Doesn’t help in my experience - its an overdamping issue.
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Thank you sir - much appreciated!
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Great way to put it. I have the Celestee now and that’s the first thing I notice every time I put them on. I have the Noire on order just to see if I can get rid of that pressure. It pulls that tinnitus ring out if you have it too.
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What other headphones do you find this in? I got the Celestee and want to avoid it in my next headphone.
I’m not a professional reviewer with wide-ranging experience such as @Resolve or @antdroid. They or others can provide better guidance. Dan Clark is the least fatiguing audiophile closed headphone brand that I’ve heard. Also see recent discussion in the Stealth thread. Many consumer Bluetooth closed headphones (e.g., Sony, Bose) are also not pressured or fatiguing to my ears. In contrast, I found the Meze 99 Classic to be extremely fatiguing.
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I keep hearing nothing but good about the Stealth. Hope to get a pair eventually. I haven’t heard so much praise for a closed back.
Just got the Noire and I love it coming from the Celestee. That air pressure is certainly releaved. Does anyone have tips on how to prevent the headband from slipping? Has a hard time staying where I adjust it.
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Blue thread locker. Loctite or a competitor. It fixed my AFC and a hundred other things. It’s soft enough that you can still unscrew if needed.
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Spoke too soon. Simply tightening the screw worked. Thanks!
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My amature impressions of the Noire.
History: AT ATH-M50, Monoprice m1060,Tin T2, Airpods Pro, Sony WH, Focal Celestee
Stack: Asus x570 pro>Topping d30Pro balanced XLR to THX AAA 789 balanced XLR cable to headphones
Music: Rap, Jazz, Electronic, Ambient, Rock
Style
At first, I wasn’t interested based on the shape and styling of the Noire. Not a fan of carbon fiber with it being associated with the sporty car look. To me, the Celestee is one of the best-looking headphones with navy blue and copper accenting giving it a classy look that stood out in the sea of black headphones or wood cups. I wasn’t interested in the Aeon’s shape at first either. It seemed like a different-just-to-be-different kind of move. Then I read someone explain it’s made to be shaped like an ear for comfort, then it made sense.
The cable on the Celestee is a joke. Focal must assume you have a dac/amp on your desk because it certainly is not long enough for any other listening scenario. I got the balanced XLR cable for the Noire and it’s perfect with no microphonics. The connectors are weird but I like them better than the m1060c connectors. It would be a problem if I was looking for a secondary cable but I don’t intend to do that since I enjoy this one. It feels nice to the touch. It’s very light. Not stiff like Focal cables are.
Comfort
Many reviews said it was the most comfortable headphone they’ve tried. Comfort was a reason why I wanted to upgrade from the m1060c. With the Noire, I immediately noticed how comfortable it was once I put it on. It is ultra-light and has very little pressure from the cups. The weight is the lightest I’ve tried on my head. The Celestee was better than the m1060 in weight but more than the Noire. Celestee clamping was not hard but made so I couldn’t forget the headphone was on. The Noire I could forget. The Noire was something I enjoyed putting on my head. The Celestee was kind of a gets the job done feel. The Noire has set my benchmark for comfort. I simply love wearing them.
Sound
The first thing I thought with the Noire was how subdued it seemed, but not in a bad way. It pointed out how shouty the Celestee was in contrast, even with EQ on both. Getting used to it for about a week now, the treble is pleasing. Mids are less forward but are still present. Celestee leaned more bright when Noire was almost warm.
Noire bass is slightly less hard than the Celestee, but not by far. Bass is where I want it to be, and if I wanted more it EQ’s great.
I use Oratory1990’s EQ. The Celestee EQ felt more like a required fix, and when I forgot to turn it on I was reminded by the Celestee’s sharp treble. Fatigue was a problem with the Celestee caused by the microdynamics/pressure as others have pointed out in this forum. I almost say I could notice the distortion others mention. The Noire I preferred it without EQ. With no EQ it has more life and detail. The soundstage seems larger.
