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You're not the only one. I honestly don't like them at all. To my ears they're unlistenable with bowls or flats. I preferred my woodied HF-1 (with bowls) and now-departed woodied silver 325 (with flats) to the RS-1, and not by a small margin. At meets I've tried them with everything from my maxed Millett to some of the Singlepower stuff and have yet to find any combo I would listen to at any price.

Considering the mass slaughter of dogs in China recently, these Animal Olympics are pretty tame. There was a rabies scare recently, and if a dog tested positive, they would kill all dogs within a certain radius that usually included a couple of towns. The autorities more often than not clubbed them to death in front of their owners. I read somewhere that about 40,000 dogs were killed during the latest wave.

Well, a certain shipment arrived for me yesterday. The packaging is absolutely beautiful, and it's nice to have an uncompressed version of this. "Marry Me" and the hidden "Thank God I'm Pretty" have been moved to the bonus disc, so now the actual CD has the first 6 songs from the EP and 6 new songs. It's going to take a while to figure out exactly what I think of the 6 new tracks (and 2 new bonus tracks), but after a couple of listens there doesn't appear to be a weak one among them. So, if anyone liked what they heard and were holding out until the actual CD became available, now's the time!

I guess I'm confused... ??? Since "that thread" was locked, the only thing that you mentioned in your first post that's happened since were further discussions of the technical merit of the B52 and someone who rarely posts here bragged about pissing of a 15 year old Head-Fi'er. I guess I don't see the problem. The previous discussion was primarily limited to one thread, and there's been very little since IMO. I for one would love to see enough traffic to keep discussions going, but it's just not here yet. So people feel the need to vent... What's the big deal? There's not a whole lot of browsing that can happen here... it's a few posts an hour and rarely do I need to look past the Recent Threads at the first page. So again, it doesn't bother me.

Blanket Statements... Senns can't rock, Grados are the only rock can, and so on. There are so many subtleties in music that blanket statements border on ridiculous. I understand that some cans aren't for everyone, and that only proves that such blanket statements are hilarious. Headphone reviews are worth a damn... Sure, you can get a general idea, but you certainly should be surprised if you buy something without listening to it and are disappointed. If there's one thing I've learned, it's that synergy between components is key, and nothing can replace hearing something with your own rig.

Sorry to hear it... it's never easy. The cat I've had the last 4 years has been a pain in the ass, so I just got a new cat last week. They're not getting along so well so far, but they'll figure it out... The new cat is a real sweetheart, and a lap cat. Give it some time, and I'm sure you'll be welcoming a new kitty to the fold.

Last show I saw was Rasputina supporting Frustration Plantation last year. I don't have any shows I'm looking forward to. Years of driving a Jeep & a few summers of working front-of-stage security for shows while I was in college has left me with a left ear that doesn't care much for live music. So I have to pick and choose the shows that are important to me to minimize further damage. I love music too much to take any chances.

I can only hope that the case that the prototype B52 is travelling around in is not going to be the final enclosure. Or if it is, that a change of color (ie: black) will improve its looks. It struck me as being a bit too much. I definitely prefer the understated style of Singlepower and Headamp enclosures, and even the kidney bean HeadRoom stuff. The B52's current enclosure has so much going on... lots of lights, lots of bezels and lots of visible fasteners, most of which looked cramped as the units are much smaller in person than I expected. It never looked bad to me in pictures, but in person I was very meh about the whole thing. Actually, that's understating things... I thought it bordered on tacky.

I was in a similar situation a while ago... I had a great source, 3 amps, 2 pairs of home cans and just never felt I listened enough to justify keeping them all. I sat down and figured out why... like you, I did a majority of my listening elsewhere. For me it was while at work. So I sold off a majority of my home rig (MonsterPower 3500, PPA v2 + STEPS, M3 + STEPS, HD-650 & Zu Mobius, Denon DVD-2910). I still have the Millett Hybrid + db + STEPS Nate built for me, and my woodied HF-1, and when I want CD's, I can pull out my Denon DVM-4800 for ALPHA-processor goodness. This was the rig I used the most, so it was the one I kept. I used a little of that money to upgrade my work rig, and put the rest away. So now I have a mid-fi home rig I love and a kick-ass little office rig for where I listen the most. So, if you can't justify keeping it, go ahead and re-allocate your $ where you think you'll use it and pocket the rest. It can be fun putting together an amazing rig, but if you're not using it, it's a waste.

