[Monsterzero]

This is not an lcd2 signature.

+1

Not even close

 

[Allanmarcus]

  i can't believe the sound coming from these for the price.  gentle, super detailed, absolutely gorgeous midrange and the price! My favorite pairing with it was the hugo 2. Couldn't believe how well they scaled up. These are going to be the most popular headphone around for some time due to price and performance, i guarantee it.  A little more elevated bass would be nice FOR ME but it's just a little closed back headphone so that could be dangerous as far as resonance goes.  The ether's have the added bass i prefer.  i preferred the upper midrange of the AEON to both the ethers though.  If you love vocals then these are for you.

Wait, you are saying the Ethers (which ones? there are 4) have more bass than the Aeons?

 

[DoctaCosmos]

All the ethers have a more prominent bass than the AEONS from what I'd heard anyways. But the AEONS aren't lacking by any means. I like a bit of oomph lol.

 

[Byronb]

Anyone had the chance to compare them to the Primes?

 

[inthere]

Wait, you are saying the Ethers (which ones? there are 4) have more bass than the Aeons?

Dunno about that............bass was the main thing I focused on when I listened and I was 99% sure the Aeon had more bass than Ether C

 

[DoctaCosmos]

i was focusing on it too and doing a direct comparison and immediately upon switching was noticing the added bass of the ether c and almost asked if there was going to be any type of fabric insert to add more bass to the AEON like he had for the original ether. to each his own i guess. 

 

[Allanmarcus]

Wait, you are saying the Ethers (which ones? there are 4) have more bass than the Aeons?

Dunno about that............bass was the main thing I focused on when I listened and I was 99% sure the Aeon had more bass than Ether C

I did a little image overlay with Tyll's charts. The Ether C is the 1.1 with one black pad (as I like it

 

[DoctaCosmos]

Dan's words to me when I mentioned that I like the upper midrange on the AEON more than the ether was "well it will seem that the midrange is a tad withdrawn on the ether as it has more bass than the aeon ". Maybe amplitude wasn't the right word when looking at the FR but rather the size of and amount of body that the ether produces

 

[xinghui0711]

I got to briefly hear the AEON during the CanJam. The AEON sounded great but did not catch my eye at the booth.  I did not find anything unpleasant or wrong, though.
Ether Flow is a much better all arounder that just overshadows the baby cousin. Keep in mind that comparison here is completely unfair in many aspects. 
Headband design and pads on all of their models are exceptionally done and proved me that Mr.Speakers is capable of competing against other top guns. Kudos to Dan 

 he's an awesome guy.

 

[UltraBadger]

They did sound really nice thru the Vali 2/Modi Multi bit.

Glad to hear that since that's what I'll be running my pair on.

 

[frigginloony]

Sigh   just ordered mine today  God knows I don't need no more damned headphones.  
 
 
 

 

[Stillhart]

Dunno about that............bass was the main thing I focused on when I listened and I was 99% sure the Aeon had more bass than Ether C

 
 

  i was focusing on it too and doing a direct comparison and immediately upon switching was noticing the added bass of the ether c and almost asked if there was going to be any type of fabric insert to add more bass to the AEON like he had for the original ether. to each his own i guess. 

 
It really depends a few things:  which part of the bass frequency you're listening to and what "more" bass in your mind means.  If you're talking about the Ether C 1.1, I think it has more sub bass but less mid-bass.  So if you're listening to like straight rock, the AEON might sound bassier.  If you're talking about the Ether C Flow, I think the bass is  "bigger" (boomier, more resonant) giving an impression of more bass vs the tighter, more controlled bass on the AEON.  And of course, the AEON doesn't boost bass in the upper bass FR so it can sound less bassy if your track doesn't dip into the area where the AEON shines.
 
So in short, I think you're both probably right.  As I said in my review, I think the bass on the AEON is going to be cause for a lot of these kinds of disagreements.
 

---

 
Regarding isolation, I found that it isolated extremely well when you're outside listening for leakage (like if you're worried about other people hearing your music).  I found that it isolated less well if you're inside trying to isolate outside noise, but still middle-of-the-road for a closed headphone.... not exceptionally good but in no way bad either.

 

[Zachik]

   
 
 
It really depends a few things:  which part of the bass frequency you're listening to and what "more" bass in your mind means.  If you're talking about the Ether C 1.1, I think it has more sub bass but less mid-bass.  So if you're listening to like straight rock, the AEON might sound bassier.  If you're talking about the Ether C Flow, I think the bass is  "bigger" (boomier, more resonant) giving an impression of more bass vs the tighter, more controlled bass on the AEON.  And of course, the AEON doesn't boost bass in the upper bass FR so it can sound less bassy if your track doesn't dip into the area where the AEON shines.
 
