Leonardo Drummond

Oh dear... are you serious? Has he ever heard about the placebo effect? It really amuses me to see how much confidence people put on their own senses. It's just madness.

Really? That's surprising, it seemed fine looking at it, but I'm unaware of how it's actually assembled. I wouldn't hesitate if a pair like that showed up for 1K, but it's good to know it's not as simple as I thought. Maybe it's just easier to drop another one or two hundred and get a mint pair. There's been a lot of MKI O2s for sale recently btw, 009 effect?

He's indeed a bit too prolific sometimes, but I like the fact that while he may be too carried away sometimes, he seems to be honest and isn't afraid to speak out when he doesn't like something. This is increasingly rare, and as RudeWolf said, he's an exception. Srajan, however... he writes about the moons and planets he was born under or something on his website. To me, that says a lot about what his reviews will be like.

I'm not sure whether they have those items in brown, but you can try http://www.audiocubes2.com/category/Headphone+Accessories.html?osCsid=f776f8462b62484dbe466388d6c741a7 Still, I guess I'd pay $1000 for an O2 in that condition provided I could get the replacements for less than around $600. Sounds like a good deal to me. One has to wonder what those headphones have gone through, though...

I get where most of the criticisms about buying without listening, but sometimes there's just no other alternative, such as in my case. The number of headphone enthusiasts here is really small, and the number of people with actually interesting gear is just insignificant - I only know about 5 people with properly good headphone systems. We do host small meets sometimes, but even then, it's really difficult to gather everyone this being such a vast country and plane tickets being so damn expensive. Also, buying new is a general no-no, since the only brands with distributors here are Beyerdynamic, Sennheiser and Grado. But as import duties are insane (more than 60%), the products get here at insane prices. So our only hope is to mostly buy blindly from abroad, judging by other's opinions, ask the seller to declare a low value and hope for the best. The upside is that, when you succeed in buying used and don't end up paying crazy taxes, you can sell it here sometimes even at a profit, since you can charge a bit more than you payed but much less than what it would cost if the buyer had it shipped and taxed by customs. Luckily, this time there's Erico in São Paulo so I can try and listen to his 009, but then it is a 6 1/2 hour drive.

True deepak, I hadn't actually considered the Omega, but now that you've mentioned it, there's not much against it... and it has that nice legendary status that I appreciate. Thanks for the suggestion, there's another one to consider! Speaking of the HE90, I'll be spending sometime with my friend's set (which includes an Aristaeus as well) for a few weeks, and this will be nice for me to actually check whether I'd be willing to live with a slightly brighter sound presentation than what I'm used to! And I adore its soundstage, so if the Omega sounds somewhat like it, there's a point in its favor!

Torpedo, good to know! I did have a 007 and loved it to bits... I only sold it in order to get the R10s while I don't sell my bass guitar, and have the plan of buying it again once I sell it. I'd seriously love to audition the R10s, but it's nearly impossible here in Brazil... as crazy as it seems, it's much easier to buy one! Larry, I enjoyed my 007 with the eXStatA, but then I didn't have any opportunity to listen to it with anything else apart from the Aristaeus. I also consider asking someone here in Brazil to build a KGSSHV to me, but I don't think it'll be easy!

Thanks arnaud, that's good to know as well. That's basically my only concern about the 009, being too bright. I had the (apparently erroneous) idea that the 727 was too cold, therefore not a good pairing with the 009. But judging from all I'm reading here, it seems there's nothing to worry about! I also spoke to Erico - the guy in Brazil that has the 009 and pretty much every Stax amp - and he confirmed that it's a good pairing in his opinion. He also said (Birgir, FWIW) that the GES wouldn't be good with it since the bass seriously lacks definition with it. I think he still has his GES and wasn't talking out of memory, so that's some good feedback there. There's an old 007t on eBay now, I read good things about it, is it worth considering? Or just not as good as either the 727 or 717? Sorry if I'm being annoying with all these questions, everyone!

Thanks padam, that's really helpful

An SRA-10S? Now that's something I didn't expect! That's one of those old sort of integrated amps that they did, isn't it? But well, as I don't have any sort of DIY knowledge, seems a bit too complicated for me. Still, it's somewhat funny that it's a good pairing, seems like one of those things you just don't expect. It's normal bias though, right? Did you convert it to pro bias? I'd be really interested about your opinions on the "fixed" GES once you get to it, as it sounded like a very cost effective solution. And padam, I've read good things about the unmodded 727 as well, but surprisingly nothing about the 323S, which seems to be the budget O2 amp nowadays. Any thoughts on that? Just another quick question... would you guys take a 009 with a modest amp (be it a 727, 717, 323S or even a GES) or an O2 with a BHSE, with a future upgrade in mind on both cases?