Focal is said to bring detail and clarity forward and I would agree, but it’s a bit more in your face. Almost too much. The Noire is more subtle and laid back and does a great job with detail too, but you have to search for it. I don’t see the need for the inserts that come with the Noire. I’d say it could use the treble pulled up.
To my untrained ear, the Noire tone is good. I couldn’t find any distortion even at high volumes. In comparison, the Celestee was less pleasant to listen to at high volumes.
The Celestee was my first high-end headphone at $1k so I was expecting it to blow me away. I didn’t expect it to be perfect, but I could not ignore how little the soundstage was. It must have been smaller than the m1060c. It was a glaring problem that pushed me to look for a closed-back that had a less small stage. The Noire isn’t super impressive with stage or imaging but it was noticeable better. When listening to Oscar Peterson’s top tracks there is some whispering or breathing that makes me check my surroundings. It still had so much detail that I could undeniably notice the distortion in the tracks I mentioned in my recording quality post I made here; a blessing and a curse. The Noire has an airy feel to it. Neither had that behind a wood cup sound that the m1060c has.
I use a balanced cable on the Noire and only have to use the 2nd gain with volume never going past 50%. The amp is after a d30pro that sits in preamp mode -0.0db, and Windows/Tidal volume 100%.
I assumed Celestee would show me the benefits of “higher-end” headphones and when I didn’t love it I thought maybe I just wasn’t used to it. I felt I had to listen to them and I had to enjoy them because they were high end but I just didn’t. I’d keep them over my m1060c’s. The Noire I immediately enjoyed. I want to come back to it.
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I haven’t used my Noire for some time. During summer I only stand my HD600.
I’m currently studying electroacoustic music, especially music from Group de Recherche Musicale (GRM).
This kind of music doesn’t need punch or fastness to be appreciated.
The Aeon Noire paired with my custom @ampsandsound Mogwai OG are surprising me.
The amp really picks the best from Noire. Incredible detail, great tonal balance and a fastness that I hadn’t experienced with solid state amp.
Synergy is always the key: given a kind of music find the right combo with headphones and amplification and you can only be happy.
Given the low impedance and low sensitivity of the Noire I wasn’t so sure they would pair so well with the Mogwai.
I’m really, positively surprised.
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Just a little note in addition to what I wrote yesterday.
I’ve rolled a pair of Gold Lion KT88 on my Mogway OG.
Lord, the Noire now sing a richer, fuller song, it’s like I have a totally new headphone.
The synergy of this headphone with tube amps is incredible.
In comparison with lower power EL34L STR I’ve lost some delicacy and fitness but gained fuller details, much more tonal authority and a fat, impactful bass. Cherry on the cake midrange with KT88 is now perfect for my tastes, something similar to HD6whatever series and Focal Clears.
Listening a 1975 live performance of Luc Ferrari on vinyl and it sounds like I did a time travel and I’m sitting in front of him. Wonderful, open soundstage a great scale.
I thank @MRHifiReviews for this experience: saw the GL KT88 in some of his videos and it inspired me to give it a try.
Definitely worth it.
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A last note about the Aeon Noire.
After nearly one year of use I start to perceive a decent sense of impact.
Given I don’t believe in burn in about planar magnetic or dynamic drivers (it doesn’t mean it is wrong to believe to it, I personally just don’t believe in it) I suppose that the pad wearing is doing its job: the foam starts to sit better on my ears, the distance between ears and driver decreases and the dynamic get better.
Obviously it will never be competitive with Focal headphones but I’ve read many times about DAC as “dead sounding”. If you use an object it growns on you and it modifies its characteristics.
Also consider I wasn’t using the Noire since April so non brain EQ involved here.
With powerful tube amplification they are now growing on me and I’m really enjoying them.
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I will second this 100%.
I have the Aeon RT open (revised version of original), and it positively comes alive and slams with the Lyr 3. It’s a great combo in fact. My RT was kind of a dud using portable devices, but it’s night and day difference with a proper amp, using discrete components (I think). In fact I have found all the planars I own need a proper amp (Aeon, Sundara, and Argon Mk 2 from Modhouse).
