DUNU Titan 6 Review

Introduction:

DUNU was originally an OEM/ODM manufacturer established in 1994 and focuses on development, manufacture and marketing of professional earphone and ear bud products. DUNU’s manufacturing plant is located in Dong Guan City, Guangdong, China.

The DUNU Titan 6 is a member of the Titan series with a Dynamic Driver configuration same as the Titan 5 and the Titan 3.

The Titan 6 features a single 12.5mm diameter Ferrromagnetic Beryllium Diaphragm Dynamic Driver that is adopting the latest N52 Nd-Fe-Be ferromagnetic circuit system.

Disclaimer:

I would like to thank DUNU for providing me the Titan 6 sample for review purposes. I am not affiliated with DUNU beyond this review and these words reflect my true and unaltered opinions about the product.  

Price:

The MSRP price for the DUNU Titan 6 is 139,99 USD and can be purchased from the links below;

• Purchase Link 1: https://www.dunuusa.com/titan-6
• Purchase Link 2: https://penonaudio.com/dunu-titan-6.html

Package and Accessories:

The DUNU Titan 6 is came in a relative small box in black color with a nice textured surface that features the DUNU brand logo in silver color. This is wrapped with cardboard that the visuals of the Titan 6.

Inside the box are the following contents/accessories; 

• 1 pair x DUNU Titan 6 In-Ear Monitor
• 1 pcs x Detachable Cable with MMCX Connector
• 3 pairs x Silicone Vocal Ear Tips
• 3 pairs x Silicone Balanced Tips
• 3 Pairs x Custom Silicone Ear Tips with Ear Hooks
• 1 pcs x Premium Leather Case

The DUNU Titan 6 comes with a very rich accessories package with various types of silicone ear tips inclusive 3 pairs of custom/special silicone tips with ear hooks which.

The leather case with zipper is in brown color and is of very high quality. This case features a nice faux shear ling lining and sports the DUNU Brand logo on the top that looks pretty stylish.

Design, Fit and Build Quality:

The DUNU Titan 6 has a triangular shape that has been inspired according to DUNU by the Russian traditional instrument “Balalaki”. The monitor shell is made of aluminum magnesium alloy that was machined with a five-axis CNC cutting process, which would according to DUNU effectively eliminate the harmonic resonance.

The Titan 6 is available in two different color, which are the black (Brilliant Black) and brown (Frosted Brown) color options. On the front of the monitor is the triangular surface in silver color that features the DUNU brand logo.

On the backside of the monitor are the angled sound nozzle, the bass vent (a small hole) and the Left/Right markings. The sound nozzle has a fine woven metal mesh on the top to prevent the insertion of ear-wax, dust, etc.

At the bottom of the monitor housing is a second vent and the DUNU patented Catch-Hold MMCX Connector.

The overall build quality of the Titan 6 is top notch, same as all DUNU products I have tested in the past.

The Cable:

The DUNU Titan 6 has a detachable cable with MMCX (Micro Miniature Coaxial) male connectors. The cable is made of 4 core of high-purity single crystal copper wire, mixed with silver plated OCC wire material.

The cable itself has a twisted design and features rigid plastic insulation in brown color.

The MMCX connectors of the cable have a black plastic housing with Left & Right markings. The patented MMCX connectors utilize the hollow cylinder design to lock the earphones and effectively improve the connectivity.

This cable features also the DUNU patented cable organizer, a stylish metal y-splitter in brown color with DUNU product branding and has also a transparent plastic chin slider.

The cable of the DUNU Titan 6 has a gold plated 3.5mm (TRS) headphone jack with an L-angled profile. The housing of this headphone jack is in black color and sports the DUNU product branding. This headphone jack features also a plastic train relief for extra durability.

Fit and Comfort:

The lightweight housing (only 7,63g for each monitor), the relative small size and design structure of the Titan 6 makes it to a very ergonomic In-Ear Monitor for long listening periods.

The special silicone ear tips with ear hooks making the Titan 6 also to a very good chose if you want to use it on the go.

The nose isolation of the Titan 6, on the other hand is on an average level.

