[Jackula]

Yep,. Using spikes cause the speakers is very close is part of my reasoning.

The issue with placing them close to speakers is more the magnetic field than vibration. Vibrations are of course a factor, but when less than 3ft magnetic fields are more of an issue.

isolation is a major goal to achieve

But fun When we built ours we put batts in the walls and ceiling for the low frequency and extra thick plaster for the high frequency. When the room is playing at 80dB, it's almost inaudible in the adjacent room, although subbass can still be heard, not sure what else we could've done for those really low frequencies.

I had the Empyrean in mind but 3k! They sound like 6k but still...

Think about what you spent on your speakers and your headphone amp and DAC, $3k is almost nothing in comparison (I've seen them on special for $2k), you can probably haggle them down close to this.
You were complaining about the price of getting the HE9 before, and the R7HE before that, and you forgot all about it once they arrived, it will be the same when you buy the Empyrean

A good pair of headphones is a godsend when you can't listen to your speakers.

 

[FredA]

The Denon ah-d9200 could perhaps fit the bill if i rely on descriptions i have read.

 

[FredA]

But also, i am afraid you are right Jack @Jackula. The Empyreans are one of the top hp out there. Build quality appears to be as good as it gets. And lets say it, at the asking price, they are a bargain.

You should hear how my Eclipses with Crescendo tweeters sound together with the he7-he9-m3 trio. You need a dam good set of headphone to beat the tonality, imaging and dynamics of this setup. The m3 brings such texture, it feels like touching the instruments.

 

[Jackula]

You should hear how my Eclipses with Crescendo tweeters sound together with the he7-he9-m3 trio. You need a dam good set of headphone to beat the tonality, imaging and dynamics of this setup. The m3 brings such texture, it feels like touching the instruments.

No headphones can beat the dynamics of the Eclipses, period. I've listened to the Eclipses and I know what they sound like and they have the biggest sound of any speaker in their price range.

I'm interested in hearing Osborn's speakers with the full Audio-GD stack so I can make comparisons to my own speakers, but I'm too lazy to bring 240lbs of gear over to his house, it's on the other side of town.

 

[FredA]

No headphones can beat the dynamics of the Eclipses, period. I've listened to the Eclipses and I know what they sound like and they have the biggest sound of any speaker in their price range.

I'm interested in hearing Osborn's speakers with the full Audio-GD stack so I can make comparisons to my own speakers, but I'm too lazy to bring 240lbs of gear over to his house, it's on the other side of town.

I don't even have the reference, just half way to it with a tweeter upgrade. Took 4 months to the m3 to blossom. So i find it funny when reviewers make statements on such an amp after just one month. It seems these non feedback amps need their transistors fully burned before they can deliver the dynamics. The great thing is they can punch while remaining ultra smooth and analog. I am getting spoiled with the low bass coming out of the Osborns. You are probably right, no hp set can provide all that.

 

[Jackula]

I don't even have the reference, just half way to it with a tweeter upgrade. Took 4 months to the m3 to blossom. So i find it funny when reviewers make statements on such an amp after just one month. It seems these non feedback amps need their transistors fully burned before they can deliver the dynamics. The great thing is they can punch while remaining ultra smooth and analog. I am getting spoiled with the low bass coming out of the Osborns. You are probably right, no hp set can provide all that.

I don't think reviewers have the time to fully burn in anything before review, that's why it's so hard to review non feedback amps.

There's the Reference Elite now which offers a large upgrade to transparency, and the great thing about Osborn speakers is Greg is offering anyone who can buy him a return ticket free installation (well you still need to buy the parts). If you're interested, I'm sure if you talk to him, he can probably ship you a kit.

The bass from the Osborns are amazing, IMO the bass is the Osborn's biggest asset that few speakers can match, talking about the Monument even my Duke can't match it on bass performance, I don't think I've heard any speakers that can, including 6 figure speakers I've auditioned.

 

[FredA]

I don't think reviewers have the time to fully burn in anything before review, that's why it's so hard to review non feedback amps.

There's the Reference Elite now which offers a large upgrade to transparency, and the great thing about Osborn speakers is Greg is offering anyone who can buy him a return ticket free installation (well you still need to buy the parts). If you're interested, I'm sure if you talk to him, he can probably ship you a kit.

