Many thanks, oldmate, for the tip on the DUNU DN-1000s. I hope this thread can be useful for those looking to replace their Monster Turbine Pro Coppers, because it doesn't look like anything comparable is coming from Monster anytime soon. I picked up a pair of DN-1000s via Amazon Prime yesterday, from a seller called ShenzhenAudio. They cost me $178.95. An impulse buy, but if somebody tells me these wipe the floor with the Monster Turbine Coppers, I have to have them! I'll try to be brief with my own opinions, because - let's be honest - headfi is littered with isolated, subjective hyperbole and it's usually unhelpful. I'll try to concentrate more on measurement comparisons. I'm also not into unboxing videos, but I thought one picture would be appropriate here, just because the DUNU packaging looks so similar to those of the fake Monster Turbine packagings. I wonder where DUNU got their inspiration?
Ok, so I figured there must be a marking indicating left and right buds. See the L and R, very faintly engraved in the side of the earbuds? No, me neither. Good luck figuring out left from right in poor lighting conditions. But they're going to sound great, so I can live with that... Anyway, my first real disappointment was with the posts. IMHO, all IEM posts need to be long and thin to allow as wide a tip choice as possible for a good, comfortable seal and good isolation. And anything long and thin had better be made of a sturdy material that won't snap. My vote here goes to the SE846. The Monster posts aren't ideal either, because they're short and stubby, but they do at least have a ridge to stop the tips sliding off. The DN-1000's posts must be amongst the thickest I've ever seen - and they're completely smooth and cylindrical - there's nothing to stop the tips sliding right off and getting stuck in your ear canal. Thick posts mean limited choices for 3rd party tips and less foam or silicon between the post and your ear canal, so less isolation and less comfort.
I wasn't able to get a proper seal with any of the included tips. (Although I was fascinated to see a choice of red, blue and black foam tips - all absolutely identical in size. I had no idea that the acoustic properties of foam could be altered by the use of a simple dye color! This must be akin to the use of silver cables with malachite covers, 192 kHz sampling rates and unicorn horns?) A partial seal (like that required with the Turbine Coppers + gel supertips) did not work at all with the DUNUs; there was a huge roll-off in the bass unless I achieved a very good, tight seal. Fortunately, I have every type of tip Comply has ever made, and the T-500s did the job. I didn't find the seal easy to achieve though - and the DUNUs weren't all that comfortable on account of their very wide posts. (Monster Turbine Coppers have wide posts too, but you don't need to push them in as far, because you don't need or want a very tight seal with the Coppers.) I also found it essential to use the red tip extenders. I couldn't get any kind of seal without them, as the tips would simply get pushed down that perfectly cylindrical barrel. Again, not to worry - they're going to sound fantastic...
Unfortunately, on first use, I could immediately hear something was wrong. I had a sizable channel imbalance
The lowest frequency (dynamic) driver appeared to be defective in the left earbud. The right earbud reached down to about 33 Hz. The left bud didn't give anything below 120 Hz and there was a significant imbalance all the way up to 4 kHz. So in full and fair disclosure, I'm already slightly biased against DUNU for shipping me a defective pair of earbuds. (Also, in even fuller and fairer disclosure - this is the only pair of DN-1000s I've ever heard, so I can't be sure the right bud wasn't in some way defective too.) From what I could discern from the right earbud, I would say that the DN-1000 has quite a fun sound signature. I can certainly understand the wow factor some people might feel. This is achieved through a fairly intense peak around 8-9 kHz. Some folks may enjoy that. For me, that treble peak sounded just a bit too strong.
Measurements attached below:
The DN-1000 FR actually doesn't look too bad. It misses a bit of the sub-bass that the Coppers pick up, but I could live with that. Overall, I think DUNU has the low-frequencies well taken care of. I also agree with their design strategy - if you're going to have multiple drivers, why not use some that are better for the highs (balanced armature) and some that are better for the lows (dynamic drivers). I'm unimpressed with the current trend towards double-digit numbers of BA drivers - especially when none of them reach past 10 kHz. In fact, the single driver in the Coppers has slightly better upper treble extension than either the DUNUs (3 drivers) or the Shure SE846 (4 drivers). I would have preferred a bit less amplitude on that peak around 9 kHz. Others may have a preference for lots of treble, and that's fine, but either way, I'm not sure I can really consider the DN-1000 to be a like-for-like replacement for the Turbine Coppers, as it has a very different sound signature in the treble. I wonder, oldmate, if your username is in any way descriptive? Absolutely no disrespect intended if that's the case - we're all going to get there. And when we do, our hearing is almost inevitably going to start rolling off at the upper end. When I get there, I definitely want a pair of headphones like this. But right now, for me, I find their treble just a little bit shrill and artificial-sounding.
So what could replace the Monster Turbine Coppers? My own vote would be for the SE846 with blue, modded blue or white filters and Comply P-series foam tips. (I have sensaphonics' custom sleeves too, but I find the Comply tips give better isolation and better sound.) The SE846 doesn't have quite the same authority in the sub-bass as the Coppers (not even with the black filters), but it's quite close and it gives the added benefit of replaceable cables and a proper sound-isolating seal. On the other hand, the SE846 is nowhere near the price of the Coppers. For some, I think the DN-1000 would be a great choice and an exciting-sounding IEM, but it's a long way from neutral in its 5-10 kHz range. Unless somebody's DN-1000s are capable of getting busy with a mop and a bucket, I don't see anything wiping any floors here. Right now I'm on the fence about whether to just return for a refund, or try a pair of DN-2000s. Anybody got any experience with the DN-2000? I understand they're the same basic design and driver technology (1 DD + 2 BA)? If that treble peak were just a bit less emphasized on the DN-2000s...
