CanJam 2009 Impressions

[dallan]

Originally Posted by AudioCats

any ortho impressions?

Ya, i heard a pair over at Head-direct. Never heard a pair before, they sounded good, almost electrostatic. I mean really almost. Very detailed. Wasn't going to comment on it only spent a couple of minutes but i was surprised by them. May take me a bit to change the way i listen or get used to that type of sound, it was different than what i am used to.

[moonboy403]

Originally Posted by dallan

Ya, i heard a pair over at Head-direct. Never heard a pair before, they sounded good, almost electrostatic. I mean really almost. Very detailed. Wasn't going to comment on it only spent a couple of minutes but i was surprised by them. May take me a bit to change the way i listen or get used to that type of sound, it was different than what i am used to.

That's an open ortho designed by Fang. I, too, was very impressed with a few minutes of auditioning. It's to be priced around $700. The bass on that thing especially wowed me. It's like W5000's bass but a lot more of it.

[Possum]

Originally Posted by johnsonad

Last and IMHO the show stopper was the Smyth Research multichannel surround experience through headphones.

The Smyth Research SVS demo system running Call of Duty was the second thing I listened to Saturday morning, and I was immediately blown away even though the system was running the calibration of one of the Smyth guys. Since it was the beginning of the day, I wanted to hit the items on my "must see" list and didn't take the time to truly understand the SVS system and go through the personalization and demos in the other rooms. After reading about the system's capabilities just now, I greatly regret not fully experiencing it.

[gilency]

Originally Posted by Possum

The Smyth Research SVS demo system running Call of Duty was the second thing I listened to Saturday morning, and I was immediately blown away even though the system was running the calibration of one of the Smyth guys. Since it was the beginning of the day, I wanted to hit the items on my "must see" list and didn't take the time to truly understand the SVS system and go through the personalization and demos in the other rooms. After reading about the system's capabilities just now, I greatly regret not fully experiencing it.

So funny you mentioned that. I play COD on line with my XBox. They had a PS4 so the controls were different from what I am used to, but playing COD with the Smyth system was unbelievable.

[Chris19]

Here are a few things that really surprised me over the weekend:

The AMP3 mp3 player (is that what it was called Craig?) that the guys over at Whiplash Audio had as a new unit to show off. It had more than enough power to play the pre-loaded songs straight into an Ultrasone Edition 8. More surprising were the stock earbuds it came with; these little foam covered wonders put out more bass than any earbud I've ever heard, and sound great to boot. For $150, I wouldn't even feel bad taking it to the gym! Cool little unit. I should add in here that Craig and his father (operators of Whiplash Audio) were another surprise. They're both really friendly, fun guys, and if you get a chance to meet them, take it!

While I'm at it, I'll say that all of the vendors were very generous, friendly, and coped very well with the stress we surely put upon them. Applause all around!

Stax Omega MK2: Heard these on the Ray Samuels A-10, HeadAmp's Blue Hawaii Special Edition, and the Stax SRM-007tII amp that Whiplash brought with them. They have a lot more bass than I was expecting, and such a lifelike presentation to the music. I have to get a pair, somehow, some way. I preferred the Stax amp to the other two, for some reason. That was another surprise! It sounded more "right" to me.

Naamanf's Twisted Pear Audio Buffalo32 DAC. (See it here) He built it up in a pleasing little wood case; simple, but clean. I tried my Sony SA5000's with both the Bijou amp and Beta 22 parked next to the DAC. When I loaded up "Hot For Teacher" on the laptop provided, I couldn't believe how good it sounded. A glass bottle drops to the floor at about 1:01 into the song; it sounded like it fell on the floor next to me. I've never experienced this from headphones before, my SA5000's with their small soundstage least of all! This DAC was awesome and I can't wait until Twisted Pear restocks their kits.

[Karo]

Eddie Current Zana Deux and Balancing Act. Superb tube amplification at its finest IMO.

Is this the VT99 driver on the BA ? Looks pretty serious.

The nickel caps are very Silver Surfer, as are the red cap-wire plugs. Was it a Moth phono-pre or his new one ? Thanks very much for all the good photos.

[amb]

More pics have been added to my CanJam2009 gallery (you might need to refresh your browser if you had been there before):

CanJam 2009 Gallery

[Xan7hos]

Thanks AMB!

Can Jam changed so many of my expectations of our hobby and the people involved in it. I left with a lot of regret - wish I brought my own CDs, wish I had more time to spend with each vendor, meet more people, etc. But the experience has been nothing short of wonderful and positive.

Only flaw is the noise level, but its unavoidable

[Blackmore]

To Jon L

Thanks for great pics of all these set ups. Would be very interesting to read your impressions about AKG K1000 using with other amps vs your custom made Almarro 205, which you still own, arent you?

