LouisArmstrong
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Official 2016 SF Head-Fi Meet Impressions Thread - July 16, 2016
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The Utopia and Elear are over-ear headphones, dynamic driver, etc. Jude made a pretty nice video about them here.
LouisArmstrong
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I see. Thanks dude. Has anyone compared the Utopia with the HE1000? I do have the SR009 and the HE1000 and HE1000 is the closest thing to an electrostat I have ever heard.
There should be some impressions in this thread and in the other that I linked. Not a ton of impressions yet as the production was slightly delayed after launch, but a lot of folks got to hear the Utopia in SF so this is a good thread for looking up those impressions.
LouisArmstrong
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Looks like some pretty cool stuff is on the way. Fingers crossed!
JayLam
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my apologies for having confused you
Let's make sure we are using the word "transparent" in the same way. What I mean by transparent is "not there", "easy to forget about". I agree with those saying that the Elear and the HD600 have a very similar timbre on the warm side of neutral. I wish I had brought my HD600 at the meet to a/b it with the Focals. Out of memory I'd say that the Elear is clearly faster, punchier, and does not have any treble roll-off. Hence is more transparent. BTW the Elear also has a deeper and more focused soundstage than the HD600.
Unfortunately I have not heard a K1000 in years, and I had never heard of the Burmesters before reading your post.
The confusion is very common happened on forum, everyone has different taste, experienced different headphones under different system.
I think we are using the word "transparent" in the same way, but i am not sure if with same standard. To be honest, i did not hear HD600 before, i only tried HD800 with Wadia S7i, they worked very well. Even with Silteck headphones cable, i will say the sound of HD800 is only clean, but not yet transparent. I only tag the sound from K1000 and 009 as transparent among the few headphones i ever heard.
moedawg140
Grand Master Moe "G"….Don't crossface me, bro!
Ping Pong Champ: SF Meet (2016,2017), CanJams (London 2016, RMAF 2016, NYC 2017, SoCal 2017, RMAF 2017)
2016 San Francisco Head-Fi Meet Impressions
The Wikia San Francisco Meet was a resounding success, and it could not have come to fruition without the organizers @HuddlerSteph, @HuddlerLuis, @third_eye, @jude, @joe, and others behind the scenes.
It was great to hang out with these people and everyone (I apologize in advance if I didn’t mention you)
@1031tensai - congratulations on your QP1R raffle win!
@aamefford – nice seeing you as well again!
@Audiowood – nice seeing you and glad you got to listen to my Andromeda!
@bearFNF – always fun to hang out with you!
@bSquared64 – thanks for the push to come to SF, really appreciate it. Was fun talking Questyle as well as audio in general.
@CEE TEE – thanks for being a part of Massdrop and looking towards helping everyone out in the future! Oh yeah, and your timepiece is truly epic, and would sell very well in my opinion if “dropped” on Massdrop.
@Currawong – it was great talking to you, always nice clarifying things with you and talking martial arts. Hope to see you at the next meet!
@DecentLevi – your amp doesn’t sound half bad!
@drgajet – always nice seeing you around!
@ejong7 – thanks for coming out and it was fun hanging out at different manufacturers, and thanks for being an awesome travel buddy!
@FightinJim & Michael Fierro - always nice listening to your TACTION, the closed back and open back are truly amazing!
@Gilly87 – thanks for being supportive, and hope to see you soon! The X1 sound amazeballs and are worth a listen and purchase!
@HiFiGuy528 – always nice seeing you around in your neck of the woods!
@majid - nice to meet you and eat next to you at North India!
@Muinarc - had fun hanging out with you, talking speakers, and glad you made the trip from Arizona!
@Netforce – it was awesome hanging out before during and after the meet, thanks for being an awesome travel buddy!
@shane55 – nice timepiece, it was truly amazing!
@Stillhart – I only saw you for a short time, but glad you came!
@warrenpchi – thanks for being you, and looking forward to what Cavalli Audio has to offer in the present and future!
@WillBright – thanks for the support, and it was great talking to your staff, they are awesome people!
And everyone who attended, thanks for coming!
I didn't get to listen to much at the meet, but did get some listening with the Fostex x Massdrop TH-X00 series. Here are my impressions:
TH-X00 Purpleheart at the Wikia SF Head-Fi Meet
I was able to listen to all four TH-X00's at the Wikia Head-Fi Meet in San Francisco, CA and exhibit all of the headphones with the help of @CEE TEE bringing a Purpleheart to the meet; thanks for that! The Purpleheart and all TH-X00 variations were exhibited in a corner of a large table in the Questyle room. Thanks to @bSquared64 for providing the space!
The Questyle room at Wikia's Headquarters in San Francisco, CA
I spent some time to listen back to back with the Purpleheart and the Mahogany, Ebony, and my E-MU Ebony as well, and even though the sonic differences were not very difficult to distinguish, it further made it really tough to choose a favorite headphone of the bunch. I know - it may not be what you want to hear ("just pick one!") but it is much more than that. Every headphone variation had a lot of pros and very few, if at all, cons.
