[longbowbbs]

Does the Questyle have a blanced out?

Steve, here is the stacked CMA800 amps. They are stereo but you can double up for dual mono.

The CMA800i is DAC/Amp combo. Single ended output only. Terrific value.
 

The Q192 DAC/Amp at $799 was a strong contender for best value under $1k

 

[third_eye]

WOW, what a fun meet! We had over 250 people (about 60 more than last year) making this (to my knowledge) the largest ever meet in SF! It was especially great seeing and meeting so many newcomers and being able to share this hobby. Huge thanks to our amazing volunteers throughout the day: Steph, Derek, Suzette, Alston, Daniel, and Ben. You guys were amazing. 

And special thanks to the crew: Jude, Warren, and Moe. Next stop - LONDON!

 

[AxelCloris]

Does the Questyle have a blanced out?

 
The QP1 and QP1R do not have balanced output, SE only.

 

[Logistics]

any comment on how the "final sonorous" headphone (the gold one) sounded ?   and was the AK500n there available for listening ?   and the Eddie Current Studio ? 

My buddy and I went back to listen to the gold pair a couple times, and it sounds very good, but many people may have Bern tricked into thinking it was more amazing than it really was because he made sure everyone listened to a track that was recorded in binaural format, first making the soundstage appear unique. When playing a normal track I don't feel the cost is justified, though I think the construction is extremely nice. More a set of cans that would be popular in Japan where everything not related to how they sound needs to be over-engineered as well.

Don't get me wrong, I would have loved to walk home with the gold pair, which I thought had better sound than the silver.

 

[M3NTAL]

What did MassDrop bring to the event?

 

[daigo]

Oh man, looks like I missed a fantastic meet.  I unfortunately had to miss this one as something came up that would have limited me to a few hours in the morning so I decided to not attend.  Will need to clear the calendar for the next one!

 

[Steven R. Rochli]

Congrats to all for an awesome event! Hey, I know that guy... and that guy, and that guy too! 

 
All these great pics means, well, really need to go to next year's big CanJam SF party-fest. Maybe next year you'll do a huge New York one too for those of us on the right coast?

 

[XERO1]

 
Mass Drop
Since I haven't heard anyone mention the prototype headphone they brought for demonstration, I'll reserve mentioning any more. Let's just say it impressed the heck out of a few that heard it.

 
Anyone have any more info about this?!  And/or maybe a few pics of the headphones?
 
Thanks.

 

[maeveth]

  Oh man, looks like I missed a fantastic meet.  I unfortunately had to miss this one as something came up that would have limited me to a few hours in the morning so I decided to not attend.  Will need to clear the calendar for the next one!

You should have come, I was also limited to a few short but precious hours.  I was able to in that short time listen to most everything I had my eye on.  Though the conversation with fellow head-fi'ers was sorely missed.

 

[Stingy49]

I'm not 100% sure that the details on it were supposed to leave the meet. I got one of their cards so I'll try and get in contact with them and ask.

 

[Stingy49]

Hey who was selling those Massdrop K7xx's at the meet? I'm interested in them but I forget to write down your phone number. Sorry if this isn't the right place to post this.

 

[wwyssh]

Here are a few things I'm highly interested in:
 
Cavalli Carbon, maybe the best amp I've heard from this price range;
 
WA audio, new small dac/amp combo, forgot the name, but truly impressed;
 
Apogee Groove, amazing sound and amazing power, cannot miss at less than $300;
 
Final Audio Design, so unique, but certainly not everyone would like the signature. Pandora 10 is a surprise since I've heard it's still a prototype, but to me both 8 and 10 are quite close and not a catch. I end up with buying a heaven series, because their mids is so so creamy which I cannot resist;
 
AK 380 is amazing, couldn't afford it anyway
 
STAX, there are several pairing for 009 and 007 at the meet, the best IMO is the DIY amp by Frank Cooter's latest masterpiece; BHSE is also great, but not my cup of tea with 009, like its pairing with 007 mk1 better;
 
Eddie Current, the new studio is a wow, drives the lcd2 like a lcd3, and the transparency is so amazing; the pairing on the show is 5004-YGG-Studio, so I guess ygg and studio contributes to the greatness;
 
These are just some thoughts and personal opinions, hoping they are helpful to someone

 

[MrSpeakersPeter]

Thanks to everyone who came out this weekend. We had a great time. See you at the next one!

 

[Skyfall]

This was my second Head-fi meet and I brought along a few of my own gear to test to compare. Here are my favorites of the show:
 
Questyle QP1R DAP
 
This DAP offers something different to the rest of the portable player out there. It is a warm and slightly darker sound with full body and very good bass response. The soundstage and separation is very good although my first impression compare to my AK120ii it has less micro details and air on top that AK players seem to have. I didn’t try the line out to bypass the amp section and the designer told me line out is not configure for headphone listening. If I’m not mistaken battery life is about 10 hrs and the charging time is 2.5 hrs. Overall, it a really nice DAP and with bigger and full body sound that’s closer to desktop.
Gear: LCD X and occ copper cable, AK 120ii
 
Sonorus X Final Audio Design
 
This is the only model that sounds good to me. It is a close back with good isolation and comfort for long listening. It is neutral, linear responds with very good clarity and it feels spacious with good separations. The bass is also really good and the highs are extended. Overall, it is very close to LCD XC sound. Very easy to drive and it sounds very good from my AK120ii on SE.
 
AK 380 omg!
 
This DAP is absolutely lush and beautiful. I definitely hear very good improvements over the older model. More body well rounded sound, more macro/micro details and and bigger sound stage. It sounds closer to Hugo and it is designed for pro studio portable reference. Absolutely stunning look and SQ. Upgrade anyone ?
 
