Beyerdynamic DX160 iE - unboxing / first impressions / review

[Torand]

Beyerdynamic DX160 iE

 

 

Here is my unboxing/first impressions/review of the DX 160 iE IEM's.

 

These are brand new, released 6th-ish Feb. 2014, so hot off the press. I was originally looking at the DTX 101 iE's, but when I went to do a quick comparison on the beyer website against the MMX 101 iE's, i found that they had released two new lines, the 102 iE to replace the 101 and a new series of higher tier 120 iE's and 160 iE's. I decided the 160's were good for me with improvements over the 101's flaws. I chose beyerdynamic as I've owned a set of DT 770 Pro's for around 6-7 years and have been a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience throughout, only getting better as they age.

 

 

 

Link: http://europe.beyerdynamic.com/shop/dx-160-ie-black.html

 

 

 

Tech specs:

 

• Impedance:
  • 47 ohms 
• Freq. Response:
  • 10 - 25,000 Hz
• SPL:
  • 107 dB
• Drivers:
  • Neodymium
• Tips:
  • 5 types bowl shape, 1 type double flange, 1 type triple flange. Also a set of Comply™ eartips (type T-400).
• Build:
  • Fully anodized metal housing on the ear pieces with aluminium rings as accents to the design. 
• Cable Length:
  • 0.30m, with extension (which in my opinion is necessary) is 1.20m.
• Connection Type:
  • 3.5 mm jack
• Misc:
  • Cable Clip

 

 

 

Status: currently burning them in.

 

 

 

Unboxing

 

 

^ The usual, identifiable, sleek beyerdynamic box design. ^

 

 

 

^ Glamour shot. ^

 

 

 

^ Back of the box. ^

 

 

 

^ Open cover design. Seem to be using that on all their packaging now. ^

 

 

 

^ Nice touch the little things make the difference. ^

 

 

 

^ You can see the similarity in the design, this is the box for my DT 770 Pro's. Has the same slip out info and viewing cover. ^

 

 

 

^ Inside the box, initially. ^ 

 

 

 

^ Underneath the initial foam molded packaging. ^

 

 

 

^ Quick look at the included accessories. ^

 

 

 

^ Headphones out of the box. Unusual splitting design, right down to the jack. Love the flat cable design though. ^

 

 

 

^ Extension cord, in which is essential. The only advantage to the short cable is for joggers presumably with the source on an arm strap or high pocket, like on a jacket. ^

 

 

 

^ Love the hard case that comes with it, enough space to keep the headphones and accessories, but not enough to be an annoyance. ^

 

 

 

^ The included ear tips, there are also a set pre-installed on the headphones, medium sized normal tips. That makes the total amount of tips [8]. Including the sound isolating, memory foam tips that only come with the DX 160 iE. ^

 

 

I did have a shot of the headphones close up, but the quality was awful and wouldn't do it justice.

 

 

 

First Impressions

 

General:

 

Good, solid packaging. Layout was good and minimal and follows beyer's usual style of packaging. They are my first true set of IEM's as I've never really liked them, but I wanted to give them a go as when I'm at work (web developer), I don't want to be wearing large over ear headphones, but still need to be able to hear over them just enough to hear colleagues.

 

 

Accessories & usage:

 

You get a good selection of ear tips, which is good for my ears as they are particularly awkward. For me the only tips that work are the double and triple flange designs. I'm still not sure on how you are meant to wear them properly, or if I'm doing it wrong, so I'm going to research that. Just shoving them in seems weird for me, but that will come with time I'm sure, but the double/triple flange provides a good fit for me and provide ample sound isolation from surrounding sources. The standard tips for me just don't work, it's the one thing I love the Apple Earpod's for is that they fit perfectly and comfortably without sitting inside my ear, the only problem with them is that the fatigue my ears after around an hour, so i'm hoping the DX 160 iE's will be more accommodation to fatigue.

 

 

How they sound:

 

The initial sound stage feels good. Wide, has good depth and presence. Bass and highs are predominant with mids sitting slightly back, which is common for Beyer's, but how I like it. Overall a good rich sound, which instantly gains recognition in my books as being that of a professional quality. Just got them sitting nearby, burning in at the moment, loosen up the drivers.

 

 

Build quality / construction:

The construction feels good, the cable is a flat, thick, grippy rubber. The jacks are gold tipped and the headphones themselves are made out of anodized metal (they don't disclose what) as they feel cold to the touch and slow to warm, hard and feel strong/weighty. The weight doesn't seem to be an issue once in your ear though, they are really quite comfortable. There are two aluminium rings on both ear pieces as accents, in which add a nice touch to the design.

 

 

Misc:

 

As a quick test, I put them in and started doing some room reorganisation, lots of stretching, things all over, fast abrupt movements and they seemed to stick in and stay without issue and kept their snug fit throughout.

 

The jack connectors are angled slightly at around 45 degrees and I'm unsure how I feel about that yet. So far, I'm more on the slightly annoyed side as I'd have preferred small and straight or just a full 90 degree angle.

 

 

 

I may add things to this short section as I remember/come across them again.

 

 

 

Review

 

So, I've been using these for a week (since 4th march '14) and overall they are good. Worth the £85 price tag? I'd say... yes.

 

The build is really nice and what you get with them is plentiful. I have tried all the tips, and now found ones in which suit my ears correctly. They are comfortable over long periods (not too heavy either considering they are metal construction) of listening and provide a good dynamic range, as well as blocking out a surprising amount of background noise, I've had to be careful at work with these things not being able to hear people!

 

I use the included case all the time, leave it in my jacket pocket for when I'm not using them, I keep all the tips and accessories in the top pouch of the box (plenty of room for those and the headphones).

 

The flat, anti-tangle cable works surprisingly well. You can scrunch and twist them around, leave them in your pocket and when you pull them out they just come apart with ease, quite surprising really.

 

The main beef I have with these headphones is the cable length. Its un-usable without the extension, and the cable is so short without, it comes down to the top of my chest without the extension, which begs the question why they made it that short in the first place. Its not even long enough to run over to an armband for joggers, so it can't be that. The only thing i can thing of is an external chest pocket on a jacket. I'd much rather have preferred just a long cable and no extension. The other issue with the connector is that the end of the extension is the weird casing for the 3.5mm jack, it goes off at a 45 degree angle. I'd much rather have preferred a straight cable or 90, its just a bit strange. 

 

In terms of pure 'how they sound' - just for starters, everyone hears individually and your experience may vary - but for me; the sound stage is good, not that wide but good presence. The highs and bass are slightly more predominant than the mids, but by not a lot. The bass is nice and punchy, not over powering which is how it should be. Good kick drum sound with excellent frequency response at the low end (they get really low but still retain the power) as well as the high end. A good solid sounding IEM, in which provides a very pleasant listening experience without breaking the bank.

 

Overall, a good sounding, solid pair of IEM's. Would recommend. Thanks for reading!

[Grabster3d]

Nice review, thinking about buying them now.

[<boss2939>]

Good review love the camera work