recstar24
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Posts posted by recstar24
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There are two buttons at the top of the page next to the "LOGOUT" button that should allow you to toggle both the left and right supplemental columns and allow for a wider message pane. I run with both sidebars shut off so that I get maximum thread space.
OT - thanks Nate for that. I thought maybe my comp was messed up.
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He doesn't own one of the prototypes, though he did hear both prototype pairs well before they were introduced at the national meet. If I recall correctly he preferred both prototypes to the final version.
Thanks for clarifying that. So we have no idea which GS1000 he is referring to, his current new one or the previous prototypes that he has.
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All the gs1000 love ruined the review for me. I disagree on almost all his gs1k comments really.
Biggie.
Maybe Zanth can chime in but I believe he owns the original gs1000 prototype (or one of them). If you believe that the proto sounds different from the production as others have reported, that may be the reason.
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There have been enough comparisons from enough reputable people out there that have compared the vintage rs-1's to new stock and the conclusions have all been pretty similar. Warm full bodied sound, no glare, no harshness, very smooth throughout. New stock has a glare and harshness that is simply not present on the vintage stock. My rule of thumb for myself is when I can listen to them with bowls and not become deaf from the shrill highs, and get some of the deepest fullest bass with bowls, then there is something going on. My sonic impressions have almost always coincided with Mulveling's (Mike) and they do with the vintage vs. current stock rs-1's. I believe Ian in his post from the NYC meet is pretty similar to our impressions as well.
Now if that difference is worth about 16-1700 bux, can't help you there. At that pricepoint I would just get the HP1000. But if your comparing a $650-$700 vintage rs-1 set vs. a $1500 HP1000, then the cost/value ration is heavily favored to the vintage rs-1 IMHO.
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Billie Holiday didn't have much more than an octave range.
Did you just compare Billie to Rihanna?
Get out.
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I bet those tapes sound utterly fantastic - the selection will definitely always be limited though. I mean if Steve Hoffman has a hard time finding classic titles to remaster because of greedy music business suits than I am sure these guys will have some big obstacles to get the real good classic stuff.
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Is there anything beneficial about the magic eye tubes or is it purely a cosmetic light show? I tried to open up the pdf on mapletree's website that goes into detail about the circuit and design, but it doesn't pop up anymore. Nate if you don't mind chiming in I would like to get your thoughts specifically on the circuit design if you are aware of it. I believe its a parafeed transformer coupling with the tubes operated in a cathode follower configuration, any more details would be great.
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The Ear+ Purist HD is really the only one that I'd recommend buying. The newer versions all don't sit well with me from a design standpoint and the + Purist has received enough universal acclaim that I think you'd be able to flip it effectively. But heck, if you've got a EC/SS loaner it seems like a moot point unless the loan won't bridge the whole gap.
Thanks Nate - I really trust your opinion on these things for sure. I will look into an Ear+ Purist HD, hopefully used, and what the heck I will snag it up, I've always wanted to hear it anyways, and I am sure I can unload it later.
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Ryan,
Have you ever heard a Mapletree Ear? That amp might fit into a similar price range (especially used) and has been reported to sound good by many people. I can only comment on the modified Ear that I heard, which sounded fantastic.
I have not heard one, but have read a lot of favorable impressions with grados. My issue is that there are so many different models and it seems like they are constantly revamping their line. So if I were to pick up something used, I might not be able to recoup a big chunk of my costs, which is key because I will be upgrading shortly after. Though that new super HD with increased power output seems really intriguing.
A local headfier is letting me borrow his EC/SS for a bit, the latest version, which should definitely tide me over.
As for the singlepower, I am sure if I ordered a custom made one it could get here like tomorrow. Yes.
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i can't help you on the Woo front (i've never heard one of his amps), but what exactly is wrong with the red top/hat?
Basically one of the wires that is hooked up from the channel to the pot broke off during shipping, and when I turned it on, it must have fried the whole side of power supply transistors (according to craig). Also there was a rattling sound inside, a heatsink from one of the power supply transistors had broken off. I am sure Craig could possibly fix it, but I also know he's busy and has a lot of stuff going on, so probably figured just refund my money which is totally cool by me.