So in short, I think you're both probably right.  As I said in my review, I think the bass on the AEON is going to be cause for a lot of these kinds of disagreements.
 

---

 
Regarding isolation, I found that it isolated extremely well when you're outside listening for leakage (like if you're worried about other people hearing your music).  I found that it isolated less well if you're inside trying to isolate outside noise, but still middle-of-the-road for a closed headphone.... not exceptionally good but in no way bad either.

 
Stillhart - bass is my main concern (not sub-bass) since I mostly listen to rock music. I was wondering if you compared is to other sub-$1000 (i.e. no Ether C) closed back headphones?  Audioquest NightOwl and Meze 99 Classic come to mind.  Did you compare to these two?  Any other closed back?
I am really looking for a good closed back for rock music, and I very much appreciate an extra bass...

 

[Stillhart]

   
Stillhart - bass is my main concern (not sub-bass) since I mostly listen to rock music. I was wondering if you compared is to other sub-$1000 (i.e. no Ether C) closed back headphones?  Audioquest NightOwl and Meze 99 Classic come to mind.  Did you compare to these two?  Any other closed back?
I am really looking for a good closed back for rock music, and I very much appreciate an extra bass...

 
I've heard all of those headphones but not in direct comparison to the AEON and not for a ton of time.  
 
From memory:  Meze is warmer than the AEON so you might like that woody bass.  But the headphone itself isn't on par as far as resolution and the bass isn't as controlled.  It's a good headphone for the money but it's not in the same category of SQ.
 
I head the NightOwl briefly at CES in the AQ room (so decent listening conditions).  It's not as pitch black dark as the Nighthawk, but it's firmly on the warm side of the spectrum.  It's more balanced than the NH but that's not saying much.  I'd consider it a "fun" headphone... something to get if you want a lot of bass and don't care about coloring the sound.  I like it considerably more than the NH, but again, not saying much there.  Compared to the AEON, it's bassier with recessed mids.
 
Both of those will give you more bass but a less balanced tonality overall.  Other dark closed headphones you might like include the Fostex TH-XXX series (and variants like the EMU) as well as the ZMF stuff like the closed Blackwood and semi-open Ori.  
 
Like I said, I haven't heard most of these headphones in a while, so take it all with a grain of salt.  The AEON has fantastically rendered bass that I love, but I know that some will want more of a mid-bass hump.  If that's your thing, there are plenty of choices out there for you.

 

[Zachik]

   
I've heard all of those headphones but not in direct comparison to the AEON and not for a ton of time.  
 
From memory:  Meze is warmer than the AEON so you might like that woody bass.  But the headphone itself isn't on par as far as resolution and the bass isn't as controlled.  It's a good headphone for the money but it's not in the same category of SQ.
 
I head the NightOwl briefly at CES in the AQ room (so decent listening conditions).  It's not as pitch black dark as the Nighthawk, but it's firmly on the warm side of the spectrum.  It's more balanced than the NH but that's not saying much.  I'd consider it a "fun" headphone... something to get if you want a lot of bass and don't care about coloring the sound.  I like it considerably more than the NH, but again, not saying much there.  Compared to the AEON, it's bassier with recessed mids.
 
Both of those will give you more bass but a less balanced tonality overall.  Other dark closed headphones you might like include the Fostex TH-XXX series (and variants like the EMU) as well as the ZMF stuff like the closed Blackwood and semi-open Ori.  
 
Like I said, I haven't heard most of these headphones in a while, so take it all with a grain of salt.  The AEON has fantastically rendered bass that I love, but I know that some will want more of a mid-bass hump.  If that's your thing, there are plenty of choices out there for you.

 
@Stillhart  - thanks for taking the time to provide such great information!!
I have never listened to the Meze 99 or (obviously) Aeon, but will definitely be the top of my list for CanJam SoCal in 2 months (cannot wait!!!!!)
I own (and love) the NH.  I had a VERY short listen to the NightOwl at RMAF 2016 (4 months ago) and was not impressed.  Do not remember why... Not even sure it they were a production or pre-production version.
I think I tried the E-MU and Fostex at RMAF, but not sure (too many headphones, and back then I was looking mostly for open backs - ended up buying the Ether Flow which I LOVE).  Will definitely spend some time with them in 2 months.
Never heard of the ZMF Blackwood (thought ZMF only had open or semi-open headphones).  1 more headphones to my must-listen list for CanJam SoCal  

 
BTW, can you briefly tell me which of those REQUIRE an amp?  Ideally, I want to be able to use them either connected directly to my DAP (FiiO X3-II), to my Mojo, and to my Joty.  Obviously, not at the same time...  

 
Thanks again for the very useful info, and great recommendations!