Omega II review up at Positive Feedback Online

[gbeard]

By Head-fi's own Carlo!

http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue12/staxomega.htm

Just giving my fellow PF'er some support.

[vwap]

Great review by/from Carlo! Thanks for the link gbeard.

.. one thing regarding the "KGSS amplifier" picture near the bottom .. Maybe it's just me, but that looks as far from a KGSS -- KG Solid State -- as you can get.. Is that the Hybrid (better known as the Weebl)?

[gradofan]

Carlo, you rock! Thanks buddy!

[NotoriousBIG_PJ]

Whos diy amp is that?

Biggie.

[spritzer]

That isn't the Blue Hawaii. It is Kevin's old tube amp.

Great review btw.

[bozebuttons]

Originally posted by vwap
Great review by/from Carlo! Thanks for the link gbeard.

.. one thing regarding the "KGSS amplifier" picture near the bottom .. Maybe it's just me, but that looks as far from a KGSS -- KG Solid State -- as you can get.. Is that the Hybrid (better known as the Weebl)?

No that picture is not the weeble,but kevins triode tube amp
before the weeble design.It can be found on headwize.

[carlo]

Thanks.

The pic was pulled from Dr. Gilmore's site in error. Doug is SIE and his amp was built by zzz. The pic will get pulled later.

[vwap]

Originally posted by carlo
Thanks.

The pic was pulled from Dr. Gilmore's site in error. Doug is SIE and his amp was built by zzz. The pic will get pulled later.

Neat. A great review nonetheless.

(I'd give you the thumbsup emoticon, but I don't have the link. )

[Canman]

Great writing Carlo. I am waiting for my KGSS and this isn't making it easy!

Doug's article on his path to headphone nirvana that is linked in Carlo's article is also really good. A picture of Doug's KGSS is in this article.

[minya]

You rule, carlo.

(edit: retarded little optical illusion: when scrolling up/down, the gradient on the background of the SRM-717 photo appears to glow.)

- Chris

[darth nut]

Some memorable lines in there.

"I enjoy arrogance in hi fi..."

"The Electrostatic vs. Dynamic argument is about as interesting as Solid State vs. Tubes, which is to say, not at all."

"...are not fast, since "fast" infers sped-up sound, exaggerated microdynamics, or trickery. Rather, they are unobtrusive..."



It's also the first in-depth comparison I recall reading comparing KGSS to a stock Stax amp, namely 717 in this case.

The article was interesting in discussing the Omega II's softening of midbass leading edges on some music material. I too notice my own system sounding like this: the bass is deep and powerful on some CDs that feature bass guitars, yet soft and underpowered in other CDs (that also feature bass guitars). Why do I hear such a large variation between CDs featuring bass guitars? When the deep bass is present, it's really enjoyable, as Carlo writes, "Rich and full of impact, there seemed to be no limit to their extension..." But when the bass guitar sounds soft, it perplexes me, having been habituated to the Omega II's deep bass and therefore expecting deep bass all the time. Yes, maybe the answer is that this is a transparent headphone, and the mixing guys must have gotten it wrong now and then. But I can tell you that the softened bass on some CDs is just as startling as the fullsome bass on other CDs. Startling because the softened bass comes across as being an unexpected anomaly rather than as being as the mixing guy's error (or intentional tonal balance), even if the latter is true.

But anyway, to get back on track: I enjoyed reading Carlo's well-written article.

[Jon L]

$5750, did I read that correctly for that combo???

For that money, I could buy every woman in my family a Louis Vuitton bag and have money left over for AKG K1000.

If I knew that reviewer, I would send a K1000 to him stat, have him listen with headband taken off so the phone sits on the earlobes directly. At least, there won't be any complaints about midbass leading edge or "wispy" upper-mid/treble!

[Wmcmanus]

Nice work, Carlo. Your writing style draws in the reader in much the same way that the Omega II's draw in the listener, and that says a lot.

[smokey]

Carlo,

Nice job, I was wondering when your review was going to be posted.

Now you need to listen to the Weebl!

I have noticed some lower bass shyness on some recordings. Is it possible that the recording or mastering of that part of the spectrum was made out-of-phase? In my speaker days that is the one sonic signature, along with a soundstage collapse, that I associated with out-of-phase recordings.

[Music Fanatic]

Thanks for the pointer to the interesting review.