[hakunamakaka]

I own the PM-3, and have used it with lots of pleasure for a couple of years. The reason to look for something else was the same as for you, wear.

I ended my search with buying the Aeon 2 closed, and I am very happy I did. It is really a clear step up, not just some small improvement. And compared with the PM-3 the soundstage is seriously larger. And although the bass is powerful (at least to my ears, it won't be Audeze powerful), it is certainly not bloomy. On the warm side maybe, but taut enough. If you love the PM-3, I think you will love the Aeon 2 closed too. Both try to be neutral but lively (Aeon 2 more lively than PM-3). The Aeon 2 clearly needs more power than the PM-3 though, check if it works with your setup.

I'm not looking for a bass cans, but I've made a purchase already and I'm disappointed, I think I'm addicted to planar and pm3 sound signature, that midrange and tonal balance is something...Can portable amp push Aeon to decent listenable experience ? Sad thing that there is no authorized sellers of aeon within europe ;/

I was inpatient and rushed with my purchase

 

[SaltyLinuxGreybeard]

Just got these yesterday and I am truly impressed by the progress between the AFC1 and AFC2. They have ~8 hours of total listening on them and ~10 hours white noise at a high volume playing for driver burn

I am using the black foam filters on both the AFC1 and AFC2 and a Monolith Tube Amp w/Sabre DAC (similar to Cayin HA-1 MK 2).

@mrspeakers you knocked this out of the park! I am an ardent AFC1 fan and couldn't imagine it getting more than 10% better with the AFC2 but decided to take a blind leap. Boy was I wrong!

What the AFC2 fixes over the AFC1:
Vocals - The AFC1 can be grainy, resonant, and lack vocal presence. Vocal presentation and presence are vastly improved on the AFC2, male vocals especially. Gone is any feeling of resonance or the classic 'cupped' closed headphone sound. A huge improvement that makes listening to the AFC1 almost painful.

Layered Bass - Heavily layered bass lines get lost and lack texture on the AFC1. What a vast improvement on the AFC2. The bass may not be as prominent in some cases but it's far more accurately represented.

Dynamics - The AFC1 got flak for this all the time. Especially on weak recordings the AFC1 can sound absolutely lifeless up to flat out terrible. The AFC2 in comparison does a much better job of presenting the music as a whole with better instrument separation, sense of space, and low end texture. I mainly attribute this to a better handling of the bass->mids transition and a flat out better overall tonality throughout the mid range. Highly compressed (low dynamic range) albums and tracks still present a problem but less of one due to the better tuning.

Soundstage - Not a giant improvement over the AFC1 but the center dead space causing a perceived enhanced channel separation in the AFC1 has been reduced. While I won't be placing CS:GO with them but imaging in general is far more coherent.

Comfort - Clamp is stronger but in a good way but that could be due to my AFC1 having thousands of hours on them. I routinely wore my AFC1 for 8-12 hours a day and see myself doing the same with the AFC2.

I can't wait to use these for a decade to come!

 

[qsk78]

To me that sounds more like the AFC 2 is more colored than the AFC 1.
AFC 1 is source dependent. May shine or may not...
I don't really think that you need to fix anything on AFC 1, either you love it or not. It has its own unique sound signature. AFC1 is lacking resolution but this is ok for the closed back.

 

[Licht]

I'm not looking for a bass cans, but I've made a purchase already and I'm disappointed, I think I'm addicted to planar and pm3 sound signature, that midrange and tonal balance is something...Can portable amp push Aeon to decent listenable experience ? Sad thing that there is no authorized sellers of aeon within europe ;/

I was inpatient and rushed with my purchase

Aeon should be really hard to drive. Its impedance is low but sensitivity is low as well, which means you don't need voltage, but you need amperes a lot.
I don't have Aeons, but my Ether 2 (not so far impedance and sensitivity from Aeon2) sounds dull, definitely lacking power (not the volume level but the sound), especially on bass, from my $1299 portable music player (balanced output from A&K SA700). But Ether2 sounds great via powerful Mjolnir2.

PM-3 (I had them in the past) is made for portable and easy to drive and also have a little bit elevated upper bass to compete with surrounding low frequency noise from train, car, etc..

If you don't have powerful amp yet and considering portable ones, I guess you need powerful one like Chord Mojo or iFi micro iDSD Black Label, etc..
I have Mojo and it is not bad with Ether2 (though big amps like Mjolnir2 sounds way better.)

 

[elira]

Can portable amp push Aeon to decent listenable experience ?

Aeon 2 closed pairs well with the Fiio Q5s with THX amp. It makes a very nice portable setup.

 

[mrspeakers]

Aeon 2 closed pairs well with the Fiio Q5s with THX amp. It makes a very nice portable setup.

