[elira]

I think I have come across the biggest problem (and the only one for me so far) with this headphone today. I don't like thick and clumsy cables, so I went looking online for replacements. It turns out that it's pretty hard to find anything with the hirose connectors for the Aeon 2, and the cheapest I saw out there was the one sold by DCA on their own website, at US100. I'm not a believer in expensive cables, so I was wondering if anyone could please point me out to something that is reasonably well built, and won't cost me my left kidney. I really don't get the point in using these connectors when apparently nobody else uses it. I wanted balanced xlr that is a bit longer for a balanced desk amp, and a single ended one for portable use with something like the Chord Mojo.

Arctic cables have some not so expensive and very flexible. http://arcticcables.com/

 

[Dystasia]

@mrspeakers Hey Dan!

Do you still recommend the Headamp Gilmore Lite Mk2 or Lyr 3 for the AFO2? Is there anything new around this price range that you think pairs well with the AFO2?

 

[donpablo]

To find good matches in amps here are a few simple tricks:
1) All our headphones range from 12.5-27ohms. Try to find amps that rate power at 32 and/or 16ohms and look for at least 150mW at 16.
2) Be careful with OTL amps, they may work great like the LTA units, or they may just run out of gas at low volumes. Ask the maker how well it will handle low impedance loads.
3) For tubes amps check there's a Low impedance output switch or tap and if so that its 8-32 ohms for max power transfer. A big amp can have higher output impedance and still work fine.
4) For solid state amps try to get <2ohms output impedance. Over 10 ohms = lots of power lost to heat in the amp instead of to sound.

I have found pdf manual to my Little Dot MK3 SE and there is stated:

7, output power:
2.5W (32 ohm)
1.8W (120 ohm)
0.8W (300 ohm)

So I suppose for 16Ohms it would be also enough power yep?

There is no info about its output impedance but stories on the internet says something about 10 Ohms. (Not confirmed how much it is exactly).

 

[FunderFURY]

So I suppose for 16Ohms it would be also enough power yep?

There is no info about its output impedance but stories on the internet says something about 10 Ohms. (Not confirmed how much it is exactly).

Website says 13 ohms and yes that is more than enough power - likely more than 2.5 as much as you'll need. I've never maxed out my Mojo (Just under 1W at that impedance if memory serves).

 

[mrspeakers]

I have found pdf manual to my Little Dot MK3 SE and there is stated:


So I suppose for 16Ohms it would be also enough power yep?

There is no info about its output impedance but stories on the internet says something about 10 Ohms. (Not confirmed how much it is exactly).

Indeed, that's great to know. Another affordable amp to have to recommend...

 

[mrspeakers]

@mrspeakers Hey Dan!

Do you still recommend the Headamp Gilmore Lite Mk2 or Lyr 3 for the AFO2? Is there anything new around this price range that you think pairs well with the AFO2?

Yeah, we love the GMLMk2, it's still part of my "tuning stack" of gear I use for voicing. Lovely transparency and clarity in the highs with incredibly powerful bass. Great for the $. Another one to consider is the Cavalli Liquid Platinum. There are other pieces with good reputations I've not heard, and I few I had good impressions of but haven't spent enough time to be authoritative including the higher end THX units, the aforementioned Little Dot Mk3 which looks to have enough power after all.

If you are interested in the GMLMk2 we have them in stock. We like that one enough to carry inventory.

 

[donpablo]

@mrspeakers Btw, Little Dot MK3 comes in 2 versions:

- Little Dot MK3 SE ("hybrid tube headphone amplifier features a streamlined design", which is balanced construction with XLR inputs and XLR headphone output as well, 2 tubes)
- Little Dot MK3 (single ended with 4 tubes)

Looking on specs that can be seen here: https://drop.com/buy/littledot-tube-amp
we can say that they have to have pretty different construction and not balanced version may not be enough for Aeons:

SPECS
Little Dot MKIII SE

• Fully balanced hybrid (tube pre-stage with discrete output)
• Pure Class-A architecture
• High-quality aluminum chassis
• Frequency response: 5 Hz–100 kHz (-1 dB)
• THD+N: 0.001% (2 V rms at 1 kHz)
• Power output: 2.5W (32 ohms), 1.8W (120 ohms), 800 mW (300 ohms)
• Variable gain: Low (4.5) or high (9x)
• Recommended load impedance: 32–600 ohm
• Input impedance: 50 kohms

Little Dot MKIII

• Single-Ended Push Pull OTL in Class-A
• 2 x 5654 (5725) driver tubes
• 2 x 6H6PI (6H6n, 6H6nN) power tubes
• High quality aluminum chassis
• Frequency response: 12 Hz - 100 kHz
• THD + N: 0.15% (80 mW @ 300 Ohms)
• Power output: 350 mW @ 300/600 Ohms, 300 mW @ 120 Ohms, 100 mW @ 32 Ohms
• Variable gain: 3, 4, 5, or 10x
• Recommended load impedance: 32 - 600 Ohms
• Input impedance: 50 kOhms

 

[mrspeakers]

@mrspeakers Btw, Little Dot MK3 comes in 2 versions:

- Little Dot MK3 SE ("hybrid tube headphone amplifier features a streamlined design", which is balanced construction with XLR inputs and XLR headphone output as well, 2 tubes)
- Little Dot MK3 (single ended with 4 tubes)

Looking on specs that can be seen here: https://drop.com/buy/littledot-tube-amp
we can say that they have to have pretty different construction and not balanced version may not be enough for Aeons:

That's why I got confused, I like at the MKIII not the SE earlier, and the Mk3 is an OTL design which won't work anywhere near as well as the MKIII SE, which looks like a beast. Again, I've not heard these but on spec the 3SE is more than enough for anyone.

