CanJam SoCal 2015 Impressions Thread
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Mar 29, 2015 at 11:49 PM Post #241 of 955
Did LH Labs have any sort of Geek Wave prototype with them? Was anybody able to speak with Gavin and/or Casey? Curious backer here.
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:05 AM Post #243 of 955
Yeah same here.  I still don't know what to buy for less than $400 pair of headphones.


There really was only one headphone under $400 that caught my attention immediately and that was the Oppo PM-3. I already own the K7XX and those are just very hard to beat at $200.

Am I the only one that though the EL-8 sounded really bad? The open version was ok but at $700 there is no way. At the Hifiman table there were a pair of headphones labeled HE-500i @ $499 but I am not sure if that was a typo and it was supposed to say HE-400i. Anywho those sounded a lot better than the EL-8.

Also don't get the Ether hype. While they did sound good and were quite neutral I just can't see myself paying $1500 for them.

My favorite semi high-end setup of the show was the Enigma amp with the HD800. The sound those two made was so damn good.

The Nighthawk with Woo amps I found to be quite mediocre.
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:09 AM Post #244 of 955
Me and my lovely significant other had a womderful time today. Her top picks were the Smyth Realiser, Audioquest Nighthawk and the FAD Pandora Hope VI, in that order. Similarly, my top picks were the Realiser, Nighthawk and edstrelow's modified Stax Sigmas. Honorary mention goes to the Oppo HA2. We had a great time and will definitely look forward to the next one!
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:10 AM Post #245 of 955
  Yeah same here.  I still don't know what to buy for less than $400 pair of headphones.

I'd take a look at the AKG K7xx for a start at least. If you like a warmer sound you can't go wrong with a pair of Senn HD518s. I don't yet know what the HD598s sound like. I tried the HD600s and found them too lacking in bass and I am not a basshead.
Of course I'm strictly talking the around the ear models. There is a wider choice if you can do on ear as well. (I can't do on ear).
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:11 AM Post #246 of 955
  Yeah same here.  I still don't know what to buy for less than $400 pair of headphones.

I have the NAD Viso HP50. They're very good closed dynamics and can be had for 249.00 USD.
 
The Sennheiser 600/650 are very good open dynamics for less than 400.00 USD.
 
Looking forward to trying the OPPO PM-3 closed Planar's for 399.00. 
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:13 AM Post #247 of 955
I think you have consider the practicality of wanting the show to include lower-priced gear. Who would bring this low-cost gear to the show? Sennheiser was there, Sony was there, Philips was there, Focal was there, RHA was there. It costs a lot of money for a vendor to send 2 employees to a 2-day show with samples. You aren't going to get low-cost Asian brands. I was really surprised to see someone from Jaben there - although he really didn't have much to show.
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:13 AM Post #248 of 955
 
I didn't hear them in close enough proximity to really compare, but it should be said that even with the show discount, the A12 is quite a bit less expensive than Layla. I really thought the 1964 Ears were delightfully musical, across the board. There was just something very involving about their sound sig.
 
The JH IEMs were just crazy impressive and honestly, I didn't listen as critically because there's a limit to how much money even I want to throw at a pair of IEMs at this point.  I'm going to try to get a better comparative impression of the two today, if I have time.

Spent some quality time with both the 1964's and the Layla's and as many know I own the K10's. 
 
Will have to say that I love the K10's best, then the 1964 A12's and then the Layla's.
 
If I was looking for neutral/reference voicing, then I'd go A10's, then Layla's. 
 
Was really impressed with what they've done at 1964. 
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:14 AM Post #249 of 955
My highlights from the show: 
 
- Meeting all the great people. Members, vendors, etc. Everybody was a blast to hang out and talk with. 
 
- Frank Cooter's SR-009 setup: Best sounding thing here. Absolutely no competition. Frank's a great guy to talk to. Pleasant, humble. I'll definitely shoot him up if I'm struggling with something DIY. 
 
- HE1000: Seems like there's still much debate on the headphone. Some people hated them, some loved them. I thought they were really good. Only problem is justifying the price, but there is no doubt in my mind that it sounds good. 
 
- Enigmacoustics Dharma: I thought these sounded really good as well. Slightly warm from their Athena amp, but they fixed a lot of the phase coherency issues from the K340. Not perfect yet, but they are aware of the problems, and I'm definitely looking forward to the production model. 
 
