catscratch

Out of Stax brand amps, I've used the 313, 007t, and 717, and preferred the 717 by a good margin. Considering the similarities between that and the KGSS, the suggestion is a very good one, if you can swing it. The L700 does tend to be a touch bright though and you may need a bit of EQ to get the highs to behave. It's not bad however, I don't use more than 4db anywhere. JimL's suggestion is the most cost effective solution for a good amp by far. I would say that they're not too amp picky and even very basic amps sound decent... as long as they're good amps.

Sounds like they're trying to steer customers to stuff that doesn't sell to clear out inventory... Anyway, never heard the Jade 2 so I can't judge, but having lived with the L700 for a couple of years, I think you'll be happy. Maybe not the last word in technicality or accuracy but a very engaging, vivid, and musical sounding headphone that I've enjoyed about as much as anything I've had over the years. Very punchy and dynamic sounding too.

If this works out and is good, I'll most likely get a pair too. Definitely appreciate the transparency from the manufacturer. My only concern at this point is the detachable cable. I'm not sure if high voltage bias lines, detachable cables, and aftermarket cable manufacturers that have no clue what they're doing are a good mix. Otherwise looks very promising.

DIY Audio Heaven tested a M&J headphone with this design including frequency response for each driver. https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/headphones/measurements/mitchell-johnson-jp1-dj/ There appears to be no crossover. The dynamic driver contributes most of the sound while the electret pretty much plays in the background. The FR is a mess. At least the cheapo version I can understand, but for hundreds of dollars? Thanks for the teardown.

Thanks for the offer, but no, I don't have them anymore. I had like 3 or 4 pairs at one point.

No. They needed a good fit or they would sound off, too dull with a big dip in the upper mids. With the headband, I couldn't get them positioned right, and without the headband, they wouldn't stay in my ears unless the tips were physically big enough to be wedged inside the ear firmly enough to stay put. Then they would cause pain after 15 minutes and my ears would literally swell shut for days. So I couldn't use them. Yeah, they sounded great. What Kevin said is spot on. I preferred them over most things, especially for vocals. I don't know if the new one has a different driver, and I haven't tried the new tips. Sadly, as I get older, ergonomics only become more important.

Where do you see L300 measurements in that thread? I only see L300LE. The only comparative measurements for the L300 I've seen are Tyll's and the ones here. As to whether or not they're more or less linear than previous Lambdas, see for yourself. My L700 audibly rolls off in the bass but as spritzer said, not that much. There is still audible extension down to 20hz, but sub-bass is quieter than it should be. Not a big deal IMO. Also I wear glasses that break the seal. The SR-003 I had and really liked how it sounded but the fit was awful to the point of actually causing pain after about 10 minutes, so I gave up on using them. That was with the old tips and the old drivers. Looking at the new tips, I'm still skeptical. Lastly, using aftermarket pads, especially non-Lambda ones, on Lambdas is something I'd be careful with. The driver/ear distance in an electrostat is important and changing it will change the sound.

Well from what I remember Koss hasn't changed the original ESP950 since it was introduced, which was in the early 90s. A few years ago they were hit with a massive embezzlement crisis where a high ranking employee stole millions from the company. They're not exactly the world's biggest headphone manufacturer either, and I'm guessing that must have hurt. Considering that the 950 is a low volume marginal product, and everything else that has happened to them, spending R&D time fixing the original's issues or developing a thoroughly optimized new version is probably not high on the priorities list. Still, if you want one, I second Purk's suggestion to get the original, and I've seen them retail as low as $400, though that was some years ago too. The price will fluctuate and if you're not in a rush to get one now, there will certainly be a good deal to be had. That is, if you don't want to buy an L300 instead.

Cloth earpads that produce lint and drivers with no dust covers. What could possibly go wrong? I wonder how the warranty would work on these. Do you send them in to Koss in the usual way or do you have to go through Massdrop? If there is the usual lifetime warranty it might not be that bad... I still wouldn't though, until they get some dust covers.

These are not the forums you're looking for. Also, get the Massdrop HD58X and save your money.

RIP McCain. One less good man in Washington, now.

