[Jamey Warren]

Dear Head-fi,
 
I'm excited and proud to announce that I have recently been promoted to CEO of HeadRoom. Many of you already know me but I know there are a lot of new members here so I'd like to introduce myself.
 

 
I'm Jamey Warren, a confessed headphone geek and music lover. I've worked at HeadRoom for about seven years total and have been part of the team on a number of cool projects that many of you have seen come to light. Some of my first accomplishments and tasks at HeadRoom were related to our headphone measurements and getting that up and running. This was an amazing opportunity for a headphone geek and I'm forever grateful to Tyll Hertsens for giving me the chance. Tyll also gave me plenty of free reign as a product manager and I'll never forget the lessons learned and cool product ideas encountered while we developed the line of HeadRoom amps and DAC's you see today. I was also part of the team that redesigned our website into what you see today.
 
While I can't predict the future, I have a lot of ideas on how to grow and improve business at HeadRoom. I'm hoping to hear from you what it takes to get it, Right Between Your Ears. You may see me soliciting feedback in other communities but the head-fi.org community is very important to me. Having been a sponsor since the beginning of head-fi, many of us have been fortunate enough to meet in person and maybe even make some lifelong friends. I'm hoping we can continue that relationship and I look forward to hearing what we can do better for all of you music lovers out there.
 
Oh, I almost forgot... We're now offering approximately 30% off of all HeadRoom manufactured headphone amps and DAC's. Get em' while you can.
 
If you have any questions about HeadRoom, please fire away in this thread. You can also always email me, jamey@headphone.com or call 1-800-828-8184 and ask for me.
 
Cheers,
Jamey Warren

 

[jtinto]

cool 
congrats Jamey

 

[Jamey Warren]

Quote:

cool 
congrats Jamey

Thanks jtinto!

 

[MannerPylon]

Congrats on your promotion Jamey! Looking forward to the futore of HeadRoom, I'm sure there will be plenty of good times to come.

 

[Ivy]

I just wanted to chime in here and give Jamey a ringing endorsement on behalf the crew here at HeadRoom.  As the former CEO of HeadRoom (I made the decision to step down and hand the reigns to Jamey), I know what the job requires and I'm excited to see someone in the position who will fill it well!  Jamey has all the skills, motivation, and creativity to take HeadRoom to the next level.
 
We are really excited to have him on board, and we hope all of you can experience this excitement with us.  We also plan to participate more in this forum and we hope that all of you will also consider HeadRoom's long time support of this community and the hobby in general.  Really, all we want from you is to hear how we can do our job better and what it is you're looking for from some of the world's leading headphone experts.
 
Thanks again for your continued support, and here's to getting it right between your ears in 2013 and beyond!
 
Happy Listening,
 
Ivy

 

[Jamey Warren]

I am forever thankful to Ivy as well. Looking forward to continuing to do awesome stuff with you Ivy!
 

 

[Ivy]

Quote:

I am forever thankful to Ivy as well. Looking forward to continuing to do awesome stuff with you Ivy!
 

 
Thanks Mang!  All good! 

 

[bowei006]

Wish you guys the best of luck
 
I won't be on Reddit's IAMA tomorrow as I will be testing then. 

 
But it is great to see you guys so proactive here on Head-Fi and to us headphone enthusiasts everywhere.

 

[Audio Addict]

Congratulations!!

HeadRoom was always out there. I remember Tyll and the crew doing the first round the US tour with a stop at Shure in Chicago.

Keep on pushing the limits!!!

 

[MacedonianHero]

I don't even want to know how much money I've spent at Headroom over the years...but all I can say is that they are a great company and sponsor of our hobby and Head-fi. Best of luck in 2013!

 

[Jamey Warren]

Quote:

Wish you guys the best of luck
 
I won't be on Reddit's IAMA tomorrow as I will be testing then. 

 
But it is great to see you guys so proactive here on Head-Fi and to us headphone enthusiasts everywhere.

 
You can always ask any questions you have here on head-fi as well. I'll do my best to answer.
 
Quote:

Congratulations!!

HeadRoom was always out there. I remember Tyll and the crew doing the first round the US tour with a stop at Shure in Chicago.

Keep on pushing the limits!!!

 
Thanks Audio Addict. Tyll left me some big headphones to fill but I'll do my best.
Quote:

I don't even want to know how much money I've spent at Headroom over the years...but all I can say is that they are a great company and sponsor of our hobby and Head-fi. Best of luck in 2013!

I'd like to know... seriously though, thanks for your continued support. We couldn't have done it without you.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Quote:

 
I'd like to know... seriously though, thanks for your continued support. We couldn't have done it without you.

