This is the official thread for the Drop + HiFiMAN HE-R7DX, which you can find here:
Drop were kind enough to send one over for me to measure and evaluate. Here is the HE-R7DX frequency response done on the GRAS 43AG with KB5000 anthropometric pinna:
This is a somewhat ‘W-shaped’ result, even though the overall balance is reasonable, which is the HE-R7DX’s main strength in my view. So there’s a good balance between upper mids and treble for example. But each frequency range has its issues.
The bass is a bit on the boomy side, rather than thumpy, but it’s altogether not that bad. In the mids, mainly that 800-900hz bump causes things to sound a bit nasally and honky at times. Also, there are some small harmonic imbalances in the treble that throw off percussive instruments like cymbals and snares for me. The 5.8khz boost and the 9khz peak are the likely culprits here.
The other thing to note is that the bass level is highly dependent on achieving good coupling, and on my head, it required adjusting the fit substantially to get it. I did double check that I was getting a seal with in-ear mics and I eventually was able to… still, this would be less of an issue with a design that had stronger clamp force.
Channel Matching
On-Head Response (for bass level only). DOTTED = on-head response:
Notes:
- Large earpads that are actually different from those found on the HE5XX/Deva, although they look similar. The ones on the R7DX feel nicer and more cushiony.
- Very comfortable and lightweight, great for long listening sessions.
- Technical performance is about on part for what I’d expect at this price. Not super detailed but not overly blunted either. There’s still a general haze or duller presentation going on.
- Soundstage is reasonable, not the most spacious but not overly claustraphobic. Decent lateral definition.
- Not much here for macro contrast or sense of punch and impact, and that’s also with a good seal (I had to double check). I don’t think we can really expect all that much at this price.
- Its biggest strength is treble extension and incisiveness to my ear, only really held back by some of the tonal quirks up there.
- Driver appears to have corrugation style compliance design on the outside for bass - just interesting to note.
For me, this one misses the mark a bit - mostly because it’s priced in such close proximity to other extremely high value headphones like the AKG K371. Yes, those don’t have the greatest build quality and the fit isn’t the most desirable (the R7DX was certainly more comfortable for me and my big ears), but in my view the sound quality of the AKG is just flat-out better.
Here’s the video review:
