to the Aeon, the PM3's build holds up just as well, with a bit of luxurious flair to it. Its earpads are memory foam, allowing for a more plush experience, while its headband adjustment is smooth as butter with markings that I find sorely missing on the Aeon. The PM3's headband looks more finished compared to the Aeon's suspension strap as well, while the black and silver finish is more refined looking than the Aeon's blue and carbon fiber scheme. Being more of a portable though, its earpads aren't as large as the Aeon, and its headband doesn't have a suspension strap, so over time it's not as comfortable of an experience as the Aeon. I develop a hotspot on the top of my head with the PM3 after an hour of continuous listening, while the I never develop a hotspot with the Aeon.

    Comparing the two Innerfidelity measurements of the Aeon and PM3, it's surprising how different they sound. While both measure extremely close to the ideal Harman response curve for headphones, PM3 is the much warmer of the two headphones, and its upper-bass lower-midrange is upfront and robust, if not a little bloated sounding, compared to the Aeon. I tend to prefer the PM3's meatiness in this area, but there is no denying that its upper bass is bleeding into the midrange a slight amount, while the Aeon's is remarkably controlled. Coming from the PM3 directly to the Aeon, the Aeon sounds very breathy and slightly sparkly, while the PM3 is more grounded and less airy. The aforementioned bass-bleed makes the PM3 sound more like a closed back headphone, while the Aeon remains more open sounding. Despite measurements, upper midrange around 3-4khz is slightly mellower on the PM3, while less restrained on the Aeon, giving the PM3 a more laid back sound and the Aeon a slightly more crunchy sound. The PM3's bass doesn't extend down as low as the Aeon, and it definitely isn't as controlled or powerful as the Aeon when a song has lots of sub-bass information. On Trentemoller's Into The Trees, Aeon's bass extends into subterranean levels while remaining controlled enough to not haze over the rest of the sound spectrum, while PM3's bass is thicker and hazier, but not as deep. I find the PM3 to present vocals better than the Aeon, with more weight and less sibilants, but slightly less airiness. On Adele's Hometown Glory, Adele's voice is weighty and palpable on the PM3, while it lacks some foundation on the Aeon. This particular recording also brings out some sibilances in her voice as well on the Aeon. Both headphones have faults in their frequency response, but both are remarkably balanced, however I think the PM3 has the less glaring flaws, so I give it the edge in frequency response. Aeon however has more clarity to it with less bass bleed, better microdynamics, more balanced treble, and more focused sound.



    Compared to the Focal Elear:

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    [​IMG]


    After reading Tyll's glowing review of the Elear, as well as getting ran over by its hype train on Head-Fi, the thought of buying an Elear to own for the rest of my headfi journey was a no-brainer. This was the headphone that could do nothing wrong and did everything better than anything that ever came before it... or so I thought. Hype aside, the Elear is an extremely bombastic sounding headphone with clarity and dynamics in spades, but it also has a couple of Achilles heels as well which don't make it quite the sea-change in the world of personal audio.


    The Elear's build quality is tremendous. It is definitely one of the few headphones that has the looks to match its asking price, with a sleek looking gimbal assembly and well padded headband, as well as very plush memory foam pads sporting an almost microfiber type of covering, feeling very nice on the skin. The outer grill screams look at me using polished aluminum and a slick black and silver color palette. The Aeon still holds its ground though with its unique and organic looking presence. The earpads, suspension strap, and lack of headband adjustment markings are still take aways from the Aeon. I mentioned the Elear having a couple of glaring flaws earlier, and its comfort would be one (for me, anyways). Most people find it to be relatively comfortable, but I set my bar for comfort in the heavens. Despite its robust and luxurious build, the Elear is a slobbering behemoth next to the Aeon, and its weight causes for an eventual hotspot on the top of my head after 45 minutes of sustained listening. The clamping force of the Elear is also really high in comparison to the Aeon as well. Its super plush and exceedingly roomy pads to a fantastic job of mitigating its clamp, but you will always feel like you're wearing big headphones with the Elear. Coming off the Aeon, the Elear is just annoying to wear. The comfort is the main reason why I bought the Aeon and am seriously considering selling the Elear. I want my headphone to be a completely natural experience, and the Elear just isn't it.


