[koover]

Now have about 60 hours of play-time on our demo set of Aeon Flow Open. While the bass has definitely bloomed and the treble has certainly settled, I must say that the overall sound did not change as drastically as the Ethers and Ether Flows did with burn-in. The Aeons sound better right out of the box, you might say. Now, with proper break-in, they are sounding terrific. They still lose in a head-to-head battle with the Ether Flows, but what an achievement for the price.



I have a problem with the Elear's treble, which to my ears has a hashiness that a headphone in its price class shouldn't have. Aeon Open's treble has no such problem - very clear and lovely.

I thought the same thing with the Elears until I rolled in a tube that sounded fantastic. I thought the treble was splashy and I didn’t care for it at all. But now? I love this headphone, right behind the AOF.
But tubes do play a huge part in the Elear overall sound. Haven’t really listened to them on my Jot so maybe that’ll be next.

 

[JerseyD]

I thought the same thing with the Elears until I rolled in a tube that sounded fantastic. I thought the treble was splashy and I didn’t care for it at all. But now? I love this headphone, right behind the AOF.
But tubes do play a huge part in the Elear overall sound. Haven’t really listened to them on my Jot so maybe that’ll be next.

Interesting. I was listening to the Elears through a Woo WA7 with stock tubes. Bad match I guess.

 

[Badas]

I thought the same thing with the Elears until I rolled in a tube that sounded fantastic. I thought the treble was splashy and I didn’t care for it at all. But now? I love this headphone, right behind the AOF.
But tubes do play a huge part in the Elear overall sound. Haven’t really listened to them on my Jot so maybe that’ll be next.

I am thinking more for using with tubes.

Elear is available in my country. Aeon is not (I have to import).
So I leaning towards the Elear.

Soundstage is important. Which has the better soundstage AFO or Elear?

 

[franz12]

I am thinking more for using with tubes.

Elear is available in my country. Aeon is not (I have to import).
So I leaning towards the Elear.

Soundstage is important. Which has the better soundstage AFO or Elear?

I guess that is a bit difficult question to answer. From my experience with focal clear (though I never listened elear), both AFO and focals have rather small perceived soundstage. So it may really depend on tracks you listen to.
Both afo and focal clear have an intimate sound (in your face presentation). From my experience, intimate dense-sounding cans tend to have a rather smaller 'perceived' soundstage. You might want ask yourself what kinds of sound you want to listen to.

 

[abvolt]

How do you find them compared to your Elear? Another HP I'm considering.
I've heard the Elear is warm with a nice soundstage.

Of the hp's I have the Elear's are my favorites, very punchy & dynamic better than the AFO's but not by a lot. I think I'll be looking at the Clear's also soon..enjoy

 

[swmtnbiker]

The Clear is somewhat similar to the AFO, but at the same time it really is at a higher level. Both great headphones, but IMO the Clear is a quite noticeable step up. It's probably my end-game can. I think anything above this will cost a lot of dollars per percent of improvement.

 

[koover]

I am thinking more for using with tubes.

Elear is available in my country. Aeon is not (I have to import).
So I leaning towards the Elear.

Soundstage is important. Which has the better soundstage AFO or Elear?

Like the others have said, both are quite limited in their stage. They're more like a really outstanding semi open (the TH900 comes to mind but both are better) but man, the Elear just puts it out there right in your face. So much coming at you. As much as I want to believe and say both the AFO and Elear are close in their signatures, to me they're not. The AFO tilts more to the warm side but it's like a being wrapped up in a warm blanket covered from head to toe where you just don't want to leave it's comfort. It's just so great sounding. I also think the Elears are more punchy and a bit more bright in the upper mids and lower treble versus the AFO but not by a whole lot. Also with the AOF, I hear a more realistic high hat/crash where the Elear can get a bit splashy. But as I stated before, I slapped in a 2C51 Tung Sol and it just made them sound like a different headphone taming the treble, more soundstage and punchier bass. It brought it all together for me on my gear.
I literally love both of these headphones and really can't say which one I prefer over the other. Both of them are great enough to be my endgame. I know there's better out there but I'm quite satisfied with both. With the right amp and tube, they're both sublime and I just get lost in the music.
Right now I'm listening to the AFO with the Project Ember with an E88CC Siemens and it just doesn't get any better then this! IMO of course.

 

[franz12]

The Clear is somewhat similar to the AFO, but at the same time it really is at a higher level. Both great headphones, but IMO the Clear is a quite noticeable step up. It's probably my end-game can. I think anything above this will cost a lot of dollars per percent of improvement.

Will your AFO be on sale? Let me know if that is the case.
I bought afo and listened it heavily about two and half months, and gave it to my parent as promised..
Since then I bought Clear to make up my empty space, as I thought buying an extra new pair of afo in the same family seems to be...a dumb idea...
But the comfort issue with Clear has not gone after a week..it seems to be building up at least to me..