Well, let's just say in 2013, you've got my money for my new pair of TH-900s and its still only January. 

 Let's not go back to 2008-present...please!

 

[bowei006]

My question won't be as hilarious asked in here though 

 (I had one stocked up)
 
But here we go. As I am but a buyer, I know little about the numbers and statistics behind my hobby of headphones. We know that there are people out there, but the actual numbers is a bit unknown to me. So let's go.
 

• How is the current state of the headphone industry(without focus on the 40% Dr.Dre stake in it)? (very generally)
• More specifically, what is the current state of the professional stake in the more "pro" side of the headphone industry. It is easy to see that celebrity and mainstream headphones are gaining huge traction. But I am talking about the 'actual' Sony's that people like us buy and the Sennheiser HD6xx + and what not? Is it taking a small decline?
• What is your opinion on the rampant music/media piracy? The arguments against it have been that , that property is that of the owner and that all laws and ToS give those rights to the company that owns it and it is illegal. The arguments against that argument(but not necissarily for it) have been that the media industry have had huge profit increases and have broken profit records. That most artists don't see the money won. That fans that pirate buy more music than those that don't. That it introduces fans. Etc Etc. So what is your opinion on it and do you think the arguments defending against the "it is illegal" side are valid or just bull?
• If you don't wish to answer that is fine, but how are the sales at headroom. This relates to question 2 on how the "enthusiast" market is doing Are you guys seeing profits, stagnation or series of up and down curves?
• What is the most popular sub $200 amp sold and what is the most popular headphone sold?
• Is there a headphone or amp or source maker brand that you think we should all be watching as another rising star?
• How is the business at your brick and mortar headphone store?
• A lot of my friends and I are young. To you guys, it may seem like young people comming in to terrorize the headphones. So the question is, do you see young people toy around with the headphones in your brick and mortar store disrespectuflly or do you see young people showing actual interest?
• Would you rather fight 100 duck sized horses or 1 horse sized duck?
• What is your opinion on Beats by Dre?
• What is your opinion on Sony, Phillips, Beyerdynamic, and Sennheiser 'looking' at the mainstream market a bit more than the enthusiast one? Or if you don't think one of those company's is. Why?

 
That must be a lot of questions. Sorry. But if you can answer even just one, that would be great
Thank you very much!

 

[Jamey Warren]

bowei006,
 
Those are great questions and a good warmup for my AMA tomorrow. I'll do my best to answer them.
 
1. How is the current state of the headphone industry(without focus on the 40% Dr.Dre stake in it)? (very generally)
 
A: The current state of the headphone industry as recently reported by NPD Group is about a 1 billion dollar industry with beats by dre holding about a 70% stake in the market. That leaves about 300 million for the rest of them. I'd say the headphone industry is in pretty good shape right now. I'm not sure how much I trust their numbers though which is why I haven't paid for one of their actual reports. I do get information from other sources though.
 
2. More specifically, what is the current state of the professional stake in the more "pro" side of the headphone industry. It is easy to see that celebrity and mainstream headphones are gaining huge traction. But I am talking about the 'actual' Sony's that people like us buy and the Sennheiser HD6xx + and what not? Is it taking a small decline?
 
A: This is a hard number to figure out as headphones are only recently starting to be tracked by themselves. From memory, before beats by dre, headphone sales in general were about $300 million. It seems all the growth went into Dr. Dre's pocket. I'm not sure how to separate "pro" headphones but that's all there was before beats and skullcandy.
 
3. What is your opinion on the rampant music/media piracy? The arguments against it have been that , that property is that of the owner and that all laws and ToS give those rights to the company that owns it and it is illegal. The arguments against that argument(but not necissarily for it) have been that the media industry have had huge profit increases and have broken profit records. That most artists don't see the money won. That fans that pirate buy more music than those that don't. That it introduces fans. Etc Etc. So what is your opinion on it and do you think the arguments defending against the "it is illegal" side are valid or just bull?
 
A: My opinion is one of a musician and recording engineer. I went to recording engineering school about 15 years ago to learn how to make records. At the time, I could already feel the decline of the record industry as this was a time when Pro Tools was coming out and the beginning of the home studio. To me the writing was on the wall that record labels were going to have a rough time. My opinion is that if you sign away the rights to your music, that's your own fault. The artists that provide good music that their fans love to listen to don't seem to have a problem making money. Music listeners can see through artists that are just in it for the money. Some people don't care but the true fans do. In short, my opinion is that the music piracy issue is just bull. I think it's just something the record labels have been clinging to in order to make sure the guys in suits keep their jobs. This is just my opinion.
 
