Dunu Falcon Pro

disclaimer: The Dunu Falcon Pro was sent by Dunu for purposes of this review.  I have no financial interest in Dunu, any of its distributors, or resellers.   I will admit to an ongoing love affair with several of Dunu’s in-ears and I probably am a bit biased in that I have an expectation here having owned the original Dunu Falcon (and still having one in my collection).   For more information on the Falcon Pro or to purchase your own,  See the Dunu website.

 

Unboxing / Packaging:

The Falcon Pro ships in a black inner box with a yellow slip cover.  The cover has the Dunu name and logo sprinkled over the front and sides with the Falcon Pro name at bottom front and the specs on the rear.   The inner box is a gloss black with the Dunu name in silver on the lid.  It is understated but classy.   Lifting the lid reveals the blue/green hard case in foam surrounds with the earpieces and cables hiding inside.   A small box under the case houses the other accessories.    The kit is remarkably complete for a budget model with the earpieces, a drawstring padded bag to protect the earpieces,  the Qlite cable system with 3.5mm, 4,4mm, 2,5mm jacks and a 6.3mm adapter,  a clamshell case, cleaning cloth and brush, three sets of filters on a metal storage plate, 12 extra rubber washers (red,blue, yellow), three sets of gray silicone tips, three sets of black silicone tips, three pairs of translucent black tips (blue core),  three sets of gray translucent tips (whirlwinds),  and various instruction and warranty cards.    The kit is certainly on par with many models well above its budget price tag and it is hard to find any fault with what Dunu has provided with the Falcon Pro.

 

Build/Fit:

Those familiar with the original Falcon-C will recognize the outer shell immediately as the shell shape and size are very similar.  Differences are the Pro housings are 316 stainless steel with a high polish finish compared to the matte black of the C and the underside of the shell has been streamlined quite a bit.  While the C had a shelf and an inner barrel that  housed the driver the Pro has a thinner body with 5 distinct vents instead of the grate in the original and a much more tapered shape from the main body to the nozzle.   The faceplate has a high polish central section with the Dunu name etched into the center while the periphery has the Dunu D logo sprinkled on a brushed background.   The Pro looks much more high end while the C looks quite a bit more industrial by comparison.   I found the fit a bit more comfortable on the Pro as a result of the interior changes and the more tapered shape.    The other big change is the nozzles themselves which now screw into the main body with a junction at the base so effectively changing filters replaces the whole nozzle and different nozzles are different lengths which alters the seating depth in ear.  The immersion and  reference nozzles are longer and sit deeper in the ear while the transparency nozzles are about 1/2 the length of the others and offer a much shallower fit.    I found isolation to be good regardless of which nozzles were chosen but slightly better with the longer nozzles and even more so when mated with Comply foam tips.     I had no fatigue from long term wear and think with the shape of the Pro all but the smallest ears should have no issue with size and weight of the earpieces.

 

Internals:

The heart of the the Falcon Pro is Dunu’s ECLIPSE driver.   The driver is a 10mm dynamic with a 1.6 Tesla neodymium ring magnet and an amorphous diamond-like carbon diaphragm.   We have seen this technology in the Luna and Zen previously but this is the first trickle down of the tech into a budget model.     The goals of the eclipse technologies were to improve the range of the driver while at the same time reducing the total harmonic distortion.   The resulting driver has a frequency range of 5Hz to 40kHz with a THD of <0.3% at 1kHz.   The eclipse is a driver that is capable of low end slam and top end sparkle in a single dynamic driver package which eliminates the need for a BA tweeter often found paired with a dynamic to accomplish the same dynamic range.     Nominal impedance is listed at 26Ω with a sensitivity of 112 dB/mW which suggests the Falcon Pro should be easy to drive.   I found the Falcon Pro worked well with phones and tablets and scaled well qualitatively with better sources while not needing the extra power that some of those same sources provided.   For example the Kann Alpha was best on low gain as it still had plenty of power to drive the Falcon Pro and kept the noise floor jet black.  On mid or high gain, some noise started to creep in during the silence between tracks.

 

Cable:

Dunu has cables figured out and I will admit that I have purchased several because I love the swap-able connectors and overall quality of their cables.   The qlite modular system is well thought out and well implemented.  I appreciate the fact that the connectors are keyed so I cannot get it wrong and the fact that the jacks are 90º that limits the stress created on the DAP or dongle.   Too many of these modular designs use straight connectors and the extended length required to create a modular connector then places increased stress on the jacks.   This is less of an issue with the 4.4mm but when using a 2.5mm jack additional stress is certainly something that should be avoided as the connections tend to be somewhat weak.      The Falcon Pro despite its budget conscious $219 price tag includes the 4.4mm and 2.5mm balanced connectors in addition to the 3.5mm single ended connector.   A 6.3mm option is not provided but would be a nice touch rather than having to use a 3.5 to 6.3 adapter.    The cable itself is 6N silver-plated OCC in a clear casing.  It exits the jack with a short strain relief and then a double-twist pattern made of four wires up to the brushed aluminum barrel splitter.   The jack and splitter are well matched and both sport the Dunu name in dark gray on the matte metal background.    Above the splitter the two wire twists are tight and match the twist rate below the splitter up to the pre-formed earhooks without memory wires.   The northern terminations are also a Dunu patented connector.  While standard MMCX cables will work, Dunu has improved the mmcx by updating it and improving the surface contact between connectors.  This helps eliminate the cut-outs that can sometimes occur as mmcx type connectors age or are used repeatedly.   Dunu calls this the catch-hold MMCX connector.

