[TaronL]

DMS Project Omega Headphones​

Some of you may have seen these headphones floating around various CanJams and others who are already following DMS may have been following along on his journey into making Project Omega. And finally, after several years of re-iteration and fine-tuning, Project Omega is finally here!

10% Early Bird Savings for those that pre-order as part of the first batch. Initial run will take an estimated 3-4 months to build and ship.

Grab a pair here https://headphones.com/products/dms-omega-headphones

Watch DMS' video for Project Omega here

From The Creator Himself, DMS​

"This headphone is my love letter to audio. I’m making these in small numbers and ONLY for 1 year. The price is entirely based on the cost of production/customer service/fulfillment. The profit margin is notably lower than industry standard and is just enough to be sustainable.

I will be sending this to lots of other reviewers and on tours in some discord groups. If you want to know how it sounds, take anyone else’s opinion instead of mine. I want the product to speak for itself but I also want feedback. This is a headphone that I designed based on all the things I wish a headphone had, but that still doesn’t mean everyone will like it (and that’s okay). Btw the name “project omega” is after a megaman-zero boss fight (Omega Zero) I played a bunch growing up on the gameboy advance. That boss kicked my ass and I really loved that game so it’s also a nod to my nostalgia.

The cups are a hollow structure made via nylon sintering. I used this process for 2 reasons. 1 is low weight. I don’t think premium headphones should be heavy. I actually think they should be as light as possible. 2 SLS is the only method that would allow me to get the internal structure in one-piece, and the internal structure is critical to the tuning. Another massive focus was durability.

I put a lot of effort into the sound here. I selected this driver for several reasons. The first is consistency. This is an established driver that I can get reliably. The 2nd is Fs. I used this dynamic driver so I could more naturally elevate the low-end without warming up the midrange too much (this can be further measurably elevated with either an impedance adapter or an amp with higher output impedance like a tube). As an example on the darkvoice you get about 4db more sub-bass.

As a short note I don’t really care for high-end headphones being jewelry. Some people will like the look and some will hate it. I’m okay with that.

This is not a collab. This is a ground-up product of my own design assembled my hand.

As a reviewer this raises some questions. So here’s my plan. If you have more questions I’m happy to answer them.

I’m making a video about the product for launch day. Other than that I will not be comparing my headphone to anything else in any reviews. I still love the hobby and have no plans to earn a living as a manufacturer. I also still highly recommend many products in competing price ranges.

I will only sell the headphone for 1 year. After that I will open-source the design. It’s pretty hard to make at home but anyone can do whatever they wish with the design. You’ll need an SLS machine, C02 laser, CNC, and lathe for several components if you plan to make it at home.

My hope is that after 1 year I’ll learn a lot from this project. Sure I hope it’s profitable but I also hope this gives me a lot more insight manufacturing and the other side of the industry. I know some people will think its silly, but I think this project will help me to be a better reviewer in the long run with a greater understanding of how the industry works.

That said, I hope you all get a chance to hear the headphone and feel how light I was able to make it! I’m also ready for the harsh feedback (just like I’ve been dishing out for years). This is going to be a fun year. Happy listening."

And now a measurement dump (thanks to @listenerwww for putting these together)

4128 Raw Measurements with Preference Bounds​

DMS Project Omega RAW FR on 4128



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DMS Project Omega Raw FR compared to Sennheiser HD 650




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DMS Project Omega Raw FR compared to Hifiman Edition XS


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DMS Project Omega Raw FR compared to Meze Audio 109 Pro


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DMS Project Omega Raw FR compared to Audeze MM-500


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4128 Diffuse Field Calibrated Measurements​

DMS Project Omega compared to Sennheiser HD 650 DF Calibrated


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DMS Project Omega compared to Hifiman Edition XS DF Calibrated


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DMS Project Omega compared to Meze Audio 109 Pro DF Calibrated


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DMS Project Omega compared to Audeze MM-500 DF Calibrated


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https://global.discourse-cdn.com/bu.../ca532c01bc6b6dded325635c50ab12f749c029be.png

https://global.discourse-cdn.com/bu.../ca532c01bc6b6dded325635c50ab12f749c029be.png
Pre-Order a pair of DMS Project Omega today and save 10%

As always if you have any questions or concerns you can reach out to us at info@headphones.com or hop in our live chat and myself, Alan, April or Sam will be happy to help!

