[Kiats]

Just dropped of 30 min ago:

Ooh! Congrats!!!

 

[dukeskd]

Just dropped of 30 min ago:

Take notice of the diffuse sound stage that this headphone does that no other headphone comes close to.

 

[Chefguru]

Just dropped off 30 min ago:

Can’t wait to hear your thoughts vs the sr-x9000

 

[oneguy]

I’ll do more vs x9000 listening today but so far vs the ES-1a I’d say the Omega beats it in every regard but deep bass. The ES-1a has a narrow sound stand where as the Omega is has just about a perfect naturalness to it. The 1a has a treble inflection compared to the Omega which seems relative flat except for the previously mentioned deep bass. No irritation at the across the frequency response.

My specific test for deep bass is Daft Punk’s “Doin It Right.” The Omega can’t hang with the extremely low note in that sound falls on its face. The ES-1a handles it well.

The Omega balances extreme instrument separation well. Not extreme like the HD800 or overdone (maybe forced is correct word?) compared to the X9000. Not a muddy soup of all of them floating together either which is the other end of the spectrum.

Vs the 1a the Omega has a really full as well developed upper bass and mids.

Overall exaggeration of FR of the Omega vs the 1a
Omega: /——
ES-1a: \—_-/

Those are my initial thoughts. Only A/B’ed 2 songs vs the x9000 so I’ll need a few more data points to form a more general conclusion.

 

[Roukii]

Is that 007 driver in omega shell?

 

[oneguy]

Omega driver in Omega shell

 

[oneguy]

2L: Nordic Sound - 2L Audiophile Reference Record
North Country II, for flugelhorn, cello, and Piano
-Omega is much more laid back
-Piano strings sounded like they were being plucked and not struck. I had never noticed that before. It was more evident on x9000
-Flugelhorn sounded slightly off with the x9000 and a bit of harness at times. However, with the Omega the flugelhorn flourishes

Duels, for 2 violins: Vivo
-openness of x9000 is refreshing. The pad material helps. Thickness and natural material of the x9000 pads helps add to the aural sense of air. The Omega has artificial leather pads which made this song seem stuffy along with being a less airy sound presentation
-The strident treble of the x9000 occasionally pops up and detracts from the overall quality at that particular moment

Springar etter Gudmund Eide, for chorus
-Both do well at this song. I would say it would just boils down to listener’s choice/mood

HD Tracks 2013 Sampler
The Wind Song
-this is the tracking I use to test sibilance. While I love the detail and articulation in Patricia Barber’s voice, the sibilant S’s can drive you bonkers
-X9000 wonderful and open, sibilance becomes unbearable though. Kind of like the hd800, it cuts music with a scalpel like precision but sometimes the scalpel gets turned back towards your ear drums. I had to stop critical listening For a while after this assault on my ears
-Omega is much more laid back. I could tolerate the sibilance without wincing

Be Still My Soul
-x9000 presentation was very detailed
-omega was smooth and rich
I was fatigued from the X9000 making me wince with sibilance and it’s getting late so I stopped for the night here.

Overall:
I‘ve still only touched a small subset of mucic with this but I would say the general categorizaction for the Omega vs the x9000 is the Omega melds everything together well in a nice package that is easy to listen to. The X9000 provide more of a wow factor with the detail instrument resolution but this is a double edge sword that sometimes swings the other way and can get in the way of enjoying the music.

 

[Kiats]

2L: Nordic Sound - 2L Audiophile Reference Record
North Country II, for flugelhorn, cello, and Piano
-Omega is much more laid back
-Piano strings sounded like they were being plucked and not struck. I had never noticed that before. It was more evident on x9000
-Flugelhorn sounded slightly off with the x9000 and a bit of harness at times. However, with the Omega the flugelhorn flourishes

Duels, for 2 violins: Vivo
-openness of x9000 is refreshing. The pad material helps. Thickness and natural material of the x9000 pads helps add to the aural sense of air. The Omega has artificial leather pads which made this song seem stuffy along with being a less airy sound presentation
-The strident treble of the x9000 occasionally pops up and detracts from the overall quality at that particular moment

Springar etter Gudmund Eide, for chorus
-Both do well at this song. I would say it would just boils down to listener’s choice/mood

HD Tracks 2013 Sampler
The Wind Song
-this is the tracking I use to test sibilance. While I love the detail and articulation in Patricia Barber’s voice, the sibilant S’s can drive you bonkers
-X9000 wonderful and open, sibilance becomes unbearable though. Kind of like the hd800, it cuts music with a scalpel like precision but sometimes the scalpel gets turned back towards your ear drums. I had to stop critical listening For a while after this assault on my ears
-Omega is much more laid back. I could tolerate the sibilance without wincing

Be Still My Soul
-x9000 presentation was very detailed
-omega was smooth and rich
I was fatigued from the X9000 making me wince with sibilance and it’s getting late so I stopped for the night here.

