ounkchicago
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 28, 2007
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Just got the Denon AH-D1001 two weeks ago. Price was about $80 online after discounts. Logged about 100 total hours on these, after about 24 hours of initial burn-in. I didn't notice any perceptible change throughout the burn-in process, in contrast to most other headphones that I've owned.
As you probably already know, these are very lightweight, circumaural sealed cans. They possess the rare quality of having very low isolation but high comfort for a sealed can. I use them at work in a cubicle farm, and I can still hear if someone is addressing me from about 20 feet away. Leakage, on the other hand, is more pronounced. I think someone 5 feet away could hear some sound leaking out, but someone 10 feet away might not hear anything unless the volume was turned up excessively loud. It has an interesting dual-entry short cord design with an extension cord included. This was obviously designed for the portable user in mind.
The sound quality is very impressive at this price point. The frequency response is U-shaped. This means that there is very strong bass (particularly mid-bass) and well-articulated but not a very bright treble. The mids are slightly recessed compared to say, Grado or AKG, but not so much that they ruin the overall balance. There is good detail and resolution for fast-moving music (like rock), but the soundstage is small. They sound like headphones, not like speakers.
They sound like the headphone version of a $200 or so 2.1 computer speaker set up. Much like most inexpensive 2.1 computer speaker systems, the bass integration isn't completely seamless. Rather, it sound to me like I have the "bass boost" feature permanently turned up. Similarly, like a 2.1 speaker system, the trebles are very clear, but at the slight expense of mid-range accuracy (a common flaw of many 2.1 speaker systems). They remind me of Bose Triport headphones or the less expensive Bose speaker systems, but with a less exaggerated frequency response and more realistic bass.
Alas, this permanently jacked up bass in the AH-D1001 is what prevents it from being a baby audiophile headphone. Using a hi-fi source (Cambridge 840C) and a powerful desktop amp (Little Dot MK IV SE) the bass was completely over the top -- far too much bass quantity, although it was well-controlled. I guess if you were a bass head this might be a good thing but I generally prefer a more balanced frequency response.
So if it wasn't good to use with a hi-fi setup, how does it sound on a low-fi setup, such as an iPod or a computer sound card? In a word, brilliant. Or in five words, a match made in heaven. It seems like the AH-D1001 was specifically tuned to be used with these low-fi devices with no additional amplification -- partly because these devices tend to roll off the treble slightly and lack the juice to produce powerful bass. So paired with the U-shaped frequency response of the AH-D1001, the result is a very balanced sound.
In conclusion, the AH-D1001 did not mate up well with my audiophile-quality gear. But when paired with an iPod or a computer headphone jack, this headphone is in its element. I recommend it for use with computers -- it'd be good for listening to music, podcasts, watching videos on YouTube, or watching movies. Although the form factors seems suited for portable use, its relatively high leakage, low isolation, and relatively large size (for a portable) would discourage me from using this as a portable.
Most importantly, the AH-D1001 delivers good SQ and clarity in an extremely comfortable package. This headphone dethrones my AKG K240 Studio as my new most-comfortable work headphones. After 3 days of testing the AH=D1001, I packed up my K240 Studio to take it home. At this price point I don't think any other headphone comes close in terms of overall SQ, comfort, and value. Great alternative to Bose as well.
As you probably already know, these are very lightweight, circumaural sealed cans. They possess the rare quality of having very low isolation but high comfort for a sealed can. I use them at work in a cubicle farm, and I can still hear if someone is addressing me from about 20 feet away. Leakage, on the other hand, is more pronounced. I think someone 5 feet away could hear some sound leaking out, but someone 10 feet away might not hear anything unless the volume was turned up excessively loud. It has an interesting dual-entry short cord design with an extension cord included. This was obviously designed for the portable user in mind.
The sound quality is very impressive at this price point. The frequency response is U-shaped. This means that there is very strong bass (particularly mid-bass) and well-articulated but not a very bright treble. The mids are slightly recessed compared to say, Grado or AKG, but not so much that they ruin the overall balance. There is good detail and resolution for fast-moving music (like rock), but the soundstage is small. They sound like headphones, not like speakers.
They sound like the headphone version of a $200 or so 2.1 computer speaker set up. Much like most inexpensive 2.1 computer speaker systems, the bass integration isn't completely seamless. Rather, it sound to me like I have the "bass boost" feature permanently turned up. Similarly, like a 2.1 speaker system, the trebles are very clear, but at the slight expense of mid-range accuracy (a common flaw of many 2.1 speaker systems). They remind me of Bose Triport headphones or the less expensive Bose speaker systems, but with a less exaggerated frequency response and more realistic bass.
Alas, this permanently jacked up bass in the AH-D1001 is what prevents it from being a baby audiophile headphone. Using a hi-fi source (Cambridge 840C) and a powerful desktop amp (Little Dot MK IV SE) the bass was completely over the top -- far too much bass quantity, although it was well-controlled. I guess if you were a bass head this might be a good thing but I generally prefer a more balanced frequency response.
So if it wasn't good to use with a hi-fi setup, how does it sound on a low-fi setup, such as an iPod or a computer sound card? In a word, brilliant. Or in five words, a match made in heaven. It seems like the AH-D1001 was specifically tuned to be used with these low-fi devices with no additional amplification -- partly because these devices tend to roll off the treble slightly and lack the juice to produce powerful bass. So paired with the U-shaped frequency response of the AH-D1001, the result is a very balanced sound.
In conclusion, the AH-D1001 did not mate up well with my audiophile-quality gear. But when paired with an iPod or a computer headphone jack, this headphone is in its element. I recommend it for use with computers -- it'd be good for listening to music, podcasts, watching videos on YouTube, or watching movies. Although the form factors seems suited for portable use, its relatively high leakage, low isolation, and relatively large size (for a portable) would discourage me from using this as a portable.
Most importantly, the AH-D1001 delivers good SQ and clarity in an extremely comfortable package. This headphone dethrones my AKG K240 Studio as my new most-comfortable work headphones. After 3 days of testing the AH=D1001, I packed up my K240 Studio to take it home. At this price point I don't think any other headphone comes close in terms of overall SQ, comfort, and value. Great alternative to Bose as well.
