[Brooko]

Pair it with a bit warm DAC/Amp and the sound is real good. FiiO E6 and E17K are warm and good for balance. E12, not so warm. Oppo HA-2 makes it a bit more treble oriented but very transparent and airy at the same time. At $290, DN-2000J is indeed a steal and forced giving.

 
Actually the E17K is more flat than warm.  That is one of it's appeals for me as a reviewer.  That's both in DAC mode or as an amp alone.  You can warm it up with the tone controls though.

 

[Subhakar]

Actually the E17K is more flat than warm.  That is one of it's appeals for me as a reviewer.  That's both in DAC mode or as an amp alone.  You can warm it up with the tone controls though.

I find E17K, without EQing, warm enough to tone down the natural treble edge of DN-2000J and bring balance to the SQ while HA-2 fails to do so and instead just makes the treble better defined and cleaner. E17K makes DN-2000J more musical and organic while HA-2 makes the same more analytical and sharply reflective like steel without being harsh. One is like film stock and the other digital footage.

 

[Brooko]

Then I would suggest that the HA-2 must be pretty bright.  Because the E17K is very neutral. It doesn't follow the typical FiiO house sound of slight warmth at all.  I even described it in my review as "wire with gain".  Are you sure you don't have the EQ engaged by mistake (I've done it a few times without realising).

 

[Subhakar]

Then I would suggest that the HA-2 must be pretty bright.  Because the E17K is very neutral. It doesn't follow the typical FiiO house sound of slight warmth at all.  I even described it in my review as "wire with gain".  Are you sure you don't have the EQ engaged by mistake (I've done it a few times without realising).

I can do more A-B-ing next month and share refreshed impressions. My E17 Alpen-1's battery died and James of FiiO was kind enough to offer a new unit for $50 that is in AliExpress transit now.

 

[Subhakar]

Has anybody tried ifi iEMatch with DN-2000J and seen any improvement or lower hiss levels when connected to high imepedance sources? Could it be a worthy of $50 investment for Dunu or the $10 UE Buffer Jack or any $5 third party impedance adapter can be equally effective in conjunction with a source of 4ohm output impedance?

 

[HiFiChris]

Has anybody tried ifi iEMatch with DN-2000J and seen any improvement or lower hiss levels when connected to high imepedance sources? Could it be a worthy of $50 investment for Dunu or the $10 UE Buffer Jack or any $5 third party impedance adapter can be equally effective in conjunction with a source of 4ohm output impedance?

 
I don't have any experience with the iEMatch module, however there are a few things I would like to clarify:
 
First and foremost, the output impedance of a source device has nothing to do with the level of hiss it puts out.
Then, a regular impedance adapter or those small adapters with a built-in volume dial don't do more than increasing the impedance to lower the IEMs' sensitivity. The problem with that solution however is that in-ears without a straight line impedance graph (such as the DN-2000J) will sound different compared to be directly driven without the impedance adapter (the IEM "sees" the adapter as a high source device which will skew the frequency response depending on the impedance response (in case of the DN-2000J, it would become brighter)).

As far as I know, the iEMatch module works differently and is not as simple as those other adapters (its effect is not mainly based on increasing the impedance - I'm not exactly sure what it does, but if it is identical to the iEMatch circuit in the micro iDSD, it will reduce the sensitivity, hiss and should ad only ~ 1.4 Ohms of extra impedance in its highest setting).
 
So the iFi module would definitely be the better way to go.

 

[Subhakar]

Could someone suggest any universal IEM at around US$400 that gives as much value as DN-2000J?
For fun listening, not analytical peeping as such.

 

[mochill]

JVC fx1200

 

[james444]

Great deal on an open box DN-2000J for £170 (£220 - £50 off) from Amazon UK:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listing/B00YUO92PG/ref=dp_olp_used?ie=UTF8&condition=used&m=A2OAJ7377F756P

 

[cylpol1]

Hello, was just wondering if the Dn2000j have been holding up for people that have been using these heavily. More curious had anyone encountered any headphone jack or cable issues, the dunu 1000 had cable stiffnessand was wondering if the strain reliefs on the floating also much appreciated thank you for your help on this.

 

[cerspense]

I have been using mine all day everyday for 7 months now and I haven't had any problems yet

 

[Subhakar]

I have been using mine all day everyday for 7 months now and I haven't had any problems yet

Same here. Mine works like a mule. No issues. Except maybe they make it hard for me to wait for DN-4001 launch.

 

[cylpol1]

LOL thanks

 

[cylpol1]

Btw do you guys use the bass ring, how does the signature change besides more bass and what do you guys like more with or without it.

 

[stephengee77]

Btw do you guys use the bass ring, how does the signature change besides more bass and what do you guys like more with or without it.

I dont like them. They add a slight boost to the lower regions, but causes increased driver flex and makes it sound weird in my opinion. I prefer to boost the bass by using spiral dots and a few of the metal rings or comply tips.