[dB Cooper]

It's an Indiegogo project. I am not sure what they are referring to as 'hybrid' about it because, like on Massdrop the people who wrote the page don't seem to know a whole lot about audio (I can't think of any vocalists who reach 45 kHz  ). Nonetheless, it does seem to be a continuation of a trend for planar technologies to be trickling down to more affordable price ranges (are you listening, Sennheiser?) Especially interesting is that it plugs into a standard headphone jack without the need for any bias voltage source.

Anyhow, here is the link for anyone who is interested:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/bravo-headphones-10x-better-sound-quality-audio--2#/

[Letitroll98]

Looks like they have a 40mm cone driver with an electrostatic tweeter, thus the hybrid.  Interesting.

[dB Cooper]

Hey, letitroll, how ya been, good hanging' with ya at CAF.

The page is not all that well written and we don't get a real close up look, hi-res photos or the like. So we'll see how they pan out and what the reactions of the professional reviewers are. And one of the endorsers is raving about the sound quality while you can clearly see that the left ear cup is not even on his ear. Oh well. These might be worth keeping an eye on. In general though, I am not a huge fan of the concept of multiple drivers-and crossovers- in headphones. Since they don't have to produce hi sound pressure levels in absolute terms, a single driver, properly implemented, should be able to produce full range sound in a headphone. (In other words, given a particular manufacturing budget, one might get better results improving the quality of the driver than increasing the complexity of the system.) And let's be honest, most middle-aged men (a demographic I am a member of), who make up the bulk of the 'audiophile' community, couldn't hear 20 kHz if their life depended on it, let alone 45, and the filters in DACs won't allow anything close to 45 kHz through anyway. So I guess a lot depends on what the crossover point is, where the electrostatic element takes over. Still have a idle curiosity about these.

[Bemopti123]

They have been a company since 2009 and have taken them this long to get an item produced, it makes me wonder whether they are really meticulous, which I doubt, and why they have not released regular commercial headphones before.  It they had released a product before, at least people would have a clue of what their headphone might sound like....but, while $2 and some change might sound great in terms of getting an "Electrostatic" headphone, hybrid for that matter, I think that this seem to pander to those who might have $200+ to spend on mediocre headphones but with this electrostatic bling, which they might not even understand, will be jumping at it.  It is affordable in comparison to real electrostats BUT, whether they act like the really electrostat, only people will tell. 
For $250 they are many proven traditional designs out there.  I will wait for the reviews to come in.   

[Rocket_Ronny]

32 ohms, but they don't state the efficiency.


Rocket Ronny

[weatherman1]

http://www.verisonix.com/  This is the company that they are working with.  They have there own models with wood ear cups that have been available for a few years.  Reviews of company products generally seem to like the sound but not the headphone construction.  Snap, crackle, pop's.  The units from the crowd funding deal appear to have a totally different form without the wood and the assembly looks better designed with fewer pop, crackle points.  The concept is interesting since I own the Dharma 1000 Enigmas and love the detailed sound and image.  Getting a similar concept design for $200, if it works well, makes me want to jump in just to see how well they can execute.

[weatherman1]

I am not familiar with eSMOOTH which is primarily a wood manufacturer of ear cups.  Verisonix is a spinoff electronic company using tech from Taiwan Univ and manufacturer in China.  I know they have distribution in US because they have had booths at shows. I am just curious about a $200 hybrid using their eStatix and a 40mm cone driver.  They do have (or had) a $149 hybrid available without the wood and it appears mostly plastic supports.  I own a lot of cans with Beyer HD990 being the least expensive at $149 and the Enigma Acoustics at $1100, and everyone has beauty AND warts.  Just a can junky I guess and my quest.

[milford3]

They have my attention.

[FullRangeMan]

(I can't think of any vocalists who reach 45 kHz  ).
Sopranos barely reach 1000Hz
Other non sense statement:10x Better Sound Quality

[dB Cooper]

Yeah, you're right, those are both nonsense statements. My point was that the person who wrote the indiegogo pitch implying that the 45 kHz bandwidth has something to do with performance on vocals obviously either a) Doesn't know jack sh*t about audio if they think that; orr 2) does know but is willing to sell more product by hoodwinking the uninformed rather than educating them. It may be that there is some benefit to extending bandwidth out that far, but if it is, it has nothing to do with performance on vocals. Seems like the people on the engineering/design side should have said, "Hey, wait a minute, sounds like we're saying...."

