Cingular Go Phone: Denon AHD1001K On-Ear Headphones (Black) Review

I'm a little dismayed that some of the reviewers for this product said they think the Bose headphones are better. I've heard many of the Bose models (Triport, QC2/3) the Bose and I feel these are a far superior headphone.

First of all, these headphones actually do quite well when you connect them up to professional test equipment that measures how well the headphone is reproducing the frequency spectrum. They have an pretty ideal frequency response, strong in the bass, nice even midrange, and their only flaw is a slightly exaggerated upper mids and treble rendition. So the headphone on a whole is balanced very well tonally, you are hearing the pretty close to the right amount of bass, midrange and treble that the musician probably intended you to hear. They aren't really lacking in bass despite some reviewers' claim otherwise, and compared to some other headphones that are more expensive, they actually are pretty full bodied sounding. In comparison, the competition from Bose headphones have a pretty much exaggerated amount of bass that may initially actually sound more impressive, but are less faithful to the original intent of the recording. And Bose headphones have nothing on these puppies when it comes to the treble reproduction, these headphones convey the tizz of the high hats and the crash of the cymbals with more presence and realism. Of course, if you are the type of person who turns up the bass control on every device you use, then these headphones may fall short for your taste. I'm not going to say that these Denons are flawless by any means, but they seem to get it more right tonally, and aren't really lacking for any genre of music. Just like their more expensive siblings, the Denon AH-D1001 are "do it all" headphones for almost every type of music.

I bought these headphones to complement my collection of decent mid to higher end headphones (costing upwards of $400). You can say I'm a bit of a headphone fanatic. I own the Denon AH-D2000 which costs about 2-3 times as much, which I love a lot as my general use headphone, but I wanted something I could use at my workplace with less fear somebody may run off with my $300 headphones when I go on washroom break. I normally use high end In-Ear-Monitors but after a while I found them uncomfortable for really long term use. So based on my superb experience with the D2000, I wanted to get a set of these. They have excellent comfort, they don't clamp my head excessively. The padded headband puts even pressure across the top of my head. And they feel light. The cord is the right length for plugging into a device on my desk and it comes with an extension cord for home theater use on the couch. I like the little cloth carry pouch just to keep the headphone from getting tangled among my other gear in my laptop bag. They feel reasonably sturdy and are really straightforward to use. If you have big ears you may find that your ears may touch the inner surface of the earcup, so your mileage may vary in terms of fit. I have a HUGE head (7.75 hat size), and these fit me with room to spare.

How does it sound? I think the sound is excellent overall:
- clarity and detail is very good, comparable to anything I've heard under $150. You would directly compare these to the Bose Triports which are in the same price range (these are way less costly if you compare street prices)
- midrange is solid and not too forward, it works well for both female and male vocals. Again like the D2000, if all you listen to are vocals, there are better headphones, but these didn't disappoint me listening to my collection of female singers, Loreena McKennitt, Diana Krall, Dido, Carpenters, Amanda McBroom, Sarah McLachlan, etc. These headphones let me hear what I like best about their voices.
- everything from the mid-bass on up is well represented. Kick drums sound realistic with good punch and authority. Trance/Techno/Electronic music sounds punchy. These headphones can rock out when you want it to. I even had some "wow" moments listening to some of remixes of dance songs, the bass was ever present. I'd suggest that if you think these are bass light, if you actually live with for a while, they will sound more and more "right".
- Re: the imaging or "headstage": the placement of performers in the recording is precise and fairly spacious. You get a better sense of space compared to listening to earbuds, but not as good as some of the more expensive open headphones like the AKG K601. I'd rate these headphones as "adequate" if you don't like the "all the music in your head" feeling.
- The slightly elevated highs means this headphone can sound a bit forward if the music is recorded on the "bright" side. Madonna's Confessions on a Dance floor has to be one of thebrighter sounding recordings, and with these headphones, the highs were piercing. The headphones don't sound as edgy as a Grado SR80 for example, but you are aware of the highs when you listen to that recording.

The bad thing: although these are sealed headphones that should block out some noise, they barely block out any noise at all. They only block out 10dB of noise which means you hear the noise at half the intensity, which is not enough for reducing the noise of my noisy cubicle mates. There were a bunch of people talking near my cubicle yesterday, and I had wished I brought my IEMs with me, because they were still annoying until I really had the music on loud.

All in all, just get these, but be aware that these tend to be more "accurate" headphones rather than "wow, that's some impressive bass" headphones that Bose tend to produce. If you want clarity, detail and a balanced sound but with still a good solid bass foundation for any type of music, these are it for under $150 headphones. Of course, if you can afford it, move on up to higher end models from Denon, Sennheiser, AKG, Beyerdynamic or others if you are trying to put together a first class system. But I don't think you'll find a better rounded headphone for the price. For my standard disclaimer ---- Like all headphones, make sure you buy from a vendor that allows returns because everybody hears differently, and some headphones work better for some than others. But another great product from Denon.

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Product Description:
Denon is the company that invented digital recording over thirty years ago. They have led the audio world with leading edge technologies in audio and video sound reproduction. Now you they have taken that same attention to detail and put it into the design of an incredible series of headphones. The Denon AHD1001K On-Ear Headphones are designed to reproduce all of the nuances of the digital music you listen to. The microfiber diaphragm with acoustic optimizer provides superior sound quality from 8 to 37,000 Hz. High-quality, oxygen-free copper cabling ensures only the cleanest sound. This headphone also features an attached 5-foot cable and 11.5-foot extension cable.

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