Dan Clark Audio ÆON RT
The ÆON RT Closed pairs weighty, controlled bass with a mellow, naturally balanced presentation built for long sessions. Brent Butterworth found clear vocals, vivid instrumental placement, and revealing acoustic texture, while interchangeable filters let listeners fine-tune the voicing. Add its exceptional comfort, compact folding design, and strong value, and this is an inviting planar closed-back for immersive everyday listening.
WATT RECOMMENDS
Save your favorites. Compare them anytime.
Create a free HiFi Hub account to save products to your Wishlist and compare your favorites side by side.
Nicely Roasted
Sound Quality
87/100
Comfort Fit
94/100
Build Quality
80/100
Features Usability
87/100
Value for Money
91/100
Pros
Mellow, naturally balanced sound combines substantial bass, clear vocals, and a relaxed character that remains enjoyable at higher volumes.
Exceptionally comfortable for extended listening, thanks to low weight, soft earpads, and evenly distributed headband pressure.
Strong spatial clarity and detail reveal distinct instrumental positions, cello resonance, bow texture, and recording-space acoustics.
Interchangeable felt filters offer useful tonal tailoring, and the foldable form supports travel-friendly use.
Cons
A mid-treble peak around 6kHz can make cymbals sound brighter than natural and slightly reduce midrange emphasis.
Lower sensitivity means an external amplifier or DAC-amp is advisable for comfortably loud playback.
WATT RECOMMENDS
Save your favorites. Compare them anytime.
Create a free HiFi Hub account to save products to your Wishlist and compare your favorites side by side.
What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 87/100
The ÆON RT Closed is described as mellow, naturally balanced and easy to listen to at volume, with clear vocals, substantial low end and convincing instrumental color. Its main tonal caveat is a touch of mid-treble emphasis that can make cymbals brighter than ideal and slightly reduce midrange energy.
Bass
89/100
The RT Closed brings more bass output than its predecessor, and the reviewer heard satisfying weight from bass guitar and kick drum without losing the rest of the mix. Its low end is described as beefy but still part of a naturally balanced presentation rather than bloated or overbearing.
Midrange
88/100
Vocals came through clearly and without coloration, while Miles Davis's cornet was full of character without the blare that can make brass difficult. The presentation is slightly mellow, with somewhat less midrange energy than the surrounding bass and mid-treble.
Treble
83/100
Higher guitar notes were clear and chiming, and the overall tonal balance remained listenable even at louder levels. However, the reviewer heard a peak around 6kHz that made cymbals a little too bright, emphasizing stick impact over their lower resonant shimmer.
Resolution Detail
90/100
The headphones revealed the woody resonance of cello, the scrape of bow hair across strings, and the way piano illuminated the recording venue's acoustics. Piano and guitar lines also remained individually clear when playing continuously against one another.
Soundstage Imaging
89/100
The review found useful depth, placing the piano well behind Ella Fitzgerald's voice in the recording. Left-right placement was also convincing, with piano at right and guitar at left communicating clearly as separate performers.
Dynamics
80/100
The reviewer found the dense rock recording sufficiently balanced and composed to enjoy at high volume. The reviews say little about large-scale punch, transient attack, or dynamic contrast.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Comfort Fit
94/100
The ÆON RT Closed is called exceptionally comfortable, with evenly distributed headband pressure, low weight and very soft earpads. The reviewer specifically considers it suitable for hours of uninterrupted wear.
Build Quality
80/100
The reviews provide little direct commentary on materials, mechanical durability, connectors or long-term ownership. Its shared design lineage with the ÆON 2 Closed is mentioned, but construction quality is not evaluated in detail.
Features Usability
87/100
Several interchangeable felt filters allow owners to tailor the tonal balance, including options intended to have minimal sonic effect while covering the grille. The filter system is a practical inclusion for a wired closed-back headphone, though the review does not discuss cable options, case contents or part replacement.
Value for Money
91/100
At $499.99, the reviewer considered the ÆON RT Closed a good buy, especially after regarding the related $899.99 model as a good deal. The combination of comfort, adjustable tuning and mature sound was seen as notably compelling at this lower price.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
Online Reviews & Mentions
YouTube Reviews
Forum Mentions
No forum mentions found yet
Manufacturer's Description — Dan Clark Audio
ÆON RT sets a new standard in affordable headphone performance, comfort, and build quality. Based on our legendary ÆON Flow, which won dozens of awards, ÆON RT offers a fresh and livelier sound that retains ÆON’s ultra-light all-metal headband and baffle. And it’s still made right here in San Diego, California!
