So November was a busy month - Shanghai CanJam, Chord distributor conference in Phuket and finally Singapore for the AV show (which was very busy). And designing in-between events, with a huge workload on at the moment.
But the highlight was definitely getting to hear Mr. Speakers (now Dan Clark Audio) Aeon 2 and being at the Aeon 2 and new naming launch. You can see the thinking behind Aeon 2 here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-new-aeon-2-its-the-end-of-mrspeakers.918309/
Personally I have been a big fan of Dan Clark Audio, in particular with the original Aeons. When I first heard them in early 2017 I was knocked out by the accuracy, transparency and refinement - and on my next listen, at Singapore CanJam, I ordered a pair. The production units arrived in June, and I was struck by two things - they didn't need any break-in, and they sounded identical to the early prototypes I had heard. The only downside was the bass was too lean, but adding the tuning pads helped that.
I ought to state my needs for headphones - I do a lot of listening on flights, and a lot of my flights are 12 or 13 hours. So I need headphones that are comfortable, that you can use for ten hours or so without fatigue. Also, I absolutely need acoustic isolation. Finally, I need transparency, accuracy and refinement - and above all musicality (that is the ability to get emotionally involved with the music). The Aeons firmly ticked all of those boxes. What impressed me so much was the transparency - very convincing sense of depth (cross-feed must be on) and pinpoint imagery.
Fortunately, I managed to blag an Aeon 2 after Shanghai (thanks Andy Regan) and so I thought I might post my personal impressions on the Aeon 2.
Firstly, it's a radical re-design, with a clever folding band, and with the magnets flipped to the closed side. The SQ differences were not small either - this is no marginal change.
The first thing you noticed is the tonal balance - gone is the lean sound of the originals. Bass is much more extended, with a heavier more meaty and loudspeaker like tonal balance. Moreover, distortion seems lower - as the volume increases, the sound does not harden up or change - and I was surprised at how much better this aspect is against the original, as low perceived bass distortion was a strong point on the Aeon 1. This aspect is very important to me - low bass distortion - and it's a major failing of many respected high-end headphones.
Lateral imagery is similar to the originals, but depth - that ability to hear sounds outside your head - is better than before - but this was always a major advantage of the Aeon 1. Also, because the Aeon closed is closed, early reflections from the rear gives it an upward tilt for me to the soundstage - I guess about +20 degrees. This doesn't happen with open backed, and it was never a huge problem. With the Aeon 2, this effect is still there, but it's much less noticeable.
Another issue is the clamping force is stronger on the Aeon 2s - this is good, as it improves bass sealing, and acoustic isolation - but I certainly would not want the clamping force any greater! This might be an issue for big heads though...
So the $64k question is is the improvements worth buying an Aeon 2 when you already own an Aeon 1? In my view absolutely yes. Moreover, if you are in the market for a closed headphone, you need to listen to the Aeon 2 - even if your budget is very much larger than the asking price - they are that good.
Congratulations to Dan and his team at Dan Clark Audio - you have made my flights more enjoyable - and enjoying music is what this hobby is really about.