- Cavalli amps: I'm buying both the Carbon and portable once they're out....
 
- MrSpeakers: I finally got to hear a good Prime sample. Won't comment too much though. Ether is a great achievement by Dan. Amazingly comfortable, and his best sounding headphone yet. 
 
- Riva Turbo X: For a bluetooth speaker, this thing packs a punch! I think these are a steal for the price. 
 
- UE: Attended the headquarters tour on Friday. Fantastic staff. 
 
I'll update as I finish gathering my thoughts. I don't like writing long writeups though. 
 
Aurrender girl was definitely cute. LOL 
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:16 AM Post #250 of 955
There really was only one headphone under $400 that caught my attention immediately and that was the Oppo PM-3. I already own the K7XX and those are just very hard to beat at $200.

Am I the only one that though the EL-8 sounded really bad? The open version was ok but at $700 there is no way. At the Hifiman table there were a pair of headphones labeled HE-500i @ $499 but I am not sure if that was a typo and it was supposed to say HE-400i. Anywho those sounded a lot better than the EL-8.

Also don't get the Ether hype. While they did sound good and were quite neutral I just can't see myself paying $1500 for them.

My favorite semi high-end setup of the show was the Enigma amp with the HD800. The sound those two made was so damn good.

The Nighthawk with Woo amps I found to be quite mediocre.

 
Agreed on the EL-8, and you said it exactly. The open version was okay, but I liked the Oppo PM-3 better -- maybe a little less pretty, but also much less harsh on some tracks. Also, I didn't check to see what the EL-8's power requirements were, but the PM-3 actually sounded solid (if slightly underpowered) out of my iPhone 6+.
 
Slightly envious you tried the HD800 with the Athena amp. I tried the Dharma-1000 phones with the Athena and stopped there. Probably should have explored everything they had on the table, but I was running short on time.
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:21 AM Post #252 of 955
  Spent some quality time with both the 1964's and the Layla's and as many know I own the K10's. 
 
Will have to say that I love the K10's best, then the 1964 A12's and then the Layla's.
 
If I was looking for neutral/reference voicing, then I'd go A10's, then Layla's. 
 
Was really impressed with what they've done at 1964. 


I went back and did some more critical listening today and updated. For a reference, I'd probably have to give it to the Laylas. I found 1964 more musical (across the board) and a better value.  K10s were excellent, but I really enjoyed the sound stage on the 1964A series.
 
Really, though, I left CanJam debating whether I should sell my house and keep 10k to invest in top end cIEMs -- the Layla/1964/K10 comparison was that damn pretty, even out of my iPhone.
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:25 AM Post #253 of 955
OK all, I returned from day 2 and here are the highlights of my impressions (updated from my 1st day impressions on page 4.). I seemed to be one of the few that arrived bright & early and stayed the entire duration (minus an hour on the 2nd day) and had done some very critical listening comparisons with notes, so I hope you can really take this advice to heart.
 
HEADPHONE CHAMPIONS:
 
* Hifiman HE-1000 (with the Hifiman EF 1000 monster size amp - tried also their smaller amp but the bigger sounded massively 'badder' :)
   Look: beautiful head gem! Sound: Fluidic, realistic, warm / full-bodied, neutral, great soundstage, good mids, bass was there in volume but somehow seemed somewhat overtly 3D-ish as if there is some marginal phasing issue... or it could have just been the track I was listening to. Sound quality: 9/10
 
* Hifiman HE-6 (connected to huge Vinnie & Rossi amp. This headphone was not on display but lent from another kind head-fi-er):
  Look: still futuristic. Sound: Lush, warm and nothing missing! And I've never heard bass like that before! This is coming from a non-basshead (more of an analytical listener), and it was like there were 2-3 layers of bass all pumping out simultaneously in perfect unison. It was an experience like I was deeply immersed into the setting of the music. Sound quality: 10/10 - my first ever rating! I had also met with the president of Hifiman and spoke with the owner of this HE-6, whom of which unfortunately said this is being fazed out.
 