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If I was in your shoes I'd be looking on the used market not new. If you're pretty sure that you're going to end up with a different amp anyway then why shell out full price and take a hit later? You'd stand a much better chance of at least coming close to breaking even with used gear. And heck, there's a used '6' for sale on HF right now for under $500 and includes some tubes for rolling.
Thanks Nate - and yes I was assuming going used because I would need to turn it around quickly and for minimal loss when I eventually get the amp that I want to get. I will check out one for sale right now.
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Well, I had to send in the red hat proto to craig to fix. Unfortunately, it is deemed "unfixable" and Craig refunded back my money. So I'm ampless. I will probably end up getting the balance discrete he is coming out with, but he gave me a time frame of late January. Knowing craig it will probably be a couple of months after.
So in looking for somewhat affordable options that I can use now and sell later when its time to get the balancing act from EC, i thought of woo audio. Affordable and KG has had nice things to say. The woo audio 6 is a transformer coupled amp that uses the 6DE7 tubes for driver/power and a 5ar4 for tube rectification. The only question would be how good those tubes are and how good can those transformers be for a $570 amp.
Any impressions from my fellow head-casers? Random thought - I didn't even bother posting this on head-fi, as I trust the opinions of those here much more than the general mass public on head-fi.
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nice...did you get a deal on them cos the latest on head-fi went more than $1500
Yes I got them for a very fair price, tyrion's offer is right around the ballpark where I would value them (or at least that is what I sold my last set to JP nums for). I highly doubt someone really offered him that much for RS-1's even if they are vintage set. He is either saying that because he wants people to pay more, or he is giving false information, like saying they have the HP1000 drivers or something (yes that rumor is circulating around and I have had to debunk a couple of newbs from spreading that).
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is the Eddie Current Red Hat proto the balanced or single ended version?
i emailed Craig a little while ago, inquiring if the fully discrete SE version would become available, and due to a number of unfortunate circumstances, he said it was being pulled in favor of the $1000 more expensive balanced version.
That is correct - he simply does not see the SE version of the red hat/top making business sense. There really hasn't been a lot of interest and its really a big endeavor to take on something new when you are really unsure if it is going to sell or not. However he feels the balanced will attract more attention, as the price will be around 1500 or so, and compared to the 3000 apache it should be a no brainer.
The proto that as of right now is mine is still being looked at and hopefully can be repaired. As it is the only SE version that will ever come out. I will probably end up with the balanced version anyways so no biggie.
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I'd love to get a vintage set at some point which is why I PM'ed him, but at that price, I'd save a bit more money and get a PS-1.
I would agree - even though there is something really special about the vintage RS-1 sound that I almost prefer it over the PS-1. My set the bass on bowls is absolutely amazing, its full and goes really deep and you can hear it resonate, and the highs are so smooth. There is absolutely no glare up top whatsoever. The current RS-1's with bowls I just want to kill myself. harsh, grainy, ugh.
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There is a vintage RS-1 on head-fi right now, but the guy wants $1750 for it! Craaazy.
Ah...the one he picked up on audiogon for $475. I love this country. I think I would rather pick up some PS-1's or HP1000's or even save up a little more and go with L3000's. I do love my vintage set but there are other cans for sure.
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*and for anybody who might be interested, the person auctioning the one on eBay is also auctioning a pair of RS-1s. The picture of the HPA-1 shows a pair of RS-1s with the brown leather headband beside them, so i assume it is this same vintage set being sold.
The guy is a headfier - I believe his username is Wil, something like that. He has two sets - he is keeping the vintage, selling off his new stock. If you search headfi you will see his posts in regards to his particular vintage set.
My interest has been piqued as well by the HPA1. Supposedly the same circuit as the RA1 (or the RA1 is the same circuit as the HPA1 if your into semantics), but with better parts. Hirsch has commented I think on headfi in the past that the HPA1 is considerably smoother with less grain than the RA1. A lot of users have felt the amps are good with grados, but lack the bass punch of solidity of other amps.
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You know, the black box made me think. The others boxes (the brown ones) that I have seen say "Grado Reference Series Cartridges" on them, not "headphones".
