Dethonray Tender I - Earphones
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weexisttocease
Headphoneus Supremus
Thanks. I'm curious about the combo DTR1+ and Tender I.
F700
Headphoneus Supremus
The Tender have landed this morning. It's a brand new loan unit. I still don't know the final price of these.
Premium built and fantastic - CIEM-like - confort. Very impressed by the built quality. These are looker for sure.
Soundwise? Well, as Anson said, these require a lot of juice. Here's my setup:
Dongle: L&P W2 on high gain
DAP: Calyx M on mid gain
Amp: Romi Audio BX2+ on high gain
Cable: OC Studio ZEUS UEX 4.4mm silver
The IEMs have been burned-in by Anson for 100 hours and he recommends additional 40 hours, in order to make the Tender easier to drive. Well, I will see if it's the case by the end of next week.
OOTB, the Tender are warm, laid-back (but not dark) IEMs, with a very decent level of details. Soundstage is not very wide, but realistic, without being closed-in. I like that. These shine with vocals, with great presence and textures. Treble is inoffensive, slightly rolled-off, but nothing dramatic. Bass has weight and medium impact. Not boomy, but lacks a bit of precision for the moment. Take all this with a grain of salt, because I have spent the last 40 hours with the Oriveti O400, which are completely different sounding. My ears and brain need to be recalibrated. More to come soon.
Some pictures:
Premium built and fantastic - CIEM-like - confort. Very impressed by the built quality. These are looker for sure.
Soundwise? Well, as Anson said, these require a lot of juice. Here's my setup:
Dongle: L&P W2 on high gain
DAP: Calyx M on mid gain
Amp: Romi Audio BX2+ on high gain
Cable: OC Studio ZEUS UEX 4.4mm silver
The IEMs have been burned-in by Anson for 100 hours and he recommends additional 40 hours, in order to make the Tender easier to drive. Well, I will see if it's the case by the end of next week.
OOTB, the Tender are warm, laid-back (but not dark) IEMs, with a very decent level of details. Soundstage is not very wide, but realistic, without being closed-in. I like that. These shine with vocals, with great presence and textures. Treble is inoffensive, slightly rolled-off, but nothing dramatic. Bass has weight and medium impact. Not boomy, but lacks a bit of precision for the moment. Take all this with a grain of salt, because I have spent the last 40 hours with the Oriveti O400, which are completely different sounding. My ears and brain need to be recalibrated. More to come soon.
Some pictures:
RikudouGoku
Member of the Trade: RikuBuds
Are you serious? Is that what he told you? That burn in makes it easier to drive????
F700
Headphoneus Supremus
Yes, sound will improve and IEMs will be easier to drive. I am not familiar with planar IEMs, but I had planar headphones in the past. I am not remembering that these became easier to drive after an extended listening time.
It seems odd to me as well.
weexisttocease
Headphoneus Supremus
Any further impressions and technical details? The Tender I is a hybrid or only has a planar magnetic driver?
I own 2 sets with planar magnetic driver but both are hybrids.
I own 2 sets with planar magnetic driver but both are hybrids.
weexisttocease
Headphoneus Supremus
Interesting. Probably not easy to drive. Do you have pictures of the stock cable?
daorenmi
100+ Head-Fier
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My tender is coming! Look very nice! Burn in now! After listening to only a song, the dynamic is very good, it is soft and smooth, like the name tender. Hope, hope a surprise!
F700
Headphoneus Supremus
What’s your feedback after 3 days?My tender is coming! Look very nice! Burn in now! After listening to only a song, the dynamic is very good, it is soft and smooth, like the name tender. Hope, hope a surprise!
On my side, directly from the Calyx M, the sound has opened a bit after approx 20 hours of listening time. It’s a soft and warm sound, with decent detail retrieval as stated in my earlier post. Not an allrounder for sure, but if someone is looking for a pleasant and engaging warm sound, the Tender represents a good choice! Moreover, the built quality and comfort are outstanding.
weexisttocease
Headphoneus Supremus
Didn't you had the DTR1? Probably it was tuned with that in mind for being a good pairing.
F700
Headphoneus Supremus
Yes, I had the DTR1, sold it to a friend as soon as the DTR1+ was announced. I did not get the opportunity to pair the Tender with the DTR1 so far, as my friend lives abroad.
The Calyx M and the Tender are not a bad pairing, but I see your point. Honestly, the separation and layering is not as great as expected… and it’s not the Calyx M’s fault. I know this DAP very well and paired it with a lot of different IEMs, some of them warmer and more laid-back than the Tender.
I am looking forward to reading additional impressions from different owners with other sources.
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F700
Headphoneus Supremus
Btw, the Tender plays back Radiohead’s albums (and their questionable recording quality) very well! Warm and laidback signature does wonders here.
