[BassicScience]

In a total last-minute impulse move, this Bay Area dude decided to fly out for CanJam NYC 2022. The tipping point came when I read that Bloom Audio would be bringing the HifiMan EF-1000 amp to the show, coupled with watching the CanJam NYC preview video. I had previously considered coming mainly just to audition the Stax SR-X9000 and T+A Solitaire P, and because I'm planning to be on vacation in September when CanJam returns to LA, but decided it was too insane to fly cross-country just to listen to headphones. I ended up rationalizing the trip due to having $800 in credit with Alaska that was going to expire in a few months. Anyhoo, I'm here now and thought I'd chronicle my impressions from the weekend in a single thread. So, here we go...

DAY 1 - Friday
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My flight touched down right at 7am at a cold, heavily overcast, and rainy Newark airport. We then waited over an hour on the tarmac as a plane occupying our gate was being de-iced prior to takeoff. At some point I found myself wondering why it couldn't be de-iced away from the gate, but I didn't come up with a good answer. Finally got to the gate and decided to grab breakfast at the airport "cafe". Decent by airport standards, although they didn't serve espresso drinks. Took the AirTrain to NY Penn Station and then walked about 10 blocks up 7th Ave to 44th St., site of the The Iroquois hotel, a comfortable, stylish, and relatively affordable establishment. Due to the last minute nature of this adventure, the discount rooms at the Marriott were long gone. It's convenient to stay at the same hotel as the show, but not worth $200/night to me. Fortunately, The Iroquois had a room available immediately for an early check-in fee of $29, which I readily agreed to. The first order of business was getting a bit of sleep, as I didn't get much on the flight, first class seat notwithstanding.

I got up around 1pm, and set out for Audio46, a couple blocks away, with a stop for lunch at Little Italy Pizza (not bad at all). I was rolling my carry-on suitcase behind me chock full of equipment with visions of setting up shop at Audio46 for the next several hours and auditioning oodles of awesome equipment in relaxed, quiet conditions. Spoiler alert: it didn't quite play out that way! Let me set the stage with a brief description of the equipment I brought along and what I'm primarily interested in achieving this weekend. My portable DAC/amp units are the Benchmark DAC3 and the Questyle CMA800i. The former is the more capable headphone amp overall (the Questyle strains to drive the Susvara and other low sensitivity cans, and has a higher noise floor than the Benchmark), but the Benchmark's DAC section has never impressed me all that much, while the Questyle's is superb and just highly musical. It uses the same Wolfson DAC chip as the CAS192D, Questyle's dedicated DAC. On balance, I decided to just bring the Questyle, figuring I could insert an amp behind it for power-hungry cans. I also brought my Susvara as a known reference, and to test it out on various amps at the show, notably the Enleum, which I only auditioned very briefly at the last CanJam. Questyle has also just released the CMA Fifteen, which looks very similar to the CMA800i, except they've switched to the latest Sabre chip, and I was hoping to compare the two units head to head. Finally, I brought my DCA Aeon Noire, as I'm still on a quest for my holy grail closed back. The Aeon Noire is truly excellent, particularly for under $1k, but it doesn't remotely approach what a reference-level open back will do.

Audio46 is also a Stax dealer, so I was even thinking I might be able to audition the SR-X9000 while I was there. In an ideal universe, they would have had the Hifiman Shangri-la Senior available as well, but I figured the chances of that were roughly zero. I had contacted HFM support earlier in the week, and they confirmed that the Shang Sr. would not be appearing at CanJam due to "lack of space", It's generally a special order item in any case, but c'mon, this is New Yawk. Go big, or go home!!
So I walked into Audio46 with palpable anticipation and excitement, and was greeted warmly by Rodrigo. When I explained what I was hoping to achieve, he quickly brought me back to reality. Much of the TOTL equipment had already been packed for the show (Audio46 will be an exhibitor), and there were a number of people already taking up space in the back room, so I'd have to audition at the front counter (glass case) and setting up my laptop and Questyle CMA800i wasn't going to be practical.

It appeared mine was just another hard luck story in the city of broken dreams... But then, a miracle occurred. Rodrigo produced an actual T+A Solitaire P headphone for my listening pleasure! Maybe this 3000-mile journey had been worth it after all. This headphone makes a strong first impression with its solid build quality, and I found the comfort to be excellent, maybe 9/10. Initial listening was done with an iBasso DX300 DAP, which I'd never heard before (not really a DAP guy). It was connected to Tidal via WiFi, and I convinced Rodrigo to just let me drive the music selections after he initially proposed using one of his playlists. I started off with XTC's Respectable Street, a song which features pounding drums and punchy bass, as well as angular guitar energy. This selection should play to the Soli P's strengths, as I understood them. Right off the bat, the bass was impressive, as was the imaging. The rumors were all true! As I listened to the song, though, I started to notice that the resolution wasn't quite at Susvara levels, particularly in the treble. I moved on to some acoustic Miles Davis, and then some Eric Matthews (male vocal/acoustic guitar) tracks. The headphone acquitted itself well with dynamics and sparkle on these tracks, although I still felt some details were being glossed over. The DAP was pretty high on its volume scale, so I asked Rodrigo if he had an amp I could use in conjunction with it. Turns out there was Auris Euterpe right there on the counter, so we added that to the chain. I'd never heard this unit before, but it did improve the performance of the Soli P, and gave it even stronger dynamics. Still, I couldn't help feeling that a more reference amp might unlock more of the potential of the Soli P. Audio46 will have the custom T+A amp at the show tomorrow, so I'll definitely audition the Soli P with that, and will report my impressions back. Verdict: Incomplete (but promising).

