HiWire

I dislike the design of the new RS-1s. If the MS-Pro go the same way, it's guaranteed that I'll never own a pair.

I am also interested in how the comparo turned out.

The HP-2 go pretty deep into the bass... a lot of headphone listeners keep trying to boost or mod their headphones for more bass, only to be disappointed. You can't get the impact of moving air or moving ground (like the drums in a marching band, for example) hitting your body through headphones. That's why headphones will always be a more cerebral listening experience than speakers, which are more visceral. The lack of dynamics probably has something to do with the playback medium. It's hard to convey the information from a full orchestra using the CD standard for example - it's just an approximation.

Meh. Let us know how it sounds when you get it. People are idiots.

I think the ultimate form of iPod setup would be to completely replace the DAC and amp section inside the iPod case. It would be the ultimate stealth mod, but requires manufacturing resources beyond most hobbyists' reach.

I'm more interested in the HeadCode. The Diablo looks like the penultimate iPod freak's wankbox

Is the Dynahi still considered to be at the flagship level of amps?

I'm glad you were able to compare some flagship CD players. Unfortunately, I think this category of equipment will only ever be a dream for me, like exotic sports cars - barring a sudden lottery win. Sadly, I'm now fascinated by the $250 Oppo universal player.

Welcome to the club. I'm also a fan of the F1 GTR. I'm interested to see how Gordon Murray's next cars turn out - I wasn't a fan of the Mercedes SLR.

I guess I won't be getting an MS-Pro any time soon.

I'm watching Roswell, Second Season and hopefully Layer Cake. Never Been Kissed sucked so very, very badly. I know...

They have a 3-way that is a little better looking. Absolute Sound reviewed them this month. I think Stereophile reviewed the Guarneri recently, too.

I'll probably go for the Saint-Saens and Schumann, at least. I'm building up a large collection of Living Stereo SACDs.

It has to sound high end. The rest is audiophile jewelry.

Cheap. Mine stuck and hasn't returned yet from warranty repair... it's been 7 months. Fit and finish were sub-par to begin with... the bezel was never straight and the second hand was also off by half a movement. Their mechanisms are bottom-of-the-bin, no better than any knock-off on the street corner. Get a real watch.

Sophie Milman

To respond to the OP - it's possible someday, but I'd rather be listening now. Also, I probably can't afford any more high-end cans.

Happy Birthday!

I think it's just logic or deep pockets... the person who is going to pay $2000 or more for an R10 is probably going to considering high-end amplification. There just isn't much reason to hook a KSC-75 up to some uber Singlepower, for example, other than curiosity... the headphone's limitations are far lower than the amp's. Also, the Stereophile article I was skimming, New Media Metrics, indicates that a large reserve of power is required to meet most speakers' requirements for sound. To quote: blah blah blah techie talk... "The power output per channel required to achieve this is 57W. To achieve 16dB above this?about the largest 2ms dynamic power requirement identified by my measurements?means the amplifier must be able to deliver 2.27kW, albeit only over this short time span, in order to prevent clipping." You can check out the rest on their website http://www.stereophile.com/features/404metrics/index.html. That's a lot of power... just scale that idea down for headphones: although there are differences in impedance and sensitivity, the same demand for instantaneous power is there.

Value for $$$... a lot of people have tin ears anyway

Rhydon and Kontai have experience with the MS-Pro... give them a shout

Sennheisers make my ears ring too, even at a low volume... I'm glad I crossed over to the other side.

Nope... I go to the symphony every couple of weeks (3 times in the next 2 weeks) and I don't obsess much about my equipment any more. Having a limited budget helps, too.

Koss - KSC75, Sportapro, PortaPro, etc. Alessandro MS-1 Grado (lower-end as it is priced in the USA) Sennheiser PX-100

The sins of the K701 are mainly of omission.