AudioQuest NightHawk Impressions and Discussion Thread

[White Lotus]

I'm curious to see how the compare to the Denon D2000/D5000.

 

[ozrayyau]

Tried this Headphone yesterday, easy to drive, very nice of the mid rang also more than enough the detail, the next shipment will be three weeks after, I can not wait

 

 

[MacedonianHero]

Finally got to hear the NightHawk's today at BBR here in Toronto. The "liquid wood" looked very unique and I liked the aesthetic it provided. The build was very unique overall for these headphones...especially how the drivers were allowed to "float" to get a better seal/fit.
 
I was however disappointed with the cable. It was like a Bose Triport cable in terms of thickness...I'd expect so much more from Audioquest. I'm a big fan of Audioquest cables...my whole system is put together with Audioquest cables (Columbia XLRs to my LL2, King Cobra XLRs to my GS-X Mk2, Carbon USB and power chords a plenty), but the ones on this headphone were disappointing...they seemed really really thin and flimsy. 

 
 
They sounded very good actually, so that was a positive. I put them through their paces, my iPhone 6 wasn't up to the task to fully drive them. Good thing they had a McIntosh MHA100 there. They were coloured towards a warmer and more subdued sound signature. I did wish the treble had a bit more presence and sparkle though. Not sure I'm going to pick up a pair, but I'm glad I finally got to hear them. 

 

[Oregonian]

Have a pair inbound to arrive tomorrow...................looking forward to hearing it with my ears.  More to come..................

 

[White Lotus]

  Have a pair inbound to arrive tomorrow...................looking forward to hearing it with my ears.  More to come..................

 
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts mate - I have trusted your ears and opinions for years!

 

[Oregonian]

   
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts mate - I have trusted your ears and opinions for years!

Thanks bud.  Same back at ya.  I'm looking forward to these.............

 

[SkylarGray]

  Finally got to hear the NightHawk's today at BBR here in Toronto. The "liquid wood" looked very unique and I liked the aesthetic it provided. The build was very unique overall for these headphones...especially how the drivers were allowed to "float" to get a better seal/fit.
 
I was however disappointed with the cable. It was like a Bose Triport cable in terms of thickness...I'd expect so much more from Audioquest. I'm a big fan of Audioquest cables...my whole system is put together with Audioquest cables (Columbia XLRs to my LL2, King Cobra XLRs to my GS-X Mk2, Carbon USB and power chords a plenty), but the ones on this headphone were disappointing...they seemed really really thin and flimsy. 

 

 
Thanks so much for taking the time to audition NightHawk; afterall, the best way to truly evaluate a headphone's performance and engineering quality is to spend some time with it. 
 
The cable you describe is the included "backup" cable, not the official NightHawk cable. The actual cable is quite sophisticated and is essentially a miniature Castle Rock without DBS.
Why do we include 2 cables? Allow me to quote our owner, Bill Low, from the documentation that comes with NightHawk...
 

Why Two Headphone Cables?
If you are new to AudioQuest, you might not know that starting in 1980, AudioQuest has been on the forefront of making the world’s best audio cables. The AudioQuest definition of “best” is higher performance and higher value. At the top of the range, this might also mean very expensive, however AudioQuest has always had its feet on the ground. As the cable designer, I am most proud of our under US$100 cables, because they are possibly even more superior relative to their peers, and a thousand times more people can enjoy the benefit.

Unfortunately, try as we might, we were not able to successfully manipulate conventional headphone-type construction to meet our audio quality standards. So, I gave up trying to make a cable that could pass a 5,000+ bend test, and instead focused on sound quality. Of the two cables included, the thicker cable with “aq” on it in various places, with the thickly plated silver connectors, is the proper NightHawk cable. It’s the cable whose sound quality is appropriate for a great set of headphones.

Many aspects of NightHawk’s advanced design are borrowed from some of the world’s most advanced loudspeakers: techniques and materials not previously used in headphones. I’ve done something similar in creating the NightHawk cable. I’ve miniaturized the AudioQuest Castle Rock speaker cable. As with Castle Rock, the NightHawk cable uses Solid Perfect-Surface Copper+ (PSC+) in a Double Star-Quad configuration, one for each channel of this truly balanced cable. The NightHawk cable also includes Castle Rock’s Noise-Dissipation System. However, Castle Rock’s Dielectric-Bias System (DBS) was a little more than could be included. For DBS, or for the miniaturized version of all-PSS Silver K2 speaker cable, your friendly AQ dealer will be pleased to sell you another cable. Also please see your dealer for NightHawk cable or other models terminated for balanced amplifier outputs (such as two 3.5mm plugs or a 4-pin XLR).