Let me wrap this up quickly, since it's now after 2:30 AM (I'm still 3 hours behind on Cali time!). I asked Audio46 for a recommendation on a closed back, and they suggested the Meze Liric. Based on my (limited) exposure to the Elite and Empyrean, I was truthfully expecting to be underwhelmed, but hell, I had nothing else to do at that point. Ironically, the iBasso started freezing due to WiFi issues right as I started the audition, so I decided to plug the Liric directly into my Samsung Galaxy S10 phone, and use Tidal over cell network. Long story short, I was utterly blown away by the sound of this combo! The only downside was that my phone volume was pretty much maxed out to get the cans to listenable levels, so I plugged the phone back into the Auris amp, expecting greatness. Sadly, the sound quality was nowhere near as good as directly out of the phone (!). I don't know if the Auris just isn't that good, or whether there was some compatibility issue going on, but I figured it would be easiest to just cut bait, and listen to the Liric on my Questyle CMA800i (or some other know quality setup) tomorrow. But I can't wait to do that based on how it sounded out of my phone today. If I can replicate (or improve upon) my initial experience, I'm likely to buy a pair.

To be continued.....

 

[BassicScience]

Well, it's Monday afternoon and I'm back in the Bay Area after a late night arrival from NYC yesterday. The original concept of blogging from the show didn't exactly pan out, mostly due to my never quite erasing my sleep deficit, combined with attending a private audition in an exhibitor's hotel room Saturday night, which included the Stax SR-X9000. I'm still not sure how or why I was invited to this exclusive "event", but I surely couldn't pass it up! In any case, I'm going to change this thread's title to indicate that it's just my show impressions, and not a blog of any sort. Feel free to post questions or responses here, and I'll try to address them.

If you just want to read equipment reviews, skip to the next post.

DISCLAIMER: Headphone meets are most definitely not a great environment for evaluating audio gear in a conclusive way for any number of reasons:

• (Often very) high levels of ambient noise
• Audition times are generally quite short, particularly for new, hot products
• Some exhibitors have (very) limited playlists and aren't amenable to hooking in your source (DAP, phone, laptop)
• Difficult or (usually) impossible to reduce variables (i.e., you want to hear your favorite headphones on a certain amp, but the exhibitor is using an unfamiliar DAC)
• Equipment can be non-optimally configured or even broken in rare cases
• Human hearing perception is quite variable due to myriad factors (mood, alertness, expectation bias, etc.) even under the best of circumstances (which meets are not)

So please take everything written here in that context. Due to jet lag and the unfamiliarity of attending CanJam in NYC for the first time, I feel less certain of my impressions than I typically have after other headphone meets I've attended. The main benefit of the show, besides having a ton of fun and meeting a lot of very cool people, was figuring out which products I'm most interested in pursuing further with a proper audition.​

​

MY MAIN OBJECTIVES:

• Audition the Stax SR-X9000 and T+A Solitaire P headphones
• Audition the Hifiman EF1000 amp
• Find the ideal DAC/amp combo unit for standalone/travel use (non-Susvara division)
• Audition the Susvara on the Enleum AMP-23R and other smaller amps
• Audition the Diana TC
• Find a closed back I like even more than the DCA Aeon Noire
• Audition the Woo 3ES and other estat amps
• Listen to some IEMs if time permitted (it didn't)
• Serendipitous encounters with under-my-radar components
• Keep an open mind and re-evaluate products I might have previously not liked
• Have fun!

OK, let's dive in. I hope I'll provide you with some entertainment value, if nothing else of use!

​

 

[BassicScience]

Here are my impressions of various gear I auditioned at CanJam NYC 2022. I will organize it by headphone/component so you can easily skip content you may not be interested in. The impressions will be listed in roughly chronological order.

Hifiman EF1000 Amplifier

The chance to hear an amp so reportedly elite, and so rarely encountered, is one of the reasons you travel cross-country to attend CanJam. I figured this would be a hot ticket, so headed directly over to the Bloom Audio table upon entry to the show to hear it drive a Susvara. They were using a Hugo TT2 as a front end, but I quickly substituted the Questyle CMA800i I had in my backpack due to my unfamiliarity with the Chord. Getting the best possible read on an unfamiliar component is all about reducing variables.

Sonic impressions: Anyone who thinks the Susvara is "bass shy" and has $15k lying around would do well to audition this amp! There's an overall authority to the sound that can't fail to impress. Staging is expansive and very well-layered. There's no lack of sparkle and air in the treble. Every genre I threw at it was handled with complete aplomb. I couldn't find much of anything to fault here sonically. My only complaints dealt with ergonomics:

1. The stepped volume control needs finer resolution. Not being able to set desired volume precisely is an annoyance, and unforgivable at this price point.
2. When it comes to reference level gear, I much prefer separates to an integrated amp.
3. The amp gets hot! We joked that it could double as an egg fryer (literally). While it's true that my ARC Ref 6 preamp also generates a lot of heat, I at least have the option to employ a solid state preamp in the hottest weather.

