Senfer DT6
Intro
The senfer DT6 is a weird one. Most definitely a very hyped IEM at the time of it's release, and I will admit that I did fall victim to the hype initially. And at first, I really liked them - in fact, through my rose tinted glasses, they became my favourite IEM for a while! But things have changed, I've learnt from my mistakes, and I've experienced many better options since.
The DT6 is an IEM that has been regarded as neutral or even reference level sound by some. Though Crinacle's famous words regarding the DT6 will still remain in the back of my mind:
"I almost recoiled with disgust when saxophones kicked in."
Of course, this can be taken with a pinch of salt, as sound is subjective in many ways. So let's get right into the review.
Design
Yeah. I like it.
Comfy, I vibe with the cable, and I appreciate a more "relaxed" fit, for lack of a better way to describe the lack of ear hooks.
The metal build makes these feel extremely sturdy, and another welcomed characteristic is the fact that the DT6 is metal, sturdy, and LIGHT.
I personally really appreciate how light these are in my ears, simply because it makes them more comfortable for long listening sessions. It's a me thing. I know heavier IEMs can be appealing from a "premium-feel" standpoint.
I don't really like the pre-installed stock ear tips though. I do like the other ear tips included though. Something just doesn't vibe with me with the "ribbed for your pleasure" tips.
So in conclusion, the cable is fine, the build is nice, and I like the light weight of them. Comfort is good. The cable wasn't so cleanly braided though (at least with the unit I received). And thus I'll give the DT6 a 7/10 in Design.
Tuning
Well, as with anything this is the part of the review I care about the most. I mean, if it wasn't, would I really be an audiophile?
Let's start from left and work to the right.
So, while Crinacle had addressed the bass as being overwhelming, I'd like to beg to differ. Though that's obviously where personal preference comes into play.
I actually find the bass to be... Well, fine. it's a little on the warm side, as shown by comparing to my target curve. I wouldn't say that the mid-bass is bloated at all, but these are definitely very warm sounding. I don't dislike it though.
The lower mids are slightly recessed, resulting in a somewhat V-shaped feeling sound signature as a result. That's groovy, I don't mind that. But at this point they're straying quite far from "neutral" already. That's not a bad thing, but I would not call these reference monitors, and anybody who had formerly called these "neutral" probably needs to do a little more research.
Unfortunately, all of the credible things about the DT6 fall flat once you finally get to the dreaded upper mids.
Oh dear.
Unfortunately, I have to say that Crinacle was right. The tonality is completely thrown out of whack by the consistent indecisiveness of the upper mids. It may not seem like a huge issue when you look at the graph, as you can somewhat follow a rough line. But oh boy do you hear that dip at 3kHz.
I don't really listen to saxaphones much myself, but I definitely did find that the comparison to a well tuned pair of IEMs (eg. the Moondrop Crescent) resulted in me concluding that saxaphones sound kind of like they're being played into a pillow, but worse.
Other things are thrown off terribly too, such as vocals.
If you'd like an idea of how the Senfer DT6 sounds with regards to vocals, just imagine in every song, the vocallists are singing with face masks on. You know, the surgical kind that COVID19 bestowed upon us.
That aside, the treble... is fine. Nothing special, but it's fine.
With all said and done, I can't really provide the Senfer DT6 the high praise I gave it back in 2019. It doesn't deserve it. With it's messed up tonality being the centre of attention (for me), I unfortunately have to give this a 3/10. It would have been lower, but it's generally inoffensive to listen to if you don't really care about tonality.
Value
With everything being said and done here, the Senfer DT6 is roughly $20, depending on where you're from. I would not say this is good value, but it's definitely something a lot of people would probably be happy with. I can't really speak for technicalities, as they're not my forte, but I remember people enjoying such things about the DT6. So hey, maybe there is a market for it after all.
So with all said and done, the Senfer DT6 can have a 3/10 for it's value. I wouldn't say it's a waste, but you can definitely get better for the money. (EG. BLON BL03, Final Audio E500, Final Audio E1000)
Summary
A tonal nightmare with arguably decent balancing and a nice build. Not for more enthusiastic audiophiles but probably suitable for normies.
Score: 43