Jump to content

nnotis

Returning Member
  • Posts

    129
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by nnotis

  1. I've been absolutely loving the Ether Cs since I got them in March. I'm still amazed that closed headphones can be this articulate. The fact that I can take them with me to work only sweetens the deal. My only complaint is that without EQ, the bass is lean and that 10Khz resonance is a little too hot. If the 'flow' improves frequency response while adding a little more resolution to boot, I'll be happy to pay Dan a bundle of money to mod mine.
  2. I just got one of these. The comments about depicting spacial information are right on. I've never before heard a portable manage this level of resolution. I'm surprised to read some of you like to use it with HD800s. It seems crazy to drive them from a portable, but I haven't heard the pairing. I did try it with LCDXs though, which worked surprisingly well. Unfortunately for me, giving the Mojo enough gain for HD800s means an audible noise floor when using Roxannes. But at $600, it's otherwise good enough to recommend anyway. I've got a resistor and custom Onkyo Player EQ setting to neutralize the frequency response, which otherwise gets messed up by the resistor.
  3. Does anyone have additional thoughts on the 007 vs the 009? In the past, I've seen Spritzer agree with Bob's assessment. Having recently heard the 009s, I would hardly describe them as so unbalanced though. They seemed well within the nebulous range of neutral while powered by the demo Blue Hawaii.
  4. Unlike a lot of people, I was extremely wowed by the HE1000s. Iron Dreamer brought the full monte of Head-Amp stuff to Seattle today. I'd have to spend a lot of quiet time with HEKs and SR-009s to pick a favorite. They both seem to operate on a level beyond anything else I've heard. I felt Audeze caliber impact from the HEKs, which I wasn't expecting. Even out of my underpowered Lyra 2 headphone amp, they were huge and extremely articulate. Bass detail was without equal. Listening to one of my mixes, they picked apart separate bass and sub bass tracks better than I've heard from any headphones. It was great to meet Peter in person too. Finally, an ergonomic point: I read the HE1000s were set too large for all but the biggest heads. They must have adjusted, or the claims were exaggerated. I found them extremely comfortable on my skinny little head.
  5. I wonder if Edwood and Iron Dreamer tried them out on an amp other than the EF-1000? Could it account for the extremely different impressions?
  6. Thanks for the feedback Edwood. It sounds like you came to the same conclusion as Iron Dreamer then. The HE1000s do everything Stax does well, but better. And they still offers some of that planar impact too. I love living in the future.
  7. I'm glad they're owning up to the issues caused by that cable. I've got the old plastic ones too, so I expect they'll eventually break. Larry, I'm sorry to learn you got beat up from an accident. I hope you recover fully soon.
  8. I'm glad they made the bass dials more useful. The first thing I did when I got the Roxannes was turn them all the way down. There they have since been and will remain. In that state, I'd hardly call the Roxanne bass boomy. It's more articulate than that of any other headphones I've had. But that excludes a LOT of the best. It's all relative. It seems like those seeking a neutral signature would do well to pay an extra couple hundred bucks over the JH13s and get the Angies. But based on what you said, I trust you still find one of the FitEar models sonicly superior?
  9. I put a lot of stock in what Iron Dreamer says about headphones, so I was pretty surprised by how well he found the HE-1000s compared to the SR-009s. Could Fang have achieved the impossible dream of outdoing Stax at what Stax does best? I hope to hear for myself at some point. Iron Dreamer, if you're out there lurking, do you have anything else to say about the HE-1000s? I think you've had more quiet time with them than just about anyone other than Fang.
  10. Laxx, how did you find the JH13s compared to the Angies during your home audition? Obviously, you liked the 13s more. Was it purely a matter of signature preference, or did you find the 13s technically more proficient?
  11. nnotis

