Dan Clark Audio E3 Brings New Innovations to Closed-Back Headphones
- An exciting new Closed-back headphone following the footsteps of Stealth
- Uses DCA's Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning to achieve maximum closed-back performance
- New tech such as Dual-Mode Bass Port and Gorilla Glass
- Same lightweight frame as DCA's Stealth and Expanse for incredible comfort
Bloom's Take
For some time now, there’s been a strong demand for a new top-tier closed-back headphone that doesn't wipe out your bank account. We’re often asked for a recommendation, and our de facto response is typically a short list: the , , or we send them over to ZMF for their Vérité closed-back. But with Dan Clark’s new E3, we finally have a new recommendation to throw into the arsenal of favorite closed-backs.
E3 aims to take the innovative tech from DCA’s flagship and and make it more accessible with a closed-back for half their price. It features a refined version of DCA’s Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning System, and it’s lightweight and extremely comfortable with the same “melt onto your head” build that’s made DCA a go-to brand for comfort. Particularly noteworthy are the visually striking Gorilla Glass ear cups developed to relieve pressure and decrease fatigue.
E3 follows in the footsteps of its older siblings with a classic Harman tuning. There’s tastefully elevated bass with linear extension into the lows, an extra midbass bump and solid fundamentals in the treble. E3 is also surprisingly open-sounding and surpasses expectations for a closed-back with its width and height in the soundstage achieving a "legendary open-back listening experience in a closed headphone."
Like most DCA cans, E3 is a bit tougher to drive than most headphones, and seems to sing sweeter with an amp that provides a lot of juice. With its driver tech and AMTS, E3 delivers great performance and a well-balanced sound. In some ways, it delivers a livelier, more musical feeling than the Stealth at half the price making E3 one of the best closed-backs on the market and extremely competitive.
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Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning System (AMTS)
A critical feature of E3 is the enhanced AMTS tuning system, previously found only in their TOTL multi-award-winning Stealth, Expanse, and Corina headphones. E3 not only brings this ground-breaking technology to a more affordable headphone, it does so with a new mode of implementation.
All headphones are subject to HF standing waves which can make treble sound harsh, fatiguing, or synthetic. AMTS is a patent pending inline device placed between the transducer and ear that integrates waveguides, diffusion control, and resonators into one compact structure that eliminates standing waves while giving us complete control of the high frequency response profile.
AMTS isn't a "one size fits all" technology. It's custom tuned for each headphone to deliver an optimized experience for each transducer. For E3, DCA developed a new mode of deployment that delivers an absolutely superbly rendered top-end that will surprise and delight, with a tone that is remarkably lifelike.