Review of Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE: Excellent Headphones for Home Listening
A year after the release of the closed-back planar magnetic Stealth, Dan Clark introduced a new flagship—premium open-back headphones EXPANSE. These are designed for homebodies who want to extract the maximum sound and comfort from their personal audio experience. The open design significantly reduces the noise isolation of the headphones, so using them outside the home is only possible with some caveats: it needs to be quiet around you. Keep in mind that your playlist will be audible to others. Although the foldable design and carrying case subtly suggest that they can be taken on trips—perhaps to enjoy music in a hotel room or by the seaside?
The manufacturer consistently surpasses its own records in planar magnetic driver efficiency and headphone comfort. If you’re searching for the best sound experience, passing up the EXPANSE would be a big mistake. Let us explain why.
High End headphones:
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather, microfiber
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: synthetic leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Headset type: stereo
Brand: Dan Clark Audio
Headphone type: wired
Headset type: stereo
Brand: Dan Clark Audio
Headphone type: wired
Design
The outline of Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE is reminiscent of its predecessor, the Stealth, except for the outer side of the ear cups. The driver is covered with a hexagonal geometric pattern, which resembles a decorative tablecloth that your grandmother might knit for a coffee table. This pattern was meticulously designed by the brand's sound engineers to better disperse the airflow from the driver.
We were impressed by the flexibility of the headphone design: if desired, the EXPANSE can be bent thanks to the titanium-nickel headband, after which they return to their original shape. Many manufacturers use spring steel for this, but it’s significantly heavier. The ear cups fold for transport in the branded hard case. The headband is covered in natural black leather, with the model name embroidered on top, just like on the Stealth. The headband features cornflower blue stitching along the edge, and the inner side has patterns that echo the headphone grille.
Fit
The headband does not have fixed adjustments but precisely adapts to the user’s head. The ear cups fit snugly, yet there is no feeling of excessive pressure—the manufacturer has found a balance between comfort and isolation. Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE weighs only 418 grams and is almost unnoticeable on the head, which is very unusual for premium full-size headphones—sometimes it feels like manufacturers sell headphones by weight, thinking that the heavier they are, the better the quality. Currently, EXPANSE is one of the lightest in its class.
The ear pads are made of synthetic leather and cover a fairly large area of the head, extending down to the chin line. It seems that Dan Clark wanted to create an isolated mini-atmosphere filled with sound in his headphones. He succeeded. It’s worth noting that despite the open-back design, external sounds barely penetrate this atmosphere.
Construction
Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE is packed with technology. We’ll highlight just two of its key features:
Driver: The sound is delivered by a fourth-generation planar magnetic driver (the same used in the Stealth model)—currently the brand’s largest driver (76mm x 51mm), yet it’s 20% lighter than its predecessor found in the ETHER 2 and ETHER C Flow models. According to the brand, the EXPANSE driver delivers an incredibly low distortion level, comparable to electrostatic drivers (less than 0.03%). The manufacturer has also achieved precise sound matching between the drivers in the right and left ear cups. The challenge in manufacturing planar magnetic drivers lies in the precise tensioning of the large diaphragm. Dan Clark Audio has excelled in this and continues to improve the tensioning accuracy with each new pair of headphones. The EXPANSE has relatively low sensitivity—about 87 dB—making them not the most accommodating with low-power devices.
AMTS (Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning System): This patented system works in tandem with the driver. AMTS is placed between the driver and the listener’s ear. It’s a system of waveguides, a Helmholtz resonator, a diffusion regulator, and a quarter-wave resonator, all in one compact unit. The purpose of AMTS is to combat standing waves and high-frequency resonances to achieve natural and open-sounding vocals and musical instruments. Computational fluid dynamics, commonly used in aircraft engine design, was employed in tuning the driver and AMTS. This approach allows for precise control of sound wave propagation, avoiding audible resonances and creating a transparent and detailed sound in the EXPANSE.
Sound
For testing the Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE, we used three desktop amplifiers: Violectric DHA V590 MK2 PRO, Auris Nirvana IV, and Matrix Audio element M2. This allowed us to identify consistent patterns in the headphones' sound, independent of the specific amplifier. Over several hours of listening, we experienced a rollercoaster of emotions.
