So this was my first Canjam event, and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks to the organisers and the manufacturers who took part.
What follows are my very limited impressions of the gear I listened to. Please note these were in show conditions, only 5-10mins per listen and my ears!:
1More
E1001 IEMs (via my Plenue 1): I thought these offered excellent value, particularly at the show price - £79 for a triple driver hybrid (£99 non-show price) - sounded very nice out of my Plenue 1, quite balanced and rounded. Very good and definately worth a listen. My only small issue is that I would prefer an over-ear version (personal preference).
Atomic Floyd
Super Darts Titanium (via my Plenue 1): Solid little things, and lightweight as well (unlike the stainless steel version which is quite heavy in comparison and had a tendency to droop). I quite liked these, but they weren't better "enough" than the 1Mores.
Flare
Flares (pre production) IEMs (via my Plenue 1): Have to say I was not too impressed with these, they sounded quite congested. I think I was having fit/seal issues so this may have affected the sound. Nice and compact though.
FLC
FLC8/8S (via my Plenue 1): despite the unruly memory wire, these fit very well and sounded similar to the 1More E1001s, which perhaps says more about the value offered by the E1001s. Didn't try any of the different filters which the 1Mores don't have.
Focal
Elear (via Naim Dac V1): Wow, these made an impression right away. Nice amounts of bass, decent soundstage with great mids and controlled treble. Build quality was excellent, just slightly less than the Utopia.
Elear (via Questyle CMA600i, at the Questyle booth) - If anything, I preferred this combo to the Naim DAC V1 on the Focal table. This further cemented for me that the Elear is a great headphone, and one that I will be ordering in the near future.
Utopia (can't remember what was driving them): yes these are are step up from the Elear, greater clarity and control, but lesser bass. However, to me they are not worth the extra money over the Elear. Build quality was excellent.
Hifiman
HE-1000 (via Hifiman EF6): I admit I struggled to see what all the fuss was about with the HEK, I found it a bit too big and the sound was not noticeably better than the Elear, or the build quality for that matter. There also appeared to be an issue with the volume control on the EF6, very stiff in places and at a certain point the channel imbalance was very noticeable. A shame.
Meze Audio
99 Classics (via my Plenue 1): These were the version with the bigger pads, although for me they were still a bit small. I really like the look of them, but was not particularly taken by the sound though. Nothing wrong with it, but not enough to justify me buying a pair beyond what I already have.
Mr.Speakers
Ether Flow C (via Liquid Tungsten prototype): A really nice combination, sound very good for a closed can. First time I have listened to these and didn't see if there were any of the non-Flow Ether C's to compare.
Noble
Kaiser 10U (via my Plenue 1): Really liked this a lot. Also a fan of the new metal housings, a step up from the previous acrylic(?) ones. The K10's gave a very balanced sound, no one area too prominent or recessed. Might possibly drop on these during the next Black Friday sale.
Katana (via my Plenue 1): Not too dissimilar to the K10U, but has a cleaner sound with less bass in comparison to the K10. I preferred the K10.
Sennheiser
HD800 (via HDVD800): great soundstage, lots of detail. No noticeable treble issues that I could hear, although unsure if this is being masked by the HDAV800?
HD800S (also via HDVD800): I preferred this to the original HD800, same great soundstage but a bit more warmth and bass. Lovely.
The one small problem with these two cans is that they were both being driven by the HDVA800, so if both cans were in use you had to agree with you neighbour how loud you both wanted it.
Stax
SR009 (via Headamp Blue Hawaii): Oh my god, best thing I heard at Canjam (I didn't listen to the Orpheus or MSB setup). Effortless, great sound, everything where it should be. At one point there were four of us at the Headmap table, two on the Blue Hawaii with SR009s, then two on the GSX-MK2 with an LCD4 and the HEK, with some Kendrick Lamarr playing, all bobbing along. Just a great setup. But too much for me, unfortunately. My lottery win setup.
Ultrasone
Tribute 777 (can't remember what was driving them) - Pricey, very pricey for the sound. Which isn't to say they sound bad, far from it, but to me, the Elears at £800 offered better sound at less than half the price.
I was also able, thanks to
@moedawg140, to try out the Campfire Audio Andromeda. They sounded really good - "amazeballs" to quote Moe, but unfortunately for me, the shape of the metal housing was too sharp on my ears. I couldn't keep them in for more than 2 minutes. Damn. Thanks again to Moe for arranging this opportunity for visitors to listen to such a wide range of IEMs and headphones.
And to finish with some pics (potato phone i'm afraid):