 

[BobMonkhouse]

I've had my AEON 2 Open for a few days and used them for several hours already.
I don't regret buying them at all. They're everything I hoped for.
I can't complain from any ergonomics issues or comfort. I prefer how they sound with the one notch filters. I don't mind the sound with the foam filters or no filters at all, but get fatigued after a short period of time. It's not headphones fault, I'm just sensitive to treble.
After trying them with all my 7 amps, don't ask why, they sound best paired with my Atom or Ember (6SN7 tube) amps. They respond quite well to changing amps signatures.
I'm not good in describing sound but I need to share a few first impressions:
The tonality is very good presenting very satisfying macro details. The depth, layering and imaging are not impressive but I believe they need burn-in time to open up and improve the overall soundstage. I don't sense lack of separation though.
The bass is faster and better controlled than Aeon Flow Open, offers similar attack to LCD-2f but the quantity of the upper bass is more.
The mids sound natural, never thin. My only negative criticism about the headphones is I feel some lack of micro details in the lower mids and particularly male vocals; something is missing there. It's not always noticeable but sometimes it grabs the attention. I hope they improve this aspect. I usually complain from female vocals being too shouty or unnatural, especially in the presence region. I haven't heard better women's vocals from any other headphones. They're superb and are Aeon 2's strongest feature.
The treble is very much present with energy but it's not harsh and it's very resolving. I can't identify any unnatural spikes or dips.

 

[hikaru12]

I've had my AEON 2 Open for a few days and used them for several hours already.
I don't regret buying them at all. They're everything I hoped for.
I can't complain from any ergonomics issues or comfort. I prefer how they sound with the one notch filters. I don't mind the sound with the foam filters or no filters at all, but get fatigued after a short period of time. It's not headphones fault, I'm just sensitive to treble.
After trying them with all my 7 amps, don't ask why, they sound best paired with my Atom or Ember (6SN7 tube) amps. They respond quite well to changing amps signatures.
I'm not good in describing sound but I need to share a few first impressions:
The tonality is very good presenting very satisfying macro details. The depth, layering and imaging are not impressive but I believe they need burn-in time to open up and improve the overall soundstage. I don't sense lack of separation though.
The bass is faster and better controlled than Aeon Flow Open, offers similar attack to LCD-2f but the quantity of the upper bass is more.
The mids sound natural, never thin. My only negative criticism about the headphones is I feel some lack of micro details in the lower mids and particularly male vocals; something is missing there. It's not always noticeable but sometimes it grabs the attention. I hope they improve this aspect. I usually complain from female vocals being too shouty or unnatural, especially in the presence region. I haven't heard better women's vocals from any other headphones. They're superb and are Aeon 2's strongest feature.
The treble is very much present with energy but it's not harsh and it's very resolving. I can't identify any unnatural spikes or dips.

What do you mean that the bass has similar attack? Do you mean it has the same kind of slam? Is the bass satisfying in quantity or do you feel it lacking? Is it better than the original AFO? Is it warm like the original AFO?

 

[BobMonkhouse]

I guess you can call it "slam"; I meant the energy and articulation of the notes first impact. I used "faster" and "controlled" bass to emphasize that the bass has faster transient speed than AFO. Also, the notes decay is more natural. In regards to bass amount, I very rarely feel it's emphasized too much with certain recordings. My only problem with AFO and the reason I returned them was that the bass was too "wet" - too much reverb and bloom which hurt the details and separation. The bottom line is I find the A2O's dynamics in the bass region natural and believable.

 

[flarex3]

Would you draw some comparisons with the A2C and Elegia? It was the other one in my list since I needed close backs for my office. I never hear them, just watched reviews here and there.

Sure

A2C's design & build is really smart. But the sound quality difference between the two headphones is extreme so I will be recommending Elegia without a doubt
Similar priced open backs sound better than both but most of us can only listen to closed backs due to conditions.

A2C's advantages
- About 100 grams lighter
- Folds into a smaller state, more portable
- Smaller case. Its case occupies less space in a bag

Equal points
- Both of them's stock cables suck. Need a proper 3rd party cable
- Both offer solid isolation from the outside noise

Elegia's advantages
- Easier to drive (92 db vs 105 db /mW)
- Significantly better overally sound quality
- Much better clarity. Everything sounds more cystal clear, especially vocals.
- Better dynamics. Better instrument seperation.
- Elegia's tonality is relatively neutral. A2C has issues with upper midrange dip and and weird treble peak, IMO the music doesn't sound like it should
- Elegia's soundstage is much larger in all three dimensions. When listening the same song out of the same gear with both headphones, the difference is extremely evident.

So my recommendation goes to Elegia because the extremely high sound quality differences matter more than the small portability advantages.

 

[donpablo]

@flarex3 What headphone amp you plugged them in?

 

[elira]

I tried the elegia for a week, and it sounded good in the mids and highs but the bass was very weak. The A2C is way more aggressive, and has strong low end. I don't think the Elegia is worth getting, I like more the sound of the A2C and the folding mechanism is amazing.

I got them with the Vivo cable, and it's a nice cable that sounds good, the only issue is that it's a little too thick.

 

[flarex3]

@flarex3 What headphone amp you plugged them in?

iBasso DX220 DAP with AMP8 module ($979 + $220)
Both were driven out of the same gear so the game is fair.