I've said it before, but I guess it bears repeating... I have no idea why Sonoma Acoustics went with a Warwick Audio driver for their statement headphone, since that driver was designed to be a modular, low-cost alternative to a traditional electrostatic driver. They would have been better off with just about any other high-end driver, including off-the-shelf dynamic ones... but I guess you can't charge $5k for a system if you use plain vanilla dynamic drivers. Or maybe you can these days, considering the crazy prices everyone else is charging. The FR looks quite nice in Tyll's measurements, and I'm guessing there's a lot of nifty DSP work going on in there to massage some semblance of neutrality out of these drivers, but it's wasted effort that would be better spent on something that performs well in the first place. Hopefully if they do a follow up headphone, they'll use an actual high end driver.

Happy belated indeed Remember: when your spirits are low, use a straw!

People have been spreading the idea that driver/ear distance with Lambdas doesn't matter and you can use whatever pads you want, and it's become common knowledge. I guess 10db of midbass hump and nothing below 50hz qualifies as great bass to people.

RIP TB. Pretty much the first youtuber I ever seriously watched. The gaming industry is today just a bit worse off than it was yesterday.

I'm also impressed with the Gilmore Lite Mk2, got mine a few days ago. Clean, smooth, transparent, very nice with the HD650 and Focal Clear.

I've emailed Stax in the past and gotten a response in English. So either someone speaks it over there, or Google translate does. But the sad truth of being a small company is that you never have enough time, people, or money to do everything that you need to do. So them simply not having gotten around to translating everything, or not wanting to spend the money to hire someone to do it, is pretty understandable.

I'm guessing that number is exaggerated because people who haven't had problems are probably less likely to either find this poll or vote in it. Generally, polls like that are hardly accurate or scientific. Still, the warning about buying from authorized dealers stands. I've read elsewhere of focal drivers potentially running out of excursion at high spl, and I wonder if that relates to more frequent driver failure.

+1 to Jim's warning about preserving hearing. Hearing damage is permanent, and it may also not manifest immediately. If your ears are ringing, or feel like they're stuffed with cotton, then that's your ears telling you to stop. It's also a good idea to test your hearing (you can do that at home with a test tone generator) and see what your high frequency extension is, and if it's below the average for your age, you should also probably consider backing off the knob a bit. I used the O2 Mk1 for years almost exclusively and didn't notice any serious distortion, but I also rarely listened at super high volumes.

I thought linking stuff from here was grounds for gulag time over there? Or are they making a special exception? This all reminds me of when Audio-GD first appeared and the shilling pretty much took over the entire amp section on HF. I wonder if that hurt or helped AGD in the long run, but I certainly hesitate now when I consider buying something from them, even though by all accounts the products themselves are quite good. It's too bad, we need more quality electrostatics on the market and preferably not very expensive ones, but we don't need con jobs masquerading as legitimate products.

I can get behind fur earpads on electrostats, but only if they also remove the dust covers for maximum sound clarity.

Happy holidays all. To 2017: good riddance. To 2018: I'll be watching you

So, uh, weird question. Are Stax diaphragm materials affected by long term exposure to direct sunlight? What about light in general? Should I keep them under a dark cover to maximize longevity?

Leaving aside any dubious benefits of this passing, about 80% or so of America doesn't actually want this (iirc). Correct me if I'm wrong, but willfully passing regulation that most of your voter base doesn't want you to pass sounds awfully like governing without the consent of the governed. At this point I consider the FCC a rogue organization operating against the will and well-being of the people, though the same can be said about an awful lot of the US government lately. I'll give our government one thing though, it sure has increased transparency. As in, its mean-spirited, money-grabbing, lobbyist-pleasing motives have never been more transparent. They're setting themselves up for a reckoning... I think. Or I hope?

All this Ayre talk prompted me to pick up a used QB-9 DSD. Now, I have to hijack the thread with a question: while it seems to work fine, and sounds good, there is an audible buzz coming from the transformer. It's not loud enough to really hear over my PC fans when the computer's on, but when it's off, and the DAC is on standby, the buzz is audible. It's also audible if I put my ear close to it. Is this something I should worry about? I've yet to open it up and take a poke around, but given that I know nothing it'll be about as useful as dissecting myself to figure out why my stomach hurts. However there are 2 screws in the center of the base plate that are missing, I guess I'll see what they should be holding down and if that might be contributing to this.