Soundstage
In our opinion, EXPANSE creates the most realistic soundstage in both depth and sound image positioning. Of course, the open design contributes to this, but for some reason, most similar headphones don’t offer this level of immersion.
When you play John Campbell’s "Down in the Hole," you’re immediately struck by how the soundscape builds around the initial bass theme, with a hoarse, smoky vocal. There’s an interesting effect in the recording—like small beads scattering on glass. This moment is so expansive across channels that the EXPANSE makes you feel like you’re standing under this “rain.” There’s no fenced-off area with sounds—there’s a perspective you can delve into as far as your hearing and the file resolution allow.
Low Frequencies
Achieving quick and well-defined bass in open-back headphones can be challenging, but EXPANSE nails it. When you crank up the volume on the Violectric DHA V590 MK2 PRO, you can feel the headphones start to breathe—the driver reveals details that other headphones would have missed.
We played "Goodbye" by Feder feat. Lyse, a track initially buried in the low-frequency range, “broadcasting” from there. When listening with closed-back headphones or certain speaker systems, you can hear how the low frequencies spill out of their range, “drowning” the vocals and the rest of the mix. The drivers have to move a lot of air and somehow dissipate it—you can hear the mid-bass struggling because of this. Dan Clark says that if the recording is bad, they’re not magicians who can fix it, but the EXPANSE manages to pull it off! There’s a clear sense that nothing is holding the driver back—it processes this track effortlessly. The lightweight diaphragm creates the quick attack and decay needed for bass-heavy tracks.
Midrange
The headphones deliver the midrange in a very tactile and delicate manner. EXPANSE highlights the character of the amplifier and source rather than its own. The tube Auris Nirvana MK4, paired with the headphones, showcased the virtuoso performance of The Yuri Honing Trio in the track "Walking on the Moon." The composition is not overly complex in tempo, but it contains many subtle acoustic elements, such as harmonics on the double bass, rimshots on the drums, and a bright solo saxophone. The headphones conveyed the mood of the track gently, but the soundscape did not lose focus.
The sound of Terry Evans in "Get Your Lies Straight" on his semi-acoustic guitar was particularly striking. The complexity of this blues lies in making a soft-sounding instrument play with a driven effect, a phaser (apparently), and using a slide—a heady mix that the headphones delivered superbly.
High Frequencies
The EXPANSE offers both detailed and pleasant high-frequency sound—a combination not often found together. Judging by the specs, the headphones don’t have much extension in the upper range (capped at 20 kHz), but they give the impression of very open highs. In "Samira" by the French group Acid Arab (feat. Fred Avril & Shadi Khries), samples, synthesizers, Middle Eastern rhythms, and ethnic chants are stunningly combined. In the middle of the track, the overall mix quiets down, leaving the listener alone with a female voice and a bit of percussion—EXPANSE handles this dynamic transition magnificently, with the “crisp” highs only adding to the track’s energy before it erupts again!
The model has an interesting feature: the high frequencies can be either sparkling or rounded, depending on the amplification. Those who enjoy a "surgical" and analytical sound will appreciate the pairing with Matrix Audio element M2. We sent the 24-bit/192 kHz track "Blackbird" by the recently departed Jeff Beck to the DAC/amp and were in for a shock—we were hearing not an electric guitar, but a bird chirping! The headphones' incredible microdynamics help bring the guitarist's intent closer to the listener.
High End headphones:
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather, microfiber
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: synthetic leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Earpads material: leather
Headphone type: wired
Kind of headphones: over-ear
Headset type: stereo
Brand: Dan Clark Audio
Headphone type: wired
Headset type: stereo
Brand: Dan Clark Audio
Headphone type: wired
Verdict
Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE is a pair of headphones capable of creating a musical world for the individual listener. They make you want to revisit your entire music library to uncover details that might have previously escaped your notice. Although EXPANSE is "homebound" due to its open nature, you can still take them on trips. The design and accessories provide everything you need; just ensure you have some privacy and quality amplification. We envy those who will listen to this model for the first time—it’s capable of making you fall in love with its sound, comfort, and ergonomics. If you have any preconceived notions about the “clumsiness” of full-sized headphones, Dan Clark Audio EXPANSE will shatter them.
