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post #16 of 60
3/6/13 at 5:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by disastermouse View Post

Looking at your sig, you have much better up-chain equipment than I do.  Is it possible for you to imagine what I'm getting with mine (ending with the HE-500) and compare it to a Stax SR-009 rig?

I think the HE-5s will scale quite a bit more with a better source/amp/dac. That said, still there is no comparison with the SR-009 rig. Sorry. You might want to look into updating your DAC. It would easily set you off on the right foot with a 007 rig.

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post #17 of 60
3/6/13 at 6:46pm

OT but a friend of mine is doing his RN degree and thinks some of the things being taught are downright idiotic. Anyhow...

 

I broke out the 007As to compare to the 009s the other day. I've only got a T1S (I'm awaiting a much better amp) but I don't listen loud so my primary reasons to focus on 'stats -- resolution and refinement are still readily apparent.  The 009s are more mid-forward and the 007As less so, with the penalty of more flabby bass being that I'm under-driving them and the 009s seem to be less amp-demanding.

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post #18 of 60
3/7/13 at 1:25pm

To the original poster's question, as someone who

(1) owned long-term SR007 Mk1 with the 007t amp

(2) now own 009s w007t/ii amp

(3) did some direct real-time  A/B comparisons with the Woo WES driving the 009s and the SR007 Mk 2

 

I would say save up for the 009s,

and if you can't afford it, go for an LCD3 setup, which I think is much more musical and grain free than the SR007/Mk 1, and has much more natural and even detailed bass than the SR007 Mk2.

 

Just me, but IMHO the SR007 phones have been surpassed in design quality by the 009s and modern dynamics. They are basically a 1998 design.

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post #19 of 60
3/7/13 at 4:07pm

Your HE500 is capable of some very high end sound. Your "upstream" as you put it is holding you back. If you were to improve your source and your amp you might be surprised at what the HE500's can do. Unfortunately, that won't do anything for the comfort issue on the HE500's as they are very heavy headphones (which caused me to sell mine). In my own experience I found switching to the velour pads improved the comfort but the weight is still there. I would caution you to try the stax for some extended listening at a dealer before buying and make certain it meets your comfort requirements. Honestly if you are sensitive to the comfort issue something like the Beyer T1's or even the HD800 might serve you better as they are both much more comfortable than the HE500's. Going up to something like the stax 009 and associated equipment is a huge expense that may not be necessary to get you where you are trying to go.

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post #20 of 60
3/7/13 at 4:16pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Currawong View Post

OT but a friend of mine is doing his RN degree and thinks some of the things being taught are downright idiotic. Anyhow...

 

A lot of what you learn in school is idealistic - which is actually a pretty good idea even though most of your idealism will be crushed in the first year.  You should always remember best practices and especially remember to avoid the dumb mistakes that are the deadliest.  My frustration with nursing has more to do with the fact that the hierarchical power structures are so resistant to change.  There's a hearty disrespect amongst MDs for RNs.  We are talked down to because we don't know as much as they do, but we don't have nearly the amount of training that they do.  If we had their expertise, we would be...I dunno....Doctors, maybe?  Much of the stress of this job is conforming to what each MD expects of you because those expectations can be radically different.  I must say though, what a joy it is to come across a doctor who is willing to teach!  I can't blame them for not all being so willing to do it, as doctors have an inhuman schedule and an impossible list of demands placed upon them pretty much at all times.  I meet precious few happy nurses if they don't have incredibly supportive 'outside-of-work' lives.  It takes an awful lot to recharge those batteries when they've been depleted.  What I just said about RNs goes about 10x for doctors.  Few of them are happy.

