ChiUnuion-Fi

[purk]

They have a huge soundstage and they are crystal clear. The bass is slightly lacking in the same the way the bass is on a HE-90 comparing to a HE-60. I tried to compare them to my Baby-O's using a Stax 007t with 2 pro bias ports, but each time I have to volume match, so I lose the memory of each comparison. The soundstage is vertical as well as "back of head to tip of nose". Some people might feel that this is not a good thing when comparing to live music (except what you hear in Carnegie Hall). I personally find the soundstage quite satiating.

To sum it up, anyone who already owns a stat amp, should have one of these in their stable due to their low cost and close proximity of being an Orpheus clone. They are extremely comfortable and have no fatigue factor, actually quite the opposite. They are light and hold nicely without clamping on my head even while lying down. The detail is there and I can't really find anything downsides about them except for 2 flaws.

Where the cables enter each cup, there is no shrink tubing or epoxy, so there is a chance that a mistaken "cord stepping" could cause the wires to be stressed. Also the 3 connecting wires to the stator/membranes are exposed inside the cups and I feel they should be covered to separate 600V biasing from a wet head or dust build up. I have discussed this with the manufacturer, so we will see if my issues are addressed when the production model surfaces.

The current model comes bundled with a SS amp for ~ $1350, which I found was bright during some extremely high crescendos, but later found out that it was a 240V version with a Rat Shack stepup transformer that was underpowered for the task. It had 2 40 watt transformers, when it is believed that it needs 2 60 watt. That, plus the amp only had a couple of hours of play before the meet. Being that it needs a 600V biasing, I'm happy using my GES or a 007t as a substitute.

Taking into consideration that it is a reverse engineered (I assume) clone, for the money they are equal to or better than the more expensive 60's and O2's and are a keeper. Of course the build quality isn't up to Sennheiser standards, but then again, I feel that the 90's swivel cups are flaky and could have been better built for $7500 and screws fall out easily on the Orpheus..

I have some stats:

Type : Electrostatic open-air type headphone

Frequency Range : 10-50000Hz

Capacitance, including cable : 140pF

Sensitivity : 100dB/100V r.m.s.

Earpad : Leather

Bias voltage : 600 V / DC

I'm still inquiring about warranty and the concern of repair issues (not needing to send them back to China).

Thanks for the info. Is the clone Orpheus use the same driver elements as the original HE90I? The original matched driver elements for the HE60 are listed at 300 USD while the HE90 elements are listed over 2700 USD. I'm very curious about the aspect of driver elements actually.

[Jon L]

Pics:

Could you also tell the manufacturer he will likely see much higher sales if he changes that 5 pin XLR to a real Stax plug? Ditto for his 'stat amps. In fact, I'll order one right now if it comes with Stax plug.

I would also appreciate a little more impressions re HE90, HE60 vs. clone as far as the important midrange such as level of resolution, speed, darkness (as in O2), and texture

Heck, if it's as good as you say, I'll keep it and sell my Headphile HE60

[neilvg]

Could you also tell the manufacturer he will likely see much higher sales if he changes that 5 pin XLR to a real Stax plug? Ditto for his 'stat amps. In fact, I'll order one right now if it comes with Stax plug.

I would also appreciate a little more impressions re HE90, HE60 vs. clone as far as the important midrange such as level of resolution, speed, darkness (as in O2), and texture

Heck, if it's as good as you say, I'll keep it and sell my Headphile HE60

You have my headphiled HE60?

Neil

[JBLoudG20]

Meh, I hope they sound great, cause they LOOK cheap.

[neilvg]

Just purchased this headphone. Curious to see how it sounds. They will send it to me as soon as they can. I remember meeting Feng from head-direct at the international earlier this year.

Neil

[Jon L]

Just purchased this headphone. Curious to see how it sounds. They will send it to me as soon as they can. I remember meeting Feng from head-direct at the international earlier this year.

Neil

Neil, are they going to send you an adapter for the 5 pin XLR plug?

Oh, yeah, I do believe the woodied Headphile HE60 used to be yours. When I bought it, I didn't realize you almost gave it away and paid "normal" price

[bhd812]

in life they don't look that bad really, little better finish on the wood but honestly they are better then some Grados i have seen. i would buy them for their cost with the Finish they have now...

the leather is like the Audio tech leather from the 5000's, amazingly soft.

[neilvg]

They come with a stax termination - as per Fang's email.

Neil

[Nanoha]

in life they don't look that bad really, little better finish on the wood but honestly they are better then some Grados i have seen. i would buy them for their cost with the Finish they have now...

the leather is like the Audio tech leather from the 5000's, amazingly soft.

Yeah, it actually doesn't look too bad.

They come with a stax termination - as per Fang's email.

Neil

Good news!

[deepak]

this is the kind of thing that might suck me back into headphones

Nice!

[Salt Peanuts]

this is the kind of thing that might suck me back into headphones

Come back to the Dark Side...

