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spritzer

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Posts posted by spritzer

  2. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    That could be true with other amps, but with the ES-1...the lambda pro was sounding pretty amazing. I did talk to Hirsch last night and he also agreed that the Lambda pro sounds amazing with ES-1, even more so than the HE60.

    Amazing how exactly? It doesn't matter what I use to drive these phones, the character is always the same. From the SRM-Xh up to the BH and the HE60 smokes every one of the Lambdas, even my favorite open SR-Lambda.

  4. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    I screwed up the original post. lets try again. I have spent time with the 02/KGSS(dark and thin) and the 3030(Bright and edgy) system. Thought they were both bad. Whatare the good ones?

    The Lambda Pro's are the black sheep of the family and this has been known since they were released. The Stereophile review(J. Gordon Holt wrote it) said you should definitely listen for a while before you buy and noted the same flaws I hear. The midrange is very recessed, the highs are either bright or dull depending on frequency and the bass is detached from the rest of the spectrum and very uneven as well.

    The good ones are the SR-Lambda, Lambda Signature and SC1 of the Lambda range, SR-Sigma, SR-X Mk3, 4070 and of course both Omegas. The choice between them will often depend on the music used as acoustic stuff isn't as demanding as close miked, heavily mixed music and system setup is crucial. IC's will make or break a Stax setup. This can not be stressed enough and always plug the amps directly into the wall without any power filters.

    Both setups you mention you are describing the amps and not the headphones. If you like the He90 then you should try to find a SR-Omega to listen to as they are similar but the Stax coming out on top in key areas. They aren't as diffused and the soundstage, while overblown and unreal is closer to the real thing, the midrange is better with nearly the same magic as the SR-007 and the bass is extended and deep with only a slight confusion when things get tough as the drivers can't dump the excess energy into the housing and then the head. They are still slightly uneven in the upper midrange as the He90 but it is a rare artifact.

  5. Why Choose Class D for a Portable Amp?

    in Headphone Amplification

    Posted

    Care to elaborate more on this point?

    It was my understanding that Audiogon refused people to advertise their CDSA and Signature setups after they made a deal with Emm Labs. There was a thread about it on AA with sellers posting that their ads weren't accepted if they contained any EMM gear. There was always a very healthy used EMM market but it has completely vanished.

    Edit: Found one:

    http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/shady/messages/3410.html

    and another:

    http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/t.mpl?forum=general&m=488196&highlight=audiogon+emm

  7. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    Do you know if prices for the Lambda Signature and Lambda Nova Signature are similar? I was under the impression that the Lambda Signatures ran for quite a bit more than the Nova Lambda Signatures. (~$100 or more)

    They are about 100$ more or that's how I'm pricing the stuff I'm selling.

  8. Why Choose Class D for a Portable Amp?

    in Headphone Amplification

    Posted

    He isn't actually alone as AKM and Esoteric work with him and let him in on information they wouldn't normally share. A case in point would be the engineers from AKM coming to the US to hear his new player...

    Can you tell us a bit about the APL engineering? Because reading their forums, there isn't much technical info other than a whole lot of ass kissing (or audio masturbation).

    It's basically the drive feeding a buffer where the data is slaved to a master clock and upsampled and fed through an array of AKM dacs. From there it goes to a transformer coupled output stage so it's only a transformer and the tube in the signalpath. All linear psu with R-core transformers and point to point wired with soft silver wire. The transformers are amorphous core Lundahl. Even though the PCB's are SMD they are still hand soldered as it sounds better then a wave machine.

    It's true about the ass kissing but thats a nasty side effect of this and applies to most manufacturers.

    I would personally never buy dCS as it is very expensive for what you are getting and EMM is a horrible company as they used Audiogon to manipulate the used market for EMM products.

  10. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    Gaaah, exposed by my own blabbing!

    I thought you might've missed that one, because it wasn't listed in the Stax or headphone categories. Should've known better.

    I saw it but I decided to give somebody else a chance as I need a new source more then a second SR-Ω. Now if I only could find a used UX-1... >:(

  11. Looking at having a custom power amp built

    in Speakers

    Posted

    Go custom all the way you can get a lot of parts for just the dealer fees on a normal amp. You should choose the amp to match the speakers you are going to use so once you settler on what you want you can find the amp to match. More power is often the wrong way to go as a 20w tube amo will crush a 200w SS amp when faced with the insane load of an electrostatic loudspeaker and it will sound much better.

  12. Predator question...

    in Headphone Amplification

    Posted

    Not entirely true. Immtbiker has a Stax SM-001 MKII/HE-60/O2 (I think too maybe he sold it) and I think an HE90 that I want to say he is borrowing from GoRedWings? Maybe someone else.

    And i think he is rocking the woo electrostatic amp. Yeah I think he sold his O2/stax amp combo.

    He's the exception

  15. Looking at having a custom power amp built

    in Speakers

    Posted

    Using more then one output device will always give you some non-linear artifacts as they can't be perfectly matched. This has nothing to do with distortion as SET's have that in spades but it is second harmonic and we like that. SET's are also simpler as there is no need for a phase splitter so you can spend more money better parts but p-p will give you more power. You can have a 50w SET with the right tubes but that will cost a lot of money.

    Spend the money on power and output transformers and what ever is used to couple the amp, either caps or transformers. You can also go vintage and discard electrolytic's completely in the PSU and use really big paper-in-oil's instead.

  18. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    In more current news, the initial results of this first batch of 007MK2s are disturbing. I thought it might just be a bad pair until Stax USA said they were having the same problems with all of them. I've been tempted to buy an MK1 from pricejapan before the silver mk2 replace it next month.

    It's bad news indeed but I can't believe they are supposed to sound like that. The drivers are identical so this shouldn't happen.

  20. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    I'm trying the SR-Omega with the SRM-T1W now. It's not bad.

    The Omega has a superb 3D soundstage, very large and encompassing. Playing "audiophile-type" recordings, it seems like sound is coming from all directions.

    Imaging isn't as pinpoint precise as the O2's, though. I think the O2 has the best imaging and separation among the Big 4 (HE90, HE60, Omega, O2), which basically means it's also better than all other headphones I've heard. The K1000 might be an exception.

    I call them atmospheric as they don't have the fake and diffused soundstage of the HE90. They are very "audiophile" sounding a point which darth nut made in his epic comparison. If you haven't read it it is here:

    http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=general&n=80474&&r=&session=

    Hehe, mine fits perfectly, with just-right clamping force.

    I can shake my head vigorously and it won't slide off.

    The secret: brand-new plastic headband piece

    Ahhh so you bought that one... ;) Mine were forced over the box for the photos but the arc is in pretty good shape.

  22. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    I knew about that site but I've never seen phones with the stock drivers that had the aluminum cartwheels. Those pictured there are replacement drivers from Stax not that they are available any more... >:( It's a shame that the site isn't there in its original form as it had loads more info and comparisons.

    If they are brown then they are from the original run. Stax had the new black pads made in 2003 when the old stock ran out. They they are black I don't know. You can also get a new cable for them but it's light brown like the current cable and not dark like the original.

    If you remove the pads then you can see the date of manufacture or if they were repaired. Here is the sticker on mine:

    IMG_1115.jpg

    They are comfortable but the pads are too stiff and the vinyl/leather combo isn't all that great.

  24. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    It's the spikes emitting from the black rubber dot in the middle on the outside of the driver. If they are clear then they are the original plastic version but if they are gray it's the later aluminum version. I've never seen one with the aluminum version except on some replacement drivers.

    Are those the original pads they are sporting or have you put on some new black ones?

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