Beyerdynamic DX 160 iE

Originally post 25th April 2014, but turned into a review

Review - Beyerdynamic DX 160 iE

Many thanks to Beyerdynamic for this opportunity for me to review their latest 'Flagship' In Ear monitors. I have not reviewed anything before, so this will be my first time, please be gentle!

Packaging & Accessories

I won't bore you with more photos of what has already been seen. The packaging is very well though out, not too large.

The supplied accessories

1. 7 Pairs of different Sizes/Styles of Silicone eartips, very comprehensive set of tips, I did find myself trying combinations of 2 or 3 tips to get a good fit.
2. 1 Pair of Comply foam eartips, nice touch.
3. Splitter/adapter, to allow earphones to share a source, useful little accessory.
4. Detachable extension cable, well not really an extension cable, its really kind of needed to attach to any player unless of course you keep it in a top pocket.
5. Hard Carry Case, nice case, with a small webbed area for accessory storage.
6. Cable clip, another useful item, I found I had to use it to help combat micro-phonics.

Fit & Comfort

Fit
I did have some issues with the fit, It took me a while to get it right, and had to use 2 different tips, seems my ears are different sizes or the tips just have different properties prevent a nice fit, I've not had this issue with some other brands of tips, and Comply's for obvious reasons are much better in this respect.

Comfort
Once I had sorted the fit, the earphones were very comfortable, no fatigue after 2 hours, though when I didn't have the fit quite right the outer silver part of the housing did dig into part of my ears.

Micro-phonics
I did experience a lot of noise from the cables, especially (and obviously) when rubbing against a zipper, but even against a cotton polo shirt, the cable clip helped heaps in this regard, all manufactures should supply these if they don't already.

Source Equipment

For this review I used my AK-100 with no external amplification

For reference my non headphone listening setups are;

My HiFi setup built up over 20+ years;

1. Linn Sondek/Keel/Urika/Radikal/Ekos/Akiva
2. Linn Unidisk 1.1 - CD/DVD/SACD Player
3. Linn Kisto - Pre-Amplifer
4. Linn Klimax Chakra Twin - Power Amplifier
5. Linn 242 - 5 way Loud Speakers

My computer setup is

1. JRiver MC 19
2. M2Tech HiFace 2
3. Violectric V800
4. Genelec 8020 Studio Monitors

Source Material

FLAC tracks of the following;

1. Brendan Perry - Ark
2. Lana Del Rey - Born To Die
3. Camel - Stationary Traveller
4. Suzanne Vega - Tales From The Realms of the Queen of Pentacles
5. Aimee Mann - Whatever
6. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
7. Level 42 - Level 42

Sound

To me this is all about did I enjoy the music the earphones were producing?

I have also been listening to the same tracks over the past few weeks on my home HiFi or my computer setup.

Wintersun from Brendan Perry, I hadn't heard much of Brendan Perry, he is recently new to me, but I really like this track, and was not disappointed with the sound on this track, nor in fact the whole album, I really enjoyed the whole album with these.

Dark Paradise from Lana Del Ray, again great control, this is also a bit bass heavy, but they seemed to control it much better than the last track, vocals are great here too, drums are particularly clear also.

Stationary Traveller from Camel, now this is a very different track, kind of like some of Mike Oldfields work, mixed with Queen, lots of great electric guitar work, but also pan pipes and synth's, however was pretty enjoyable

Song of the Stoic from Suzanne Vega, I haven't listened to Suzanne Vega for a very long time, until recently and I enjoy this album, I found some of the vocals to bloom (merging into the instruments) and just becoming a wall of noise, but on the whole pretty decent.

Jacob Marley's Chain from Amiee Mann is a great track and the earphones performed great, giving me plenty of feeling, fingers on strings, sounds from the triangle were really clear, tiny bit bass heavy on the acoustic guitar , but the track is that way.

Daft Punk, such a great album (if you like this kind of thing !!) admirable performance again from the earphones, Give Life Back to Music & Get Lucky felt great, didn't seem to lose me, kept me loving the tracks.

Level 42, Not bad for a 33 year old album, I've always loved the bass guitar on this album and I wasn't disappointed here either.

Conclusion

I really like these earphones, I found them very controlled, occasionally too much even woolly bass, but it can be corrected somewhat with equalisation, the mids & high frequencies were very good also, I did find highs a tiny bit lacking on very energetic or bass heavy tracks though.

Overall I am very impressed, for the asking price which is currently $119 these (for me) are well worth the money, for some music they are a very close with some of the more expensive offerings from other manufactures.

