[kothganesh]

  I own the SR-3,3N,5,Lambda Pro, Gamma Pro, 202, 404 and my 009's are coming in few months time. Need to hunt a O2 Mk1 with original box soon as well. Owned the Omega 1's heard every other Stax except SR-1,2 and Lambda Signatures.

What do you drive the SR 5 with ? I have a friend locally that sold me the SR 5 and its adapter and I asked him what amp he used. He nada vintage Luxman that he flat out refused to sell to me.

 

[DefQon]

If you had to pick just one, which one would you go for ?

For EDM, Metal and rock fm

SR-5 and Lambda Pros. Mids, bass and transient speed. 

 

[DefQon]

  What do you drive the SR 5 with ? I have a friend locally that sold me the SR 5 and its adapter and I asked him what amp he used. He nada vintage Luxman that he flat out refused to sell to me.

Integrated tube amps and SRD-7 sbmk2 adaptor and sometimes the SRM-1 amp. Once I finish building my KGSSHV I will have normal bias added to that.

 

[carm]

Oh, wow. After two years of collecting dust in the box, LCD2 still rocks.

 

[nehcrow]

  I own the SR-3,3N,5,Lambda Pro, Gamma Pro, 202, 404 and my 009's are coming in few months time. Need to hunt a O2 Mk1 with original box soon as well. Owned the Omega 1's heard every other Stax except SR-1,2 and Lambda Signatures.

Damn son, i'm jelly!
 
I gotta do some proper reading on beginner affordable Stax setups, they really pique my interest

 

[DefQon]

Nothing to be jealous of I greatly prefer speakers to headphones any day of the week, coming from somebody has heard pretty much all the Stax, owned nearly all the LCD's except the XC and X new stuff, HD800 3 times, Ultrasone line up, most of the Audio Technica's and the Sony CD750/850/950/1k/1.4k/2k/3k and R10's. The only stuff I haven't heard and owned is the really unobtanium stuff K1k, Baby Orpheus/HE90 Orpheus, old school Yamaha YH-1k ortho, TakeT etc. Not really interested anyway.

 

[nehcrow]

  Nothing to be jealous of I greatly prefer speakers to headphones any day of the week, coming from somebody has heard pretty much all the Stax, owned nearly all the LCD's except the XC and X new stuff, HD800 3 times, Ultrasone line up, most of the Audio Technica's and the Sony CD750/850/950/1k/1.4k/2k/3k and R10's. The only stuff I haven't heard and owned is the really unobtanium stuff K1k, Baby Orpheus/HE90 Orpheus, old school Yamaha YH-1k ortho, TakeT etc. Not really interested anyway.

Nice, quite an extensive listening history!
Soz getting off topic now but what would you recommend as a nice Stax Lambda setup that isnt too costly

 

[TontonJoK]

I don't know too much about that amp.  I am not sure if that power rating is peak or RMS, and under what load conditions.

Generally, I find most solid state amps drive the LCD2 well up to moderate levels.  If you crank it to say cinema levels and the sound starts to lean out and compress, that is when you need more power.  The LCD2s do need a lot of power, in headphone terms, to get them up beyond moderate levels and still retain dynamics and tone.

TECHNICAL DATA PHONE-AMP G100
All measurement RMS unwtd., 20 Hz - 20 kHz, Pre-Gain set to 0 dB, Lo-Cut set to DC


Inputs: 2 x XLR female, balanced, 2 x Cinch, unbalanced
Max. Input Voltage: + 21 dBu, Impedanz 10 kOhms
Input Impedance: 10 kohms

Nom. Input Sensitivity: +6 dBu

Amplifier Gain: +8 dB
Overall Gain with PRE-GAIN: -4 / +2 / +8 / +14 / +20 dB
Frequency Range: 0 Hz ... 50 kHz (- 0,5 dB) … 200 kHz (-3 dB)
Slew Rate: 8 V / usec
Dynamic Range 2x 600 R: > 125 dB / 129 dB (A-wtd)
Dynamic Range 2x 100 R: > 122 dB / 126 dB (A-wtd)
Noise: < -98 dBu / -101 dBu (A-wtd)
THD+N (1kHz / 2x10V / 100R = 1W) < -100 dB / < 0.001 %
THD+N (1kHz / 2x18V / 600R = 0,5W) < -102 dB / < 0.0008 %
Crosstalk: < -110 dB (1 kHz) / -98 dB (15 kHz)

With 2053 mw at 60 ohms

With that setting it starts to get loud around 12 O'Clock gain 8 db (stock setting)


I guess it's enough power then no?

