Support Head-Fi.org by
starting all of your
Amazon.com shopping by
clicking here.
____________________________________________________________________
Today's Featured Head-Fi Blog: A Japanese headfier's monologue (Sasaki)
____________________________________________________________________
Please help
support Head-Fi by becoming a Contributing Member
CLICK
HERE -- Contributing Members, thank you
for your generous support! --
If they're 4dB down at 20Khz, I wonder what would happen if you EQed them back up. Do they distort or sound harsh? I'm generally against EQing to bring out a characteristic a dynamic transducer doesn't have...if it can't produce treble...pushing the treble will just make bad treble. But I've heard of some electrostats that can be EQed more. And there's always the chance that it isn't bad at producing high treble, but just EQed that way...in which case an inverse EQ would do no harm.
You did tell me so Catscratch
They *are* very musical 'phones and I find them extremely pleasing to these old ears. Accuracy? Meh, don't really care as long as they sound nice. I certainly prefer these by a long shot to the 580/600s, I disliked the way their midband was sucked out to my ears, the 003 is just right for me, a little too warm to be accurate but very filling in a good 'cake' kinda way They are still cooking away on Gas No9 and should be fully done in a few days. The 404 has a lot more treble sparkle and has a leaner presentation which I still find very appealing for much music and when that last ounce of resolution is needed though the 003 isn't that far behind.
I compared them with my Ety 4s and the differences are striking. While both are fast and detailed the Ety is more neutral and more extended in the highs the Stax is so 'together' that the accuracy and extension doesn't seem to matter. One is right, the other feels right if you know what I mean.
I did bend the headband a bit to lessen the pressure but I much prefer the IEM approach, I don't get any appreciable sound difference between the two methods so I assume I'm lucky enough to gt a really good fit without the band.
For me, the differences between headband and in-ear were pretty big... This just illustrates how much ear canal anatomy affects sound quality.
Enjoy the SR-003's! Glad they worked out for you, and I hope that your good impressions will increase people's awareness about these phones. They're really an amazing deal for their price and perform way above their pricetag.
P.S. I know exactly what you mean about that ER-4S thing. The SR-001/003 presents detail in a much more relaxed but at the same time more natural manner, while the ER-4S shoves the detail in your face. The ER-4S definitely has more "wow" factor, but the SR-001 simply gels, and sounds more natural than the ER-4S ever could.
If they're 4dB down at 20Khz, I wonder what would happen if you EQed them back up. Do they distort or sound harsh? I'm generally against EQing to bring out a characteristic a dynamic transducer doesn't have...if it can't produce treble...pushing the treble will just make bad treble. But I've heard of some electrostats that can be EQed more. And there's always the chance that it isn't bad at producing high treble, but just EQed that way...in which case an inverse EQ would do no harm.
I did have a play seeing as it was from a computer source and zipped it up 2db @ 8khz and 4db @ 16Khz and it brought out the treble beautifully. The treble is there, just on a downward slope so the EQ just props it back up. They can be EQd nicely and don't suffer like many dynamics do, even with +4db they were smooth as silk, no hint of harshness. This should help allay any fears of recessed highs as long as you're not averse to tweaking it up a bit. Though in reality I don't think it's strictly necessary to EQ them, It would probably be an asset to have a source with a bright or forward top end to really bring out the best in these 'phones.
with the headband --> i found it uncomfortable for the first week or so, but now i can easily wear it for ages. actually i wear it for most of my trip to and from uni (which is around 1-1.5 hours each way).
i know what you mean about cranking the volume!!! you just never notice it! i'm actually quite scared now, 'cause i never listen high!
__________________
Portable: Iaudio X5L --> Westone UM2 or KSC-75
Home: [ ESI Juli@ --> Lite DAC-AH ] or [ Opera Consonance CD120 Linear ] --> ICs by [AK]Zip --> RSA Raptor --> HF-1 (#448)
i know what you mean about cranking the volume!!! you just never notice it! i'm actually quite scared now, 'cause i never listen high!
Just don't blast them, and you'll be fine. I was playing mine at stupidly loud levels for months. Now that I've forced myself to acclimate to normal listening levels, I can't simply stand to have them as loud as they were back in the day. My ears haven't gotten any worse for the last year either, despite listening 4-6 hours a day; in fact, the tinnitus has lessened of late.
Nice review smeggy, thank you for putting some more fuel into my inner flame crying for electrostats.
I am a wee bit torn. The SR-001 MKII makes for the best priced entry (the driver unit alone is cheaper than the system at Audiocubes ) but I do not think I would actually use them on the go due to isolation issues. I appreciate my HD25 and ER-4S for a reason - it tends to be loud outside. I am also put off by the little runtime of the amp and the whole issue about the special connector. The Stax SRS-005A looks much better in that regard. I assume the amp unit coming along with it is truly sufficient, or will one suffer from upgraditis after a couple of weeks? It looks like the ideal desk system to me, provided create a little cable-contraption so I can use my Xinfeed adaptor with it instead of having to shell out for a Corda Cross-1...
Does anyone here have experience with ordering from Audiocubes to Europe/Germany? Any tax related worries?
Oliver, I think the 005 could well be the best cost/performance setup as the 001 battery life has been reported to be very poor. It's the one I would probably choose if I didn't already have the 313 amp. I don't think you would suffer upgradeitis too much as I suspect the jump in performance between the two amps would be relatively small via the 003 but that's really supposition on my part, however, I think it's somewhat true. Although it's ostensibly a portable headset, it would serve as a desktop setup very well. That's what I use mine for.
PS.
Kevin Gilmore is in the process of creating a portable battery amp that uses the standard Stax plug, hopefully it'll give us the best of all worlds.
Olivier, I think the 005 could well be the best cost/performance setup as the 001 battery life has been reported to be very poor.
I wonder about the burn in / charge up. How well does that work out with the 001? Is one always halfway through the set of batteries before the phones are at full potential?
Originally Posted by smeggy
I don't think you would suffer upgradeitis too much as I suspect the jump in performance between the two amps would be relatively small via the 003 but that's really supposition on my part, however, I think it's somewhat true.
Of course, better upgrade the phones too, just to be sure
Originally Posted by smeggy
Although it's ostensibly a portable headset, it would serve as a desktop setup very well. That's what I use mine for.
Thank you for the reply. I want something for my desktop that is not as isolating / clamping as the HD25, not as limiting in mobility as the Etys... Another question: How microphonic are the 003s?
They are still cooking away on Gas No9 and should be fully done in a few days. The 404 has a lot more treble sparkle and has a leaner presentation which I still find very appealing for much music and when that last ounce of resolution is needed though the 003 isn't that far behind. 
) but I do not think I would actually use them on the go due to isolation issues. I appreciate my HD25 and ER-4S for a reason - it tends to be loud outside. I am also put off by the little runtime of the amp and the whole issue about the special connector. The Stax SRS-005A looks much better in that regard. I assume the amp unit coming along with it is truly sufficient, or will one suffer from upgraditis after a couple of weeks? It looks like the ideal desk system to me, provided create a little cable-contraption so I can use my Xinfeed adaptor with it instead of having to shell out for a Corda Cross-1...
I want something for my desktop that is not as isolating / clamping as the HD25, not as limiting in mobility as the Etys... Another question: How microphonic are the 003s?
Linear Mode