Thanks for taking the time to read the review

 

BEYERDYNAMIC iDX 160 iE
 
INTRO
 
If you're reading this you must be a Head-Fi member or just looking at reviews for a new pair of headphones or iem’s. Let me introduce myself, my name is Adam I am 38 years old obviously a male. I work in a machine shop and am required to wear hearing protection all day, so my hearing protection for my 8 hour shift is a pair of earbuds. I have been a member of the Head-Fi forum for awhile now, my journey to Head-Fi started by doing a web search for a new pair of earbuds for work. I am your average Joe, Dick or Harry and write my reviews towards the average consumer. A good amount of reviews are written with a bunch of audiophile lingo, that the average consumer wouldn’t be able to decipher. This is the reason I started to write reviews to make them user friendly. The main reason could be I am a terrible writer, I am a way better listener.
 
I don’t consider myself an audiophile but I do like my music to sound good. Most audiophiles want their music to sound the way the engineer mastered it. I don’t necessarily want my music to sound how the engineer mastered it. I am willing to buy endless amounts of headphones, iems, dacs and amps to make it sound good to MY ears. In my reviews I don’t use meters, charts or graphs, the only graph or charts I care about are the quarterly ones that come in the mail to tell me how my 401K is doing. In the end the most important tools are your own ears, remember it only has to sound good to you. Head-Fi reviews typically get more views than any pro-magazine or any dedicated review site, with most web searches landing you here one way or the other.
 
Describing sound can be a challenge since we all have different preferences, sources, files, environments, amps, dacs and ears. My goal in my reviews is to let the average consumer know if this product is worthy of their hard earned cash, and maybe make them into a new Head-Fi member. The more people that become interested in this hobby of ours the more products companies will offer us, the more the better.
 
Before I get into the review I would like to say thank you to Peter at Beyerdynamic for sending me a demo unit to review. I am not employed or affiliated with Beyerdynamic in any way, or am I being compensated for this review. This review is based off of my honest opinions and my 38 year old ears. Beyerdynamic iDX 160 iE can be purchased directly from their website for $139.00 at the following link.
http://north-america.beyerdynamic.com/shop/idx-160-ie-black.html
 

 

 
SPECS
 


 
HOW IT GETS TO YOU
 
Beyerdynamic iDX comes in a cardboard box with a nice hi-res glossy picture of the iems on the front. The front opens up like a book that reveals a clear viewing window to view the  product. On the back of the package you will find all the technical data and included accessories. On the inside the iems are securely placed in a precut hi-density foam insert to ensure safe traveling from point A to B.
 
THE EXTRAS
7 sizes of silicone eartips (5 types bowl shape, 1 type double flange, 1 type triple flange)
1 size of original Comply™ eartips (type T-400)
Adapter plug to share your music with friends
VoIP-Adapter
Extension cable (90 cm)
Cable clip for secure and firm hold
Convenient and sturdy hard case with zip fastener

 

 
Wow I have never seen so many cables for one set of iems, the iDX include a cable for Apple products and Android based cell phones. This is a big plus since most iems controls only work with Apple products. I have never owned any of Apples cell phones, but my kids have owned every version. There is every size of silicone tips included for proper fit, they also include a set of Comply foam eartips. If you would like to share your music with someone they also included a splitter. That’s not all, you also get a VoIP-Adapter and a very nice hard shell case that closes with a zipper. Beyerdynamic has really piled on the accessories at this price point.

 

 

 
BUILD  FIT
Beyerdynamic iDX 160 iE are an all metal design housing that has been anodized, with two silver rings wrapping around the outside. On the inside there is neodymium drivers to produce the sound. The housings have 2 small holes on the underside for the drivers to move and breathe freely. Traveling down the flat tangle free cable is a 3 button remote and microphone. The flat cable is made from a non-slip rubbery material that is very thin but strong. The controls worked flawlessly with my daughters Iphone 6, using it with my Samsung Alpha the only button that worked was the pause button. The cable plugs into your source with the plug on a 45 degree angle.
 

 

 

 
The build quality is top notch, wouldn’t expect anything less from Beyerdynamic. Myself being in the Tool & Die industry, German Tool & Die and Machinist are highly regarded as the world's best. The only problem I had was were the cable connects and splits it’s kind of chunky and has some weight to it. If you are moving around or being active the weight can tug on the iems and causing them to fall out. The fit of the iem itself is very comfortable and can be worn for hours, the iem is pretty light itself. They can be pushed in pretty far and sit flush in your ear, I was able to lay down on the couch with no problems. I am happy to see the materials Beyerdynamic decided to use, most iems in this price range are completely plastic.

