Just received the Denon's today. Quite impressive straight away. I agree with all of Warrior's observations, and I look forward to these burning in and becoming even more refined. Right away I noticed the midrange being more up front than with the Atrio M5's (this is not to say that it's aggressive or harsh, just more present). These are nicer for vocals than the M5. The bass seems a bit more 'settled' or focused than them too- I'd describe it as just a little less flab & midbass overhang, if the Atrio even has any. As Warrior says, the soundstage is more expansive. The highs are maybe more detailed too. The bass detracts from the rest of the frequency even less than on the Atrio, if that's possible. They really are quite refined and nice. I'm pleasantly surprised. I thought I had found my ideal in the Atrio, but I think I'm going to wind up liking these even better. I LOVE the build quality with the aluminum housing...very nice. Future Sonics should take a cue from this aspect. They make the Atrio's plastic housing and thin cord coming out of the earpieces seem like a kid's toy earphone by comparison.
Funny thing, having read in this thread that some people were concerned about tip availability should something happen to the ones provided, I looked at them and thought the post looks awfully similar in shape to the Vibes. So out those came, and I tried swapping. Perfect. I have the Vibes mediums on the Denons, and they seem to be a better fit than the mediums provided. So they seem to be a pretty common size like other canal phones. Anyone know what else fits them?
I think these are definite keepers. I see them getting most of my everyday use at work because they are so quick to put in, and isolate so well for a canal phone. The Atrio's will probably be relegated to travel because of their superior isolation with the Shure Olives. I think I already prefer the overall balance of the Denons to the Atrios, although they are very similar indeed. Both phones hav e that fun factor, and rightness to them. I think it is safe to say that if you like the M5 you will most definitely like the Denons...maybe even a tad better.
BTW, I really like the look of them with the V-moda Vibes translucent medium tips.
**edit again** A/B'd the translucent tips with the black ones provided for a good while and found that the original ones do convey more detail, soundstage, and bass. So it seems that the stock ones stay in place- too bad, I really liked how the translucent looked. V-moda Vibes medium black silicon tips seem to work well (they feel the same softness as the stock tips) so at least there's a backup. The V-moda mediums are a tad larger, so fit more securely. No loss of any of the frequency range, but they don't improve things either. Just an alternative I guess. The translucent V-moda silicons are a bit harder durometer and I am guessing this is what degrades the sound.