Introduction:
Most of you reading this review know of DUNU’s products already, so I’ll keep this short. DUNU has been making IEM’s (in ear monitors – basically in ear headphones) for a while, and their products have been absolutely fantastic every time. While the word “fantastic” and “great” have been overused in many reviews (even when the product is just alright), DUNU separates itself from the rest of the crowd with the sound quality and ease of use of the headphones they provide.
The last two of DUNU’s headphones I reviewed, the Titan 1 and current flagship DN-2000J, absolutely smashed it out of the park. The DN-2000J, for one, was technically capable of a lot more than the price suggested, and coming in to the review, I really wasn’t expecting that level of sound quality. Coupled with great fit/comfort, good isolation, and nice build quality, the DN-2000J was more than a winner for me.
The Titan 1 had a much lower price tag, but still surprised me with its usability and its smooth, open sound. Due to the Titan 1’s half-open design, soundstage was much larger than other IEM’s, at the expense of some isolation. However, this proved to me that DUNU was willing to be creative, and try something new. Even in relatively unexplored territory, they still managed to do really well.
The Titan 1 received a lot of great feedback from reviewers, and its unique shape was a success when it came to fit and comfort. Keeping that in mind, the Titan 3 and Titan 5 are the same exact shape, resting on the central part of your ear instead of inside your ear canal. The Titan 3 and Titan 5 also aimed to improve isolation, which unavoidably wasn’t so great on the Titan 1. The last physical change was the inclusion of removable cables on the Titan 3 and 5, which is new to Dunu IEM’s – while the build quality of their previous headphones were excellent, some people were worried that the cable might break, so Dunu responded by making them removable as well.
One thing is for certain – Dunu pays a lot of attention at the criticism they receive, and uses it to make the next product better. Although many companies do this to varying degrees, I haven’t seen too many of them really go the extra mile to please their customers – Dunu’s inclusion of removable cables was something I didn’t think I would see (because of the enormous amount of work involved), and the improvement in isolation was great to see too. It’s obvious Dunu is willing to do whatever they can to make it work – and even go out of their comfort zone to get things done.
Packaging:
The Titan 5’s comes in the same type of box as the Titan 1 and Titan 3. The box itself is of a stealthy black color, which also feels well made. It opens with a magnetic flap, and has more information in both English and Chinese about the Titan 5’s specific attributes. Unlike other headphone boxes, Dunu’s are entirely reusable, and are an efficient way to store your headphones if you wish. On the back, like the Titan 1’s box, it says a few things about the Titan 5’s, as well as the accessories it comes with. Opening up the second flap, we see the Titan 5, some of the ear tips, and the carrying case.
Dunu hasn’t changed the packaging much, if any at all. However, in my opinion, they don’t need to. The reusable box, build quality, and large amount of information about the Titan 5 on the inside of the first flap, make it a winner for me every time. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?
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Accessories:
The accessories that come with the Titan 5 are slightly different than those of the Titan 1. Here’s the breakdown:
Let’s start with the tips. Like the Titan 1, there’s 3 pairs of translucent gray tips (small, medium, and large), and 3 pairs of Sony Hybrid-like tips. Unlike the Titan 1 though, the Titan 5 does not come with tips with a larger nozzle size. Personally, I prefer the regular nozzle size, so to me, this isn’t much of a loss.
I noted by the Titan 1 that despite the wide arrangements of tips, I would have like either some bi/tri-flanged tips, or a pair of Comply foam ear tips. The only differences I noticed between the two sets was their aesthetics and cap firmness.
Again, though, for future products, I would love to see bi-flange and tri-flange tips, or foam tips, instead of only silicone eartips. Although some customers have their preferred tips on hand, many don’t, and providing a wider variety of tips would go a long way. Many companies have also started including foam and bi-flanged tips, so soon it may very well become the standard.
One new accessory I’m very happy about is the set of ear stabilizers – they will come in handy for those who feel that IEM’s always fall out of their ears. However, as I’ll soon say in the fit/comfort section, the fit of the Titan 5 is as good as they come, so I doubt you’ll even need to use them. Great that they’re there though, and definitely a step in the right direction. There’s also the standard shirt clip and 6.35mm headphone jack converter, which was uncluded with the T1 as well.
The case is the same as the one that comes with the Titan 1 – it’s made of plastic, and small enough to be pocket able. It’s a clasp-operated case, but I usually end up leaning towards zipper cases. Zipper cases seem to last a lot longer in my experiences, and clasp-operated cases have a tendency to pop open, which makes it easy to lose what’s inside if you’re not careful – especially on the bus or train, where movement isn’t as stable.. While DUNU got the size and form factor right, and I applaud them for that, like I said last time, I’d recommend to make it even better in the future by providing a zipper case instead.
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Build Quality & Design:
The Titan 5’s housing is constructed from metal, although it seems a little different than metal housing of the Titan 1. They are both very well made, though the Titan 5 is more polished than the Titan 1. One thing I noticed is that the Titan 5 is longer than the T1, probably due to the removable cable. The T5 still stays quite light, although it is heavier than the T1. When worn, the extra weight isn’t noticeable - the only time you would realize the difference is when carrying the T5.
