Denon has introduced a new flagship, over-ear headphone model. It is expected to be available in January 2017 for $999.
In developing this flagship model, Denon engineers were foremost concerned with two criteria: sound quality, and comfort. This meant the development of new designs and new materials.
At the heart of the AH-D7200 is the 50mm FreeEdge driver diaphragm, made from a nano-fiber material chosen for its rigidity and low mass. This delivers an accurate piston motion without distortion, and is also self-damping to cancel out unwanted resonances within the diaphragm. It’s mounted in a soft, compliant surround, making it easier for it to move in response to the music signal without flexing or distorting, for the purest possible sound. The ‘motor’ driving this diaphragm uses copper coated aluminum wire (CCAW) to keep the voice-coil as light as possible, plus strong (more than 1 Tesla) neodymium magnets to increase the linearity and the speed of response.
The AH-D7200 drive-units are mounted on vibration-reducing, resin baffles. These are fitted into housings made from natural walnut, the dense wood being self-damping and shaped to reduce internal resonances and reflections. In addition, the use of walnut gives the headphones a warmer, more ‘speaker-like’ sound.
Connecting these drive units to the amplifier powering the headphones is a 7N oxygen-free copper cable. It’s terminated with a durable machine-cut metal plug with a copper trim-ring. 7N copper is also used for the internal wiring of the headphones. A ‘floating jack’ design is used for the connections between the cable and the headphone ear cups. This prevents the transmission of mechanical noise from the cable to the ears, while the detachable design means the user can experiment with aftermarket cables as desired.
As well as being tuned for the best possible sound, the AH-D7200 has also been designed for comfort. The ear cups are suspended on ergonomic, die-cast aluminum hangers, while the headband is finished in sheepskin leather. Within the ear-cushions, trimmed with artificial leather chosen for softness and durability, memory foam helps fit to the user’s ears. The overall design is geared towards long listening sessions, from the light weight (385g excluding cable) to a fit and side-pressure optimized for the widest possible range of head sizes and shapes.
