tyrion Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 HE90 hog Or anti-social. It was nice to meet most of you and see some of you again Zach, where were you? I know I didn't drink enough to forget meeting you.
grawk Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 I'll take the hit for no name tags. I had them, I forgot them at home. That's Zach on the right
tyrion Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 I was sitting there in the group and I had no idea that was Zach.
Dusty Chalk Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 (edited) Oh, okay, thanks for that. Hey, Dan -- why are half your pictures too dark, but all of the ones with me in it came out fine? I would have thought that I had that effect on film, virtual or otherwise. Like everyone else said, Justin's BHSE is just absolutely mind-blowingly good. He really accomplished that realistic clean sound that I love, took it to the next level (his electrostatic amps are already top-tier). I've heard Hirsch's ES-1 before, in fact, I've heard it's sound evolve, so I'm probably a little too close to that one to even know how good it is. But as Aaron said, it sounds really good. And no, he was not being anti-social, as he was being very social both before and after, he really was absolutely entranced by the ES-1/Orpheus/Denon system. I'm going to go out on a limb and say I fucking hated the ESW9's. You guys were talking about mud on the Oppo? You don't know the meaning of the word until you hear what I've heard. Fucking swamp-like. Audibly rolled off. Sorry Vicki et al -- just not a sound for me. Might've been the amplification, I wasn't listening to it in its indigenous system. Oh, and screw the NDA's -- I'm coming out of the closet. I heard bass out of an R10. It's a pretty good headphone. I don't know if it's a -- how much are they going for these days, $5K? -- I don't know if it's even a $3K headphone, but it's pretty fucking good. Once I heard the bass, I had to take them off and give StevieO a hard time for not telling me there were a pair of perfectly good, non-broken, R10's that had bass in the DC area (I.E. his). I'm not saying Hirsch's are broken, but they sound like completely different headphones. I hearby officially tender my resignation from the "R10's have no bass" club. I didn't get dreadhead's system working right away, so I won't comment on that. Wouldn't have minded giving that more time, as I am seriously thinking about a DEQ2496, but at the time I was just frustrated with the learning curve (ahem). Hirsch's portable Stax system sounded really fucking good. I could live with that. More later. Edited August 4, 2008 by Dusty Chalk
CD44hi Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 This is Copy/Paste from H-F sans the comments on people doing some crazy silly stuff, that should not happen.... Great meet, thanks to GrAwk for organizing it! Of the rigs I listened: VPI’s Cary 303/300 (I think), feeding a Rockhooper Audio KGSS to a pair of Omega II MKI. Very transparent rig, good impact and the mids were there! I don’t know, but in my brief listening sessions with the OIIs in other systems, I have felt the mids to be a bit recessed sometimes. In this system, the mids were well represented. I think VPI got himself a good electrostatic combination. Since I am in the electrostatic area, I heard Tkam’s APL Denon 3910 into a HeadAmp KGSS feeding the Omega II, MK II. Oh man talk about effortless music presentation. The most impressive thing about the whole rig was how natural the detail and ambiance was presented, no sense of artificiality at all. Ingwe’s Ayre CX-7 Cd player was feeding a Bryston preamp, I didn’t get the model number on this one, then driving directly from the balanced outputs a pair of Headphiled AKG-K340. I think Ingwe mentioned there that the k340’s were not his, but they were hooked in his system when I listened. The sound had nice impact and it had good level of detail. Overall, the sound was too bright for my taste, but not overtly, just a tad bright. Nautikal, he had a DVD player (that is not usually in his system, I believe his source is a computer bases one.), feeding a Darkvoice (don’t know the model), then driving a pair of re-cabled AKG-K701. Well, this sounded really good, nice balanced sound. I owned the K701 and I got very fatigued after about an hour of listening. I did not listened to Nautikal’s rig for an hour, but it was clear to me that the harshness of the K701’s was gone in his system. I think if you are contemplating an amp that will mate well with the K701 cans, then the Darkvoice should be one to deserve strong consideration! Well done Nautikal that was a nice sounding system. I