Well, I guess we'll see what walnut looks like next!

Yeah, besides that!

Hell, I only associate with myself out of necessity... If you think of a way around that one, please let me know! I really can't wait to try out the new chisels. Now I just need to figure out what wood I want to use. Aparantly I'd be tempting fate to continue using mahogany, so I clearly need to look elsewhere. And I was going to buy some burl a few weeks ago, but now that's been used elsewhere. So what to do, what to do?

Yup...

No, but it definitely gets nice and warm and would keep your soup just right!

Well, recent events, which I'm not going to get into (for now) kind of pissed me off, so I decided that should my "fun" effort with the "scrap" mahogany be making an appearance at the Boston Head-Fi meet, they were going to have to look a little better. As I had said before, the wood was too dry and the face of the cup kind of chunked out. Well, after much sanding and many coats of lacquer, they look far more presentable. Anyway, here's a pic... definitely an improvement IMO. I'll probably be giving something like this another run with a new piece of mahogany and the new turning chisels I got for my birthday (Wuhoo!!! ), but for now they look much better.

Now that's funny... I believe it probably happend somewhere in transit. According to Nate, this was delivered via DHL. I think we all remember Reks' DHL thread!!!

Tough to say, to be honest. I mean, I was designing connections for a 4 story structural steel building, so I could only diver so much attention to the headphones! Having said that, it should I should make it clear I'm not a big soundstage guy, so it doesn't rank high on my list of things to listen for. To give you an idea where I'm coming from, I don't miss the soundstage of the 650 since moving to the HF-1 as my primary headphone at home. Well, I never really cared for the Millett with the Senns. I love my Millett with my HF-1, but never used it with my 650/Zu. I'm definitely looking forward to hearing the Lunch Box with something other than the computer. I'll probably bring the Lunch Box & 600's home at some point and do some comparisons with the Millett/HF-1 combo. I know my Denon DVM-4800 (with the ALPHA processor) very well, so I'll be curious to see how well it scales with a "real" source. I'm guessing the iPod would probably be a step up from the computer, too. HTH... Yeah, the attenuators would be a good solution for the gain. I'll definitely be curious to do a real sit-down comparison between the two. I'd say my Millett is more than "OK" , so it should be a good comparison. I also haven't listened to the Millett with the 600's, which should be interesting. The 600's seem airier (is that a word?) and the 650's always struck me as a little muddy with the Millett. So there's a chance I'll have new love for the Millett/Senn combo! Regardless, I'm not really in much of a position to compare them yet because I really have never spent much time listening to the Millett with the Senns. And yes, at $160, it's pretty ridiculous!

2 quick follow-ups: Build quality, broken fuse aside, is quite good. The textured finish is excellent. The only build-quality issue would have to be the volume pot. It offers no real resistance and is the only thing that feels cheap. Gain is way too high. I turned down the output on the computer to about 25%, and the volume in Foobar to about 50% and I still could never get past 10 or 11 o'clock for a volume position. So the cheap volume control combined with high gain could make this a little difficult to use with a non-computer source. Just didn't want to leave anything out

