Holy Crap! The New Stax Omega Looks fierce! (Stax SR-009)

[blubliss]

I always listen on random, so got a fair share of poorly recorded stuff and I say these are still very smooth, no fatigue for me. We should probably say what kinds of music we listen to mostly, since I know some people are listening to music I could never listen to for a second (like metal). This is not a fair comparison in my mind. I listen mostly to Classical, but also Jazz, Rock, & Electronic.

My source is a computer into an APL NWO-M, super detailed.

[luvdunhill]

How does the frequency response sound? Flat? Or a upper mid range and midbass double peak?

[Voltron]

Been listening all night with the Ayre C-5xeMP > Ayre M-XR > BHse w/ xf2 Blackburn EL34 > SR-009 and I have not heard anything I did not like. Fleet Foxes CD, Dave Alvin SACD, Eugene Raffalo SACD, Bill Evans SACD, Joe Satriani SACD. Beautiful, simply beautiful.

Edited September 15, 2011 by Voltron

[HeadphoneAddict]

Birgir, since I still prefer my HE-60 slightly over my SR-007 (even with my KGSS), would you think it's a safe bet that I'd be happiest selling my WES and SR-007 to help raise the $5,000 that I'd need to buy the SR-009?

Or do you think a better amp like a BHSE for the SR-007 might be smarter? i.e. if you had a KGSS level amp with SR-007 and could only spend $5K, would you upgrade the phones or the amp? Maybe you could try the SR-009 with your worst amp and see if they still hold up well?

Edited September 15, 2011 by HeadphoneAddict

[spritzer]

I'll try it from the Exstata when I get it back from loan.

Similar thing for me. I was mesmerized at the beginning since I was using select recordings. Then was the phase of playing random tunes in my library and trouble started. IMO, there's no free lunch and both Omega 2 and 009 are basically complementary for this type of issue.

I went back to doing headphone simulation as it had worked pretty well for the HD800 (to identity the 6kHz peak for instance). I'd like to give it a shot with the 009 and see if the new shape of the enclosure has any bearing with the new forward acoustic signature. But per your message spritzer, you feel it's more of an effect of the newer generation diaphragms (507, O2 SZ3)?

I do doubt that the diaphragm material is responsible for this, more likely how Stax are implementing it.

I always listen on random, so got a fair share of poorly recorded stuff and I say these are still very smooth, no fatigue for me. We should probably say what kinds of music we listen to mostly, since I know some people are listening to music I could never listen to for a second (like metal). This is not a fair comparison in my mind. I listen mostly to Classical, but also Jazz, Rock, & Electronic.

My source is a computer into an APL NWO-M, super detailed.

I've always found the idea that some music is not "worthy" to be a bit snobbish to be honest. The true sign of a great transducer is that it will play anything thrown at it, be it polka or death metal. TheSR-009 fares a lot better then say the HE90 but it still not quite good enough for me.

Been listening all night with the Ayre C-5xeMP > Ayre M-XR > BHse w/ xf2 Blackburn EL34 > SR-009 and I have not heard anything I did not like. Fleet Foxes CD, Dave Alvin SACD, Eugene Raffalo SACD, Bill Evans SACD, Joe Satriani SACD. Beautiful, simply beautiful.

Wouldn't that be the KX-R you are going though? Power amp into BHSE would be extreme even for deaf people like Ray...

[Voltron]

I've always found the idea that some music is not "worthy" to be a bit snobbish to be honest. The true sign of a great transducer is that it will play anything thrown at it, be it polka or death metal. TheSR-009 fares a lot better then say the HE90 but it still not quite good enough for me.

Wouldn't that be the KX-R you are going though? Power amp into BHSE would be extreme even for deaf people like Ray...

I'm not sure how the transducer is supposed to make shitty sounding music into anything but shitty sounding music. But I agree -- as I think Andy would -- that if the 009s sounded terrible with all rock music then they wouldn't be great cans. I did not have that experience last night. And I have not done any kind of side-by-side comparisons with other Stax, but I intend to do so with the SR-Omega and SR-007BL. I still do not understand your love of the 007, and even though it sounds good on the BHse it feels muted and distant in comparison to the Omega or the 009.

K--XR indeed, although M-XR monoblocks into one of your custome transformer boxes might be pretty cool.

[jgazal]

(...)

I've always found the idea that some music is not "worthy" to be a bit snobbish to be honest. The true sign of a great transducer is that it will play anything thrown at it, be it polka or death metal. (...)

(...)

It is not the music genre itself, but the way some genres are used to be recorded.

