Denon's luxurious AH-D7000 headphones are nearly too pretty to use

You think we're kidding, but after spending around £800 ($1,164) on Denon's absolutely stunning AH-D7000 over-ear headphones, are you really about to squeeze your sweaty noggin in there without feeling the slightest bit guilty? The cans, which vaguely remind us of Audio Technica's ATH-ESW9, tout wooden ear cups made from natural mahogany, microfiber diaphragms, Acoustic Optimizer technology, a cloth-wrapped cable, gold-plated connector, magnesium frame / duralumin slider and leather ear pads. You'll also get a fanciful box to house 'em in when you're not enjoying the sweet sounds of twin 2-inch drivers, but sadly, a set of handcuffs aren't included for wearing them while waltzing through the occasionally dodgy streets of London. Two more looks are after the break.

[Via TechDigest]

[GBeatzRecrds @ Jan 5th 2009 5:18PM]

SWEET can i use it with my $400 Ethernet cable?

[Hung @ Jan 5th 2009 5:29PM]

No. Exactly how do you use headphones with ethernet cables? I know what you meant—and it's still wrong—but the joke isn't applicable.

I'd recommend using these with a USB DAC at home or a Sansa Clip + FiiO on the road.

You'd probably use these with an iPod, or at best an iMod (which you bought, and did not mod).

[j_g_puff @ Jan 5th 2009 6:06PM]

No. GBeatz won't fit down anything other than $800 ethernet cable. They're too ill.



Open question: where, in that exploded diagram, is the Acoustic Optimizer technology? All I see is a bit of wire, a slab of rainforest and some foam.

[GBeatzRecrds @ Jan 5th 2009 6:38PM]

I was mocking the customers' stupidity. Whoever buys that $400 cable probably hasn't a clue as to what its function is.

[V Langs @ Jan 6th 2009 12:22AM]

but unlike ethernet cabling, high end cans actually do make a difference

[SimbaDogg @ Jan 6th 2009 2:07AM]

that made me laugh...but ur still incredibly stupid

[Platinum_Skeet @ Jan 5th 2009 5:22PM]

At $1,164 my ears better have an orgasm when wearing these....

[serialthriller78 @ Jan 5th 2009 5:32PM]

your name is awesome

[KAIKAI @ Jan 5th 2009 5:43PM]

well after payin $300 for a new ipod i expect my music to sound good as well....

[leo @ Jan 5th 2009 6:27PM]

well the problem really is that you could spend 10x this amount on headphones but still the vast majority of consumers won't be able to tell the difference between a CD and an mp3 encoded at 256kbps vbr...

Why not get something like sennheiser hd 212 pro's for £25 and use the other £775 towards some phono leads from Monster or something.

[Josh @ Jan 5th 2009 6:53PM]

Creative and Sony both trump iPods in terms of audio processing.

[noyp @ Jan 5th 2009 7:34PM]

*eargasm* =) Well, it's relatively easy to find these for under $800. Not like I'd buy them though. Poor student here.

[noyp @ Jan 5th 2009 7:39PM]

Josh,
I prefer my line-out ipod to my sony a726. The sony very good, but it was too warm sounding for my taste. But that's not saying there's no faults with the ipod. It has plenty. However, if you plan on buying headphone costing more than $100, you should probably invest in a home listening system.

[dBs @ Jan 5th 2009 8:22PM]

Noyp is correct. Headphones of any kind of quality need a dedicated amp which disqualifies most portable players to begin with. If Im traveling for any length I use the line out on my iPod directly to a Mini^3. The sound quality difference is very noticeable.

[Information Central @ Jan 5th 2009 5:28PM]

Too bad there's no popular music mastered in the last decade that hasn't been ruined by dynamic compression, making anything better than cheap headphones a total waste of money.

Thanks again, record-company jagoffs!

[Samboini @ Jan 5th 2009 6:01PM]

You're looking in the wrong places!

[CraigJ @ Jan 5th 2009 6:08PM]

Since I primarily listen to classical music, I don't have that problem, but you are correct. Modern music has the dynamic range of a brick, and doesn't even come close to using all the available range of the CD format, for example.

I'll bet Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor would sound spectacular on these.

[dBs @ Jan 5th 2009 6:16PM]

Vinyl?

[JRM @ Jan 5th 2009 6:30PM]

except that not everything comes in vinyl... :(

[Information Central @ Jan 5th 2009 8:46PM]

New vinyl pressings are going to come from the same ruined masters as the CDs.

