Introduction

Of the many, many audio brands that exist today, very few have impressed me like Dan Clark Audio (DCA) has. The DCA CORINA is an electrostatic set of open-back headphones which, when paired with my Headamp BHSE amplifier, continues to be one of my most preferred listening experiences for music, or even general media consumption. In fact, I had just emailed Dan late last year about how his recommended NOS tubes for the BHSE worked so well with vocals playback on the CORINA. He thanked me in the email and then teased me about something else coming up soon which was hopefully going to shake up the headphones market one more time. It wasn't long before the brand announced the product in question—the DCA NOIRE X—and thanks to Dan Clark Audio for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp!


The Dan Clark Audio Aeon Closed X, developed in collaboration with Drop, was my first introduction to the brand. The Aeon series showcased DCA's tuning philosophy, with the use of filters to help achieve a tonality more amenable to the average listener, and the goal of creating a sound signature akin to a set of speakers in a well-treated room. The tuning filters of course had limitations in what they could do, and driver dampening only goes so far either as other brands have found out. However, the industrial design of the Aeon series of headphones was a clear winner, with its human ear-shaped cups and minimal headband that made for some of the most comfortable headphones on the market today—all the harder to achieve with heavier planar magnetic drivers. Dan and his team soon developed the patent-pending acoustic metamaterial tuning system (AMTS) for better control over the headphone tuning, which we saw used in the closed-back flagship STEALTH and the open-back flagship CORINA. The DCA E3 came out earlier this year, bringing AMTS and a lot of what made the STEALTH popular at $2000—half the price of the STEALTH. Today we examine the new Dan Clark Audio NOIRE X, which now brings AMTS to an even more affordable price range to promise a smooth frequency response and detail on par with flagship headphones, and we begin the review with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Specifications