I also like it with the iBasso DX220 with Amp 8 module, and the high-end Sony Walkman is pretty amazing, though it won't play LOUD, their max gain is a little low. That said, it plays louder than is safe to listen to for any extended time so that's 100% fine for me given the SQ.

 

[ubs28]

I disagree. The Sony WM1Z cannot handle the AFC 2. To me it seems that this DAP was designed for IEM’s as the amplifier is quite weak.

If you got $3000 to spend, the Chord 2Go + Hugo 2 or the Chord Poly + Mojo are better options which handle the AFC 2 without problems.

 

[mrspeakers]

I disagree. The Sony WM1Z cannot handle the AFC 2. To me it seems that this DAP was designed for IEM’s as the amplifier is quite weak.

If you got $3000 to spend, the Chord 2Go + Hugo 2 or the Chord Poly + Mojo are better options which handle the AFC 2 without problems.

As I said, it won't play "loud." I recommend it for the audio quality, and most of our customers would find the volume adequate, but not all to be sure. The other limitation is it doesn't support WiFi, which is a real pity. The Hugo 2 is definitely a better device but of course it's totally not a pocket-friendly solution.

So all in all, most people looking for something for A2 would probably be more in the iBasso DX220 range anyhow, and yes, the Mojo also rocks if you don't need a 1-box solution.

 

[ubs28]

Yes, but spending $3000 on a DAP which barely gets loud enough is not something I would recommend to someone The Chord Poly + Mojo is quite pocketable actually. That is how I use the AFC 2 outdoors (pre-corona).

I never the tested the iBasso DX220 range, but if it gets loud enough, then that would be a better choice i would say also over the WM1Z.

 

[SaltyLinuxGreybeard]

To me that sounds more like the AFC 2 is more colored than the AFC 1.
AFC 1 is source dependent. May shine or may not...
I don't really think that you need to fix anything on AFC 1, either you love it or not. It has its own unique sound signature. AFC1 is lacking resolution but this is ok for the closed back.

I was not expecting such an improvement nor did I ever understand the hate the AFC1 gets.

I wouldn't call it colored at all. It's the AFC1 simply refined quite a bit and eliminates resonances the AFC1 can display especially with male vocals and percussion like marimba and vibraphone (some type of harmonic around 3 and 5k?). The track "Afternoon in Paris" on the CD "Interplay" by Mark Sherman is a good example of where even on a decent recording this resonance really hurts the AFC1 but the AFC2 does a much better job especially around 0:40-1:00. It's not free of resonance but doesn't have that distinctly "aliased" feeling the AFC1 has.

The AFC1 is no slouch but the AFC2 is a clear step up. If you are concerned about bass bloat covering the bass ports makes a slight but noticeable difference. I have mine half covered and find the bass to be slightly less than the AFC1 but mostly due to it being simply a hell of a lot tighter with less emphasis on pure planar sub-bass to make up for lack of detail.

Have you had a chance to head to head your AFC1 to AFC2? If you can audition it I would recommend.

 

[qsk78]

Have you had a chance to head to head your AFC1 to AFC2? If you can audition it I would recommend.

No, I did not. Thank you for your recommendations.
Anyway, I'm not panning today to upgrade from one closed back to another, I auditioned Ether C Flow in the past and preferred AFC that time, mainly due to better (to my taste) tonality.
To me the next step is open back planar-magnetic which can compete with HD800S resolution wise.
From DCA side it can be Ether 2. Still have 2-3 headphones in this price range on my radar. We will see...
Meanwhile, I ordered one locally custom made planar HP to try (should be a level of lcd3)

 

[hakunamakaka]

The thing is that I want a portable solution, so I could walk around and travell. I do not listen on the loud volume, but from my experience if there is no enough juice, low volumes sound a bit thin. Is Aeon first easier to drive ? I could buy 2nd hand maybe or even go with different sensitive planars, but don’t find many which seems to be comfy as well. I have an eye in hifiman Arya, but scared of too agressive and “light” sound without any meat or air...unfortunately no chance to audition Can’t stand analytical hp

 

[qsk78]

Is Aeon first easier to drive ? I

I can listen to it out of a balanced output of cayin n6 ii T01 (530 mW@32 ohm). Not the level of a desktop amp but acceptable.

 

[Licht]

I can listen to it out of a balanced output of cayin n6 ii T01 (530 mW@32 ohm). Not the level of a desktop amp but acceptable.

Isn't it VERY powerful as a portable?
Power of portable players varies in 10x order. I think 50mW @32ohm is typical output for portable players.
And you have to be careful of impedance of the earphones when you see the specs of portable amps.
Some players like A&K are rated with no load or infinity impedance, but the output voltage decreases significantly when you use standard low impedance earphones.

 

[qsk78]

No, 500 mW is absolutely normal for modern DAPs. On a paper, at least)