Technical Specifications:

• Model              : Titan 6
• Driver              : 12.5mm diameter Ferrromagnetic Beryllium Diaphragm Dynamic Driver
• Impedance     : 16Ω
• Freq. range     : 5 Hz – 40 kHz
• Sensitivity       : 112dB @ 1 kHz
• Weight            : 7.63g
• Cable length   : 1.2m

Drivability:

The DUNU Titan 6 is an easy to drive IEM with an impedance of 16ohm and sensitivity of 112dB, which makes it to an ideal option to the use with relative weak sources like Smartphone’s, Tablets and smaller sized DAP’s.

Equipment’s used for this review:

IEM’s              : DUNU Titan 6, TFZ King II, FiiO F9 Pro
DAP&DAC’s  : iBasso DX220, QLS QA361, Cayin N5II

Albums & tracks used for this review:

• Rush’s – Leave That Thing Alone (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Gogo Penguin – Raven (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Photek – Hidden Camera (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Otto Liebert& Luna Negra – The River (DSF) – Binaural Recording
• Vivaldi – Le QuarttroStagioni “The Four Season” (Wav 24bit/88kHz)
• Chopin – Nocturn No. 20 In C-Sharp Minor (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Fazıl Say – Nazım Oratoryosu (Live) (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Armin Van Buuren – Vini Vici (Spotify)
• Lorde – Royal (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
• Tom Player – Resonace Theory (16bit/44.1kHz)
• Massive Attack – Angel (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• Portishead – The Hidden Camera (MP3 320kHz)
• Liquid Tension Experiment 2 – Acid Rain (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Opeth – Damnation (Wav 16bit/44kHz)
• Metallica – Sad but True (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Megadeth – Sweating Bullets (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Slayer – Angel of Death (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Elton John – Your Song (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
• David Bowie – Black Star (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• Dave Gahan – Kingdom (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Eric Clapton – Unplugged Album (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• B.B. King – Riding With The King (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
• First Aid Kit – My Silver Lining (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
• London Grammar – Interlude (Live) (Flac 24bit/88kHz)
• Aretha Franklin – I Say a Little Prayer (Wav 16bit/44.1kHz)
• Diana Krall – So Wonderful (DSF)
• Laura Pergolizzi – Lost On You “Live at Harvard and Stone” (Wav 16bit/44.1kHz)

The Sound:

The DUNU Titan 6 is an In-Ear Monitor with a V shaped sound signature, which has a sweet and full bodied midrange, pretty bold and deep bass character and a treble region that is forgiving, soft and controlled.

I have written this review after a burn-in period of 80 Hours and have used Stock Balanced Silicone ear tips which are included to the package.

The Bass:

The Titan 6 has a subbass tuning that shows a good depth, with an overall quantity which is sufficient for most types of music genres. The subbass is therefore very balanced and controlled. The subbass region has an average depth and extension, with a warmish and soft tonality.

The midbass area of the DUNU Titan 6 has more quantity and intensity than the subbass region and is more dominant in the overall presentation. The midbass of the Titan 6 are punchy and have a good slam effect when called upon.

Instruments like cross drums are pronounced, snare drums are bassy and fast, while bass guitars have a warm and bold tonality. The overall midbass presentation is quite energetic.

The DUNU Titan 6 has a moderate bass speed and tightness and is a little bit loose. The bass quantity and intensity are in general above average. The dynamic and energetic presentation makes the Titan 6 very successful with music genres like Pop, Edm, Hip-hop and rap music.

The Midrange:

The midrange of the DUNU Titan 6 is a bit recessed due to the V shaped sound signature. The general tonality is warmish, full bodied, sweet and emotional, while the transparency and airiness is on a moderate level.

Vocals:

The DUNU Titan 6 is fairly successful with male vocals in terms of depth and detail retrieval with its average lower midrange depth and do not have negative conditions such as muddiness and mixings. The male vocals have a soft, bodied and vibrant tonality.

The Titan 6 is an IEM with a pronounced upper midrange presentation, which makes the female vocal presentation fairly detailed with good extension. The female vocals are in general emotional and soft in tonality and here are no negative situations like sibilance and sharpness.

The general sound signature of the DUNU Titan 6 is fatigue-free which makes it ideal for long listening periods.

Instruments:

The DUNU Titan 6 offers a full bodied, sweet and soft instrument tonality. It doesn’t shows negative situations like sharpness or over brightness.