Oh, I'm aware of this story, Birgir! That's really messed up, I sincerely hope there's a good reason for that. And what amplifier is that? Seems interesting! That's basically the problem for me, I can handle a bright headphone for jazz or classical, as it suits these styles quite well. But anything brighter than an O2 or a JH13 for rock is simply unbearable. And the thing is that if a headphone is not bright and is good for rock, to me it doesn't lose any ability to do well in other styles, and I don't miss any treble tilt. So I'd rather have an overly dark headphone over an overly bright one anytime. The 009 seems astonishing by what people are saying, but if it's too bright... that would limit what I listen to with it! How would a GES pair with it? I remember hearing people say it was way too dark with the O2... maybe it suits the 009 well?

Oh dear... a simple (or complex, actually) guide on what not to do on Head-Case.

Nice!

Thanks a lot for the honest opinion everyone, I'm seriously taking a second look at my options now. Maybe even getting a BHSE and a 007 again (as I sold it, but only temporarily, while I don't sell my bass guitar) and 009 in the future if I like it. I guess I'll drive to São Paulo and have a listen to Erico's 009 and see what I think of it!

Now these are very good points... but when I think about headphones, I don't worry very much about this, as they seem to last for quite a long time. I did read on head-fi that those biocelullose drivers aren't meant to last for much more than 20 years though, and if this is the case, then I've definitely got something to worry about. Is a driver failure really a considerable risk? I mean, considerable enough for me to think twice about getting an R10?

Hey everyone, I was going to ask Milos directly, but I figured I might as well just ask in here. I finally have the cash to drop on an R10. Even with all the rave about the 009, the R10s seem more attractive to me because of their rarity, and I know that if I don't like them, I can probably just sell it at no loss and get a 009. But there's still something on the back of my head giving me doubts about which one I should get… so my question is, how do they compare? I know this is kind of a silly question, but I'm just curious about it… as much as I'm also interested about the new Stax, I'm somewhat worried about its brightness. A friend of mine heart both the 009 and the Orpheus and said that the former is brighter. Having heard the Orpheus a few times, I'm not sure I can handle any more treble than it delivers. I usually prefer a darker and warmer signature, and the 007 is to me sort of a landmark in terms of tonal balance. So well… sorry about the longish post, but how would you guys briefly compare the 009 to the R10?

I'm part of the minority here, in that I actually really like the K701. It definitely doesn't have a natural soundstage, but I feel that with the right system the bass is extremely well textured - if not the last word in impact -, the mids are really nice, striking a good balance between being revealing but also warm and intimate (again, with the right system) and the highs are good, but can be a little too strong sometimes. I just feel that it's a really elegant, airy and effortless presentation, and I thoroughly enjoy it! I like it better than both the HD600/650 and DT880, in fact.

I was always somewhat amazed with Philips headphones. They're honest and a surprisingly good value. Here in Brazil, where most people can't afford much in terms of audio, Philips phones are like a safe bet to aspiring audiophiles. And I was surprised with the ones I've listened to, they're really great for the price. By the way, did anyone see those Samsung tube dock and 7.1 receiver? To me that's just ludicrous.

Am I the only one in here that likes the looks of the HD700? I think it's fantastic, kinda like a tauter version of the 800. I always thought that those Pass Labs amps are some of the best looking audio gear available. The blue VU meters in the dark are the very definition of bad-ass. The Halcros and Nagras are pretty good looking as well. Not sure about Krell though... I'm studying to be an industrial designer myself, and designing audio equipment is sort of a dream to me.

There's a good point All this did make me reconsider my R10 goal, though... I think I'm still going for it, but now I'm considering 009s as an alternative.

I think people at the other forum are overreacting, but then what Edifier's been saying about making the company more profitable, introducing more affordable models ("with portable electrostatics as the main product") and using their production know-how, lowering the production costs, is seriously worrying. It seems as if they want to completely change how Stax does things.

livewire, I got this info from Burson themselves, but then it could just be a typo. 760mW makes a lot more sense! MayaTlab, and RudeWolf, I also find it sort of funny when some company specifies the output power but not the impedance. They might as well say nothing. It does sound great though - in fact, it sounds more tube-like than my Little Dot MKVI - and has enough power to get my AKG up to my listening levels.

Hey everyone, Sorry to bump this thread, but it seemed the best place for this. First, I just bought an Eartube, it should be here next week, and if anyone's interested I can give some feedback about this pairing! Second, I have a Burson HA-160D here from the loaner program, and was surprised to find out that it's perfectly capable of driving the K1000. While it doesn't make the AKGs do anything I've never seen before, it doesn't miss on anything significant either. What puzzles me is that it only outputs 120mW at 120 ohms. How on earth is this possible? I listen to music at pretty normal levels, so I don't think my "volume bar" is set too low. Why are its 120mW enough, then, given that the recommended power for the K1000's is a full W? I apologize if this is a stupid question, but it got me really curious.

I was really impressed with the M1 as well, I love the beefed up looks! But the 135i is already really nice, I wish it was possible to buy one of these here in Brazil... but at 125K dollars it simply isn't. But about the FWD thing, as far as I know it's no longer just a rumor, I think BMW already confirmed it, didn't they?

This has to be the coolest thing ever made in history. Just saw the whole thing, it's very nice! Especially the McLaren MP4 bit - I'm not very fond of it, but Jeremy's review is really entertaining, as always.