[justin]

I've been listening to my SR-009 sporadically over more than 3 months now... They're excellent, and somehat better than the SR-007 in certain areas (soundstage and level of clarity). However, I find that I like the SR-007 mk1 overall better. The SR-009 are somewhat fatiguing and grating, particularly with sources such as the Benchmark DAC1, the Bel Canto DAC2.5, or the Sony 5400ES. A slightly warmer source like Marantz SACD players helps. Also, the SR-009 sound somewhat less fatiguing with the Stax 727 amp than the KGSS (although the KGSS sounds technically better). Another issue is that the gain on the KGSS is a little too much for the SR-009 with a hot source (4V or 5V). Not much range on the attenuators because of the this, and listening too loud to the SR-009 gets tiring pretty quickly. I started using the unbalanced inputs instead because of this.

this is why i cut the gain in half on the BHSE. just dont tell anyone on HF (more gain = better).

[blubliss]

I've always found the idea that some music is not "worthy" to be a bit snobbish to be honest. The true sign of a great transducer is that it will play anything thrown at it, be it polka or death metal. TheSR-009 fares a lot better then say the HE90 but it still not quite good enough for me.

It's not that it is not 'worthy' but I think it helps people weigh your review. I find metal and rap un-listenable. (The only time I listened to metal was when I was tripping on acid at age 16, rap for awhile when i was counseling troubled youth). Since you say most headphones are bright, I think it helps put things in perspective when I know you listen to certain genres. Now, I bet you also listen to other stuff, but I don't know, maybe not?? Since many people hang on your reviews I thought it might provide clarity. I don't actually agree with you on the brightness issues on the HE90, SR-Omega, 007-SZ3, and now the 009. But, if i were listening to heavy metal or more intense music, I might.

jgazal makes a great point too.

Oh, and I am definitely a snob.

[mypasswordis]

Birgir, since I still prefer my HE-60 slightly over my SR-007 (even with my KGSS), would you think it's a safe bet that I'd be happiest selling my WES and SR-007 to help raise the $5,000 that I'd need to buy the SR-009?

Or do you think a better amp like a BHSE for the SR-007 might be smarter? i.e. if you had a KGSS level amp with SR-007 and could only spend $5K, would you upgrade the phones or the amp? Maybe you could try the SR-009 with your worst amp and see if they still hold up well?

I'm not Birgir but the HE-60 plugged into the Exstata at Chicago CJ sounded like ass, I would actually take the SR-007 + whatever amp over that combo any day and I don't even like the SR-007. I take that back, the SR-007 Mk2 plugged into the WES at Chicago CJ was literally the worst sounding electrostatic setup I have ever heard, but I heard afterward that something was wrong with that WES? Or maybe I remembered wrong.

[spritzer]

It's not like I'm only listening to metal, most of the stuff I've been listening lately have been classical SACD rips or classic rock. I hate rap and aside from a few "classic" albums have never really understood jazz...

So that people get the full story here is that I told Andy I was listening to Metalica- Metallica which is really one of the worst recorded albums ever. Never been a huge fan but even on DVD-A it is quite bad so I use it to see how the transducers react to less then stellar source material. Metal is a good choice because it is usually quite intense and very badly recorded. Right now I'm listening to some of my "cousin's" from the Faeroe Islands, Týr - Ormurinn Langi (they sound a bit like Icelanders tripping on acid) and the SR-009 simply can't reproduce the bass with equal heft and impact as the SR-007. The recording is good enough for this not be an issue but still, the SR-009 should be able to pull this off.

As for my love of the SR-007, I've always believed age has something to do with this and me being notoriously picky and analytical. I got my first SR-007/KGSS when I was 20 and had a BH when I was 22 so the hearing was as good as it would ever be which means the lack of a top end emphasis never bothered me. The top end of our hearing degenerates very rapidly with age (even more so if abused at concerts etc.) so this is a factor that should be considered. As for being picky, making food and caring about the results does that to you.

Ohh and there is nothing wrong with being a snob.

While we are discussing all of this, volume level with the SR-009 is utterly crucial. Listen at low volumes and they behave but push the volume and bad things happen. It will be interesting to see what Tyll's measurements say because the phones will be driven at full blast.

I'm not Birgir but the HE-60 plugged into the Exstata at Chicago CJ sounded like ass, I would actually take the SR-007 + whatever amp over that combo any day and I don't even like the SR-007. I take that back, the SR-007 Mk2 plugged into the WES at Chicago CJ was literally the worst sounding electrostatic setup I have ever heard, but I heard afterward that something was wrong with that WES? Or maybe I remembered wrong.

Nope, that's just how the WES sounds. Bland, lifeless and bloody boring.

Edited September 15, 2011 by spritzer

[blubliss]

Heh, thanks for clarifying things. I do trust your reviews and enjoy them even if I disagree on some things

[spritzer]

I do like it when people call me on my shit because then I always go back and double check everything.