 

That said, it's 2013.  WHY for the love of all we hold dear am I being subjected to poorly handwritten orders for ANYTHING?  Our charting system is computerized, but the computer doesn't collate data very well and so we actually replicate what's in the computer chart in a mind-numbingly large amount of paper documentation simply because the computer system does not allow us to easily and intelligently assemble important data simultaneously - so we have to hand-write and replicate documents that DO put it all in a coherent and useful place.  My computer charting is strictly for the lawyers, as it documents time of documentation and clearly delineates WHO is doing the charting and when or how it has been modified.  Data entry is done on truly ancient computers using drop boxes and mouse clicks in teeny-tiny boxes even though F-key 'enter-through' charting is vastly faster to do and encourages more charting and more access to charting for diagnostics and 'past-and-current-state-of-patient' look-ups.

 

What would be most helpful in nursing would be efficient charting that carries over from ED to holding (if they go to holding) to floor so that data entry isn't being replicated in triplicate.  By the third time a patient is asked about an important part of his health history, he or she has begun to lose faith in the process - as he or she has, I believe, a reasonable expectation that 'once requested, once documented' makes sense.  He or she thinks no one has listened to him or her because we're asking about something incredibly important for the second or third time.  Why don't we already know this?  Indeed, we do, or SOMEONE does - but that data was merely collected to determine whether the patient stays in hospital and to what floor they should go.  Then, because systems don't talk to one another, or it was all recorded on paper that gets lost in the unbelievably chaotic environment of the ED, it must be recollected again from a patient who has already often spent EIGHT HOURS in ED, typically without being given food and possibly not having assistance to the bathroom.

 

We have a long way to go towards making our medical care efficient, expedient, and satisfying to all involved.  Nurses are the glue that keeps the creaking ship from sinking, but we are spread thinner and thinner and it takes a toll on those of us in the profession.

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post #21 of 60
3/7/13 at 4:18pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chodi View Post

Your HE500 is capable of some very high end sound. Your "upstream" as you put it is holding you back. If you were to improve your source and your amp you might be surprised at what the HE500's can do. Unfortunately, that won't do anything for the comfort issue on the HE500's as they are very heavy headphones (which caused me to sell mine). In my own experience I found switching to the velour pads improved the comfort but the weight is still there. I would caution you to try the stax for some extended listening at a dealer before buying and make certain it meets your comfort requirements. Honestly if you are sensitive to the comfort issue something like the Beyer T1's or even the HD800 might serve you better as they are both much more comfortable than the HE500's. Going up to something like the stax 009 and associated equipment is a huge expense that may not be necessary to get you where you are trying to go.

Well, where I'm trying to go is an end-point where I'm finally 'done' with collecting more headphones.  Even with my limited set-up, the HE-500 have shown me an inkling of what's possible, to the extent that I'm really interested in hearing what TOTL sounds like.  It seems to make more sense to enjoy what I have while saving up for TOTL and skipping many sideways jumps and attendant expenses now that I'm reasonably certain that I will be able to appreciate TOTL.

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post #22 of 60
3/7/13 at 5:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rgs9200m View Post

To the original poster's question, as someone who

(1) owned long-term SR007 Mk1 with the 007t amp

(2) now own 009s w007t/ii amp

(3) did some direct real-time  A/B comparisons with the Woo WES driving the 009s and the SR007 Mk 2

 

I would say save up for the 009s,

and if you can't afford it, go for an LCD3 setup, which I think is much more musical and grain free than the SR007/Mk 1, and has much more natural and even detailed bass than the SR007 Mk2.

 

Just me, but IMHO the SR007 phones have been surpassed in design quality by the 009s and modern dynamics. They are basically a 1998 design.

That's two posts this week we're in complete agreement. beerchug.gif

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post #23 of 60
3/7/13 at 7:41pm

LMAO @ dismissing the 007 as some kind of out of date headphone.  Sure I think the 009 is a better headphone, but the 007 is absolutely still one of the best headphones ever.  Before the 009 came out, a large portion of the most experienced users on this forum would have rated the 007 as the best current production headphone money can buy, and now that the new TOTL is out people want to act like the old TOTL is no longer great...silly audiophiles.

 

And I completely disagree with everything rsg wrote in his comparison between the 007 and lcd3.  Everything.

