[autoteleology]

You should get a second set of pads for your Lambda. You can probably find a pair of 207 pads somewhere on eBay for pretty cheap.

 

[ALSO]

Any opinions on the Lambda Spirit?  See one available now, and curious to hear any earlier Lambda, since all I know are the current ones and the 404LE, which converted me to electrostats.

 

[LCfiner]

I’m glad this thread exists in the regular forum. I’ve had a duple high end Stax setups (SR407, then O2mk1) but I’m now listening and LOVING an older Stax Lambda Sig and the “lowly" SRM 212 amp. It sounds incredible. 
 
The setup wasn’t exactly cheap (paid a little over $600 on ebay) but, for under a grand, it offers astonishing value as I’ve owned so many dynamics and orthos for a grand or more and this combo can keep pace. In some cases - soundstage, detail, speed, tonality - it’s better than a lot of super expensive modern headphones. It’s really something else.
 
I might look into upgrading the amp - but not for a lot of money - down the line but it’s not a priority. The sound I’m getting from this ~25 year old headphone and little amp is very impressive. For anyone who’s on a budget and looking to get into Stax, don’t worry about getting the smaller 252 (or a used 212) amp for the Lambdas. It gets the job done. The time I owned the 407 with a T1 driving it wasn’t much better than this at all.

 

[reiserFS]

How's the bass on the SR-202 when compared to the HE-400? Got the same combo coming in next week.
Quote:

Anyway, I'm just going through and listening to my music library again (and the occasional Internet radio stream).
 
Once again, I'm reminded of why I went to the trouble of going Stax specifically, now that I have some reference points with other headphones. (Though I still need more experience overall; the HE-400 and SR-202 + SRM-212 experience was valuable, but I'm still effectively deaf when it comes to knowing AKG, Beyerdynamic and Sennheiser, to name a few.)
 
Strings are hauntingly sharp, sparkly and precise, but NOT ear-piercingly irritating about it (maybe unless the recording's just terrible). Drums are punchy. Nothing gets in the way of voices.
 
But I think, above all, it's that there is no sort of artificial texture or veil that I've noticed while listening, even critically. There is just...music. The whole band might as well be playing around my head with nothing between them.
 
Even now, my "beater" Lambda, as I've grown to calling it, sounds relatively veiled by comparison at my usual listening levels, mostly because of the midrange peak shooting the vocals noticeably forward from the rest of the music, but otherwise being on the mark tonally. This stock SR-Lambda is, as I have said before, more cohesive throughout the spectrum. No EQ has been applied in either case, before you ask.
 
Now, to do something about the spares...I no longer have a need for the transformer boxes, and I'm sure someone out there might want to get their feet wet in all of this with the "beater" Lambda, just as I did two years ago.

 

[NamelessPFG]

Quote:

You should get a second set of pads for your Lambda. You can probably find a pair of 207 pads somewhere on eBay for pretty cheap.

 
I probably should...but if the 207 pads are the same as the 202 pads, I wouldn't like them. 303 pads are much better.
 
Still curious about 404LE and 507 pads, though...they're said to be made out of real leather instead of pleather.
 
Quote:

How's the bass on the SR-202 when compared to the HE-400? Got the same combo coming in next week.

 
Bass-wise, it's a bit less impactful in the tactile sense by comparison, but the volume's still there.
 
I'd even go as far to say that the SR-202, in my experience, was basically an electrostatic HE-400 in terms of overall sound signature. Kind of took me by surprise when I got to audition Mad Lust Envy's HE-400 later, even though I had already sold the SR-202 + SRM-212 setup by that time and I was mostly going by memory.

 

[DefQon]

Quote:

 
I probably should...but if the 207 pads are the same as the 202 pads, I wouldn't like them. 303 pads are much better.
 
Still curious about 404LE and 507 pads, though...they're said to be made out of real leather instead of pleather.
 
 
Bass-wise, it's a bit less impactful in the tactile sense by comparison, but the volume's still there.
 