listened to Dreadhead’s GS-X based system. Please do not ask me to recall all the details of this convoluted set-up, because it involved several items in chain, but I’ll do my best: Dell Laptop as transport, to a USB/optical converter, to a Sound Processor (which I do not recall the brand) to a Bel Canto DAC3, feeding a HeadAmp GS-X. In this set-up I heard the denon D5000, sony mdr-sa5000 and Sennheirser HD560, all in balanced configuration. My favorites were the Senn’s, followed by the Denon’s and then the Sony’s. Going to try to hook-up the GS-x to my cd player to listen since I am looking for a balanced solid state amp, albeit to my chagrin Dreadhead left early, before I had a chance to ask. Next time! Got to listen to the UE-11pro and compare them to my UE-10pro. No question, the 11 are much more musical and more punchy. In comparison the 10s are flatter sounding. If I had to start from scratch, I would most likely pick the 11s, but already having the ue-10pro, I am not sure that what I heard from the 11s would justify, in my humble opinion, getting this additional pair. Now if UE had a “upgrade program” or “trade-in” program, I will seriously consider the change. The Audio Technica ATH-EWS9, surprisingly smooth. Out of the ipod touch sounded quite nice. I am getting a pair in the future. I liked them. The sound was the “good” type of AT sound. Like a baby, baby, baby L3000 sound signature. This is a light comparison, just regarding the general tonal balance. I do not think the EWS have the resolution and kick of the L3000, just the same general tonal balance. Also heard from Justin that he had fiddled with the volume control of the pico to allow for more control on the earlier field of the volume pot (region 6-9). This was my only grief with this great dac/amp as for most of my material the gain was way to high for the UE10pro at my listening levels. Look forward to listening to this.
Voltron Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 Man, East Coast Counsel's NDAs must be better than I thought because this is one dry impressions thread! Where is the drama? Where is Stevieo behaving badly? Where is all the beer/whisky/controlled substances? Looks like you actually had meet at the meet. Oh well, I hope it was fun. I also hope Guzzi got linked back up with Vicki because just as I was entering Glacier National Park with my family and a French foursome following along, Ken called me for Vicki's cell phone number. Life in the communications age...
aardvark baguette Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 I didnt realize there was a Bel Canto there. (not that I was there, just the post 2 spots above is the mention I've seen of it)
guzziguy Posted August 4, 2008 Report Posted August 4, 2008 Man, East Coast Counsel's NDAs must be better than I thought because this is one dry impressions thread! Where is the drama? Where is Stevieo behaving badly? Where is all the beer/whisky/controlled substances? Looks like you actually had meet at the meet. Oh well, I hope it was fun. I also hope Guzzi got linked back up with Vicki because just as I was entering Glacier National Park with my family and a French foursome following along, Ken called me for Vicki's cell phone number. Life in the communications age... Hi Al. Hope your vacation is going well and that my phone calls didn't interrupt it too badly. Yes, we all got linked up back together. Thanks again for your help. Also, Steveio was on his best behavior, so nothing interesting to report there. I slept all afternoon. As soon as I wake up, I'll post my pictures and impressions.
Dusty Chalk Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 Juan -- that processor was the Behringer DEQ2496. It's a popular favorite in the audiophile community for those that are not averse to EQ, mostly because it can be utilized entirely in the digital realm.hehe, and i bet it wasn't even out of a 300SEI! No, I think it was out of Juan's modified EarMax Pro...? I have no doubt it would have at least adequate bass out of pretty much any half-way decent amp. Not a bass monster, mind you, but at least it was there. Unfortunately, I forgot to go back and listen to hear if it still had the detail as the others I've heard (I've heard it doesn't), so I have no idea where it ranks in Dusty's Headphone Canon, but it's definitely already higher than the other one, just for getting some amount of bass right. Oh, and yeah, I agree with Juan about the Darkvoice/K701 combination -- they sounded really good together. Oh, and yeah, thanks to grawk for organizing it -- he really did make it look effortless and did a wonderful job -- I don't think I heard a single complaint. The room was perfect.
VPI Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 I also hope Guzzi got linked back up with Vicki because just as I was entering Glacier National Park with my family and a French foursome following along, Ken called me for Vicki's cell phone number. Life in the communications age... Yes we did hook up with Vicki and Justin for lunch. I left Ken on the street as a beacon and then drove through the parking lot looking for a white, or maybe red, small car that we thought might have been a Chevy. Of course we had just seen Justin's rental car 4 minutes earlier but I guess we're not the most observant guys. Somehow we got back together. As far as impressions go I listened to a few great systems. Juan's custom amp and Burmester were officially miracle workers as I actually enjoyed listening to the w1000s through this setup and I have been known to avoid the side of the room a set of AT woodies are sitting to ensure I don't accidentally listen to them. I am not typically a fan if I was not clear. Michael (Ingwe) had a huge set up for someone that traveled across several states. This was my first experience with the Duet. I really need to get one of these. I didn't hear any balanced phones out of the Bryston but the Senn's with a MacBook Pro and Duet as source sounded quite good. I listened to both the UE-10 and UE-11. I thought the UE-10 was good but the UE-11s, while possibly less accurate, were a more interesting listen. I was actually thinking about custom graphics I will be getting on mine on the drive back to NYC. I was really looking forward to hearing the BHSE so I got to that side of the room pretty quickly after Justin got it set up. The sound was as advertised and this amp is by far the best I have heard for the Omega IIs. Very, very good. I really appreciate Dan and the MD/DC/VA people letting me crash the party. It was truly a great group of people to spend the weekend with.
grawk Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 (edited) If you get the UE11s, be sure to mention that you decided because of the dc meet. That'll keep them sending the generics to meets. Edited August 5, 2008 by grawk
Grand Enigma Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 I dont remember seeing me there either so dont worry about it.
Dreadhead Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 I didn't realize that someone had problems with my setup. Next time just ask. I'm a proud papa and happy to help anyone listen to my system. It was my DAC3. I love it like the child I don't have.... I had not hear of Head Case but hey some idiot invited me over.... Oh and who was bogarting the R-10's? I never even saw them and I was dying to try them. If they are still in the DC metro area I will buy whoever owns them a LOT of beer/scotch/whatever in Old Town Alexandria if they come and visit me with them. Oh, okay, thanks for that. Hey, Dan -- why are half your pictures too dark, but all of the ones with me in it came out fine? I would have thought that I had that effect on film, virtual or otherwise. Like everyone else said, Justin's BHSE is just absolutely mind-blowingly good. He really accomplished that realistic clean sound that I love, took it to the next level (his electrostatic amps are already top-tier). I've heard Hirsch's ES-1 before, in fact, I've heard it's sound evolve, so I'm probably a little too close to that one to even know how good it is. But as Aaron said, it sounds really good. And no, he was not being anti-social, as he was being very social both before and after, he really was absolutely entranced by the ES-1/Orpheus/Denon system. I'm going to go out on a limb and say I fucking hated the ESW9's. You guys were talking about mud on the Oppo? You don't know the meaning of the word until you hear what I've heard. Fucking swamp-like. Audibly rolled off. Sorry Vicki et al -- just not a sound for me. Might've been the amplification, I wasn't listening to it in its indigenous system. Oh, and screw the NDA's -- I'm coming out of the closet. I heard bass out of an R10. It's a pretty good headphone. I don't know if it's a -- how much are they going for these days, $5K? -- I don't know if it's even a $3K headphone, but it's pretty fucking good. Once I heard the bass, I had to take them off and give StevieO a hard time for not telling me there were a pair of perfectly good, non-broken, R10's that had bass in the DC area (I.E. his). I'm not saying Hirsch's are broken, but they sound like completely different headphones. I hearby officially tender my resignation from the "R10's have no bass" club. I didn't get dreadhead's system working right away, so I won't comment on that. Wouldn't have minded giving that more time, as I am seriously thinking about a DEQ2496, but at the time I was just frustrated with the learning curve (ahem). Hirsch's portable Stax system sounded really fucking good. I could live with that. More later.
n_maher Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 I had not hear of Head Case but hey some idiot invited me over....Welcome to the nuthouse.
