[ku1185]

Hi @Cali911

There is a huge difference. It is noticeable.

I was able to do a listening in a specialized store in Lyon (France). So quiet and dedicated place. I would say The absence of clock is really impressive.

However, it is 2 1/2 months that I made the listening. I could not detail the differences with detail but I would say:
- More spacial
- more detailed
- more material


There was such a difference that I am thinking of adding an external clock to my current equipment (Mola Mola TAMBAQUI).

I also intend to play around with external clocks next time I upgrade my gear.

 

[Mediahound]

And the environment is not a fair place to judge the headphones. That’s why I said there were limitations to my observation, and down to my personal preference.

Yeah, trying to judge headphones by listening to them in literally probably the worst environment imaginable to do so (aside from maybe outside on the street with jackhammers running nearby) is sorta wacky. Not to sound overly harsh or trolling, but basically anyone saying any headphone at the show sounded good or bad, doesn't know what they are talking about.

This is why these shows are not really a good place to actually listen to equipment, sorry to say. They're pretty much only good for looking at the stuff and talking with the designers and fellow head-fiers.

I literally cannot tell a difference between a $4,500 Audeze and a $45 Koss at a show.

 

[kumar402]

Yeah, trying to judge headphones by listening to them in literally probably the worst environment imaginable to do so aside from outside on the street with jackhammers running nearby, is sorta wacky. Not to sound overly harsh or trolling, but basically anyone saying any headphone at the show sounded good or bad, doesn't know what they are talking about.

Well to be honest, yes Saturday was crowded but Sunday morning was not that bad and noise was comparatively lower. Sunday morning with some music at slightly higher volume would have given anyone enough idea of how a headphone sounds like and would have displayed its trait good enough to judge.
Yes, not ideal but then nothing is ideal except home demo and how many are privileged for that??

 

[Cali911]

Hi @Cali911

There is a huge difference. It is noticeable.

I was able to do a listening in a specialized store in Lyon (France). So quiet and dedicated place. I would say The absence of clock is really impressive.

However, it is 2 1/2 months that I made the listening. I could not detail the differences with detail but I would say:
- More spacial
- more detailed
- more material


There was such a difference that I am thinking of adding an external clock to my current equipment (Mola Mola TAMBAQU

Posts like this will likely cost me 7k.

 

[Benesyed]

Yeah, trying to judge headphones by listening to them in literally probably the worst environment imaginable to do so (aside from maybe outside on the street with jackhammers running nearby) is sorta wacky. Not to sound overly harsh or trolling, but basically anyone saying any headphone at the show sounded good or bad, doesn't know what they are talking about.

my strategy was early and late for open headphones, closed and IEMs for middle of the day, and hit the side rooms when there is a lull.

when I went to the dcs room there were only 3 other people and it was pretty quiet

 

[chrisnyc75]

my strategy was early and late for open headphones, closed and IEMs for middle of the day, and hit the side rooms when there is a lull.

when I went to the dcs room there were only 3 other people and it was pretty quiet

Lucky. I went to the dcs room a half dozen times on Saturday and it was standing room only every time.

But frankly, if you expected anything else in NYC you must be new.

 

[Benesyed]

quiet quiet

(that's my friend in the red jacket)

 

[Zhanming057]

You did not understand what I said, I am talking about cooling fins on the headphones itself not the amp. and they are not just cosmetic. no no no. you still haven't understood the magnitude of those headphones.
your experience sounds like someone who sees an enigma machine (>half a mill $) at a flee market and walks past it thinking its just another old type writer.

I've listened to the HE1 for hours in different, controlled environments. One event was a private booking specifically to listen to the HE1 (among 2-3 other setups) for as long as I wanted to. So I think I understand the cans perfectly well. Sennheiser isn't magic. They are constrained by the same physics and budget limitations that affect all E-stats. The driver itself is slower than ribbons, and the sub-bass doesn't compare well to planars that are driven to their absolute limit. They are also less spacious than some competitors including the Shangri-La.

Have you tried the Abyss TC with a serious speaker-grade 300b implementation? Have you tried the 009S on an MSB Select stack? The Mysphere with a Mass Kobo 406? If not, then I don't think you have the proper context to evaluate the HE1 to systems that match or exceed its price. I wouldn't go into the internal DAC - using a 9018 sabre is fairly inexcusable at $10k, let alone $50k. The marble is nice though.

