[Fernando Goñi]

Hi ,
Anyone have the Aeon flow closed pairing with the Ibasso DX 220 in 2.5 balanced or at least with th the DX 200 (AMP 1 mkII or AMP 1)
Thanks in advance

I mostly use AMP4 & AMP8, plenty of power and quite musical. Better perhaps AMP8 as its bass is a bit more prominent

 

[ph58]

I mostly use AMP4 & AMP8, plenty of power and quite musical. Better perhaps AMP8 as its bass is a bit more prominent

OK ,
Thanks

 

[Groszek]

Damn since my laptop died stopped using them and they were just sitting on a table and the pads are like completely worn out, big spots with just material. Need to sell them since I'm not using them that much.

 

[Dynaway]

Hi ,
Anyone have the Aeon flow closed pairing with the Ibasso DX 220 in 2.5 balanced or at least with th the DX 200 (AMP 1 mkII or AMP 1)
Thanks in advance

go to the store and give it a try when possible.... i am using the Aeon Flow with the X7 + AM2A....and eversince i got the Aeon, i stop looking for another set of headphone for travelling use.

 

[ph58]

go to the store and give it a try when possible.... i am using the Aeon Flow with the X7 + AM2A....and eversince i got the Aeon, i stop looking for another set of headphone for travelling use.

Thanks for your reply,
If a Fiio X7 can drive the Aeon flow


I suppose that the Ibasso DX 220 can drive to.

 

[marcus2704]

I am awaiting for a pair of these to arrive for me to demo, along with an Astell & Kern AK70 MKII and am looking forward to receiving them. One thing that bothers me, is the number of reviews that state the bass is too lightweight. I am breaking the bank buying these. Can anyone let me know just how amazed I am going to be..?

 

[earnmyturns]

I am awaiting for a pair of these to arrive for me to demo, along with an Astell & Kern AK70 MKII and am looking forward to receiving them. One thing that bothers me, is the number of reviews that state the bass is too lightweight. I am breaking the bank buying these. Can anyone let me know just how amazed I am going to be..?

These are low-impedance, power-demanding headphones. When I tried mine with the otherwise excellent but lowish-power tube-hybrid Apex Peak amp (no longer available on the market), I found the sound quality light and a bit muffled, with lack of power and authority in the bass. On the other hand, with any of my other headphone amps (see my sig), all of which are much more powerful than the Peak, Æon Flow Closed performed very well, with solid, controlled bass and overall balance throughout. I've never used them with a DAP. I tried to find the audio output power spec for your AK70 MkII on the A&K site, nothing, which is a bit strange. In contrast, here are the output power specs for my desktop headphone amps:

Lyr 3: Maximum Power, 16 ohms: 9.0W RMS per channel
Phonitor XE: 2x 2.7 W at 32 Ohm impedance
Neurochrome HP-1: Output power: 3.0 W (32 Ω) (this is what I use for the Æon)
Apex Peak: Max output level into 33 ohms @ 1kHz: 5.7V RMS / 16V P-P / 980mW

Notice the big power difference between the Peak and the others, which corresponds to my impressions of its lack of muscle for Æon.

 

[tcellguy]

I agree. I find these to be very source dependent, and I think it's not just power differences but amp architecture, etc. To my ears, the AFC sounds much more dynamic and has a larger sound stage when driven by the Lyr 3 and Jotunheim vs. the iFI iDSD micro (even at the turbo high output setting).

 

[tcellguy]

I am awaiting for a pair of these to arrive for me to demo, along with an Astell & Kern AK70 MKII and am looking forward to receiving them. One thing that bothers me, is the number of reviews that state the bass is too lightweight. I am breaking the bank buying these. Can anyone let me know just how amazed I am going to be..?

I think the amount of bass is very music genre and recording quality dependent. When listening to bass heavy music like synth wave or other electronic the bass is very present and well controlled. It's never going to slam like a Fostex dynamic driver. It's just a different kind of headphone.

