Aune SR7000 Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones – Dragon Scale MLD Smoothness
Aune SR7000 is a $599 USD / 599 EURO pair of over-the-ear closed-back headphones with a bleeding-edge design that’s going to make those closed-back headphones sound like open-back models. Today we will review the SR7000 and compare them with other similarly priced headphones we’ve reviewed recently, including MIRPH-1 (749 USD), Focal Bathys (699 USD), and Crosszone CZ-10 Enhanced (995 USD)
Introduction
Aune is one of the most popular designers of DACs and DAC/AMPs for the midrange and upper midrange price segment, being found in the same homes as HE1000SE, and even Susvara or Dan Clark Aeon Expanse. This being said, Aune did create one of the most popular laid-back and smooth-sounding headphones, the AR5000, which is half the price of the SR7000, and although they share the design and can look similar, they are in both different price segments and have a different sound. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. Huge thanks to Aune for providing the sample for this review, in exchange for my honest opinion.
PROs – One of the lightest headphones on the market, with outstanding comfort, beautiful design with a detachable cable, and they come with two high-quality cables. Very natural midrange, somewhat intimate voicing but a treble that could never be fatiguing, and a slightly fuller and punchier bass will create a sound that’s very easy to enjoy with most music styles. Versatile and easy to drive, they are a dream headphone with a wide expansion in the soundstage thanks to the angled drivers. Really neat transport case included, and the package is very good. Strong price / performance ratio.
Cons – The whole signature lacks bite and sparkle, treble can never be fatiguing but it is far from bright, sounding a bit on the dark side for the upper treble. The laid back signature is surely an acquired taste.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3CNHh74
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_oDG4EbX
Build Quality / Aesthetics
Aune wants the SR7000 to be a mirror of high-end open-back headphones but with a closed-back design, so they combine sever innovative technologies to overcome the persistent issues that closed-back headphones typically have. We start with thge W-Shaped driver cone made from ceramic reinforced polymer composite materials to increase the effective piston area. This is optimized with multi-layer distributed compensation or MLD, ensuring a frequency response between 5 Hz and 44500 Hz, with practically no audible non-linear distortions.
To complement the driver dome tech, Aune implements a flexible suspension that gently supports the ceramic-polymer cone and creates a stable positioning for large cone movements. This design is optimized for the reproduction of low and resonant frequencies and will increase the bass extension and punch. The biggest innovation is the patented acoustic prism named Dragon Scale, which is a special dampener that modulates the sound waves from and in the rear of the driver. This creates a significant improvement in the soundstage size and eliminates the typical acoustic colorations that often occur with closed-back headphones.
To also complement the soundstage, Aune implemented the tilted Acoustic Matrix, which is a computer aided sound correction system that combines highly tilted drivers in ear cups that are also tilted. This aligns the driver more precisely with the ear to create a wide soundstage and space in the sound.
Aune considers the SR7000 to be easy to drive, and with an impedance of 50 OHMs, they are among the easier to drive headphones in the price segment, and make an excellent pair either with Aune’s own S9C PRO or Aune S17 pro when I want a smoother, warmer, more charming sound. The package list also includes quite a bit of extras, including the AuNest Headphone case, a more entry-level OFC TRS Single ended cable, and a high quality balanced OCC 4.4mm OCC Balanced Cable.
Although I have strong respect for Aune and their design language, the aesthetics of the SR7000 are described as Dark Green with Golden accents, so without looking my mind thought of a Goblin rather than a high-end design./ This being said, the structure is a design patent and it is developed in-house with SR7000 looking refined and high-end in person. Aune published their own Frequency response for the SR7000 online, and it shows a fairly neutral bass, and a peppy upper midrange / lower treble, with a THD that is very low across most of the frequency range, but which increases in the bass. Aune notes that to reach their full potential, SR7000 requires around 30 hours of burn-in.
Fit / Comfort
Handling the Aune SR7000 feels fun, they are proper high-end headphones, with no rattle or creaking noise when you handle them, and the headband feels solid, while the earpads are filled with a thick and dense sponge. Those are some large earpads that offer more than enough space for my ears, and the headphones can be adjusted easily for both smaller and larger heads. As Aune uses high-quality cables, there is no need to replace them, those cables do not conduct handling noise at all, but the connectors on the headphones are 3.5mm single ended, so most aftermarket cables will work just fine.
As one of the very few closed-back headphones we can finally explore the passive noise isolation, which is refreshingly good, at around 20 dB or more, depending on the frequency. This is further complemented by a very low leakage level, as SR7000 won’t really share your music with the outside world, so you can be at peace knowing others won’t judge you for your music taste.
