[DouglasQuaid]

I just got settled back at home, and I figured I might as well start the impressions thread.  Once again I'd like to thank John for hosting us at his killer place.  Although parking was a pain in the rear end, his hospitality more than made up for it.  Normally small meets in people's homes sets us up with serious problems regarding power outlets, but we had more power outlets than we knew what to do with at John's place.  I love smaller events like these.  It really helps remind us about the Head-Fi community, as opposed to the business portion of it. 

As for gear, I spent most of the meet chatting with some of my electrostat brethren, and the rest of my listening time was picking between a few different sources for my newly completed KGSS/sr007 to call home.  So don't expect too many impressions from me.

There were more than enough people that listened to the HD800s and the HE6s to fill an entire impressions thread.  I really enjoyed getting the chance to hear some SR-Omegas.  I saw them at Canjam, but there was never empty space at Andy's chairs to get a chance to give them some serious time.  Definitely different from the SR007, but I couldn't properly pick apart all the details as I left my damn demo disc at home.

I was happy listening to the PS Audio PerfectWave DAC.  Quite a bit of power coming out of there.  Definitely a DAC to look for if you're into really dynamic energetic sound.  I could see myself possibly buying one.
 
The Audiogd dac (NFB10-ES, if I remember correctly) was also quite impressive, especially considering the price tag.  Might give the DAC3 a good listen tonight and see how i feel about it when I'm done.

Hearing John's Wadia 860 on two different Stax rigs was quite the eye opener.  It started as a joke about my "ghetto transport" that I had feeding the Bel Canto DAC3 I normally run usb from my computer.  Then it became an invitation to temporarily move my amp.  I'll say now that the Wadia 860 balanced into my KGSS into SR007s was great.  Everything just seemed right on the setup.  I could sit there and listen to it for days if I had the spare funds.  Later on in the night, he hooked it up to N3rdling's KGBH and the SR-Omega and it was even better.

 

[Anaxilus]

That Wadia>BH>Omega was amazing.  Another big surprise for me was enjoying the HD800?!  For the most part the HD800 was pretty much as I expected from most sources, overly, bright, harsh lacking low end balance until.....
 
Craig's Super 7 amp came along.  Amazing synergy w/ the HD800.  Speed, detail, clarity balanced sound with full, lush low end.  The HD800 sounded natural and organic??  WTH?!  
 
I also enjoyed the HD800 from the Perfectwave DAC>Woo WA5.  Boy that was an impressive amp.
 
I also had a chance to compare Blasto's Leckerton UHA4 to the iBasso D3, Arrow 3G, ALO Rx, TTVJ Millet Hybrid all driving the HD650.  It certainly held it's own and did quite well in many cases.  Very close in others.  Too bad it's no longer the value it once was.
 
 

 

[santacore]

Another great event at John's beach pad. Much thanks to him and his girlfriend for the hospitality!!! It was great to hang out with old and new friends in such a comfortable atmosphere.
 
There were not too many gear surprises, but I did enjoy many of the rigs. Highlights were Donald North's prototype 2A3 amp and Craig's prototype Eddie Current 6SN7 amp. Both are fantastic amps that everyone should keep an eye out for in the future. nr3dling was nice enough to bring his Blue Hawaii rig, which was dynamite as always.
 
No big headphone surprises today. Lot's of interest in my LCD-2's, so I'll look forward to others impressions. HD800's were present and sounded particularly fantastic out of the Eddie Current 6SN7 amp. Hi-Fi Man HE-6's made a brief appearance and were enjoyed by many. I thought they sounded very good, but I still prefer the fuller sound of my LCD-2's. There were a number of excellent Stax rigs with nr3rdling's setup taking the cake. 
 
Overall a great day of hi-fi and friends in a stellar setting. Thank you again John!!!!

 

[Gatepc]

I too would like to thank again GoldenEars for hosting, it was great fun,nice people what more could you ask for?

