Denon AH-D5200 headphones stand out with Zebrawood ear cups & stunning audio

Denon is a fan-favorite relating to audio gear. While primarily recognized for its glorious amps and receivers, the acoustic opulence of the AH-D5200 headphones should not be ignored.Denon AH-D5200 Hi-Fi headphones A comforting matchThe Denon AH-D5200 are absurdly comfy. The artificial leather-based used on the earcups and headband could be very tender to the contact and close to indistinguishable at a look from the actual factor. It nonetheless will get heat like leather-based, so throughout our testing, we did discover ourselves getting a bit toasty, because the climate has gotten hotter.To help the consolation are the massive cups. Not solely do they assist acoustically, however in addition they give a really beneficiant match across the ears. We did not have components of our ears pinned down by the pads and as an alternative it surrounded them excellent. Of course, primarily based in your ears, this will likely range. The cups are in a position to swivel ahead or backward which helps to take them on and off in addition to becoming the curvature of your head. Our solely problem with the rotation of the cups is that they do not go all the way in which flat. We’d have most popular this so if we take the headphones off to place round our neck, it could lay extra simply. Unfortunately, that is not the case and in apply, it’s a bit awkward if you attempt to take action with the outsized cups sitting beneath your jaw as an alternative of flat towards your collar bone.Denon AH-D5200 Hi-Fi headphones swivel axisThe body of the headphones is all steel which makes not solely this swivel level however the extensions really feel stable. The headphones are in a position to lengthen on both aspect to fit your needs. They accomplish that in small increments that are labeled right here from one by means of six. This really makes coming again to the headphones simple as a result of you may bear in mind the exact measurement that was most comfy as an alternative of adjusting continuously every listening session.Denon AH-D5200 Hi-Fi headphones earcupsThese headphones appear to suit all kinds of head-sizes and lean in direction of a little bit of a looser match —this does not provide you with that head squeezed feeling some headphones produce. We additionally discovered the earpads and headband foam to be fairly tender and never require a lot of a breaking in interval to get to the purpose the place it wasn’t nonetheless new and stiff. It felt proper, proper out of the field. The earpads are barely lopsided, with extra padding in direction of the again which we discovered so as to add to the consolation and match.Denon AH-D5200 Hi-Fi headphonesEach cup on the AH-D5200 is fabricated from wooden —actual wooden. They are carved from Zebrawood which definitely has a surprising aesthetic. It is darkish in look with horizontal grain, and feels very good and appears a lot increased high quality than a shiny plastic cowl. They additionally add to the tone of the headphones and assist produce the nice and cozy tones we heard.Denon features a prolonged cable within the field with the AH-D5200. It is a hefty, nylon wrapped cable with steel accents on the finish, and the Y cut up, and on every jack that plugs into your headphones. As we might count on from a high-end pair, the cable is solely removable and replaceable ought to one thing ever occur to it.There can also be a quarter-inch adapter to affix to the 3.5mm finish for any Hi-Fi gear or devices you would like to connect with. We discovered the cable to be a bit on the heavy aspect and tug a bit if it had been to slip off the desk or the sofa, virtually to an annoyance. At the identical time, nevertheless, we had been additionally grateful for its size in different conditions the place it was essential comparable to related to our file participant.Denon AH-D5200 Hi-Fi headphones Lightning DACBe warned, there are additionally no different options to this twine. There isn’t any Lightning connector so you may want your trusty Lightning to audio jack DAC Apple included with current iPhones, or a USB-C DAC if you’re going to your newer iPad. Denon additionally does not embody any inline mic or controls. These would have been good, however we do not suppose decrease high quality cellular audio is the target market Denon is focusing on right here.Audio constancyWhen you cross the few hundred greenback mark on headphones, there get to be very slight variations within the audio high quality. They are nuanced and take fairly a little bit of listening to isolate. As is often the case, we turned to our audio testing playlist on Apple Music as a beginning off level for placing these headphones by means of their paces. Feel free so as to add it by yourself gadget beneath to check out the identical tunes as us by yourself headphones.With the AH-D5200 Denon appears to have targeted totally on nice sounding music somewhat than utterly true recreation. The audio channeling by means of these headphones sounds unimaginable and wonderful with an expansive soundstage. Music comes from all sides and the stereo copy is spot on with The Cars Moving In Stereo being a shiny instance of that.Partially because of that Zebrawood cup, the sound from the AH-D5200 could be very a lot on the nice and cozy aspect. Sound feels deep and by no means hole. Bass was substantial but it surely wasn’t the headshaking bass some could want today. There remains to be loads of definition within the sound, notably distinct on the excessive finish, however the sound in any other case feels very easy, virtually in an effort to can help you put on the headphones longer with out changing into fatigued.This glossiness was notably notable with mids and vocals. Nothing unhealthy, and that is definitely nitpicking an in any other case unimaginable sound. The shiny vocals on the AH-D5200 sound much better than virtually every other headphone we have examined (which, arguably, have been extra inexpensive than these). When we in comparison with different high-end units is the place we discover this slight distinction in intonation.During testing, we actually liked the dynamic vary of those cans. This is the flexibility to go from extremely tender and fairly to highly effective and full on the drop of a pin. It may be arduous for cheaper headphones to tug off however the customized 50mm drivers did not really feel careworn in any respect. There is a bit of The Killers’ The Man in direction of the top the place it drops very low earlier than coming again sturdy and the constancy of the AH-D5200 gave us chills because it simply traversed this wide selection.We suppose that whereas there’s positively some quantity within the Denon headphones, they may use amp to go together with. Of course, it is dependent upon the supply content material as nicely. On a number of songs, the headphones simply wanted a bit of extra energy to push the beat however after we are coping with headphones of this caliber we like the additional energy an amp can present.These headphones lack any type of noise canceling however we had no points with ambient noise slipping in from our canine, automobiles, and many others making an attempt to disrupt our jam classes. They had an excellent seal and a closed again to maintain the audio the place it must be and different audio out.Should you choose up a set?Denon AH-D5200 Hi-Fi headphonesThe audio on the AH-D5200 is wonderful. During the hours listening, we had been solely smitten with the highly effective sound. They had been straight up enjoyable and fulfilling to take heed to and can depart you upset turning again to lesser performing headphones.We are enormous followers of the Zebrawood cups because it provides not only a stage of expertise and magnificence however a heat, full tone to the music. We do not see it typically, final testing the Creative E-MU Teak headphones that additionally sounded implausible.For us, the Denon AH-D5200 headphones had been clear winners. We did not want a pristinely fairly listening setting, they had been absurdly comfy, and the audio was Hi-Fi high quality and fulfilling to take heed to. We miss inline controls and would have preferred to see a Lightning adapter included in addition to maybe a second —shorter —cable, however these are minor qualms total.Rating: 4.5 out of 5Where to purchaseDenon’s AH-D5200 Over-Ear Headphones can be found for $699 at World Wide Stereo with free delivery or free in-store pickup. World Wide Stereo additionally shares the headphones on Amazon with free Prime delivery.