Meze Audio Liric

Bloom Audio also had the Liric (attractive female not included ), the new closed back planar from Meze. I had been wowed by this headphone at Audio46 the day before, driven straight from my Samsung Galaxy S10. I was excited to hear it through my CMA800i as the phone couldn't quite get some tracks to my desired volume level. Closed back headphones typically struggle to achieve a smooth frequency response, with resolution of detail, and to provide a spacious soundstage. The Liric largely overcomes all of these issues. The ambience retrieval and resolution of detail is exceptional here, especially by closed back standards, as are the soundstage dimensions. The tuning is very even-handed, with no particular glaring weaknesses, and the bass is beautiful, well-controlled but with presence, heft, and no bleed into the mids. Meze has really pulled off an amazing feat in making a closed back headphone that I find unquestionably superior to the open back it was based on (Empyrean). Since Bloom also had a Meze Elite at the table, I did a quick comparison and found that it did better the Liric in terms of midrange resolution and soundstage extent, but the margins were not huge. Overall, I preferred the tuning of the Liric, particularly in the bass! (I'm sure a lot of Meze lovers will disagree with me, perhaps vehemently. )

At that point, I had decided with certainty I'd be buying a Liric. I walked by the Meze table and spoke with Mircea about how impressed I was by the new headphone. He mentioned that they'd be offering their show units (previously unused) at a 25% discount, and we made a handshake deal on the spot. Fast forward to Sunday morning, and I swung by Bloom again to listen to the Liric on the Questyle CMA Fifteen, which I was also considering for purchase to replace my aging CMA800i. After about five minutes, I noticed that the Liric pads were exerting a goodly amount of pressure on the back of my ears. I tried to adjust the cups, but the cavity is so small (and maybe my ears are so big!) that it really wasn't possible. I listened for another ten minutes or so, hoping I'd get used to the pressure, but it actually started to bother me even more. I sadly came to the conclusion that the Liric had a fatal flaw for me, and the one you'd least expect from a Meze headphone: lack of comfort. It may not be an issue for someone with small ears.

When I informed Mircea that I wouldn't be buying the show demo after all, he was very understanding, and told me that portability was the number one design goal with the Liric, hence the very compact cup size. I really hope Meze iterates on the Liric, but with no compromises, as I feel they're onto something quite special with their closed back technology.


Questyle CMA Fifteen

Questyle is a very interesting company. Five years ago, it seemed they were on the verge of becoming a true front line player in desktop audio with their range of DACs, headphone amps, and combo units. Their equipment was ubiquitous at shows, and was used to showcase TOTL headphones by Focal, Audeze, and others. But a funny thing happened en route to taking over the world. Nowadays they seem to be a fringe player mostly known for their DAPs. How does a company that offers unique technology and gear with superb sound and build quality at reasonable prices become marginalized? It would seem to be the classic case of an engineering-driven company that doesn't quite have the marketing and customer support chops to make the big time. Additionally, the ergonomics and industrial design of the desktop products never lived up to the quality of the technology inside.

Given this backdrop, and as a true fan of their old products, I was heartened to see the introduction of the CMA Fifteen DAC/amp unit as a sign that the company hasn't given up on the desktop space. Ironically, I had toted my CMA800i to CanJam, so a direct comparison of the products was possible, again at the Bloom Audio table. Though conceptually very similar products, there are a number of salient differences between the CMA800i and CMA Fifteen:

• The CMA Fifteen uses the ESS ES9038PRO DAC chip whereas the CMA800i employed the Wolfson WM8741 DAC chipset
• The CMA Fifteen offers 4.4mm and XLR 4-pin balanced headphone jacks in addition to a 6.35mm single-ended vs. the pair of 6.35mm jacks on the CMA800i
• The CMA Fifteen can provide 2W @ 32ohms (balanced jacks) and 1.5W @ 32ohms (SE jack) vs. the 1W @ 32ohms max supplied by the CMA800i
• The CMA Fifteen offers two USB inputs, optical and coax inputs, and LDAC Bluetooth input in addition to the single USB and coax inputs on the CMA800i
• The CMA Fifteen has high and low gain modes, selectable by four switches on the bottom of the unit
• The CMA Fifteen has an array of LEDs that provide much improved unit status vs the CMA800i
• The CMA Fifteen has a switch to bypass its volume control (DAC mode) on the preamp outputs and another switch for pro vs. home output levels on said outputs
• The CMA Fifteen features an anodized black finish whereas the CMA800i came in a brushed aluminum pewter color
• The CMA Fifteen comes with a decent remote vs the flimsy wafer supplied with the CMA800i

Both units are the same form factor, rather sleek and compact by desktop standards, while being on the larger end of "portable". The CMA Fifteen retails for $2500 (as did the CMA800i), and can possibly be had for a slight discount, depending on the dealer. Questyle has clearly added a lot of value and functionality with the new product while holding the line on price. I was a bit leery of the shift from the Wolfson DAC (which I loved!) to the ESS (which I typically haven't loved as much), but Questyle's implementation bypasses the standard I/V conversion given that their amplification circuitry is current mode.

So how did the CMA Fifteen compare sonically to the CMA800i? Honestly, I didn't do enough comparative listening to offer a useful review here. I compared the DAC sections into the Hifiman EF1000 driving the Susvara, and didn't hear any radical differences. The CMA Fifteen may have offered a bit more fullness in the bass. The reasons I didn't spend time comparing the two products were because it was a small table, Bloom only brought one CMA Fifteen and was using it to demo headphones, and I hadn't brought along my DCA Aeon Noire, which are typically what I'd be driving. Furthermore, I had already mentally decided to purchase the CMA Fifteen and do a proper evaluation at home. That is, until I subsequently heard the iFi Pro iDSD Signature, about which, more later.


T+A Solitaire P

My next stop was the Audio46 table to audition the Solitaire P with proper amplification. As I related in the first post, I had heard the headphone the day before at their store, but only out of an iBasso DAP and a small Auris Euterpe amp, neither of which I suspected was doing the headphone full justice. The Solitaire P is a rare bird in the US, and Audio46 only recently began importing the German company's products. Those on HeadFi who have owned and/or heard it have been very positive in their comments overall, saying it plays in the same league as a Susvara, with even better staging and bass response. Yes, please! Needless to say, I was anticipating this audition as much as anything this side of the Stax SR-X9000.