4. If you don't wish to answer that is fine, but how are the sales at headroom. This relates to question 2 on how the "enthusiast" market is doing Are you guys seeing profits, stagnation or series of up and down curves?
 
A: Traffic to our website and sales in general are down. That's why I'm here. The enthusiast market seems to be blowing up. This is still where a majority of our business comes from. You guys own multiple pairs of headphones and sometimes even multiple headphone amps. We do see a series of up and down curves. Typically, it's up around Christmas time. While we're still 'seeing profits', profit put simply is what is left over after we've paid all of our bills. We have to balance things like how much inventory we carry, expenses such as rent and utilities, and even the number of employees we have in order to turn a profit. This is the balancing game we play as a business. The competition is plentiful and fierce these days. Just take a look at all the head-fi sponsors. When we first started, there were only a few.
 
5. What is the most popular sub $200 amp sold and what is the most popular headphone sold?
 
A: This is tough to answer but I'll try. I am a bit biased and think the most popular headphone amp is the Total AirHead or Total BitHead. That said, FiiO has been selling a ton of headphone amps. As for headphones, I'd have to say the Grado SR60 has been most popular for us but that's because we have long been a fan of this headphone. In reality, Beats by Dre is the most popular headphone sold.
 
6. Is there a headphone or amp or source maker brand that you think we should all be watching as another rising star?
 
A: I would put my money on manufacturers that have a history of making great audio products and are willing to invest significantly in R&D, like Sennheiser for example. While I may get flamed for saying this, I would watch out for Skullcandy as they've hired a bunch of 'real' engineers and seem to want to improve their brand perception by making great sounding headphones. They have recently invested quite a chunk into R&D but it may take some time for them to realize their full potential.
 
7. How is the business at your brick and mortar headphone store?
 
A: Better than I would have expected being in such a small town and a little off the beaten path. I'd say it is pretty good for Bozeman, MT.
 
8. A lot of my friends and I are young. To you guys, it may seem like young people comming in to terrorize the headphones. So the question is, do you see young people toy around with the headphones in your brick and mortar store disrespectuflly or do you see young people showing actual interest?
 
A: Hardly anybody toy's around with expensive headphones. Most people that have an appreciation for music and audio gear treat our gear with respect, even the cheap stuff. Something I always keep in mind is that I was once your age. When I was in high school, this stuff was very interesting to me. I think there are way more people interested in headphones than there used to be. As an example, when I went to recording engineering school, there were only a few options for me to choose from. These days almost every major university has a "music technology" or some sort of audio production degree. To me that's a lot of young people interested in quality audio.
 
9. Would you rather fight 100 duck sized horses or 1 horse sized duck?
 
A: 1 horse sized duck. 100 duck sized horses would be hard to keep an eye on.
 
10. What is your opinion on Beats by Dre?
 
A: I love Dr. Dre's beats, like "The Chronic". That's an awesome album. When it comes to headphones, I think there are much better options for the money.
 
11. What is your opinion on Sony, Phillips, Beyerdynamic, and Sennheiser 'looking' at the mainstream market a bit more than the enthusiast one? Or if you don't think one of those company's is. Why?
 
A: I think companies that have the resources should concentrate on making great sounding headphones. It is my belief that when given a well engineered demo, people will generally prefer the headphone that sounds most natural, or closest to the real thing. For a long time this was just a gut feeling of mine but some recent research has echoed my gut feelings. Here's an example of what I'm talking about: http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=16486
 
Thanks for all the questions!

 

[WiR3D]

Wow nice Q&A
 
Now please don't take offence to this, but I'm coming from a modern buyers perspective. 
 
Your amps have been noted numerous times for their quality, but in the modern market, and the Fostex TH-900 is a good example of this, if your paying a premium or even just a decent amount of money for gear, then looks is a factor.
 
I'll explain why, the whole reason we love some of these headphones so much is because of beauty, the beauty of the sound, so why should the products be just as gorgeous to the eye? Tube amps are also another example, you want to be proud to show it off, a classical masterpiece like a tube amp or TH-900 will pull the attention of others. 
 
Heck looking at it from the mainstream perspective thats why beats does well, its looks, but for different reasons: more fashionable vs classic/class.
 
Of course you will always get your hardcore fans, through pain or uglyness they will get what sounds best.
 
The point I'm trying to make is, make your next DAC/amps look better, so that we are proud to show them off, and we have more then one sense based desire to own them.