* Sennheiser HD 600 (with Geek Out 450 DAC + Cavalli Liquid Silicon mini-amp; although I am certain the Schiit Modi2 + Schiit Vali amp or any of the amps mentioned below would be just as good):
   Look: cool enough. Sound: very organic / lifelike and punchy. Even better than my previous day's 'king the AKG K7XX which also shared the characteristics of being good soundstage, good bass, perfect texture / tonal balance & instrument separation. What raised the bar for the HD 600 to me was the midrange being even more natural/organic sounding and the treble being ever so slightly more detailed. Sound quality: 8/10
 
AMP CHAMPIONS:
 
* Cavalli Liquid glass + Chord Hugo as the DAC:
   Wonderful almost beyond words. Gave all the headphones I tried with it a sound that was dynamic, fluidic & neutral with decent bass. Amazing holographic imaging or / 3D environment instrument placement!!! It realized a sound unlike anything before on my Soundmagic HP 100 and Beyer. DT 880... that is, until I met the next amp:
 
** CONTINENTAL DUAL MONO semi-portable amp / DAC:
   I had to put this in all caps because nothing can contain my excitement for this amp! Before putting it into technical jargon, let me just explain it to you this way: imagine 3 laser beams being received on planet earth from 3 separate interstellar ubur-mega futuristic aliens with prime audio-soup... and this is what the hell you get with this AMP + DAC unit!!! If you're not sold already here is my review: Fluidic, lush, detailed soundstage with UBER AMAZING 3D holographic instrument placement and separation, and overall majestic sound signature / experience. At least a 10/10. It made my above two mentioned headphones come to life with AMAZING realism better than ever before and even more than the above combination. It honestly even put a natural smile on the faces of 2 of the employees behind this booth trying cans on this amp. Even better yet is the features of this amp, including options for balanced output, battery powered, DSD, etc.! Not to mention it's small and pretty.
 
* Modi 2 + Vali amp (Schiit audio):
   Combination with fantastic synergy that delivers a sound that is punchy, detailed and organic on many low-to-mid-range impendence headphones - namely the AKG K7XX, Beyer. DT 880 but many many more would work good here too)
 
Groove Apogee mini USB DAC + amp:
   Improves the dynamics and instrument separation greatly on ***ALL*** headphones as long as they can acccept a standard 3.5mm jack! This is apparently the first ever 'scalable' Amp. The way the salesman described it is that it's current-driven in that the unit automatically detects your headphone's impendence, making it a perfect little chameleon to amp any headphone; he told me it was even tested with good results driving the energy-hungry Audeze LCD-3 (as I recall), and it sure did drive the other 5-6 assorted headphones quite well that I tested it on!
 
Note: the HE 1000 and most of these amps are still in the final R&D process and are said to be out within a matter of months (as of this posting on late March 2015), so keep on the look out for these magnificent items!!!
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:26 AM Post #254 of 955
ALL POINTS BULLETIN:

Lost my Audeze/EL-8 case
New case (bigger Pelican case)
Has EL8 open-backs
My AK240
DHC Comp4
Lehmannaudio Traveler

Can't type more now...
BUT PLS PEOPLE - I work just as hard as all of you for all of it
PLS PASS THE WORD

Most Sincerely,
Michael Mercer
 
Mar 30, 2015 at 12:27 AM Post #255 of 955
  LH Labs guys went to the event, didn't they? I guess I have read they would bring the Geek Pulse Xfinite and some other stuff.
 
I have not read a single post about the Pulse DAC.

Still have pages of this thread to get to after a day that lasted from 8am to 6pm at the show (breakfast and then through the SHaG drawing and tear-down) so am a bit tired and don't know if others have addressed this yet, but here's my 2 cents. 
 
Being a Pulse Infinity backer myself I made sure to spend quite a lot of time at the LHL table. Listened exclusively to the Infinity, which in retrospect was not smart as I could have done an A/B with the Xfi, but hey, I got pulled in. Also got to hang out with Casey and Gavin for a good while. Love those guys. 
 
Even with cognitive dissonance in play, I can say that the Infinity was an amazing DAC/amp combo. Was paired with the LPS4 and the unit I listened to is the only Infinity currently in existence, and was Larry's personal test-bed unit (and had the new DAC chip). Super-clean, super-resolving and detailed, massively musical. Wow. Great stuff. 
 
Actually now that I think about it I did get to hear an Xfi as well. They had an Xfi playing DAC duty at the Cavelli table. Again, really good gear. 
 
Can't wait to get my Infinity! 
 
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