I am feeling no hotspot at the top of my head, with the SR7000 feeling ergonomic and natural, with a natural clamping force, and a low weight of 380 grams. Despite the low weight, they do not feel cheap as the components SR7000 is made of are of a good quality and reliable.
Sound Quality
Pairings – Although Aune considers the SR7000 to be easy to drive, I found them to require quite a bit of power to sound good, and the 55 OHMs of impedance combined with the 106 dB SPL will give it the advantage of being consistent across multiple sources, but the 50mm dynamic driver is somewhat hard to move and to drive, and SR7000 eats less power than most planars, like Arya Organic, but more than IEMs and ultra easy to drive headphones. For this review I have combined the SR7000 with a selection of sources including FiiO KA15, Hiby R6 PRO II, HiFi Walker H20 PRO, Dethonray Listening M1, Feliks Euforia Evo driven by a SMSL DO200 PRO, Singxer SA-1 V2 driven by a HIFIMAN EF400 DAC, and the combo of iBasso D16 and iBasso PB5. Although the tuning of SR7000 relishes in clarity and punchiness, they sound equally good when combined with a tube amp as they do when combined with a solid state source, they have a consistent sound and will be less affected by different sources than headphones with a lower impedance.
Overall Signature – Aune delivers a new, more neutral tuning with the SR7000, and considering that this is just their 2nd model we review, the tuning is natural in the midrange, with a sharp treble, but a strong extension in the sub-bass, despite the more neutral approach to the low-end of the sonic spectrum. The soundstage is surprisingly wide, even wider than the open-back AR5000 model, and here I would say that the price is a better indicator of the performance you can expect, and although the two headphones have a similar outer design, SR7000 has a much better resolution, and clarity, with improved micro detail revealing compared to the AR5000, it is basically one of the best in the price range, regardless of how open it is, or of the driver tech inside.
Bass – Starting with the low end, this is a place where I feel graphs can deceive, as SR7000 presents a powerful, deep and punchy bass with very little distortion, but good control and a rich, lush presentation. It is true that the bass is mostly linear, but the slightly higher THD figures are not audible, bass is always very clean and controlled, you can really pump up the volume and bass is always controlled, although it has a natural-slow decay, creating a bit of extra space and body to music, giving music depth and each song substance. The most forward element is wide, from 35 Hz all the way to 80 Hz, but there’s a favoritism for high quality bass over boominess, and SR7000 sounds rather crisp.
Midrange – The middle part of sound is the most forward one for sure, and you can hear voices rather clearly, with a strong presence and intimate presentation of the lead instrument / lead voice. There’s a certain favoritism for female voices, and sweeter, or bratty sounding voices to be expressed with more contrast and emotion, this emphasizes J-Rock, J-Pop and rock with a female lead a lot. In songs with a male lead, the screamed part with a strong male voice has more strength and higher pitched male voices take a central spot, while deeper male voices are pushed slightly in the background. The upper midrange is slightly more forward, but the whole presentation creates a fairly controlled sound with low THD, I see myself reaching for higher and higher volumes, as sound is still crisp and crystalline.
Treble – To continue the trend of the brighter upper midrange, treble is brilliant and has a complete extension up to 20 kHz, but it rolls off softly in quantity compared to the midrange, as there is much more voice and instrumental presence than there is treble resonance / treble sharpness. This kind of smoother treble allows all music to be free of fatiguing elements, so you can pick your favorite, rock, metal, even EDM and poorly mastered tracks, SR7000 will forgive them all, and present an euphonic, pleasing and rich sound with very little fatiguing elements. This slightly dampens the perceived detail, especially if you’re used to searching for those details in the treble, but otherwise SR7000 is incredibly clear and revealing in the midrange.
Dynamics – If you start searching for a highly dynamic headphone, you will likely end up in the upper midrange / high-end arena, and SR7000 plays nicely here, having a strong dynamic and contrast, with a punchy sound. It brings forward the best dynamics in voices, midrange instruments and information in music, being highly punchy there. Combined with a fairly lush and strong body, SR7000 gives music a solid sound.
PRaT / Textures – Micro detail revealing is good for SR7000, but it leans towards being forgiving and chill, so while they can physically render micro details and textures nicely, they tend to hide artifacts and mistakes, and together with them sound smooth in the textures, having a natural-slow impulse response, and managing to sound pleasing even with very harsh and sharp instruments and songs. SR-7000 continues the Aune natural and sonically pleasing sound we’ve been growing used to.
Loudness Saturation Gradient – SR-7000 is highly resolving but also has a low THD, and can handle all volume ranges really well. There is no significant increase in the THD at high volumes, and SR7K is enjoyable both very quiet, and very loud, although at medium volumes they shine the most. There’s a difference in how they present music depending on the volume you’re listening at, and the louder you go, the more forward the voices become, and the bloomier the bass gets, while at lower volumes, the sound is more neutral, cleaner and wider, with more space between instruments, and a more even male voice to female voice ratio.
