DUNU DN-2000J -- More Than Evolution?

[Brooko]

  how do you feel they compare sound signature wise as far as detail, speed, bass, soundstage? i know they can't be as good as the HD 600's but the overall sound signature is what i'm looking for.

 
Very different.  Both excellent at what they do though (IMO anyway).
 
HD600 are a little slower, more mid bass, a little more full in the mid-range, not quite as extended in the bass, and not as bright as the 2000J.  HD600 has the better soundstage (as it should). HD600 also has amazing timbre and tone.
 
2000J are cleaner and clearer, quicker, slightly more extended in low bass.  A little thinner in lower mid-range, but more emphasis on upper mid-range and lower treble.  Good soundstage for an IEM (and excellent imaging).  Tonally not as natural as the HD600 - but I love them - especially with female vocals.
 
You could also use Innerfidelity's graphs:
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/SennheiserHD600.pdf
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/DunuDN2000J.pdf

 

[Aero Dynamik]

  Bing bang bong!
 
This one was really fun and easy to write:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/products/dunu-dn-2000j/reviews/14105
 
Enjoy!

Thanks for your very enjoyable review! I have a few questions for you.
 
1. You write: "Adding the bass rings added warmth to the overall tuning and gave me a new appreciation of the DN200J treble. With them installed, the treble seems very resolving and crisp without being overdone. Your mileage may vary."
 
Q. Do you mean to say that the bass rings actually affects the treble response or that the added bass simply affects the overall impression of the treble? Hard to answer perhaps?!
 
2. You write: "One thing to be aware of is that if you do use the bass rings, driver flex can be an issue. Just make sure to be careful and avoid stuffing them in your ears."
 
What exactly is it that I should avoid to stuff in my ears; the DN2KJ or the bass rings? I don't get it, lol! Also, what exactly is "driver flex"?
 
Thanks!

 

[Hisoundfi]

Thanks for your very enjoyable review! I have a few questions for you.

1. You write: "[COLOR=3B3B3B]Adding the bass rings added warmth to the overall tuning and gave me a new appreciation of the DN200J treble. With them installed, the treble seems very resolving and crisp without being overdone. Your mileage may vary."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=3B3B3B]Q. Do you mean to say that the bass rings actually affects the treble response or that the added bass simply affects the overall impression of the treble? Hard to answer perhaps?![/COLOR]

2. You write: "[COLOR=3B3B3B]One thing to be aware of is that if you do use the bass rings, driver flex can be an issue. Just make sure to be careful and avoid stuffing them in your ears."[/COLOR]

What exactly is it that I should avoid to stuff in my ears; the DN2KJ or the bass rings? I don't get it, lol! Also, what exactly is "driver flex"?

Thanks!

Good questions. I'll answer them the best I can.

If you throw both configurations on a graph (with bass rings and without) I'm sure the upper mids and treble frequency response will be identical, but perceptually the added bass takes the focus off of the treble and kind of balances things out, at least from what I can hear. Your mileage may vary.

Driver flex happens from time to time with in-ear monitors. It's basically when air pressure inside of the housing causes the driver to make a crinkling or popping noise. That's the sound of the driver being bent slightly out of shape. It happens usually when inserting in-ear monitors. 99.99 percent of the time when this happens the driver goes back to its normal shape as soon as the air pressure in the housing is evens itself out. If you ever get driver flex it can be remedied by using foam tips, or lifting the top of your ear (and opening the ear canal) when inserting IEMs.

Hope this helps

 

[HiFiChris]

 

Thanks for your very enjoyable review! I have a few questions for you.

1. You write: "Adding the bass rings added warmth to the overall tuning and gave me a new appreciation of the DN200J treble. With them installed, the treble seems very resolving and crisp without being overdone. Your mileage may vary."

Q. Do you mean to say that the bass rings actually affects the treble response or that the added bass simply affects the overall impression of the treble? Hard to answer perhaps?!

2. You write: "One thing to be aware of is that if you do use the bass rings, driver flex can be an issue. Just make sure to be careful and avoid stuffing them in your ears."

What exactly is it that I should avoid to stuff in my ears; the DN2KJ or the bass rings? I don't get it, lol! Also, what exactly is "driver flex"?

Thanks!

Good questions. I'll answer them the best I can.

If you throw both configurations on a graph (with bass rings and without) I'm sure the upper mids and treble frequency response will be identical, but perceptually the added bass takes the focus off of the treble and kind of balances things out, at least from what I can hear. Your mileage may vary.

Yep, I also agree. What I hear is that the amount of treble remains the same, but as the bass gets a bit mightier, highs are not that much in the focus of action anymore.
What I've personally also experienced is that the white silicone tips have got (in my perception) the most treble, whereas the grey ones with sponge-like inlays (underneath the flanges, therefore not directly influencing air flow and such) tame it. The sponge-less grey silicone tips are somewhere in-between and my go-to tips.
 
