So let it begin! I had a lot of fun and I hope everyone else has a safe trip home.

Impressions to come soon!

-Alex-

Also, I picked up on a gray foot on my way out of the room. If someone is missing something send me a PM and I will send it to you!

-Alex-

I had a blast, it was nice to actually hear some real headphones rather than just reading opinions and reviews.

I need a K701 and a Darkvoice 336i... NOW. That combo is amazing, I thought classical sounded good on my HD650s and Little Dot 2+... nope.



We got to see a new toy from none other than our friend Mr. Millett: the Portable Millett Hybrid!!! WOW talk about alot of amp in a small package, this thing is amazing! I'm no good at reviews, but I'll just say that this thing sounds like a full size amp but wayyyy smaller, think total bithead size plus maybe a few mm wider/longer.

Quote:



Mine will be going up on the block later tonight.


Had a fantastic time as always. Got too scared to try out some of the rigs for fear of a repeat of last year. Will be posting tons of pictures later as well.

Yes yes, i AM posting - believe it or not

My Impressions - PROS:
1 - Peter you are a man after my heart - That was definately the suprise of the show! a protable tube amp! It definately must say that i was in for a shock to listen to such a small package and just love what i was hearing! it may be small - but remember with great power comes great responsibility

2 - Cables, Cables, Cables - oh my! you know that i love em and i have to say that once again our host himself ([AK]Zip) suprised quite a few of us and brought a nice assortment of custom cables (RCA cables, Ipod dock cable, etc). He always has a suprise up his sleeve for us apparently

Im sure im not the only one that can speak for the quality of sound and workmanship in [AK]Zip's Ipod dock cable. If i do decide to keep the L3000 we might be talking balanced cables soon

3 - BH - Once again an [AK]Zip creation of pure sonic bliss (with colaboration from Al). I must say that the O2 blue hawaii combo blew me away. She was definately a joy to listen to and was the pearl of the show!

4 - Balanced bayer 880's. I must say for such a pair i was extremely impressed with those powered through the CD-T100. Those were definately a joy to listen to!

5 - Peter's Amps (the HA-1 and HA-2 tube amps) fueling the L3000's definatley renewed my love for my pair! Likewise that Bakoon SCA-7511 MKII amp [AK]Zip brought definately blows my maxxed PPA away.

CONS:

1 - I still dont like IEMS, but at least i gave them a fair try. Half-way through the song and my ears were already hurting

2 - PPA with L3000 = wheres the passion? Thats ok - the amp with the 580's or 650s was still a pleasure to listen to. In anycase, since i dont have any senn's that will be going up for grabs soon.

3 - Sadly Rob did not show - You missed a good meet, hopefully you will show for a private one we will host soon just for you

I must say i definately had a great time and thanks to all who showed, and once again thanks for hosting such a great meet [AK]Zip!


Cheers,
-Stan

Picture time - Ill let then speak for them selves!

Cheers!
~Stan

p.s. - Post #52

Quote:



To Stan and all the guys - thanks, I am very sorry I couldn't come. Stan, should you ever find yourself over in Cowtown, I'm always up for a mini-meet at my house!

Glad you all had such a great time.

Well, well, well... what a day. Fortunately, I know exactly where to start. First, let me thank Alex for gathering the tribe together yet again - some good friends were missed, new ones welcomed, and a surprise or two popped up.

To wit, let's start with THE surprise for all Head-fiers - a TUBE portable amp from Pete Millett (Millett Hybrid, Bithead, Wheatfield HA-1, HA-2, HA-4, and others). Did I stutter? Not hardly - let's look a bit closer:



Fan boy - AHOY! This is the sweetest portable I have heard, and, yes, I've heard the competition - such as it is. This is a 30 hour life battery, with a two hour wall wart charger. Oh, and it will drive the 650's with AUTHOR-I-TAY. Dig the tubes - per Pete, there are a couple of different flavors, similar to the Millett Hybrid, though there isn't as much difference between the presentations as between the 12fk6 and 12ae6a.

Currently, there are two prototype units, and a small additional number from the initial board run. So, should you want one of these (and there were about five legit purchasers in attendance at the meet today), too bad - they are not yet available for purchase. Not sure how you might convince Pete, well short of an email via his web site.

OK - other highlights from the meet:

Wheatfield HA-4 - the most forward thinking headphone amp ever designed. Even though it needs an opamp refresh, it is the epitome of headphone amp playtoys.

Zhalou - this was a nice piece, but didn't give me the total dac solution needed - it smoothed out some distortion on Tool's '10,000 Days', and tightened up some additional bass, but not quite enough, so it''s time to rethink the ZapFilter for the E5 - needs me something more serious.

K1000 - OK, OK, even though Pete had me try through his custom dedicated amp for said, I just can't, as one poignant observer stated, drink the koolaid. Can't do it - wouldn't be prudent. Besides, they hurt my head. This says far more about me than it does about them,

Sennheisers - yes - more HD600 & HD650. No worries about having chosed the HE60 path - these is my family, ok, except for the 580... just can't traverse that far back on the evolutionary tree.

Once again, I spent time very inefficiently - not taking full advantage of the smorgasboard / orgy / cornucopia of luscious goodies, but, am stuffed to overfull nonetheless.

Bretheren, it was real.

Quote:



oh ho!

wow... looked at all the gear </jaw drop>

Not only does Dallas/Ft.Worth have the best BBQ, but you have an awesome assortment of gear as well? </envy>

Quote:



That was a killer combo for sure
Alison Krauss sounded even more heavenly than usual

Ok here are the pics I took. I'm sure most are doubles of W.T. posted earlier. These are higher resolution pics.

I have to say without a doubt that Pete's little surprise for use was amazing. Imagine being able to walk around with a battery powered tube amp in your pocket. And the batter y life is better than you would think. 40+ hours as of right now.

And another thing, I know who I will be sticking with for all my cabling needs. ALEX! I got an iPod dock from him that blew away all the ALO docks I got to hear. Now this is my opinion and isn't a dig at anyone's cables. I just enjoyed it more than I thought I would.