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Dunu DK-3001 headphones: the best! Conquering the top of the Dunu-Topsound lineup.

Dunu-Topsound used to be known primarily as an OEM/ODM manufacturer. The release of headphones under their own brand was not a priority. In recent years the situation has changed. And there were quite a few headphones from Dunu-Topsound that were highly acclaimed in professional circles. The most popular models were Dunu Titan 1, DN-1000, and DN-2000.

The DK-3001 is the most advanced headphones Dunu-Topsound has ever produced. The top of the range.

They were born quite a long time. Announced back in September 2015. Late last year, a small number went on sale in China. Most likely it was a prototype batch. At the same time the development of the headphones themselves was still in progress. In February this year we started selling on the global market.

Dunu

Dunu DK-3001

Specifications

Brand: Dunu-Topsound

Model: DK-3001

Transducers: a dynamic 13mm, and 3 Knowles armature.

Frequency range: 5Hz-40KHz

Resistance: 13 Ohm

Sensitivity: 110dB

Weight: 31 g

Material: Steel 316L

Connection plug: MMCX

Cable length: 1.2 m

Price at the time of publication: 450$

Packaging:

The box is sealed in plastic. On the front you can see a picture of the headphones and a short description. On the back there is a detailed description, parameters and manufacturer information. The barcode and serial number of the headphones are on the bottom.

The outer white box has no sides ā€“ it can be easily slid aside and in front of us appears a book or rather a box, styled as a book . Inside on a velvety pedestal lie the headphones. You have to remove the pedestal to get to the balanced cable. Below is a case with a complete set of.

Headphones
Audio equipment

Complete set

Itā€™s awesome: it has everything you need and more. This is not surprising, considering the significant cost of headphones.

ā€“ The warranty card, for one year.

ā€“ Ear cushions 12 pairs, if with the ones already on the headphones .

Three pairs of white silicone earpieces. Three pairs of gray silicone compared to the previous have 1.5 mm longer sound drivers . 4 pairs of SpinFit the outer part of these ear cushions can change the angle relative to the sound tube. Thus, the nozzle fits comfortably according to the anatomy of the auricle, which reduces the likelihood of sound distortion . And the soft foam tips from Comply.

Maybe I have some ā€œspecialā€ ears, but I can not use the foam tips, not on any headphones. The most comfortable were the SpinFit. All earpieces except the foam ones have a molded ā€œDunuā€ inscription. Perhaps in Dunu-Topsoudn decided so to emphasize the originality of the ear cushions.

ā€“ The usual clothespin, for the cable.

ā€“ Adapter, with 3.5 mm on 6.5 mm.

ā€“ Airplane adapter.

ā€“ Large case, glossy black plastic.

I use this case about a year came with DN-2002 . An extremely comfortable accessory. Inside you can store the headphones and all the ā€œstuffā€. Or two headphones which I do . If the headphones are not too massive, you can fit three pieces.

Maybe someone would be interested to know the size. Outer: 114x82x41 mm/Inner: 97x56x35 mm

ā€“ Balance cable

Dunu
Audio equipment

Cable

3.The 5 mm plug is L-shaped, metal, with good protection against cable breakage. The plug has a serial number. In my copy ā€“ it has already exceeded one and a half thousand. There is a handy slider next to the small splitter. Glides as it should. The traditional Dunu-Topsound rubber band is left in place. I must admit ā€“ a very useful thing to wind the headphones.

The cable is very soft, length 1.2 m. At the top ā€“ there is a non-removable earholes, which are like a part of the cable. BTEs have memory effect. If you straighten them, they will be straight. If bent, will stay bent. I like this solution. But some people will not like this know-how. Fortunately, the cable is detachable, you can replace it with another one.

Audio equipment

The balanced cable from the package is in the same style as the normal.

Cable thickness, bottom: 2.4 mm,

Cable thickness, top: 1.6mm,

BTE length: 130mm,

The thickness of the ear cushions: 2.5 mm.

Connector, standard MMCX. To find the cable is not difficult. But it is desirable that the plug is curved, as in the stock cable. The cable in the connector rotates easily, 360 degrees. Disconnects with a lot of effort. The channels are labeled ā€“ left is silver, right is red.