Another difference between the two is the amount of vents on the inside of the housing. The T1, as you know, has a half-open design, which results in a larger soundstage, among other things. The secret to this was the large number of vents not only on the nozzle, but on the housing as well. The T5 only has one vent on the inner-side of the shell – resulting in a conventional design, increasing soundstage, and decreasing sound leakage by a large amount.
The T5 has a “5” on the back of the shell – which is the only distinction between the Titan 3 and Titan 5. While the implementation of the number is good, I sort of wish that the number font was a bit less cheesy; the font is similar to those used by Nascar, and I do think that a straight font, un-italicized, would look much better. Again, it’s a preference sort of thing, and I have a feeling most people won’t be too worried about this, so such a small thing shouldn’t be such a big deal.
Moving on to the connectors, it’s much sturdier than I thought it would be. I spent a nice amount of time with the Westone W40, which costs about four times the price of the T5, and I was
always worried about the connector breaking from being loose. With the T5, it doesn’t budge – something I’m extremely happy about. There is also a nice amount of strain relief, which is something that may not be necessary but is well appreciated. For their first time with removable cables, it seems DUNU did a great job on the build quality of this one.
The T5 sports a MMCX connector, although I’m pretty sure they achieved the connector strength by using a slightly longer connector length. Although I haven’t tried any other cables with it, it might be a pain to find an after-market cable that fits the Titan, due to the non-universal connector on the T5.
The cable itself is well-made – not springy, but it doesn’t feel cheap either. It feels a little bit stronger than the T1 cable, but the differences are slight and it’s tough to tell which one is actually better. Later on, I’ll briefly discuss the microphonics, and the lack of a woven cable greatly contributes towards the success the T5 has in that category.
They Y-split is made of metal, and is jet black, unlike the T1’s sliver Y-split. It also appears to be even better made than the one on the T1 – and the T1 already was great in that aspect. There’s a nice stress relief leading up to the split, and overall it seems well done – it really adds to both the design aesthetics and build quality. The T5 has a right-angled 3.5mm jack just like the T1 – the jack is extremely well made, like its predecessor’s, and there is, again, a really good amount of stress relief. The only difference between the jacks on the two models is the color – the T5 sports a more classy black, while the T1’s jack is silver.
So all in all, the T5 definitely improves on the T1 when it comes to design, and the removable cable is a lovely addition too. I just wish Dunu could have made the connector as a standard MMCX model, so most after-market cables would fit. As it stands though, the connector is extremely solid, much more so than those of other headphones I’ve tried. The design of the T5 is also much classier, with the slight exception of the number font on the back of the shell. The T5 also leaves out the red/blue color-coded bands I liked so much with the T1. Why they left them out, I’m not sure – it gave the T1 a different look that always felt unique. Without them, the earpieces look a little… generic to me. Other than that small caveat, though, it looks really great. Dunu really did a great job here.
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Fit & Comfort:
Here in the U.S., we have a saying, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Dunu clearly went this route – the comfort and fit of the T5 is as great as the T1, which, if you haven’t tried the predecessor, is very, very good. The fit of the Titan series is relaxed, and unobtrusive – only the tip sits in your ear canal, while the rest sits on the outer ear. The fit is more shallow than other IEM’s I’ve tried, which makes long-term listening easy for me, but does have only average isolation as the cost.
The ear stabilizers provide even better fit for those who feel the fit is too shallow. For those who were wondering, the T5 works well both regularly worn, and over the ear; the stabilizers work both ways. You do have to switch earpieces to achieve the over-the-ear fit though, and some (like me) are a stickler for L/R sounds coming the way they are supposed to. However, it’s a nice option, and it does stay comfortable for me both ways.
The comfort is also as great as the T1’s. Because of the shallow fit, my ears have a little more “breathing room”, without sound leaking out . The T5 doesn’t have any foam or bi-flange tips, and I hope they can be included in future models. The default tips are quite comfortable though, and I’m happy with them.
Microphonics:
Another step up from the T1 is the microphonics – I cannot hear any noise whatsoever when tapping below the Y-split, and even above the Y-split there is very minimal noise – ranking the T5 as one of the best IEM’s I’ve tried for negligible microphonics. One of my chief complaints of the T1 was the above-average microphonics – the T5 went in the complete opposite direction, making it a great workout or running IEM. With the included shirt clip, there is even less noise. I’ve never had an IEM excel so much in this category.
Sound:
So, the sound. The T3 and T5 mainly differ in this respect; the T5 went for a more bass-beefy signature, for those who listen to EDM, Rock, or a variety of other genres that benefit from a good extended bass.
Before I go any further, I’d like to point out that I’ve listen to both of these amazing IEM’s for about 3 weeks now – for those complaining about reviewers spending too little time with samples before they write on them. I’d like to say that my opinion on the T5’s sound has, in fact, stayed the same over the course of these few weeks, so I’m not sure what “brain burn-in” I was supposed to have. Regardless, I thought I should put it out there.
