Ultrasone Edition 10 announced! - Page 7

Hmmm.... I love the looks myself, but for $3200 I would hire Alison Krauss to come sing for me in my living room .... and hope I could get her drunk enough   !!!

Audiogon has R10 for $4000, 4 hours left and no bids. In 2004 money adjusted for inflation is probably much less.

Edition10 has ruthenium finish with zebra wood inlays and comes with nice box and zebra wood stand. $ 3200 was $2600 in year 2000 . www.westegg.com/inflation/

Quote:
Originally Posted by downsize  
" Hmmm.... I love the looks myself, but for $3200 I would hire Alison Krauss to come sing for me in my living room .... and hope I could get her drunk enough   !!!"


I'm not so sure she's do it but I think Brtiney Spears might if you threw in a six pack of Bud. Lmao

Quote:

Originally Posted by Markj 

Edition10 has ruthenium finish with zebra wood inlays and comes with nice box and zebra wood stand. $ 3200 was $2600 in year 2000 . www.westegg.com/inflation/

Nice site. When R10s were released (1989) $3200 current dollars was $1780 or almost half.

Interesting choice of compounds used in this headphone:

Ruthenium is one of the rarest metals on Earth.

Ruthenium is found as the free metal, sometimes associated with platinum, osmium and iridium, in North and South America, and in South Africa. There are few minerals, such as laurite, ruarsite and ruthenarsenite. All are rare and none acts as a commercial source of the metal. Ruthenium is also associated with nickel and deposits (from which it is recovered commercially). World production is 12 tonnes per year and reserves are hestimated to be ariund 5.000 tonnes.

Ruthenium compounds are encountered relatively rarely by most people. All ruthenium compounds should be regarded as highly toxic and as carcinogenic. Compounds of ruthenium stain the skin very strongly. It seems that ingested ruthenium is retained strongly in bones. Ruthenium oxide, RuO₄, is highly toxic and volatile, and to be avoided.

Rhutenium 106 is one of the radionuclides involved in atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons, which began in 1945, with a US test, and ended in 1980 with a Chinese test. It is among the long-lived radionuclides that have produced and will continue to produce increased cancers risk for decades and centuries to come.

Ruthenium is primarily used as an alloying agent. Adding 0.1% ruthenium to titanium makes titanium 100 times more resistant to corrosion. Small amounts of ruthenium are added to platinum and palladium to strengthen them. These alloys are used in jewelry and in electrical contacts that must resist wear.

Definitely going to take the wait and see approach to this hahaha. I hope someone bites the bullet and posts up some impressions whenever these are released

Would be good to have the opportunity to hold one in hand and listen before making a decision.

For US$3,200 this is almost insane price and many who has this budget would probably go for electrostatic setup ?

For me, there is absolute no hurry.  I know there are a few people who feel good by having the most expensive headphones on earth but that's not me. 

F. Lo

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drumonron 

Interesting choice of compounds used in this headphone:

 

Ruthenium is one of the rarest metals on Earth.

 

Ruthenium is found as the free metal, sometimes associated with platinum, osmium and iridium, in North and South America, and in South Africa. There are few minerals, such as laurite, ruarsite and ruthenarsenite. All are rare and none acts as a commercial source of the metal. Ruthenium is also associated with nickel and deposits (from which it is recovered commercially). World production is 12 tonnes per year and reserves are hestimated to be ariund 5.000 tonnes.

 

Ruthenium compounds are encountered relatively rarely by most people. All ruthenium compounds should be regarded as highly toxic and as carcinogenic. Compounds of ruthenium stain the skin very strongly. It seems that ingested ruthenium is retained strongly in bones. Ruthenium oxide, RuO₄, is highly toxic and volatile, and to be avoided.

Rhutenium 106 is one of the radionuclides involved in atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons, which began in 1945, with a US test, and ended in 1980 with a Chinese test. It is among the long-lived radionuclides that have produced and will continue to produce increased cancers risk for decades and centuries to come.

 

Ruthenium is primarily used as an alloying agent. Adding 0.1% ruthenium to titanium makes titanium 100 times more resistant to corrosion. Small amounts of ruthenium are added to platinum and palladium to strengthen them. These alloys are used in jewelry and in electrical contacts that must resist wear.

What I don't get is what does Ruthenium mean to the sonic performance of the Edition 10 ?  There is no information about its audio properties (damping, resonance, ...etc.) so I am wondering what makes Ultrasone pick this material.  From all I read, it is like making something unique for the sake of uniqueness, and more like a marketing plot ?

Also, is Ultrasone using solid Ruthenium or just a thin layer as decoration ?  Any one can tell ?

F. Lo
 

When Sony made another 200 pairs of the R-10 for the U.S. in 2006 they were $4200 plus tax. the $2800 price was the original price when they were in in full production back in the day (I should know, I reserved a pair of the newer last batch as soon as the announcement was made). I got them from "Themes and Gifts" and there was only one other company allowed to import them (their name escapes me right now). A mint used pair is currently going for from $6K to $8k. They are worth it in the scheme of things. 

The Qualia 010's cost me $2600 new, and go for $3500 and up right now, if they are in good shape. The Orpheus HE-90 was $7500 without the amp, $15K with. It's all relative.

Actually, I really like the headphone stand. Maybe I'll buy them and just through out the headphones, or donate them to the immtbiker charity 

Well if the world stockpile is really a scant 5,000 tons I can't imagine they would be solid. Sounds like marketing to me, but I'd have to get a few non-Ultrasone scientific opinions to be sure.

There are connectors that are ruthenium plated that are supposedly 'better' than gold plating. I've not seen the metal used any other way regarding hifi before.

Quote:

Originally Posted by immtbiker 

When Sony made another 200 pairs of the R-10 for the U.S. in 2006 they were $4200 plus tax. the $2800 price was the original price when they were in in full production back in the day (I should know, I reserved a pair of the newer last batch as soon as the announcement was made). I got them from "Themes and Gifts" and there was only one other company allowed to import them (their name escapes me right now). A mint used pair is currently going for from $6K to $8k. They are worth it in the scheme of things. 

The Qualia 010's cost me $2600 new, and go for $3500 and up right now, if they are in good shape. The Orpheus HE-90 was $7500 without the amp, $15K with. It's all relative.

 

Thanks for the clarification on the R10s. Now that you mention the correct price $2800 does trigger my memory. I was close with $2600 at least..

I really hope some counterfeiter makes a bunch of fake ones so I might be able to get my hands on one. I actually really dig the look.

Ruthenium is not used on the entire ear cups on the ED 8. otherwise they would cost probably more then 10000$ :p...

.

Quote:

Originally Posted by oqvist 

Ruthenium is not used on the entire ear cups on the ED 8. otherwise they would cost probably more then 10000$ :p...

 

right.  it was a plating as well. 

i'm assuming the ed. 10 will be the same way.