The above description makes it sound like NightHawk found its perfect companion, so why a second cable, why is an unmarked cable with gold-plated connectors also included? It’s because of that part about bend testing, and real-world hard-use applications. NightHawk cable passes rigorous bend testing about 2,000 times, but not the 12,000+ times for this more conventional cable. This means that those of us who unplug and attentively coil our cable before putting it in the carrying case, who don’t wrap the cable around the headphones (causing a sharp bend where the cable exits the headphone cups) will have a NightHawk cable that lasts pretty much forever. For us, the lesser cable is just an unnecessary backup, or the cable to use at parties and such.

For anyone thinking we’re being sneaky and inviting a cable comparison, there’s a bit of truth in that. We’re only including a second cable because we think we need to guarantee your uninterrupted pleasure, but, yes, we very much hope that you will compare the cables and learn why we take cable so seriously.
Sincerely, Bill
William E. Low
CEO

 
 
 

 
...They sounded very good actually, so that was a positive. I put them through their paces, my iPhone 6 wasn't up to the task to fully drive them. Good thing they had a McIntosh MHA100 there. They were coloured towards a warmer and more subdued sound signature. I did wish the treble had a bit more presence and sparkle though. Not sure I'm going to pick up a pair, but I'm glad I finally got to hear them. 

 
I'm a little puzzled why your iPhone 6 wasn't up to the task to drive them? I use my iPhone 6 with NightHawk daily and have no trouble approaching a safe volume of 85–90dB with the volume set to about 10/16 ticks or 63%. I haven't done an actual SPL test on the head & torso simulator in my iso chamber, but some rough math tells me the iPhone 6 should be able to drive NightHawk beyond 110dBSPL—well into the "you're gonna kill your inner hair cells" territory. I'll test this tomorrow and measure the SPL in the lab. Thanks again for listening!

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
Thanks so much for taking the time to audition NightHawk; afterall, the best way to truly evaluate a headphone's performance and engineering quality is to spend some time with it. 
 
The cable you describe is the included "backup" cable, not the official NightHawk cable. The actual cable is quite sophisticated and is essentially a miniature Castle Rock without DBS.
Why do we include 2 cables? Allow me to quote our owner, Bill Low, from the documentation that comes with NightHawk...
 
 
 
 
 
I'm a little puzzled why your iPhone 6 wasn't up to the task to drive them? I use my iPhone 6 with NightHawk daily and have no trouble approaching a safe volume of 85–90dB with the volume set to about 10/16 ticks or 63%. I haven't done an actual SPL test on the head & torso simulator in my iso chamber, but some rough math tells me the iPhone 6 should be able to drive NightHawk beyond 110dBSPL—well into the "you're gonna kill your inner hair cells" territory. I'll test this tomorrow and measure the SPL in the lab. Thanks again for listening!

 
Good to know about the cable. As these were a demo pair, I wasn't sure what they included with the headphones. As mentioned, I'm a big Audioquest fan (per my post above) and have spent a lot of time and $ auditing cables before I settled on the ones I did. I had my iPhone 6 up to 100% volume and they could play at about a medium level...on the stand alone desktop amp, they certainly responded to the better/more amplification.

 

[SkylarGray]

   I had my iPhone 6 up to 100% volume and they could play at about a medium level...

Yikes! At 100% volume on an iPhone 6, it should have been blowing your head off! There must be something faulty with either that demo pair or your iPhone.
May I ask what music you were listening to as well as which music app(s) you used?
I'll get some of our people in touch with BBR and see if we can figure out what was going on.

 

[MacedonianHero]

  Yikes! At 100% volume on an iPhone 6, it should have been blowing your head off! There must be something faulty with either that demo pair or your iPhone.
May I ask what music you were listening to as well as which music app(s) you used?
I'll get some of our people in touch with BBR and see if we can figure out what was going on.

 
It was a Apple Lossless recording of Billy Joel's Greatest Hits played through my iPhone using iTunes.
 
Cheers

 

[Leo]

Yes there should be a bit thicker cable used with these headphones. Glad to see Audioquest provided two in the packaging. And they've left the door open for other cables to be created and used with the NightHawks.

Here's the photo of the two included with my purchase.

 

[Mediahound]

I purchased these headphones on a whim, given my penchant for smooth laid-back headphones (I dislike any bright headphones as my hearing is quite sensitive to treble). With this regard, these headphones sound great since the treble is quite laid back and yummy. The midrange and bass is what is pronounced with the Nighthawks, with impactful bass but not overly so so as to interfere with the midrange. The mids are quite forward which gives a tube-like sound signature.

The design and comfort of these headphones rock! They are very comfortable and feel quite light on your head. The earpads are very plush and seem to fit over my ear without any discomfort. The self-adusting headband is very similar to what you find on AKG 702 headphones for example.

One of the included cables seems nice, and this is the one you're really supposed to use, but the other one seems very thin and cheap, although Audioquest states this one is more durable so I suppose that is the one to use if you are using the headphones while out and about. I wish there was an option for 4-pin XLR balance connection however as I wonder how much better these might sound when running them off a balanced headphone amp.