Well recorded rock also has a lot of nice bass response. Where I find them to sound a bit thin is with poorly recorded metal or older rock that can lean overly bright with minimal bass. I think it's not that the AFC is thin in that case, it's just giving a very unembellished representation of the recording.

That said, I find myself using the Schiit Loki and dialing up the mid bass for some tracks to good effect.

The real strength of the AFC to me is the amazing transient responses, clean sub-bass, and very smooth (if sometimes shouty) mids.

 

[Davesrose]

I find these to be very dependent on amp: they're going to be thin sounding straight out from laptops/ many portables. They seem to be the hardest to drive cans I have, and when properly amped, they really open up. They're still focused in the detail range, but they still have a good bass response.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I am awaiting for a pair of these to arrive for me to demo, along with an Astell & Kern AK70 MKII and am looking forward to receiving them. One thing that bothers me, is the number of reviews that state the bass is too lightweight. I am breaking the bank buying these. Can anyone let me know just how amazed I am going to be..?

They definitely are not for people who want an authoritative bottom end. That isn't to say that the bass isn't good, it certainly is of good quality, but for my taste when I had them they were just too bass shy for my needs. Saying that, there is no reason the bass can't be punched up with some thoughtful equalization. Please keep in mind that my comments are from the perspective of somebody who does not prefer bass neutral signatures, but many people are perfectly happy with lighter, cleaner bass where for me I would sacrifice a little bass clarity for some impact as I find light bass even if it is very fast and clean just doesn't hit that sweet spot for me. Ultimately, trust your own ears and enjoy this wonderful headphone.

 

[Caessa]

They definitely are not for people who want an authoritative bottom end. That isn't to say that the bass isn't good, it certainly is of good quality, but for my taste when I had them they were just too bass shy for my needs. Saying that, there is no reason the bass can't be punched up with some thoughtful equalization. Please keep in mind that my comments are from the perspective of somebody who does not prefer bass neutral signatures, but many people are perfectly happy with lighter, cleaner bass where for me I would sacrifice a little bass clarity for some impact as I find light bass even if it is very fast and clean just doesn't hit that sweet spot for me. Ultimately, trust your own ears and enjoy this wonderful headphone.

Agreed. I just received a pair about 5 days ago and have been listening to them alongside my primary open headphones (2014 Audeze LCD-2 with Fazor), and the Aeon is indeed comparatively light on bass quantity, but certainly not quality. Unfortunately, I don't have the budget nor live in an area where I can throw a ton of comparisons at you with top-end gear, but here's how the bass compares to the LCD-2 with my setup:

The LCD-2 straight up has thicker, punchier bass, no question. In the song Angel by Massive Attack, there's a heavy bass line throughout. The LCD-2 literally rumbles on your head and the bass is both felt and heard the entire time. When the bass starts really punching just after the 5-minute mark, it physically hits the side of your head (in a pleasant way, mind you).
On the same song and sound levels, the Aeon Closed does no such thing. You can certainly hear the bass loudly and clearly, but it lacks the physicality of the LCD-2. Instead, you get a much cleaner sound, and you can hear the intricate details and texture of the bass in a way the LCD-2 can't match. Instead of being the main focus of the song, the bass becomes a beautifully balanced part of it, and you become immersed in the rest of the song's sound and detail instead. At that aforementioned 5-minute mark, you can feel a little bit of the bass punch on the Aeon Closed, but not nearly to the degree of the LCD-2.

I should also mention that the Aeon Closed is much more power-hungry than the LCD-2, and maybe the Aeon's bass does have the potential for such physicality that my amp just isn't strong enough to bring out. For reference, I'm using a Schiit Modi 3 DAC paired with a JDS Labs Atom amp.

All that said, I'm totally in love with the Aeon Flow Closed, and to my tastes it does most things better than the LCD-2, despite it being a closed back headphone. It's given me a totally new appreciation for my music library with its incredible presentation of ALL parts of the sound spectrum, not just the bass. I think my next step is to grab a AAA THX 789 amp when it becomes available again and see if I can't give my Aeon some more amping justice.

