CanJam SoCal 2019 Impressions thread
Jun 24, 2019 at 9:23 AM Post #166 of 438
Schiit Mystery Product ($???) - I don't usually do this, but I'm going to be a total tease! I had a nice convo with Jason and he told me a few juicy secrets but made me swear a blood oath not to post any specifics. So I'll just say this, there are going to be a lot of really happy SchiitHeads in a couple of months from now. And I'm definitely one of them!

Well that's just mean..... Give us fans something. I'm out in the middle of the plains, can't attend, a more revealing morsel would be nice.

DAC?
Amp?
Combo item?
Hel?
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 10:07 AM Post #168 of 438
Even though I havent opened them yet, this was one pretty cool thing from the show. Dr Dave said he was bringing me a gift, sure enough, he did. Thanks Dr D, it was great meeting you. The candy man, was candied.

20190624-070406.jpg
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 12:17 PM Post #169 of 438
This year CanJam SoCal was back in Orange County, and the new venue worked great. The hotel was nice, parking was $10 (if you remembered to get the sticker) and the layout was good with an open area in the middle of the main room with places to sit down and rest for a couple of minutes. I attended on Saturday and the place was full of enthusiastic and friendly people. Here are my impressions from the show; I’m very treble-sensitive so keep that in mind while reading:
  • Beyerdynamic had a selection of headphones including the Amiron Home, which I listened to. It has a fuller and less monitor-like sound than beyerdynamic is often known for while still retaining a bit of treble sparkle. There’s a wireless version of the Amiron that looked interesting too but I didn’t get to try it.
  • I had heard about Grado before but had never listened to one before. The one I tried had a wooden cup (not sure which model it was) and was quite comfortable, but the sound was a bit on the bright side for my taste.
  • I really wanted to try the Meze Empyrean after having read a number of very positive reviews. This headphone is a thing of beauty and looks to be very well made. The sound, however, was a disappointment to me. The bass and midrange are good, but the treble is too prominent and seems somehow detached from the rest of the sound. This is interesting since one of the things that keeps getting mentioned by reviewers (and others in this very thread) is how smooth and musical the treble is, which was not at all my experience. This just shows that different people experience sound differently and there’s no substitute for hearing a headphone for yourself. The Empyrean isn’t for me, but it may well be for you.
  • Focal had a large stand in the center of the room and I had to try the Stellia. I don’t know of any other headphone that just oozes luxury the way that the Stellia does. The leather is super soft and feels like it was made by Louis Vuitton (and perhaps it was, given that Focal is a French company?), the design is exquisite and the build quality stellar IMHO. The sound is excellent and reminds me of a fuller, meatier-sounding Utopia where the treble has been toned down a bit. This was one of my favorite headphones.
  • Schiit Audio had perhaps the coolest stand of all where you could build your own Modi DAC or Magni amp. What a great concept - not just made in USA but made by you! I didn’t build one myself, but the person building seemed to have a great time. Schiit had the Lyr 3 amp which is great and on my shortlist for a future amp, the Sol turntable in near-production condition and the new Ragnarok 2 speaker/headphone amp. I didn’t get a chance to listen to the new Ragnarok but I’m looking for a new power amp for my Zu Audio Omen speakers and after talking to Jason and Schiit’s master power amp builder (sorry, I didn’t catch your name) it’s clear that a trip to the Schiitr will be required in the near future to listen to the three speaker amps: Vidar, Aegir and Ragnarok 2. I have very high hopes for the Aegir/Zu combo. Perhaps a 3-way speaker amp shootout event at the Schiitr would be an idea?
  • ZMF. I first met Zach at THE Show Newport a few years back (the one where the headphone makers were all relegated to a tent outside the hotel – a really terrible venue) and was really impressed with the woodwork and musicality of his headphones. Back then the Omni (now called Ori) was brand new and since then ZMF has introduced a whole series of dynamic headphones that all sound different but still has that musical, involving ZMF sound. Bravo! It’s great to see good people succeed. I have been lusting after an Atticus since I first heard it and this year I was able to pick one up. The Atticus to me is like comfort food for the ears – it’s just so pleasant and involving. By the way, I learned that Bevin hand-braids the braided ZMF cables. Who said that hand-made products don’t exist anymore?
  • MrSpeakers. The Voce electrostat has collected just about every award imaginable and sounds great – especially driven by the Blue Hawaii amp with vintage Siemens tubes. It has a full, natural sound which is also very open and detailed without becoming exaggerated. It’s very comfortable too. My favorite, however, is the new Ether 2 headphone. The Ether 2 is IMHO one of the best-sounding headphones on the market right now. Like the Voce, it has a full, natural sound that’s relaxed and involving. It has a natural treble that’s not bright or exaggerated and it makes even non-audiophile recordings a joy to listen to. The sound reminds me of an Aeon Flow Open that’s been evolved and enhanced. Excellent.
My wife was able to join me this time and her favorite headphones were the Focal Stellia, ZMF Verite and MrSpeakers Voce. She has great taste in headphones!