Appearance

Housings in steel, painted in black matte finish. The back is decorated with a polished chamfer. In the center, in the recess, is the Dunu logo.On both sides of the body there are compensation holes small holes . Earpieces are located at an angle of 45Ā°, have a diameter of 5.6 mm and covered with a protective metal mesh. Sonics are smooth, like the rest of the Dunu hybrids. But the nozzles stick well, do not slip. For me, the design is very stylish.

Audio equipment
Headphones
Headphones

Ergonomics

The housings are as for the hybrids, very compact 10Ɨ16 mm . The headphones are adapted only for BTE type of wearing. Fits comfortably in your ears. Since the headphones are thin, they are comfortable to listen to even when lying on the couch. I often listen at night, no complaints.

The microphone effect is not felt. If your clothes have a long collar, thereā€™s a chance that the bottom of the lugs will get caught on the collar So, donā€™t shake your head too much! . I personally donā€™t mind it. Sound isolation is average. If not enough, removes external noise, you can use Comply nozzles, should help.

You have to try a little harder to get the headphones to fit ā€œcorrectlyā€ in the ear. This may be due to not having a long enough sound tube. If you do it right, it will fit perfectly. Even after a long time thereā€™s no need to correct.

Dunu

Sound

Sources:

ā€“ Fiio X5-2 player

ā€“ Shanling M2 player

ā€“ Portable amplifier

Music of different genres. WAV and FLAC formats. The description of the sound is very subjective. Before starting the review, the headphones were warmed up for 50 hours. Whether it needs warming up or not is much to argue about. I decided that it would not hurt.

The first time I plugged in, I felt that the sound is not deep enough. Turns out itā€™s the extensions. They didnā€™t fit tightly to the ear canal, and the music sounded a little distant. Picked up the right attachments and a comfortable fit and everything was fine. In general, do not be lazy to experiment.

The Dunu DK-3001 is fairly neutral sounding, with some departure into brightness and excellent resolution.

LF

Bass is fast, with great depth. Paired with elevated tweeters ā€“ it feels enveloping, as if music is playing around you. Great emphasis on the sub-bass. In terms of quantity ā€“ there is exactly as much as it needs to be to give a song the right ā€œpercussiveā€ effect without drowning out the rest of the instruments.

Mid-bass and low-midrange are pushed back a bit.

HF

Top of the range armature drivers from Knowles do their job: vocals sound very natural. You can hear all the details of the voice, the smallest changes in timbre and breathing if not removed by the sound engineer , etc. d.

HF

Reveals everything ā€“ even the smallest details of the composition. The music is very detailed. Well tuned armature drivers ā€“ allows to hear the things I never paid attention to before. Live instruments sound realistic. The separation of the instruments is also all right.

At 2 kHz there is a noticeable boost, which makes the guitar, piano and some other instruments sound more detailed. To my ears, this frequency range is not raised enough to be uncomfortable. But if you are too sensitive to highs, you should listen to the headphones before you buy. Or pick a player thatā€™s not too bright.

Some of the music tracks Iā€™ve listened to.

Nirvana ā€“ Smells Like Teen Spirit

Famous song from an iconic rock band. Playing this track will be a serious test for any headphones. Quiet sounding drums give way to a very emotional chorus. The bass beats sound natural ā€“ just the way they should be. The 13mm diaphragm does its job beautifully. No synthetic bass inherent in many purely armature headphones.

Aggressive vocals with powerful bass beats just want to unleash their binds and gallop out of control. The DK-3001 has the power to curb this acoustic array. Nevertheless, it seems that the combination with Fiio X5-2 is not quite successful. Needs a more mature player.

Bob Dylan ā€“ Blowin In The Wind

The singer, who has made a great contribution to music, has a rather distinctive way of performing. Texts that may long have a hold on the soul.

The focus is on the vocals, and only him. You hardly pay attention to the light guitar chords. Only occasional appearance of harmonica hints at the fact that there is also music. The special thing about ā€œBlowin In The Windā€ like many other Bob Dylan songs is this: if there was no music at all, the song would sound just as great. Relatively modern and electronic.

Enigma ā€“ Gravity Of Love

Unusual studio project, from Germany. Very deep bass. Emotional transmission of all material. You want to turn up the volume and enjoy. Below you can see the AFC I was able to find I havenā€™t measured it myself, as I donā€™t have access to the proper equipment .

