Senfer DT6 Review (1) – Epic Little Wonder
PROS — Close-to-neutral tuning; mature sound; excellent midrange; detachable cable; superb value.
Cons — Big and heavy earpieces; timbre not for everybody; requires tip rolling…but hey, this earphone costs $20!
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Senfer DT6 is a technically competent 3-driver earphone with a dynamic driver (DD) for the low end, a balanced armature (BA) driver for the midrange, and a piezoelectric tweeter for the highs. It offers a refined, close-to-neutral sound with emphasis on a quality midrange at a ridiculously low price.
For more photos see Slater’s Audio Porn “Senfer DT6 on the Rocks”!
INTRODUCTION
Senfer is a Chinese brand known for earphones with a bright sound signature. I have owned their $20 UEs model for a couple of years, which is not bright, and it has a resolution that co-blogger Loomis Johnson and I compared to the $399 UE900s.
Piezoelectric drivers for the treble are the latest offerings in the budget segment. We reviewed one of them, the NiceHCK N3, which did not impress most reviewers and us either. I grudgingly was talked into reviewing these DT6 — and must admit that I never looked back.
SPECIFICATIONS
Product Name: SENFER DT6 in ear metal earphone
Brand: SENFER
Model: DT6
Earphone Type: In-ear
Impedance: 32 Ω
Earphone Sensitivity: 110 dB/mW
Frequency Range: 5-40000 Hz
Interface: 3.5mm Gilded
Plug Type: straight
Cable Length: 1.2 m ± 3 cm
Connector: MMCX Interface
Microphone/Remote: Yes
Driver unit: 1BA + 1DD + Ceramic Piezoelectric hybrid 3 driver unit
Price (list): $37.49 (at the time of the review)
Your Price: $19 [instructions]
Purchase Link: MissAudio Store
IN THE BOX…
You find the earpieces, cable with MMCX connectors, shirt clip, and 4 pairs of eartips. NOTE: the braided cable that came with my unit is fancier than the cable I have seen on earlier pictures. It is braided, contains a three-button remote, and has a straight TRRS plug.
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE, HAPTIC, AND BUILD QUALITY
The earpieces are made of metal, they are big and heavy. The nozzles are relatively short and angled. Build is good but the shells look a bit rudimentary, reminiscent of very early Knowledge Zenith models. The braided cable is just fine.
ERGONOMICS, COMFORT, ISOLATION, AND FIT
The combination of these big and heavy metal shells and the angled nozzles required a bit of fiddling to get the right fit. I applied the technique suggested by Etymotic [video]: insert into ear canal and rotate by 90 degrees. Once they are in, they are comfortable, especially since the wire is worn down, but be aware that the shells stick quite a bit out of your ears. Isolation is soso, depending on your ear shape and the tips used, but it is in no case fantastic.
SOURCE AND EARTIPS
I used the iPhone SE, which drove the DT6 with ease. The included tips were problematic as none of them was big enough to seals my ear canals. I settled with wide-bores that came with the NiceHCK M6 and the Yinyoo D2B4.
TONALITY
JK’s tonal preference and testing practice
The big picture: the Senfer DT6 offers a refined, brightish, quasi-neutral sound with no offensive humps or peaks in bass or treble.
The details: There is an almost linear response from the very low-end into the midrange. The bass is well extended down to 20 kHz and peaks at the sub-bass/lower bass transition. There is a small peak in the midrange just before 2 kHz, a dip at around 3 kHz, and another moderate peak at 4 kHz. Treble starts dropping off early at 4 kHz (one would expect at 6 kHz for neutral) but it is well extended between 10 and 15 kHz. This results in a neutral to brightish sound signature without any offensive parts.
I read some accounts of an overwhelming, boomy bass, which I initially also experienced. This shows that the frequency response measured in a coupler can be different from the human ear’s perception. The solution of this paradox lies in the different ear shapes: depending to what extent the front bass vent is covered upon insertion, bass quantity may differ substantially [explanation].
If you push the earpieces deep down and close the b assholes, the low end is indeed boomy and darkens the overall image. Wiggling the earpieces brings the bass back to normal and the sound close to neutral.
The bass is not the speediest or tighest, has a decent slam from its very low end and stays reasonably contained into the sub-bass. That extension is ok and there is some rumble down there. Overall, the bass adds warmth, bleeds somewhat into the midrange, and is not the DT6’s strongest side…
…no the strength is the midrange which is not hanging back as it is so often the case in this class. It is neutral, a bit on the cool side, resolves well and it “makes” the overall perception of the earphone being good. The rather odd combination of peaks and troughs between 2 and 4 kHz results in a decent vocals rendering
Treble is well resolving and never strident, with no sibilance, harshness and hardness. Sparkle and air are added by the broad 10-15 kHz peak.
Where the Senfer DT6 may be polarizing is its timbre (“tone colour”): it is certainly not organic and violins, acoustic guitars, saxophones, and pianos may sound sterile and metallic to some. This does not matter for rhythm guitars, sequencers, or synthesizers as they don’t have a pre-defined timbre.
The soundstage is quite impressive for such a cheapo: comparing it to the more organic sounding Brainwavz Delta [review here], the stage is bigger and closer, with a good sense of space and an astounding height and depth. You are in the first row with the DT6 whereas you are more in the bleachers with the Deltas (but the Deltas have their merits, too, with their natural sound and good bass foundation adding to the isolation on the daily commute).
CONCLUDING REMARKS
The Senfer DT6 is a technically competent and mature sounding earphone independent of price. Even better that it costs only $20. Outstanding are its detailed quality midrange and its refined image without any major flaws. I could wear the DT6s for longer periods without any problems. The only concern could be the timbre that may not cater to purveyors of classical music and jazz. In summary, I’d say the DT is a real find out of the ordinary and at this price you can’t go wrong.
You find an INDEX of all our earphone reviews HERE.
DISCLAIMER
The review unit was offered to me by the exuberant people from the MissAudio Store. David Hahn from CHI-FIEAR had established the contact. I thank all of them. The review served the purpose of independently evaluating the technical and practical characteristics of the Senfer DT6 earphone.
Our generic standard disclaimer
Here our other review of the Senfer DT6:
