UPDATED: 12/13/2023
Howdy all... Just home from Canjam Dallas. This was my first Canjam since SoCal 2017. It was time to go once again.
@warrenpchi it was great to meet you and to share the same space for a moment or two.
@jude thank you for the spirited conversation. Nice to meet folks with Michigan roots and that connection always makes me feel comfortable. I miss my home, but Utah it is for now. Thank you to the Head-Fi team for a great time. I will write more tomorrow, but wanted to put some of my highlights up. Eyal, it was also great to see you and to visit with you for a few moments. I am not a member of your watercooler gang, I am not much for joining, but I like that this type of stuff is going on and I enjoyed your seminar.
One of my favorite parts of the show was learning that my system sounds as good or better than most of what I heard. However, I did hear a few things that left a lasting impression.
DCS: My highlight was how professional, organized, knowledgeable and enthusiastic they were about their products. Without question, the best dynamic headphone system I heard at the show was the Rossini Apex with Lina Clock and Lina Amp. That DAC is just ridiculous. The low level detail is off the charts, and the tone is flat out special. I used my own D8K Pro for this listening session and left with my jaw on the floor. Same went for the Bartok Apex with Lina Clock and Amp. I used my D8K Pro for that session as well and had similar feelings, albeit not quite to the same level as the Rossini. That DAC is truly something else. The Lina stack DID NOT blow me away with the Lina running as DAC. It sounded good to great, but so does a lot of other things for significantly less money. If I had the money for something like that I would go straight to the Rossini Apex. That is without question the best DAC I have ever heard.
Schiit: I absolutely loved the Mjolnir 3 with Yggy and the Empy 2 and then the Grado 3000X. The Mjolnir 3 is a proper amp and I will buy one. I loved Jason's comment when I complimented him on its sonics, "now I have to figure out how to make more items that sound like the Mjolnir 3". Jason, I agree. It is definitely a winning formula. I absolutely loved it. It had the perfect amount of wetness, detail and saturation with impeccable pacing. It gets hot, but not so hot that it is dangerous. It just flat out sounds fantastic.
Warwick Aperio: This was the first thing I listened to, and remained the best thing I heard all weekend. It is worth every penny and the sound is full, alive, balanced, subtle and crystal clear. It does none of this without missing musicality. Bravo Team Warwick for one of the best 15 minutes of listening my ears have experienced.
Ferrum Stack with Meze Empy 2 : For those who have heard the Hypsos/Oor you know already that it is a serious piece of kit. The addition of the Wandla was just awesome. There is absolutely no etch, no ESS glare and as a collective whole you will be hard pressed for $6000 to find a better stack. It sounds that great! Headphones.com and
@GoldenOne nailed the review. It sounds exactly as he explains the DAC. Which is not easy to accomplish with source gear. The Empy 2 is my favorite of the 3 high end Meze's and you will see it through out these impressions. I felt like it was at every booth. It has great tonal balance, wonderful weight through the midband and the treble is more to my liking than the Elite or regular Empyrean. It really shines on the Ferrum stack.
ZMF: I would be remiss to not mention my friends in the ZMF room showing off their wares. Having reviewed everything on the table but the bokeh and the new JPS collab amp, I was just happy to see old friends and have them show me around. I did get to hear the MayKTE stock with Bliss hooked to a Caldera which was fantastic. And I got to finally hear the Envy. Which I also loved, but if I am being honest I like my Aficionado more. Customer service was second to none as always, and there is always someone there to help, answer questions or just sit down and visit. Thank you for welcoming me and for allowing me to hear your products. My favorite thing in the ZMF room was Keenan's Aegis hooked to a Cambridge DAC/Streamer with my favorite ZMF the Atrium Open. That was a special listen, and I can see what all the fuss is about. That amp throws a sound stage that is magical while never being out of balance with the low end or treble. This was a definite highlight of the show.
Mass Kobo 433 w/ Chord Qutest: For a supposedly underpowered solid state amp, the combo of 433 and Qutest was special. That amp is coming at you from all angles, with a sturdy foundation and a articulate midrange allowing for soloing instruments to take flight and to enter your space whichever way they want and whichever way they are being played. For $2500 that might be one of the best deals on the planet. I was disappointed to not try the 394II or the 465, but I left the Mimic Audio Booth wowed by the 433. And the Chord Qutest paired wonderfully. It was fast, aggressive and musical. Just as I remember that DAC from the last time I heard it. I listened to the Empy 2 and the D8K Pro LE. What a treat the LE was on the 433. Piano sounded like a waterfall of sound and I put on my favorite vibraphone player in Roy Ayers and was treated to 15 minutes of heaven. The 433 and LE was definitely a highlight for me at the show.
I did hear the CFA3 with the Tungsten double sided magnets which sounded great. But, I must admit that I would take my own CFA3 with my Code X any day of the week. The CFA3 sounds similar to mine, but not quite the same. Which I attribute to mine having an external power supply. Nonetheless, I think when they are able to get them into production you will have a lot of happy customers. The Tungsten was one of my top of the list items to audition, and while I left with good feelings, it isn't a headphone I would buy. But, that isn't to takeaway from its sonics.
I listened to the Utopia 22' which was on my list of auditions and I loved it. I think I like the original a bit more as it has more bite and I find the detail on the older version to be absolutely startling. The 22' seems tamer, but still amazing. I heard it out of the Lina stack. I wish I could've heard it out of something else as I didn't love the Lina Stack with the Utopia 22'. It is a wonderful sounding stack, but I can't get over the price and I honestly don't think it sounded better than my system which makes it a really hard sell for me. But see my impressions of the DCS room and it wasn't all a miss. The Rossini Apex is truly a marvel. I would love to be able to afford that piece of kit. Not that I have room, but I think I could figure it out if I had the type of money needed to own one. Those who can afford it, you owe it to yourself to audition.
Big thank you to the Dunu table who were incredibly accommodating, and I think I will buy an SA6 MK2. I loved the way it sounded, the way it fit and I felt it would be a great addition in that price range to my portable team, which is quite modest, but still sounds great too me.
The team at Bloom were great, as were the team at Mimic. In fact everyone was great to meet and talk audio with. The only thing I was really hoping to like but didn't was the MicroZOTL Electro Stat with the Crbn. I was underwhelmed to say the least. It sounded thin, bass light and not to my preferences. I had just heard the Aperio, so maybe not a fair comparison, but I just didn't like it. I also listened to the new MZ2, the Velo (my memory is bad I could be using the wrong name) and I was underwhelmed. It just feels under powered to me and is to much of a specialist product for the price, in my opinion. I know that ZOTL tech is some of the best tube tech that has happened in years and with the right combo it sounded lovely, but I don't like having amps where I can only use 1, maybe 2 headphones and the rest just sound ok. That is how it felt to me. But, I cannot deny that the technology is next level and I say bravo for that.
I also spent some time with the Sennheiser HD800S and HD820 on their HDVA820. I was surprised at how much I liked the HDVA820, and really surprised at how much I liked the HD820. I was expecting to hate it, but I didn't. I wouldn't buy it, but it is a very relaxing and smooth sound. I could see myself wanting to pull it out on Sunday mornings while listening to Charlie Hunter's Natty Dread and just enjoy a lovely Sunday morning. Unfortunately, I don't have the budget to buy a $2000 headphone for something so specialized. As always, I loved the HD800S and continue to ask myself why I don't own one. It is a true technological marvel in the headphone world and deserves all of the accolades it receives.
I didn't spend any time other than the Dunu table with IEMs. My hands are shaky and I struggled to get the tips on and off and I didn't want to hold up anyone from hearing something they HAD to hear. So, I stayed away from IEMs for the most part. I really did love the SA6 MK2 and feel for the price it is an absolute bargain. The sound is immediate and incredibly musical. Plus, they fit my finicky ears perfectly.
I was bummed to not see some other vendors. JH audio, Headamp, Hifiman, Focal, Ray Samuels, Mass Kobo (other than 433), Yamaha, among others. If any of these were there and I just missed them, that is on me. I really enjoyed Canjam. Everyone is right. The people are what make it so great. It is really fun to talk gear, and then stop talking gear and listen to music. The stuff I liked the most made me feel that I wasn't listening to gear and just music. Afterall, this hobby is all about the music.
I also missed the Woo/Stax room which I was bummed about, but I had a plane to catch. I hope next time I am able to hear the BHSE, Carbon(if one is available), X9000, and the Woo WA23 and WA33. I am particularly interested in hearing the WA23 to compare against my Aficionado. I have a serious love affair with the 2A3 DHT tube.
2 more add ons I forgot to discuss. First, the Spirit Torino Valkyria. That headphone was amazing. I didn't like the Pulsar. Way too warm for me. But the Valkyria had that "it" quality and the resolution is not to be missed. It has this quality where you can keep turning up the volume and it just fills in the soundstage until the sound is completely full and all the resolution is extracted, then it starts to sound louder. That is the definition of great in my book. However, the price is so far outside my budget I will settle for the 30 minutes I got with it before I felt a line forming behind me. Second, the Chord Anni with Huei playing Neil Young on a Rega 8 turntable. I listened to this on the Empy 2 and it was spectacular. There is nothing like the sound of vinyl out of an amazing headphone. It was like warm buttered toast! That is it, no more updates from me...
Cheers,
Geoff