 

Sound:

 

Before we dive into the sound notes, it is worth noting that the filters can and do make a difference in the sound signature as does the choice of tips used.   My listening notes were done with the reference filters and translucent gray tips which I found gave the most linear signature of the provided combinations.   Even with the reference filter, there is a slight bass lift and V to the signature so those looking for a fully flat reference may be disappointed,  I however appreciate the reference + life model which keeps the Falcon Pro from being boring.    Switching to the transparency filters decreases mid-bass and increases upper-mid/lower treble giving a brighter overall tone.  The atmospheric immersion increases mid-bass a bit in comparison to upper-mids and gives a bit warmer signature.    All of the nozzles offer small changes to the base signature and based on my testing seem to adjust the 2kHz-6kHz range more than anything below that so changes in bass are perceived due to the change in relationship between mid-bass and upper-mids/lower treble regions.

 

Bass:

I really like the low-end tuning on the Falcon Pro.  Bass has good power but is not over emphasized with a gradual tapering off in the sub-bass that mimics real world sound well.   There is rumble when called upon and roll-off doesn’t become evident until well down into the 30Hz range so it doesn’t lack in that department.   Sub-bass has good speed and some textural elements so while not quite as detailed as something like the Zen Pro, it isn’t lacking when considering the price point either.   Mid-bass is a bit more present in the mix but shares the speed and clarity of the sub-bass and gains a bit more texture and detail.    You won’t get a visceral bass punch regardless of nozzle choice so the Falcon Pro won’t please the basshead crowd.  What you do get is a clean, tight bass with good texture and tonality.

 

Mids:

The mids are the best feature of the Falcon Pro in my opinion.   Lower mids have good note weight and male vocals cut through the instrumentation well.   Guitars have a satisfying growl with quick attack and good rasp.   Strings are better than anticipated with good energy and a very natural tone.   Even piano concerto pieces have a very realistic timbre although piano does thin a bit at the top end leaving the lower notes sounding a bit more realistic than the top octave or so.    Female vocals do stand slightly in front of their male counterparts but not artificially so, and upper mids while mildly lifted do not have that artificial shouty tone that can come with a lift.    Overall, the Falcon Pro isn’t going to wow the listener on first use, its one that grows on the user over time and the longer the Falcon Pro is used, the more you realize it does right (particularly in the mids).

 

Treble:

(Note: The transparency filter will enhance treble beyond what is discussed here.  I stuck with the reference filter throughout my testing.)    With the reference filter, the lower treble is mildly lifted but doesn’t come across as overly forward or bright.  Dunu has done a great job of balancing treble energy with a non-fatiguing tone.    treble is even through-out its range with roll-off being noticeable only above about 12kHz which gives the Falcon Pro enough top end to feel open with some air at the top.  Sparkle is limited but this seems to be a conscious decision to prevent a harsh treble and make the Falcon Pro a more enjoyable listen.   Snare rattle is good with nice crisp attack and cymbals are not metallic or clicky although the crash cymbals could use a touch more energy to sound completely natural.

 

Soundstage / Imaging:

Stage is different on the three nozzle styles with the reference and transparency having more stage size and better proportion than the atmospheric immersion nozzles.    The reference nozzles have good depth and width with some height in the mix as well.     The transparency nozzles have slightly more width and are a touch shallower by comparison with roughly the same height.  The immersion nozzles have a very wide stage but depth suffers and height is more limited as well.    With the reference nozzles in use, seating the orchestra is straight forward with good separation of the various voices and no large gaps.   Layering is quite good as well with no tendency to blur as tracks got more complex with overlapping tones.   Imaging is good with positions well defined and easily tracked on stage.    I ran my normal test tracks to try and cause the driver to compress and found it was very difficult regardless of how complex and how fast tracks got to induce noteworthy compression.   The Eclipse certainly has better speed and transients than most dynamics at this price.

 

Thoughts / Conclusion:

Some will say I’m a Dunu Fanbois, and to that I will say as long as Dunu Keeps making products like the EST 112, Sa6, and now the Falcon Pro, I have no issue with being called that.   All three of these products set the bar in their respective classes and represent great value for the spend.   The kit on the Falcon Pro would be solid for a flagship model and for a $200 class model is well above the average.  The modular cable system is as good as they get and honestly I can see buying the Falcon Pro for the cable alone as plenty of cable systems cost more than the total package cost here but offer little or no advantage when compared to Dunu’s modular system.    The earpieces show an evolution from the first Falcon model and improved comfort as a result and the use of the Eclipse driver certainly competes with the other single dynamics in its class well.    This is a market where names like Sennheiser (ie300) and Moondrop (Kxxs series) have dominated the market.  Dunu may have just changed that as the Falcon pro has at least as good build, accessories, and sonics when compared to those names and many will prefer the signature of the Falcon Pro over that of the Moondrop or Sennheiser.  I know for me, the Falcon Pro is my favorite of the three with a more natural tonality than either of the other two can boast.     If you are in the market for a new dynamic driver in-ear, I highly recommend you add the Dunu Falcon Pro to your short list of things to try.