[V Langs @ Jan 6th 2009 12:25AM]

as true as that may be...

all medium that comes after the cd master (when it's digital) will have to be sampled. even the highest sample rate will still be...a sample.

if a vinyl is recorded from a cd master, sure the original master has some sampling but that's it, the quality isn't degraded any further

[Information Central @ Jan 6th 2009 1:59AM]

"if a vinyl is recorded from a cd master, sure the original master has some sampling but that's it, the quality isn't degraded any further"

Relevance? We're talking about DYNAMIC COMPRESSION, not sampling.

[Skyblue @ Jan 5th 2009 5:46PM]

I have the AH-D5000, and they sure kick ass.. :)

It is correct that quite a lot of new music sounds bad, but luckily there's a lot of older music that sounds fantastic. Michael Jacksons Thriller for example.

Highly recommended, but get a good can amp and a nice source. ( I use Xeed CanAmp v3 with a Prodigy 7.1 LT soundcard).

Oh, and dont bother with mp3. Flac all the way :)

[KAIKAI @ Jan 5th 2009 5:52PM]

*snicker* flac all the way xD

[ajoan0077 @ Jan 5th 2009 7:13PM]

FLAC and SHN FTW!!!!

[霽月瀛台 @ Jan 5th 2009 11:32PM]

buy a suitable headphone amp for your ADH 5000, it will have better performance.

[V Langs @ Jan 6th 2009 12:21AM]

nah man, keep it really pure. marantz or tech-12 turn table, Stax headphone amp and a pair of your favorite cans (I'm partial to my Grado GS-1000s) if you want the truest sound, I have given you a solution

[gonintendo @ Jan 5th 2009 5:58PM]

Meh, my $20 koss ur29's are just fine :P

[Steve @ Jan 5th 2009 6:17PM]

To each his own I guess but I don't think those look nice at all. Brown? Seriously?

[noyp @ Jan 5th 2009 7:34PM]

Well, wood generally is some shade of brown...

[Tonio @ Jan 5th 2009 10:15PM]

Sand it, re-stain it in ebony or whitewash or something other than that red mahogany and show us how 1337 you are.


/sarcasm

[dBs @ Jan 5th 2009 6:17PM]

And youll still have to upgrade the cable to balanced input.

[fhlh @ Jan 5th 2009 8:04PM]

At the length of the cable run, balanced is not needed.
then again, at this price...

[JRM @ Jan 5th 2009 6:31PM]

Personally, I would never use anything like this on a portable system...

[ajoan0077 @ Jan 5th 2009 7:15PM]

$1,164....

yes but will it make me larger?

[Basketballgirl247 @ Jan 5th 2009 7:19PM]

Those things are freakin expensive!!!! I dnt kno 1 persn who wld buy thm unless they were filthy rich. And i mean FILTHY, FILTHY, FILTHY RICH! :)

[noyp @ Jan 5th 2009 7:35PM]

OR eat cup noodles for a year.

[kuoirad @ Jan 5th 2009 9:26PM]

Bah. Grado GS-1000's ftw. :)

[Boards of Canada @ Jan 5th 2009 9:43PM]

I prefer the yogurt.

[V Langs @ Jan 6th 2009 12:26AM]

then you don't know any audiophiles or people that are passionate about their sound.

some people are passionate about cars, some people computers, some people sound...

[V Langs @ Jan 6th 2009 12:29AM]

someone with class :-)

if anyone doubts what a good set of headphones do get a pair of Grado SR-80s and hook them up to your iPod. if you can't tell the difference even on your ridiculously horrible mp3s then you don't deserve to listen to music.

[adamck @ Jan 6th 2009 5:02AM]

Damn they would look sweet with my Denon DNS-3500's Mmmm

[furstrated @ Jan 6th 2009 9:24AM]

at 42 ohms impedance, i doubt your ordinary friendly neighborhood ipod can drive it to its full sonic potential
it might need an amp, and IMHO, the fiio is crap
for portability, i think few can beat the ibasso t4
just my 2cents

[furstrated @ Jan 6th 2009 9:24AM]

and for those wondering who will buy these, im currently raising money for the ue11, which is an in-ear custom costing $1,100. i might buy these after, you might be surprise at how many people are serious about their sounds

[furstrated @ Jan 6th 2009 9:24AM]

btw, the acoustic optimizer tech is supposed to be carvings on the inside of the wood cup to enhance the acoustics