Last weekend I took the plunge and ordered the 2k's on a whim, based solely on online reviews and without auditioning them. I had been recently introduced to Hi-Fi by hearing beats at a best buy display, but wanted to see if any better values were available. I've gotta say I'm incredibly happy I chose the Denon's
Before I say much more, please be aware I am just as new to hi-fi as you are. These are my first set of cans. My "impression" is probably coming from the same level of experience as your own (so hopefully this is like getting a suggestion from the future you
). At the same time, I am a Penn State Engineer, so while I lack the A-B comparative perspective many members here can share, what I believe I can offer is at least a basic idea of what constitutes a well made and poorly constructed product. My only "hi-fi" comparison points are the beats line, Audio-Tech 30's (I think thats what they were?), and these Denon's, so please take all this into consideration when taking my advice
Anyways, moving on:
My Current (poor man's) set ups:
Zune >D2k's
Zune 120 >Onkyo Receiver > D2k's OR
Flac or 320kps MP3>Sound Blaster Audigy > D2k's
Can these headphones be driven at appropriate levels and SQ unAmp'd? : Yes. The SQ is good, and volume is available, even when run straight through the Zune. An amp, I speculate, could improve SQ (as I perceive a difference when passing through the Onkyo setup), so I AM seeking a 300-400 Amp/DAC set up to test the waters.
Bass: Rich, powerful, enjoyable, and NOT overwhelming (granted I'm a basshead into dub and trip hop,but not limited to that). Denon's bass is IMO not nearly as flabby as any of the Beats. IMO low frequencies are Denon's primary strong point. (Reference tracks Rusko, Massive Attack - Angel, anything with low freq's.. haha)
Mids are recessed, but less so than beat studios (I liked the studios more than the pro's SQ, but neither really compare). I believe, while these phones are mostly "accurate", they are also musical. If you are looking for enjoyable phones and only dabble in production, these phones are definitely accurate enough to accommodate both nicely. (Sounds great with Tool, My Brightest Diamond, Portishead, Radiohead)
Highs are detailed and warm. Slightly boosted, perhaps, but another of Denon's strengths (Steve Reich - Music for 18 musicians, Deadmau5 - Strobe)
Sound Stage: Can easily distinguish 3d spatial positioning (only within the realm of my own head and cup space, nothing holographic) when I pan tones in FL studio or am just listening to tracks. This phone has a good enough sound stage for me, unamped, and (from what I have read, not from experience), "d2000's have one of the best soundstages for closed cans in this price range" (End arbitrary Head-Fi reference from reading entirely too many threads).
Price: Ordered mine for 230 of amazon with free 2day shipping as a student with an edu email address (search amazon student prime) less than a week ago. Could not find any headphones I viewed as "competitors" in reviews at this price point (Except maybe senns hd 25 -II or whatever, but they seem to be a targeting different audience than denon's and beats [not to place the two together
]). These are NOT $230 phones. I would have been very comfortable paying the full 339 on headphone.com (or even more) had I not come across amazon's dynamic pricing. You would deeply regret entering the 4-500 dollar range on your first purchase, especially if you chose the beats. These Denon's blow the beats out of the water and into the atmosphere (at $100 less). While I know you prob want to nail the perfect phone the first time and save money without reinvesting, I believe experimenting with less expensive phones will help you in the long run (based on my speculation on how it will effect my own headphone future).
Build - Solid construction (I'm an engineer that appreciates well made things
).
Comfort - Yes. (Just take it as that, trust me) Perhaps I'd even want a tighter seal with my pads... (maybe j$ pads down the road...)
Weight - they're full size phones, and weigh what well made, full sized phones probably should weigh.
Sound Leakage: Beats probably beat (ha) the denon's here. I was a little surprised how much they leaked, but don't take it to be a deal breaker by ANY stretch of the imagination unless you have a bomb strapped to you that will go off if ambient noise reaches 10dB's or some other extenuating circumstance.
Sound Isolation: I think beats have some auto-noise cancel going on... so I guess they would be superior in that aspect too. You have bigger fish to fry, trust me.
Again: I am new to hi-fi equipment, too. But as an initial impression, I am entirely happy with these phones for the price I paid and for even up to about 150 theoretical dollars more. I believe beats contain little "added-value" for their price point, and are predominantly inflated by VERY effective marketing. (I'm happy they got the "Hi-Fi" idea out to me... they just didn't get my money for their hard work
)
Conclusion: Well made, delicious sounding entry level phones for a budding audiophile with room to improve when properly amped and sourced. If sound leakage/isolation is a problem for you, neither the beats nor the denon's are probably for you. The difference between the two is so little in the terms of sound isolation/leakage, that it should be considered negligible, but the ENORMOUS divide in all other qualitative aspects is complete unignorable. In terms of quantitative things: price. Save your money for a better phone down the road when you better understand your needs. (you might not even want a better phone!)
One last thing: In terms of sound signature:
Those in the markets for Beats would definitely be interested in denon's, but those in the market for denon's would not be interested in beat's.
I'm not even going to censor that with an "imo." It's virtually fact.
Hope that helped...
--Mercer
Edit: Also I def agree with ArmAndHammer's fix.