I'd even go as far to say that the SR-202, in my experience, was basically an electrostatic HE-400 in terms of overall sound signature. Kind of took me by surprise when I got to audition Mad Lust Envy's HE-400 later, even though I had already sold the SR-202 + SRM-212 setup by that time and I was mostly going by memory.

207, 202, 303, 407, 404, 307 pads are all the same just different colour. 404 LE/507 pads are indeed leather. Earlier serial number based 202's came with the old vintage pads that was used on the SR-Lambda/Nova line (except the Classic, LNS where they used the 404/303 pads, but I've seen LNS and Classics come with black vintage pads as well).

 

[NamelessPFG]

Quote:

207, 202, 303, 407, 404, 307 pads are all the same just different colour. 404 LE/507 pads are indeed leather. Earlier serial number based 202's came with the old vintage pads that was used on the SR-Lambda/Nova line (except the Classic, LNS where they used the 404/303 pads, but I've seen LNS and Classics come with black vintage pads as well).

 
I don't know if it's just a matter of how well-cared-for the SR-202 was compared to the SR-303, but I distinctly remember the SR-202's pads being harder and firmer while the SR-303's pads were pretty soft.
 
I would say they might have been the vintage pads used on original and Nova Lambdas, except this particular SR-Lambda's pads are even softer than that SR-202's...

 

[Chris J]

Quote:

I’m glad this thread exists in the regular forum. I’ve had a duple high end Stax setups (SR407, then O2mk1) but I’m now listening and LOVING an older Stax Lambda Sig and the “lowly" SRM 212 amp. It sounds incredible. 
 
The setup wasn’t exactly cheap (paid a little over $600 on ebay) but, for under a grand, it offers astonishing value as I’ve owned so many dynamics and orthos for a grand or more and this combo can keep pace. In some cases - soundstage, detail, speed, tonality - it’s better than a lot of super expensive modern headphones. It’s really something else.
 
I might look into upgrading the amp - but not for a lot of money - down the line but it’s not a priority. The sound I’m getting from this ~25 year old headphone and little amp is very impressive. For anyone who’s on a budget and looking to get into Stax, don’t worry about getting the smaller 252 (or a used 212) amp for the Lambdas. It gets the job done. The time I owned the 407 with a T1 driving it wasn’t much better than this at all.

 
Yeah, I thought Stax headphones needed a good, general, basic Stax thread in this regular forum.
 
So far, I'm really impressed with my "Basic" Stax SRS-2170 system.
I'm probably going to sell my Beyer DT880 600 Ohm cans and a couple of headphone amps.
Since I bought the SRS-2170 I'm just not feeling the the DT880 anymore. 

 

[autoteleology]

I finally got home and have my sexy electrets and Lambda Pro in hand... just gotta wait for my SRM-1/MK2 to arrive tomorrow so I can fully enjoy them. I'm excited!

 

[DefQon]

Thought you already have the Mk2's?

 

[davidsh]

I thought as well...

 

[autoteleology]

No, I bought it a month ago and it's just now getting to my house because of international customs (nearly eighteen days in customs from both countries combined, mostly his), probably because they screwed up on his customs forms or something.
 
I should be getting it tomorrow, finally, after 27 days of waiting.

 

[DairyProduce]

where you at tus? never thought customs would take that long on a pair of headphones.

 

[DefQon]

Well doubt it will be the customs in the States, most likely Tus bought his MK2's through a Euro seller.

 

[vid]

Measured the SR-5 CSD yesterday. They have some slight chaff in the treble and they're a bit loose below 700 Hz. Quick-ish decay in the upper mids, overall a bit faster than the HD 600 but a bit slower than the modded Unipolar 2000 - the differences are mostly within the margin of CSD error.
 
My personal impression is that the SR-5 do well in the mids but lack in bass extension and given that the treble is a bit elevated, they end up sounding slightly sterile.