DK-3001

Audio Engineering

DN-2002

Dunu

Comparison

Of the headphones of a similar class I have only the predecessor, Dunu DN-2002. The housings are quite massive. The official photos show that the headphones are designed to be worn with the wire down. But I used the behind-the-ear method. It is quite comfortable.

The cable is detachable. MMCX socket, but the design is original. Unfortunately, MMCX cable from other headphones doesnā€™t fit. You need one of your own, not someone elseā€™s. But there is a plus side. The design that Dunu developed looks more reliable than the usual MMCX. The sound is a little dark. The tweeter is soft and detailed at the same time. The mid-bass is accentuated in the bass. There is very little sub-bass. It seems to me they paid more attention to the middle. Itā€™s warm, natural. The vocals are delightful.

If you quickly compare with DK-3001 ā€“ DN-2002 has less bass, more mid-bass and lower midrange, accentuated mid-range, simpler tweeter, the sound is less genre-universal.

Audio equipment

Strengths and weaknesses

On the plus side I can write sound, build quality and equipment. During the operation of the essential drawbacks not noticed.

Result

Dunu-Topsound had the task to make the DK-3001 a balanced model. And from the looks of it, they succeeded. Thereā€™s no going to extremes: all-consuming bass, over-accented vocals, etc.p. The end user will get well tuned earphones, which are suitable for listening to music of different genres.

And, of course, to really enjoy the music, good headphones is not enough. You also need a proper player and high quality recordings.

P.S.

A good ear and sense of beauty would also not be superfluous.

Headphones

P.S. 2

Some time after the publication of the review there was an opportunity to test a balanced connection of the headphones.

For starters, letā€™s plug in the headphone cable with jack 3.5 mm. In the pictures you can see that there is a gap of a millimeter between the cabinet and the corrector. The fingernails of your thumb and forefinger help. So, we put them in the gap, squeeze the connector with our fingers and with a small tug pull it out of the socket. I was able to disconnect the cable this way. The connector is very tight better tight than soft for me . When I was just pulling on the corner connector, my fingers were slipping.

Audio Engineering

For the test we took a third-generation Fiio X5 player. First thing you notice is that the volume is 10-15 percent higher. The headphones sounded as if they were connected through an external amplifier. The sound became darker. With an emphasis on the bass, with some drop in the midrange and softened, perhaps even simplified treble.

The sound turned out to be V-shaped, massive, with enhanced bass. The ā€œbalanceā€ doesnā€™t have the transparency and superb microdetail that I had with the cable connected on the 3.5 mm. The sound is a little lost of its unobtrusive pitch, allowing you to listen to music for quite a long time and not get tired of this activity. But through the balanced output music plays more powerful, with drive. When you listen to metal, you understand that it should sound exactly like this, metallic.

I would not say that through the ā€œbalanceā€ sound is better or worse. Itā€™s just different. Some like it, some donā€™t. It seems to me that through the normal audio output DK-3001 headphones play as intended, but through a balanced connection appears some coloration of sound. For instrumental music and vocal genres the 3 is better.5mm output. For heavy metal and electronics ā€“ balanced.

Of course, on other players with BV the sound may be different from what I heard with the Fiio model.

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John Techno

Greetings, everyone! I am John Techno, and my expedition in the realm of household appliances has been a thrilling adventure spanning over 30 years. What began as a curiosity about the mechanics of these everyday marvels transformed into a fulfilling career journey.

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Comments: 3
  1. Waverly

    Are the Dunu DK-3001 headphones worth the investment? What sets them apart from other headphones in the Dunu-Topsound lineup?

    Reply
    1. Avalon

      The Dunu DK-3001 headphones are definitely worth the investment. They offer exceptional sound quality and craftsmanship, making them a standout choice among the Dunu-Topsound lineup. What sets them apart is their hybrid driver configuration, combining dynamic and balanced armature drivers to deliver a rich and detailed sound experience. Additionally, the DK-3001 boasts a premium build with high-quality materials, ensuring durability. With their impressive performance and unique features, the DK-3001 headphones offer a great value for discerning audiophiles.

      Reply
  2. Layla Foster

    Can someone clarify if the Dunu DK-3001 headphones truly live up to the hype and are deserving of the title ā€œthe bestā€? Iā€™m interested in knowing if they outperform other models in the Dunu-Topsound lineup, as claimed. Any personal experiences or detailed comparisons with alternative options would be greatly appreciated.

    Reply
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