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padam

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  5. The State of DACSES

    in Home Source Components

    Posted · Edited by padam

    Compared two DACes today, the trusty old Lavry DA11 (via USB from my laptop running from battery, cheap power cables and interconnect) against a Lumin X1 network player. Level matched (that took a while and very annoying if you have to change the volume for a different track), connected to a switch -> SRM-T1S CCS + ECC99 -> SR-009 / SR-Lambda (also speakers, time was unfortunately very limited)

    Never compared sources like this before, heard the systems indirectly, and my preconceptions turned out to be either false (like soundstaging), or way less than expected.
    The DA11 had more, slightly looser bass. The midrange seemed slightly more laid-back, giving the impression of very slightly less clarity (some described it as "slightly old-school"). Having that 'bass boost on' felt more synergistic (I also find the internal crossfeed being useful sometimes), although the Lumin had a slightly firmer, tighter presentation.
    In the grand scheme of things, I struggled to find big faults with either, it felt I could just enjoy music without fatigue (well, maybe not true for the SR-009 after a while), and I was quite shocked when I found out the difference in price. And maybe the DA11 can improve with a decent PSU as well.

    Next time I might just try again to see if I notice some more stuff, congestion, etc. and I might test my amp directly against the CCS ECC99 modded version, that should be super easy (though it needs a few hours of warming up...)

    DA11+T1S+NB Lambda for under 2000$ all-in (maybe with the CCS mod squeezed in) seems quite unbeatable value to be honest, if focusing on the music itself is the most important thing rather than all those technicalities where it might be lacking. Chief among which is precious little bass texture to speak of, piano lacking in weight also, less speed, etc. The imaging or that final 10-20% detail and extension at the extremes, slight congestion really doesn't bother me, the sound is already very clear, open, quite balanced and extended with stunning seductive mids, that's more than enough for me.

    On the other hand, if I owned a pair of SR-009s, I would probably try a "heavy-handed" approach, like a Smyth Realiser or a custom EQ besides an amp upgrade, as I felt that a warmer source didn't really change much about the overall character.

    outro: back at base to finish off Schubert's Symphonies.
    Even with the stock amp with looser (but yet even warmer) bass, the sound is still wonderful, I only remember the HE90s having that sense of undisturbed connection with the mids (and with more dynamics to boot, I can't care with the technical flaws).
    Switching to the SR-Omega, phenomenal resolution and imaging, bass cleans up massively, a very nuanced presentation, totally relaxing, flows beautifully.
    However, it's almost as if all that extra information makes the midrange a bit distant, veiled and disconnected at times. I mean, it's not half bad, maybe it is just showing the Lavry as a "boring" source or whatever, but...as weird as it may sound, it looks to me that all these Omegas, need some work one way or another to reach up to that level of musicality that an SR-Lambda can deliver by default, always, no questions asked.

    • Like 4

  6. Audeze CRBN

    in Headphones

    Posted

    7 hours ago, Pirx said:

    It would be also nice if their new headphones would kick Stax to start developing something better and new more quickly before I die .....

    Pretty sure they've been developing something for quite a while now, Edifier's representative gave a hint about an all-new Omega not long after the SR-009S was released, also mentioning the long product cycle of Stax. While there was only a 5-year gap between the SR-Omega and the SR-007, it took them 13 years to come out with the SR-009, so they will take their time.
    In the meantime, there is plenty of time to prepare the wallet, I'm expecting a shockingly high price tag above SR-009S, which will keep on going.

  7. Audeze CRBN

    in Headphones

    Posted

    11 minutes ago, Beefy said:

    Indeed! What struck me is that the specs claim these only weigh 300g. That's half the weight of the other mainstream Audeze. Do the magnets account for that much weight loss, or have they been able to trim a whole heap of fat from the frame and housing?

    Support is also needed for the heavy magnets, adding yet more weight, explained here:
    https://www.audeze.com/blogs/technology-and-innovation/notes-about-weight-clamping-force-and-earpad-materials

    Considering the 4000$ price tag on a pair of LCD-4s, 4500$ doesn't seem to be far-fetched, considering there was probably a lot more development involved, but they might be gaining that back rather quickly.

    18 minutes ago, catscratch said:

    Besides somebody needs to light a fire under Stax's ass and what better way than actual competition. Maybe this way they'll stop making headphones with headbands that crack, ergonomics not designed for human heads, amps that are defective by design, or tuning that's best served as an advertisement for EQ plugins. And if not, well other people will make stats too.