 
JH Audio Layla vs Noble K10
 
I have never heard any of them before and I decided to listen to Layla first. Straight from AK120ii on SE Layla sounds similar to Audeze LCD line with a lot of body and texture to the sound. Sound stage in wide and deep with the bass to die for. It sounds like a full size headphone. However, it’s a little dark and the trebles seem subdued. I asked Jimmy if I could use my portable amp, he said go ahead! AK120ii>Alo MK3B+/portaphile makes Layla comes to live. Everything sounds much better the sound stage opens up, the bass get tighter and a bit punchier but the biggest improvements was now the trebles are there aligned with the rest of the freq. It doesn’t sound dark anymore . Sound so good it gives me Eargasm on the spot ! No hiss coming from my portable amp.
 
Then I listened to K10, and I simply missing the body and texture that Layla has. K10 to me sounds very clean, leaner with superb clarity and deep powerful bass. The mid range is not as sweet as Layla.It sound very neutral and linear to me. and K10 doesn’t need external amp to shine. Both are really good . If you want something that has more texture and body fun for all around, Michael suggested the savant.
 
Oppo PM vs LCD X
 
If i didn’t already have my LCDs I’ll pick these ones. The PM1 is stunning and even the lesser brother PM 3 is still stunning to my ears. They all have a very nice smooth and textured sound similar to Audeze but a bit better. The highs is not as extended but they don’t sound dark or muffled at all. PM1 has wider and bigger sound staging and more refinement than PM3. Comparing PM1 vs LCD X, the X has more treble quantity and more extended, sound stage about the same maybe X a bit bigger but the bass on PM has more  textured and body and also punch deeper. Similar to a light subwoofer response. If you like Audeze house sound you will love these..
 
Cavalli Carbon vs Silicon
 
This was my first time listening to Cavalli sound and I am impressed. Both amps sounds really really good, wide and deep sound stage, neutral with a hint of warmth and they maintain macro and micro details. The bass is really deep and extended. Carbon is a portable desktop amp and overall it sounds bigger than it’s little bro Silicon. I talked to Alex about the upcoming portable Silicon he said the battery life it about 16 hrs on fully charge but the charging time is 6 hrs. It will run operate while charging at the same time. The expected shipping on Silicon will be around 
christmas time so…we’ll wait. Compare to Alo MK3B+, the Silicon has deeper bass and slightly more impact. Sound stage is about the same.
 
HE1000 and Ether with HeadAmp GS-X Mk2
 
I concurred with the majority impressions out there that HE 1000 is simply the Best headphone to date and Ether is not too far behind. At the HeadAmp booth everyone was able to compare directly between HE 1000, Ether, Stax 007/009, Audeze and HD 800. Really an ear opening experience and the only solutions to most questions members would ask.
Pairing with HE 1000 with HeadAmp GSX Mk2 is simply stunning and this is by far the best sound out of HE 1000 imho. The sound is extremely lush and open with bass to Die for. The bass is something that you don’t hear in everyday headphone listening it’s so deep and buttery yet very full of impact and did’t bleed to the mids. It’s highly musical and very very holographic. It sounds similar to Stax but a bit better imho. GSX Mk2 makes every headphones sounds stunning. I like this amp better than Eddie Current Black Widow and even to Zana. I also didn’t dig the HE 1000 pairing with Woo WA5 LE. I feel it didn’t bring out the best of HE 1000 and it feels too warm and weighty and slower.
I also agree that Ether falls somewhere between LCD X and HD800, it’s airy and open and musical.
 
AMB B-22 amp and y3 DAC Stunning !
 
I have never heard this brand before, I sat down and put that HD 600 on my head and Wow…i hear a stunning live performance “Waltz For Debbie” by Bill Evans like I’ve never heard before. The presentation is very vivid, lively, super holographic and believable and all of this coming from HD600 ?! I asked Ti, the designer if he used a different cables and he said “no, it’s just a stock cable …What! Then I switched to HD800 and eventually my own LCD X and it is evident to me that this combo sounds absolutely out of this world. I meant me and the other head-fier sat next to me were looking at each other and our jaws just fell. I spent quite amount of time in this booth to make sure what I was hearing is real and yes it was. Ti also designs several portable DIY amps and dacs and dac/amps. The mini3 portable amp sounds incredible with 24 hrs battery life and it gives more punch and definition to my LCD X. I gotta get this one.
 
Lastly, I ‘d like to salute Jude and his team for making this great show happening for all of us audio enthusiasts. 
 
Alo Audio was not present on this show. I didn’t get a chance to listen to Continental Dual Mono.

 

[HideousPride]

Always fun meeting and talking to the local crowd.
 
Random Highlights
 
Noble Savant - Their earphones are always tuned to please, I thought the Savant was a pretty slick sounding IEM.
 
Creative - The current line up of products they offer are all spot on with the priceerformance ratio. A wide array of their products can appeal to general tech consumers as well as audiophiles. They've got some neat stuff in the works that I'm really excited for.
 
Final Audio Design - Ugh... that Sonorous X. Do want. But $5,000. Can't afford. I have a fair opinion of the Pandora (now Sonorous VI), but the X is much more to my tastes.
 
Eddie Current - It's not really a surprise since they're pretty well known in the amplifier game, but the Studio was superb. Heard lots of praise for the Black Widow and want to give it a go with my own music and stuff sometime soon if the stars align.
 
Woo Audio WA8 - Kudos to Woo. I gave them a hard time about the old WA8, but they've changed DAC stuff up and it sounds a lot better now.
 
--
On the Massdrop thingy, I don't want to build expectations up too early on, but I'm really glad that people who got a turn at the headphone gave us positive feedback on both sound and pricing.
 
It's not too far off now, so I guess a sneak peek of an early prototype couldn't hurt.