Elysian
1000+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2011
- Posts
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Hi all. I've been a lurker on Head-Fi for the last two years, but decided it's finally time to make an account and go all-in with this hobby
I recently entered the headphone world a year ago with a Grado SR-225i, GS-1 (w/ DACT), and gamma2. Everything's routed through S/PDIF (Xonar DX--cheapie card, I just didn't want to use my mobo S/PDIF connection), and music's all played through a high-end PC (fb2k, all FLAC 16/44 to 24/96). Too lazy to deal with CDs, and got tired of endlessly cleaning lint off of vinyl.
My intention was to buy some cost-effective equipment to see if I could actually tell a difference with a nice pair of headphones, DAC, and amp. Went solid-state over tube based on a friend's recommendation, as he said solid-state would fit my music preferences (electronica, hip-hop, metal, and rock) much better than tube.
I'm addicted now, and I'm looking to upgrade my entire setup. I was originally considering an upgrade to a RS-1i, PS-1000i, or SR-007 O2 MKII, but had a chance to demo a LCD-2 and it blew away the RS-1i and GS-1000i. I immediately lost all interest in the Grados, and I'm now stuck deciding between Audeze and Stax. I've never listened to an electrostat.
I'm hoping to get opinions on whether the SR-007 O2 MKII would be a good fit for my music preferences. I've noticed the music I listen to isn't common among the high-end crowd (or the review sites like 6moons) so I'm having a lot of difficulty finding a frame of reference. If I went for the Stax, I'd get a BHSE in a year or two, but would use a cheap electrostat amp in the meantime. I'm also looking to upgrade my DAC. Based on my research, I'm looking at, from most to least desired: ARC DAC8, Weiss Minerva, Antelope Zodiac Gold, or a $1-2k DAC with the ES9018. Another thing I'm struggling with is the order to upgrade my setup in. I'm leaning towards starting with the headphones, then DAC, then finally amp.
Any thoughts on my situation would be greatly appreciated. If I never ran into those LCD-2s, I probably would've just rolled the dice for the SR-007s--can't find a store that demos electrostats in the South Bay (Norcal). I've heard criticism that electrostats just aren't good for fast music that's heavy on bass, and the dynamics don't fit, but reviews say SR-007 force people to drop their electrostat preconceptions with the right setup. My concern with the LCD-2s is that while the bass was heavenly, I found them muddy and lacking crispness, the high-end not that great, and vocals were meh (granted, the DAC and AMP setup was not that good). The one thing I like about my Grados is that everything sounds very clean--all the different audio tracks are clearly defined. I'm not sure what the right term here is (analytical?).
A random sampling of the music I'd regularly put the SR-007s through: Hybrid, UNKLE, Way Out West, Isis, Misery Signals, Opeth, Porcupine Tree, Saosin, Underoath, anything produced by DJ Premier, Pete Rock, RZA, etc.
Thanks for any input! I'm already checking Audiogon and the Head-fi FS multiple times a day for a SR-007 MKII combo, but I admit I'm a bit nervous on dropping this much money on something I've never heard (the Bay Area meetup is 6 months away!), and whether electrostats and tubes just aren't a good match for me.
I recently entered the headphone world a year ago with a Grado SR-225i, GS-1 (w/ DACT), and gamma2. Everything's routed through S/PDIF (Xonar DX--cheapie card, I just didn't want to use my mobo S/PDIF connection), and music's all played through a high-end PC (fb2k, all FLAC 16/44 to 24/96). Too lazy to deal with CDs, and got tired of endlessly cleaning lint off of vinyl.
My intention was to buy some cost-effective equipment to see if I could actually tell a difference with a nice pair of headphones, DAC, and amp. Went solid-state over tube based on a friend's recommendation, as he said solid-state would fit my music preferences (electronica, hip-hop, metal, and rock) much better than tube.
I'm addicted now, and I'm looking to upgrade my entire setup. I was originally considering an upgrade to a RS-1i, PS-1000i, or SR-007 O2 MKII, but had a chance to demo a LCD-2 and it blew away the RS-1i and GS-1000i. I immediately lost all interest in the Grados, and I'm now stuck deciding between Audeze and Stax. I've never listened to an electrostat.
I'm hoping to get opinions on whether the SR-007 O2 MKII would be a good fit for my music preferences. I've noticed the music I listen to isn't common among the high-end crowd (or the review sites like 6moons) so I'm having a lot of difficulty finding a frame of reference. If I went for the Stax, I'd get a BHSE in a year or two, but would use a cheap electrostat amp in the meantime. I'm also looking to upgrade my DAC. Based on my research, I'm looking at, from most to least desired: ARC DAC8, Weiss Minerva, Antelope Zodiac Gold, or a $1-2k DAC with the ES9018. Another thing I'm struggling with is the order to upgrade my setup in. I'm leaning towards starting with the headphones, then DAC, then finally amp.
Any thoughts on my situation would be greatly appreciated. If I never ran into those LCD-2s, I probably would've just rolled the dice for the SR-007s--can't find a store that demos electrostats in the South Bay (Norcal). I've heard criticism that electrostats just aren't good for fast music that's heavy on bass, and the dynamics don't fit, but reviews say SR-007 force people to drop their electrostat preconceptions with the right setup. My concern with the LCD-2s is that while the bass was heavenly, I found them muddy and lacking crispness, the high-end not that great, and vocals were meh (granted, the DAC and AMP setup was not that good). The one thing I like about my Grados is that everything sounds very clean--all the different audio tracks are clearly defined. I'm not sure what the right term here is (analytical?).
A random sampling of the music I'd regularly put the SR-007s through: Hybrid, UNKLE, Way Out West, Isis, Misery Signals, Opeth, Porcupine Tree, Saosin, Underoath, anything produced by DJ Premier, Pete Rock, RZA, etc.
Thanks for any input! I'm already checking Audiogon and the Head-fi FS multiple times a day for a SR-007 MKII combo, but I admit I'm a bit nervous on dropping this much money on something I've never heard (the Bay Area meetup is 6 months away!), and whether electrostats and tubes just aren't a good match for me.