As I wanted to be able to select music (via Tidal) from my phone, Rodrigo plugged me into the iFi Pro iDSD Signature DAC running into the T+A HA 200 headphone amp. As on the previous day, I first queued up Respectable Street by XTC to get a sense of the Soli P's dynamic capabilities. In a word, WOW! All of the usual benefits of sufficient (and then some) amplification were in evidence, in spades! The dynamic and spatial capabilities of this headphone are truly special, and the track sounded very live. The bass was large and in charge, but not bloated or flabby in the slightest. I segued into an acoustic guitar/vocal track (Faith To Clay by Eric Matthews), followed by some classic jazz (Joshua by Miles Davis), and was equally impressed by the Soli P's handling of these tracks. This headphone has a bit of a reputation for a rolled off treble, so I was quite pleasantly surprised with what I was hearing in that region. It may not have quite the air, sparkle, and resolution of a Susvara (or an estat), but I was very satisfied with it overall, especially given its great strength in other areas. In short, this was perhaps the most impressive listen I had at the show, and I'm super excited that I'll be doing a home audition of the Soli P in the coming days, courtesy of a generous forum member.

When I got back to my hotel Saturday evening, I did some quick research on the HA 200 and discovered it also includes a (proprietary) DAC, and that the amp is essentially Purifi Class D technology with possible (unspecified) customization. Armed with this knowledge, I went back to Audio46 on Sunday morning to listen to the Soli P through the HA 200 and iDSD Pro Signature separately, since both are DAC/headphone amp combos. Long story short, the iDSD Pro Sig can't compete with the massive extra power reserves of the HA 200, but I found its DAC section clearly superior to my ear on (particularly) acoustic music. That's when I decided I needed to investigate the iDSD Pro Sig in more depth at the iFi table across the aisle. About which, more later.

As a final note, I also auditioned the Soli P's smaller sibling, the Solitaire P-SE. There was clearly a strong family resemblance, but the P-SE couldn't achieve quite the scale and authority of the P. I arrived at the conclusion that the P at $7k represented (for me) better value than the P-SE at $4k. Others may well have a different opinion.


Abyss Diana TC and Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC

It's no secret that I've not been a fan (to put it mildly) of the 1266 TC. I've auditioned it on a handful of occasions at shows, and never once remotely enjoyed the experience. The timbre was always wonky, the bass was prominent, but somewhat detached, and the staging was wide, but unnatural. I had come to the conclusion that the 1266 TC was the most overrated headphone on the planet, and couldn't understand how so many people, whose opinions I otherwise respect, worship it. Given that, why was I so interested in hearing the Diana TC? In a nutshell, I find it to be a very sexy-looking headphone. Yes, dear reader, I can be a bit shallow at times (LOL).

Before we get to the Diana TC, let's rewind to Saturday morning after I got up from the Solitaire P audition at Audio46. At the next table over was ampsandsound, with a few of their amps set up. There, connected to the Nautilus was... the 1266 TC. I hold this company's amps in high regard based on listening to a variety of headphones on them at CanJam LA last year, but am not (currently) in the market for an all-tube amp. I figured maybe the Nautilus might be the magic key to unlocking the (heretofore) mythical powers of the Abyss flagship, so I slipped them on and played a rock track (possibly XTC, again) on the attached DAP. And, much to my surprise and delight, I.... finally.... understood.... what people hear in these. It wasn't quite on the level of life-changing (or the Solitaire P experience I'd just had), but it was damn good sound, with speed, tremendous bass, and coherent staging. In any case, I cut bait after one song as I had bigger fish to fry (mixed metaphor, anyone?), namely heading over to the Woo and HeadAmp rooms to audition the Stax SR-X9000. About which, more later.

To close out my thoughts on these two Abyss headphones: I found myself parked in a chair at the long HeadAmp table (in a room they were sharing with DCA), patiently waiting to audition the X9000 through a BHSE. Right in front of me were the Diana TC and AB-1266 Phi TC. The electronics on hand were the GS-X Mini driven by a Chord Hugo TT2. I slipped the Diana TC onto my noggin, and was generally impressed with their lightness and the luxury feel of the earpads. I thought the headband could use some additional padding to decrease pressure on the top of the head. My only other minor niggle is that there's no ear cup swivel due to the one-piece design. Unfortunately, I don't have much to say in terms of sound quality due to the short time I auditioned the Diana TC. Competent, but generally unremarkable at its price point, was how I found it. And to my ears, not much of a resemblance to the sound of the 1266 TC. Speaking of which...

Heartened by my positive experience with the 1266 TC at ampsandsound, I was very curious to hear it again out of the GS-X Mini. I put it on just as someone had cued up So What, the classic Miles Davis track that's sort of the Hotel California of jazz, in terms of how overplayed it is at headphone meets. Ironically, it was this very track that had been badly mangled by the 1266 TC at CanJam LA in terms of the timbre of the horns, so I experienced a bit of PTSD as the opening notes unfolded. What followed was...... one of the most amazing and unexpected listening experiences of my life. Sheer sonic beauty and majesty. Commanding, yet nuanced and lovely, bass. Perfect horn timbre with no hint of stridency. A huge, airy soundstage. Talk about the mother of all cognitive (but not sonic) dissonance! How could a headphone that had sounded so bad to me in the past be producing this slice of sonic heaven?? Was the GS-X mini actually a magic box as opposed to a mere headphone amp? I have no answers. Truthfully, nothing has ever made less sense to me than trying to reconcile my various listening experiences with the 1266 TC. I know that there are a lot of variables in play in terms of pad positioning and driver orientation and ear pad gap, which I've always considered more of a bug than a feature, but even that wouldn't seem to explain the range of outcomes. Completely unprecedented with any other headphone or component, in my (long) experience.