 

[SP Wild]

On paper it might be OK.  I think the power rating is peak to peak because the transformer looks borderline.  I just use my ears, when loud - iff the upper mids start to sound a bit glaring when it heats a peak and the bass loses its oomph.  If I were to build a system around the LCD2 or other planars, I would play it safe and invest in one of the many amplifiers renowned with power for planars that are common now.
 
 
I was just listening to Eric Claptons Unplugged album - this is a well recorder live album and is not too "lowly" for audiophiles.  Sounds spot on to me with the LCD2s.  When I crank it up to...y'know, be there - my current casual listening setup just falls apart.  When I have it connected to my balanced setup - I remember being there.  Even at low volumes - this album sounds good, well extended in the treble with perfect amplitude - upper mids are fine.  No problems with soundstage or imaging - air or transparency. 
 
I swear to you - this is how music is.

 

[TontonJoK]

Yep thanks,
I'll find a shop with tubes amp like lyr or others (in the same price) to check myself if it's better

 

[azeral]

Just jumping in on this thread with some thoughts on recent testing with my LCD-2. 

I've reported it elsewhere, but I was driving my LCD-2 (Rev. 2.2) from two setups to compare:
 
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 dac out > Lyr (Amperax Orange Globe tubes) > LCD-2
and
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 ampout > LCD-2,
 
and what I found has always been a bit controversial. The difference between the sound achieved between using the Lyr/e10 amplification system was not day and night for me.
There were clear improvements in the bass impact in particular, but the difference was really quite subtle, where I had been expecting a more serious change in characteristics. 
I started out with the bottom rig before adding in the Lyr, as I found the LCD-2 to be a little unexciting (particularly with respect to the enormously more efficient D7K I was pushing off of the e10 at the time). I had it out that the addition of the Lyr would liven the LCD-2 considerably, but I did not find that to be the case.

Right now, I'm a bit heartbroken, since I am a huge fan of what the LCD does in terms of soundstage and incredible midrange clarity, but I haven't been able to transform it into a more even-toned, but equally exciting alternative to my D7K. I've tried EQ'ing, but the capabilities in Itunes are lacking and I rather dislike Foobar's file management system despite being more impressed with its EQ options. 

I'm really looking for a hardware solution to bring out punch and depth in the LCD-2, but the Lyr wasn't it (and I subsequently sold it off). I always figured with the sort of firepower the Lyr had, if that didn't work, nothing would. Have I overlooked something, or do you guys think I should just ditch the LCD-2 and switch to the D7K as a terminal option?

Looking forward to discussion, if anyone has comments or suggestions!

 

[Taowolf51]

  Just jumping in on this thread with some thoughts on recent testing with my LCD-2. 

I've reported it elsewhere, but I was driving my LCD-2 (Rev. 2.2) from two setups to compare:
 
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 dac out > Lyr (Amperax Orange Globe tubes) > LCD-2
and
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 ampout > LCD-2,
 
and what I found has always been a bit controversial. The difference between the sound achieved between using the Lyr/e10 amplification system was not day and night for me.
There were clear improvements in the bass impact in particular, but the difference was really quite subtle, where I had been expecting a more serious change in characteristics. 
I started out with the bottom rig before adding in the Lyr, as I found the LCD-2 to be a little unexciting (particularly with respect to the enormously more efficient D7K I was pushing off of the e10 at the time). I had it out that the addition of the Lyr would liven the LCD-2 considerably, but I did not find that to be the case.

Right now, I'm a bit heartbroken, since I am a huge fan of what the LCD does in terms of soundstage and incredible midrange clarity, but I haven't been able to transform it into a more even-toned, but equally exciting alternative to my D7K. I've tried EQ'ing, but the capabilities in Itunes are lacking and I rather dislike Fubar's file management system despite being more impressed with its EQ options. 

