Dan Clark E3 3 quarter profile over white background
Dan Clark E3 3 quarter profile right over white background
Dan Clark E3 profile over white background
Dan Clark E3 profile on wood shelf with vinyl records
Dan Clark E3 rear over white background
Dan Clark E3 front over white background
Dan Clark E3 closeup headband system and logo
Dan Clark E3 grill closeup with logo over white background
Dan Clark E3 profile with attached stock cable over vinyl jacket
Dan Clark E3 stock carry case

Dan Clark Audio E3 | Closed-Back Planar Magnetic Headphones

Regular price$1,999.00
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Cable

Dan Clark Audio E3 logo

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

Dan Clark E3 headband highlighting blue embroidered logo

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 Meze Liric, Focal Stellia, 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 Stealth and Expanse 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.

Read our full review here.


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.

DCA AMTS material over black background

Planar Driver Performance Revisited

E3’s all-new 5th gen planar-magnetic driver incorporates innovative diaphragms made on an all-new tensioning system for a more uniform and consistent performance. New diaphragm materials combined with highly optimized "V-Planar knurling" deliver a remarkably smooth frequency response with low distortion throughout the listening range for levels of detail more often found in TOTL electrostatics. E3’s new drivers coupled with AMTS deliver exceptionally high resolution without the fatiguing distortions and rough frequency response users may be used to.

Dan Clark E3 profile 3 quarter dramatic leaning against AVM amplifier

What are Those Holes in the Glass?

That would be the Dual-Mode Bass Port, another DCA innovation. While it’s not unusual to find a bass port on a closed headphone, our ingenious dual-mode port delivers unrivaled control of the bass frequency response, creating a superbly balanced, impactful bass experience that is full of power yet free of bloat or midrange creep.

Why Gorilla Glass?

Gorilla Glass 3 is a thin sheet of alkali-aluminosilicate that makes the glass stiffer and more scratch and break resistant. The styling of the pattern under the glass evokes the mesh of an open-back headphone, a design cue to highlight the exceptionally open-back listening experience E3 delivers.

Dan Clark E3 leaning against Beatles vinyl album highlighting gorilla glass

Enough Geek Talk - How Does it Sound?

E3’s 5th-Gen driver and AMTS deliver an amazing balance of delicacy, nuance, and explosive dynamics that will have you reaching for all your favorite recordings. And it’s not just about the tone and timbre: E3's soundstage is stunningly expansive, all-enveloping, and can compete with even the finest open headphones in depth, width, and imaging.

Comfort is Still King

At DCA, ergonomic design is of paramount importance. What good is a great sounding headphone if you can only wear it for 30 minutes? E3 takes advantage of every ergonomic trick DCA developed, including the acclaimed self-adjusting headband suspension system from Stealth and Expanse, and the convenient and stylish folding gimbals that make E3 a conveniently compact travel headphone.

DCA E3 highlighting underside of headband cushion

Specifications

  • Model: E3
  • Driver: Planar Magnetic
  • Sensitivity: -90 dB/mW
  • Impedance: 27Ω
  • Distortion: < 0.1% ref 80dB White Noise
  • Weight: 1 lb

In the Box

  • DCA E3 Headphones
  • VIVO Cable
  • Compact Carrying Case
  • Cloth Headphone Bag
  • Headphone Information Guide
  • Certificate of Authenticity

Dan Clark Audio E3 In the Box

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Customer Reviews

Based on 2 reviews
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H
Harry Fan
Increadible Headphone

The headphone has incredibly accurate mid and treble. They are so smooth and well-controlled. The bass is a little bit more than I expected, maybe because it's closed-back. Besides, the service from Bloom Audio is so good!

T
Tunji Durodola
Awesome cans for an awesome price

My review won't be very technical or verbose.

Suffice to say that I have listened to certain pieces of music listed below, on the FiiO M15 and Astell & Kern SP3000..

Comparison was made with the Oppo PM-1, Meze Elite, Focal Stellia and the T+A Solitaire P.

It took a few days to burn them in,to appreciate the true nature of the beast.
I really love the E3s and do not regret splashing out on them.

I am a frequent flyer 2, who has major issues packing a set of cans every 2 weeks, for a long distance flight.

Some are portable - they have good foldability and thus easy to pack. Others not so much.

The DCa E3 fits that bill nicely.

They are hard to drive at 27 Ohms. But work nicely with the FiiO at high gain.

They didn't pair too well with the SP3000, unlike the Elite and the Solitaire.

I repeat - absolutely no regrets for th3se cans.
My order of preference, after listening to my Playlist would be:
1. T+A Solitaire P
2. Meze Elite
3. Meze Empyrean II
4.DCA E3
5. Oppo PM1
6. Focal Stellia

Playlist
1. Private Life - Grace Jones
2. A Whole New Way of Looking at the day - Abakus
3. Apocalypse - Bear Mccreary
4. Allegretto Movement - Beethoven's 7th Symphony - Berlin Philharmoniker l
5. Arpegiator - Jean-Michel Jarre
6. Sahara Sun - Darshan Ambient
7. Uretan - Alis Quartet
8. Celestine - Banco de Gaia
9. Boy 1904 - Jonsi Taken Away - Etherwood
10. Am Ending - Brian Eno

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