On Sunday afternoon, I decided to give the 1266 TC a final listen through the GS-X Mini to see if I could replicate the previous day's experience. I played a couple of tracks, most memorably Making Flippy Floppy by Talking Heads. The 1266 TC gave a wide, cinematic presentation of the song with a great, rumbling sub-bass floor which made the song sound more like a live than a studio recording. It was a pleasing effect. The only downside to the presentation was that David Byrne sounded like he was singing from the middle/back of the stage.

The bottom line is that I can now appreciate why so many people love the Abyss 1266 Phi TC. It's still almost certainly not in my future due to comfort issues, and the level of fussiness and variable outcomes I've experienced with it, but I can officially stop hating the headphone and questioning the hearing of its proponents, which is a very positive outcome.

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END OF PART I (to be continued)

 

[BassicScience]

PART II - Electrostatics and Miscellany


Stax SR-X9000

Along with the T+A Solitaire P, this was the headphone I was most looking forward to auditioning at CanJam. There is a still a huge backlog of orders, so I wasn't expecting there to be many to be found on the floor. It turns out there were two, one each in the Woo Audio and HeadAmp rooms. The former was being driven by the new Woo Audio 3ES electrostatic headphone amp ($9k) from a Chord Hugo TT2 (as I recall), while the latter was connected to the venerable HeadAmp BHSE fed by a Naim Uniti Atom DAC/streamer. Unfortunately, there was some sort of technical issue with the Woo Audio setup that developed on Saturday afternoon, which rendered it out of operation for the rest of the show! Fortunately, I was able to audition the SR-X9000 with the Woo amp once before that occurred, but don't really have much to say specifically about the combo due to limited exposure. It wasn't notably better or worse than the BHSE, from what I could tell. I also got a few listening sessions with the new Stax flagship on the BHSE, including in a quieter setting in a hotel room on Saturday evening.

For a variety of reasons, I would have to say that I still don't have a definitive opinion on just how good the SR-X9000 actually is. I don't own a BHSE (or the Woo Audio amp, obviously), and I'm not really familiar with the DACs that were feeding these amps at the show. In addition, the rooms with the SR-X9000s were usually crowded and noisy, and there were a lot of people waiting to hear them, so settling into a lengthy and thorough audition was just not going to happen. I was quite optimistic about the session in the hotel room, but surprisingly the SR-X9000 ended up engaging me the least in that context. The DAC in that system was the Bricasti Design M3, which (again) I'd never heard, although it has a fine reputation.

I went back to the HeadAmp room first thing on Sunday morning, when there were still relatively few people at the show, and the SR-X9000 really sang to me for the first time. For me, classical music and estats are a divine marriage, bringing out the best in each other. I cued up a Vivaldi violin concerto by David and Igor Oistrakh, two of my favorite violinists. Pure sonic magic and musical beauty! There was just such a rightness to the presentation, with spectacular staging/imaging and spot-on timbre. I moved on to Joshua by Miles Davis, as classic jazz is another genre that fares very well with estats. Again, the SR-X9000 presented the music in an impeccable and engaging fashion. As others have noted, this headphone moves you several rows back from the stage, but I didn't seem to mind in spite of my general preference to be closer. The SR-X9000 offers a very coherent and well-sorted presentation. I got the sense that it could be the Susvara of estats in that its best attribute may be that it doesn't have any obvious weaknesses. OTOH, it's not the most flashy of headphones.

What I can say for sure is that the SR-X9000 is clearly the most technically accomplished headphone Stax has ever produced. It's also the best built, and very comfortable to wear. This is a headphone with great composure and no rough edges. I'm greatly looking forward to giving it a more proper and thorough audition, hopefully in the near future. Most definitely worth consideration if you're looking for an estat!


Eksonic Aeras and DIY T2

As many estat devotees already know, Eksonic is a recently-launched company that is now offering a couple of integrated amplifiers for electrostatic headphones. The first is a version of the legendary DIY T2 amp, originally designed by Kevin Gilmore. It's a two-chassis component with a separate power supply. Both the amp and power supply are finished in chrome, and the package retails for $13k. For those with more limited funds (or real estate), there is the much smaller, single chassis Aeras. The Aeras nominally retails for $6700, although I was told there was a 10% discount promotion through the end of March.

Kerry, the owner of the company and designer of the products, is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. He was very generous with his time in relating the story behind the company and the amps, and answering all of my questions. The amps were designed mainly in conjunction with the Stax SR-007 Mk1, which is Kerry's personal favorite estat. He'd recently purchased a Stax SR-009S for show demo purposes. Sadly, they were unable to secure a Stax SR-X9000 due to limited availability. I should mention that Eksonic had secured a room in the far hallway, adjacent only to the seminar venue. Probably for that reason, it was not crowded and relatively quiet on my visits. In fact, I wasn't even aware Eksonic was at the show until I checked my program Saturday afternoon. FWIW, the source was a DAC/streamer from Soekris, with which I was unfamiliar except by reputation.

I started with the DIY T2, and listened to each of the aforementioned Stax headphones. Both sounded fantastic, with the SR-009S providing a relatively brighter presentation, as expected. I've had far more listening experience with the SR-009S than with either SR-007 variant, so that was my reference for judging the merits of the amp. In a word, this amp is transformative! The SR-009S was rendering a huge, airy soundstage with palpable bass and nary a hint of "estat timbre". It was far and away the best I've ever heard that headphone sound. It was easy to understand why the T2 and variants have gained legendary status among estat aficionados. In comparison, the Aeras yielded similar sonic attributes as the big amp, on a slightly reduced scale. Trying to quantify sonic differences is admittedly rather silly, but if pressed, I'd say the Aeras is about 85-90% of the DIY T2. When I came in Sunday with fresher ears and went straight to the Aeras, it impressed me even more than the previous afternoon when I'd listened to the DIY T2 directly beforehand. Note that I was using the SR-007 Mk1 to compare the amps, as I didn't end up hearing the SR-009S on the Aeras.

