K3cT

I'm no expert either but I've read somewhere that our ears apparently "like" that roll-off which contributes on how digital/natural one perceives a sound. I frankly still don't quite understand what a "digital" sound means though.

I thought our hearing does not have a flat frequency response.

The plot thickens.

What amp is that if I may ask?

"weird"? Looking forward to your further impressions, digger945.

Go to Playback > DSP Manager. You will see the "Downmix channels to mono" DSP on the right table. To activate it, simply move it to the left.

My take is that the treble on the HE-5 is quite painfully bright/sibilant coupled with the fact that the midrange to upper midrange are tilted forward, this creates a very fatiguing listening experience. Based on past discussions here, it seems that there is a variance of the sound from pair to pair so yours may not have this terrible deficiency. Still I remembered that some folks from the other site thought that the HE-5 was better than the HD800 which is quite a joke honestly. I compared them side-by-side and the HD800 pretty much curbstomped the HE-5.

That's very unfortunate. I did a quick search and the DAC seems to employ the 20-bit R2R AD1862 which indeed could raise compatibility issues. Still, it looks like a great meet! One of these days...

Did anyone chance upon the new Halide Bridge USB-to-S/PDIF converter at Canjam? It has generated quite a buzz here.

Nah, that's not the one. It looks different.

Nah, I don't think the treble is like those upper-end Sennheiser ones. It's definitely more in-your-face kind of treble but not as painfully bright and forward as the W5000. I still think the W1000X is a viable option if you're looking for sub-$700 closed cans but I do seem to prefer Denon D7000 for its more neutral presentation. I understand that the Denon doesn't get much love here though.

The finishing is always light brown in color. And bad idea for the W1000X to have more treble.

Oh, definitely. The main problem is convincing someone in the local circle to get the LCD2 so we can make a comparison! Hmm... this is a tough one since meet conditions etc. etc. but I really like the soundstage. It's not too wide and not too small, just right according to the recordings. The only headphone that I've ever heard that managed to do this is the R10. The midrange and high are also very delicate and yet detailed? I'm not sure "delicate" is the proper word or not but it's like every note and tone just flow naturally without being forced. Consequently, these can give the impression of lacking impact. The SR404-LE I had heard the other day was definitely more colored and bloated compared to the MK2. And it's actually comfortable to wear!

I've finally heard the Omega MK2 today (via KGSS and Neko DA100 DAC) and my conclusion is it's going to take a lot for the LCD2 to equalize it.

Hmm... that's true. Isn't Farnell located in Europe? Can't you use that instead if you specifically want to avoid custom? Capacitor availability at Farnell is a bit icky though...

I think it's possible to get everything from Mouser provided that none of the components are out of stock so you can make use of the free shipping. The OPA2365 is going to be restocked on the 31st so you better move fast. By the way, it's a very worthwhile project.

Indeed. I'm looking forward to your impressions as well as the inevitable comparison to the Omega. IIRC Currawong has finally fallen victim to the hype so we can expect a good coverage from him for the Omega comparison.

The hype meter reading is at all time high at the other site.

So are you saying that asynchronous protocol in the transport is more important than a similar jitter reduction mechanism in the DAC? I'm specifically referring to ASRC re-clocker present in some DACs. On your second statement, I surely cannot differentiate the sound between various input options in my γ2 so ignorance is bliss I guess? Looking forward to that, digger945. I really like their elegant implementation.

Whoa, it might be the first sub-$1000 converter that makes use of the Wavelength asynchronous USB implementation. I still question the need of such devices though if your DAC already has a jitter rejection mechanism. Your thoughts, anyone?

This seems very promising. The vintage Orthos I've heard have yet to capture my attention (and I'm not really fond of messing with my headphones anymore after owning the D2000) while the HE-5 is too fucking bright.

Ah crap, they have to do this just after I have finished ordering the parts for β22!

Someone more experienced or Maniac can correct me if I'm wrong but wouldn't an unshielded transformer like that induce noise to the circuit due to the close proximity?

Happy Birthday! Goddamn, these make me feel old.

Whoa, I wonder how big of a knob we need then to make operation a walk in the park.