Hmmm...I have seen those two, my last vintage RS1 set the box was the normal brown and said headphones on it. The clasping mechanism though on this current black one is a very nice tight locking one, my last one not so much.
Yup Rhydon got them from audiofiler, nice person to deal with. Unfortunately do not have the hp's anymore, when my finances settle in the future, might look to getting another set, and hopefully the prices will have settled a bit as well.
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do you think that box was painted by an owner? i've never seen a black Grado box.
The seller tells me that is how he received it. I have seen the black box before, from posts, I remember reading the 1st 100 were with the black box, which also had the gold L/R lettering. Looking at the box it definitely looks like it has been painted, certain parts that have chipped it really looks like its some kind of nice lacquer or something that is thick
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get flats anyway.
nice looking pair. what gear are you pairing them with? didn't you have a big sell off...? Oh don't worry I do have flats, never leave home without them
Basically, I took my expensive "hi end" rig and downgraded to a cheaper "mid fi" version. Meridian 508.24, Eddie Current Red Hat proto, vintage RS-1's. Plain and simple. Simply could not justify keeping the G08 around knowing the 508 is really close but with bigger bolder bass. Loved the HP1000's, but again just can't afford to have that kind of luxury. The rig that I have now is less than half the price of my last rig but as musically involving and more financially responsible for me.
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Pick these up from a fine gent from head-fi. I had a similar set previously that I had to sell to raise some emergency funds. I felt guilty as soon as I did, and luckily was able to find another set. This pair is different, one being the black grado wooden box, and the slightly gold lettering on the L and R (the picture does a bad job of showing it). The cups are absolutely beautiful, and the font is really classy looking. Sound, for some reason these babies sound not only tolerable, but really nice with bowls. I could never listen to the bowls with RS-1's even my last vintage set, but these with bowls they still have great bass with nice smooth highs, and absolutely no harshness or glare up top. Take this with a grain of salt, my amp is being repaired at the moment and am forced to plug these into a receiver that i have lying around. Should get it next week, but am definitely enjoying the sound as is.
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I don't think I saw coldplay anywhere here. It would help if they actually knew how to play their instruments, but their songs are very simplistic, my 7th grade students can write better songs, and the lyrics to me are really corny. A watered down U2 in my book.
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The music I like is generally rooted in pop but with long instrumental sections and improvisation. Not exactly prog rock per se. I'm also a sucker for beautiful vocal harmonies and I love both pastoral and spacey epics. I tend to use a lot of layering and tracking and love the dissonant counterpoint used by bands such as Gentle Giant.
Neil
Are you familiar with Todd Rundgren? That description sounds exactly what Todd is all about. One of his major influences was the Beach Boys, for the vocal harmonies and layering, as well as the overall Brian Wilson composition aesthetic.
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You would need the speakers because 16 hz is sub-bass and headphones cannot get the resonance properly for you to hear it (save select ones that have mucho mucho bass).
That is where the rump is. In capturing the true power and dynamics and weight of a "live" performance, headphones, IMO, simply can't touch speakers. You have to be able to actually move air to get that visceral response. Headphones really don't have it in comparison. I do love the bass on really nice headphone set-ups, it is very tight, detailed, and does go quite low, a very linear sound, but it doesn't have the ooomph behind it.
Overall, just because there is not a lot of musical material down there, doesn't mean that it is not important for a system to be able to capture those tones. Speaker rig 40 hz should be just fine, but if you can get in the mid 20's, your good. I've heard headphone rigs that went down to a clean mid 20's just fine, but again it lacks the power and drive when you hear it on a speaker rig.
nice looking pair. what gear are you pairing them with? didn't you have a big sell off...? 
Ahhhh...Vintage RS-1's
in Headphones
Posted
Agree. Bowls were created because some of the reviews criticized the sound saying it sounded congested and muddy and too narrow. Basically reviewers who didn't really know what headphones could sound like with decent amplification. Rs1's with flats and good amplifcation sounds open, with nice depth to the soundstage. Its still a grado but the out of head experience is more evident on a good amp.