 

[franz12]

.......The AFO tilts more to the warm side but it's like a being wrapped up in a warm blanket covered from head to toe where you just don't want to leave it's comfort. It's just so great sounding. I also think the Elears are more punchy ...

This comment is spot on. I can conjecture what you talk about Elear from Clear. It has powerful dynamic punch than afo, but more than I want in a long listening session.. it is too aggressive at least to my tastes. I can hear bass, mid, and treble and have all the details with Clear, but I do miss a more cohesive sound with afo.

 

[swmtnbiker]

Will your AFO be on sale? Let me know if that is the case.
I bought afo and listened it heavily about two and half months, and gave it to my parent as promised..
Since then I bought Clear to make up my empty space, as I thought buying an extra new pair of afo in the same family seems to be...a dumb idea...
But the comfort issue with Clear has not gone after a week..it seems to be building up at least to me..

I will let you know.

 

[TK16]

How long is the stock cable, picked balanced, but my Black Dragon cable will come after.

 

[King CATalyst]

Like the others have said, both are quite limited in their stage. They're more like a really outstanding semi open (the TH900 comes to mind but both are better) but man, the Elear just puts it out there right in your face. So much coming at you. As much as I want to believe and say both the AFO and Elear are close in their signatures, to me they're not. The AFO tilts more to the warm side but it's like a being wrapped up in a warm blanket covered from head to toe where you just don't want to leave it's comfort. It's just so great sounding. I also think the Elears are more punchy and a bit more bright in the upper mids and lower treble versus the AFO but not by a whole lot. Also with the AOF, I hear a more realistic high hat/crash where the Elear can get a bit splashy. But as I stated before, I slapped in a 2C51 Tung Sol and it just made them sound like a different headphone taming the treble, more soundstage and punchier bass. It brought it all together for me on my gear.
I literally love both of these headphones and really can't say which one I prefer over the other. Both of them are great enough to be my endgame. I know there's better out there but I'm quite satisfied with both. With the right amp and tube, they're both sublime and I just get lost in the music.
Right now I'm listening to the AFO with the Project Ember with an E88CC Siemens and it just doesn't get any better then this! IMO of course.

Th900 has a bigger sound stage then both the elear and afo...honestly it beats out half of the open backs I've heard.

 

[WholeMilk]

I don’t think there’s too much of a difference. You got them burned in and skipped the hot @$$ part, lol.

When I initially tried on the AFOs my ears would get hot after using them for an hour. Really reminded me of when I first purchased the TH-X00. Hot treble and could only wear them for short sessions. It’s only after I modded the Fosties that I could wear them for much longer sessions. The AFOs treble went from a sharp to sounding very natural. No modding needing.



It leaks out but as much as a HD650. There is less sound that leaks in compared to the HD650.

I see you have the E-MU teak with Lawton mod, how does that compares to your experiences with TH-X00 and AFO ?
I love my non-modded E-MU teak with Dekoni pads and quite interested in AFO for its planar sound and comfort.

 

[Phantaminum]

I see you have the E-MU teak with Lawton mod, how does that compares to your experiences with TH-X00 and AFO ?
I love my non-modded E-MU teak with Dekoni pads and quite interested in AFO for its planar sound and comfort.

They’re both fantastic headphones and compliment each other. The E-Mu Teaks have a W type sound. The lows are very well pronounced along with the highs, and the mids are slightly recessed. They are musical and work well with solid states and tube amps. Very easy to drive. They do run lean compared to the AFO.

The Aeon Open Flows are very dynamic, are some of the most tonally accurate headphones I’ve heard, mids are very pronounced and punchy. The E-Mus can’t be beat in the sub bass department but the AFOs beats in handily in the mid bass. They also have such a sweet and addicting sound. They are also slightly more airy than the Teaks. They are much harder to drive but your amp should be fine. Which would I prefer? I’d take the AFO anytime of the day but if I was left with the Teaks I wouldn’t complain.

 

[WholeMilk]

They’re both fantastic headphones and compliment each other. The E-Mu Teaks have a W type sound. The lows are very well pronounced along with the highs, and the mids are slightly recessed. They are musical and work well with tube solid states and tube amps. Very easy to drive. They do run lean compared to the AFO.

The Aeon Open Flows are very dynamic, are some of the most tonally accurate headphones I’ve heard, mids are very pronounced and punchy. The E-Mus can’t be beat in the sub bass department but the AFOs beats in handily in the mid bass. They also have such a sweet and addicting sound. They are also slightly more airy than the Teaks. They are much harder to drive but your amp should be fine. Which would I prefer? I’d take the AFO anytime of the day but if I was left with the Teaks I wouldn’t complain.

Thanks for sharing your experience! I guess I'm going to have to save up for a pair of AFO one day.
I also own a pair of HD6xx (which I enjoy as well) that's currently running on DragonFly Red, I think AFO should be in the similar range of difficulty to power compares to that right ?
Worst case my pre-ordered MassDrop LCX should be able to power it when it arrives, I hope.