I'm really looking for a hardware solution to bring out punch and depth in the LCD-2, but the Lyr wasn't it (and I subsequently sold it off). I always figured with the sort of firepower the Lyr had, if that didn't work, nothing would. Have I overlooked something, or do you guys think I should just ditch the LCD-2 and switch to the D7K as a terminal option?

Looking forward to discussion, if anyone has comments or suggestions!

 
I have both the D7k and recently got the LCD-2, so I was in a similar situation as you. I was originally powering the LCD-2's with a Matrix M-Stage, and the combo wasn't doing it for me. I did two things that turned the LCD-2's from a bit of a disappointment to a pretty substantial leap forward from my D7k's. 
The first was lots of solid state power, the LCD-2's really benefit from an amp that can deliver tons of clean and fast power. Currently I am driving them from the speaker taps of my Emotiva XPA-200 amp (I did this because I already had the amp, so the only investment cost was the cost of parts to build an adapter). It's overkill in the power department, but overkill is better than underkill. If you wanted to go in a similar direction, I'd point towards the Emotiva Mini-X, which should sound similar but with less power (about 50% more than that of the Lyr, or a bit over 6w) and a decent price. Another option is the TBI Millenia, which offers a custom resistor box for headphone use.
The second thing I did was grabbed a program called Equalizer APO, which is a system-wide windows parametric EQ. It's free and is the only EQ I've actually liked (every other EQ I've run into has been pretty crappy IMO). The learning curve is a bit steep, but it's worth the time investment. PM me if you want me to make you a quick EQ so you can try it out before investing time into learning everything.

 

[Defiant00]

  Just jumping in on this thread with some thoughts on recent testing with my LCD-2. 

I've reported it elsewhere, but I was driving my LCD-2 (Rev. 2.2) from two setups to compare:
 
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 dac out > Lyr (Amperax Orange Globe tubes) > LCD-2
and
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 ampout > LCD-2,
 
and what I found has always been a bit controversial. The difference between the sound achieved between using the Lyr/e10 amplification system was not day and night for me.
There were clear improvements in the bass impact in particular, but the difference was really quite subtle, where I had been expecting a more serious change in characteristics. 
I started out with the bottom rig before adding in the Lyr, as I found the LCD-2 to be a little unexciting (particularly with respect to the enormously more efficient D7K I was pushing off of the e10 at the time). I had it out that the addition of the Lyr would liven the LCD-2 considerably, but I did not find that to be the case.

Right now, I'm a bit heartbroken, since I am a huge fan of what the LCD does in terms of soundstage and incredible midrange clarity, but I haven't been able to transform it into a more even-toned, but equally exciting alternative to my D7K. I've tried EQ'ing, but the capabilities in Itunes are lacking and I rather dislike Foobar's file management system despite being more impressed with its EQ options. 

I'm really looking for a hardware solution to bring out punch and depth in the LCD-2, but the Lyr wasn't it (and I subsequently sold it off). I always figured with the sort of firepower the Lyr had, if that didn't work, nothing would. Have I overlooked something, or do you guys think I should just ditch the LCD-2 and switch to the D7K as a terminal option?

Looking forward to discussion, if anyone has comments or suggestions!

 
While I haven't tried the FiiO, it might also be the FiiO DAC that you're hearing more than the Lyr (or lack thereof). If you've got any other source you can try I'd give that a go as well; maybe the FiiO's DAC is just unexciting with the LCD-2s, and the Lyr was just amplifying that.

 

[SP Wild]

  Just jumping in on this thread with some thoughts on recent testing with my LCD-2. 

I've reported it elsewhere, but I was driving my LCD-2 (Rev. 2.2) from two setups to compare:
 
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 dac out > Lyr (Amperax Orange Globe tubes) > LCD-2
and
Itunes (ALAC) > Fiio e10 ampout > LCD-2,
 
and what I found has always been a bit controversial. The difference between the sound achieved between using the Lyr/e10 amplification system was not day and night for me.
There were clear improvements in the bass impact in particular, but the difference was really quite subtle, where I had been expecting a more serious change in characteristics. 
I started out with the bottom rig before adding in the Lyr, as I found the LCD-2 to be a little unexciting (particularly with respect to the enormously more efficient D7K I was pushing off of the e10 at the time). I had it out that the addition of the Lyr would liven the LCD-2 considerably, but I did not find that to be the case.

