jant71
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Feb 19, 2005
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*I will post my review here and encourage others to do so. We can keep this thread as a review and comparison thread like the previous one for the C700/751 and possibly keep the comments in the other thread so the reviews will be more easily found.*
Denon C710 In-Ear Headphones
Denon's latest high quality earphone...
Mine are the black version.
In their case.
The Specs
IMPEDANCE: 16 Ohm
SENSITIVITY: 110dB/mW
MAX POWER INPUT: 250mW
DRIVERS: 11.5mm
CABLE: .7 meter OFC + .8 meter extension included
WEIGHT: 5.6 grams excluding cable
COLORS: Black or silver
The Package
You get a leather-like modular hard case, .8 meter extension cable, cable clip, S/M/L single flange tips, One pair T-400 Comply tips
Build Quality
The C710 have solid build quality in both the earphones and the accessories. The fit and finish is perfect. The housings are metal as well as the plug. The sound tube portion of the earphone is plastic.
The earphones have a smaller footprint in the ear but stick out. They are not the ear filling flush design and thus are not good for lying down with. The angled tube does make them easy to insert and easy to tell right from left.
The cable is thin and modular. 0.7 meter(27") plus 0.8 meter(31") extension. I'm sure the length with or without extension will appeal to some but not others. Being thin and light is good toward comfort and microphonics. The bad result is more tangling. I think that the tangling is the lesser of the evils so I don't mind it. The cable seems fairly sturdy.
Fit
The fit, for me, is quick and easy. They are quite comfy and provide very good isolation for a canalphone. You can get slightly more isolation from the Comply's if you choose.
Sound
The C710 are overall a warm and colored phone with their own distinct presentation. They are large sounding, well balanced, and engaging. Not really the type of phone for those who want flat or accurate.
Bass. The bass is the strongest point of this earphone followed closely by the mids and lastly the treble which is the weakest part of the spectrum. The bass is on the warm side but falls a bit short of the warmth/power of the FX500, IE8's, Atrio's and other bigger bass earphones. The extension goes very low and much of the detail is in the bass range up through the low mids. the bass is quite tight and well defined. Excellent separation and layering of the bass notes again presenting them in it's own distinct way. The speed is good and they handle complex passages well. Impact differences and directional placing of bass notes are well done. Takes a while to develop clarity and tighten up from out of the box. Some of the better and more enjoyable bass regardless of price in a dynamic.
Mids. The mids are also very high quality. Slightly forward mids. not lush but not thin, in the middle. Good for male and female vocals. Never heard any sibilance in the mids. Nice separation of the vocals, again done in the Denon way. Not up front mids but closer than they are far away. Joe's 4-5 rows back is a good description. Good detail and excellent audibility of vocals. Singing/words are more easily audible than other phones, especially dynamic based ones. The most transparent part of the spectrum to my ears.
Treble. The treble is up front and a bit sparkly. The Denon treble sounds different. So, going from one phone to another can be strange. The Denon treble will start to sound "right" if you listen to it for a while and make other phones sound different or "wrong". The most colored part of the spectrum. Those who crave treble accuracy might not be too fond of the Denon treble. It is more colored though still fairly enjoyable. Decently well extended for a dynamic. Comes up short compared to PFE/Triple.fi/ER4/RE0 treble reach. The treble detail is weaker than the bass or mids but still pretty good.
Separation. One of the best features of the C710 is it's separation. Excellent through the range but maybe a slight bit better in the bass and mids. Vocals and bass lines are very distinct and easy to pick out. Very nicely layered in the Denon style. The amount of separation or air around things is in the middle. Not blended closely together nor very far apart.
The Soundstage. One of the larger soundstages. Increases a bit as it opens up with burn in. Good width, height, and depth. The placement within the image is(again) part of the Denon sound/color. Enjoyable as far as I'm concerned. Very subjective as to imaging likes/dislike. hoe much you like the presentation is more up to the individual.
Clarity and Transparency. Clarity is quite good throughout the range. Improves nicely with some burn in.
Transparency, to me, is a window in free of coloring that can make you forget your listening through something and more like listen to the real thing. The transparency is mostly in the mids and dissipates towards the high and low end. The Denon color won't let forget what your listening through, esp. in the treble.
Detail. One of the more detailed dynamics. Not ER4P/S or truly high end detail but quite good. Most of the detail is from the bass up through the mids making them opposite something like the RE0. Maybe take that into account if you have a preference. Detail does appear with more burn-in. Okay out of the box but more detail is revealed when the clarity improves.
Sensitivity. A section on sensitivity since these earphones are quite sensitive. Hiss may be a problem depending on source. Depends on your gear. The sensitivity also affects how bright or boomy these ear phones can be. They seem to become quite bassier and brighter with Sony gear. Synergy is less predictable from source to source. They sound good with everything I have but the sound balance can vary or change with source. I find them quite balanced but sensitive which can accentuate more bass or more brightness with certain gear. They also will be better for low level listening with some gear and not others. When cranked or pushed they may behave well or may become quite bright.
* Help for brightness may be right there in the box with the T-400 Comply's which can tone down brightness*
To Sum It Up
Overall, a very nice entry from Denon. An excellent value for those who can get them for under $100 but a very nice earphone in general. As the impressions come in we should get a clear picture how close they come to the high end dynamics currently available.