 

[ku1185]

my strategy was early and late for open headphones, closed and IEMs for middle of the day, and hit the side rooms when there is a lull.

when I went to the dcs room there were only 3 other people and it was pretty quiet

Agreed. The DCS room was fairly quiet most of the time and I did a lot of listening in there on both days. Doubt I'll be able to afford anything in there anytime soon, but I liked having had the chance to play with the clock. Will probably play around with clocks in the not so distant future.

 

[ralphp@optonline]

WOW! What a fantastic CanJam, quite possibly one of the best NYC shows ever. It was very well attended with well over 1000 attendees. Having such a high turnout means that the vendors are happy and when the vendors are it means that they will be back for next year's CanJam NYC, along with other vendors who don't want to miss out on a great chance to connect with their customers.
and showcase their products.

I was one of several volunteers helping out behind the scenes. I worked at the registration desk during the Saturday morning rush and it was great to see so many people waiting so patiently for us to check everyone in as quickly as possible. A big thank you to all the attendees for your patience and understanding.

As has been stated several times throughout this thread, a crowded show is not really the best to make critical evaluations of any type headphone or IEM but rather a great place to connect with like minded fellow enthusiasts and the very passionate people who work within the industry. Not that I didn't spend time checking some of the amazing equipment on display, I just don't put too much weight to my listening experience under these less than ideal conditions.

Since I didn't do that much critical listening, I spent my time attending a few of the excellent seminars and talking with some of the vendors whose products are of interest to me. Here's a quick run down.

One of the great things about any CanJam is that everyone understands that we are all part of the headphone community and therefore all very friendly. One such person is the well known Axel Grell. I asked Mr. Grell if he had new products of designs for us to listen at this this year's CanJam. He replied that he has been working with Drop on a new over ear headphone and that the prototype was available to listen at the Drop table. I headed over to the Drop table and asked if I could give the prototype a listen. what I was handed something that was very much "a work in progress' but nonetheless sounded very good. Very light weight with a really lively, punchy and engaging sound. I was told that they are hoping to have this new headphone available sometime later this year and that it will sell for a price too low to mention. Based on what I heard this new headphone may well be a game changer.

I will continue this tomorrow with a few more impressions.

 

[Frankie D]

Granted I only spent like 10 minutes with Traili, and my reference point is EE Legend EVO, but I wouldn't call anything about Traili "impressive" except its presentation of vocals. It somehow managed to separate the vocal from everything else and put it front and center in a most pleasing way. Everything else about it was "meh" IMHO. But if vocals are your thing, I can totally see why Traili would be your holy grail.

I actually find the Traillii bass of higher quality than the Evo. For me, I like the Evo allot, but would like the bass a bit tighter. I had asked Empire about that. Good products either way.

 

[Niyologist]

The Final Audio D8000 Pro is a surreal experience and one day it'll be added to my collection. The sound is quite ethereal with a holographic soundstage, and moderate bass quantity with proper PRaT. The mids are heavenly with breathy vocals (Not too breathy). The treble seems to have the same presence as the mids, but it's most noticeable between 8KHz and 11KHz, but thankfully, it's controlled and refined. Percussion and vocals shine with proper amping (even though they are easy to drive).

 

[ku1185]

The Final Audio D8000 Pro is a surreal experience and one day it'll be added to my collection. The sound is quite ethereal with a holographic soundstage, and moderate bass quantity with proper PRaT. The mids are heavenly with breathy vocals (Not too breathy). The treble seems to have the same presence as the mids, but it's most noticeable between 8KHz and 11KHz, but thankfully, it's controlled and refined. Percussion and vocals shine with proper amping (even though they are easy to drive).

Also really liked the D8000, though I think I heard the LE (?) at the Final Audio booth.
And doesn't hurt that I won the ZE8000 raffle at Audio46 booth next door =)

(And hiya Niyologist. Was nice meeting you at the show!)

 

[gammi]

DCS room was pretty quiet and since they had four (4!) full stacks, you never really had to wait too long and also got a solid 5-10 minutes to demo before starting to feel like a jerk for holding it up for the next person. I probably spent more time there than any other booth/room. Tried Caldera, Susvara, 1266, Nutopia and Expanse in there across three separate visits.

 

[Benesyed]

Agreed. The DCS room was fairly quiet most of the time and I did a lot of listening in there on both days. Doubt I'll be able to afford anything in there anytime soon, but I liked having had the chance to play with the clock. Will probably play around with clocks in the not so distant future.

Some people buy a sports car when they become an attending surgeon, I'm buying the Lina (if my wife lets me hahaha)