The Backstory: So, Nate ordered a Lunch Box from Eddie Current, and realized he wouldn't need it because of his plans to build an Akido. I had almost ordered one, and a trade was worked out so that I would get the Lunch Box for my office rig. The office setup was completed by another trade with Nate to get his HD-600's since this amp is for headphones with > 150 ohm impedence. The Arrival: Well, it finally arrived yesterday @ Nate's office. As we only work a few miles apart, it was all I could do to wait 'til after work to get it! So you can imagine my disappointment when I get home after work, insert the tubes, plug it in and find it won't turn on! No! So it left with Nate to see if he could diagnose the problem. It turns out a solder joint on the jumper that connected to the main fuse had broken, and needless to say, no fuse, no power. So a little soldering action and it was up and running. No need to send it back and delay the listening! And more importantly the amp should be all set for the Boston meet Saturday. The Arrival - Take 2: Well, I met up with Nate before work and took possession of the Lunch Box again. I got to the office and plugged it in to let it warm up. I hooked the Lunch Box up to my work PC and its onboard sound and once I got settled in, I gave it a listen... The (Initial) Impressions: I'm going to keep this portion short, mainly because I wasn't doing any critical listening. But there were a few things that definitely stood out and are worth mentioning. Presentation - The only way I can describe it is effortless. There seemed to be power to spare, and at no point did things get congested or muddy. Tonal Balance - The presentation is well balanced. The treble, mids and bass all seem to have their place, with no obvious holes across the frequencies. The presentation is airy, with excellent instrument separation, even during complex passages. Highs - The treble seems to have the magic balance of plenty of detail while remaining smooth. There was some initial graininess that seemed to go away after the first hour. Mids - The midrange seems very balanced, handling a wide variety of different music. It was smooth when it needed to be, and provided just the right amount of texture when called for. Lows - The bass has a pretty good combination of extension and detail. Nothing earth-shattering, but solid and balanced. PRAT - The impact, speed and decay all sounded good, again with no obvious deficiences. The best compliment I can give this amp is things just sound "right." I listened all day at the office today to everything from Agalloch, Opeth, Isis & Nine Inch Nails to Ivy, Fiona Apple, Emilie Autumn & Tori Amos, and it handled it all without any trouble. That's a pretty varied group of artists, with everything from heavy guitars to piano, with black and death metal vocals to lighter female vocals and with organic sounds to some crazy electronic textures. So I definitley tried a little of everything. The (Initial) Conclusion: Well, since this unit has such low hours on it, and my time with it has been limited, these are obviously only initial impressions. But I feel very confident in saying it's an absolute steal at $160. The amp has no obvious shortcomings, which is saying something considering the price point. I'm sure some things may pop up here and there the more I listen to it, but there seems to be an excellent little amp here. I'll be sure to update this thread with more impressions as I spend more time with it. Oh yeah, and the obligatory picture:

Check out Emilie's'>http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=3355281&blogID=157379882&MyToken=1d0f2b59-5b4b-4511-8920-906ae121e54e"]Emilie's Latest MySpace Blog Entry for pre-order info. Needless to say, this news makes me very happy, and my pre-order has been placed!!!

I didn't particularly care for my M3 with my Grados, but then again I didn't care for it much with my Senns, either. Mine was pretty well configured with a STEPS. I tried with opamps at both ends of the spectrum (8610's & 627's) and could never get into it. I preferred my PPA v2 + STEPS for my Senns (or Grados with flats), and loved my Millett+STEPS+db with my Grados with bowls. There was just never a time I really wanted to listen to the M3. I appreciate that it has better technical specs than the Millett, but to my ears, it was no contest with the Grados. My advice would be to keep the Millett for a while and save up for something that would be a big step up like the Ear+HD. That amp has some real magic with the Grados.

I've loved my Outlaw Audio 1050 receiver, but it was time for something new. I thought about Denon again, but after the terrible experience with Denon service, I figured I'd be better off avoiding them. And considering my efforts to show something resembling fiscal responsibility, I was looking at lower-end Denon pieces which were very ugly uninspired. So I checked out HK stuff for the first time in years. I had an AVR 25 back in college and liked it. I was looking at the AVR 140 or 240 at the lower end of their line. They're pretty-well discound at Circuit City right now, so I figured I'd swing by and check them out. They're better looking in person than I expected. After looking around I saw the 140 on sale for $300, the 240 on sale for $339 and a 340 on sale for $409. Then I see an open-box 635 for $379! This seemed like a damn good deal, so I jumped on it. The unit is flawless... it looks brand new and only lacks the original box. I had no idea what kind of discount this was, but it struck me as worth taking a chance on. I got home, set it up and figured I'd check MSRP online. Imagine my surprise to see it's list price is $1299!!! The street price for authorized delears I've seen is around $850 or so, so needless to say I was pretty pleased. http://www.harmankardon.com/product_detail.aspx?Region=USA&Country=US&Language=ENG&cat=REC∏=AVR%20635&sType=C This should be the only HT rig I'll need for years to come.

After another 2 hours of sanding, they look even better

The mushrooms and my "normal" HF-1 woodies have about the same chamber size, so as would be expected, they sound pretty much the same. That said, the woody HF-1 definitely is an improvement over the standard variety.

Well, a little news on the EA front... So I guess it's time to check her site & MySpace page daily to make sure I get in on the pre-order.