Bass is heavier than neutral on the T5. Neutral lovers will probably find it a bit too unbalanced, so it’s important coming into this review that the T5 was not meant for the analytical or classical listeners. The bass is geared to those leaning towards the “basshead” category, although some average Joe like me (who hasn’t had too much basshead training) also appreciates the lower end on bassy songs. Elevated bass, yes, but not enough to take over the rest of the frequency.
However, I would not call these a balanced IEM in the true sense of the word. The bass does not bleed into the mids, and clarity is surprisingly good for a bass oriented IEM, but balanced these are not. In all honestly though, the fun signature this IEM provides is something I do like on a daily basis with many songs I listen to.
Mids are nice, vocals sound a bit “compressed” of sorts. If you’re a vocal fanatic, you’re probably reading the wrong review – the T3 is the model that excels with that category. However, for the sound signature, the T5 does pretty well with most vocals. The compression I talked earlier is probably due to the slight U-shaped signature of the T5, but the clarity isn’t as compromised as recessed. The vocals are slightly fatiguing to me, and I wouldn’t use these as my main vocal IEM. Mids other than vocals (piano and guitar, for example) are nice, although also slightly recessed and a bit fatiguing. Guitars get a bit too much help from the lower end, at least more than I’m used to.
Highs aren’t bright to me actually. Lindsey Stirling’s songs are surprisingly a bit tamer than I expected. I don’t think there is enough “air” in the highs to make it bright. This causes the T5 to lean to a *slightly* darker type of sound, although they aren’t anywhere near enough for me to call it dark in good conscience. Flutes follow the same pattern, neutral except for the slight lack of airiness.
Because of this, I’m not sure which category to place it in. They aren’t U or V-shaped, as the highs aren’t elevated, but are leaning towards a bassy and slightly darker signature.
Detail is much better than other bass oriented IEM’s I’ve tried for the mids and highs. The amount of the detail in the bass is also very decent, but it takes a bit of a backseat to the quantity.
Clarity is really, really good for this type of headphone – if you’re wondering why a bass IEM has such a price tag, know that the quality of the sound is not compromised by the sound signature. The clarity helps a nice amount with that.
So overall, if you know what sound signature the T5 is going for ahead of buying it, and like the particular said signature, you’re in for a really good bass-oriented IEM that excels with many more genres than it’s geared for. Even classical music and vocals, which I thought it would do horribly with, are very enjoyable, even with the opposite type of sound signature. If you have a preference for songs that have a nice bass amount, the T5 will excel for you. And for when you’re not listening to heavy metal, and decide to listen to Bach and Beethoven, the T5 doesn’t compromise as much as you would think.
Recommendations:
- The inclusion of the stabilizers in the accessories is very welcome. I do wish there were more different types of ear tips though, specifically a pair of foam and bi-flange ones.
- The connector seems somewhat different than the standard one. I understand this makes it much stronger, and I’m surprised by the stability of the connectors. Really, well done – I can’t emphasize this enough. If you can find a way to do this with the standard MMCX connector, it would be even better – this way, replacing the cable would be relatively painless.
- I’m not sure why the red/blue bands were removed. I personally like them, and feel without them, the IEM feels a bit generic. I understand Brooko thinks this is a smart move, but I’d have to disagree (?), for over the ear, just keep in mind to switch the colors. If this was done to keep down budget costs, I completely understand, and it’s in no way a deal breaker. No sweat on this one.
- If you could un-italicize the “5” on the back of the IEM, I think it would look even better, and more official. This is only my opinion though, and just a recommendation.
- A zipper case, instead of a clasp-operated one, would be fantastic. The ones Brainwavz uses is a great example, and much more useful to me.
- Maybe an extra cable to be included? This is definitely not necessary, but would be so appreciated by consumers, I can’t help but to add it in.
Conclusion:
“Is the Titan 5 a step up from the T1?” many of you are probably asking. And the answer is yes. Besides for the sturdy removable cable, which already makes it a worthy upgrade, the sound signature, for those looking for that general curve, is among the best I’ve heard, and definitely the best in this price range. The amount of detail is also upped from the T1, due to the closed design, as well as the isolation.
I do think that at ~$120, the T5 is at a very competitive price point. However, it excels at its sound signature, and is a solid choice for an overall blend of great characteristics. Build Quality? Check, in full force. Fit and Comfort? Absolutely fantastic. Micorphonics? Near to none. The sound? Great with many genres, excels at quite a few.
So yes, it’s very much worth the money in my opinion. DUNU is great at making sure there are no flaws, and I really have to nitpick before I can complain about the “5” on the back of the headphone – that’s how good they end up being. Most IEM’s you’ll hear of have a tendency to have a “it’s great, but…” - the T5 has no real “but”. End of story.
So that’s it! The Titan 5 is a really awesome headphone, and I really enjoyed reviewing it. While I didn’t have to buy it, I’m sure those who do won’t be disappointed. Enjoy!
Thanks for the feedback.