 

[GMontoya]

I tried these headphones at my local dealer they are decent sounding but not for the price. Audioquest makes some great products and others that are snakeoil. At the retail price of 599.99 I would have to say no way never not worth it. I currently own the following headphones and this is what I am comparing them to. HD-650, Grado RS-2, B&W P7, still breaking in a new pair of ATH-W1000X which is a way better headphone when I demoed them on a McIntosh headphone amp in store even if I had paid full price they are the better headphone. These headphones offer very little in the treble region and muddy mids which show up in strong male vocals. With music that has a lot going on it looses the ability to separate instruments quickly even if it is a high quality recording it just cannot keep up. Unlike HD-650 which scales up nicely and can handle anything you can throw at it this headphone falls flat on it's face. To sum it up the product itself has very good fit and finish it looks more expensive than most but not as nice as some that are cheaper Look at Master & Dynamic or the P7 super luxury. The sound is lackluster and I can see many headfi peeps passing these up if they are comparing them to other cans in the 400+ range. I typically am very critical of headphones because none that I have ever demoed can come close to my Sonus Faber Olympica III's but then again the cost is at another level.

 

[SkylarGray]

   
It was a Apple Lossless recording of Billy Joel's Greatest Hits played through my iPhone using iTunes.
 
Cheers

One of our guys visited BBR today to check out their demo pair. They were indeed using the backup cable and not the official AQ cable.
We also confirmed that the headphones were in good condition in terms of sensitivity on an iPhone 6.
 
I did some tests today with my iPhone 6 in my lab inside the iso chamber with my friend, KEMAR, measuring average A-weighted dBSPL output over 60 seconds at various volume levels. iOS has 16 volume ticks; I started at 8 and worked my way up.
 
I tested a lossless copy of the same Billy Joel Album using the last 60 seconds of one of my favs..."Big Shot."
I also tested full scale white noise.
 

Source Material	DR	vol 08/16	vol 10/16	vol 12/16	vol 14/16	vol 16/16
Billy Joel - Big Shot	DR9	78.8 dBA	87.1 dBA	94.6 dBA	101.5 dBA	108.1 dBA
Full Scale White Noise	n/a	87.1 dBA	95.3 dBA	102.7 dBA	109.5 dBA	116.1 dBA

 
As long as everything was working properly during your demo, then you would have been exposing your ears to an estimated 108dBA on average while listening to the louder passages of Billy Joel at full volume.
At this level, permanent hearing damage can occur after only ~5 minutes of listening. The safe zone is really 85dBA and below, so with music mastered like the Billy Joel album, a volume level of about 11/16 ticks (69%) and below is appropriate for an iPhone 6 with NightHawk.
 
 
All this is to highlight two points:
 
(1) An iPhone is more than capable of driving NightHawk even to levels that could damage your hearing, so...
 
(2) Please, please, please be careful with your hearing out there, folks. Here's an excerpt from NightHawk's printed manual:
 

 
For example, if you were to safely listen to this entire 2-disc Billy Joel album (~2 hours) via iPhone 6, the volume should be set no higher than 11/16 ticks.

 

[MacedonianHero]

One of our guys visited BBR today to check out their demo pair. They were indeed using the backup cable and not the official AQ cable.
We also confirmed that the headphones were in good condition in terms of sensitivity on an iPhone 6.

I did some tests today with my iPhone 6 in my lab inside the iso chamber with my friend, KEMAR, measuring average A-weighted dBSPL output over 60 seconds at various volume levels. iOS has 16 volume ticks; I started at 8 and worked my way up.

I tested a lossless copy of the same Billy Joel Album using the last 60 seconds of one of my favs..."Big Shot."
I also tested full scale white noise.



DR








DR9

Source Material		vol 08/16	vol 10/16	vol 12/16	vol 14/16	vol 16/16
Billy Joel - Big Shot		78.8 dBA	87.1 dBA	94.6 dBA	101.5 dBA	108.1 dBA
Full Scale White Noise	n/a	87.1 dBA	95.3 dBA	102.7 dBA	109.5 dBA	116.1 dBA

As long as everything was working properly during your demo, then you would have been exposing your ears to an estimated 108dBA on average while listening to the louder passages of Billy Joel at full volume.
At this level, permanent hearing damage can occur after only ~5 minutes of listening. The safe zone is really 85dBA and below, so with music mastered like the Billy Joel album, a volume level of about 11/16 ticks (69%) and below is appropriate for an iPhone 6 with NightHawk.


All this is to highlight two points:

(1) An iPhone is more than capable of driving NightHawk even to levels that could damage your hearing, so...

(2) Please, please, please be careful with your hearing out there, folks. Here's an excerpt from NightHawk's printed manual:




For example, if you were to safely listen to this entire 2-disc Billy Joel album (~2 hours) via iPhone 6, the volume should be set no higher than 11/16 ticks.

Good to know. I was shocked when I saw that flimsy cable and knowing how well built my XLR Comumbias are, I was taken aback.

With regards to my loudness or lack thereof on my iPhone 6, I have no idea what happened? I've tried it with my other headphones without issue.