Dusty Chalk Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 I didn't realize that someone had problems with my setup. Next time just ask. I'm a proud papa and happy to help anyone listen to my system.Well, I did ask how to engage and disengage the EQ (and you did help), but now that I think about it, the first headphone I tried was the ESW9's, which just was not working in your setup, and the combined frustration I was feeling with listening to the ESW9's and not figuring out the DEQ2496 ...by that time, I just said, fuck it. The R10's were StevieO's. He might just take you up on that offer, since it's Virginia and not Maryland, but ... you sure you want to do that? Welcome to Head-Case, sorry about your thin skin.
CD44hi Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 Oh and who was bogarting the R-10's? I never even saw them and I was dying to try them. If they are still in the DC metro area I will buy whoever owns them a LOT of beer/scotch/whatever in Old Town Alexandria if they come and visit me with them. StevieO put them out rather late during the afternoon, I think you had left by then.
Dreadhead Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 Welcome to Head-Case, sorry about your thin skin. Oh and you forgot a thick skull
hirsch Posted August 5, 2008 Report Posted August 5, 2008 Oh and who was bogarting the R-10's? I never even saw them and I was dying to try them. If they are still in the DC metro area I will buy whoever owns them a LOT of beer/scotch/whatever in Old Town Alexandria if they come and visit me with them. There are several R10's living in the area. I've got two of them (one SE, one balanced) but they do have a different driver than Stevio's, which leads to bigger image but less bass response. I like the higher resolution of the "bass light" version myself. I had a pair of the heavier bass R10's, but the staging felt compressed and I didn't enjoy them as much, so they got sold.
boomana Posted August 6, 2008 Report Posted August 6, 2008 Well, I'm a bit slow, but thanks mucho to Dan for putting this together. My favorite part of the meet was, well, meeting folks: tkam, dusty, grand enigma, morphsci, hirsch, CD44hi, cetoole, the slacker brothers, humanflyz, and others I'm too lazy to remember or look up user names. Special thanks to vpi for lunch, dinner, and the drive to the airport. I didn't really listen to much gear, but zeroed in on my soon to be future rigs. I'm not sure what happened at the California meet, but as I mentioned earlier, the KGBH SE/O2 rig, sourced this time with Todd's old, now mine, APL Phillips impressed me as much as it did at CanJam. I'm now really excited to get mine in the Fall (hopefully). The rest of my time was spent with the UE10s and 11s, using an ipod as a source with and without the pico, and later with my macbook and pico. Dan generously let me take them with me on the airplane and I pretty much spent all of Sunday evening and night and also Monday morning going back and forth between the two. I ended up choosing the 11s, but not easily or without hesitation, as they are sometimes just on the cusp of having too much bass. The 10s, as VPI pointed out, are probably more accurate, but are also less engaging. Both impressed me thoroughly, but I thought about what I wanted iems for in the first place, how and where I'd be using them, and I chose those that engaged me most. We'll see. I'm still a little nervous. UE already has my impressions. I'm hoping to have them in a couple weeks. My other listening adventures were brief and pleasing, but as my attention was pretty directed, I only recall enjoying what I heard without specifics. That's it for now.
tyrion Posted August 6, 2008 Report Posted August 6, 2008 My only issue with the UE11 was that I thought they crossed the line for me in terms of too much bass. I just don't know how much of that was related to the fit issues I had with the universal. Did I mention how much I enjoyed Juan's modded Earmax? If that baby is ever for sale, keep me in mind. stevieo, have you contacted the guy that built it? If not, move your tired old ass.
ingwe Posted August 6, 2008 Report Posted August 6, 2008 My only issue with the UE11 was that I thought they crossed the line for me in terms of too much bass. I just don't know how much of that was related to the fit issues I had with the universal. . Really? I thought they were very neutral.
tyrion Posted August 6, 2008 Report Posted August 6, 2008 Really? I thought they were very neutral. Really.
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