[customcoco]

hi 
I've been around head fi for a bit more the 5 years now. 
If you read my profile page you'll see that 5 years ago I was a young child. 
so long story made short, i've done some savings, enough for a great electrostat system. 
for the amp I will probably get a ges without the uprgade. 
and for the source an audiolab 8200 or a cambridge 840c. 
so for this combination I think that the jade will be great as I've read that it's less "power-hungry". 
I can't, in anyway, audition them. 
so tell me what you think
 edit: 
saw the threads about the jades but still nothing very accurate about them with the ges

 

[edstrelow]

The jades seem to have faded in popularity recently possibly due to the number of new Stax phones that have come out such as the 307, 407, 507 and SR-009.   There are certainly threads in this forum that deal with them and can give you some sense of their performance.  I heard one briefly at a Canjam but not enough to really assess.Hopefully one of their fans can add something.

 

[vcoheda]

the Jade has faded because it proved to be an unreliable product - too many defects.

 

[Duckman]

I found the O2 (mk1) much superior to the Jade. On the system I heard, the Jade was very sharp in the treble.

 

[customcoco]

Quote:

the Jade has faded because it proved to be an unreliable product - too many defects.

what defects?

 

[aRRR]

Mine had some very little rattle when deep bass notes were played. The sound was absolutely wonderful, but at 1500$ I expect no issues at all.

 

[customcoco]

rattle? and have compared you it to the o2 or any of the "around 2k$" electrostats?

 

[customcoco]

Quote:

I found the O2 (mk1) much superior to the Jade. On the system I heard, the Jade was very sharp in the treble.

what was the system? and what was the version of the jade?

 

[AudioCats]

you might want to express interest to head-direct but insist on getting one with Stax ribbon cable. The bright/sharp/brittle-ness is largely from the current version's PVC ribbon cable (probably the same cheap ribbon they use in computer buses).
 
Driven by a BHSE or a WES, the O2 does win, but not an all out victory against the Jade if the Jade is recabled well. The Jade presents the human voice slightly better.
 
The Jade has less amping needs, so it is still a viable option if you are on a more limited "whole system" budget.
 
again, if you go the Jade route, insist on one with Stax ribbon, otherwise the O2 is a much better option.

 

[AudioCats]

here we come again, kind of like a broken record by now:
 
tendency of developing cracks in wood housing;
cheap cable;
an over-all DIY look;
tendency of developing hiss/cracking in some climate (due to high humidity?)
Non-user-replacable pads (yes they deform after a couple of years, if you use the phones often. I don't believe they will last 10 years). Replacement pad not available.
 
 
Quote:

what defects?

 

 

[customcoco]

Quote:

here we come again, kind of like a broken record by now:
 
tendency of developing cracks in wood housing;
cheap cable;
an over-all DIY look;
tendency of developing hiss/cracking in some climate (due to high humidity?)
Non-user-replacable pads (yes they deform after a couple of years, if you use the phones often. I don't believe they will last 10 years). Replacement pad not available.
 
 


 

oh, that's a lot of defects!!

and you said that the "brittle-ness" of the sound is "largely" due to the cable, so is the sound still a bit sharp even after the cable replacement? 
 
 
EDIT: i've realised yesterday that I don't have enough cash so I will have to wait several months (probably more than 6) before the big jump. 
In anyway thanks for the help and support 
 
 

 

[customcoco]

now that I have the cash, I still don't know what to do.
 
I really hate treble sharpness, but I can't spend more than 1500 dollars in the amp. I could go the diy way and build a kgss, but after all It will cost me as about the same as buying an already made one.
 
the rig I'm building will be my first "real" hi-fi system, and it took me a lot of time to get the cash for it. I wan't something that sounds good as well as something reliable, so I think I sould go for the o2 
 
any Idea?

 

[deadlylover]

Quote:

now that I have the cash, I still don't know what to do.
 
I really hate treble sharpness, but I can't spend more than 1500 dollars in the amp. I could go the diy way and build a kgss, but after all It will cost me as about the same as buying an already made one.
 
the rig I'm building will be my first "real" hi-fi system, and it took me a lot of time to get the cash for it. I wan't something that sounds good as well as something reliable, so I think I sould go for the o2 
 
any Idea?

 
Have you tried the LCD-2 yet? The treble is not sharp at all unless you let it play some poor recordings, then it starts to bite you. It's heaps cheaper than an O2 rig so it's worth trying it out to see if you like it.
 
Otherwise, the O2 is the way to go, just keep an eye out for what specific version you buy.
 
You will be able to build a cheap and cheerful KGSSHV for less than $1000, easy. ^^

 

[customcoco]

for the amp, i'd like to go Diy, but I don't have any experience nor equipment...
 
the lcd-2 seems great but i'd like to try electostats.
 
If the kgss is easy to build and (with equipment) costs less than $1400 then I'll seriously consider it.
 

 

[deadlylover]

Quote:

for the amp, i'd like to go Diy, but I don't have any experience nor equipment...
 
the lcd-2 seems great but i'd like to try electostats.
 
If the kgss is easy to build and (with equipment) costs less than $1400 then I'll seriously consider it.
 

 
It's not difficult at all, you just need to be VERY patient and be willing to read a lot and learn. There have been people who've built the kgss as their first project!
 
You shouldn't have a problem sourcing all the parts + electronics equipment needed for less than $1400.