[dawktah2]

After unknown delay Monday, weather delay Tuesday and flood delay yesterday, I'm supposed to get my Aeons today.

 

[liopleus]

Up until I got the Aeon, I would have agreed with that, as every closed-back headphone I listened to was purely worse than open-back ones.

But... I strongly prefer the Aeon to the HD-650. By a lot. And the HD-650 is still an excellent choice for open-back headphones in that $400 range. So it's not clear to me that there's an open-back headphone that's actually better than the Aeon at its price. I think that even if you're indifferent between open and closed, the Aeon could still be a really solid recommendation.

(I do still prefer the sound of the open LCD-X to the Aeon, but that's also twice the price and half the comfort, so not really a direct competitor.)

Just curious, has anyone compared the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro to the AEON? I've heard that it's almost as neutral as the HD600 while having better dynamic and resolution.

 

[askri]

Just curious, has anyone compared the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro to the AEON? I've heard that it's almost as neutral as the HD600 while having better dynamic and resolution.

I can tell about Beyerdynamic DT 1770 Pro vs AEON. I had 1770 in the past and for my memory i could not use them more than 30 min. It was good sound with nice bass, but overall it was too harsh and annoying. Mids are more present in AEON, overall i found AEON more musical and neutral than 1770. I can use AEON 8 hours in my office without any problems.

 

[juanix]

I've had the AEONs for a little over a week now and have been listening to them with the foam pad inserts. The inserts make my ears very warm. So warm that I have to adjust the cups every 10 - 15 minutes just to allow them to breath. I also have fairly big ears, so the inserts push my ears back and make them touch the edges of the inside of the pads which I find uncomfortable after a while. I find myself re-adjusting the cups often during listening sessions.

I took the inserts out and the comfort has increased significantly. The sound still seems great, my only worry is that I'm sacrificing sound quality for comfort considering some reviewers like Tyll and Aornic prefer them with the inserts.

My question is, does anyone prefer the sound of the AEONs without the inserts?

 

[Hippocamp]

Just curious, has anyone compared the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro to the AEON? I've heard that it's almost as neutral as the HD600 while having better dynamic and resolution.

I have both. It's really hard to compare closed and open. But...

Compared with the Aeons, the DT 1990 pros are much wider with better instrument separation and more sparkle. The Aeons sound a little congested, relatively.

The low end on the 1990s is much more pronounced than on the Aeons (I know, odd for Beyers). They really rumble (put on Bela Fleck's Cosmic Hippo), even with the analytical pads. With the bass-boost pads they are insanely bassy. I run them with the analyticals.

So, oddly, I find the Beyers more "fun" than the Aeons. Not a long way from neutral, but just a little more bass and sparkle.

But even the best closed can is going to have a hard time competing against a good open can. I have the Aeons because I need some isolation at work. Otherwise I would only have open cans.

BTW, I vastly prefer the 1990s to HD600/650. They are equally resolving with MUCH better soundstage and a more engaging presentation.

 

[MattTCG]

You can get essentially the same effect with a little EQ and without the pads and keep all the comfort .

 

[Bloos]

I've had the AEONs for a little over a week now and have been listening to them with the foam pad inserts. The inserts make my ears very warm. So warm that I have to adjust the cups every 10 - 15 minutes just to allow them to breath. I also have fairly big ears, so the inserts push my ears back and make them touch the edges of the inside of the pads which I find uncomfortable after a while. I find myself re-adjusting the cups often during listening sessions.

I took the inserts out and the comfort has increased significantly. The sound still seems great, my only worry is that I'm sacrificing sound quality for comfort considering some reviewers like Tyll and Aornic prefer them with the inserts.

My question is, does anyone prefer the sound of the AEONs without the inserts?

since you have all that you need to do the comparison yourself, don't pay too much mind to what reviewers say and just find what you like.
I usually go without the inserts

 

[VandyMan]

My question is, does anyone prefer the sound of the AEONs without the inserts?

I just got the pads yesterday, but so far I prefer the Aeon without the pads.

 

[Hippocamp]

My question is, does anyone prefer the sound of the AEONs without the inserts?

No inserts for me. They sound more recessed with the inserts

 

[JLoud]

I agree, I prefer the sound signature without the pads. They seem to lose too much sparkle in the treble region.

 

[Gibson59]

So funny, i greatly prefer the sound with the inserts. To each their own

 

[mrspeakers]

And that is exactly why we include the inserts...

 

[RollsDownWindowsManually]

Just got my AEONs. Really liking them. I can crank up the volume EDM, Heavy Metal, and hard rock without getting fatigued, which isn't something I can do on my other phones. Good bass extension and a very smooth frequency response. Not the widest soundstage, but it's a closed headphone after all, and it does isolate fairy well.

 

[Gibson59]

And that is exactly why we include the inserts...

Thanks you for building these great headphones. I can honestly say they stand up to my HE1000 and I really didn't think that was possible. I'm totally pleased now regardless of which I reach for!

 

[dawktah2]

The Aeons have landed! Add the rains begin again