It terms of audio gear I found my self moving back too the Eddie Current Super 7 more then anything. I guess i'm just not a Stax guy well to each his own. I loved getting to listen to a lot of headphones that I'd always heard about on the forums but never actually heard in person. The planers are definitely interesting I think I want a pair haha. After listening the HD 800s I just kept thinking that they sound extremely similar to the K702s and would not be worth it for me to upgrade. The Woo Audio 5 was also very pretty looking amp and sounded good with the HD 800s.

Hope others had as much fun as I did.

 

[IPodPJ]

Sounds like you guys had a good time.  I would have liked to have been there as usual but it just wasn't in the cards.  Fortunately I have heard most of what was there, but I would like to have heard the HE-6.  I was with you in spirit though, as I spent almost all day listening to my rig with the new gear I have and being completely enchanted.  It was the first time in years I have sat and just listened to music for that long.  I have some components that I know everyone would have enjoyed listening to, and you guys are welcome to come over and listen anytime.

 

[n3rdling]

Thanks John for hosting this great meet!  The food was great too.   I wasn't feeling that good so I was even less inclined to listen to gear than usual.  I did get to listen to the LA7000s from the Donald North 2a3 amp and the combo sounded pretty nice.  Much more balanced than the stock Denons I've heard in the past.  Bass was very extended but a little boomy, there were some sibilance issues, soundstage was large for a closed headphone, it suffered from 3 blob soundstage, and the midrange was very nice.  I am kicking myself about not listening to Craig's prototype amp.  It was in use almost everytime I looked.  I like the concept though and I think it's gonna be a very popular build for Craig.  I compared the ESP950s and 507s for a bit out of the Blue Hawaii and I'm not sure which I liked more but I think I liked the ESP950s a little more.  The 507s had great bass quantity and extension but didn't have the airy sound that Lambdas are famous for which caught me a bit off guard.  Still a nice listen though.  The ESP950 was very airy but the bass presence wasn't that great.  It sounded like a faster version of the HE6.  I didn't listen to much else except for John's Infinity speakers which were nice as well.  Glad to see some of the regulars once again as well as meeting some of the newer members or other locals I haven't met yet. 

 

[purrin]

Thank you for your hospitality John - hosting this meet and cooking lunch for us. Your place is really nice and the rest of my family got to enjoy the boardwalk the entire day. It was nice to get a chance to meet everyone in person and know your real names. It sure went by really quick and I didn't get a chance to listen to Donald's new amp - and my gear was right next to his too!
 
Craig's Super 7 was really something crazy with the LCD2 and HD800. Your guys' observations are right on the mark. I could not believe the bass slam coming out of the HD800s with that Patricia Barber CD. Are we talking about the HD800 here? It was a completely different headphone altogether on that amp. Wen's Woo Audio 5 with its tube selection was definitely magical - gave me goosebumps while listening to a few selections. The construction of that amp is just insane with some very thick pieces of metal.
 
Santacore's variable output impedance amp was kind of nifty. You turn the knob click-click-click and go "ahhh" when you find the right spot. He could be on to something here...
 
John's vintage Infinity RS-1s were just awesome. I remember looking in audio magazines when I was a kid and dreamed of owning them. It was very special to finally hear them. It makes you appreciate what a great speaker company Infinity was back them.  
 
Finally, I too was surprised to hear the 507s sounding so tame out of n3rling's BH. They are airy out of the SRM323, but seemed almost muted on the top end out of the BH. I really liked the SR-Omega1's and was surprised that the SRM323 could drive them well (which was not so much the case with the O2's.)
 
Oh yeah, I forgot: Wen's DIY electrostatic headphone. I wished a had taken a picture of it. It wasn't terminated with a plug. but after we finally figured out the pin locations, it sounded pretty good. I was impressed. 

 

[hozo]

Thanks John for hosting and excellent food.  Amazing location. You can see the tantalizing surf right outside as we listened.
 
