The Stax thread (New) - Page 1393

$750-1500. Depending on condition.

They are state-of-the-art. I had the CA-X preamp and a set of DA-100 class A power monos. The monos get very hot, not the case but the air that comes out of the top, they use a heat pipe to get rid of the heat.

 

The CA-X has a shunt power supply that would be sufficient for a power amp with 75 w/ch I guess, the preamp sits piggy back on top and is totally dual mono. Its phono section also accepts input from the special Stax cartridges. The volume knob is mechanically connected to the separate volume controls of the channels, to adjust the balance one holds the big knob and adjusts one of the smaller ones. The thing uses very expensive military grade air capacitors. These were also the achilles heel in my CA-X.

 

I met a German Stax fan with the big Stax electrostatic speakers who liked the set and swapped it against his very rare EAR 549 tube monos (200 w/ch) and a rare German tube preamp. The guy found new air capacitors in the US, very expensive. 

 

The Stax set was fantastic but had "only" 100 w/ch class A. The build quality is excellent, the copper on the PCBs is extra thick and only the best quality parts are used. They look very simple but are wolves in sheep's clothes ...

 

But I needed more power for my big Maggies ;-)

 

Best regards, Jörg.

Edited by yawg - 2/6/13 at 12:58am

Thanks. So now I know which will be the new pads on my own LNS. Did you get yours from Audiocubes? Or elsewhere? What was the price? I saw an eBay seller lately who asked double the price of AC.

 

Best regards, Jörg.

I bought them on AC and the service was slow but the pads did eventually arrive. They kept me informed by email. I am using them on my 407's and there was a marginal but noticeable improvement. My only complaint about the pads is that they are not very  deep so they press against the outside of my ears. The original pads were a tiny bit deeper but the vinyl was not as comfortable as the leather. Comfort issue aside, they are, sound wise, the best you can do. 

 

Hehe, I could have told you that.    I would be interesting to do this same mod with ECC99's which only calls for small changes to the operating points.  Current production as well which is always better. 

Living in the US, is price japan the cheapest website to buy the stax sr009s from? Seems like price japan has the 009s for under 4000$!

That's where most people get there. I paid full through Jack Wu for mine, but I regret that now since I sold 'em already. lol

 

Wow, I think I might just suck it up and save up for a 009 now instead of getting the lcd3s. under 4000 is somehow a magical pricepoint, just sounds alot better than 5000.

Just do it. It's not even a contest between the 2.

 

Yeah I guess, and cure upgraditis while I'm at it, why did you sell yours?

I was recently quoted 4-6 weeks wait time, full payment up front, and any warranty/repair will need to be shipped back to them.

In the end I placed an order with Justin@Headamp for a 009/727 package and am very happy with my decision.

Because the wife(ish) was sick of listening to the 'splash' from the 009s for hours on end and told me we needed some speakers. 

 

There's really only room for one high end system in our house, so out went the 009 + LL and in came (well, coming. Still waiting on delivery) the speakers. 

 

I have a feeling the speakers will bring more enjoyment anyway. Completely different sound, but I had forgotten what proper soundstage was since I'd been into headphone audio for so long.

 

Your'e going to have to pay ALOT to get equal sound quality of the stax's from speakers! You mean physical room, or budget restraints?

Both. We live in apartments with roomies. One room has to fit all of our gear right now. Budget restraints of course as well. My system is worth over half my annual pay. I don't have tons of money to throw around. It would've been a year before I could've gotten the speaker system I wanted. 

 

As far as Stax vs speakers. They're very different (my speakers vs the 009 rig). You're right that I'd have to spend a ton to get something with all the same characteristics (and I'd actually say it's near impossible to get the same level of detail), but for the same money I invested in an 009 + amp (roughly 10k) the speakers outdo them in so many ways. 

 

You have to understand that I wasn't trying to 'best' my 009 rig. I was going for a completely different flavor. It'd be like comparing the 009 to the W3000ANV. Sweet, and wonderful (albeit colored) vs razor sharp detail and speed. 

 

Do you do this mod for an SRM-007tii owner? If not, who does? Thank you.