[Frihed89]

Originally Posted by Jon L

Singlepower ES-1 sounded as good as ever driving OII Mk I, HE60, and HE Audio. If BHSE is clear spring water pumping strong from a geyser, Singlepower seems to be slightly rose-tinged, delicate yet tasty delicacy from Mountains of France somewhere. It seems to me the Marantz SA7s1 CDP and a bunch of Virtual Dynamics cabling were definitely lending a strong hand to the bold, smooth, and detailed presentation here.

Singlepower SDS-XLR tower of power with balanced Sony R-10 headphones. Unlike the amp's appearance of mass, girth, and intimidation, the sound was twinkly, light, and fast as all out.

[/IMG]

I thought SP products were not going to be allowed at the show, as this would stimulate interest in SP and give the impression that their products were were outstanding.

[krmathis]

Originally Posted by Jon L

Frank Cooter's electrostat amp. The three-piece masterpiece utilizing Mercury-Vapor rectifiers and some ungodly goodies inside and out. Hopefully it won't go into production for general sale because quite a few people will be broke then...

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/4723/img0564k.jpg
http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/1504/img0565g.jpg
http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/1946/img0570g.jpg
http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/620/img0571y.jpg

Stunning!

[olblueyez]

Originally Posted by Frihed89

I thought SP products were not going to be allowed at the show, as this would stimulate interest in SP and give the impression that their products were were outstanding.

Single Power products? Or SinglePower?

[IPodPJ]

I have so much to post and share, but I will do so tomorrow. I am exhausted but it was an amazing meet and everyone, members, vendors, and staff alike worked so hard to make this happen. It was very tiring for all of us to pack and un-pack our equipment but we all had a blast and it was just incredible. One hell of a learning experience, too!

I'll quickly mention a few pieces of gear that I heard there that were really memorable:

1) Donald North Audio Sonett.... tube amp available in single ended or balanced... blew me away how well it synergizes with the HD800. The HD800 is the most amp-specific can I have ever heard and is a different animal balanced. It needs to be balanced. But even single ended the Sonett just brought them to life. Absolutely phenomenal tube amp that sounds mainly like a solid state amp. Has better bass control than any tube amp I heard at the show. Midrange is spot on, and the treble is very extended and sparkly just the way I love it. And at the price he is selling it for (ridiculously low for how good this amp is), this is one of my must haves! $1200 (or was it $1300) regular price, $1000 for all attendees of CanJam.

2) ALO Amphora.... amazing with the HD800. One of the best single-ended amps for the HD800. Good but not superb bass control, but the midrange and treble are oh so sweet. $995

3) JH Audio JH-13.... Ok all you IEM lovers, get ready to be blown away! Jerry Harvey leaves his ex-company in the dust. This is a SIX, yes I said SIX driver custom IEM with a 3-way crossover network. 2 low drivers, 2 mid drivers, 2 high drivers. We only got to hear it obviously with foam inserts but it had the best soundstage of any IEM ever made. I personally would want him to tone down the treble and bass a little bit (and he will do this by the way, but only by about 3db because he doesn't want to change the signature too much). More bass than any headphone in existence, full size or IEM. The bass impact was insane, kick drums make you feel like you were just punched in the chest. Bass lovers will go nuts for these, but don't blow your eardrums out! If I remember correctly, either $1,000 or $1050 (and $100 off for CanJam attendees)

4) Rudistor RPX-300... this will be replacing the RPX-100 and another model he mentioned, but I forget which. Amazing amp, so smooth and refined. Very relaxing to listen to, nice laid back presentation. $2500

5) RSA Apache, B52, and A10.... all amazing amps. Apache and B52 did wonders for the balanced HD800 and R10. Slightly on the warm side but detail to die for. A10 sings with the HE90 and HE Audio Jade (I believe it is called), midrange and treble are ultra smooth, but bass detail is lacking which is why I don't care for stats. HE60 didn't impress me. (The R10 with Blubliss' SDS-Xtreme was the best performer in the show.) Apache $2995, B52 $5500, A-10 ??

6) Woo Audio WA22 and WA6SE.... two amazing tube amps, WA22 has a slightly wider soundstage but they are both very similar. Very lush midrange, extremely organic with lots of detail, and great bass control but not quite as controlled as the DNA Sonett. WA22 $1800, WA6SE approx $1150

7) Audio-gd Reference One DAC.... gets hot as hell but is one of the most accurately pristine DACs you will ever hear. It puts the Benchmark DAC1 to shame. Kingwa knows how to build gear. And someone here, "Sachu", actually won this in the raffle!!! I spoke with him for a bit today and I'm happy for him, He loves it too (someone had it at their table for us to listen to) and I hope he really does enjoy it. $1390