Lunatic
Head-Fier
The Tender I is Dethonray's first earphones/headphones product and it happens to be one of the first IEMs using Planar Magnetic units. I haven't heard any planar magnetic IEMs before so I was looking forward to the experience. I received my loan copy of the Tender I on June 5th. Like F700's copy they had already gone through a 100-hour burn-in process by Anson, founder of Dethonray. Unlike F700's copy mine is of the blue color. The stock silver cable with 4.4mm plug didn't arrive until about a week later so I did my week-long burn-in and most of the subsequent listening with my own custom-made silver cable with changeable plugs. After the Dethonray stock cable arrived I had it burned in separately for over 100 hours before giving them a try.
As I own several magnetic planar over-the-head headphones including the notoriously hard-to-drive HiFiMAN Susvara, I have expected the Tender I IEMs using similar technology to be relatively difficult to drive. One of the first DAPs I tried was the Cowon Plenue L which has a smooth and detailed sound but is not known for its power. Unsurprisingly the Plenue L + Tender I combo sounded richly detailed yet lacked some bite and the overall sound was on the flat side. This was despite the Plenue L was already at a volume level of around 125 (140 being the maximum available). Then I switched to two of the most powerful portable DAPs that I have: The iBasso DX220Max and Dethonray's own DTR1. As expected, the Tender I immediately came to life when driven by either of those DAPs at high gain mode! It's quite apparent that if your Tender I sounds laid-back, it means it's not driven well. As laid-back will never be the word that I'd choose to describe how the Tender I sounds. Just like larger magnetic planar headphones, the Tender I has ultra-fast transient and very wide dynamic range when driven with enough power. I cannot emphasize POWER enough here. With the DTR1 I often need to use a volume level of 40-50 at high gain (60 being the maximum), which is enough for many dynamic headphones. When paired with Dethonray's H1 portable DAC/amp, even with Anson's new firmware that boosts 3.5mm single-ended output levels, the Tender I needs a relatively high volume position at high gain. Other DAP/DACs that I have tried to pair with good results included the HiFiMAN HM1000 and the LH Labs GO2Pro Signature Edition. I even tried connecting the Tender I to my powerful desktop headphone amp that I normally use to drive the HiFiMAN Susvara and the result is of course even more impressive. But this is just for the sake of testing as most people would probably not be buying the Tender I for such use cases.
As I did my own burn-in after receiving the Tender I, I had the chance to observe the evolution of sound signature over the process. Treble extension was a bit lacking upon arrival so the overall highs sounded a little bit harsh. This harshness or aggressiveness went away after about a week of burn-in and the Tender I produced absolutely radiant and truly expressive violin sound which I often use as a benchmark for testing treble. The Tender I is able to project a sound stage that's more full-bodied than most IEMs could except for some models that have much larger form factors and that are priced much higher. Compared with multi-driver IEMs the single-driver Tender I doesn't need to tinker with complicated crossover designs and tuning/pairing of the drivers. The Tender I does sound coherent and natural because of this. As I listen to mostly classical music I am more sensitive to the accuracy of instrument timbre and the reproduction of un-amplified human voice. The Tender I, after proper burn-in and driven by sources with enough power, is definitely in the reference quality class of IEMs. When the music calls for slams and attacks the Tender I delivers those with aplomb, again just make sure your source component has enough power. I guess by now you've noticed a pattern, haven't you?
Another area that I must sing high praise for Dethonray is the ergonomics. As you can see from the pictures, the Tender I has a quite unique and rather complex exterior design which put some doubts about its comfort when I first saw the pictures from the Web site. However after living with them for days I have to say they have such a good fit that I could wear them for hours without hurting my ear canals. The same cannot be said for many of the larger IEMs that I've owned, including those in much higher price ranges. I don't know whether you will find the Tender I as good a fit as I do but for me the comfort level is a clear 10 out of 10.
As for cables pairing I believe the Tender I works best with silver cables. The silver cable that I have is thicker and heavier than the Dethonray stock one and it sounds with a bit more weight and authority but the difference is not huge.
I can't wait to pair the Tender I with Dethonray's upcoming DTR1+ DAP which should land in July. In the mean time this is now my go-to IEMs for the foreseeable future. The Tender I is a bit like the earphone equivalent to the HiFiMAN Susvaras. You won't be able to enjoy their full potential until you drive them with enough power. Please throw whatever power you have at them, and don't believe they're the laid-back type of IEMs, you're truly missing out if you do... And if you buy the Tender I, don't forget to burn them in for another 100 hours or so before making your judgement on the sound.
In summary, the Tender I is a set of reference quality IEM using single magnetic planar driver per channel that requires enormous power from your source device to truly shine. If you don't own such source devices or don't plan to get any, the Tender I is not for you. For those who “have the power”, the Tender I is very highly recommended.