Soundstage – The best part was kept for last, but I feel like it would be an understatement to say that SR7000 has a good soundstage, they sound wider, more holographic, punchier and more colorful, more dynamic than even AR5000, the open back counterpart is more intimate. Despite being a mid centric headphone at loud volumes, SR7000 has excellent instrument separation, and a really nice projection in the 3D plane, you can hear sound coming from your front, from behind, far from the lateral plane, and also far in the vertical plane. Most music is not this intricate, but SR7000 stays honest to the recording, while adding a bit of extra size.
Comparisons
Aune SR7000 vs Mirph-1 (599 USD vs 749 USD) – Starting with fair grounds, both headphones are comfortable, although the thicker ear pads of the SR7000 and the more dense sponge inside make them feel a bit better while on my head. While both headphones are plenty comfy, Aune has a more dense earpad design, it has a tighter fit, but the angling of the driver and the ear cup make more space for my ears inside. This being said, both have flexible cables, and both have a lightweight construction, so both are equally good. SR7000 is a bit harder to drive, so it will require a better source, but sonically both headphones sound relaxed, fun and clean, with both having a somewhat neutral tuning, both have a relaxed treble and a pleasing tuning. Mirph-1 is more intentionally smoother and more refined, while SR7000 is a bit warmer with a bit more bass, Mirph-1 sounding more even all across, while SR7000 is more colorful and has more bass and more warmth and thickness.
Aune SR7000 vs Focal Bathys (599 USD vs 699 USD) – Focal Bathys is a good model if you want to go wireless, but you can simply add the newly released FiiO BTR17 to SR7000 and achieve a better overall tuning and signature, with more impact and a better soundstage than Bathys delivers. To explore the comparison a bit more, Bathys have a more edgy design that will appeal more to anyone who’s fashion oriented, but SR7000 feels better while being worn, thanks to a lighter construction, a more dense earpad, better headband support, and more space inside of the earpads for my ears. The angled drivers of the SR7000 will produce a more detailed sound with better soundstage and instrument separation, a more relaxed and leaner tuning, while Bathys will sound more aggressive, more forward and a bit harsher with most music. It is quite ironic that for most of the photos I took of the bathys, they were seated on an Aune headphone stand, yet an Aune model is what delivers a better closed-back experience in a similar price range.
Aune SR7000 vs Crosszone CZ-10 Enhanced (599 USD vs 995 USD) – We also have a semi-open model to compete with the fully closed-back Aune SR7000, and CZ-10 Enhanced uses both driver angling a multiple drivers to deliver a wider soundstage, so the result is uniquely different. The comfort of both headphones is excellent, both have deep earpads with a thick sponge inside, and both have a thick padding on the headband that keeps the weight away from you. The passive noise isolation is quite a bit stronger on SR7000, and they leak considerably less, since they are fully closed, while CZ-10 Enhanced is semi open. CZ-10 Enhanced is far harder to drive and fussy about what source you’re pairing it with, while SR7000 works well with most sources. While both headphones work well with all music styles, CZ-10 Enhanced is warmer, thicker, smoother and more colored in the signature, while SR7000 sounds more natural in the midrange, has a more forward midrange, but a more relaxed and laid back sound. Both headphones are plenty enjoyable, and both I enjoy a lot, but SR7000 is a lighter headphone that isolates more with a more natural sound, while CZ-10 Enhanced is a bassier, lusher sounding headphone with a fuller sound, more impact and can squeeze more detail from music with the right source, being hard to pair and find a match for.
Value and Conclusion
Whine Aune SR7000 is the 2nd big headphone designed by the company, it delivers a performance other companies did not manage to create with tens of years of experience, and the price asked for the SR7000 makes it a uniquely appealing deal, having a performance that suprasses AR5000 considerably, and finally achieves a sound that actually sounds and feels like open-back despite SR7000 being closed-back.
Before the end of today’s review, I will add the new Aune SR-7000 to the Audiophile-Heaven Hall Of Fame, it is an excellent sounding headphone with a superb design, it is reliable, consistent and has a neutral, crisp sound with a strong impact, complemented by high resolution and detail revealing ability.
At the end of the day, if you need a pair of closed back headphones, Aune SR7000 is one of the sweetest deals, providing the listener with an experience that is close if not even slightly better than most open-back models in the same price range, with an open, clean sound, and a comfortable wearing experience, being one of the best closed-back headphones I can recommend regardless of the price point.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3CNHh74
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_oDG4EbX
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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