[c3p0]

Now this is noway a bashing thread. I am currently auditioning a stats system. The midrange 4040 system with tube upgrade in the 006t II amp.

After a few days listening I am impressed with the increased resolution/detail. However I am a bit underwhelmed with regards to the bass/bass slam and lack of. I think it takes out some of the fun out of the music.

I have a qbd76 dac and music is of all genres with no rap.

 

[ting.mike]

I think your impression is quite accurate. A lot of people feel Staxes to be lacking in bass, except the Omega2 maybe.
The 4040 system is quite high in the Stax chain, btw.

The first Stax I tried is the SR202s, and I was wowed by it. Even though technically it's inferior to the 404s, sound signature is supposed to be more neutral than the 404s.

 

[alanbeeb]

I had a 2nd hand 4040 set for a few weeks - was totally underwhelmed by lack of substance to the music, and by the overwhelming greyness of the tonality. Hated them.... but was able to sell on without a loss.

However I have also owned Sennheiser HE-60/70 combo in the past and it was a dream. I've kicked myself everyday since I sold it.

 

[EYEdROP]

Ive never tried electrostats, but I know what you mean by the lack of bass impact taking away the fun in music. The truth is, most speakers and headphones have both bass and treble emphasis to make up for the equal loudness contour of the ear. THere is alot of detail in the highs, and big bass feels great. It sometimes makes for a more involving experience to have these emphasized.. Ive noticed most average joes use an equalizer to make bass impact and treble more apparent at the expense of distortion and transparency. Some people like it.

Im assuming your stax are transparent, detailed, and tonally correct etc.... These things usually come at the expense of visceral impact. But in my opinion the lack of bass impact is perfectly acceptable because its just a headphone. They do not rumble your entire body like a speaker system or live performance. In order to make up for the loss of bone conduction, they will emphasize the bass in headphones. It always ends up being colored.

I just appreciate what advantages headphones have over speakers and vice versa. Headphones just cant make you feel the bass without being colored.