    The Elear measures to have the least bass of the 3 headphones being compared here, but it actually might have the most. Its prominent feature when compared to the Aeon is its overall bass heft, which brings many recordings to life with such impact and grounding presence. Its tone is dark given its bountiful lower midrange and recessed upper midrange. The Aeon by comparison is rather thin sounding and colder throughout its midrange. Horned instruments in Hans Zimmer's Imagine the Fire are slightly shouty sounding on the Aeon next to the Elear, which renders them with more warmth and depth. On the other hand, the Aeon on the same recording can make Elear's soundstage sound disoriented, with a gap in the upper midrange and spotlighted treble. Coming off the Aeon and listening to the Elear, violins can lose their screeching presence, trumpets can become blunted, and percussion can lose a bit of snap. The Aeon can't compete with the Elear's clarity and dynamics though, as the powerful image the Elear throws is full bodied yet pristinely controlled with natural decay and a dead-black background. The full-bodied lower midrange of the Elear tends to give acoustic performance more tangibility with a natural feel of room gain and resonance, while on the Aeon, instruments become drier and more one-dimensional. With its extremely opened-back nature and ease of dynamic control, the Elear is hard to beat in the specific areas that it excels in, but it has a divisive frequency response that you'll either love or hate. People who love warm to dark sounding headphones like me will suck up every ounce of its baroque-esque sound that it soaks you with, while others looking for more natural and evenly-shaded renderings of instruments and vocals will gravitate toward the Aeon, whose colorations I find less troublesome than the Elear. It has a deeper extending bass, more even upper midrange and treble from 1-10khz, but its troublesome dip around 2-300hz tends to sometimes thin out certain recordings. Luckily, an abundance of bass up to 100-150hz counteracts this effect a little bit.



    In conclusion, the Aeon is a damned good sounding headphone with very few glaringly obvious frequency response problems and comfort that's second to none, on top of being one of the most isolating full-sized closed headphones on the market that's built exceptionally well. With so many assets at its disposal and coming in at under 1000 dollars, it's nice to see a company put such an effort into a headphone and refuse to follow the current price-gouging trend of today's high-end market. However it's not the perfect headphone; while its treble balance and presentation is perhaps the best I've heard on a planar magnetic to date, it lacks the lower midrange-middle midrange balance that most other planars are known for, with a mild depression in the 200-400hz range that causes many sounds to lose their heft and warmth. I would ideally like to see an open version that could somehow retain the same control and balance of the bass and treble, while reworking the midrange to be more full bodied while still retaining the general smoothness yet precision of the Aeon. All things considered, this is a headphone that just makes sense, which is something that's hard to come by these days.
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2017
  16. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    Which Ether, open or closed, for your comparison qurestions? I hear the open and closed variants as so different. I find the Aeon bass to have good pitch differentiation, texture, and power overall. Perhaps one of it's better strengths. But I'm also used to the HD650, which isn't always the best in this area. The Aeon is not the tightest or clearest I've heard, but good enough to make note, or at least I think. I dont recall thinking much of the Ether bass in either case, but the Aeon stuck out as solid.

    Plankton seems good but not always at the level of a properly fed HD650 or similar, yet at a level I find myself not worrying. Sometimes it is close to a well fed dynamic, surprisingly so, though anything relying on the lower mids for detail will suffer on the Aeon. I find it at least on par with either Ether, if not better at times. It takes that clean, clear nature of the C without being as bright or hard. The Ether open always seemed messy to me. Again, good enough I wasn't worrying.

    Not sure yet about compression. I may not comment on that if I'm not sure whether I'm able to judge it fully. Nothing stood out as wrong, I suppose, but it could be the lower mid depression stood out too much for me to notice.

    While I do let the lower mid suckout get in the way, it's probably one of the best put out since the value oriented Mad Dog (final revision, whatever that was) and the Alpha Dog with tweaks. This seems more like the next step after the Alpha Dog, with the other stuff in between being off road, exploratory side paths. Not yet perfection, but a good step in the right direction. (Edit: if my font got bigger, blame my phone and beer.)
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2017
  17. Ice-man

    Ice-man Friend

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    @Hands ...not sure if I missed but did you find any scale with amps on Aeon? Just curious.
     
  18. TMRaven

    TMRaven Friend

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    In a conversation with Dan about the production models, he said that he went with stiffer earpads for the production models. I'm wondering if that has caused a depression in the 2-400hz range compared to more squishy pads. We won't be able to roll pads with this one, because it's just a unique shape, which leads to just damping schemes. I'm not a big fan of putting anything with thickness in front of the driver myself, as I'd want as much depth for my ears as possible.
     
  19. Ice-man

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    The pads did change from final pre production to the final production. There certainly could have been a frequency change there that caused the shift. IMO the thicker production are much better in terms of comfort as they keep the driver from touching the ear.
     
  20. Nyerk

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    Aeon seem to be an interesting headphone to me so far, but just curious, can you alleviate the bass-to-midrange dip with EQ?
     

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