    Oppo PM3

    I look forward to seeing how PM3s measure, especially compared to other closed full sized cans. Rob, how do you hear the PM3 signature compared to the Roxannes? Obviously, the soundstage will be bigger.
  12. I also find they bring an extra layer of focus over the 13s. Imaging in every axis is much sharper. But you're right. Everyone hears differently. And maybe I'm just exaggerating the difference to justify blowing $1600 last year. I do notice two distinct camps of people on head-fi though. Some people think the Roxannes are way too dark at first. Others initially find them too sibilant. I haven't seen such a dichotomy of signature impressions. I don't know what it means, but I was definitely in the sibilant camp.
  13. I haven't heard the freakphase 13s, but I find the Roxannes a lot more versatile than the 2009 13s. Roxannes don't roll off as much at the very top. And they're much more sensitive to sibilant highs. That sounds like a bad thing, but I'm paranoid about making sibilant recordings, so I appreciate that. And then there's the base detail...
  14. It's the A&K association that has me suspicious. Something about that company really trips my audiophile bullshit-o-meter. They seem to have mastered the time honored art of making nice looking things that cost WAY more money than their performance would otherwise merit. But if armature designers have recently made a big engineering jump, great. They'll be popping up in all of the high end IEMs soon. If big jumps in armature engineering keep happening every year for the next four, even better. Start saving now for the finest of 2019.
  15. Old topic I forgot to respond to earlier: It's been noted that the stock iOS music player provides too few volume steps. My work around for this is to use Neutron player. When you press a volume key, a little virtual dial pops up on the right of the screen that offers much more granular volume control. I'm still extremely impressed with the stock headphone jack on the 6+. I haven't yet heard any information in other portables that's missing from it. All you have to put up with is a more squished oval like soundstage. But the proportions are the same within the oval. Since no portable source I've heard is detailed enough to depict recording spaces with much clarity, this doesn't feel like a sacrifice.
  16. I got the clear Air Jacket for my 6+. It's the bast case I've yet found. http://www.powersupportintl.com/iPhone-6-and-6-plus-s/1885.htm?searching=Y&sort=13&cat=1885&show=60&page=1
  17. I don't hear any issue with treble extension. For me, the limitation is only in sense of depth. Instruments/noises in a mix sound a little more 2 dimensional compared to what the Pico DAC does. I think it's an issue of reproducing micro dynamics. There are a lot of tiny details buried in those small dynamic changes. You've got me curious about the M8 now. I see there's a mini M8 about to be released too, which would make more sense for those only looking to use IEMs. Hopefully it has the same DAC. Justin, I'm guessing you're getting a Snapdragon 805 Note 4. I've not been at all impressed by the audio of previous Snapdragon powered phones. But the Note 4 will surely have robust USB audio support. I imagine it'll work well with just about any portable USB DAC/Amp. And I was thinking the same thing regarding the number of volume control positions.
  18. Put those feet in a warm bath Justin, the Note 4 is awesome. I played with one briefly and was highly impressed. In basic mode, the screen is the best I've seen. It also didn't seem to have the choppiness Samsung's crappy Touchwiz usually brings. And if it does, there's always Cyanogenmod. iMessage is really nice, but even every Apple user should install Hangouts. I've yet to find a platform it doesn't work on. Any computer you log into Chrome with will give you messages as they come in. If you don't like Samsung's keyboard, I'd give the Swiftkey demo I try. And If you hate the fake leather back, it won't be long before someone sells replacements.
  19. I've had my 6+ for about 3 days now and I'm very impressed so far. I wasn't expecting the headphone jack to be so good with IEMs. It sounds slightly more focused than my mini 2, which makes it as good as most of my portable DAC/amps. like all other recent Apple devices, the noise floor is dead quite. I was contemplating a DX90, but there's not much point now.