Given how impressed I was with both of the Eksonic amps, I really wanted to audition the SR-X9000 through them! There was some talk that Kerry and Justin (HeadAmp) would be doing just that on Saturday evening after show hours, but when I checked back on Sunday, it apparently hadn't happened after all. At that point, it occurred to me that the SR-X9000 in the Woo Audio room might be available if there were still issues with their amp, which was in fact the case. Unfortunately, the Woo folks told me they couldn't loan me the SR-X9000, as it was on loan to them from Stax. I even offered them $100 for the privilege, but to no avail! You can't say I didn't try.


iFi Pro iDSD Signature (and iFi Pro iCAN Signature)

As mentioned in my T+A Solitaire P commentary above, I listened to said headphone through the Pro iDSD Sig (standalone), the T+A HA 200 (standalone), and the Pro iDSD Sig (DAC) into the T+A HA 200 (amp). The latter was the clear winner, and a strong contender for best sound I heard at the show. Perhaps the more interesting comparison was the Pro iDSD Sig vs. the T+A HA 200 as standalone units. The HA 200 had the upper hand with bass control due to the tremendous power differential, but overall I preferred the DAC section of the Pro iDSD Sig to that of the HA 200, which was readily apparent when playing acoustic tracks of various genres. The Pro iDSD Sig offered superb clarity and insight into the music, traits which I value quite a lot.

Given how impressed I'd been with the Pro iDSD Sig in the context of the Solitaire P, I couldn't resist auditioning the Susvara through it, in conjunction with the Pro iCAN Sig (as the Pro iDSD Sig lacks the required power by itself), at the iFi table across the aisle from Audio46. The iFi "stack" was a fabulous pairing with the Susvara, and I ended up listening for longer than I'd planned as I cycled through most of the same test tracks I'd been using during the show. I didn't play with the 3D or XBass features, but did enjoy being able to switch between solid state and tube modes depending on the track. The more exposure I get to iFi products, the more I respect them as well-engineered and feature-rich. I'm even considering purchase of the iFi Pro iDSD Signature for use when traveling (I never pack my Susvara).


Audeze CRBN

I revisited Audeze's estat again on three or four different amps, and to my ears it's still clearly in a lower tier than any of the Stax offerings or my Shangri-la Junior. A lot of people seem to like this estat because it's been voiced to elevate the bass, but it still loses handily to the best planars in that department without necessarily besting them in the midrange or treble. At least, that's the way I hear it. This is a headphone without a niche in my personal collection. Clearly, a lot of people disagree and love it. As always, your own ears are the final arbiter!


Audeze LCD-5

Listened to this briefly through the GS-X Mini, and was actually very impressed with the overall tonal balance and soundstaging, two areas I found questionable in my initial audition of this headphone. I'll probably revisit it at some point, but that's a low priority for the time being.


HeadAmp GS-X Mini

This amp made the Audeze LCD-5 and Abyss 1266 Phi TC sound better than I'd previously heard them. In addition, it even drives the Susvara quite nicely based on previous experience at other CanJams. It throws a big stage, and has a lively yet tonally neutral sound. Bass presentation is outstanding. If I had a need for a headphone amp without remote control, or were a professional reviewer, this would be a no-brainer purchase. Excellent value at under $2k!

============

And that concludes my notable takeaways from another wonderfully enjoyable CanJam. It was quite an adventure flying all the way to New York and back just to listen to a bunch of headphones and audio gear, but in spite of not quite achieving all of my goals, I have absolutely no regrets. It's always fun meeting and talking to fellow audio enthusiasts, and I wish there had been more time and energy for socializing outside of the show. BTW, I also spotted a few industry notables: Herb Reichert, Steve Guttenberg, and David Chesky.

Thanks again to everyone involved in organizing and putting on the show, and special thanks to:

• Stephen at Bloom Audio
• Kerry at Eksonic
• Rodrigo at Audio46
• Makiah at HeadAmp

I'll see everyone in Singapore..... probably not!

 

[Terco]

Thanks for the XLR cables on Saturday
It was nice to meeting you.

 

[phuston]

Thanks for taking the time for the great write up! Exactly what I’ve been looking for as I am unable to attend a canjam. Been really interested in hearing the susvara ef combo and the P Ha combo. Did you think the Sus matched the P in bass? Which one was your overall favorite? Thanks!

 

[phuston]

PART II - Electrostatics and Miscellany


Stax SR-X9000

Along with the T+A Solitaire P, this was the headphone I was most looking forward to auditioning at CanJam. There is a still a huge backlog of orders, so I wasn't expecting there to be many to be found on the floor. It turns out there were two, one each in the Woo Audio and HeadAmp rooms. The former was being driven by the new Woo Audio 3ES electrostatic headphone amp ($9k) from a Chord Hugo TT2 (as I recall), while the latter was connected to the venerable HeadAmp BHSE fed by a Naim Uniti Atom DAC/streamer. Unfortunately, there was some sort of technical issue with the Woo Audio setup that developed on Saturday afternoon, which rendered it out of operation for the rest of the show! Fortunately, I was able to audition the SR-X9000 with the Woo amp once before that occurred, but don't really have much to say specifically about the combo due to limited exposure. It wasn't notably better or worse than the BHSE, from what I could tell. I also got a few listening sessions with the new Stax flagship on the BHSE, including in a quieter setting in a hotel room on Saturday evening.

