[Pansbjorne]

This will probably be my only amp impressions:

After listening to the He-1 I was very impressed with the Blue Hawaii Grand Cayman (with the Hifiman Shangri-La). The Shangri-La's themselves are a bit bright for my taste, but the Grand Cayman was putting in work for sure.

 

[Zhanming057]

Did you get any time with the LE? If so, how much different is it compared to the regular?

I thought it was a little bit tighter and better controlled, although it could just be the cable and pads. The LE pads are much nicer feeling than the stock 8000 pro pads, which I always thought was a pain point of the system.

 

[chrisnyc75]

This will probably be my only amp impressions:

After listening to the He-1 I was very impressed with the Blue Hawaii Grand Cayman (with the Hifiman Shangri-La). The Shangri-La's themselves are a bit bright for my taste, but the Grand Cayman was putting in work for sure.

The Grand Cayman was amazing indeed. But for my money Eksonic's T2 is still sets the bar.

 

[XGeneX88]

Fostex:
Finally heard the TH909. From what I've seen most people prefer the TH900 to the TH909, but I preferred the TH909. Sounded more open and slightly more dynamic to me.

I also own both the 900s and 909s and agree the 909 is the better headphone. The treble is great, sparkles but doesn’t fatigue unlike the 900s. The 909 also has a fantastic mid range unlike the 900s very sucked out V presentation. I love them both for different reasons but the 909 is easily the better headphone once you sit down and do a thorough A/B comparison between the two.

 

[geoffalter11]

nah, jazz at the pawnshop lol

haha... and maybe some Holly Cole!

 

[Niyologist]

Anyone tried the letshuoer cadenza 12?

Yeah. I did. It was slightly bright-tilted with transient bass and somewhat prominent mids. The bass did warm things up, but it was taking a bit of a backseat.

 

[Pansbjorne]

The Grand Cayman was amazing indeed. But for my money Eksonic's T2 is still sets the bar.

Were they at CanJam? Sad I missed it if so.

 

[Niyologist]

Who are these animated characters?

Looks like Expert Raw messed that picture up. My S22 did the same thing yesterday.

 

[chrisnyc75]

Yeah, Kerry had a table right in the front just outside the ZMF room. I'm guessing the price for a quiet room this year was a lot more than it was last year given the greatly increased attendance. I listened to several e-stats on both his T2 and Aeras again this year, and was pleasantly surprised to learn that he remembered me from last year.

 

[Pansbjorne]

So, I didn't listen to it very long. Plus, I was driving it portable. All I'm gonna say is feels like there's some more work to be done, but I definitely see the potential.

Update on the Diana Closed:

Gave it a proper listen today. Using it off the Gryphon was a mistake. The Abyss detail is very much still there though it's pretty forward and bright. Bass was also pretty week compared to the open TC.
Good news is they have plans to tone the treble down and bring up the low end, so I have high hopes for the future of the Diana Closed. They also mentioned that pads have been dramatically affecting its tuning, like moreso than the bass ported pads (which are great btw). With how easy it is to swap Diana Pads, I'm really excited if they can get a couple of good flavors once the base model is settled.

 

[BenJoe]

Yes, it was connected to the sigfrid.

New Yamahas sounded good but the Final audio D8000 pro was better in every way for me. Demo'd them back to back two days in a row. Yamahas sound thin by comparison but have the edge in sparkle.

Got a chance to demo the HE-1, it was a great experience. While I don't think they're worth the price, they do sound amazing.

I agree with what you said about the Yamaha based on the limitation of the environment during my demo with them. I tried the D8000 Pro Limited Ed. and find them more enjoyment to my preference. I assumed you tried the Yamaha with the leather pads? I found the leather pads much more upper mids forward.

Also, jealous you got to try the HE-1!

 

[Terco]

The Yamaha was connected to the new RME dac/amp the Final D8000 pro LE to the Felix Audio Envy, just saying.

 

[EarDrumExplode]

Had a good time at canjam, just thought it was cool listening to rob watts talk about dacs and just thinking that little black box (mojo 1 & 2) that I carry in my pocket was at one point an idea on a piece of paper on his desk somewhere.

 

[dougms3]

I agree with what you said about the Yamaha based on the limitation of the environment during my demo with them. I tried the D8000 Pro Limited Ed. and find them more enjoyment to my preference. I assumed you tried the Yamaha with the leather pads? I found the leather pads much more upper mids forward.

Also, jealous you got to try the HE-1!

Unfortunately, I was not aware there were pad options.

I didn't find them lacking at anything except perhaps, they could have more body and richness to the sound. I just found the D8000s to be better suited to my tastes. I think they're the best headphones I've heard.

HE-1 is definitely a great experience. I'm glad I had the opportunity to hear them, thanks @msing539 for signing me up. Cocaine bear was surprisingly friendly and welcoming.

 

[bozebuttons]

redwine audio still exsists Vinnie is more into High end 2 channel Audio now.renamed Vinnie Rossi Brand