[Vipers]

You know what, I've made a BIG mistake.
Having just listened to the new Staxs, the Schiit and the HE-6's have gone back.
I bought the new 507's, nice!
I wish i hadn't listened to the 009's as they are more than I can consider paying for cans but they must represent the ultimate!
507's & KGSS, headphone heaven! At least for me.
You can listen to those instead
Terry

MMMmmm, that is going to be dangerous, the 507's with the Woo Audio Wes was top of my list for ages and then I had a reality check and wondered if I really needed to spend that much on a headphone setup, but after listening to the Stax 303's last week that gave me a rough idea what electrostatic headphones sounded like and I loved the detailed presentation so I was leaning back to the Stax setup.

I'd really appreciate if you could bring your Stax set-up over Terry, although I think my credit card may end up taking a battering. I'm going to listen to the HD800's on Thursday, just to get an idea what they are like. BTW, I love the look of the Blue Hawaii head amp, I don't know, everyday another valve headamp keeps entering the game for my consideration.

Out of interest, where did you demo the Stax headphones, finding good headphone dealers with stock isn't easy.

Thanks.

[terrycym]

Out of interest, where did you demo the Stax headphones, finding good headphone dealers with stock isn't easy.

Thanks.

Cool Gales had an open day in a club in Bath the other Saturday.
The Stax distibutor was there as well as Highend Workshop who do Schiit and the He-6 (et al) and probably Wooaudio and their take on the KGBH

[Vipers]

Missed that one, that's a shame, could have saved me a lot of time.

Oh well, please feel free to pop over anytime Terry, if you want to bring along your Stax obviously they are welcome also

[terrycym]

Missed that one, that's a shame, could have saved me a lot of time.

Oh well, please feel free to pop over anytime Terry, if you want to bring along your Stax obviously they are welcome also

What about this Saturday?
I could bring the 507's, Lambda Pros (interested in them? I've got new earpads for them), KGSS & 701's

[Vipers]

What about this Saturday?
I could bring the 507's, Lambda Pros (interested in them? I've got new earpads for them), KGSS & 701's

Sounds like a plan, excellent, I'll be at Zinc all day from 9pm onwards, can't wait, thanks

It will be perfect timing really as I'm going to demo the HD800's on Thursday so I'll be able to see whether dynamics or electrostatics are for me.

[terrycym]

Sounds like a plan, excellent, I'll be at Zinc all day from 9pm onwards, can't wait, thanks

It will be perfect timing really as I'm going to demo the HD800's on Thursday so I'll be able to see whether dynamics or electrostatics are for me.

Sorted! Around midday then, M25 permtting!
BTW Do you like Quads? Do you like Martin Logans? They're ESLs.

[Vipers]

Sorted! Around midday then, M25 permtting!
BTW Do you like Quads? Do you like Martin Logans? They're ESLs.

Excellent, can't wait.

If I'm honest I've never heard a pair of Electrostatic speakers, are you going to bring a pair of them over also

See you on Saturday.

[Vipers]

At last I had a chance to sit down and listen to the HD800's today, initially I was very impressed, amazing detail and transparency, found the mid range and low end a little lean though but apparently they hadn't had much use so probably needed some more hours on them tbh, and I guess it didn't help that the only headphone amp the dealer had was the Project Headbox 2.

Then I noticed the dealer was also a Grado dealer, they only had upto the SR325i's though, but I couldn't resist a listen to see if I prefered the sonic signature of the Grado's, well I found them amazing, lovely rich mid tone with powerful bass, I know they are not considered accurate but I found them a really good listen and If I had to choose I would have gone with the Grado's, I can only imagine how great the PS1000's must sound.

I don't want to count out the HD800's just yet as I'd like to hear them with proper amplification, are they known for being a hungry headphone regarding drive or was I hearing pretty much hearing how they perform?

I've been offered to take them home for a home demo, but as I haven't got a headphone amp yet is it worth it?

James, quick question, how do you think the headphone socket on the BP26 will perform running the HD800's, is it worth a punt or will I be doing the HD800's an injustice?

Can't wait to have a chance to listen to Terry's 507's on Saturday, that should really give me an idea of the direction I need to be heading regarding my headphone purchase

Thanks.

[terrycym]

Why not go for it and get a loan of the HD800's?
I'll be bringing my AKG 701's too

[Vipers]

Why not go for it and get a loan of the HD800's?
I'll be bringing my AKG 701's too

I wish I had taken their offer up now, so we could have had a play with them tomorrow also, too late now I'm afraid.

I set the Naim headphone amp up today if you fancy a listen, there are also a pair of 650's for us to play with.

See you tomorrow Terry

[Vipers]

Hi Terry,

It was great to meet you earlier today, I just wanted to say thanks for bringing over your Stax and AKG headphones + your mammoth headphone amp, much appreciated, sorry I didn't get a chance to say a proper goodbye, it really got busy in the afternoon, shouldn't complain really but I'd have rather have listened to music all day 

I think you could tell that I loved your 507's. I now know why a friend of mine told me not to buy any headphones until I've heard a pair of Stax, amazing detail and clarity, but also the bottom end really suprised me, very powerful and rich.

