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What a close up of Todd.
ChiUniFi 08 Meet Impressions - Chicago has another great meet!
- Thread starter Skylab
- Start date
Todd R
Headphoneus Supremus
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Quote:
Why don't you host one?
| Originally Posted by ZoNtO /img/forum/go_quote.gif Awesome pics! Too bad nothing like this ever happens in Utah |
Why don't you host one?
Keithpgdrb
Sponsor: ZMF Headphones
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Well, this was a great meet. Only my second, but I cant see how a meet could get a lot better. tons of great gear, and just some of the nicest people you could meet. One regret.. this is the second time I've missed getting to hear the K1000!! Next meet, thats my first priority!!
There is so much gear to comment about, that it is pretty overwhelming. I may write more later, but I'll just drop some notes on the RE0 into the mix.
I have head-directs RE2's. they are great IEMs, but the one thing they lack above all else is low end. They have a beautiful sparkling high end, but the bass, and mid bass are just too weak for me. and I dont think I'm really a bass head, I just require a full sound, which these dont have.
I am pretty much against portable headphone amps, simply because I dont want to carry that crap around. But, I found some reviews on the Fiio E3 that claimed good synergy with the RE2s. For those of you who dont know what the FiioE3 is: it is basically a SMALL battery powered HP am that adds bass boost and increased soundstage. all for about $8.50. it is also said to take away a bit of the high end, but since the RE2 has so much of it, I figured I would give it a shot. To make a long intro shorter, the Fiio helped, but not enough for me.
So... I tried the RE0... these are fantastic. The bass is really nice, and the soundstage is also increased, as a previous person posted. Having been used to the RE2, these things were perfect in comparison. the bass was full, punchy, but not bloated or overpowering. The high end sparkle was still there, and it seemed that the midrange was more balanced as well. fuller I would say. I ended up going back to check these out about 3-4 different times, which tells me I clearly want to hear more. If I can scrape up some money, I would like to buy a pair. Maybe I'll drop Fang an email.
I believe that head-direct has started selling the FiioE3, or at least including it with some purchases. I did not try the E3 with the RE0. I probably should have, but I really did not feel the need. I also did not want to take away any high end, as the E3 does do somewhat.
Lastly, It would be wrong for me to comment on any of the RE line without saying that the performance experience of these IEMs is wholly dependent on using the right silicone tips, and getting a good seal. when I got my RE2s, I tried them with the recommended bi-flanges, and HATED them. they sounded like a Bad transistor radio, in a tin can. I just wasnt getting a proper seal. the tips that worked for me were the ones everyone said to avoid. go figure. anyway, just wanted to throw that in.
Thats all for now.. oh yeah, the JADE kicked some serious ***** as well.
There is so much gear to comment about, that it is pretty overwhelming. I may write more later, but I'll just drop some notes on the RE0 into the mix.
I have head-directs RE2's. they are great IEMs, but the one thing they lack above all else is low end. They have a beautiful sparkling high end, but the bass, and mid bass are just too weak for me. and I dont think I'm really a bass head, I just require a full sound, which these dont have.
I am pretty much against portable headphone amps, simply because I dont want to carry that crap around. But, I found some reviews on the Fiio E3 that claimed good synergy with the RE2s. For those of you who dont know what the FiioE3 is: it is basically a SMALL battery powered HP am that adds bass boost and increased soundstage. all for about $8.50. it is also said to take away a bit of the high end, but since the RE2 has so much of it, I figured I would give it a shot. To make a long intro shorter, the Fiio helped, but not enough for me.
So... I tried the RE0... these are fantastic. The bass is really nice, and the soundstage is also increased, as a previous person posted. Having been used to the RE2, these things were perfect in comparison. the bass was full, punchy, but not bloated or overpowering. The high end sparkle was still there, and it seemed that the midrange was more balanced as well. fuller I would say. I ended up going back to check these out about 3-4 different times, which tells me I clearly want to hear more. If I can scrape up some money, I would like to buy a pair. Maybe I'll drop Fang an email.
I believe that head-direct has started selling the FiioE3, or at least including it with some purchases. I did not try the E3 with the RE0. I probably should have, but I really did not feel the need. I also did not want to take away any high end, as the E3 does do somewhat.
Lastly, It would be wrong for me to comment on any of the RE line without saying that the performance experience of these IEMs is wholly dependent on using the right silicone tips, and getting a good seal. when I got my RE2s, I tried them with the recommended bi-flanges, and HATED them. they sounded like a Bad transistor radio, in a tin can. I just wasnt getting a proper seal. the tips that worked for me were the ones everyone said to avoid. go figure. anyway, just wanted to throw that in.
Thats all for now.. oh yeah, the JADE kicked some serious ***** as well.
ljcii
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has anyone who owned the re-1s tried the re0s yet?
I would like to see an impression though.
I would like to see an impression though.
krmathis
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Ray, awesome pictures. Thanks for sharing!
nickknutson
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Man, it looks like you guys had a great meet!
I should really drive down for one of the legendary Chi-town meets.
I should really drive down for one of the legendary Chi-town meets.
ingwe
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From a life-long Chicagoan (until three years ago): congratulations!
Now, I implore you: please host a national meet!
-m
Now, I implore you: please host a national meet!
-m
Aura
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Quote:
Rest assured Michael, that is an ultimate goal for us as a group.
| Originally Posted by ingwe /img/forum/go_quote.gif From a life-long Chicagoan (until three years ago): congratulations! Now, I implore you: please host a national meet! -m |
Rest assured Michael, that is an ultimate goal for us as a group.