The bass from the Osborns are amazing, IMO the bass is the Osborn's biggest asset that few speakers can match, talking about the Monument even my Duke can't match it on bass performance, I don't think I've heard any speakers that can, including 6 figure speakers I've auditioned.

I don't have the room to fully exploit mine. A bit small. Standing up and getting near the speakers, boominess can be heard. Greg stated that for ultimate bass, one needs the ref. or elite series. But 150 pound a speaker seemed a bit heavy to me. If i order another speaker set from Greg, it will be from the elite series, but i will build a proper room first. I take Greg's word that the elite is a good step above. The Eclipse Elite would likely be my choice. As for my current speakers, i would say they are the best imaging speakers i have owned. The openness is reminiscent of bookshelf. The midrange is the best part IMO, but they have no weak point.

 

[Jackula]

I don't have the room to fully exploit mine. A bit small. Standing up and getting near the speakers, boominess can be heard. Greg stated that for ultimate bass, one needs the ref. or elite series. But 150 pound a speaker seemed a bit heavy to me. If i order another speaker set from Greg, it will be from the elite series, but i will build a proper room first. I take Greg's word that the elite is a good step above. The Eclipse Elite would likely be my choice. As for my current speakers, i would say they are the best imaging speakers i have owned. The openness is reminiscent of bookshelf. The midrange is the best part IMO, but they have no weak point.

I do like the midrange, it's the treble that bothers me. It's slightly brittle (well at least the reference tweeter are) and I think the Audio-GD stuff would be able to tame that quite well. I think the Osborns are voiced for enjoyment and euphorism, not for absolute neutrality and accuracy. If your preference is a warm rich sound (and it sounds like it is), it will be your dream speakers for life. After auditioning many speakers, the Osborn sound remind me a lot of the Focal Utopia sound, they have the same resolution, sense of scale, speed, just the Osborns are warmer and doesn't cost you your soul.

 

[tumpux]

I agree that most of us are moving too fast between each component before fully experiencing the best that can be delivered by it.

Self reminder.
Self reminder..

 

[FredA]

I do like the midrange, it's the treble that bothers me. It's slightly brittle (well at least the reference tweeter are) and I think the Audio-GD stuff would be able to tame that quite well. I think the Osborns are voiced for enjoyment and euphorism, not for absolute neutrality and accuracy. If your preference is a warm rich sound (and it sounds like it is), it will be your dream speakers for life. After auditioning many speakers, the Osborn sound remind me a lot of the Focal Utopia sound, they have the same resolution, sense of scale, speed, just the Osborns are warmer and doesn't cost you your soul.

Yep. Good analysis. The cymbals are a bit too forward on certain recordings. But smooth and resolved. It's the only thing that annoys me at times. I like Focal but their not their pricing.

I would not mind a more neutral presentation, but there are not so far off. Using a neutral headphone set with the he9 is bothering me as i got used to a warm signature. I think i will give nos a try on the he7, it could do the trick with the he560.

 

[PeterCraig]

Anyone have any experience with the M9 driving MrSpeakers Ether 2. It's a 16 ohm headphone so wonder if that would be a problem for this powerful amp.

I'm considering planars again due to Ether reviews and lightweight build.

Don't have the M9 yet though, coming soon

 

[buke9]

Anyone have any experience with the M9 driving MrSpeakers Ether 2. It's a 16 ohm headphone so wonder if that would be a problem for this powerful amp.

I'm considering planars again due to Ether reviews and lightweight build.

Don't have the M9 yet though, coming soon

Don’t think you will have a problem but probably will want it in low gain though. Planars in general don’t mind a bit more power.

 

[maellen]

Hi. I've been using NFB1-AMP for quite sometime and now eyeing for Master 9. Will it going to be a big upgrade or just incremental? Law of diminishing returns?

 

[gonzalo1004es]

Hi. I've been using NFB1-AMP for quite sometime and now eyeing for Master 9. Will it going to be a big upgrade or just incremental? Law of diminishing returns?

The Master 9 is clearly better, wether it is worth or not the price difference is difficult to say. But to my ears the difference is evident, considering how pricing works in the amplification market, in my opinion the Master 9 has to be clearly more expensive than the NFB-1.

 

[PeterCraig]

There is also the Master 19 to consider. If the cost of the Master 9 is a concern but you want to upgrade I would definitely go for the 19.

Then you can tell us all about it too.