 

 

 
THE IMPORTANT PART
 
All my listening was done with hi-res files using my Samsung Alpha or my Lenovo laptop with the Apogee Groove. If I had to describe the sound in one word it would have to be Big, the overall sound is neutral with an emphasis on the low end. Starting off with the low end it definitely has a big presence but well controlled. They go low and have a nice low end rumble, the mid bass is still more prominent. Having a good seal and fit was crucial for getting the most out of the low end.
 
Mid-bass never spills into the midrange, keeping the mids nicely detailed and smooth. I didn’t expect the vocals to be so detailed for the amount of bass these can produce. They are balanced with the rest of the spectrum especially with good recordings. WIth low res files the iDX seemed to help them and are not too revealing, but at the same time they are revealing with quality recordings. If that makes any sense then you know what I mean, so pretty much they can produce fine details with hi-res music and with bad recordings they are not to brutal. The higher end of the frequency is just as good as the bottom and the middle.  The treble is very clear and transparent and never harsh or fatiguing on the ear drums.
 
Straight out of the box they were really boomy and a little uncontrolled to my ears, I have to say they really improved over time. The amount of improvement was very noticeable to me mostly low end control. Compared to the iDX 120 the 160s have a fuller sound with more bass presence and refinement. Beyerdynamics 120s also don’t have the ability to separate instruments as good as the 160s, The 160 mids compared to the 120s is slightly on the warmer side, they don’t necessarily sound veiled or laid back the 120s are just more forward. Overall the 160 sound  leans  towards the neutral side with a slight emphasis in the bass.
 
You also get quality hands free cell phone calls, I always test these features calling my mother. She is up there in age and is hard of hearing, she had no problem hearing me talk into the mic and didn’t no I was using a hands free headset. My loving mother's voice came over crystal clear, her repeating herself wasn’t due to me not being able to hear her. You know how moms are the must repeat what they say at least 100s times. Then they will call you back just to say the same thing.


 

 

 
WHAT I REALLY THINK
 
Who are these for, anyone that doesn’t want to spend a ton of money on iems but want’s a highly detailed sound.  After using these for 2 straight weeks at work everyday, I can honestly say these are way overlooked especially at this price point. iDX 160 work really well with today’s music, what I mean by that is if you listen to anything in the top 100 music charts. To top it off they are built with Beyerdynamic quality that they're known for. You are not going to get a cheap piece of plastic, the metal housings will for sure withstand everyday usage. These are the type of iems that you use to just enjoy your music, they're not perfect by any means but what product is. I would highly recommend these to anyone looking to upgrade their free earbuds from their cell phones for the first time. Audiophiles won’t be doing any critical listening with these but I think it will please most of the discerning listeners.. So do yourself a favor and give these a try, or if you have them and haven’t used them in awhile go spend some more time with them. To be honest after using them for a short period I wasn’t to impressed. After racking up some hours and switching to some of my higher priced iems I realized how good these actually are. Thanks for reading I hope this helped anyone interested in these.

DO NOT BUY.
 
The sound, in particular the bass is great. BUT, I've had the cable break at the jack on two pairs within a month of getting each (they were replaced under warranty). I have not abused them or dropped my phone hanging from the cable: it is just poorly designed. This is unacceptable for a $160 pair of phones, when the standard phone ones last longer. DO NOT BUY - unless you only want them for a month.
 
The cable does connect to another 3.5mm jack at the point the cable splits. This is good, as one can easily replace their hopeless quality cables, but is a bit heavy if you use them for running: the mass of the extra jack tends to pull them out of their ears, although they do come with a clip, but this results in the cables 'looping' near your ears.

My Review of the Beyerdaynamic dx 160ie In Ear Monitors
 
I will start with the summary / conclusion. This way you get all the important information right away. If you want to know how I came to my conclusion, you can just continue reading. If you don't want to you simply don't have to scroll through a ton of words
 
 
Summary
 
Pros:
 
- Very nice mids! Organic and full bodied.
- Potent bass
- Little to no listening fatigue.
- PRAT.
 
So-so:
 
- Highs: some detail doesn't reach your ear, and sound lacks sparkle. They just don't shine.
- Soundstage: Rather intimate and close to the head. Good for some tracks and genres, but I have heard better. Good in width, not so much in depth.
- Air/Space: I often miss some airiness.
- Transparency: While the mids are fairly transparent and vocals are particularly clear and easy to follow, the rest can often sound dull and uninspired. I think this comes from the softened treble and the limited soundstage.
- Transparency
- The potent bass. Again. On some tracks it's just too powerful and bloated.
- The cable.
- Isolation: it's ok, but not more than that.
 
