TheSloth

I know almost nothing about capacitors, but have it on fairly good authority that the frequency correction network on my old ESL63's uses an old Electrolytic-type capacitor which is not particularly good for this function, and should be replaced with a Polypropylene version at the same capacitance (220uF). Excepting the vast difference in size between these two types, what brands am I looking for? This cap is in the signal path, so quality is of the utmost importance. Voltage rating shouldn't be lower than 250V. It doesn't necessarily have to be a single 220uF cap - two 100uF caps will do the trick, and might be easier to place in the housing. Thanks for your help guys! Pic of offending cap:

QUAD's aint like anything in the electrostatic headphone world, save perhaps the HE90. The 989's could work for you, but that's going to be room and volume dependent. If you think 90dB or lower is a 'good' listening level, and are happy with -6dB at about 35hz, you'll get incredible performance out of them. If you have the room for them, the dipole nature will also work more happily with room nodes down there, giving you cleaner and tighter bass response. Irrespective of whether you decide they are right for you, I think that hearing a pair of newer (I say newer to refer to the 9xx onwards simply due to the somewhat finnicky nature of earlier models (he says, having just had to do some repair work on his 63's...)) QUAD's is an experience every 'audiophile' should have at some point. Edit: p.s. the bass you get out of QUAD's is a factor of how far or close you listen. They interact less with the room in that department, so it's less a factor of room size. For example, the old 63's are -6dB at 45hz at 3M, but -6 at 32hz at 1M.

For the Aleph you might want to consider something full range, like the Omega Max Hemp or Omega Revolution for example.

Nice to see that the 580's are coming down to the price I bought mine for 7 years ago in the UK! www.empiredirect.co.uk used to carry things like that, and had the 580's for ?67. Back then, I knew nothing about headphones and amplifiers, and just went with what was recommended to me. I've been through most of the headphones available, and my reference since I bought it is still the 650, so I guess that was some pretty darn good advice!

I always suspected that these power tweaks often have more noticeable effects in speaker rigs due to the much higher current levels involved. When fiddling with power cables, the only place in my ex-system that I ever found an audible difference was with my powered monitors which drew up to 200W each.

As long as you aren't running any equipment that needs a ground reference in its electrical circuit (most things don't, but my electrostatic speakers for example do), no need to bother.

No feedback - stay away at this point. The only time I got scammed (got the money back from PayPal luckily) on Ebay was in a similar situation (except the guy had feedback - account hijacking in that case) where I lost the auction and then received a second chance offer. Ebay has a silly unlimited second chance offer possibility, where you can send second chance offers to all the bidders on an item, even when it's far to early to know the winner isn't going to pay.

I'm assuming that those sheets of copper would break if they got bent around a great deal? What's the principle involved - they seem to be trying to use as little conductor as possible.

Are you sure it's that way round? Wouldn't the thicker wire be the signal wire?

Are we talking about the same thing with 'shielding'? I thought basically all interconnects were sheidled to avoid RF and EMI problems that can be relevant in such high impedance circuits?

Am I right in thinking that the IC's are unshielded, based on their description and appearance of being identical to the speaker cables with a higher gauge wire?

I think the Blue Jeans LC1 cable is very good, considering the price and the money back guarantee, I think it's worth trying before you go for something more exotic.

It highlights a very important problem that poor unsuspecting porn stars experience - razor burn shown up by the camera. Perhaps there should be a charity to help alleviate their suffering? Or perhaps they should be slightly less zealous with their use in the first place. Maybe I'm the only person who doesn't think women make themselves sexier by attempting to look pre-pubescent.

I think the iMod is excellent - I use mine as a home source, for simplicity and convenience. All my music is computer based in ALAC, and I don't want to be tied to turning on the computer to listen to music. There is no high SQ alterative to the iMod at the total cost $400 pricepoint that allows you to dispense with the computer, so I think it does have a unique market. Not only that, but as my iMod isn't being used as an iPod per se anymore, I won't be replacing it with a 'newer' iPod. I do intend to replace the internal hard drive with a 120G drive when they become available within the next few months. That will be another $200, but to get a 120G all in one source of high output quality, small size and not be tethered to the horrific AC in my apartment for $600 is still a very nice deal. It's also really nice to be able to take it from room to room - I have my main rig, and a bedside headphone system, and I enjoy the ability to switch so easily without having to double up on sources. Regarding the comment 'it's still an iPod', that's true and then again it isn't. There is nothing to suggest that the digital pathways in the iPod are in any way bad, and indeed the fact that there is no S/PDIF going on anywhere in it isn't a bad thing at all. The DAC chip itself is well regarded. In taking the line output directly from the DAC, the entire iPod analogue stage is bypassed. I think it's fair to assume that the majority of what is wrong with the iPod from a SQ point of view is what happens to the signal after the DAC, not before it. The iMod has a very low noise floor as well, particularly running off its internal battery. For an iPod iPod, I still have an old 3G 20G model that does me just fine for travelling...

They seem to also have changed the bass driver in the 22L2, though that simply looks like the removal of the tapered phase plug which I suppose doesn't contribute anything useful at those frequencies (and might contribute something unwanted).

Yeah, I saw that a few weeks ago. Interestingly, the active series is based on the original L design. I would have liked to see something new there, i.e. basing it on the L2 series. It looks fairly similar, but reading the white paper there are some worthwhile design changes, both in the cabinet design and the driver specs in the new L series. What I did discover that I didn't know previously is that the amplifier sections of the active models use the current dumping topology, which I didn't expect at such a low pricepoint. I see no mention of the new L's in the USA however...

Oh, that's right, it is Cardas Headphone cable, with the only difference being the thinner outer jacket and the colour. Anyone for Bozeman care to confirm?

Well I'm not into portable amps and suchlike, but my current source which I just love for convenience, size and SQ is a 60G iPod Photo with the iMod modification. Even from a home source perspective, to get this thing for a total expenditure of $400 is just amazing.

As far as I am aware, HeadRoom fat pipe is Cardas Headphone Cable without (or with a thinner) shield and with thinner black outer jacket. I had a pair of 880's (old style) rewired with it for a while and it was very nice cable, physically and in terms of microphonics. Can't comment sonically as I never owned a stock 880.

And here it is: http://www.headphone.com/products/headphone-amps/the-desktop-line/headroom-desktop-balanced-amp.php

Can you elaborate on the sound sig. or have you done so elsewhere? I'm most curious. Which stats are they most similar to, tonally?

I agree with everyone so far about not needing an amp. I've also had amps in my portable setup and really don't feel like I'm missing out with my Ety's straight out of an iPod.

http://www.etymotic.com/ephp/er88.aspx That looks really uncomfortable to me, but it's a nice idea.

The ER4's are microphonic, but the little shirt clip does actually do its job if you clip it in just the right place.

Well you have picked out probably the best 2 in that price range. I find the 4p to be great value, partly due to the great sound but also because you can convert them to the 4s with a simple cable which gives a very flat frequency response (but not so suited to weak players and noisy environments, where you'd want more bass and less treble). I heard the 4c's for a brief time and thought they were very good as well, but the 4p/s combo is still the one to beat for my ears.