I would say out of the vintage Stax that I've owned, the SR-5NB (gold edition) are way ahead of the SR-3, and can beat an HD600 or HD650 for $200 including energizer. They have good bass, warm mids, and sparkly treble, without funny resonances or peaks, and seem very accurate. I had Gamma Pros and thought they were great, but they seemed a little rolled off at the low and high end of the frequency spectrum, and the SR-5NB (gold edition) have more extension (maybe because of the ear-cups design or something).
I actually have a set for myself and a set for my son, and each time I was able to do it for under $200, although I have seen the SR-5NB go for $200 without energizer here and on eBay, but it should still be doable for under $250. This sounds better to me than a stock SR-001 Mk2 which is the same price, and is more comfortable to boot.
As another comparison of the sound, when the SR-5NB and SR-003 are both driven by my SRM-1 MK2 (high and normal bias), they sound VERY similar to each other, which is to say great. The only way to get a SR-001 to sound that good is to do the "AudioCats" mod to one, which could cost $80 in parts and about 4-6 hours in labor - I have a stock one and modded one, so I know it sounds very close after the mods.
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Originally Posted by Sovkiller
There is no doubt that getting older is mandatory, but to mature remains still optional...
Larry Head-Fi Feedback
MAIN RIG: Marantz CD5001 > Synergistic Research Coax > Apogee mini-DAC with Sigma 11 PSU > ALO SXC XLR IC's > Single Power Square Wave XL balanced amp > HD600 with APS V3 balanced cable >>> ALO SXC mini-RCA IC > Woo GES > Sennheiser HE60 >>> or to Woo Audio Maxxed WA6 w/Sophia Princess rectifier/RCA 6DE7 > Grado RS-1 with APS V3 cable.
BEDSIDE RIG: Sony D-303 or iRiver H140 > Sysconcept.ca optical > HeadRoom Micro DAC > barqy silver plated copper mini-RCA > Travagans Red and Black > Edition 9 with APS V3 cable.
BASEMENT RIG: iBook > USB PICO > Dark Voice 336i "RCA5692/TS5998" > Denon D2000 APS V2 cable.
PORTABLE RIG: iMod 80gb 5.5G > barqy silver in silk LOD > ALO portable V-Cap dock > ALO Cryo Silver X mini-mini > RSA Predator > Livewires T1.
LAPTOP RIG: MacBook > USB iBasso D2 > RS-1 or Edition 9 with APS V3 cable.
FOR SALE: Ibanez starter electric guitar (red) with scratches, Ibanez amp and softcase in great condition - PM me for pics. I might sell my DV336i with great tubes - convince me that's a good idea.
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