Right now, I'm a bit heartbroken, since I am a huge fan of what the LCD does in terms of soundstage and incredible midrange clarity, but I haven't been able to transform it into a more even-toned, but equally exciting alternative to my D7K. I've tried EQ'ing, but the capabilities in Itunes are lacking and I rather dislike Foobar's file management system despite being more impressed with its EQ options. 

I'm really looking for a hardware solution to bring out punch and depth in the LCD-2, but the Lyr wasn't it (and I subsequently sold it off). I always figured with the sort of firepower the Lyr had, if that didn't work, nothing would. Have I overlooked something, or do you guys think I should just ditch the LCD-2 and switch to the D7K as a terminal option?

Looking forward to discussion, if anyone has comments or suggestions!

 
Firstly, if you are going for outright definition - any tube in the chain, and you will never hear how tight...better still, how precise the bass is.  Secondly, if your reference is other headphones - cross that off the list.
 
I paid big dollars for the D7000 because back to back listening with the HD800 at the store led me to feel that the overall balance was more acceptable.  When I get it home - I tried to burn them in to settle the bass - which the salesman assured me will happen with burn-in.  This didn't happen, the bass was, on too many of my fave tracks was just a little too much.  By then, I knew the transients on these were much better than anything else.  I then bring out the EQ to correct the "flaws" - bring down the treble and bass...I start to realise the EQ curve is looking like the HD650 curve I see published.  Also before I bought the D7000 I paid $800 for Shure SE530, saw them at a shop figure "must be good" - these taught me that low tight bass was possible.  By then I have all these headphones with different strengths and weaknesses...but my mind kept going back to my first headphone - the HD650...
 
So I figured OK - I don't like neutral - I like coloration - as is the consensus at head-fi.  To my surprise I start to learn that the HD650 are considered very neutral by many people in professional audio and I realise there are in fact two headphone worlds.  I remember first joining head-fi and not being able to comprehend how I was looking for something that was the opposite of consensus.  This includes things like op-amp selections for amplifiers.  People say upgrade with this op-amp for more detail - I try it...then put the stock one back in...complete opposite of what everyone else is doing.  I find the more advice I follow from the crowd - the further I move from what I felt it should be...I start to think either I have lost the plot or everyone else has.
 
Now they're not perfect for every recording, but by and large - music of popular culture for the last few decades come off correct to me.  I often find the LCD2s are not the match for specialist audiophile recordings, I don't listen to classical - but have no problems with orchestral pieces that drive a movie scene.  I often reach for the K701 when listening to techno and hip-hop, because I feel these are recorded with too much bass for my liking, techno is also often driven by ambient tunes that can be enhanced by a leaner tone.  Brighter cans, I find, do in fact take me from being in the music to being an observer of the music.  I also appreciate this change of perspective, but it is never a form of reference to me.

 

[TontonJoK]

I have both the D7k and recently got the LCD-2, so I was in a similar situation as you. I was originally powering the LCD-2's with a Matrix M-Stage, and the combo wasn't doing it for me. I did two things that turned the LCD-2's from a bit of a disappointment to a pretty substantial leap forward from my D7k's. 
The first was lots of solid state power, the LCD-2's really benefit from an amp that can deliver tons of clean and fast power. Currently I am driving them from the speaker taps of my Emotiva XPA-200 amp (I did this because I already had the amp, so the only investment cost was the cost of parts to build an adapter). It's overkill in the power department, but overkill is better than underkill. If you wanted to go in a similar direction, I'd point towards the Emotiva Mini-X, which should sound similar but with less power (about 50% more than that of the Lyr, or a bit over 6w) and a decent price. Another option is the TBI Millenia, which offers a custom resistor box for headphone use.
The second thing I did was grabbed a program called Equalizer APO, which is a system-wide windows parametric EQ. It's free and is the only EQ I've actually liked (every other EQ I've run into has been pretty crappy IMO). The learning curve is a bit steep, but it's worth the time investment. PM me if you want me to make you a quick EQ so you can try it out before investing time into learning everything.

Equalizer APO looks very interesting, so I set the EQ on my asus essence st to flat remove wasapi to make it works with foobar and apply a .txt to get what I was doing with the built in EQ of foobar

I send you a PM to get a quick EQ
Its worth a try Thanks