Despite my reservations with the SR-009 there are some things it does astoundingly well, nr.1 being layering of the various items in the mix. Now I really should turn all this stuff off and go to bed since I have to be at work in 5 hours...

[Voltron]

Nite Nite Biggie.

[mypasswordis]

Nope, that's just how the WES sounds. Bland, lifeless and bloody boring.

Good and bad to know. I need to listen to Ray's electrostatic crock of shit now to compare.

'Night Biggie, keep on rocking/metaling. \m/

Oh, and since everyone is naming genres they would never listen to, mine is country, with some folk (of any ethnicity) seeping in as well. Everything else is fair game.

[Wmcmanus]

I still do not understand your love of the 007, and even though it sounds good on the BHse it feels muted and distant in comparison to the Omega or the 009.

Glad this man is not afraid to state his opinion; gladder that his opinion of the new and doubly (or is it triply?) expensive 009 is a rather high one; will be gladdest if that is my experience as well. Really looking forward to getting my eyes, hands, and ears on these puppies.

[blubliss]

ED told me today they will get 5-7 more pairs tomorrow (we need 7 more to finish the group buy), so yours should be coming to you in a few weeks Mr. Mcmanus.

[deepak]

As one who enjoys quite a bit of metal (mostly thrash and true death metal from the 80s/90s) I do think the SR-007 (with BH) are one of the few headphones that can play at soft, medium or high volume with those genres without making everything sound like mush. There is a crapload of stuff going in those styles of metal, from really fast guitar and bass playing, blast beat drumming a lot of headphones will make the music sound like a big wall of sound. So I can understand where Birgir is coming from. I do look forward to hearing the 009 for myself one day (and maybe even on a DIY T2!)

[luvdunhill]

when I was 22 so the hearing was as good as it would ever be which means the lack of a top end emphasis never bothered me.

Still my number one issue...

[Dreadhead]

I'm really looking forward to hearing these phones sometime.

Al do you still have 4070 to compare to? I ask only out of interest as they are my favorite Stax.

[catscratch]

I'm with Spritzer on the whole brightness thing - I find the 007 to be just right and most headphones too bright. On the other hand I also find the 007 to be far too polite and laid-back; with polite sources especially it can sound remote and not very engaging. What I would want is tonal balance that's not far off the 007 but with a way more forward overall presentation. Incidentally, sort of like the SR-X Mk3 Pro that I've been listening to for a while (which are great cans) or the 003, which is even warmer than the 007 if anything.

I can see the brightness thing being a problem with rock or metal, but even more a problem with volume - I'm guessing it's the Fletcher-Munson effect or whatever you call it, and as someone with a penchant for listening to electronica at unreasonable levels, extra brightness is a big turn-off. I probably wouldn't mind an uber-revealing headphone given that electronica, or at the very least the psychill-ish stuff I listen to is usually at least decently produced.

The bigger issue I have is forking out 5 large for a headphone that may not necessarily be better than my $1.5k 007, but then again we all left reason behind in this hobby a long time ago.

Edited September 16, 2011 by catscratch

[Voltron]

I'm really looking forward to hearing these phones sometime.

Al do you still have 4070 to compare to? I ask only out of interest as they are my favorite Stax.

Yep, I have the 4070 and it should be an interesting comparison. More later.

[Clarkmc2]

It's not like I'm only listening to metal, most of the stuff I've been listening lately have been classical SACD rips or classic rock. I hate rap and aside from a few "classic" albums have never really understood jazz...

Nope, that's just how the WES sounds. Bland, lifeless and bloody boring.

I am a hopeless Jazz head. I do listen to other stuff, but the awesome talent and the (usually) brilliantly recorded nature of Jazz make it a feast for Stax. As for understanding it, lots of exposure can help. What was once avant-garde chaos now seems as accessible as Mary Had A Little Lamb.

I plugged my SZ3s into the WES and I hated it too. Bland it wasn't in this case. It was tubey as hell and lush to the point of bad taste. It sounded like a clown version of hifi.

[Dreadhead]

Yep, I have the 4070 and it should be an interesting comparison. More later.

I always manage to forget about the 4070 and be blissfully satisfied with my setup which I think is perfect for me. Then every once and a while I get reminded of my happy hour or so with the 4070 and my KGSS and I want to try that setup again (well now with a KGSSHV or even just the Stax SS amp. I found the 007 mk1 to be way too dark for my tastes and if I could have gotten a 4070 for a reasonable price I think I would have possibly kept my Stax setup.

[purk]

I want to try 4070 myself and often wonder how do they sound in relation to the O2 MKI. I have the O2 MKI now and really like it a good bit out of the S323. Still too dark for me. I need to get the T2 & KGSSHV project going to bump up the performance of the Omega 2.