A few vendors that I didn’t get to visit due to time limits but wish that I had:
  • Rosson. The new headphone looks amazing, but I didn’t know find out about it until after I had left the show.
  • Raal. Several folks that I talked to spoke highly of this but I didn’t get a chance to hear it. I noticed that it was powered by speaker amps, including a Schiit Vidar and a Bryston amp, which is probably quite a bit more expensive than the Vidar. I wonder how much difference the various amps made?
  • Upscale Audio had Feliks Audio and Primaluna amps on display. I’ve heard good things about both but have never had a chance to listen to them.
  • The Source AV also had a large table with lots of goodies.
I didn’t see Sony, Drop (formerly Massdrop) and Monoprice this year – hopefully they’ll be back next year.

In summary, it was a really fun show – and great to see everyone again. Big thanks to the exhibitors and organizers for putting on a great show! I hope to see everyone again next year.
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 12:40 PM Post #171 of 438
Even though I havent opened them yet, this was one pretty cool thing from the show. Dr Dave said he was bringing me a gift, sure enough, he did. Thanks Dr D, it was great meeting you. The candy man, was candied.

20190624-070406.jpg


I love twizzlers

Cant get them over here

But I do have a view

20190615_184834.jpg
 
Noble Audio Stay updated on Noble Audio at their sponsor profile on Head-Fi.
 
https://www.facebook.com/NobleAudio https://www.twitter.com/noblebywizard https://www.instagram.com/nobleaudio https://nobleaudio.com/en/ contact@nobleaudio.com
Jun 24, 2019 at 1:08 PM Post #172 of 438
Well that's just mean..... Give us fans something. I'm out in the middle of the plains, can't attend, a more revealing morsel would be nice.

DAC?
Amp?
Combo item?
Hel?
Sorry. But I promised Jason I wouldn't tell. :innocent:
But the main reason I brought it up is that I was just really happy to find out that the product will be dropping sooner rather than later.
And in just a couple months all will be revealed!! :heart_eyes:
 
Last edited:
Jun 24, 2019 at 1:26 PM Post #174 of 438
Even though I havent opened them yet, this was one pretty cool thing from the show. Dr Dave said he was bringing me a gift, sure enough, he did. Thanks Dr D, it was great meeting you. The candy man, was candied.

20190624-070406.jpg

You cannot drink koolaid through these... Pass! :wink:
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 1:33 PM Post #175 of 438
I did listen to the new ones which are very impressive but one thing I don’t like that there is sibilant in the high maybe due to the cable or it still needs to burn in (?). I doesn’t have name yet because it is still a prototype.

More sibilance relative to Fourte or another iem? Oh, and definitely not an unnamed prototype since 64audio already annonced its official release in a few week (in July).
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 1:45 PM Post #176 of 438
More sibilance relative to Fourte or another iem? Oh, and definitely not an unnamed prototype since 64audio already annonced its official release in a few week (in July).

No. I noticed there were no other IEMs as Fourte and Trio having sibilant. I really like the SQ of Fourte and Trio and new one (except the sibilant). I did ask the guy (forgot his name) but he refused to tell me due to new product which will be released soon (?)
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 1:45 PM Post #177 of 438

HAHA. It's hilarious how true this actually is. The piezo-electric driver (or whatnot) for treble in the khan really does magical things in terms of air and transparency that you just can't un-hear when you listen to other IEMs... it really must be experienced first-hand.

More sibilance relative to Fourte or another iem? Oh, and definitely not an unnamed prototype since 64audio already annonced its official release in a few week (in July).

I didn't hear the sibilance personally - it sounded great to my ears. I liked it better than the tia fourte (jokingly called it the "Tia Fortissimo" at their booth haha). It just sounded fuller to me. To each their own :)
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 2:15 PM Post #178 of 438
More sibilance relative to Fourte or another iem? Oh, and definitely not an unnamed prototype since 64audio already annonced its official release in a few week (in July).

No. I noticed there were no other IEMs as Fourte and Trio having sibilant. I really like the SQ of Fourte and Trio and new one (except the sibilant). I did ask the guy (forgot his name) but he refused to tell me due to new product which will be released soon (?)

HAHA. It's hilarious how true this actually is. The piezo-electric driver (or whatnot) for treble in the khan really does magical things in terms of air and transparency that you just can't un-hear when you listen to other IEMs... it really must be experienced first-hand.



I didn't hear the sibilance personally - it sounded great to my ears. I liked it better than the tia fourte (jokingly called it the "Tia Fortissimo" at their booth haha). It just sounded fuller to me. To each their own :)


Hmmm after my long experience with tia forte being an amazing iem and loved it. But at end couldnt enjoy it due to being to siblant and mid recessed...
Tia has the best dd driver in my opinion ots just always mind blowing. It grabs very low rumbly wavy and airy. But that siblance and mid recession made me sell them....

My little voice guiding me toward valkyrie + Cleopatra + 1z :smile_phones:
 
Jun 24, 2019 at 2:30 PM Post #179 of 438
HAHA. It's hilarious how true this actually is. The piezo-electric driver (or whatnot) for treble in the khan really does magical things in terms of air and transparency that you just can't un-hear when you listen to other IEMs... it really must be experienced first-hand.

I didn't hear the sibilance personally - it sounded great to my ears. I liked it better than the tia fourte (jokingly called it the "Tia Fortissimo" at their booth haha). It just sounded fuller to me. To each their own :)

Yes, we all hear things differently, plus selection of eartips/seal can play a role here. Had these in my ears for a week now, and once you hear the name, your impressions will make sense :wink: (referring to 64audio).
 
Last edited:

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top