[Seidhepriest]

DN-HP500 are Denon's new "junior" DJ headphones. "Junior" because of the price and size - DN-HP500 are cheapest and smallest in the Denon DJ line. The only supra-aural headphones in the DN-HP lineup, DN-HP500 are the affordable Denon DJ headphones. There's nothing "junior" about the sound though, which makes many supra-aurals run for the money. DN-HP500 don't make a muddy bloated bass mess, either, like so many "DJ" headphones. They're quite civilised; DN-HP500 only highlight bass and drums, bringing them forward. They're also efficient (that is, loud with anything) and have a sweet, fast Denon sound with quick dynamics and open treble.
In short, DN-HP500 are a very good choice among closed supra-aural headphones. Oh, and they look good! And they fold.

[size=large]Build[/size]



DN-HP500 are built from high-quality, durable plastic. They won't break easily, and are obviously designed to serve a DJ for a long time. This means they'll last through several parties and won't mind falling, ending up below other gear in a bag, and so on. There's a limit to resilience of course, but they're quite sturdy.
The headphones are collapsible - they don't fold, but the cups can collapse into the headband, turning headphones into a flat package that can fit into a protective pouch or bag. Cable is coiled, single-entry, approximately 1.5 metres length, unwrapping to 3 metres. Large stereo plug adapter is of the screw-on type.

Package contains just the headphones in a bubble wrap/carton frame protection. There's no carry pouch or extension as with regular Denon headphones.

[size=large]Comfort & Isolation[/size]



Surprisingly comfortable for supra-aurals. Pads are soft and supple. DN-HP500 can be worn for hours.
Isolation could've been better: cups aren't thick, so there's not much between the diaphragms and the outside walls (Denon AH-P372 have a second empty chamber behind the reflector cup, which can be filled with isolating material; DN-HP500 are a simple single-wall arrangement). Efficiency (loudness) helps, so they're roughly on par with Denon AH-D1001 (DN-HP500 diaphragms sit closer to eardrums, so they're louder than circumaural AH-D1001). With an amp or powerful player isolation becomes better as headphones cover the whole frequency range better. With the Rocoo-A player or headpnone amp, DN-HP500 isolate from all street noise and underground train noise.

[size=large]Looks[/size]

Those ball lightning logos turn heads. People talk about DN-HP500 outside. It's a bit ironic that the more expensive and refined Denon AH-D1000 are easily ignored, when the cheaper and simpler DN-HP500 are so attractive. There's nothing special about the design, but the Denon DJ logos sure look good. DN-HP500 were recabled and outfitted with a custom green/black jacket and white isolation for a customer, and that made them look even more special. In short, for the looks, the DN-HP500 are it.

[size=large]Sound[/size]



DN-HP500 are unlike some other DJ headphones in that they don't try to pound the listener with hard-hitting or boomy bass. Whereas, say, Equation Audio RP-21 will boost low bass and make all drums hard-hitting, Denon DJ DN-HP500 have a polite, slightly rounded-off bass. Foster/Denon engineers must've taken into account that "pneumatic drill" tuning is fatiguing. The tuning is quite "sweet": square holes tune to low midrange/bass, smaller circular holes to "sweet" midrange/high midrange/treble. For comparison, AKG K-81DJ/K-518 have only square holes in the grille and they are hard-hitting and bassy.
DN-HP500 are tuned slightly to the bass, with percussion and basslines standing out in a mix. Usually bassy instruments are pushed slightly forward, but don't get this wrong - when there's a powerful bassline, the DN-HP500 will roar and growl. Bass is strong and accurate and they don't mind lots of it - they won't ever distort.
As with all Denon headphones, midrange is there, but it can be a bit murky/recessed at times. Boosting the 250 Hz band on the equaliser by as little as 1.6 dB fixes this. Another fix is acoustic foam - in this photo they have the K-81DJ foam inserts, which boosted bass and midrange, but also muffled the sweet treble.



DN-HP500 have a typical Denon/Foster sound signature - fast, sweet high midrange and treble, lots of space. Dynamics are quick, the DN-HP500 are "fun" (though stock cable dulls them down somewhat) and, of course, very good with any energetic music - rock, electronic, techno, etc. They're not as ambiental or natural-sounding as AH-D1000/AH-D1001, but they're close and have a very good spatial extension. With stock wiring, treble/space extension are a tad grainy/dry, but impressive. Soundstage is quite wide for supra-aurals, detailed, instrument separation is very good for supra-aural headphones. Treble can sparkle more than with AH-D1000 (hi-hats and bells are prominent).
DN-HP500 are slightly "technical"-sounding with the stock wiring, a recable fixes this. Harmonics are also unveiled by recable, making the DN-HP500 harmonically warm and fast.