Cons:
 
- COMFORT! I have to use the smallest pair of all the tips to even get a decent seal. Once they are properly positioned I just don't find them comfortable. Especially on the left ear it's almost like a piercing kind of pain. Listening session don't last longer than 15-20 minutes due to that. My girlfriend found them absolutely unbearable.
 
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
 
My experiences with the dx 160ie that led to what you have just read:
 
The packaging and everything not related to the sound quality:
 
Very good for the price. The packaging and the accessoires suggest that this is a premium product. The pouch is well made, albeit a bit small. Quite a selection of ear tips! In my case only the smallest ones give me an acceptable seal, but at least I didn't have to buy additional tips.
The dx 160ie + the small sized stock tips are not comfortable, at all. I have experienced worse, but I am always aware of their presence. After a few minutes they begin to hurt. After some more minutes I already feel the urge to take them out and never put them in again, it is that bad.
Isolation is ok. When I listen with these IEMs while commuting (bus + train) they are able to block out a fair ammount of ambient noise, but when I mute the music a lot of it still goes through. On a scale where 1 means no isolation and 7 perfect isolation, I give them a 4.
Cable noise is no problem. I wear them over-ear. The cable itself feels slightly heavy compared to the weight of the IEMs themselves. Wearing them cable-down it feels to me as if the cable pulls on the IEMs.
 
Listening:
 
I listened to the these combinations:
 
ibasso dx50 (fw 1.2.8) -> dx 160ie
Galaxy Nexus / Blackberry Q5 -> dx160ie
 
These are my impressions with the dx 160ies on my favorite music suitable for evaluation. All of these tracks are 16bit/44.1khz .flac files.
 
Capricorn - George Duke (from Faces In Reflection) / features E-Bass, Drums, Synthesizer, piano and male voices.
 
- Mighty bass
- Lacks air
- Soundstage ok, rather intimate but believable
- Percussion is tight, I like it
- Mids are really nice, Synths are powerful and organic, voices are pronounced and clear
- I miss some detail and transparency
 
What's new - Elvira Nikolaissen & Matthias Eick (from I Concentrate On You) / features female jazz voice, piano, guitar, double bass, trumpet and some digital effects
 
- Bass is strong and a bit too thick
- Voice is very easy to understand and follow
- Piano lacks sparkle, but easy to listen to
- Soundstage is quite intimate
- Trumpet lacks air
- A bit dull as a whole
 
Thousand Knives - Ryuichi Sakamoto (from Playing The Piano) / features two pianos
 
- Lower registers are rich and full
- Highs lack sparkle
- Good pace and timing
- Sounds a bit dull
 
Dream Dancing - Tony Bennett and Bill Evans (from Together Again)/ features male jazz voice and piano
 
- Good soundstage
- Voice is nice and quite rich
- Lower registers on the piano are really good, "tasty"
- Good timing, the swing feel of the song comes through
 
Cherry Pie - Sade (from Diamond Life) /features female voice, E-Bass, drums, guitar, percussion, some additional effects
 
- Good soundstage width, depth is lacking
- Bass too strong, bloated
- Very nice voice
- Drums are tight and have some nice kick
 
Um Beijo - Kenny Barron & other artists (from Spirit Song)  / features piano, violin (or viola?), double bass, drums, saxophone, trumpet
 
- Nice violin, good tone
- Piano is ok, lacks sparkle
- I miss air, soundstage is not as big as it could be
- Trumpet is really nice
- Awesome saxophone, the tone!
- Best track so far, the most enjoyable with these IEMs.
 
Too Young To Die - Jamiroquai (from High Times) /features Strings, E-piano, guitar, E-Bass, male voice, drums and percussion
 
- Strings are placed in a wide room, nice
- Bass too strong, but the bassline is killer (Stuart Zender!)
- Voice is really good
- Good drive and energy
 
Strange Fruit - Marcus Miller (from Tales) / features synthesizer, bass clarinet and some ambient sounds
 
- Beautiful synth
- Very nice clarinet, great tone!
- Together with "Um Beijo" the best experience with these IEMs
 
+ many other songs that didn't reveal anything new about the dx160ie...
 
Mobile gaming:
 
I tried the dx 160ies with an awesome mobile game called "Osmos". The soundtrack is truly remarkable not only for a mobile game - it features a nice selection of tracks from a genre I'd call "ambient electronica", all of them have been recorded in very good quality. The dx160ie goes really well with this kind of music, delivering an immersive and full bodied sound.
 