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I am fairly new here and am having some difficulty using the search and navigation aspects of this forum… it doesn’t seem to work like other audiophile forums I’ve used (how to get to top or bottom of a thread and click on relevant search results, etc). So forgive me if I’m asking questions that have already been fully answered and discussed.
I am considering getting one of DCA’s Aeon models. Thought I wanted the open back Aeon 2 until I watched Resolve’s video comparing the open and closed models, now I am not so sure. Didn’t even know there was a budget Aeon RT model till I saw it on the DCA site yesterday, so that’s an option. I would love to see a page with comparisons of all four currently available Aeon models: Aeon RT, Aeon 2 open and closed, Aeon Noire. But mostly I’d like to know what the difference in sound and performance is between the Aeon 2 closed and the Aeon Noire, which are priced the same. It’s not only the color, right? If someone has listened to both of these models and can elucidate, please do so.
Ultimately I would like to get the DCA Stealth phones but that will have to wait till I have that kind of money. Meanwhile, one of the Aeons seems a good place to start. FYI it is the comfort factor that is drawing me toward these models. And I also figured out that if I buy any DCA phones I will be enrolled in the DCA club which gives me 15% off any future purchase. So I could conceivably buy the Aeon RT for $500 and then upgrade to the Stealth and save $600 on that model, not bad…
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First of all in general Aeon Closed have a better tuning and frequency response in comparison to the Opens.
There are the RT ones and the Drop Aeon X both open and closed.
It looks like @Resolve doesn’t recommend nor one nor the others.
Essentially the Aeon 2 open and closed and the Noire have a different placement of the magnets in comparison to RT/X: second generation Aeon have the magnets behind the driver and this brings to a better sound.
The Noire are Aeon 2 Closed retuned and with perforated pads.
It is nearly a year that I have and use the Noire and I’m very happy with them.
Consider they are very amp picky and that I love them using my @ampsandsound Mogwai OG as geadamp. I don’t love them very much out of Asgard 3 or other solid state amps I own.
I believe the better saving for you is buying the Noire or keep on saving for the Stealth.
Check also DMS review of the Aeon Open X for a different opinion about them.
PS. I link you the discussion about Aeon X in the forum:
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Thanks, monochromios. So you say the Noire are amp picky. I have a Rega Brio amp (I’m happy with it and not on the market to buy a new amp). For what reason would this model of headphone not agree with my amp?
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Dan Clark’s headphones often demand much more amp power than other headphones, and beyond what their specs indicate. They do best on LARGE dedicated desktop headphone amps. This is common among planar magnetic headphones, and made worse by Dan Clark favoring of low impedance designs. The bottom line is that the headphones draw an awful lot of power/current. I own the original Aeon Flow Closed, and do not recommend it on mobile or entry-level amps. I like it on the Schiit Lyr 3 and Rebel Audio RebelAmp.
The Brio is primarily a speaker amp, and such integrated products typically have weak headphone amps relative to dedicated models. However, I have no experience with the Brio.
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Yep.
The Brio is only capable of about 100-150mW into headphones, depending on load. It seems to be more current limited than voltage (as it can swing 5.9V into 300 ohms) - which is the opposite of what you want with a low-impedance planar headphone. Ratings aren’t provided below 32 ohms. The various DCA AEON derived models hover around 13-14 ohms.
When I looked at the AEON Flow models, years ago now, they just sounded flat, lifeless and congested, with wooly bass, when not driven with an amp with decent current capacity. Doesn’t need to be expensive, there are $100 amps that can supply 20x the power that the Brio will deliver, and result in much better performance with the DCA cans.
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I’m far from saying anything bad about your amplifier.
But first of all “we” are not out equipment so no opinion wrote about a piece of gear is an opinion about a person.
Secondly as @generic properly wrote DCA need power to work properly.
For power I mean high current, an insane amount of current.
My preference for tubes is my preference, I can’t speak about others experience or other preferences. I can tell you only about me.
A lot of people use the Noire on solid state amps and are happy with it.
I only want you to be aware that DCA headphones require a powerfull amp and avoid you a frustrating experience.
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