I'm starting to think now that I may go with a pair of 507's and a valve amp + the BHA and maybe a pair of GS1000 Grado's and live with 2 totally different setups and see in the long term what I prefer and then go up that particular range, this whole headphone journey is becoming very complicated, it was easy with a stereo system as I knew once I'd heard Bryston with PMC that I'd found what I was looking for but this is proving far more challenging, maybe that is because I haven't heard the BHA-1 yet

[terrycym]

It was fun.
Let us all know what you finally decide on.
Have a look at this energiser on ebay
It'll work with 240v too
http://cgi.ebay.com/Stax-SRM-1-MK2-Driver-Unit-Earspeaker-/360374361294?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item53e7fc5cce

[Elizabeth]

I own Sennheiser HD800s and I like mine. I do have to say, after a year of using them a lot, that they seem a bit tilted up toward the treble. The clarity is great, and the sound is good, but for anyone who like Grados, the sound of the HD800 is going to be very disappointing in the long run.
I am crazy for clarity and treble purity, so they are my sort of headphones. With the Rudistor RPX33 mk2 amp they are the clearest sound i have ever heard, and can hear stuff in recording i never knew was there before! But for tube like warm mids and lots of lows, the HD800 are not the choice at all.
I am not saying they are bad, more like really really neutral... just the drift is the opposite of Grados...

[Vipers]

It was fun.
Let us all know what you finally decide on.
Have a look at this energiser on ebay
It'll work with 240v too
http://cgi.ebay.com/Stax-SRM-1-MK2-Driver-Unit-Earspeaker-/360374361294?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item53e7fc5cce

Cheers Terry, seriously looks like I'll go down the Stax route now and look at a Grado setup when the BHA comes out, kind of makes sense to have 2 totally different setups depending on my mood.

Trouble is now that I've heard how good a Stax setup can sound there is no going back.

Any chance James of an Electrostatic BHA-2

[Vipers]

I am crazy for clarity and treble purity, so they are my sort of headphones.

Bearing in mind the above statement Elizabeth, have you listened to any Stax setups? as that is how I would describe the Stax sound.

Saying that, something is still drawing me towards the fun sound of the Grado's, talk about chalk and cheese, as they couldn't be any more different.

[myview]

Vipers,

Have you had the chance to listen to Terrycm's (or anybody's) well-powered and well-run in Hifiman HE-6?  I also own the HD800 and for more than a year, they were my favorite phones.  But having bought the HE-6 last week and spending several hours with them (they are being run in 24/7), I think they have set a new benchmark.  I have not listened to any Stax phones for a prolonged period of time but believe they must be very good.  However, anyone considering a pair of audiophile headphones NEED to try the HE-6 before deciding on anything.

[terrycym]

Vipers,

Have you had the chance to listen to Terrycm's (or anybody's) well-powered and well-run in Hifiman HE-6?  I also own the HD800 and for more than a year, they were my favorite phones.  But having bought the HE-6 last week and spending several hours with them (they are being run in 24/7), I think they have set a new benchmark.  I have not listened to any Stax phones for a prolonged period of time but believe they must be very good.  However, anyone considering a pair of audiophile headphones NEED to try the HE-6 before deciding on anything.

Trouble is, nobody really sells the hifiman gear in England so you're buying blind.
I heard a pair of HE-500's when at Bath the other week and I really wonder what all the fuss is all about!

[Vipers]

Vipers,

Have you had the chance to listen to Terrycm's (or anybody's) well-powered and well-run in Hifiman HE-6?  I also own the HD800 and for more than a year, they were my favorite phones.  But having bought the HE-6 last week and spending several hours with them (they are being run in 24/7), I think they have set a new benchmark.  I have not listened to any Stax phones for a prolonged period of time but believe they must be very good.  However, anyone considering a pair of audiophile headphones NEED to try the HE-6 before deciding on anything.

Thanks for the feedback and advice myview, I'd love to hear the HE-6's, they are very high on my maybe list, but as Terry says there are no dealers over here so it's almost impossible, saying that if there is anyone in the London area reading this with a pair of HE-6's and would like to bring them over to Zinc HT in Borehamwood I'd be very grateful

[larevoj]

From Engineering - Headphone amp project so far:

Bryston Headphone Amplifier (BHA-1)

Features:

1)Battery operation –  2 rechargeable 9v lithium LiFePO4 batteries
2)External power option via MPS-2 power supply.*
3)Volume control combined with power switch – blue led ‘on’ indicator.
4)OPA2604 op amp. Ultra low Thd + noise. (<.001%)
5)Parallel op amp outputs – 3 per channel.
6)14dB gain
7)Perfect for headphones 16 ohms or higher.
8)Cross feed circuit – bypass - in out – amber Led indicator.
9)Cross feed level variable – full in - to – 20dB.
10)Gold connectors – RCA inputs - XLR out option.
11)50k input impedance
12)Rugged construction
13)Dimensions – 2” high x 4” wide x 6” deep.



 * Higher output level with BMP2 supply. -

Hi James, any further updates on the above features or specification 

[James Tanner]

Hi James, any further updates on the above features or specification 

Hi larevoj

We care moving away from the battery unit for now and the BHA-1 will be available with a built in linear power supply or can be used with our external MPS-2 power supply.     

James