LEGENDARY DESIGN, FRESH SOUND
ÆON RT (Re-Tuned) delivers a vibrant new take on our award-winning and critically acclaimed ÆON Flow. ÆON RT embodies everything you loved about the classic ÆON Flow - its tough, yet ultra-light, all-metal headband and baffle, and incredibly comfortable ergonomic design - but with a significant sonic upgrade. While ÆON RT Closed has had its bass presence boosted and its tone adjusted to be smoother and better-balanced (basically, a more playful vibe), ÆON RT Open lightens up the midrange and expands the soundstage for a more immersive experience.
DESIGNED, BUILT (TO LAST), AND TESTED IN SAN DIEGO
Most affordable headphones are made of plastic, but ÆON RT’s headband and baffle are titanium and aluminum to create a perfect balance of weight, strength, reliability, and comfort. You can buy heavier, but you can’t buy tougher.
FORM IS THE FUNCTION
All our ÆON headphones share a patented super-ergonomic design. Contoured similarly to the outline of an ear ÆON RT is unusually easy to fit and superbly comfortable to wear. By shaping the cup to follow the ear, we achieve that big-headphone sound in a form that can easily be packed for travel in the included case.
TECHNOLOGY TO THE LIMIT
Every Dan Clark Audio planar magnetic headphone is powered by a 100% proprietary driver. No off the shelf parts stuck into a new enclosure here - our drivers are designed in-house, and feature:
- New diaphragm that’s 70% lighter for improved detail retrieval
- Super efficient transducer that keeps weight down by reducing magnet size
- Second-generation Trueflow technology that improves airflow through the motor for a major boost in detail retrieval
- Patented V-Planar driver processing that textures the driver surface for superior low frequency performance and improved diaphragm stability
WHICH ÆON IS FOR ME, ÆON 2 OR ÆON RT?
Don’t be fooled: while it looks a lot like the ÆON RT, the ÆON 2 is a completely new and updated design. ÆON 2’s brand new driver uses our second generation TrueFlow technology that takes detail retrieval, dynamics, bass extension, and soundstage to a whole new level - which is why the New York Times Wirecutter called ÆON 2 Closed the best-sounding closed headphone under $2,000. And did we mention that it packs down to half its size?
For the budget-conscious, ÆON RT (Re-Tuned) headphones update our award-winning ÆON Flow with bumped up bass and crisper highs than the original. The result: ÆON RT delivers a springier and more dynamic listening experience, prioritizing affordability, fun-factor, and (of course) amazing sound quality! It doesn’t hurt that it’s unbelievably comfortable, and still made in San Diego. It’s not an ÆON 2, but it’s the next best thing!
PERFORMANCE
- Driver: 62mm x 34mm single-ended planar magnetic
- Driver matching: +/-2dB to target curve, channel matched to 0.5dB weighted 30-8KHz
- THD: less than 0.3% 20-20KHz, 0.1% 100-8KHz
- Headband: Nickel-Titanium (Nitinol) memory metal
- Baffle: Carbon Fiber
- Earpads: Japanese Synthetic Protein Leather
- Weight: 328gr
IN THE BOX
- ÆON RT headphone
- Carrying case
- DUMMER Cable (or VIVO Cable Upgrade)
- Manual
- Tuning Kit
- Cleaning Cloth
- Patent D855579 for our unique tear-drop headphone design and hingeless headband
- US Patent 10631098 for our Trueflow technology
Verified Dealers
Online Dealers
All Dealers
Zoom out the map to see more dealers
Authorized dealers for Dan Clark Audio ÆON RT
- Advanced MP3 Players — online and in-store — Musselburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom (website)
- Alpha High End — online and in-store — Brasschaat, Vlaams Gewest, Belgium (website)
- Alta Fedelta — online and in-store — Lombardia, Italy (website)
- Analogue Seduction — online and in-store — Whittlesey, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Area Hifi — online and in-store — L'Eixample, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain (website)
- ARK Audio — online and in-store — Borensberg, Östergötlands län, Sweden (website)
- Art et son — online and in-store — Montréal, Québec, Canada (website)
- Audio 46 — online and in-store — New York, New York, United States (website)
- Audio Art Cable — online and in-store — San Diego, California, United States (website)
- Audio Domain — online and in-store — Stadtbezirke I, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany (website)
and 57 more verified dealers