Comments from my fiancée (not half as much into audio as I am):
 
About the comfort: Maaaaaaaan, that hurts.
About the sound: Not my cup of tea. They sound dull and I think there's too much bass.
 
Note that I didn't tell her my opinion before she gave them a try.
 
 
Sooo... these are my findings. It's now up to you to decide whether you want to give the dx 160ie a try or not. I don't like recommending gear, everyones a bit different and our opinions are not the same every day.
Would I buy them? Maybe, if they were considerably more comfortable, had a less bloated or prominent bass and a bit more air. End of story!
 
I tried my best and sincerely hope that you enjoyed reading this review.

I received the Beyerdynamic DX 160 and immediately began listening to get a good feel for this brand new IEM. Putting through a variety of genres and some sweeps these are the opinions I formed.
 
Build Quality: The DX 160 is a well made IEM, the aluminum housings and nozzles mean there is very little risk of these getting crushed or the nozzles breaking off, problems endemic to other IEMs, the flat cable terminates into a 3.5mm that is also the Y connector, which then plugs into another extension. Kind of weird but overall not a problem, somewhat convenient if you have a small DAP that can clip to a collar or sleeve. I really wish the LR indications were slightly more obvious, they are difficult to find at first. Overall build quality: A+
 
Accessories: The amount of tips provided was fairly sufficient, and expected at this price point, I preferred the triple flange and the comply, favoring the comply tips the most. The Y split to share music is a peculiar addition and it didn't particularly work that well, at least when I tried it with another pair of IEMs concurrently, I wouldn't recommend this unless it was the only option for sharing music, but as with most things few complain about additional options. Overall accessories: B+ (Would have liked an airline adapter)
 
Sound: Here we come to the meat of the review, the sound. I will preface this by giving a little background on my music tastes, I'm a hobby oboist and annual symphony goer, I also enjoy attending the many doctoral and faculty recitals that are readily available in my area, normally piano, violin and cello, with the occasional oboe. I have a preference towards neutral, natural sound. That said I do listen to lots of alternative rock and indie, and I will not be shy in saying the DX 160 is much more at home with the latter music selections than the former. This is a bass tilted headphone, at least to my ears, listening, On Melencholy Hill off the Gorillaz singles collection the bass is very prominent, with lots of slam and impact, I can see where Beyer focused their efforts on this IEM, and it isn't without results. I would say of the IEMs I have heard, which all hover around this price point, the DX 160s have the only bass I would say would satisfy a basshead or someone who predominantly listens to EDM or DnB. Feel Good Inc off the same album through the DX 160s delivers a visceral bass guitar, not something commonly achieved in IEMs. Moving on from the bass to the midrange, it seems slightly recessed, vocals seem veiled, they don't have the same presence they would through more neutral phones. On St. Veronica by Billy Talent, the bass guitar overshadows the vocals, I feel like I have to have the volume louder than I would like. Incidentally, running a sine wave sweep, the mids do not seem that far under the bass, maybe 3dbs, and their seems to be a slight 5db bump ~8khz or thereabouts, and then it starts to roll off a little bit after 12khz, a slight V shape. Treble is fairly sparkly, not fatiguing, and well detailed, I actually really like the treble on these, I just wish they had a little more extension, and they perhaps catch less of my attention when their is also heavy bass present in a track. Classical music listening was limited, and to their credit the Beyer's delivered as well as one can expect from a reasonably priced IEM, certainly you could do worse, however they would not be my go to in this respect. Overall sound: B- (A for bass lovers)
 
Final verdict: B+, the Beyerdynamic DX 160 IEM is a well built IEM with a fun sound that would please a variety of people's tastes, the clamshell case is probably the best case I have encountered at this pricepoint. They don't do anything glaringly wrong, however this is a very competitive space at the $1-120 range, and while it does punch at it's weight class, it isn't doing anything particularly impressive either, this is a very safe, classic IEM that is not out to achieve notoriety through gimmicks or anything provocative sound wise, it's an overall solid product and I would recommend it for those that want excellent bass in an IEM.
 
Test tracks used were all flac, played through a Sansa clip zip rockboxed, an ef2a amplifier, and a galaxy nexus phone. Once again thanks to Beyer for choosing me to review their product.

Disclaimer: the DX 160 iE was provided free of charge by Beyerdynamic for review purposes. No monetary exchange or donations were involved throughout the process.
 