Reminds me of the Massdrop pitch for the AKG 7xx (Chinese-production 'K712 Anniversary' clone) : "The lows have been 'jacked up' [their wording] by 3dB for totally immersive stereo imaging". Now, I'm sure nobody here needs that non sequitur explained to them. It's 'word salad'. It's the same thing as the two statements Fullrangeman commented on: Who writes this sh**?

[weatherman1]

It's the hyperbole of sales technique taught at those MBA schools.  If you look at the website of the crew involved in this project it appears that English may not be the first language and I still think that this is being sold as something new in technology to a market which is not aware that these types of headphones have been around for a while.  They may be providing input to Verisonix to have there Chinese partners assemble the structure of the headphone but Bravo (Sharrk) is simply attempting to get a hybrid headphone (already existing tech) to market at a $200 dollar price point.  It is a tantalizing price point when one considers that headphone prices have reached astronomical levels without, to my ears, a sonic justification.  Ya, there are a ton of conventional tiny transducer cans in this price range but not any electret hybrids that I know of.  It's all in execution of the design.  No different than any can.  Some will think its good, others will pan it for all kinds of reasons.  It's still only a $200 risk and it might turn out to be pleasantly surprising.

[dB Cooper]

Or it could be the next Fostex T50RP- 'Meh' right out of the box but surprisingly good when judiciously 'tweaked'.

There must be some corners cut at this price, methinks.....

Agree with weatherman1 about flagship pricing. A good example would be the Beyer T1- by most accounts a good headphone, bit if you look it over, it's essentially the same design as the rest of the Beyer line, the only difference being the drivers and their positioning/angling within the earcup- sure these drivers might be more expensive, but enough to increase the price by a factor of 5 over the (for example) largely similar DT990? This trend started with the 'breathtakingly expensive' HD800 (which got a lot of attention about its price when it was introduced) and has led to things like the $4K LCD4 to mention just one (let alone the $53K Orpheus).

My HD650s still sound pretty good to me...

[dB Cooper]

I've heard both, and both are very high resolution, but the 009's are somehow less 'in your face' about it IMHO. In fairness, this is a general impression formed under show conditions though. For over three times the cost of the already-pricey 800's, it's a judgement call whether they are worth it.

In a semi-related vein, given the rapidly increasing popularity and selection of planar type headphones, I wonder if Sennheiser can afford to keep completely conceding that segment of the market (setting aside the highly 'niche'/special-case Orpheus).

[Armaegis]

You know guys, Koss actually makes a rather affordable electrostat... MSRP of $1k, but frequently on sale for $600. On rare occasion I've seen <$500 new.

[weatherman1]

The Koss 950 with power supply is the only electrostat headphone that I know of whose price has dropped over time.  The first 1992 version was $2000.00 and didn't include the battery pack that todays version includes.  If I had only known!  Still hate the sloppy fit of the waffles.  Sound quality is excellent but if I move my head quickly the waffles might cover my face.

[FullRangeMan]

To me, the HD800 was or is unique in resolving upper harmonic detail better than anything I ever heard.  It's possible the SR009 could equal it in that aspect, but I don't know.

How the new black HD800 compare to the regular HD800?

[FullRangeMan]

Planars, including the ones I've had, seem to have trouble getting a representative treble response, which I assume relates to their drivers.  The HD800 is way better, however the planars win on bass in most cases.  If the SR009 or its betters can match the best of both, that would justify the cost.

Ouch...the Stax hp are refined products but many hp fans dont feel this rich, so they buy HifiMan 400.

[dB Cooper]

Planars, including the ones I've had, seem to have trouble getting a representative treble response, which I assume relates to their drivers.  The HD800 is way better, however the planars win on bass in most cases.  If the SR009 or its betters can match the best of both, that would justify the cost.

What is "representative treble response"?

[FullRangeMan]

I was hoping the Headfonia reviewer would clarify that, but so far he hasn't.

If the factory watch dogs dont trumpet this comparative result its a bad news...

[Armaegis]

Having been part of the planar modding scene for a long time, I found that vintage planars had a certain tonality to the midrange that were all more alike than not. Typically all fairly smooth, with rolloffs on both ends. The modern planars don't quite have this, but as Dale alluded to there's a certain "papery" (as I call it) quality to the top end. Much of this has to do with the larger surface areas which is great for bass response, but starts to get fuzzy with treble due to the large amount of reflections etc on both sides of the diaphragm. This is especially apparent on several of the MrSpeaker designs that used treble reflectors to try and achieve smooth FR balance, but sacrificed fidelity for that smoothness. Even BMF's hugely popular T50rp mods had this. Thankfully, absorptive pads fix a huge part of this (assuming there's no weird driver reflective dots doing on), or even some felt underneath the pads.