HiWire

So it sounds like a tube amp... j/k Good review! I wonder how their solid state amp compares to the Gilmore Light. I agree about the tone control - if you're buying an amp to fix your sound, you're probably doing it wrong.

Dull as in slow and non-energetic response in dynamics. They are slightly bright, but I suppose that might work with people who are looking for "soundstage cues" in the AKG flagship headphones. Overall, I think they're somewhat neutral, but I found them a crashing disappointment at the time.

Would these sound half decent as a system? I listened to K 701's a long time ago and kind of thought they sounded like ass*. Would having killer power on these babies do anything for them, or do they still sound like ass after "burn-in" and Nuculer Power. * ass as in they could not rock out. They were very dull sounding, even after about 1,000 hours of burn-in when running out of my amp. The sins of the K 701, in my opinion, are sins of omission. Perhaps Wes Phillips' ears are made of tin...

I don't want to sidetrack this too much, but which headphones are considered good looking? I tend to like stuff like the Sony's and Audio-Technica's, just because they don't look so huge and protrudey on my small head (not counting the MDR-CD3000). Also, their fit and finish and color options are usually tasteful (except the pink ones). Grados are almost so ugly that they are beautiful... I have been compared to a WWII aviator when interviewed on television wearing mine once.

It's as ugly as sin... I sure hope it sounds good.

Thanks, I think I'll let them sit there.

There is an old pair of Stax SRM-30's sitting at an audio store. Are these any good?

I like the Simaudio Andromeda the best out of these pics... the SuperNova also looks pretty good.

At least they're not charging more for them. I wonder if this will force Sennheiser, AKG, Beyedynamic, etc. to release competitive models to stomp the newbies into the ground. They must be losing market share already to the growing IEM companies (e.g. Etymotics, Ultimate Ears, Westone, etc.).

I'm a bit slow on the uptake - but I think the Sony engineers slipped a bonus into the design of their power supply for this PCDP. The Sony D-EJ2000 includes an external battery pack using an 1.5V AA battery, in addition to the internal 1.2V NH-14WM gumstick battery. Earlier, I reported that the battery pack has the odd effect of charging the gumstick battery when both power sources are used together. A couple of weeks ago, I realized that it might be possible to get more power through the headphone out by using both power sources simultaneously - it turns out that my theory was correct. Basically, it makes external headphone amplifiers redundant for this player - you can drive headphones with impedances of 16 - 64 ohms without too much difficulty by using both batteries. I don't know if you are actually getting a full 2.7V of power, but there is certainly an improvement from using the stock internal NiMH battery. This design might also translate to other Sony PCDP designs incorporating external battery packs, although I wouldn't expect much of an improvement in sound quality from players using digital amplifiers.

You could try one of the Go-Vibe variations at Jaben.

I looked at the Channel Islands VHP-2 + VAC-1 combo a while ago. Justin's reputed delivery times made me a little antsy. Also, I agree that Headroom's amps look funny. I preferred their previous case designs.

Perhaps Sony should focus on producing a portable SACD disc player. They have the technology.

They should have called them God cables. Let's not beat around the bush - it will obviously make that Norse demi-lamp wire sound tinny, closed-off, and artificial. Golden Ratio. Damn. That shit is magic.

All righty, then. I'll call my dealer on the corner.

Has anybody tried these? I haven't found a lot of impressions by searching the web so far.

Congrats on the new amp!

Happy Birthday, Phil!

I've been looking at the Ultimate Ears super.fi 4's for my cellphone. Since the list price is around $129.95, I'm betting that it might go for less than $100 when sales and discounts kick in.

That seems to be the Cambridge Audio "house sound"... a bit bright and hard. I was interested in testing an 840C, but was dissuaded by the owners' impressions and my sales rep.

Thanks, guys. I guess he'll announce something officially if he's ready.

It's been a while since Justin mentioned the new modules... I know he has been having trouble sourcing some of the parts. Has anybody heard the new modules yet? Also, are they being used in the GS-X as well?

This is kind of off-the-wall, but how about cordless earbuds/headphones? I don't know if they sell for under $100, but since she has a habit of destroying cables...

The SCD-DR1 looks interesting... I wonder if any of that technology will trickle down to consumer players in the next 10 years.

Abaddon, your wallet is going to feel oddly empty inside.