 

Driver flex happens from time to time with in-ear monitors. It's basically when air pressure inside of the housing causes the driver to make a crinkling or popping noise. That's the sound of the driver being bent slightly out of shape. It happens usually when inserting in-ear monitors. 99.99 percent of the time when this happens the driver goes back to its normal shape as soon as the air pressure in the housing is evens itself out. If you ever get driver flex it can be remedied by using foam tips, or lifting the top of your ear (and opening the ear canal) when inserting IEMs.

I want to add that I read somewhere on the DUNU homepage (or anywhere else, but it was an official statement from DUNU) that the appearing driver flex with the subbass-rings is normal and harmless.

 

[Aero Dynamik]

Thanks Hisoundfi and HiFiChris for your replies! Very interesting!
 
I only have a DN2KJ loaner, however without the bass rings, the extra tips and accessories so I haven't really been able to fully assess its potential (i just got the the white silicone tips). Anyway, based on what I've heard from it so far, combined with what I've read about the effect of various tips, bass rings, james444's DN2KJ mod, etc., I've more or less made up my mind to get my own copy.
 
In the fields where this IEM excels I can't say I ever heard a better performer. It's absolutely amazing, and not just at its price point. I'd say irrespective of its price point, and I've had a few of those $1000 phones (AKG K3003, ToGo 334, see my profile). I definitely feel more and more excited about the DN2KJ. Today I learned how extremely well it performs at really low volumes as I was wearing it while working, and at least for me it was very comfortable. I hardly felt the monitors in my ears.

 

[PixelSquish]

I've been switching back and forth between comply's and the provided silicone tips. Using one white on the left earbud and one gray on the right. Didn't realize the gray one had sponge in it until I read the above posts. I like the way they all sound actually. The complys definitely are the bassiest of them.
 
Really was worried these little gems wouldn't have enough bass, instead it's the most beautiful bass I've ever heard, beating even my HD600's in quality of bass. Damn.

 

[WhatToChoose]

I asked about driver flex for the RHA T10s and got a reply from the experts themselves that it is essentially harmless both to you and the IEM (The diaphragm is designed to withstand over 90 gs of acceleration, so a bit of air pressure won't do squat. You're good

 

[Aero Dynamik]

Urine-reeka!

The most useless head-fi purchase I've made over the last 12 months comes to the rescue. Guess who is not useless anymore? Spinfits!

With fun-tak mod and spinfits I have very tolerable treble levels for me. I still have some Compiy TSX500's coming for better isolation (spinfits don't isolate all that well for me) but overall I'm very pleased and comfort levels have improved as a result as well. Perhaps there is a gr10e and eq8 sale in my future.

I happened to have a pair of Spinfits but felt that some of the fantastic spaciousness was lost. Maybe the fit became too deep for me. Also I'm not sure it made much of a difference in the treble either. The latter is probably explained by my inability to hear those super high frequencies  (above 11-12 kHz).

 

[PixelSquish]

just an fyi for anybody out there using their phone as a primary portable player - the Nexus 6 is arguably one of the worst sources to power good IEM's, or really any headphone for that matter. It's absolutely atrocious. Not only is the output so weak, it's just not a great source quality wise. These Dunu's have revealed its awfulness to me with their great clarity and articulation.

 

[PixelSquish]

only negatives about these little cans is it's hard to see the Left vs Right differentiator - this is easily solved with one red and one blue comply or one white and one gray silicone tip. only other thing is the cord would be nicer about a foot longer. besides that, well they handle all music well, but they will reveal deficiencies in your source or source file. not a bad thing, just goes to show how good they really are. cheers!

 

[Brooko]

  only negatives about these little cans is it's hard to see the Left vs Right differentiator - this is easily solved with one red and one blue comply or one white and one gray silicone tip. only other thing is the cord would be nicer about a foot longer. besides that, well they handle all music well, but they will reveal deficiencies in your source or source file. not a bad thing, just goes to show how good they really are. cheers!

 
If you wear them same way all the time (cable up, or cable down), you'll get used to position of the tabs.  I can tell by touch (unsighted) which is left and which is right - simply by combining cable orientation with the tab position.
 
Also - on the left strain relief exit from the IEM, you'll find some raised bumps.  They are identifiers for our unsighted brethren.  DUNU really do think of almost everything

 

[KC33]

Brooko, that was such a great headsup, i don't remember if you originally mentioned it in your review or in this thread but I don't need to get my mini flashlight anymore when putting these in my ears.

 

[Brooko]

No problem

  I often use the 2000J late in the evening (they are great for quiet listening), so I had to get used to low light identification pretty quickly.

 

[PixelSquish]

   
If you wear them same way all the time (cable up, or cable down), you'll get used to position of the tabs.  I can tell by touch (unsighted) which is left and which is right - simply by combining cable orientation with the tab position.
 
Also - on the left strain relief exit from the IEM, you'll find some raised bumps.  They are identifiers for our unsighted brethren.  DUNU really do think of almost everything

 
 
nice heads up. that is very thoughtful of them.
 
i was using the tabs for reference but i've been switching the way i wear these things - i'm finding over the ear is best for silicone tips, whereas with complys it's fine to just keep it cable down.

 

[PixelSquish]

Just curious. How many hours of burn-in did you guys notice it take to affect the sound signature of the D2KJ's?