 

[441879]

Agreed. I just received a pair about 5 days ago and have been listening to them alongside my primary open headphones (2014 Audeze LCD-2 with Fazor), and the Aeon is indeed comparatively light on bass quantity, but certainly not quality. Unfortunately, I don't have the budget nor live in an area where I can throw a ton of comparisons at you with top-end gear, but here's how the bass compares to the LCD-2 with my setup:

The LCD-2 straight up has thicker, punchier bass, no question. In the song Angel by Massive Attack, there's a heavy bass line throughout. The LCD-2 literally rumbles on your head and the bass is both felt and heard the entire time. When the bass starts really punching just after the 5-minute mark, it physically hits the side of your head (in a pleasant way, mind you).
On the same song and sound levels, the Aeon Closed does no such thing. You can certainly hear the bass loudly and clearly, but it lacks the physicality of the LCD-2. Instead, you get a much cleaner sound, and you can hear the intricate details and texture of the bass in a way the LCD-2 can't match. Instead of being the main focus of the song, the bass becomes a beautifully balanced part of it, and you become immersed in the rest of the song's sound and detail instead. At that aforementioned 5-minute mark, you can feel a little bit of the bass punch on the Aeon Closed, but not nearly to the degree of the LCD-2.

I should also mention that the Aeon Closed is much more power-hungry than the LCD-2, and maybe the Aeon's bass does have the potential for such physicality that my amp just isn't strong enough to bring out. For reference, I'm using a Schiit Modi 3 DAC paired with a JDS Labs Atom amp.

All that said, I'm totally in love with the Aeon Flow Closed, and to my tastes it does most things better than the LCD-2, despite it being a closed back headphone. It's given me a totally new appreciation for my music library with its incredible presentation of ALL parts of the sound spectrum, not just the bass. I think my next step is to grab a AAA THX 789 amp when it becomes available again and see if I can't give my Aeon's some more amping justice.

Your impression matches mine. I can tell you with a more powerful better amp, the AFC sounds more dynamic and even more detailed and nuanced, but will never match your LCD2 for sheer low frequency power.

 

[Schueller]

Hey, I was thinking of purchasing these cans, tho I heard they might need a lot of power to run.
I have Cowon Plenue L , and was wondering if I have to get an AMP or it will run well enough without,
Also, I hear kind of mixed reviews regarding the 'portableness' of these headphones, I usually listen to music outside/when travelling, will it be an issue?
Thanks guys

Edit:
Regarding the cable, it comes in either 4 pins XLR or 3,5mm. The Plenue L has 4.4mm and 3.5mm,

If I use an adepter to connect the 4 pins XLR to the 4.4mm, will it sounds good as it should or will it be ... bad?

 

[Caessa]

Hey, I was thinking of purchasing these cans, tho I heard they might need a lot of power to run.
I have Cowon Plenue L , and was wondering if I have to get an AMP or it will run well enough without,
Also, I hear kind of mixed reviews regarding the 'portableness' of these headphones, I usually listen to music outside/when travelling, will it be an issue?
Thanks guys

Edit:
Regarding the cable, it comes in either 4 pins XLR or 3,5mm. The Plenue L has 4.4mm and 3.5mm,

If I use an adepter to connect the 4 pins XLR to the 4.4mm, will it sounds good as it should or will it be ... bad?

According to its review on this site (https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/cowon-plenue-l.23560/reviews), your Plenue L outputs about 500mW into 32 ohms with its more powerful balanced output. My desktop amp maxes at a little over twice that (1.1W) and can push the volume really high before a half-turn, so I think you should be okay if you use the balanced output and crank the volume.

Using an adapter shouldn't affect the sound quality.

As far as portability goes, I guess it depends on what you're looking for. Here are some pros and cons that I can think of off the top of my head:
Portability Pros: Lightweight, comfortable, closed back with good isolation, good clamping power (shouldn't fall off your head as you actively move around), smaller than most headphones designed for desktop use
Cons: Earcups don't pivot/fold like other headphones designed for portability, can't drive them without lots of portable power (though you might have this covered already), larger than most headphones designed for portable use

Based on those criteria, you can decide if taking them on trips is right for you!