[deepak]

Come back to the Dark Side...

I would say speakers are the dark side

[Salt Peanuts]

I would say speakers are the dark side

http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/7914/welcometothedarksideed7.jpg

Good point, especially considering this is a headphone related site.

[immtbiker]

I received an e-mail from the manufacturer who I sent the link to of this thread, so he can better understand the needs potential buyers (quality control, Stax adapters and so on).

He wants everyone to know that this is not a reverse engineered clone. He says that this is a project that has been in the works for many years, and that is why he created a SS amp and a tube amp together with the phones that has 5 pin XLR. He made the first prototype pair of these in 2003, being that the only company still making electrostats at that time was Stax.

In an effort to not be considered a shill for the manufacturer, I'm going to step back for a while (until my review) and let the first buyers post their impressions, especially neilvg, who I feel has a good set of ears. There will be people who love them and people who don't (as with any cans).

To my ears, for the money, the sound is excellent and compares with headphones that cost a lot, lot more. YMMV.

[spritzer]

Designing an electrostatic headphone is far from rocket science but they are borrowing heavily from the HE90 and HE60 in the design and driver mounting. There is nothing wrong with that as I've borrowed a lot from Stax in my own research and learned from their mistakes. The product has clearly evolved as they now use leather pads as the old velour ones aren't suitable for planars. They've also done some work on the drivers or how the mount them but that cable has to go as the specs clearly show how much of an effect it is having on the phones. 140pf is very high but there could also be some shunt capacitance increasing the load. These phones could be pretty good with a few mods but spend 500$ on a wooden housing for the SR-404 and there should be some real competition though it's really the SR-SC1 it has to beat. I would take one for the team but I just spent some 8k$ on a new source...

[neilvg]

I will definitely post impressions as soon as I can. However, I don't exactly know how long I will be waiting to receive them. Fang has informed me he is pushing the manufacturer to send them to me by China Express as soon as possible. We'll see.

Anyway, Spritzer and whoever else that has an opinion, what kinds of mods do you see that this thing may need?

Neil

[spritzer]

Better driver mounting if they copied that from the HE90, tweaks to the earpads to find the best size and shape of them, replacing the outer grill as they could ring due to their design, the housing could use some tweaking but it's hard to see unless I have the phones in my hands.

It's really nice to have some competition in the electrostatic market as all those dynamics are ever so boring and I'm running out of phones to buy...

Repairs shouldn't be a problem if you can buy everything extra with the phones, drivers, bunch of earpads and extra housings. Has anybody inquired about that?

[MaloS]

Can someone inquire with them about making an adapter for them? I would rather be able to use a speaker amp...

[spritzer]

A cheap-ish adapter would be a welcome addition with the sky high prices of any Stax Pro units.

[spritzer]

what did you get?

APL Denon 3910 fully upgraded to the latest 32 bit dacs. It's on its way now to APL for the upgrades and I should have it sometime in December. I'll get an NWO later on but this will be great until then. Now if I could only get the replacement drive for the G08 so I can sell it...

[spritzer]

I certainly hope so. I'm not expecting miracles but it should be clear step in the right direction with the updated output stage. I will also save a bundle as there is no need for volume pots on any of my new amps.

[philodox]

He wants everyone to know that this is not a reverse engineered clone. He says that this is a project that has been in the works for many years, and that is why he created a SS amp and a tube amp together with the phones that has 5 pin XLR. He made the first prototype pair of these in 2003, being that the only company still making electrostats at that time was Stax.

I'm sure he has put a lot of work into this, but not admitting to it being reverse engineered could just be a way of covering his ass. Now, I don't know this guy, and I'm not trying to say he is untrustworthy, but it is possible.

[immtbiker]

This is true, but I figured I'd pass it on.

I ordered a pair at the NY Meet, so I'm glad that they will be shipping soon.

If anything, I would like anyone who knows anything about headphone cabling to look into what's OEM, and if the sound can be improved with a different cable. The prototype has a unique green cloth covering, but I'm not sure what's inside. As long as people will want a cable that comes with a Stax termination built-in, instead of an adapter, maybe a Stefan Art or Equinox replacement could kick it up a notch.

[spritzer]

While the quality of the conductor matters it much more dependent on capacitance and how the dielectric handles high voltages. Most of the "cable specialists" don't know a single thing about that. Unless somebody is willing to have a silver version of the Stax Wide cable made I'm sticking with it.

[Voltron]

I'm sure he has put a lot of work into this, but not admitting to it being reverse engineered could just be a way of covering his ass. Now, I don't know this guy, and I'm not trying to say he is untrustworthy, but it is possible.

There's nothing illegal about reverse-engineering, so I'm not clear on why somebody would want to cover his ass if that is true. If there is a valid patent, which I doubt, that might be a different story, but normal copying of products available to the public is not a violation of law.