For a variety of reasons, I would have to say that I still don't have a definitive opinion on just how good the SR-X9000 actually is. I don't own a BHSE (or the Woo Audio amp, obviously), and I'm not really familiar with the DACs that were feeding these amps at the show. In addition, the rooms with the SR-X9000s were usually crowded and noisy, and there were a lot of people waiting to hear them, so settling into a lengthy and thorough audition was just not going to happen. I was quite optimistic about the session in the hotel room, but surprisingly the SR-X9000 ended up engaging me the least in that context. The DAC in that system was the Bricasti Design M3, which (again) I'd never heard, although it has a fine reputation.

I went back to the HeadAmp room first thing on Sunday morning, when there were still relatively few people at the show, and the SR-X9000 really sang to me for the first time. For me, classical music and estats are a divine marriage, bringing out the best in each other. I cued up a Vivaldi violin concerto by David and Igor Oistrakh, two of my favorite violinists. Pure sonic magic and musical beauty! There was just such a rightness to the presentation, with spectacular staging/imaging and spot-on timbre. I moved on to Joshua by Miles Davis, as classic jazz is another genre that fares very well with estats. Again, the SR-X9000 presented the music in an impeccable and engaging fashion. As others have noted, this headphone moves you several rows back from the stage, but I didn't seem to mind in spite of my general preference to be closer. The SR-X9000 offers a very coherent and well-sorted presentation. I got the sense that it could be the Susvara of estats in that its best attribute may be that it doesn't have any obvious weaknesses. OTOH, it's not the most flashy of headphones.

What I can say for sure is that the SR-X9000 is clearly the most technically accomplished headphone Stax has ever produced. It's also the best built, and very comfortable to wear. This is a headphone with great composure and no rough edges. I'm greatly looking forward to giving it a more proper and thorough audition, hopefully in the near future. Most definitely worth consideration if you're looking for an estat!


Eksonic Aeras and DIY T2

As many estat devotees already know, Eksonic is a recently-launched company that is now offering a couple of integrated amplifiers for electrostatic headphones. The first is a version of the legendary DIY T2 amp, originally designed by Kevin Gilmore. It's a two-chassis component with a separate power supply. Both the amp and power supply are finished in chrome, and the package retails for $13k. For those with more limited funds (or real estate), there is the much smaller, single chassis Aeras. The Aeras nominally retails for $6700, although I was told there was a 10% discount promotion through the end of March.

Kerry, the owner of the company and designer of the products, is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. He was very generous with his time in relating the story behind the company and the amps, and answering all of my questions. The amps were designed mainly in conjunction with the Stax SR-007 Mk1, which is Kerry's personal favorite estat. He'd recently purchased a Stax SR-009S for show demo purposes. Sadly, they were unable to secure a Stax SR-X9000 due to limited availability. I should mention that Eksonic had secured a room in the far hallway, adjacent only to the seminar venue. Probably for that reason, it was not crowded and relatively quiet on my visits. In fact, I wasn't even aware Eksonic was at the show until I checked my program Saturday afternoon. FWIW, the source was a DAC/streamer from Soekris, with which I was unfamiliar except by reputation.

I started with the DIY T2, and listened to each of the aforementioned Stax headphones. Both sounded fantastic, with the SR-009S providing a relatively brighter presentation, as expected. I've had far more listening experience with the SR-009S than with either SR-007 variant, so that was my reference for judging the merits of the amp. In a word, this amp is transformative! The SR-009S was rendering a huge, airy soundstage with palpable bass and nary a hint of "estat timbre". It was far and away the best I've ever heard that headphone sound. It was easy to understand why the T2 and variants have gained legendary status among estat aficionados. In comparison, the Aeras yielded similar sonic attributes as the big amp, on a slightly reduced scale. Trying to quantify sonic differences is admittedly rather silly, but if pressed, I'd say the Aeras is about 85-90% of the DIY T2. When I came in Sunday with fresher ears and went straight to the Aeras, it impressed me even more than the previous afternoon when I'd listened to the DIY T2 directly beforehand. Note that I was using the SR-007 Mk1 to compare the amps, as I didn't end up hearing the SR-009S on the Aeras.

Given how impressed I was with both of the Eksonic amps, I really wanted to audition the SR-X9000 through them! There was some talk that Kerry and Justin (HeadAmp) would be doing just that on Saturday evening after show hours, but when I checked back on Sunday, it apparently hadn't happened after all. At that point, it occurred to me that the SR-X9000 in the Woo Audio room might be available if there were still issues with their amp, which was in fact the case. Unfortunately, the Woo folks told me they couldn't loan me the SR-X9000, as it was on loan to them from Stax. I even offered them $100 for the privilege, but to no avail! You can't say I didn't try.


iFi Pro iDSD Signature (and iFi Pro iCAN Signature)

As mentioned in my T+A Solitaire P commentary above, I listened to said headphone through the Pro iDSD Sig (standalone), the T+A HA 200 (standalone), and the Pro iDSD Sig (DAC) into the T+A HA 200 (amp). The latter was the clear winner, and a strong contender for best sound I heard at the show. Perhaps the more interesting comparison was the Pro iDSD Sig vs. the T+A HA 200 as standalone units. The HA 200 had the upper hand with bass control due to the tremendous power differential, but overall I preferred the DAC section of the Pro iDSD Sig to that of the HA 200, which was readily apparent when playing acoustic tracks of various genres. The Pro iDSD Sig offered superb clarity and insight into the music, traits which I value quite a lot.

