New Jecklin Float QA !!! - Page 27

After switching the Nordost Valhalla jumper cables,  the sound of the new Jecklin float becomes fuller, more enjoyable

but retains the details, soundstage, dynamic range . The bass now has more body, impact.  The background is also more quiet.

So I will use the NBS jumper cables from now on.   Because the stiffness of the NBS cable I suggest at least 12 " in length.

(Mine is 14" in length)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecOrBqQAuXg  is a primer on the use of binaural recording; these musicians either have quite an experience with binaural recordings or were coached real good; enjoy

      Yes, the position of the musicians  was the same as I heard from the CD with the new Jecklin Float.   In this "Up Close" binaural

recording of Ottmar Lieber there was no "Snakecharmer track"  , in this youtube the percussion used (pot) was infront at the far right.

      The new Jecklin Float QA demonstrated the precise imaging in the test track of Dr Chesky 's recording : Track 20, 21

and track 25 Edgar the Barber, track 26 Dr Chesky's shave

While we are waiting for Muppetface's Jecklin Float to come back , I have tried the AKG K1000

vs new Jecklin Float  vs TakeT H2+ connecting the power supply of the Jecklin to the speaker post

of the Zotl ZH230.  I connected the speaker post of the Jecklin 's power supply to the TakeT H2+ 

transformer.   I used NBS jumper cables for both connections.  From the speaker post of the TakeT H2+

I used the banana terminations of my DIY Kimber Kable adapter cable to connect  with the XLR termination

of  AKG K1000.  I used Sony SCD XA5400ES for SACD & CD playback.  I can switch the listening between

the new Jecklin Float and TakeT H2+ using the knob on the new Jecklin Float PSU.  I could listen to AKG K1000

and TakeT H2+ at the same time.

Look :  AKG K1000 is better than the other two.  My wife said that the new Jecklin Float was the ugliest headphone

and it's OK with me because she never asked the price of the Jecklin.  She seemed to be satisfied because it is

open end headphone so I could hear her at the same time of my listening to the headphone

Built : AKG is better than the other two.  IMO the TakeT H2+  is the worst.

Comfortability :  All of them are very light and very comfortable to wear.  TakeT H2+ with thick earpad is better than the thin

stock earpad as it doesn't bite my ear. 

Easy to drive : AKG K1000 and TakeT H2+ are the same while the new Jecklin Float needs 30-40% increase in volume

but there is no problem as my Zotl's system can handle them easily.

.

Overall impression : IMO the new Jecklin Float & TakeT H2+ are better than the AKG K1000

The Jecklin Float is the most natural sounding headphone while the TakeT H2+ is superb in term of bass response and treble

which is almost too bright with my setup.

Sound Signature : All three headphones can be classified as neutral .   The most natural one is the new Jecklin Float while

the TakeT has accentuation on the very high and mid bass

Soundstage, Musical instrument separation, Details : I used the Binaural Recording of Dr Chesky SACD track 20,21,25,26

Ottmar Liebert "Up Close"  and Can "Flow Motion" to compare the three.

All are excellent.   The widest and deepest soundstage is the TakeT H2+. 

With Ottmar Liebert's recording it seemed to be that the musicians were far apart than the other two and in track 20,21 of Dr Chesky it seemed to me that Dr. Chesky is farther  at the beginning  of his walk than the other two.   With Can " Flow Motion"  the soundstage was almost 3D however the tallest soundstage went with the new Jecklin Float.

So the new Jecklin Float comes in second but it is better than the TakeT H2+ in term of vertical soundstage.  AKG K1000 is also excellent but can not compare to the other two.

The TakeT H2+ is the most airy , probably due to its wide and deep soundstage + its prominent treble or sparkle and thus make the sound more distinct.

All demonstrated excellent musical instrument separation and details.  The new Jecklin is probably the best overall , the TakeT H2+ comes in second with the better treble sound separation

Vocal and Midrange :  I used the first track of Dr. Chesky's binaural recording :Amber Rubarth "Storms are on the

Ocean" ,   Alison Krauss "New Favourite" SACD and Chinese Singer "Tong Li", The London Cello Sound XRCD24. 

All are neutral and excellent.   However when we compared between the three headphones.