From top left, clockwise: TH-X00 Ebony, TH-X00 Purpleheart, TH-X00 E-MU Ebony (modified), TH-X00 Mahogany
The Purpleheart is the bassiest of the four, and extends into the treble as well; also weighing less than the Ebony. This is the choice if you want the most slamming bass of the TH-X00 variants and possibly the closest to the TH-900 sound signature of the four, based on my multiple extended auditions of the TH-900.
The Ebony is the smoothest sounding of the four, but is also the heaviest, with very quality bass and very good reverberating rumble. This is one that you want to get if you can't foresee minding the extra weight compared to the other TH-X00 variants, and are seeking for the most smooth and possibly resolving TH-X00 in the midrange and midbass areas of the frequency spectrum.
The E-MU Ebony is a more raw form of the Mahogany and Ebony since it has slightly less detail than the Mahogany and Ebony. The E-MU emits a little less bass than the Purpleheart, and is a good choice if you want a little more texture and true grit than the Mahogany.
Using the Mahogany as a metric and a base, it is the more balanced sound of all four, with very good bass, creamy mids and delectable highs.
Compared to the Purpleheart, the Mahogany is more buttoned-down approach to a fun sound. The Purpleheart is the all-out effort to slam with the best of them.
When you listen to the Purpleheart and E-MU Ebony, you can hear the difference, as the Purpleheart is the slightly bassier headphone and the E-MU Ebony is the more textured headphone.
Listening to the Purpleheart and Ebony back to back is where you start to have an appreciation for both of the inherent sound signatures, and that's where it gets to be that much more difficult to choose one that ticks all of your boxes. Now, I'm not saying to purchase two (or am I), but the reason why I have multiple headphones is that I have different moods. If I'm in the mood for a treble heavy but beautiful sound, I won't pick up a TH-X00, I'll pick up my ENIGMAcoustics Dharma D1000. If I'm in the mood for an immensely immaculate presentation of audio, I'll pick up my HIFIMAN HE1000 and become lost in the music. If I'm in the mood for a smooth, fun take on sound, I'll pick up the TH-X00 Ebony and cherish it. If I'm in the mood for a bassy, V-signature, very vivacious sound, then I'll pick up the Purpleheart.
Now you've read about the four TH-X00 variants, and one is not better than the other because each headphone has it's own qualities that are brought to the table. Choose the one that fits your mood:
Purpleheart - most quantity of bass, most fun sound.
Ebony - smoothest sound with quality bass.
E-MU - slightly gritty with slightly rolled-off treble and loads of bass.
Mahogany - tried and true, balanced in all spectrums with engaging bass lift.
Or just catch 'em all.
My full review of the TH-X00 is here.
Here's some pictures and videos of not only the event, but from the uniquely beautiful city of San Francisco:
It was a hot on the drive up...
...and chilly when we arrived in San Francisco!
Audio Vision SF listening event
Eu Jin's Empire Ears Zeus Remastered Unboxing (the epic video is below)
Wikia Rooftop
All three TH-X00 variants plus my TH-X00 E-MU Ebony (lower right)
Still not the most awkward looking headphone in existence! (I'm looking at you, Jecklin Float!)
Winners of the Questyle prizes
The Wikia sign
Where the magic happened
Night out with some Head-fiers
Night out watching some Head-Fiers playing Pokemon Go
Music Lovers, San Francisco
Good eats
Cool out of state license plate
Here's the videos from my time in San Francisco during the week:
Looking forward to attending the meet again!
@moedawg140 I am suing you for public defamation. That video is crossing the boundaries of our friendship. We are done. LOL
Jokes aside, that was one of the funniest, spontaneous unboxing ever. I was gonna ask if I could unveil it in my review, but since it's up, may I use it for my review further down the road?
Jokes aside, that was one of the funniest, spontaneous unboxing ever. I was gonna ask if I could unveil it in my review, but since it's up, may I use it for my review further down the road?
moedawg140
Grand Master Moe "G"….Don't crossface me, bro!
Ping Pong Champ: SF Meet (2016,2017), CanJams (London 2016, RMAF 2016, NYC 2017, SoCal 2017, RMAF 2017)
What wasn't shown was @moedawg140 walking around the streets charging his phone using a cable with xmas lights on it. We're trying to find a restaurant that can take 6 people and moe has a dozen lights dangling from his pocket. I don't know why I didn't think to take a picture.
Lol you guys didn't get the chance of previewing it in the room like I did. Let's just say I slept facing the other side.
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LOL that was funny. It was 14ish people at the Indian restaurant, BTW @Currawong.
I did. The Indian restaurant was good though, even though I try and avoid Indian food when I travel as where I live almost all the vegetarian-friendly restaurants are Indian.
I went to the bridge for the first time too, and bearFNF kindly tagged along and we froze our rear-ends off. The mist lifted just enough for this shot. A few days later I was on the other side of the country where it hit 101.
I went to the bridge for the first time too, and bearFNF kindly tagged along and we froze our rear-ends off. The mist lifted just enough for this shot. A few days later I was on the other side of the country where it hit 101.
As has been said before, "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco".
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