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Stax users, how did you get into them?

post #1 of 13
2/15/05 at 9:17pm
Thread Starter 
Just curious for all the Stax fans here how did you get into them? Theres virtually no place to demo them and being forced to use standard equipment seems like sort of a turn off??

Also what was your old setup that you upgraded from? I'm just curious since I am currently thinking about a very high end listening setup right now.
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post #2 of 13
2/15/05 at 9:27pm
I bought a Blue Hawaii and I figured I should buy an electrostat headphone so I can use it.

don't know what I upgraded from... had a lot of new stuff coming in around the same time.
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post #3 of 13
2/15/05 at 9:34pm
First bought an SR-001 Mk II for portable use. Wanted something nice (had some 590's at the time), and definitely didn't want to go with more Ety's, since, well a) I didn't like them that much and b) everyone and their sister had them. Being the eternal non-conformist, I ventured into unexplored territory. Rolled-off treble and all.

First day, I was like "meh," then second day, I was all about "eh...," then third day, it was something along the lines of "hey now!" and on the fourth day, I was very much into "hot damn!" which escalated to "holy $#!%!!" the day thereafter. I guess that's burn-in. These things did need it.

So, now I have some SR-404's sitting on my desk, and HE90's or SR-007's are looking mighty attractive (is that a whimper I hear coming from my wallet? Nah, can't be. Wallet's dead). I definitely very much appreciate the unique qualities that electrostatic headphones offer (and more specifically the SR-404's offer), and if I ever do move on to something else, it will probably have a similar sound signature.

Funny thing is, now the 001's amp requirement is beginning to annoy me, so I am getting some Ety's after all. Full circle?
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post #4 of 13
2/15/05 at 9:41pm
Thread Starter 
Where would be the best place to audition the SR404? It seems like thats the headphone to get to get into the world of Stax
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post #5 of 13
2/15/05 at 10:06pm
My dealer is a Stax seller, however he doesn't have any in stock since he wouldn't buy them in just to sit around in store room...so basically have to buy unheard.

It would be great if Stax offer demo pairs FOC to their dealers, that'll probably get higher return sales. He's got to fork out money for demo models, expensive considering he might sell (guess) two pairs a year.
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post #6 of 13
2/15/05 at 10:21pm
Best place to audition is to find someone locally that owns a pair and have a meet. That's how I got to listen to the HE90, SR-404, and Omega II (in that order). Went to the Seattle meet and listened on eric343's KGSS. Now I'm in that stage where I'm wondering how to come up with that kind of money and then rationalize spending it on such an expensive setup.
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post #7 of 13
2/15/05 at 11:47pm
I was a dealer for them.

There may possibly be a dealer in Boston if you are southern NH and are willing to make the trip.
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post #8 of 13
2/16/05 at 12:35am
A Head-Fi meet can show you what's up. I switched to the Omega II from the Grado HP-1000 and AKG K-1000.
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post #9 of 13
2/16/05 at 12:37am
I got my first pair of Stax in 1976 after reading a review in Stereophile. They were SRX-MkIII. My next pair was purchased in 1987, a pair of Lambda Pros which worked until 2004 (one channel is now down in volume slightly and cannot be corrected with the balance control). I now have a pair of SR-404's for home and SR-003's for portable. I have an SRD-P amp for home use and an SRD-X for portable.

I prefer the full bass (not exaggerated single note bass of some phones), clarity and transparency, and the seemingly unlimited dynamic range of the Stax product.

P.S. For what it is worth I have heard the Omega II's and did not feel compelled to part with the money. Could be age.

Once you have Stax, you never goes backs (sic)!
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post #10 of 13
2/16/05 at 12:45am
I listened to the people who loved Stax and who shared opinions similar to mine. I'm glad to report they were very, very, very correct in this certain opinion.

Electrostatic headphones are superb.

- Chris
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post #11 of 13
2/16/05 at 7:24am
I just took an educated guess that Stax were what I was looking for and it turned out to be right... and very expensive
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post #12 of 13
2/16/05 at 10:45am
Being a regular guy with down to earth budget, I bought Lambda Nova Basic second hand. I just got senn 595 at that moment and brought them along for comparison. First time I pushed play, my jaw dropped to the floor .. and deal was immediately done. Didn't expect so much bass detail to come out with 'undescribed' overall transparency and clarity .. and how on earth could there be such sweet mids !!

Unfortunately the wow factor was really that huge, especially coming from dynamic phones. After some more careful listening and comparison with speakers (both stats and dyn) over next few months ... they spend more and more time collecting dust. The details I heard on Nova are apparently there on 595 and even more so on 650, but senns produce more clear transients in between and with darkness in the background. I would not part with my stax, they provide an awesome listening experience - but I enjoy music more with senns.
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post #13 of 13
2/17/05 at 3:53am
I first heard electrostatic sound from loudspeakers and was blown away by the clarity of the sound. Since I couldn't afford them I settled on headphones. .
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