  20. I've got an Optimus G Pro currently, which has an only slightly smaller body than the Note 2. My only concern with the extra height of the 6+ is in regards to pocketability. I found its thinness and rounded edges made for a very comfortable hold. But as others said, it might not be wise to leave it naked. Maybe there's a middle ground case that barely adds heft while offering just a touch of crash support. Edit: maybe something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Spigen%C2%AE-Premium-Lightweight-Absolutely-Bulkiness/dp/B00MEZ5H9S
  21. I haven't heard any of Prism's other stuff, so I can't compare. The Lyra is supposedly the same as the Orpheus with fewer channels and a more stable USB connection. It connects perfectly well to my iPad too, which is great as an uncompromised, but still somewhat transportable rig. I read a lot of threads comparing it to the Apogee Symphony and Lynx Hilo. I found a post by an Apogee fan showing waveform displays of the original source, then through the Apogee, then through the Lyra. He was posting it to show how much more accurate the Apogee was, but the Lyra looked closer to the original to me. Perhaps looking at waveforms is a bit subjective too. I found a lot of comparisons between the Lyra and Hilo. Some said the Hilo was closer to source. Some said the Lyra was. In the end, I decided to gamble on the Lyra on the hope that the extra $500 would give me quality mic pres too (Hilo doesn't have them). Thankfully, they are. I'd still love to hear a Hilo though, as I'm guessing it's a lateral move with a slightly different sound signature. I love its front panel LCD too. As far as the Lyra signature: Compared to the Lavry DA10, it makes a bigger, more dynamic, and more texturally detailed soundstage. It's easier to track imaging. Bass is more detailed, with more a sense of depth. Highs are more prominent on the DA10, but sound a little tizzy by comparison. The Lyra strangely manages to communicate when highs get too shrill or too loud while somehow not punishing my ears with sibilants. I always thought my Beta22 was a little bright. Maybe it was really the DA10. Now I wish I had my old K1000s back for a listen. Their frequency response might not be so ridiculously out of whack with this new source. I bet the Lyra would be a great HD800 and SR-009 source too. But who knows. Based on what I already said, it should be bad for rev 1 LCD-2s. But even they seem a little more open and clear now. It's like a magic wand for the Roxannes though. I hadn't previously realized how good these little CIEMs are. Before, I only had a hunch my sources were holding them back. And holy shit does the Lyra's amp have a low noise floor. I love not needing a portable amp sitting around for IEM use. I don't care much for how it drives LCD-2s, but that's compared to the Beta22 Dreadhead's friend made.
  22. I've been a long time big screen Android phone person. But having played with a 6+ in store, I'm sold. The build, screen, and camera quality are ridiculously good. The millions of bent phone posts are totally unsurprising. iPhone users have to relearn phone pocketing protocol now. I've seen countless people sticking iPhones in their back pockets over the years. The rest of us learned not to do that 4 years ago. The 6+ did well in drop tests, so I don't have doubts about its construction. At 950 bucks, it certainly isn't a value. But it's much less of a hassle to connect Apple stuff to external DACs. So the $200 dollar storage premium gets more millage than a $100 micro SD card would. And for those who just want to plug their IEMs into the headphone jack, Apple is the only company who gets noise floors low enough. Edit: After watching the bend tests, I do have some doubts about its durability. The Note 3 was almost unscathed by the same test.
  23. They're having a 15% off sale at Vintage King audio through September. No tax or shipping charge either. Sweet! I certainly don't see it for sale in too many places though. So I think we're talking about the same Prism. http://vintageking.com/index.php/catalog/product/view/id/7518/
  24. I made a big upgrade to my converters in the form of a Prism Lyra 2. It takes the Roxannes to another level. Compared to the Lavry DA10, the X, Y & Z axis are all much larger. Dynamics are better reproduced. And the whole sound is more detailed. Bass is bonkers good. The Lyra's headphone jack is also the most quiet I've yet heard. Listening volume is around ten percent, but even at 100, I can only barely hear a noise floor. Since it also has A to D and mic pre amps, if don't know it'll be of much interest to people here. Those looking to make digital versions of their analogue stuff should definitely check it out though.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.