An Open-Back Headphone With a Different Concept: Aune AC55

Hey everyone,

Today I’m reviewing a one-of-a-kind open-back headphone, a clip-on.
It sits somewhere between a headphone and an IEM.
It’s light, comfortable and easy to take anywhere.

Product page on the official site:
https://www.auneaudio.com/Headphones_en/560.html

Also available on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FQHQQPD1

Official price: 259$

A big thank you to Aune (@auneaudio) for sending the headphone for review. Thank you from the heart for giving me the chance to try it.

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Contents

Specs

40 mm dynamic driver

Type: open back

Impedance: 30Ω

Sensitivity: 112dB

Frequency response: 15Hz-40KHz

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Source

Dongle: Cayin RU6 R2R

I used the stock cable that comes with the headphone.

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Pros and cons

Let’s start with the short version of my experience over the past two months.

Pros:
– The design and the comfort, and it’s easy to carry around. During the test period it actually became one of the headphones I took with me when traveling.
– Clip-on headphones that hang on the ear are known for not giving you enough bass. This one, I can say with full confidence, broke that rule. Hats off to Aune for pulling that off.
– The sound quality was completely unexpected. I was honestly shocked the first time I heard it: resolution, detail, bass, air, separation, imaging. Of course, don’t compare it with over-ear headphones or IEMs. Personally, I think it’s the best in its category, even though I haven’t tried many headphones of this type.
– Easy to drive.
– The included cable is really high quality, and I don’t see any need to change it.
– The safe, fairly balanced tuning will suit a very large number of users.

Cons:
– It’s on the heavy side, which might not suit everyone.
– Not for people looking for big bass, exceptional detail or a closed-back headphone.
– It leaks sound, so if you turn it up, the person next to you will hear what you’re listening to.
– When I first started using it, it hurt the top of my ear where it hangs (shown in the photo below). It started after about an hour of use. It’s still there, but lighter now that I’m used to it.

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Measurements

Measured by IEM World:

The measurement published by the company:

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Sound performance

Sound signature:
Neutral warm with a slight bass boost. I see it as one of the safest signatures out there.

Note:
So I don’t have to keep repeating it: my rating doesn’t compare it with over-ear headphones or IEMs at all.
When I say excellent or ideal, I mean compared with other clip-on headphones.

Bass:
-Sub-bass (20-80Hz):
Surprisingly deep, with very decent rumble, excellent air, excellent and tight control, and a great quantity for this type of headphone (it doesn’t reach over-ear level). There’s a clear roll-off, but it doesn’t affect
– Mid-bass (80-300Hz):
Great control, excellent quantity, more forward than the sub-bass. It doesn’t bleed into the frequencies above it, and the speed is normal. What I liked is how clearly it comes through when the track calls for it. Detail is very good.

Mids (300-4K):
Lower Mids (300-800Hz)
– Voices are natural and warm and have weight. Personally I find them ideal, beautifully balanced and coherent.
– No thinness or lack of weight
– No bass bleed.

Upper Mids (1k-4kHz)
– The headphone focuses here, so they’re a bit forward of neutral, but it isn’t annoying (and this isn’t something I usually like, yet it didn’t bother me at all).
– No annoying or aggressive harshness, and no fatigue over long listening.
– Great detail. I’d say it’s smooth and comfortable without hiding any detail, smooth but detailed.

Treble (4k-20k):
– Calm, smooth and non-fatiguing
– No sharpness
– No sibilance, or whistling as some people call it, on S and T sounds.
– Clear, clean sound.
– The sparkle is a bit low, so it’s not for treble heads.
– Very good extension up top.
– Very good detail too.
– Good air.
– Excellent balance: less forward than the mids and about level with the bass.

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Technical performance

– Soundstage
Excellent (for this type of headphone): wide, with very good depth

– Layering
The spacing between layers is very clear

– Separation
Excellent

– Imaging
Direction: very good
Distance, near and far: excellent

– Resolution (I mean how close the sound is to real life)
Excellent

– Clarity
Very good

– Micro-detail retrieval
Excellent for its category, but compared with other categories I’d call it good

– 3D presentation
Very good. And that’s not a flaw, this design usually has a weak holographic image

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Gaming

I don’t see it as a good fit for competitive games, for several reasons, the main one being that its detail retrieval isn’t at the level those games need.
For story games, it does just fine, and it’s fun.

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Final notes

This headphone gives an audio enthusiast a new kind of experience.
I honestly can’t tell you if you’ll like it or not. Speaking for myself, I loved every detail of it.

Do I recommend buying it?
If it’s going into a collection with other headphones, yes, definitely. You’ll get a new experience with its own vibe, as they say.
But if it’s going to be your only headphone, honestly, no. I don’t think there’s a middle ground with this type: you’ll either love it or hate it (I mean the way you wear it). As for the sound, I find it really excellent, and it has its own kind of fun…

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To wrap up,
thanks again to @auneaudio for giving me the chance to try this work of art.

Best regards,
IEM World

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