 

[skhan007]

Interesting!!

 

[Hyde00]

Not a fan of how it physically look on the head, but measurement look pretty promising.

Curious how it actually sounds in real life.

 

[trellus]

Oh MY, that is literally the ugliest headphone I've ever seen.

But I'd still love if it sounds great!

EDIT: Why couldn't they at least have NOT made that part red? Just awful...
EDIT 2: But they do look super-comfortable.

 

[Rextilleon]

They are offering pre-orders and it will take a couple of months. This is a limited production run. Not sure why they are pushing the product this way. Most people want to hear something before buying.

 

[TaronL]

They are offering pre-orders and it will take a couple of months. This is a limited production run. Not sure why they are pushing the product this way. Most people want to hear something before buying.

The headphones are made to order by DMS. It’s entirely bootstrapped by himself, sold through Headphones.com.

There are about 20 pairs out there that DMS has sold personally to his patreons and people at CanJam SoCal had the opportunity to listen to them.

 

[4udio7ool]

Most people want to hear something before buying.

Agreed. Luckily I briefly heard a pre-production model at CanJam SoCal 2023 and was impressed. In the video DMS mentions that they will be at this year's CanJam SoCal and Dallas.

There are many things I like about this project and the product: it is designed to be durable and fixable yet lightweight and comfortable, it measures well, a FR measurement of each unit is included. So I decided to take a chance and pre-ordered one.

 

[Andrew DiMarcangelo]

This is a pretty incredible accomplishment. Major kudos, DMS! I remember being quite impressed by the unit I heard in SoCal.

 

[XERO1]

I got a quick listen to the prototype that was at CanJam SoCal 2023 and I thought it sounded really smooth and enjoyable and it also had a nice low-end for an open-back. They definitely were not the most resolving headphones I've ever heard, but they had zero harshness, and I thought that they'd make a great choice for someone who likes to listen at louder than average levels (like me! ). You could really crank 'em and the treble wouldn't turn into icepicks at high SPLs. In the video, DMS describes the sound goal he was going for with the Omega as a 'HD 6XX with more bass and treble extension' and that's pretty much exactly how I would describe what I heard.

Plus, Doug is a super nice dude! I wish him all the best with his new baby. I'll most likely be ordering a pair later this year!

 

[M3NTAL]

Not a fan of the jack connection at the earcup. I just posted the same thing in another thread. Why aren't the jacks recessed and angled more forward?

I hope this is fruitful for you DMS and I hope to hear them. I always enjoy supporting the community.

 

[Gnarled]

Not a fan of the jack connection at the earcup. I just posted the same thing in another thread. Why aren't the jacks recessed and angled more forward?

I hope this is fruitful for you DMS and I hope to hear them. I always enjoy supporting the community.

I can't speak for the recess, but the entire cup is angled forward as opposed to the jack, but both cups are symmetrical (thus the straight-down jack) for manufacturing ease, and I suppose cost by extension.

 

[trellus]

@TaronL FYI, tapping the last picture of the headphone being modeled does not bring up that picture but the comparison graph to MM-500 -- link might be wrong?

 

[TaronL]

@TaronL FYI, tapping the last picture of the headphone being modeled does not bring up that picture but the comparison graph to MM-500 -- link might be wrong?

Ahh it was 6am when I was putting it together while packing for my flight to Axpona. Thanks for catching! It has been fixed!

 

[cheesiepoof]

I am pretty excited for this. The graphs seem pretty promising but interesting to see how they sound. I have always enjoyed DMS videos and reviews since his preference for sound is similar to mine.
I do not hate the design, the pictures on headphones.com seem over saturated making the red really pop. It is nice that in the future there will be mod/designs for a suspension band.
I would rather have a choice in the termination cable, rather than be stuck with a 6.35mm jack. But none the less, congratulations on the headphone!

 

[TsukiGermany]

The headphones are made to order by DMS. It’s entirely bootstrapped by himself, sold through Headphones.com.

There are about 20 pairs out there that DMS has sold personally to his patreons and people at CanJam SoCal had the opportunity to listen to them.

Hey there! Will it be at High End Munich too?