Overall, I went in with too much expectations from the new gear.  The Blue Hawaii was a major disappointment mainly because I was expecting too much after reading spritzer's hype. The Omega 2s still sounded like Omega 2s.  It didn't transform it into some rocking grado+senn+AT+... all mighty headphone. Not that it's bad, just too much expectations. HE-6s weren't to my tastes, seemed quite congested.  LCD-2s were full bodied with better "air" than HE-6s.  Would probably sound awesome after my ears got used to it. HD800s were awesome from the DIY amp, WA5, and Super 7, but it sounded kind of harsh from the Apex Peak/Volcano.
 
My Denon 7000s sounded good from Donald's new amp.  It had good bass control like when I had the WA22.  I'm not a big fan of my Denons in general, but they're closed. 
 
My favorite two amps were the Super 7 and Audio gd.  It was very cool to talk to Craig on how he wires his balanced outs.  The Audio gd was a surprise.  Crazy "air" when driving my Denons balanced.  Probably the best I've heard the Denons sound (same level as WA22 but different).
 
Purrin, thanks for letting me mess around with your stax amp.  You saved me a lot of money

 

[Donald North]

I would also like to thank John for generously hosting us. I had a great time seeing old friends and meeting new ones. For headphones I enjoyed getting to hear the LA7000, LCD-2, HE-6. At this time I'm undecided which of the two I prefer: LCD-2 or HE-6. Both have their benefits. N3rdling - you never fail to impress with your Stax gear. While I'm more into dynamic headphones, your Omegas are truly special. It was fun talking with Craig and his prototype amp sounded good.

 

[Baird GoW]

Donald your 2a3 was really nice and I thought it was right on par with the WA5 (with HE-6). If you ever want to loan one of them out to see how someone likes it before you release it I'll gladly review it.

 

[Gatepc]

If anyone wants to download pictures of the event heres a zipped file of them here: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/19762843/Venice%20Meetup.zip

 

[Golden Ears]

I enjoyed hosting everyone again. Different group this time. The on thing for the next time... yes ... I think we could do it again..... is that having everyone arrive to load in at the same time makes it a lot easier...that way all the guests help carry each others gear and open doors for each other. I was so busy going downstairs to let people in and help them carry gear that I didn't get to listen much until about 3 hours into the meet. I felt like I moved an apartment after carrying about 1/2 of everyone's gear.
 
The colder weather made free parking possible as there were not so many beach goers to compete with. The only reason I start the meet so early is to beat the beach goers to the parking.. But perhaps next meet I could start at 11am so we can get everyone to arrive at about the same time.
 
I did get quick listens to a bunch of gear...mostly I wanted that smudgey veil lifted..and i heard two systems that did do that. Craig's prototype amp with the HD800's on a percussion solo were very very very convincing... that snare was very convincing as were the other drums. I should have popped my Wadia 860X with Great Northern Sound Statement upgrade on that set up...hmmmmm...
 
The most remarkable thing though was the same set up as last time... my Wadia with the Blue Hawaii and Omega SR... this time it was single ended instead of balanced interconnects... so it wasn't exactly the same... but I got to hear a CD on it I was very familiar with... So often we get caught up listening to the most prominent instruments in the foreground...judging those instruments for clarity and being convincing.... "does that sound like a Steinway, or a Baldwin, or a Yamaha...???" but what I found was when listening to that set up...all the lower level instruments were much more defined and a lot more information was extracted from what on most rigs would sound like "simple recordings" but out of the lower levels emerged more percussive strikes, more choral overtones...and so forth..
 
very interesting..

 

[KingStyles]

Any information on craigs new amp the super 7? Is it a replacement for the ba or where will it sit in his lineup? Thanks

 

[santacore]

Kingstyles- I think Craig said this would be his entry level amp. It will have a balanced and single ended output, but it is not a true balanced amp. It will also have speaker outputs, but no preamplifier out.

 

[purrin]

 
Quote:

Any information on craigs new amp the super 7? Is it a replacement for the ba or where will it sit in his lineup? Thanks

Definitely not a BA replacement - as Santacore said, it's a new entry level amp - the circuitry is on a PCB except the transformers. I believe there was only one input which was single-ended.