            Starting off simply, let’s discuss the accessories that are included in the packaging. For starters, the DX 160 iE comes with a small carrying case that has a gloss-black-on-matte-black screen-printed “Beyerdynamic” logo on one side.  Another inclusion is a small headphone splitter that allows you to share music with friends and a clip to keep the cable attached to a shirt or bag. They also provide 5 pairs of single flange silicon tips in various sizes, a double flange pair, and a pair of triple flange tips. And thankfully they take the extra step and include a pair of Comply T-400 foam tips as well. I personally love when an IEM manufacturer includes a pair of Comply tips as I feel they achieve a great seal and allow for better body and isolation.
 
            Speaking of isolation, they’re not amazing by any means but they do a decent job of isolating. They don’t isolate as well as say my former set of Etymotic HF3 or my 1964-Q, but they’re no slouch either. I’m writing this review from an airport terminal and during the quieter songs I can clearly hear those talking around me. And when the music is paused I can clearly hear the music that’s resonating throughout the terminal. That said, when I’m not listening to piano sonatas they do a decent job of blocking out the ambiance around me. And if you’re looking for a headphone that can block out the sound of an aircraft jet engine then you really should look elsewhere. But if you want to drown out the sound of a bus/train/subway then I can say for certainty that these will be able to help. While riding the T around Boston this week I was able to enjoy my music in silence and escape the world around me for a short time.
 
            And as someone who moves around constantly, I love a headphone that doesn’t have a microphonic cable. I always wrap the cable over my ear to get the most contact with my body so that it’s as non-microphonic as possible. The DX 160 iE’s microphonics are some of the better that I’ve heard in their price range. While I still prefer the exceptionally low-microphonic braided cables some IEM use, the flat cable that Beyerdynamic chose does a good job of keeping friction noise from interfering with my music. And another nice aspect of a flat cable is that it’s more resistant to tangling than some traditional cables. But even then I was able to get it into a knot on more than one occasion inside its carrying case.
 
            But the cable is also one place I have to fault Beyerdynamic’s design choices. For whatever reason, they decided that to make it a split cord design. Now I’ve seen split cords for several years now and the reason was simple: use the shortened version when you have an arm mounted DAP and you’re exercising. That’s a great design when you’re highly active and need the headphone cable to be short enough that it’s not getting in your way. But Beyerdynamic saw it fit to place the 3.5mm headphone jack at the split for each ear.  Why would you do this so near the top? Honestly with how the headphone is currently, it would have been better for them to go with a single headphone cable and completely removed the extra weight from the jack/plug combo. This is where the clip comes into play for me. I use it directly below the connection and clip it onto my button-down shirt so it doesn’t sway when I’m moving. The packaging lists that the headphone comes with an extension cable as one of its accessories but for me it’s a requirement, not an option. They most certainly get negative points for their design in the cable area.
 
            But the most important aspect of these headphones is the sound. I ran the headphones from my MacBook Pro with an AudioQuest Dragonfly as well as from my iPhone 5S using the FiiO E12. The DX 160 iE is a fun little IEM and I’ve enjoyed getting to know it these past few days. It has a fun sound and can make certain genres and songs come alive for me. I started listening to Spanish Delight by The Bo Keys and it’s definitely making my toe tap. The keyboard had a bit of energy that gave the song a bit life. But it’s not a perfect representation of the song. At time the bongos were overshadowed and even lost within the song and the bass line was a bit too forward. Some of the upper details like the sound of fingers sliding along the guitar strings and even a bit of the guitar’s energy weren’t present like they are on my 1964-Q. I would definitely say that the DX 160 iE favors the low end and at times the mid and upper ranges suffer.
           
            Changing genres to a bit of metal (I chose Iijime Dame Zettai by BABYMETAL) I was once again left with a moderate impression of the headphones. On this particular track I felt that the headphones did a decent job of reproducing the sound of the drum machine and the low-end energy they provide. But then I was left wanting as the vocals sounded closed-in and lacked a bit of energy. I know the girls’ voices can really sparkle on a well-balanced headphone. The guitars were also pushed back a bit due to the low end bleeding into their range.
 
            Genre jumping once again, I put on a selection from Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories. And here is where I started enjoying the Beyers. I enjoyed Giorgio by Moroder. The voice over was nicely balanced with the background music and once the song got into full swing it made my head bob along with the beat. It was one of the first songs where I really got into the music using the DX 160 iE. But that enthusiasm was restrained a bit once I moved onto Instant Crush and once again the vocals were recessed.
 
            Another aspect of the DX 160 iE where I'd like to comment quickly is the soundstage. I feel that they do a fairly decent job of reproducing the soundstage as mastered on the track. I had on more than on occasion experienced a soundstage that surrounded me throughout the track and on others the soundstage felt congested and disappointing. As a whole, I have to say that they have a fairly medium sized soundstage. It's not large, but it's not what I'd call small either and it really comes down to the quality of the mastering. Going with a higher resolution recording will generally provide an improvement to the placement and separation of the instruments.
 