AKG K1000 was the more forwarding,  while the new Jecklin Float QA was neutral and the TakeT H2+ was a little laid back

in some recordings.   The new Jecklin Float had a little bit of sweetness added in their midrange and vocal but not as

euphonic as the HE90.  The TakeT H2+ had brighter presentation due to the sparkling high (almost too bright in Tong Li's)

and lots of details in the treble (probably due to the supertweeter, I turned the BAT on for about 30 degrees)

Bass :  The TakeT H2+ had the most prominent midbass especially with the thick pad.  The AKG K1000 bass heavy

came in second.  The bass of the new Jecklin Float was not lacking, I should say it was more than adequate.  All of them went

quite low but the lower were the TakeT H2+ and the new Jecklin Float.   However I do think that the bass of TakeT H2+ may be

too much   for classical music but is better with Rock, Pop, Electronic

Dynamic Range : The TakeT H2+ and the new Jecklin Float were better than the AKG K 1000

Listening to Solti's "The Resurrection" Mahler 2nd at the opening of the Final Movement "The Terror of the Fanfare" was so

abrupt and filled with bass impact with the TakeT H2 (almost the same that I experienced with Kunzel's or Dorati's cannon and musket firing  in Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture)

Music Genre : I think I can use all three with all genres of music.  I prefer the TakeT H2+ with Rock Pop Metal especially symphonic metal and electronic music.  I think overall may be the new Jecklin Float.

Thanks for your impressions, kiertijai. My Floats wont be back until after the New Year, but I'm hoping for the end of January or thereabouts. I really, really miss them.

I would say that overall I agree the Float QA is the best of the three (however I have the bass light version of the K1000). The TakeT H2+ has a certain tone that is difficult to describe, but very different from all other headphones: electrostats, orthos, etc. To me it sounds the most like speakers in a certain way. I would characterize the TakeT as fairly linear except for the bass, which can be very emphasized on certain setups. The Float QA sounds more natural to me overall, but I really like both.

With the bass light K1000 it's really no contest for me personally. I've always found the bass light version to be extremely brittle and thin sounding, borderline unpleasant in the treble region, but with a nice sense of air and space. It's still a very fun headphone with a certain novelty factor. However I would take the TakeT or Float QA over it most definitely.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kiertijai 

Overall impression : IMO the new Jecklin Float & TakeT H2+ are better than the AKG K1000

The Jecklin Float is the most natural sounding headphone while the TakeT H2+ is superb in term of bass response and treble

which is almost too bright with my setup.

 

 

Sound Signature : All three headphones can be classified as neutral .   The most natural one is the new Jecklin Float while

the TakeT has accentuation on the very high and mid bass

 

 

 

Soundstage, Musical instrument separation, Details : I used the Binaural Recording of Dr Chesky SACD track 20,21,25,26

Ottmar Liebert "Up Close"  and Can "Flow Motion" to compare the three.

 

 

 

 

All are excellent.   The widest and deepest soundstage is the TakeT H2+. 

 

With Ottmar Liebert's recording it seemed to be that the musicians were far apart than the other two and in track 20,21 of Dr Chesky it seemed to me that Dr. Chesky is farther  at the beginning  of his walk than the other two.   With Can " Flow Motion"  the soundstage was almost 3D however the tallest soundstage went with the new Jecklin Float.

 

 

So the new Jecklin Float comes in second but it is better than the TakeT H2+ in term of vertical soundstage.  AKG K1000 is also excellent but can not compare to the other two.

 

The TakeT H2+ is the most airy , probably due to its wide and deep soundstage + its prominent treble or sparkle and thus make the sound more distinct.

 

All demonstrated excellent musical instrument separation and details.  The new Jecklin is probably the best overall , the TakeT H2+ comes in second with the better treble sound separation

Thus, we can state that in your personal rating Jecklin Float is in second place after the Orpheus? And ahead Taket?

This is very frustrating. After sending my Float QA back, they claim they cannot hear any problems with my set. They are asking me to clarify myself, but I honestly don't know how I could state it any more clearly.

The right driver would cut in and out, and when it did return it sounded distorted. Very distorted. It was a very noticeable problem.

Also I was under the impression I wasn't the only one having problems here! There was another head-fier, Sam, who said he had problems with his right driver no longer working. And weren't there other posts on German forums talking about the same issues?

I was worried this might happen.

Just like taking a car into a mechanic..

If I were you I would link them or directly copy your posts about it from this thread in a message.

Sounds familiar to me. They are not trying hard enough to reproduce the problem.

The problem would come and go, and sometimes they would function without issue for a few days before it returned with a vengeance. They say they'll be testing it through next week as well, so hopefully it will show up for them.

Even if it never shows up for some reason, I'm still going to ask for a replacement. I'd just prefer them to find the problem because it could happen again to the new pair, and I'd like to know it was being addressed.

Maybe obvious, but if I understand correctly, the Float needs to be hooked up to a specific amp/transformer so you can't just check it with another amp? So did you send the whole combo in or just the headset, because maybe the problem is on the amp/transformer end?

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheGrumpyOldMan 

Maybe obvious, but if I understand correctly, the Float needs to be hooked up to a specific amp/transformer so you can't just check it with another amp? So did you send the whole combo in or just the headset, because maybe the problem is on the amp/transformer end?