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post #24 of 60
3/7/13 at 8:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by n3rdling View Post

LMAO @ dismissing the 007 as some kind of out of date headphone.  Sure I think the 009 is a better headphone, but the 007 is absolutely still one of the best headphones ever.  Before the 009 came out, a large portion of the most experienced users on this forum would have rated the 007 as the best current production headphone money can buy, and now that the new TOTL is out people want to act like the old TOTL is no longer great...silly audiophiles.

 

And I completely disagree with everything rsg wrote in his comparison between the 007 and lcd3.  Everything.

 

I think the three of us can at least agree that the SR-009s are FANTASTIC headphones (and IMO, the best I've heard). smile.gif

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post #25 of 60
3/7/13 at 8:11pm
Quote:

Just me, but IMHO the SR007 phones have been surpassed in design quality by the 009s and modern dynamics. They are basically a 1998 design.

 

Has your 7 year old Stax amp also been surpassed tongue.gif

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post #26 of 60
3/7/13 at 8:28pm

Sure the 009's are nice but it is also nice to switch to the 007's for a while too. They are easier on the ears and more bass impact than the 009's. I find them more comfortable, lighter and a more clever design than the 009's.

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post #27 of 60
3/7/13 at 8:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MacedonianHero View Post

 

I think the three of us can at least agree that the SR-009s are FANTASTIC headphones (and IMO, the best I've heard). smile.gif

Yup, of course...but will we still consider them fantastic when the next TOTL Stax headphone comes out? wink.gif


Edited by n3rdling - 3/7/13 at 8:44pm
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post #28 of 60
3/7/13 at 10:10pm

The 007s definitely don't have any "grain". The whole point about owning a 'stat rig IMO is that you don't have the same issues you have with dynamic cans. Orthos go a long way to rectifying most of those but then have different issues instead.

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post #29 of 60
3/7/13 at 10:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by disastermouse View Post

Would I go badly wrong just saving for a 007-II and a GES amp from Woo?

 
I currently have a combination GES-Stax SR-009 and the amplifier is a delight. There is no trace of distortion at even high sound pressure levels and the sound is fantastic.

I don't know how other amplifiers drive them, but the SR-009-GES is a great setup.
 
Cheers
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post #30 of 60
3/8/13 at 10:25am

I just wanted clarify my feelings about the SR007s so as not to appear so negative, and I'm sorry If i came across that way about them.

 

I liked the SR007s a lot during the years I had them, about 1999-2008, but during that time, the only practical competitors were Senn 650s, Grado RS1s, and AKG 701s and maybe some others.

It was a smaller universe. At this time I considered myself a fanboy of the 007s and they got most of my headtime.

But I remember at the time there was considerable debate about whether the 007s were better or worse than those dynamics, and I felt there was no clear winner from my listening (I owned all of them).

 

But now with HD800s, Audezes, Hifimen, Fostexes, AT-W3000ANVs, and even some Grados (sort of)  (along with the more modern dynamic amps), the bar has been raised, and I lump these in with the 009s actually.

 

I spent some time with the Woo WES with the SR007 (the Mk2) and SR009, and I thought the bass  of the SR007 was kind of muddy (I liked my old SR007 Mk1 bass better, even though it was less prominent).

But it was clear to me that the 009s were just so much more resolving AND musical at the same time, and I just had to write off the SR007s, especially since I 

LOVE my LCD3s with a Pinnacle or RSA B52 amp, with the other modern dynamics like HD800s or TH900s close behind.

 

Not to open another can of worms here, but I think the modern phones are more refined and musical overall than any of the 10-20 year old phones including R10s (I owned those too and sold them off).

Time marches on, and I think we are in a golden age of phones now, and I'm grateful for that.

 

Edit: no, I did not perceive any grain from the SR007s with the Woo, so that's probably due to my lowly 007t amp. And I do admit the new SR007 phones are a wonderful design, super-comfy and I wish the

009s felt like them.


Edited by rgs9200m - 3/8/13 at 10:48am
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