 

[Seidhepriest]

So yes, they're pretty good all-around, and they're good-looking and comfortable. They're pretty good portable headphones, too, they're quite efficient thanks to being supra-aural (Denon AH-D1001 are more comfortable and have a more ambiental and natural sound, but they just don't go as loud off a portable player). Prices online hover around $70-80 - not that expensive for what they are (AKG's K-518/K-81DJ are less refined, less comfortable, and with cheaper plastics - and they sell for roughly the same). With a recable, you'd also get headphones that can compete with the likes of HD-25 or AT's classier portables.

 

[Seidhepriest]

Impedance is 48 ohm, declared sensitivity is 102 dB/mW (but they're louder than the AH-D1001 with 103 dB/mW). They're fairly easy to drive by anything. They'll go pretty loud with a powerful player.

 

[Seidhepriest]

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f103/d...-hp500-469553/ - the other DN-HP500 thread. These are good and fairly cheap supra-aural headphones, in the class of HD-25, AKG K-81/K-518DJ, etc.

 

[fotoralf]

Just bought them this morning as a replacement for my worn-out AKG K81DJ. Didn't even listen to them in the shop but have the option to return them.
 
My main use is live monitoring while I'm recording industrial soundscapes. Plus some music, mostly pop, jazz and classic. My other headphones are a K240 (40 years old, the original 600 ohm version) and a ATH-M50. By comparison, my first impression of the Denon is that it sounds shrill and cold. Impressingly analytic, incredible localization of individual sources and instruments, unsurpassed speech intelligibility, but a sound like a draught of cold air.
 
Yes, I know the K81 is muddy and over-bassy, but I've just listened to some old EL&P stuff, for the last hour, changing forth and back between the ATH-M50 and the Denon. Greg Lake's voice is velvety and warm on the AT and sounds like my mother-in-law on the Denon.
 
I remember the AT sounded like stale water when it was new and has come a long way since. Is there any substantial improvement to be expected from the Denon or should I rather accept that it's not my kind of cans and return it to its box before I scratch it and and can't return it?
 
What else would the forum recommend in this price class? I need something small, foldable, and single-sided cable entry is a must. Sound characteristics to match the ATH-M50 would be greatly appreciated.
 
Ralf

 

[Seidhepriest]

They should improve and soften/warm up over time. Another good set is the AH-D310, and they sounded horrid out of the box, cold and with muddy dirt with the stock cable. Give them something like 30 hours playtime to relax. Also, all of my Denon sets are modded. The AH-D310 have now replaced the K-240 Studio for most tasks, but then they have full modding (recable/Blu-tack and Dynamat/Senn HD414 foam). You have to mod Denon headphones though, it's a rule, otherwise they tend to rattle too much (they're too lightweight for the diaphragm accuracy/power, it's less of a trouble on Denon DJ sets which have better clamp though). Stock cable is overly muddy and kills the dynamics, which are wonderfully lively.

 

[Seidhepriest]

Another bit is that you might need DN-HP700, not DN-HP500. Circumaural, not supra-aural. Supras tend to be less detailed (because of partial ear coverage) and don't isolate as well.

 

[fotoralf]

The DN-HP700 would be far too big for my application. As a matter of fact, even the HP500 doesn't fit into the space formerly occupied by the K81DJ. So, I've grudgingly ordered another K81 for my mobile monitoring.
 
But I've kept the HD500 and we're still trying to get to terms with each other. It has improved sonically, over the last week. One thing I've learnt is that one really needs to make sure it's sitting flat and tight on the ears. If it doesn't, all the bass is gone.
 
One more observation: there's a world of a difference in the impression of space between the HD500 and the ATH-M50. Changing forth and back between both with the same piece of music sounds as if someone was putting the microphones deep into the orifices of the various instruments (DH500) or placing them at the normal distance of a meter or two (M50). The M50 conveys much more of the room the recording has been made in while the D500 gives the impression that everything has been close-mic'ed in an acoustically dead surrounding.
 
I've discovered one application where the HD500 really excels: all kinds of audio with difficult to understand dialog, i.e. movies with people speaking in noisy scenes, with little articulation, or strange accents. All this obviously at the expense of the warmth of all my other headphones.
 
Oh, and it's so analytical that it's absolutely merciless with bad audio, e.g. 128k MP3 or heavily compressed web radio. 
 
Ralf