.
Denon C710 In-Ear Headphones
Denon's latest high quality earphone...
Mine are the black version.
In their case.
The Specs
IMPEDANCE: 16 Ohm
SENSITIVITY: 110dB/mW
MAX POWER INPUT: 250mW
DRIVERS: 11.5mm
CABLE: .7 meter OFC + .8 meter extension included
WEIGHT: 5.6 grams excluding cable
COLORS: Black or silver
The Package
You get a leather-like modular hard case, .8 meter extension cable, cable clip, S/M/L single flange tips, One pair T-400 Comply tips
Build Quality
The C710 have solid build quality in both the earphones and the accessories. The fit and finish is perfect. The housings are metal as well as the plug. The sound tube portion of the earphone is plastic.
The earphones have a smaller footprint in the ear but stick out. They are not the ear filling flush design and thus are not good for lying down with. The angled tube does make them easy to insert and easy to tell right from left.
The cable is thin and modular. 0.7 meter(27") plus 0.8 meter(31") extension. I'm sure the length with or without extension will appeal to some but not others. Being thin and light is good toward comfort and microphonics. The bad result is more tangling. I think that the tangling is the lesser of the evils so I don't mind it. The cable seems fairly sturdy.
Fit
The fit, for me, is quick and easy. They are quite comfy and provide very good isolation for a canalphone. You can get slightly more isolation from the Comply's if you choose.
Sound
The C710 are overall a warm and colored phone with their own distinct presentation. They are large sounding, well balanced, and engaging. Not really the type of phone for those who want flat or accurate.
Bass. The bass is the strongest point of this earphone followed closely by the mids and lastly the treble which is the weakest part of the spectrum. The bass is on the warm side but falls a bit short of the warmth/power of the FX500, IE8's, Atrio's and other bigger bass earphones. The extension goes very low and much of the detail is in the bass range up through the low mids. the bass is quite tight and well defined. Excellent separation and layering of the bass notes again presenting them in it's own distinct way. The speed is good and they handle complex passages well. Impact differences and directional placing of bass notes are well done. Takes a while to develop clarity and tighten up from out of the box. Some of the better and more enjoyable bass regardless of price in a dynamic.
Mids. The mids are also very high quality. Slightly forward mids. not lush but not thin, in the middle. Good for male and female vocals. Never heard any sibilance in the mids. Nice separation of the vocals, again done in the Denon way. Not up front mids but closer than they are far away. Joe's 4-5 rows back is a good description. Good detail and excellent audibility of vocals. Singing/words are more easily audible than other phones, especially dynamic based ones. The most transparent part of the spectrum to my ears.
Treble. The treble is up front and a bit sparkly. The Denon treble sounds different. So, going from one phone to another can be strange. The Denon treble will start to sound "right" if you listen to it for a while and make other phones sound different or "wrong". The most colored part of the spectrum. Those who crave treble accuracy might not be too fond of the Denon treble. It is more colored though still fairly enjoyable. Decently well extended for a dynamic. Comes up short compared to PFE/Triple.fi/ER4/RE0 treble reach. The treble detail is weaker than the bass or mids but still pretty good.
Separation. One of the best features of the C710 is it's separation. Excellent through the range but maybe a slight bit better in the bass and mids. Vocals and bass lines are very distinct and easy to pick out. Very nicely layered in the Denon style. The amount of separation or air around things is in the middle. Not blended closely together nor very far apart.
The Soundstage. One of the larger soundstages. Increases a bit as it opens up with burn in. Good width, height, and depth. The placement within the image is(again) part of the Denon sound/color. Enjoyable as far as I'm concerned. Very subjective as to imaging likes/dislike. hoe much you like the presentation is more up to the individual.
Clarity and Transparency. Clarity is quite good throughout the range. Improves nicely with some burn in.
Transparency, to me, is a window in free of coloring that can make you forget your listening through something and more like listen to the real thing. The transparency is mostly in the mids and dissipates towards the high and low end. The Denon color won't let forget what your listening through, esp. in the treble.
Detail. One of the more detailed dynamics. Not ER4P/S or truly high end detail but quite good. Most of the detail is from the bass up through the mids making them opposite something like the RE0. Maybe take that into account if you have a preference. Detail does appear with more burn-in. Okay out of the box but more detail is revealed when the clarity improves.
Sensitivity. A section on sensitivity since these earphones are quite sensitive. Hiss may be a problem depending on source. Depends on your gear. The sensitivity also affects how bright or boomy these ear phones can be. They seem to become quite bassier and brighter with Sony gear. Synergy is less predictable from source to source. They sound good with everything I have but the sound balance can vary or change with source. I find them quite balanced but sensitive which can accentuate more bass or more brightness with certain gear. They also will be better for low level listening with some gear and not others. When cranked or pushed they may behave well or may become quite bright.
* Help for brightness may be right there in the box with the T-400 Comply's which can tone down brightness*
To Sum It Up
Overall, a very nice entry from Denon. An excellent value for those who can get them for under $100 but a very nice earphone in general. As the impressions come in we should get a clear picture how close they come to the high end dynamics currently available.
.