Given how impressed I'd been with the Pro iDSD Sig in the context of the Solitaire P, I couldn't resist auditioning the Susvara through it, in conjunction with the Pro iCAN Sig (as the Pro iDSD Sig lacks the required power by itself), at the iFi table across the aisle from Audio46. The iFi "stack" was a fabulous pairing with the Susvara, and I ended up listening for longer than I'd planned as I cycled through most of the same test tracks I'd been using during the show. I didn't play with the 3D or XBass features, but did enjoy being able to switch between solid state and tube modes depending on the track. The more exposure I get to iFi products, the more I respect them as well-engineered and feature-rich. I'm even considering purchase of the iFi Pro iDSD Signature for use when traveling (I never pack my Susvara).


Audeze CRBN

I revisited Audeze's estat again on three or four different amps, and to my ears it's still clearly in a lower tier than any of the Stax offerings or my Shangri-la Junior. A lot of people seem to like this estat because it's been voiced to elevate the bass, but it still loses handily to the best planars in that department without necessarily besting them in the midrange or treble. At least, that's the way I hear it. This is a headphone without a niche in my personal collection. Clearly, a lot of people disagree and love it. As always, your own ears are the final arbiter!


Audeze LCD-5

Listened to this briefly through the GS-X Mini, and was actually very impressed with the overall tonal balance and soundstaging, two areas I found questionable in my initial audition of this headphone. I'll probably revisit it at some point, but that's a low priority for the time being.


HeadAmp GS-X Mini

This amp made the Audeze LCD-5 and Abyss 1266 Phi TC sound better than I'd previously heard them. In addition, it even drives the Susvara quite nicely based on previous experience at other CanJams. It throws a big stage, and has a lively yet tonally neutral sound. Bass presentation is outstanding. If I had a need for a headphone amp without remote control, or were a professional reviewer, this would be a no-brainer purchase. Excellent value at under $2k!

============

And that concludes my notable takeaways from another wonderfully enjoyable CanJam. It was quite an adventure flying all the way to New York and back just to listen to a bunch of headphones and audio gear, but in spite of not quite achieving all of my goals, I have absolutely no regrets. It's always fun meeting and talking to fellow audio enthusiasts, and I wish there had been more time and energy for socializing outside of the show. BTW, I also spotted a few industry notables: Herb Reichert, Steve Guttenberg, and David Chesky.

Thanks again to everyone involved in organizing and putting on the show, and special thanks to:

• Stephen at Bloom Audio
• Kerry at Eksonic
• Rodrigo at Audio46
• Makiah at HeadAmp

I'll see everyone in Singapore..... probably not!

Thanks for taking the time for the great write up! Exactly what I’ve been looking for as I am unable to attend a canjam. Been really interested in hearing the susvara ef combo and the P Ha combo. Did you think the Sus matched the P in bass? Which one was your overall favorite? Thanks!

 

[BassicScience]

Thanks for taking the time for the great write up! Exactly what I’ve been looking for as I am unable to attend a canjam. Been really interested in hearing the susvara ef combo and the P Ha combo. Did you think the Sus matched the P in bass? Which one was your overall favorite? Thanks!

My pleasure, glad you found it of interest!

The Susvara does not match the bass quantity/presence of the Solitaire P, although the Sus does have well above average bass quality as headphones go, IMHO. Overall, the Susvara is my favorite, as I view the Solitaire P as more of a niche headphone optimally tuned for rock primarily. You can read more of my impressions (and those of others) in the dedicated Solitaire P thread. @number1sixerfan also recently reviewed the Solitaire P in his "Quick Impressions" thread.

 

[phuston]

Ok good to know. I’m looking at these headphones for mixing pop and hip hop music, so I was leaning toward the solitaire for its bass, but it seems like the sus has better detail if it has enough bass. I’ll check out your P impressions.

 

[BassicScience]

Ok good to know. I’m looking at these headphones for mixing pop and hip hop music, so I was leaning toward the solitaire for its bass, but it seems like the sus has better detail if it has enough bass. I’ll check out your P impressions.

Yeah, I really liked the sound of hip hop on the Solitaire P, which I subsequently auditioned at my home for a couple of weeks. You can definitely bump the Susvara's bass with 2-3 dB of low shelf EQ, but it still won't have the presence of the Soli P there. For mixing, a more neutral tuning across the spectrum would probably be my choice, but whatever works for you. The Solitaire P is somewhat rolled off in the treble and not as accurate for midrange timbre compared to Susvara, FWIW.

 

[phuston]

I need to be able to hear the bass well for the genres I work with. But at the same time imaging and placement (especially depth and separation) are important too. Which one would you say has the best “in front of you image”. Like the sounds are not in your head. And thanks again for your help!

 

[BassicScience]

I need to be able to hear the bass well for the genres I work with. But at the same time imaging and placement (especially depth and separation) are important too. Which one would you say has the best “in front of you image”. Like the sounds are not in your head. And thanks again for your help!

Either headphone will give you a good "out of head" soundstage. I think the Solitaire P wins for height and width, but the Susvara is somewhat better for depth and separation. Imaging is more pinpoint with the Susvara. Read the threads I referenced for other people's takes on these questions.

 

[phuston]

I checked out those other takes and it’s great info. I think I’m going P. I was hoping that the ef1000 put more bass quantity in the susvara, but it sounds like from your recent canjam experience that the bass in the susvara generally is what it is with other amps. Good quality but lower quantity compared to others.

 

[BassicScience]

I checked out those other takes and it’s great info. I think I’m going P. I was hoping that the ef1000 put more bass quantity in the susvara, but it sounds like from your recent canjam experience that the bass in the susvara generally is what it is with other amps. Good quality but lower quantity compared to others.

Sounds like a good choice. Hope it works out well for you!