[Lil' Knight]

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Also makes you wonder what happens if some unlucky accident happens to it, like your dog or cat deciding to treat it as a toy...  

I don't have a dog or cat, but I have a gf.
 
Wondering if the price mentioned in Thailand is true or not?

 

[Uncledan]

Because of the earthquake, Japanese yen rise up to sky to 1:78 level.  I believe it will drop back to 1:85~90 level, then the new 009 will be around US$4500.

 

[visualguy]

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I wish there was another amp comparable to the blue hawaii that was more available. It is kinda a bummer to think you can buy the new stax now, but in order to make them sound there best, you would probably have to wait a year from now in order to get the amp to listen to it.

I believe the KGSS is comparable to the BHSE. I haven't detected any weaknesses of the KGSS with the SR-007, and so far I haven't been able to find any information about what exactly is better about the BHSE in terms of sound quality.
 
Having said that, I wouldn't be surprised if the actual wait for a new KGSS is a few months, so it's not exactly "available" either. Just maybe more available than the BHSE.
 

 

[monsieurguzel]

I had that mentality for the longest time and refused to put a BHSE about 2 years ago.  Ever since, I've been wasting money on all sorts of other amps and headphones and losing money while reselling eventually.  Now I finally to put my deposit down and am fine waiting for a year (heck I've been waiting almost that long for the JH3a).  I just know that once I receive it, I won't be worried about wasting money on new FOTM amps and headphones.  My only regret is that I wish I had placed my order a long time ago and just been patient instead of buying anyting that was available.

 
Quote:

I wish there was another amp comparable to the blue hawaii that was more available. It is kinda a bummer to think you can buy the new stax now, but in order to make them sound there best, you would probably have to wait a year from now in order to get the amp to listen to it.

 

 

[monsieurguzel]

I've owned both a KGSS and SRM-717  and while they are both good (one is more neutral and the other has a warmer presentation), neither are anywhere near the level of a BHSE from the few times I've heard at meets.

 
Quote:

I believe the KGSS is comparable to the BHSE. I haven't detected any weaknesses of the KGSS with the SR-007, and so far I haven't been able to find any information about what exactly is better about the BHSE in terms of sound quality.
 
Having said that, I wouldn't be surprised if the actual wait for a new KGSS is a few months, so it's not exactly "available" either. Just maybe more available than the BHSE.
 

 

 

[visualguy]

Quote:

Because of the earthquake, Japanese yen rise up to sky to 1:78 level.  I believe it will drop back to 1:85~90 level, then the new 009 will be around US$4500.

The JPY hasn't been at that level since last summer - not sure it will drop back to that any time soon, but even if it does, it's still a lot of money for headphones...
 

 

[n3rdling]

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I think the most reliable importer is Pricejapan and had the SR-507 long before it came out to US dealers. 
 
Man, I wonder how much elusivedisc will charge for this headphone if it is $4800 in Japan.  My guess is $5000-5500.  Since warranty is pretty useless in the states (Yama's inc. is doesn't even respond their phone or email), I would just get them straight from Japan.

 
Ya I might just try to get it from Japan but it will obviously depend a lot on how much it is here.  Hopefully they compensate a bit on US MSRP for the weak dollar.  Btw, are those your Quads?

 

[DaveBSC]

Quote:

Man, I wonder how much elusivedisc will charge for this headphone if it is $4800 in Japan.  My guess is $5000-5500.  Since warranty is pretty useless in the states (Yama's inc. is doesn't even respond their phone or email), I would just get them straight from Japan.

Indeed. Many of the importers will also assist in getting them back to Japan if they need service, which is probably much faster than trying to get hold of Yama's. I think someone also mentioned awhile back that Stax service in the UK is actually responsive.

 

[DaveBSC]

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Ouch - that's a lot of money. You can get some extremely nice powered studio monitors (which sound better than any headphones) plus an excellent DAC for less than that...
 
Also makes you wonder what happens if some unlucky accident happens to it, like your dog or cat deciding to treat it as a toy...

Monitors are fine, IF you have the space and the room acoustics for them. I've tried $2K Dynaudio monitors in my office, and the sound was lousy. The acoustics of small rooms are a nightmare to deal with, and a work desk does not make for a good speaker stand. With my O2s I don't have to deal with tweeter reflections off the desk, or massive bass suckouts, or having the image collapse if I move my chair a little bit out of the sweetspot. For listening while getting work done, flagship headphones rule.
 
Pet owners should probably not let their pets near their headphones, especially of the electrostatic variety.
 

 

[Uncledan]

Well, for headphone, it is a lots of money!  But you are getting the top 3 headphone in the world (in term of money).
 
Compare with speakers, you are only getting the low-mid level speakers with $4500.
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The JPY hasn't been at that level since last summer - not sure it will drop back to that any time soon, but even if it does, it's still a lot of money for headphones...
 

 

 

[Towert7]

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You can get some extremely nice powered studio monitors (which sound better than any headphones)

 

You state opinion as if it were fact.

 

[visualguy]

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Monitors are fine, IF you have the space and the room acoustics for them. I've tried $2K Dynaudio monitors in my office, and the sound was lousy. The acoustics of small rooms are a nightmare to deal with, and a work desk does not make for a good speaker stand. With my O2s I don't have to deal with tweeter reflections off the desk, or massive bass suckouts, or having the image collapse if I move my chair a little bit out of the sweetspot. For listening while getting work done, flagship headphones rule.
 
Pet owners should probably not let their pets near their headphones, especially of the electrostatic variety.
 

I haven't had that much trouble placing studio monitors and getting good sound out of them, but, yes, you need some space, and you can't just put them on your desk (at least not without some serious isolation). Even if your room can accommodate monitors, headphones can be nice to avoid bothering others. I can see why headphones can make sense, but $4800 seems like too much unless these are magical. I guess that remains to be seen... If the SR-009 sound is only slightly better than the SR-007, then I'll just stick to my SR-007.
 

 

[purk]

The good thing is the SR009 is not a limited edition headphone, so as long as you can wait, price will fall.  Man I still remember when it was 115 to 120 yen to a dollar 3 years ago.  Maybe it will go back to 100 in next year or so.  
 

 

[kiertijai]

I was informed that from the Stax distributor in Thailand that the price will be around 135,000 baht
which is approximately 4200-4500$ depending on the exchange rate.  We will confirm about the price again
although we expect some delay in shipment.

 

[visualguy]

Quote:

 

You state opinion as if it were fact.

 

On some types of music (such as vocals), headphones can match (but not exceed) good speakers as long as you don't mind the sound coming from inside your head. On other types of music (such as classical symphonies), headphones don't provide an experience which is even remotely close to full-range speakers.
 
Sure it's an opinion, just like saying that flying in a jet is better than flying in a turboprop.