            After listening to them exclusively during my time with them, I find that the Beyerdynamic DX 160 iE had the potential to be exceptional but as a result of the tuning they made some sacrifices that make it fall a bit short. I enjoy them for more bass-emphasized fun music, but when it comes to the treble I’d love to see it more pronounced and the mids could use a slight bump as well for a more balanced sound. You could use a little bit of EQ and pull back on the low end to achieve a more balanced presentation and for some people that may be where they go with these. If you enjoy booming bass and recessed mids/highs then these could definitely a contender in their price range. I feel that they provide a solution for those who listen to EDM and really want the low end to pop. But they just won’t hold up when playing jazz, blues, metal or several other genres where a V-shaped or flat presentation is welcomed. They’re not perfect by any means, but they’re definitely decent IEMs.
 
            So would I recommend them to a friend? That’s a tough question. The cable is a bit of a stumbling block for me but if it didn’t bother them I could see this being a great IEM for some of my friends to buy. So yes, I’d recommend it based on the situation. For someone like me who wants a bit more energy throughout the range, it’s not a suitable choice.
 
            I’d like to thank Beyerdynamic for making it possible for me to spend time with these headphones for a couple weeks and get acquainted. It was an excellent experience and I hope that they continue to offer this sort of loaner demo program to Head-Fiers in the future.

I'm sure a lot of you are familiar with Beyerdynamic brand (designed and engineered in Germany) and their popular over-ear headphones, considered to be at the top of a lot of audiophile lists. But not a lot of you, including myself, are familiar with their in-ear product line. Though I had an opportunity to review not too long ago one of their flagship Custom One Pro headphones, I was very curious to find out how Beyerdynamic scaled down their legendary bass driven sound to a small in-ear footprint. Here is what I found.
 
Starting with a packaging box, you get a detailed walk through of the design and functionality, technical specification, and a list of included accessories. Even before you flip the magnetic cover to reveal DX 160ie under the plastic screen, you get a very good idea that you are dealing with a premium set of audiophile headphones. Out of the box, you are presented with a lightweight design of all aluminum housing with a detailed anodized finish and textured aluminum ring design and a metal mesh covering the nozzle. The pinhole port opening next to molded strain relief is always a dead giveaway to expect a great bass performance. Though L/R identification on strain relief is not easy to see, a noticeable bump on the R side guides you to id it even in a dark. For their DX 160ie model, Beyerdynamic chose a flat tangle free cable which gives it a more modern design look.
 
Further examination of the cable, revealed a first surprise. The original cable attached to headphones is very short, approximately 0.3m, and both of the flat cable sides come together in 3.5mm connector. I asked Beyerdynamic to clarify this choice since majority will use it with an attached extension for a standard length. Apparently, this design decision was driven by a number of requests from business travelers, specifically for airplane flights to cut down on cable clutter. To make everybody happy, Beyerdynamic came up with a solution of an original short cable and a regular length extension. You can always look at it as if 3.5mm angled connector of the extension ever gets damaged (I personally wasn't too crazy about strain relief sleeve in there and a small size of the connector which is hard to grab on to), you don't have to replace headphones and instead just need to replace a cable extension. I'm also hoping they will introduce another 3.5mm socketed extension with in-line remote for playback control of smartphone/tablet.
 
Moving on to the included accessories, Beyerdynamic made sure to please everybody!!! First of all, included is a very generous selection of 7 pairs of eartips, ranging in different sizes and double and triple flange design, as well as a bonus pair of Comply foam eartips. I already mentioned about extension cable which I'm going to use as permanent attachment, and there is also a shirt clip. Furthermore, a premium round hard case is included, as well as a clever adapter which enables attachment of 2 headphones to the same 3.5mm source. This is a definitely impressive collection of accessories including premium tips, but the main question - how do these sound?
 
