Official Denon AH-C700 Comparisons/Impressions - Page 11 - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio

outlandos · 09-12-2007, 02:03 AM

Ok I have decided:

Comfort goes before anything for me, even sound-quality.

The Westone UM2 is out of reach for me because of the $300 price-tag.

And the Denon's are just in reach for 85 (+10 shipping) Euro! At the end of the month I will buy them, if there hasn't been a C751 released by then.

Or I will buy Mylars X3's for 55 Euro...

Is the sounds quality of the Denons really that much better? And worth 40 Euro difference?

eduj · 09-12-2007, 02:12 AM

Well except SQ the Denons look 10 times better build that Mylars X3s IMO.I mean the Mylars may sound good but they look like 2$ worth

epithetless · 09-12-2007, 03:20 PM

The Denons are a step above the MylarOne X3's sound-quality-wise, in my opinion. A more natural signature with greater clarity, airiness, and detail, much better (more prominent, textured, and extended) bass, and a wider soundstage to boot. Sorry for the extended delay in getting my m5 comparison out -- I just started grad school and have lost a lot of listening time. My early impressions hold on the C700s being the more sibilant of the two, enough that my limited earphone time has been devoted mostly to the m5s. Keep in mind I'm quite sensitive to sibilance -- I wouldn't say the C700s venture into uncommon excessiveness with it, it's just more than my tastes prefer. The m5, on the other hand, is magical in that regard. So smooth. Let's hope warrior05 gets his C700 soon and is able to fill the Atrio comparison void.

antonyfirst · 09-12-2007, 04:35 PM

I second you in the lack of sibilance with the M5. They have no sibilance, and behave better than the Shure E500 in that regard, especially with Shure black foamies. But there is to say that the M5 aren't an high frequency-oriented IEM.

cn11 · 09-12-2007, 06:36 PM

I'm eagerly awaiting the Atrio M5/Denon AH-C700 comparo. They seem like a great quick insertion phone, whereas it takes me about 30sec. total to get the Atrio M5 situated every time I want to listen. I am preferring them over the tops of my ears, with the Shure olive tips reversed, and the chin slider most of the way up... this gives the best sound, but is not so convenient when I keep getting interrupted at work in my office. *hey Chris, can you take a look at this for me*.. *hey Chris, can you print this out for our upcoming meeting*...etc etc. I liked the Vibe for this reason, quick in and you're done with it. I'm hoping the Denon is as quick as the Vibe, but with sound on par with the Atrio. Then I may just have to try a set.

antonyfirst · 09-12-2007, 07:06 PM

Chris, did you find, like me, that the reversed foam tips result in more sibilance?

soozieq · 09-12-2007, 08:25 PM

OK, so I had a chance to try out the Denons on a flight today, and they were much better than I expected. Of course they didn't fully block out the engine noise, but they blocked about 70%, a screaming child and the general drone you get on every flight. I did have to crank up the volume 5 notches from 17 to 22 (out of 30) but still, they did better than I thought

warrior05 · 09-12-2007, 08:34 PM

For the past 45 minutes or so, I've been queuing up various songs of various genres and listening to them twice - once with the M5s and once with C700s. My source is my 5.5g iMod mated to the Corda Move. On the M5s I put on a fresh set of large Shure black olives to ensure optimum seal and on the 700s I have medium black silicone sleeves. I wear all my IEMs and canalphones with the cord routed over the top and behind my ears.

One other thing - I haven't kept up with this thread so I really don't know what people have been saying about the Denons. I bought the Denon's C350 as soon as they came out. They were decent. A bit better than real Senn CX300s but not by a lot. I've always been curious about the C700s and saw Honus' pair on the FS board so I snatched them up for a listen.

I find the C700s to be a very musical and enjoyable canalphone. It has a warm sound sig due to its mid-presence. Nice soundstage and - surprisingly - quite a bit of isolation (for a canalphone). I found that there was nothing to get used to with the Denons, meaning - they sounded pretty damn good without having to let my ears adjust to their signature.

As for comparing the Atrio to the Denon:

Bass - just about identical. I don't consider myself a basshead but I do prefer an elevated but clear bass presence. Both of these have exactly that. There is a subtle added depth with the Denons and I'm thinking it might be due to the ported design.

Mids - biggest difference between the two. The Denons have quite the presence of mids. Not over-powering mind you but it definitely gives a perceived warmth to the music. Jump to the M5s and you could easily tag them as "recessed mids". I've never really considered this to be with the Atrios and felt they were more balanced than anything. I can easily see most people preferring the sound of the Denons due to their mid-presence.

Highs - identical. Both have slightly rolled off highs but what is there is nicely detailed and non-sibilant inducing. I've read a couple of posts about sibilance with the M5s. Personally, I have not experienced this but I don't listen to much sibilant inducing music. I am very sensitive to treble so naturally most of the music I listen to have more bass, mids and low high presentation. I find Jack Johnson's voice can sometimes induce sibilance but I heard none with both 'phones.

Soundstage - Denons offer more. Not a huge difference mind you but with some of the songs I listened to, the 700s definitely offered more expanse and breadth in sound.

As far as canalphones go, I've owned CX300, Vibes, C350K and JBL 220. The C700Ks are definitely the best canalphones I've heard. I consider them definitely on par with the M5s.

warrior05 · 09-12-2007, 08:36 PM

Originally Posted by soozieq

OK, so I had a chance to try out the Denons on a flight today, and they were much better than I expected. Of course they didn't fully block out the engine noise, but they blocked about 70%, a screaming child and the general drone you get on every flight. I did have to crank up the volume 5 notches from 17 to 22 (out of 30) but still, they did better than I thought

I'm not surprised at your findings. I find the C700s to offer quite a respectable level of isolation especially considering they're canalphones. Congrats on being able to drown out the insanity!

antonyfirst · 09-12-2007, 08:56 PM

Warrior,

Thanks for the neat comparison. I'd like to know few more things: about the bass, do you think that the Denon are as "wet" as the M5?
My main complaints with the M5 were recessed mids (compared to the Etymotic), and the Denon are probably solved it; and something wrong with the imaging of instruments: with the Etymotic, I could know exactly where a sound came from, each instrument is precisely placed in the "soundstage" space. With the M5 this was less clear, and the instrument was not as exactly placed as with the Etys. I don't know how to explain it better than this, but I AB-ed the ER4 and M5 some times and I found this clear difference. Can you test how the Denon behave in this regard?