Instruments like pianos are pretty soft, while guitars are slightly bassy and bold in tonality. Other instruments like violas are warmish and emotional. The distance between the instruments is minimal, so that the airiness and spaciousness of the Titan 6 are on a moderate level.

The Titan 6 is in the category of fun oriented In-Ear Monitors, rather than detail oriented ones, and is very successful in this area.

Upper Midrange

The DUNU Titan 6 has a pronounced upper midrange presentation with a peak around the 5 kHz rage. Therefore the upper midrange is the most emphasized region right after the midbass area. The overall presentation of the upper midrange is more pronounced, detailed and dominant than the treble region, while it is in general pretty controlled.

Instruments like the violins are slightly bright but soft in tonality, without to show negative conditions like over sharpness. The pianos are fairly successful except for the lack of a little brightness. 

Treble:

The DUNU Titan 6 has a laid back treble presentation that shows an average emphasis. It has no peaks like the upper midrange which makes the tonality of this area quite soft and forgiving.

The level of airiness and brightness is not very high, which makes the extension of instruments like Hi-hats and crash cymbals in metal music a bit short. The treble area of the Titan 6 shows better intensity and is more pronounced in genres like jazz music than in metal music. The treble range is not as pounced like the bass region in genres like EDM, Trance or Pop music, while the presentation is quite controlled.

The Soundstage:

The DUNU Titan 6 has a soundstage with a moderate size for the placemat of instruments. The fact that the stage is not narrow is an advantage for genres with multiple instruments. The depth of the stage is slightly better and the width.

Some Short Comparisons:

DUNU Titan 6 versus TFZ King II:

Both the DUNU Titan 6 and the TFZ King II sharing a V shaped sound signature. The presentation has a high fan factor and shows a musical presentation.

The DUNU Titan 6 has the upper hand in terms of subbass depth and extension, while the TFZ King II is slightly better in terms of bass sped and control. The Titan 6 is superior in terms of midbass quantity and intensity.

The midrange of both IEM’s is a bit recessed due to the V shaped sound signature, while the presentation is pleasant. The King II has the upper hand in terms of detail and definition of male vocals, while the Titan 6 offers a stronger and more detailed female vocal presentation.

The upper midrange of both In-Ear Monitors is controlled and soft in its presentation, while the upper midrange of the Titan 6 is brighter and more pronounced. The Titan 6 has also the upper hand in terms off upper midrange extension and detail retrieval.

The treble range of both King II and Titan 6 is sounds slightly laid back and forgiving with the same amount of detail retrieval.

The DUNU Titan 6 has the upper hand in terms of soundstage depth, while the TFZ King II has a slightly wider stage.

DUNU Titan 6 versus FiiO F9 Pro:

Both IEM’s have a V shaped sound signature. The bass of the FiiO F9 Pro sounds more linear and balanced than the DUNU Titan 6.

The subbass of the Titan 6 has noticeably more depth and extension with higher intensity of rumble. The FiiO F9 Pro is slightly better in terms of bass speed and tightness. The midbass slam and level of intensity is grater while listening to the Titan 6, the F9 Pro sounds more linear and balanced.

The midrange presentation of the DUNU Titan 6 is warmer, softer and more emotional than the FiiO F9 Pro. The F9 pro sounds thinner and more neutral in this area. The Titan 6 is superior in terms of male vocals, while the F9 Pro sounds slightly more realistic while listening to female voices.

The upper midrange of the FiiO F9 Pro is more pronounced and has more extension than the DUNU Titan 6. The Titan 6 on the other hand offers better control and a soft/fatigue-free presentation in this region.

The soundstage of the FiiO F9 Pro has the upper hand in terms of width and airiness, while the DUNU Titan 6 is superior to the F9 Pro in terms of soundstage depth.

Conclusion:

The highly entertaining V shaped sound signature of the DUNU Titan 6 with its sweet and full bodied midrange, deep bass tuning and pretty soft & forgiving treble presentation will satisfy many audiophiles who are looking for an IEM in this price range, while the high quality leather case and the silicone tips with ear hooks are very nice additions.

Pros & Cons:

• + Bass Performance (Depth & Extension)
• + Smooth, Musical Midrange Tuning
• + Fatigue free Treble Presentation
• + Great Accessory Package (Leather Case, Silicone Tips with Ear Hooks)
• + Very Good Fit

• – Upper Midrange & Treble Extension
• – Soundstage width