I always take with a grain of salt vendor's claim about "premium sound quality" they put in a description of the product. But in this case you can be certain Beyerdynamic put all of their years of German engineering design experience to deliver the goods!!! Till this moment my only experience with audiophile quality in-ear balanced sound was using multi-driver BA IEMs. With those it makes sense how using a cross-over and a separate dedicated balance armature drivers you can tune the sound. With DX 160ie we are talking about a single dynamic Neodymium driver which has been tuned to a perfection of balanced response across entire frequency range AND a bass extension with an enhanced quantity. The sound signature is a little more brighter than MMX 102ie, but still on a warmer side due to control of the upper range. Starting with a bass, lows are extended down to the rumbling sub-bass level with a nice texture and a fast mid-bass punch. The bass is well controlled, not bloated, and doesn't spill into mids. It's hard to tell if mids are a bit recessed due to a bass quantity, but they definitely have a balanced presence in the mix with plenty of details and clarity. As a result of that, you get a natural sounding powerful vocal delivery, something I enjoyed from my other IEMs that cost 4x as much. Treble has a detailed sparkle and extension without a hint of sibilance. Overall sound is very transparent and smooth, a bit on a warmer side since the brightness is not too much in your face. The soundstage/imaging is above the average. Also, I found these headphones to be forgiving even using lower quality mp3s, and they paired up nicely with either laptop or smartphone or DAP. One thing I did notice, while testing it with X5 I had to raise the volume level by about 10 units in comparison to other IEMs. This wasn't an issue driving them directly from my phone or laptop, so I assume X5 is more sensitive to the impedance considering these are 47 ohm versus typical 16-20 ohm with other headphones.
 
Overall, I can tell you with certainty that I just found my new favorite pair of dynamic in-ear headphones!!! I still value my multi-driver BA IEMs, but every other single dynamic driver headphone I tested in the past had something desired for improvement (either too much of v-shape sound, or veiled sound, or too much bass, or not enough clarity/details, etc.). The sound signature of these headphones is just perfect and really hits the sweet spot for me, and made me forget about any gripe I had with a cable. On top of that, if you consider an introductory price of $119 (and already seen it lower on Amazon) which also includes a very generous selection of accessories - this is one amazing value for a single dynamic driver headphones.
 
Here are the pictures of un-boxing and up close details for your enjoyment.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bought these as was specifically looking for a short cable headphones with decent sound quality and since I have read great reviews about previous models I decided to go for it. Delivered directly from Beyerdynamic in less than a week for 100 EUR + 30 EUR shipping (a bit steep).
 
I like:
- the flat cable (the cable is not as flat is some Monsters, which are to flat for my taste),
- design,
- comfort (these are the most comfortable pair of headphones, despite their heavy weight - I own Shure SE110, M-Audio IE30s (same as UE SuperFi.5) and a few Sony headphones from diffrent price ranges; none are as comfortable as the Beyer's)
- sound (I prefer a bassy sound so the sound is very good to me while some may argue its on the heavy side with base. The highs are very detailed while the mids are good, but as all mid-range headphones, are a bit lacking in some areas, mainly because of the heavy base)
- supplied accessories (despite the 100 EUR price range, you get a lot of accessories (hard case, double flanges, triple flanges, ordinary tips and a pair of medium Comply T400 tips and an extension cable as the primary lenght is 40 cm)
 
I don't like:
- weight (Its nice to have an all-metal housing and the appearance is great as they are not 'flashy' like some other headphones but they are definitely a heavy pair of in-ears. You do not feel it when your have them on but once you take them off, especially if the are hanging down, you know you have them around your neck - maybe exaggerating a bit)
- cable length (I thought that 40 cm would be just the right length but as the are a symmetrical Y-split instead of the asymmetrical Sony type of split, they just fall a bit to short for my taste). My perfect cable length would be around 60 cm.
- Isolation (a matter of preference. I am used to Comply's on the M-Audio IE30s so its not a fair comparison, but you can definitely achieve isolation with Comply's if you want to)
 
Summary:
In my subjective opinion, these are the best in-ears for the 100 EUR price range and even up to 200 EUR. I wanted a short cable design so I had virtually no choice but these Beyers are just what I wanted. Also worth noting is that I have been a long time user of Comply's and I simply hate the fuss of putting the in and out if you have to do it often so I was hoping the Beyers would deliever without the use of Comply's and I am happy to say that they do. The double flanges are perfect for my ears and a slight lack of isolation is a good thing as Comply's really do block out everything and make the bass even more pronounce.
 
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SOUND SIGNATURE (Comparison):
If I would have to describe the sound signature, I would say it is on the warm side, however some might even put it on the slightly dark side. Compared to Shure's SE110 and M-Audio IE30s, which are both on the bright side (the Sure's more so than M-Audio).

Stumbled upon this pair of earphones when watching this year's CES videos. Decided to give it a try when I found out that Jaben Singapore had these earphones in stock. It was much better than my MMX 101ies, like, WAY better. The soundstage was noticeably better and the bass is brought slightly forward without losing its tightness as compared to the MMX 101ies. However, I could still hear some ambient noise when putting them on without playing music. The DX 160ie has a well balanced sound. I'll be writing a proper review once I burned in these bad boys