The Stax thread (New) - Page 548

I'm curious what HeadphoneAddict's impression of the SRD-X is. I'm expecting to receive mine on saturday or maybe monday.

Wished I lived closer to the Denver area!!! My son's going to DU but he's coming down here this WE and then back by end of NOv....so the wife doesn't feel like a fix would be needed till sometime next year...

Mmm, I've heard exactly the same combo with my SR-5s (NAD 3020 plus the tranny box you're using ) and it didn't impress me much - the NAD wasn't in very good condition though, according to its owner. Are you using a stepdown transformer with the SRM-1mk2? The SRM-1mk2 I had improved a lot with the stepdown out of the way.

In post #8194 in regards to SRD-7SB I said "In my case, my SRM-1 Mk2 Pro gives the SR-Lambda and SR-5 more space and ambience and detail and transparency, at the expense of dynamics or slam, but bass seems just as good with both. I prefer the SRM-1 Mk2 Pro myself."

Now, take that comment and add that the SRD-X has more bass kick with SR-Lambda than the SRD-7SB with Travagans Red 5watt speaker amp. The differences with any of these (SRM-1, SRD-X, SRD-7SB) is not huge, but it is detectable although it does not detract from the enjoyment.

Also, my SRD-X and SR-Lambda was my first "Stat Rig" which I bought from Plaidplatypus during the great head-fi crash of 2007 for a sickeningly good price of $230 shipped (my second pair of SR-Lambda cost that much without any energizer). Anyways, I was quite impressed with it and posted that driving the SRD-X via headphone out of my DarkVoice 336i was still better than my HD600 with moon black dragon or APS V3 cable out of the 336i.

I think the SRD-X is a little dry sounding right out of the iMod LOD or CD player, but put some tubes between the source and SRD-X and it is much better. My son and I experimented and found the TTVJ portable Millett hybrid headphone out is excellent for feeding the SRD-X for portable use. This son of mine also made me buy him an SRD-X from Spritzer to go with the SR-Lambda I got from Fitz.

Hi Tachi

The srm1 mk2 is a uk version so no transformer needed however, it is an old one with twin normal bias sockets. From what i can see the NAD i have is in decent condition and it just sounds right. On normal dynamic headphones i prefer the sound from its headphone output jack to that of the zero dac/headphone amp.

That's good to hear. My tentative plan is to plug the SRD-X into my Bijou all-tube streamlined futterman amp.

I'm also pretty curious how it actually works, and i may re-cap the thing if i ever get into the guts to try and understand it.

So, I bought a pair of SR-5 on sale on eBay on the 20th, described as "like new, good condition" but no other description. I wrote to the seller prior to bidding and he sent me the following response:

"#1=Black with gold trim.
#2=SRD6 energizer
#3=Eneregizer does not plug
into the wall
#4=Cloth covered round cord

After his reply I go ahead and bid, expecting it's an SR-5NB gold edition with SRD-6SB. I wanted the SRD-6DB to replace my son's SRD-5 117v, and figured it will be easier to sell my SRM-1 Mk2 Pro in the future (if I can part with it at all) if I can throw in a nice headphone with it in the deal.

I win the auction, it ships on the 22nd and today I received a white SR-5 with silver trim (not gold edition) and the SRD-6 plugs into the wall. The seller lied to me. His response?

So, am I being unreasonable to tell the seller that he has three choices:
(1) send me the black with gold trim SR-5 with the SRD-6SB that he said he was selling, and pay the shipping for me to return this.
(2) refund me and pay the return shipping.
(3) refund 50% of the $ and I keep the wrong headphones and energizer.

They were filthy and I cleaned the plastic parts with a Mr. Clean Magic Sponge and wiped down the vinyl with a moist paper towel. Listening to them, it took about 2 minutes or more plugged into my SRM-1 Mk2 Pro for the right driver to produce full volume, after which there is no channel imbalance. I unplugged them and discharged them with a finger across the terminals and let them sit for 30 minutes. I plugged them after the rest, where it only took 10-20 seconds to fully charge up the right side.

They sound nice except not as much bass as my SR-5NB Gold, but much crisper than the white SR-3 that I used to own. They're very clear and sparkly and detailed with decent soundstage, and nothing sounds wrong except they have less bass than the gold edition that I love so much. Right now they remind me a bit of my AKG K240M 600 ohm monitors. I haven't tested the SRD-6 until I install banana plugs on the input cable so I can plug into my Travagans Red.

Should I just sell them here on head-fi as someone's first stat, or fight the seller over this scam which means possibly returning them, or dealing with paypal dispute? Where I don't know if I will win is that the description was given by eBay private message from the seller to me, but wasn't in the auction.

Well, Larry, for the sake of practicality I would say that your options #1 and #3 are not likely to happen, though they do seem fair.

Since your bid was based on what has now been proven false information, I suggest you demand a refund and for him to pay return shipping. The onus falls on him to correctly identify the item before you bid. Whether it was by PM or by description, it's still logged through EBay so you shouldn't have a problem there.

I would imagine he'll not be thrilled about the return, but he'll have to either accept it or submit to the bureaucratic leviathan that is ebay customer support.

I have a pair of RCA cleartop 6FQ7 tubes that I was thinking of pulling out a preamp and putting into my T1S. I believe I read somewhere on this forum that RCAs don't sound that nice with Stax amps. I currently have Sylvania tubes in T1S that sound very nice. Before I go through all of the biasing and tube swapping I wanted to know what the take was on RCAs.

Do we also have consensus that Toshiba and other Japanese made tubes like Matsu****a sound best in Stax amps like T1S?

The RCA's are ok but I prefer the Japanese tubes in every way.

Our recent email exchange:

I sent this as a Paypal dispute, since he ignored my first two requests for full or partial refund, and I have 21 days to escalate it. I do not like the seller's attitude that he can sell me one thing and ship me another, and expect me to be happy with it. I told him in an email it was like selling me a Camaro Z28 with dual exhaust and delivering a Camaro with 6-banger instead.

If anyone wants to buy the SR-5/SRD-6 rig for $112 + actual shipping costs, and he refuses to refund me, Let me know (as long as you don't mind it taking 3 minutes for the right driver to charge up). I might just sell it to you and not escalate the claim. Or I may be able to sell the SR-5 with SRM-1 Mk2 Pro instead of the SRD-6, for $550 total shipped. I really like the SRM-1 and have been reluctant to let it go, but my Woo GES Maxed with Pro and Normal bias jacks just shipped to me yesterday...

What about Sylvania?

Yikes, PayPal dispute is rough. I was really hoping this guy was just mistaken, but it seems he was in fact a crook.

PayPal disputes work well in this instance, though (or as well as they can work) because you have some leverage. Physical products were delivered but disputed, and everything has a record. You might want to point out the channel imbalance, though, if it comes to it. No need to mention that it fixes itself after a certain period of time.

On a more positive note, my SRD-X arrived.

Running it on batteries for the moment - no 12v supply included, though I'm sure I've got half a dozen that will work.

Seems ok so far, though i've only tried the SR-5.

LED does not light up, which was initially a bit alarming. Does it only light up with external DC or is it more likely just plain dead?

I tried them a few years back but I don't remember any details.