Keiso
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2002
- Posts
- 161
- Likes
- 15
Well, I did it. I just shelled out $950 bucks and bought a set of STAX 3030 Classic System II.
I'm wearing them now as I'm typing this. Was it worth it? I'll wait till I've burned them in for at least 200 hours before I make any final statement about their sound quality... but so far so good
First impression:
The amp is beautiful.... the volume knob, the finish, everything smells quality! Very nicely packed in too, you can tell they have been exposed to minimal stress during transport.
The cans.... more comfortable than the HD 600, IMO. Doesn't cramp your head like a vice. That's because the frame is made of thin plastic. But if you should break it, it's easily replaceable if you've got the spare part.
As for the leather pads.... feels very "cool" at first, but after an hour on my head, I miss my Senn HD590 pads. You can buy new pads in Japan if these should wear out, but it's still the same as the stock ones. I'm going to write to Stax later and ask them to make something ala Senns
Sound quality? Well, if you have heard electrostat speakers before, you know what to expect. Absolutely no tactile bass at all. Really. There are bass, but not the same kind of bass from dynamic headphones. Whether it's a bad thing or good, it's a personal preference I guess.
I was originally going to buy the Basic System set, but after reading Kelly's comment, I auditioned the Classic model for half an hour today to find out if there's indeed such a difference....
Using the CDs I listen to most, I can't say if the Classics have deeper or higher extension than the basic, but one thing I could notice rather clearly this time, was that the treble is much more "airy" on the Classics. I couldn't get the same sensation right now at home, I guess partly because I haven't burned them in yet, or most likely because my Sony SACD player is far inferior compared to that bad @ss Cary Audio player they hooked up with the Staxes at the shop. I hope this will improve after burn-in, if not, it means my CD player just suck @ss, and that I need to upgrade it to match my Staxes. God!!!
Back to the sound, like I said, there's no tactile bass, as people already have mentioned here. So I guess some people will not like Stax if they are used to Grados (or Senns). I found it rather weird at first, because my HD590s seemed to give more life to the music.
But I like eletrostat sound. In fact, I reckon the best speakers in the world are the Quad ESL 989. What these Staxes do in the rest of the freq. spectrum, more than makes up for the lack of tactile bass.
Well, this is just a first impression. Gotta go to work now to the hospital (even though I do not want to leave these babies alone at home....)
To be continued!!
I'm wearing them now as I'm typing this. Was it worth it? I'll wait till I've burned them in for at least 200 hours before I make any final statement about their sound quality... but so far so good
First impression:
The amp is beautiful.... the volume knob, the finish, everything smells quality! Very nicely packed in too, you can tell they have been exposed to minimal stress during transport.
The cans.... more comfortable than the HD 600, IMO. Doesn't cramp your head like a vice. That's because the frame is made of thin plastic. But if you should break it, it's easily replaceable if you've got the spare part.
As for the leather pads.... feels very "cool" at first, but after an hour on my head, I miss my Senn HD590 pads. You can buy new pads in Japan if these should wear out, but it's still the same as the stock ones. I'm going to write to Stax later and ask them to make something ala Senns
Sound quality? Well, if you have heard electrostat speakers before, you know what to expect. Absolutely no tactile bass at all. Really. There are bass, but not the same kind of bass from dynamic headphones. Whether it's a bad thing or good, it's a personal preference I guess.
I was originally going to buy the Basic System set, but after reading Kelly's comment, I auditioned the Classic model for half an hour today to find out if there's indeed such a difference....
Using the CDs I listen to most, I can't say if the Classics have deeper or higher extension than the basic, but one thing I could notice rather clearly this time, was that the treble is much more "airy" on the Classics. I couldn't get the same sensation right now at home, I guess partly because I haven't burned them in yet, or most likely because my Sony SACD player is far inferior compared to that bad @ss Cary Audio player they hooked up with the Staxes at the shop. I hope this will improve after burn-in, if not, it means my CD player just suck @ss, and that I need to upgrade it to match my Staxes. God!!!
Back to the sound, like I said, there's no tactile bass, as people already have mentioned here. So I guess some people will not like Stax if they are used to Grados (or Senns). I found it rather weird at first, because my HD590s seemed to give more life to the music.
But I like eletrostat sound. In fact, I reckon the best speakers in the world are the Quad ESL 989. What these Staxes do in the rest of the freq. spectrum, more than makes up for the lack of tactile bass.
Well, this is just a first impression. Gotta go to work now to the hospital (even though I do not want to leave these babies alone at home....)
To be continued!!