Overall:
I‘ve still only touched a small subset of mucic with this but I would say the general categorizaction for the Omega vs the x9000 is the Omega melds everything together well in a nice package that is easy to listen to. The X9000 provide more of a wow factor with the detail instrument resolution but this is a double edge sword that sometimes swings the other way and can get in the way of enjoying the music.

Thanks for your impressions @oneguy. So, would it be correct to say that the Omega does not grab you immediately but you will appreciate how cohesive and enjoyable the presentation is, ie. a non-fatiguing enjoyable listen; whilst the X9000 is tuned to impress at first instance, but may be fatiguing for longer sessions?

 

[number1sixerfan]

2L: Nordic Sound - 2L Audiophile Reference Record
North Country II, for flugelhorn, cello, and Piano
-Omega is much more laid back
-Piano strings sounded like they were being plucked and not struck. I had never noticed that before. It was more evident on x9000
-Flugelhorn sounded slightly off with the x9000 and a bit of harness at times. However, with the Omega the flugelhorn flourishes

Duels, for 2 violins: Vivo
-openness of x9000 is refreshing. The pad material helps. Thickness and natural material of the x9000 pads helps add to the aural sense of air. The Omega has artificial leather pads which made this song seem stuffy along with being a less airy sound presentation
-The strident treble of the x9000 occasionally pops up and detracts from the overall quality at that particular moment

Springar etter Gudmund Eide, for chorus
-Both do well at this song. I would say it would just boils down to listener’s choice/mood

HD Tracks 2013 Sampler
The Wind Song
-this is the tracking I use to test sibilance. While I love the detail and articulation in Patricia Barber’s voice, the sibilant S’s can drive you bonkers
-X9000 wonderful and open, sibilance becomes unbearable though. Kind of like the hd800, it cuts music with a scalpel like precision but sometimes the scalpel gets turned back towards your ear drums. I had to stop critical listening For a while after this assault on my ears
-Omega is much more laid back. I could tolerate the sibilance without wincing

Be Still My Soul
-x9000 presentation was very detailed
-omega was smooth and rich
I was fatigued from the X9000 making me wince with sibilance and it’s getting late so I stopped for the night here.

Overall:
I‘ve still only touched a small subset of mucic with this but I would say the general categorizaction for the Omega vs the x9000 is the Omega melds everything together well in a nice package that is easy to listen to. The X9000 provide more of a wow factor with the detail instrument resolution but this is a double edge sword that sometimes swings the other way and can get in the way of enjoying the music.

Pretty much mirrors my experience with the two. Generally similar presentations, with the x9000 being a bit more technically proficient while the Omega is smoother, with a bit more natural tone/smoothness. I would only add that the Omega was very impressive technically, just that the x9000 pushes that a bit further. If I could only choose one or the other, I think I would go with the Omega because of that balance, but it would be tough. The only thing for me with the Omega was that it felt just a bit less engaging (i.e. more laid back as you say) than the x9000 or HE90/R10 I auditioned it with. But smoothness/laid back sound is kind of an inherent tradeoff with more energy, detail and potential harshness for some people's ears.

So fully agree it just comes down to preference and what a user is looking for.

edit - and also agree with your thoughts exactly on the ES-1a as well.

 

[oneguy]

Thanks for your impressions @oneguy. So, would it be correct to say that the Omega does not grab you immediately but you will appreciate how cohesive and enjoyable the presentation is, ie. a non-fatiguing enjoyable listen; whilst the X9000 is tuned to impress at first instance, but may be fatiguing for longer sessions?

Oh no, the Omega does grab you immediately. No doubt about that. I also wouldn’t say that the x9000 is k my tunes to impress on first listen. It I do agree that your music selection needs to right for the x9000 or you session may be shorter than you were going for.

@number1sixerfan I concur. If I only had to pick one it would be the Omega because smoothness is my overall preference.

 

[Chefguru]

Wonder if we eq the sr9k fr to match the omega it would get pretty close tonality since structurally they’re so similar.

 

[padam]

Is that 007 driver in omega shell?

Yes, it is. Better pictures here
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/stax-sr-Ω-sr-omega-the-legendary-omega.847079/post-17137886

 

[dukeskd]

Yes, it is. Better pictures here
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/stax-sr-Ω-sr-omega-the-legendary-omega.847079/post-17137886

Nope, his are the original Omega drivers as can be seen with the rivets on the 2nd pic.

 

[Chefguru]

Nope, his are the original Omega drivers as can be seen with the rivets on the 2nd pic.

Looks to me Iike 007

 

[oneguy]

Looks to me Iike 007

Upon closer inspection I think you may be right. Still considering it a bargain at the price I got them for though.