Dan Clark Audio - AEON 2 Noire

They are a bit different as the E3 is closed and the XO is an open headphone. If you don't need a closed headphone, get the XO. If you do and If fidelity to the Harman Curve and a large soundstage are critical to you, get the E3. I have the Noire 2 (not the X) and I really like it as a slightly more fun sound than the E3. But if I want reference sound in a closed headphone I go to the E3.

I have three of these and will give my opinions. Best for music is clearly the Focal Bathys with the onboard DAC. This rivals my DCA Noire and LCD-3 headphones for separation and clarity. Not as detailed as the LCD-3 but still clearly the best sound profile of the three. The ANC is the worst of the 3 especially for low dB noises. Microphone also worst of the 3. Comfort is ok but not phenomenal. Most comfortable with the best ANC for me is the Bose QC Ultra with the Sony right behind. Bose and Sony both need EQ and I don't see much of a difference between them for that. Sony has more bells and whistles with the APP with a better environment for adaptive sound control if that is of interest to you. And out of the box Sony sound better but for me still needs a lot of EQ to even out the low and high frequencies. Also I'm not a huge fan of the lack of deep cups for the WH1000X6 but that is just my preference for comfort. But agree just test all three by going to big box store or ordering and returning them. I also agree that the #2 for sound is the Sennheiser Momentum 4 which is the best deal of the four.

I'm going to say no based on the following selection of headphones that I own: Dynamic: Verite Open, Focal Elegia, Beyerdynamic T5/3rd generation and HD650, Planar: DCA E3, DCA Noire, Hifiman HE1000 Stealth, Audeze LCD-2f. IEMs: FiiO FH7s, Westone Mach 40; earbuds: Galaxy Buds Pro 2, Galaxy Buds Pro 3, Jabra Elite Active 8, Sennheiser True Momentum 4, Bose QC II, Bose QC Ultra and ANC headphones Bose NC700, Bose QC Ultra, Sony XM5 and B&W Px8.

1. DCA E3: To me nothing else is very close. Perfect tuning out of the box for what I like and very comfortable. I can wear these all day easily. 2. Focal Elegia: With Dekoni sheepskin pads and a bunch of EQ these sound incredibly better. Agree with build comments and not a great fan of microfiber. 3. DCA Noire: Very comfortable more fun oriented sound for me. Use these for certain types of rap, rock and hip-hop where they are quite effective. 4. Beyerdynamic T5/3rd Generation: Another puzzling stock sound choice that sounds much better with EQ. Perhaps my most comfortable headphone. ANC preferences Focal Bathys and B&W Px8 the latter with EQ to fix low frequencies.

The Meze 109 is a bright headphone with a strong bass presence and is not what I would consider a "natural sounding" headphone. For me it would be much closer to the HD660s2 than the 600 or 650. It is much better made than the Sennheiser headphones which are solid made but pretty much plastic all around. The wood earcups are a nice touch and the frame is manganese and not plastic. So clearly a premier looking open headphone. If you are interested in a closed headphone that is a bit more punchy than the HD600/650 the DCA Noire which comes with different pads to change tuning is one of my favorite headphones and the best closed headphone for me at that price. And really hard to compare to the 109 as the DCA is closed so starts a bit different. But of my closed headphones it isn't that far from the Meze 109 with a very solid bass and subtle V shaped sound presentation. To be clear, if you like the Meze 109 Pro (great headphone) with an AMP you are looking at \~$1000.

I use the FiiO Btr 17 dac/ Bluetooth transmitter with my wired headphones. I like a bunch of different headphones. My favorites with the btr 17 is the Aeon 2 Noir, the Sennheiser HD 650, and Sennheiser HD 560s. Not a setup I’d use out an about, but it’s excellent for the couch.

I’m brand new to the hobby, but I bought a pair of DCA Aeon 2 Noires a couple of years ago on DMS’s suggestion and holy cow, I’d never heard music that way before. People who have never bought mid or hifi headphones just don’t understand it until they hear it.

That’s curious because to my ears my OG aeons EQ bass just fine. It lacks the punch OPs clear would have but it’s plenty for me personally!

I have the OG MrSpeakers Aeon Closed and they’re just a damn good closed back set. Neutral bright is how I’d describe them, with some EQ they can become warm and lively if that’s your bag. I also have elear with clear pads and will say the elear KILLS the aeon closed for dynamics and punch. The elears are almost a “harder” headphone to listen to due to such, the punch and dynamics are so great and so heavy it can be fatiguing. I’ve heard much the same about clears. But if it makes ur decision any easier, the aeons are the ones I reach for almost daily, and I’ve owned them for 7 years. They ended my constant hunt for different or new gear. Before the aeons I would buy and sell and buy and sell just to mess around with stuff, the aeons were so good and I loved them so much they single handedly ended that. They may not blow u away immediately, but they were (and are) very very much a keeper for me. I wouldn’t sell them if I got MSRP (850) for them even however many years later, nothing else fits its bill in my eyes.

The drop version is practically the same headphone to the best of my knowledge. Such as the hd6xx is essentially just an hd650 re released. Now keep in mind my glowing review and ownership may not be the exact experience with everyone as it’s a mixed bag in the community. Worth noting when the OG Aeon originally dropped in like 2018 it was HAILED as an amazing set, everyone loved it and it had serious hype. This community is confusing lol.

The Aeons have great bass extension and go really low. What they are lacking is the visceral impact or slam, which is something that TH900’s excel at. But the isolation is great on the Aeons as are the mids and highs. 

I am itching to get one since I love my aeon 2 noire (despite the fact that I had to RMA twice for the channel imbalance issues). Not quite sure if I would prefer the tuning of this more though. I find harman tuning to be a little too shouty.

DCA Aeon Noires. Pleasant, tunable, super comfortable.

I really like my aeon 2 noires so I think you made the right choice. They require a good amount of power but I don’t have any problems with them with my Apple dongle. They do sound better on my schiit lyr though

As for headphones, I find FT1's to be the best price/value offer on the market right now, HE400se's might be another option to consider, they are dirt cheap but pretty power hungry so it's debatable. When I decided to upgrade, the only reasonable closed back option I've found were DC Aion Noire's 2 which are 6 times the price let alone the fact that I had to buy a pretty powerful amp to drive them at their best. Still use FT1's with a DAP as a portable option when moving around the house - yeah, pretty narrow use case:) but I just like getting back to them at least this way cuz am pretty stuck with IEM's for outdoors. To my taste the best Bluetooth over ear headphones I've end up with are Momentum's 3 hands down (to Sony 1000xm's fans: sorry, I just don't understand the hype :)), but I haven't tried anything released in the past few years including Momentum's 4, so I might be outdated on this one . FT1's are way superior and it's not even close, they actually forced me to get back to the roots (wires:) at some point.

Dang no DCA love? Huge fan of my Aeon 2 Noire. Will be picking up some of those HD 620S next prime day. Endgame set for me will either be Noire X and E3, or something nice from ZMF.