[mrspeakers]

how does the new DUMMER cable compare to the VIVO cable? i just purchased the VIVO for my A2C for $300 and it sounds like the stock Noire cable in regards to silver plated OFHC. Please correct me if I am wrong, because this bothers me a lot. Thanks!

The main difference I hear is in depth-of-field and dark space, both things people who don't believe cables will make a difference will probably argue even exist so caveat emptor. With my TOTL gear I also hear a bit more in the micro-details. I prefer the VIVO and use it for most applications, but the new cable definitely is closer to VIVO than the DUMMER was.

Sound aside, the VIVO uses higher quality materials throughout, has a cloth not PU finish, and are hand-made in the US supporting the low-volume options like 2.5, 3.5mm, 4.4mm cable, 3m options, etc. It's complex to produce and manage all these cables, there's a reason we're the only headphone maker I know of that sells all these terminations, it's very expensive to produce low volume products. Were we to make the new cable in those low-quantity configurations it'd probably drive the price to near VIVO levels. Volume and the fact that there are only two models helps us make the new cable very cost-effective.

But if you don't care about it being hand-made in the US, don't need the terminations, and don't hear the difference you can always return it...

 

[TK33]

The UPS guy just dropped these off First impressions...they are a keeper, sound fantastic and were worth the wait. Definitely very Harman-like. I was planning on running them with no tuning pads for a week or so but ended up putting in the white tuning pads after about 5 minutes and am really enjoying them now. @mrspeakers Great job!

As for the cable, it is more flexible than I expected and very comfortable. I do wish they were a bit shorter but I did manage to finally place an order with Hart Audio for a shorter (48 inch with interconnect) cable.

 

[SCftw]

long time follower... first time posting. finally found a set up with zero complaints. mainly listening to rock, metal, hip hop.

previous cans include: Shure e4, Shure 420, Drop 6XX, Drop TR-X00, Noble X Encore, JVC HA-FX850. FPS gaming headphones include senn 555 and 598 but not used for critical listening. low end stuff and chi-fi not mentioned.

current setup: iPhone Neutron FLAC —> Modius —> Asgard 3 —> Vivo cables —> Aeon 2 closed (perforated pads, no filters)

Mobile setup: iPhone —> Mojo

comfort and isolation is phenomenal even with glasses. i wear these for hours at a time and i fall asleep with them almost daily. comfort is the main predictor of which headphones i grab these days. no sweaty ears, itchiness, or having to reposition the cups. i just hear the music and nothing else. isolation goes both ways, wife doesn’t hear anything when she’s right next to me.

forgive the lack of audiophile lingo, haven’t cared enough to learn all these years. Simply put, these cans breath life into music. the detail, tonality, sound stage, separation, and timing is the best that i’ve heard. Dan Clark pretty much nailed it in terms of value, comfort, style. i think red is sexier than black. the red cups are way better in person and the pictures really do not do them any justice. please keep making them in red.

also, shout out to Sue and the rest of the team at DCA. we need more customer service like DCA. alright next post will be in 10 years... signing off and saving $$$ for the next set DCA.

 

[sealykojac]

Is the new A2CN less efficient that the older models? On my DX7 Pro I need to have the volume maxed and computer volume maxed to get to a normal listening level. On my Xduoo TA-10R maxed is louder but still in the normal listening range and that amp is putting out 2000 mW @ 32 ohms. I have to lower the volume about 30 clicks when I plug in my Grados. The fact neither of my amps appear to be powerful enough to drive this headphone is surprising...

*UPDATE*
I ended up having to reinstall windows after a graphics card swapped smoked the install. On a fresh windows install the gain magically has been boosted (settings all look the same) so while still hard to drive I no longer have to max out the volume on the amps. Don't really know what was going on with the PC...

 

[elira]

Is the new A2CN less efficient that the older models? On my DX7 Pro I need to have the volume maxed and computer volume maxed to get to a normal listening level. On my Xduoo TA-10R maxed is louder but still in the normal listening range and that amp is putting out 2000 mW @ 32 ohms. I have to lower the volume about 30 clicks when I plug in my Grados. The fact neither of my amps appear to be powerful enough to drive this headphone is surprising...

As far as I know the Noire have the same driver as the regular A2C. But yeah, you need a powerful amp, I have the feeling that a lot of amps cheat on their specs, also the low impedance of the Aeons makes weird things with certain amps.

 

[Alcophone]

Is the new A2CN less efficient that the older models? On my DX7 Pro I need to have the volume maxed and computer volume maxed to get to a normal listening level. On my Xduoo TA-10R maxed is louder but still in the normal listening range and that amp is putting out 2000 mW @ 32 ohms. I have to lower the volume about 30 clicks when I plug in my Grados. The fact neither of my amps appear to be powerful enough to drive this headphone is surprising...

That sounds surprising to me given that Dan wasn't interested in coming up with an Ether 2 Closed because it wouldn't be efficient enough to be useful with... phones. So what you have should allow you to get painfully loud, I would think. What's your source? Spotify, Tidal etc. have a volume slider of their own, is that maybe low? Is it any different with, say, YouTube videos, system sounds, etc.?

 

[sealykojac]

That sounds surprising to me given that Dan wasn't interested in coming up with an Ether 2 Closed because it wouldn't be efficient enough to be useful with... phones. So what you have should allow you to get painfully loud, I would think. What's your source? Spotify, Tidal etc. have a volume slider of their own, is that maybe low? Is it any different with, say, YouTube videos, system sounds, etc.?

It doesn't matter if I use Tidal or YouTube Music on my Mac or my Windows PC the volume still has to be maxed for normal listening level on either amp. If I plug in my Grado hemp into the same amps I have to drop the volume by easily 30+ clicks on the Xduoo to be at the same level. It's bad news for the tube amp because you start picking up all sorts of weird tube distortion when the volume is maxed. I just got these things, going to test a different cable I have, but it does to me seam my pair is very difficult to drive to the point I'm going to have to buy a different amp.


*UPDATE*
I ended up having to reinstall windows after a graphics card swapped smoked the install. On a fresh windows install the gain magically has been boosted (settings all look the same) so while still hard to drive I no longer have to max out the volume on the amps. Don't really know what was going on with the PC...

 

[TK33]

Is the new A2CN less efficient that the older models? On my DX7 Pro I need to have the volume maxed and computer volume maxed to get to a normal listening level. On my Xduoo TA-10R maxed is louder but still in the normal listening range and that amp is putting out 2000 mW @ 32 ohms. I have to lower the volume about 30 clicks when I plug in my Grados. The fact neither of my amps appear to be powerful enough to drive this headphone is surprising...

I don't have the older version but I don't find the Noire particularly hard to drive. Even on my Aurender Flow, I don't go above -33 and usually start lowering the volume at that point. Perhaps it has to do with the low impedance of the AEON 2 Closed as @elira suggested. This has particularly been an issue for me with the Shure SE846 so I try to keep OI below 1ohm on my amps. I believe the output impedance of the DX7 Pro is fairly high (I believe close to 10ohms balanced). I mostly use IEMs so that was mostly what has kept me from buying the Topping amps. Do you have access to a different amp by any chance (I know it is tough these days with COVID)?

 

[sealykojac]

Do you have access to a different amp by any chance (I know it is tough these days with COVID)?

Tested on a completely different setup. Still have to crank it all the way to the right. They sound really good but I feel like something has gotta be off here.



*UPDATE*
I ended up having to reinstall windows after a graphics card swapped smoked the install. On a fresh windows install the gain magically has been boosted (settings all look the same) so while still hard to drive I no longer have to max out the volume on the amps. Don't really know what was going on with the PC...

 

[elira]

Tested on a completely different setup. Still have to crank it all the way to the right. They sound really good but I feel like something has gotta be off here.

The headphone output might have a resistor or something to limit its power, but I couldn’t find any info for that. If the headphone output were the same as the speaker output you would have more than enough power. The headphone output is most likely designed for high impedance dynamic headphones. You might ask the manufacturer about the specs of the headphone output, I could only find the specs of the speaker output.

 

[TK33]

Tested on a completely different setup. Still have to crank it all the way to the right. They sound really good but I feel like something has gotta be off here.

Something is definitely off...I am currently sitting here on my aging Surface Pro 4 listsning with the Noire using a Dragonfly Cobalt (firgured I would give it a try) and I get plenty of volume. Actually sounds decent. My Windows volume control shows I am currentlty at 30 / 100, which sounds pretty loud to me. They are definitely not hard to drive to loud volumes.

On an unrelated note, I probably put 6 or 7 hours on the Noire today while working and they really are super comfortable and easy to listen to (I ended up switching the tuning filters to the black foam from the white ones and it sounds fantastic to me...think my brain has adjusted).

 

[jsmiller58]

I have received my A2C Noire yesterday, still early in the burnin process (so far a bit over 24 hours). I decided to cheat a little today and listen while I was working using the black 1 notch inserts. I noticed that on vocals with some high notes there was almost a - forgive the incorrect choice of terms - a crackling or crunchy sound... have others experienced the same, and if so will that go away with burnin?

 

[elira]

I have received my A2C Noire yesterday, still early in the burnin process (so far a bit over 24 hours). I decided to cheat a little today and listen while I was working using the black 1 notch inserts. I noticed that on vocals with some high notes there was almost a - forgive the incorrect choice of terms - a crackling or crunchy sound... have others experienced the same, and if so will that go away with burnin?

In my experience that happens when your amp lacks juice to power them properly.

 

[jsmiller58]

In my experience that happens when your amp lacks juice to power them properly.

I am using a Geshelli amp... will try with my 789.

 

[gazzington]

Anybody tried these with a wa11 or wa8?