    Unless they start to loose ground on their home soil, I don't foresee Stax changing their approach and while other people have made stats, they haven't gotten that big on the field itself. A new flagship will be coming eventually, but I'm not sure what they are going to do with the rest, since the SR-007 Mk2 is by far the oldest (and arguably the best) product they make. With the amps, they just don't care too much since making nearly the same thing for more money seems to be the only way to make any form of profit on it unless they start getting those parts from elsewhere.

    I wonder if it is actually worth it for Audeze to make a cheaper electrostat and start competing with their own products. Probably not worth the hassle and they will keep this line in this price category.

    • Like 2

  8. Audeze CRBN

    in Headphones

    Posted

    Looks like they've gotten so big, that people are considering getting into stats just because they are making one, while in the past years the trend looked like this: "electrostats are getting old these days, ribbon transducers, planars etc. are evolving and steaming ahead..."
    I wonder if their next model is going to be cheaper or more expensive, I would have expected a heavier SR-009 tank-like build at this price (even though that is still plagued by issues)

    • Like 1

  11. The Official Head-Case Photography Thread.

    in Miscellaneous

    Posted

    From the picture zooming in, it looks like it has a fan but it looks like it has a hinge for a fully articulating screen as well, just like on the Sharp 8K m43 camera, which has been in development for ages and now Sony comes out with it with FF.

    I guess it will be only slightly cheaper than the FX6 so still a good distance away from the A7SIII with regards to pricing.

  12. The Official Head-Case Photography Thread.

    in Miscellaneous

    Posted · Edited by padam

    Is that a joystick on top? Maybe they have moved some controls away from the rear so the LCD can be a good deal larger and higher resolution so you can actually see if you are focused correctly? I support that.

    I don't understand how my first camera (NEX-5N) could have a larger image for video, then they've reverted back to the stills aspect ratio (as well as "temporarily" removing full touch operation...), when in stills mode you could simply use that area to make some nice touch buttons on one side (while the black bars on the top and bottom during video recording are basically useless, wasted real estate).
    For now, they are trying to segment models by keeping larger LCD screens to video cameras and somewhat weirder entry-level models like the Fuji X-T200.

  13. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted · Edited by padam

    On 1/25/2021 at 7:25 PM, o7_brother said:

    Does anyone know which of the two variants of the SR-009 is newest? One has black lettering on the wooden box, the other has golden lettering. I'm under the impression the black-letters variant is older but I'm not sure.

    Any help would be appreciated.

    The latest one has the same box as the SR-009S with the golden lettering.

    • Like 1

  15. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    9 hours ago, theweezle said:

    Hey guys, 

    Im new here, and I was looking for an opinion.

    I recently got some L700s as an upgrade for my 207s, and I was thinking about upgrading the energizer as well. 
    I am fairly confident at modding circuits, but I am unable to get non-stax branded amps. 

    I am currently looking at used stax amps and found a few options. 
    323A for 25000jpy
    323S for 36000jpy
    727A for 68000jpy

    In your opinion, which will end up sounding the best keeping in mind that I am only driving lambdas?

    Thanks for any input

    I would choose the 727A and have it modified because it is slightly warm, while the 323S is more neutral. But the difference is not that big.
    But there is also SRM-T1 and its close derivatives, the SRM-T1S and SRM-T1W are also available for reasonable prices and they sound good if they have good tubes in them, although for the best performance they need to be CCS modified as well to tame the bass hump (which I personally don't mind with some headphones) in stock form they can be even warmer than the 727A modded.

  22. What Headphones Do You Actually Use?

    in Headphones

    Posted

    For me, and endgame headphone needs to achieve two things: it needs to be balanced and natural enough to be enjoyable with a wide range of music (also very easy to tweak the rest of the chain) and it also needs to be magical (ipad jokes incoming). Some headphones do one thing well, HD600 comes to mind for the first, HE90 for the second.
    Luckily, for me, the SR-Lambda scores a double hit. 

    After the first try in 2009, somehow along the way, I lost sight of how unremarkably amazing it was, but all is well since 2012. Flirting with other headphones is jolly good fun, in that sense, there is no endgame headphone. But in this case, it's only about keeping the relationship stable and everlasting 😏

    • Like 2

  23. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted · Edited by padam

    1 hour ago, Katyusha said:

    Do people here still think the SR-007MK1 is better than the current 007MK2.9?

    "Better" is a relative term, each has its advantages and disadvantages.
    There are several SR007Mk1 variations (70xxx with the carbon box, 71xxx, SZ1) and it is probably very hard to find a 'golden' sample now, because why would anyone sell such a headphone, unless he is completely unaware of the differences and happen to accidentally own such a pair. And without comparing two SR007 headphones side-by-side(maybe new pads on both and a properly seating headband, since both may also affect the sound), it may be difficult to evaluate it.
    So for practical purposes, the Mk2.9 should be a better, safer option.

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 1
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