The Floats use a specific transformer, however that transformer can be paired with just about any amp so long as it has speaker taps. I tried the K1000 with the transformer and didn't notice any problems, so I assumed it was all on the headphone's end. Sending the transformer back to Germany along with the Floats would have been too costly, so I just sent the headphones (which is also what QUAD Musik recommended).

It's always possible it could be a transformer issue. At first I wondered if the problem was one of improper voltage, feeding 110V into the amp if it was set for 220V, however they assured me the amp was set for the US. If---heaven forbid---the replacement set has problems as well, then I'll try to get the transformer replaced as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MuppetFace 

 

The Floats use a specific transformer, however that transformer can be paired with just about any amp so long as it has speaker taps. I tried the K1000 with the transformer and didn't notice any problems, so I assumed it was all on the headphone's end. Sending the transformer back to Germany along with the Floats would have been too costly, so I just sent the headphones (which is also what QUAD Musik recommended).

 

It's always possible it could be a transformer issue. At first I wondered if the problem was one of improper voltage, feeding 110V into the amp if it was set for 220V, however they assured me the amp was set for the US. If---heaven forbid---the replacement set has problems as well, then I'll try to get the transformer replaced as well.

Please do not use AKG K 1000 with transformers - any, not just Jecklin, that step up the voltage. Although it obviously "worked", it is a total impedance mismatch and should preferably be avoided. How did you connect them to the transformer in the first place - plugs should not match, dynamic phones need 3/4 wire connection ( 4 pole XLR on K 1000 ), whereas electrostatic require at least 5, the 5th/6th wire needed for polsarising voltage ? Or was K1000 simply connected to the speaker output of the transformer, which is just direct connection to the speaker amp connected to the transformer box ? In that case, you were only listening to additional switch and wiring of the Jecklin QA transformer box, which should have no or minimum sonic change, and NOT to the transformer actually in the listening chain. It could be that defect lies with transformer box then, If K1000s were so connected, you could not "test" the transformer with them.

ESLs can be tricky - particularly regarding humidity. Try to check for humidity at your place - normal, dry, on the brink of starting to rain ? Because air is a part of the electrostatic transducer and it does affect the performance - some ESLs are more affected than other, yet none are completely devoid of this problem. Still, should not be as drastic with new phones as you described. It can be that contact - or anything else.

Once, a friend kept bringing me an amplifier ( I will witheld brand name, it is suposed to be very high quality ) for specific reason - on powering up it would blow one or more fuses. I had that amp three or four times running at my place for at least a week at each time - everything normal. Only to get a phone call from that friend a couple of days later it blew fuses again. NOT an easy fix - it turned out tantalum capacitors were used at above their voltage rating and on power up surge they would short, blowing the fuses of course.  It took almost two months altogether to establish this - no service or manufacturer would invest so much time in order to find so well hidden culprit.

Hope you are more lucky with Float QAs. When up and running, they should be great.

Quote:

Originally Posted by analogsurviver 

Please do not use AKG K 1000 with transformers - any, not just Jecklin, that step up the voltage. Although it obviously "worked", it is a total impedance mismatch and should preferably be avoided. How did you connect them to the transformer in the first place - plugs should not match, dynamic phones need 3/4 wire connection ( 4 pole XLR on K 1000 ), whereas electrostatic require at least 5, the 5th/6th wire needed for polsarising voltage ? Or was K1000 simply connected to the speaker output of the transformer, which is just direct connection to the speaker amp connected to the transformer box ? In that case, you were only listening to additional switch and wiring of the Jecklin QA transformer box, which should have no or minimum sonic change, and NOT to the transformer actually in the listening chain. It could be that defect lies with transformer box then, If K1000s were so connected, you could not "test" the transformer with them.

 

ESLs can be tricky - particularly regarding humidity. Try to check for humidity at your place - normal, dry, on the brink of starting to rain ? Because air is a part of the electrostatic transducer and it does affect the performance - some ESLs are more affected than other, yet none are completely devoid of this problem. Still, should not be as drastic with new phones as you described. It can be that contact - or anything else.

 

No, I wouldn't use the K1000 with a transformer directly. I connected them to the speaker taps of the transformer, so I see your point that the problem could still be with the transformer. If the problems persist I'll try sending it in as well.

Regarding humidity, my environment is pretty well regulated. I've never had any humidity issues with an electrostatic transducer before, though I'd heard the effects: it's a crackling, popping sort of noise, not really matching up with what was going on this time, though I suppose it's possible. However I have a feeling your original suggestion is more accurate since others seem to be having problems with the right driver as well.

QUAD Musik will be sending me a new transformer as well in case the issue isn't with the headphones. They say I can try both and keep the one that works best for me.