Happy listening! Just don't be fooled by the name. It might be called "Tender One" but it can kick some serious butt when pushed against the wall!
Pictures of some of the combinations that I've tried with the Tender I:
The stock silver cable with 4.4mm balanced plug and MMCX plugs:
As I own several magnetic planar over-the-head headphones including the notoriously hard-to-drive HiFiMAN Susvara, I have expected the Tender I IEMs using similar technology to be relatively difficult to drive. One of the first DAPs I tried was the Cowon Plenue L which has a smooth and detailed sound but is not known for its power. Unsurprisingly the Plenue L + Tender I combo sounded richly detailed yet lacked some bite and the overall sound was on the flat side. This was despite the Plenue L was already at a volume level of around 125 (140 being the maximum available). Then I switched to two of the most powerful portable DAPs that I have: The iBasso DX220Max and Dethonray's own DTR1. As expected, the Tender I immediately came to life when driven by either of those DAPs at high gain mode! It's quite apparent that if your Tender I sounds laid-back, it means it's not driven well. As laid-back will never be the word that I'd choose to describe how the Tender I sounds. Just like larger magnetic planar headphones, the Tender I has ultra-fast transient and very wide dynamic range when driven with enough power. I cannot emphasize POWER enough here. With the DTR1 I often need to use a volume level of 40-50 at high gain (60 being the maximum), which is enough for many dynamic headphones. When paired with Dethonray's H1 portable DAC/amp, even with Anson's new firmware that boosts 3.5mm single-ended output levels, the Tender I needs a relatively high volume position at high gain. Other DAP/DACs that I have tried to pair with good results included the HiFiMAN HM1000 and the LH Labs GO2Pro Signature Edition. I even tried connecting the Tender I to my powerful desktop headphone amp that I normally use to drive the HiFiMAN Susvara and the result is of course even more impressive. But this is just for the sake of testing as most people would probably not be buying the Tender I for such use cases.
As I did my own burn-in after receiving the Tender I, I had the chance to observe the evolution of sound signature over the process. Treble extension was a bit lacking upon arrival so the overall highs sounded a little bit harsh. This harshness or aggressiveness went away after about a week of burn-in and the Tender I produced absolutely radiant and truly expressive violin sound which I often use as a benchmark for testing treble. The Tender I is able to project a sound stage that's more full-bodied than most IEMs could except for some models that have much larger form factors and that are priced much higher. Compared with multi-driver IEMs the single-driver Tender I doesn't need to tinker with complicated crossover designs and tuning/pairing of the drivers. The Tender I does sound coherent and natural because of this. As I listen to mostly classical music I am more sensitive to the accuracy of instrument timbre and the reproduction of un-amplified human voice. The Tender I, after proper burn-in and driven by sources with enough power, is definitely in the reference quality class of IEMs. When the music calls for slams and attacks the Tender I delivers those with aplomb, again just make sure your source component has enough power. I guess by now you've noticed a pattern, haven't you?
Another area that I must sing high praise for Dethonray is the ergonomics. As you can see from the pictures, the Tender I has a quite unique and rather complex exterior design which put some doubts about its comfort when I first saw the pictures from the Web site. However after living with them for days I have to say they have such a good fit that I could wear them for hours without hurting my ear canals. The same cannot be said for many of the larger IEMs that I've owned, including those in much higher price ranges. I don't know whether you will find the Tender I as good a fit as I do but for me the comfort level is a clear 10 out of 10.
As for cables pairing I believe the Tender I works best with silver cables. The silver cable that I have is thicker and heavier than the Dethonray stock one and it sounds with a bit more weight and authority but the difference is not huge.
I can't wait to pair the Tender I with Dethonray's upcoming DTR1+ DAP which should land in July. In the mean time this is now my go-to IEMs for the foreseeable future. The Tender I is a bit like the earphone equivalent to the HiFiMAN Susvaras. You won't be able to enjoy their full potential until you drive them with enough power. Please throw whatever power you have at them, and don't believe they're the laid-back type of IEMs, you're truly missing out if you do... And if you buy the Tender I, don't forget to burn them in for another 100 hours or so before making your judgement on the sound.
In summary, the Tender I is a set of reference quality IEM using single magnetic planar driver per channel that requires enormous power from your source device to truly shine. If you don't own such source devices or don't plan to get any, the Tender I is not for you. For those who “have the power”, the Tender I is very highly recommended.
Happy listening! Just don't be fooled by the name. It might be called "Tender One" but it can kick some serious butt when pushed against the wall!
Pictures of some of the combinations that I've tried with the Tender I:
The stock silver cable with 4.4mm balanced plug and MMCX plugs:
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andersos
100+ Head-Fier
@Lunatic how is Tender 1 with HM1000 (red, silver or gold?)?
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