Buzzlulu

I rarely post here (only lurk to do research and buy an amplifier from Birgir ) however I had the opportunity to stop by Justin’s booth at CanJam and had a listen to the Brooklyn Bridge all in one. I was completely blown away - even more so when listening to the new GSX Mini fronting it and bypassing the internal amplifier. My primary listening is 2 channel TOTL Naim/Linn however that $3k Mytek was truly something else. A Brooklyn Bridge/GSXMini at under $5k will run rings around a lot of high priced systems. It is also a veritable Swiss Army Knife - UpnP, ROON, WiFi, and it will accept an attached USB hard drive and you can use the Mytek iOS app to scan and play music off of it. Back to lurking Best Gregg

Thank you for the logical explanation - makes sense in this particular case for Stax headphones. My experience with speakers (bespoke Kudos, Neat, Naim, Linn) is that all purchase drivers from a supplier (frequently SEAS), cabinets from another - and simply serve as the final assembly point (well they also did design them). None of them put any significant hours on the speakers prior to shipping. Since the drivers are "moving parts", internal wiring needs to come up to speed, internal crossovers with their components (caps etc.) the same, hence "break in" for speakers (at least the one's I am familiar with). Electronics - Naim - notorious for break in. Easily a month - and for general usage must remain powered up 24/7. Why - who knows - thats just the way it is. Break in - love it or leave it. Thanks again for the Stax explanation - and sorry for the two channel digression. Now time to sit down and listen to the 009S and compare. Only problem - handicapped by a 353XBK. A big handicap????

Well maybe true with estat headphones. I need to get my head away from my two channel Naim/Linn because there speaker break-in is real - and amps/preamps wow. 5 weeks to come on song. Once broken in - just lose electricity for a few hours (as they are powered on 24/7) and they take another 2 days to come back on song. I guess on estats no moving parts like on speakers or dynamic headphones. My Utopias definitely improved with break-in. Gregg - (and Birgir I'm still alive) (time to unpack my 009S)

Disappointed - however - compared to the (possibly) outgoing 009 worse, same, or better - or in other words when confronted with the choice of purchasing either the 009 or 009S? AND - how long do these puppies need to break in?

Nice to hear that the issue is still problematic! Encouraging for new users (ie me) who would consider climbing on the train for more of the ride. Maybe the development of the new "s" will have yielded them some insight on how to rectify or minimize these issues. For now I will enjoy my new L300 Limited. As a new owner a question - in my Naim 2 channel land we leave all boxes powered on 24/7. Turn them off and they take 2 days to come back on song. I noticed that my 353x runs quite warm (powered 24/7). What is normal practice - leave it running 24/7 or powered up only when used? As more 300 Limited's get delivered I would be curious if people determine whether these scale up in performance with better amps - or if it's natural Stax partner the 353 extracts from them all they are capable of giving?

Got it - thanks I ask because "smoother and more refined" on the "s" version does not appeal. My main listening is Naim 2 channel (PRAT) so smooth is definitely out. Interesting that they will be keeping both versions of the 009. On a side note my first foray into the Stax world is my newly arrived L300 Limited and 353. I am EXTREMELY happy. It is easy to understand why Stax for years has always been held in such high esteem amongst Naim users. The L300L/353x combination, imho, is an amazing value. I also have the Utopia here so $1700 Stax headphone/amp vs. $4000 Utopia is quite remarkable.

Is this still an issue today or has it been rectified?

Thank you for the reply. I always believe in going with my gut feeling and mine was that I felt the 700's were the weakest of the three. Take what I say with a grain of salt (being new to Stax) however I did read that the 700 is not responsive to an amp like the 353 which was being used in the demo and requires something more. But then again you cannot always believe what you read! What are the differences between the 300 and 500? I read pads - anything else? For some reason I am leaning towards the 300 Limited - I know that it is an unknown however, if for anything, Stax seems to imply that they will be "better" than standard 300's Thanks PS - which of the amplifier's on your site pairs up with an intro 300 setup (I guess your alternative to the Stax made 353?)?

Hi I guess I will walk into the Lion's den! All kidding aside a new user here looking to jump on the Stax gravy train. Last year I jumped back into headphones after a 15 year absence - mostly spent with my 2 channel system which takes most of my time. I put together a tight system with the Utopia headphones and the new Sony Signature series Z1R/WM1Z and their TA-ZH1ES Dac/Amp. I am now looking to start with a small stand alone Stax system - partly because Stax is so highly regarded in my 2 channel world (Naim/Linn) and also because of a demo I had at my first CanJam last year of the 009/Blue Hawaii at the HeadAmp booth. I still cannot get that demo out of my mind one year later. With that said I do not want to jump full blast in (like I did with my Utopia's) and have been thinking about a stand alone Lambda system. I visited the Woo audio booth on Saturday at CanJam and had the opportunity to demo a 300 Anniversary and 500L through the 353 Anniversary amp. After that they were able to get their pair of 700's which were on loan at another show booth for me to demo - however the time I was able to spend with those was extremely short - just a quick few minutes. My first listen to the 300 anniversary's impressed me quite a bit however when I stepped up to the 500's I felt that everything improved. Better bass foundation and more realistic timber to the instruments as well as a more "mature" sound - and a bit less strident. My brief few moments with the 700 did not leave me thinking it was a step up. Bass was stronger however a bit muddy and it tended to cloud the out of head soundstage and airiness. The 353 amp was quite nice with all three headphones. For some reason I came away thinking the 500L was the sweet spot of all three. Better than the anniversary - and without the increased bass which I felt muddied things up. Looking to get some feedback here. I would have thought the 300 Anniversary would have been the sweet spot of the line considering it utilized certain parts of the 700? How is the 500 considered by people here? Thanks PS the only thing which clouds the issue is that I forgot to look at the 300's I was demoing to confirm they were 100% the anniversary edition (with the gold Stax tag). I emailed Woo and they said that hey were - however for some reason I am just not sure. The person at the booth was not the most knowledgeable and provided several bits of inaccurate information. They looked a bit beat up to be a brand new model!