8) Sonicweld Diverter (from Locus Design Group/Sonicweld).... converts 24/96 audio from USB to Coax, and it does so without any codecs unlike the Empirical Audio Off Ramp. Remarkable device that delivers bit-perfect high-res audio. Best of its kind. $1300

9) Grado HF-2.... I'm not a Grado person at all, in fact I hated every single one of them with the exception of the HF-2. I thought it beat the PS1000 and GS1000 in every way, and for a fraction of the price. $420

10) Beyerdynamic DT880/600 and AKG K601.... Familiar headphones to most of you, but I had never heard them before and I was surprised at how much I liked them, especially through the DNA Sonett. I prefer the DT880/600 to the DT880/250. It sounds less veiled and has a cleaner midrange. The K601 reminds me of the Denon line, which is a signature I've come to love, despite it being colored. Prices well known.

[bhd812]

Up in the Room finally listening to #4 HF-2, still don't have a good setup to give them a fair chance and we ALL know to spend lots of time with any piece of gear before you make a final judgement but where is the fun in that?


first impressions that hit me rite off the bat:

Build:
the build Quality OF THIS FIRST BATCH is pretty good for Grado, the glue is not messy. the Cups feel solid with the newer design but not overweight as the ps-1000's (new style). the Headband seems to be a bit different from the older John Grado rs-1/rs-2/ps-1 as you can not feel a thin metal band under the leather on the top, and yes I said LEATHER! unlike the HF-1 these bad boys come with a leather headband! the writing on the cups is thin, fades out a bit in certain places, actually in the rite light you don't even see the writing on the cups at certain Angles. i really like it cause it reminds me of the never ending hp-1 buyer drama with the writing on the Cups, sometimes you have writing and sometimes you don't. the cable on these are very different then the Grados i have, maybe i have the older stuff and John changed it awhile back. the main cable leading up to the spilt is thicker and heavier then any other John Grado i seen, feels like there is a small air tube in side like what you would use in a fish tank for air delivery. the over all weight of them is not bad at all since you have a thicker headphone band, this is using them with the stock Bowls though.


Sound: well the only thing i have here with me is my Accer Aspire one and a Grado mini converter. in other words since i am not running these with a decent amp or dac please take my following words with a grain of salt. then again considering my owner ship of EVERY John Grado headphone i would say i know what to expect off a unburned set of new Grados, i have taken a good listen to the RS-2,HF-1, and MS-2 using no amp strait from the headphone out on my netbook cause i knew i would be posting this in LA now.

The sound right off the bat is so John Grado it's not funny, it's the Grado house sound completely unsettled. i always liked John Grado style this way cause thats what they are a fun, wild, weird, and young sounding headphone that just wants to play fun music all day. the bass goes low but what i am hearing now with this setup there seems to be a gap in the lower notes (this probably is due to my setup in the hotel now). it does the very low notes with an authority of what i remember from the PS-1's, not with quantity but they give you low end with detail, they stay clean riding down on the low end of the hertz road (just imagine them with a nice amp?!)...and this is with bowls!! like the hf-1 and ps-1 these cans seem well tuned for bowls, cause if your getting good clean low end in nice size portions with bowls then adding in flats would just messy up them. they may settle down with the bass after burn in though, i have heard it before with JG cans. it has the midrange something of the hf-1 but with more detail and speed as in the ms-2.

as far as build and basics i would put them to the rs-2, sounds is a ms-2 with better bass and better midrange! like the hf-1 was i believe in the little time i spent sofar with the hf-2 that its the best sound to price in Grados line up being sold today!

again this is just a first listen without the best setup so please use that grain of salt...

[FallenAngel]

Originally Posted by krmathis

Whoever it is, he/she seems to have a β22 resembling mine...

Just a little right I think it looks nice.

Originally Posted by amb

Indeed, it's FallenAngel's. I had to do quite a double take when I saw it...

Yep, ghosts!

As I was following the build, I saw some wonderful casework, so I really couldn't help myself as I was building my own - got in contact with Ti, found the posted FPE files, adjusted the panel spacings and cutouts to fit my specific RCA, IEC and fuse connectors and had it fabricated with a cute FallenAngel engraving , saved tons of time and headache.

As for CanJam, lots of great stuff everywhere.

Something new, something old and something unexpected.

Sennheiser HD800: nice but didn't hear enough of them to really say "I love these".

Grado HF2: a little too bass-heavy for me.

Grado PS1000: nice, very VERY nice, looking at the piggybank.

Of course this is from the standpoint that I prefer the HP1000 to the PS1 and Vintage RS1 so don't take my word for it, everybody has their personal taste.

And of course, it was absolutely wonderful to meet everybody there, some who I have seen before, some who I haven't and it's always fun to put a face to a nickname. Damn, never knew naamanf was such a buff. I thought I had a huge chest-waist ratio at 44-32 but buddy's serious!