Deadneddz
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Are the impressions of the Jade coming from the amp and source in the pictures? The equipment in the pictures definately seem FAR from adequate.
Keithpgdrb
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Quote:
many of the impressions come directly from the meet. others come from the jade when it was hooked up to ray samuels amp designed for the HE90 at his home. from what I remember, the amp at the meet was a non production amp that was put together to demo the jade. I am not aware of its specs, or if it was a final idea. I would ask Fang about it. the CD player was a meridian.
| Originally Posted by Deadneddz /img/forum/go_quote.gif Are the impressions of the Jade coming from the amp and source in the pictures? The equipment in the pictures definately seem FAR from adequate. |
many of the impressions come directly from the meet. others come from the jade when it was hooked up to ray samuels amp designed for the HE90 at his home. from what I remember, the amp at the meet was a non production amp that was put together to demo the jade. I am not aware of its specs, or if it was a final idea. I would ask Fang about it. the CD player was a meridian.
gp_hebert
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Looks like a very nice meet.
Now, where are the pictures and impressions on Ray's new electrostatic amp?
Now, where are the pictures and impressions on Ray's new electrostatic amp?
krmathis
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Quote:
Yeah, some pictures and more information about his upcoming A-10 would be nice!
| Originally Posted by gp_hebert /img/forum/go_quote.gif Now, where are the pictures and impressions on Ray's new electrostatic amp? |
Yeah, some pictures and more information about his upcoming A-10 would be nice!
Audio Addict
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Quote:
It was still basically in being built status. Ray was hurding everyone away from the power supply that was just laying on the floor. It had no case and was just the PC board and components. He kept worrying about someone touching it and getting 700+ volts through them. The actual pre-amplifier board was just sitting loose in a blank case in his system. Ray is still working on the case and knowing Ray, he will take it to the next level for this one.
One of the interesting topics was the discussion on how different each electrostatic headphone is. What is most likely good for one such as the Jade most likely would need internal changes to be optimize for say the Omega. I am surprised by how limited electrostats can be compared to dynamic headphones.
| Originally Posted by gp_hebert /img/forum/go_quote.gif Looks like a very nice meet.
Now, where are the pictures and impressions on Ray's new electrostatic amp? |
It was still basically in being built status. Ray was hurding everyone away from the power supply that was just laying on the floor. It had no case and was just the PC board and components. He kept worrying about someone touching it and getting 700+ volts through them. The actual pre-amplifier board was just sitting loose in a blank case in his system. Ray is still working on the case and knowing Ray, he will take it to the next level for this one.
One of the interesting topics was the discussion on how different each electrostatic headphone is. What is most likely good for one such as the Jade most likely would need internal changes to be optimize for say the Omega. I am surprised by how limited electrostats can be compared to dynamic headphones.
jjhatfield
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Looks like a good time was had by all. And it looks like Skylab stole my King Crimson shirt!
spritzer
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Quote:
There is very little truth to this. They do all have slightly different bias voltages and some like a larger load resistor to keep them firmly in constant charge mode but the bias voltage isn't a linear figure (changes by the square of the D/S gap, which the distance from stator to diaphragm) so the change is less then one might think and only the Senn HE's need a 10M load resistor instead of the Stax 5M standard. You can skip it and run them at the higher bias with no harm or just build the extra resistor into the phones. Bottom line is that one has to remember that all these phones were made with dedicated amps in mind and never meant to be used without them. They are all similar enough to the Stax Pro bias standard to be used on their amps.
What all electrostatic drivers need is an abundance of power and not just voltage. The impedance of an ES drivers changes a lot with frequency and dips a lot in the bass and treble. To maintain a constant voltage into the lower impedance the amp needs to supply more current to make up the difference. Most can't do that due to weak PSU designs or the lack of a robust CCS.
Since I'm posting this I'd like to set one thing straight, there is no difference between new and old HE60 drivers. What Sennheiser did was to replace the broken o-ring at the back of the drivers (they have been broken in 2 of the 3 sets I've had and the other set had just been refurbished) which stops the backwave from leaking to the front of the drivers. When the o-ring breaks you can either loose all bass (not much there to begin with) or get some nasty midbass bumps if the gap is small and can act as a port.
| Originally Posted by Audio Addict /img/forum/go_quote.gif One of the interesting topics was the discussion on how different each electrostatic headphone is. What is most likely good for one such as the Jade most likely would need internal changes to be optimize for say the Omega. I am surprised by how limited electrostats can be compared to dynamic headphones. |
There is very little truth to this. They do all have slightly different bias voltages and some like a larger load resistor to keep them firmly in constant charge mode but the bias voltage isn't a linear figure (changes by the square of the D/S gap, which the distance from stator to diaphragm) so the change is less then one might think and only the Senn HE's need a 10M load resistor instead of the Stax 5M standard. You can skip it and run them at the higher bias with no harm or just build the extra resistor into the phones. Bottom line is that one has to remember that all these phones were made with dedicated amps in mind and never meant to be used without them. They are all similar enough to the Stax Pro bias standard to be used on their amps.
What all electrostatic drivers need is an abundance of power and not just voltage. The impedance of an ES drivers changes a lot with frequency and dips a lot in the bass and treble. To maintain a constant voltage into the lower impedance the amp needs to supply more current to make up the difference. Most can't do that due to weak PSU designs or the lack of a robust CCS.
Since I'm posting this I'd like to set one thing straight, there is no difference between new and old HE60 drivers. What Sennheiser did was to replace the broken o-ring at the back of the drivers (they have been broken in 2 of the 3 sets I've had and the other set had just been refurbished) which stops the backwave from leaking to the front of the drivers. When the o-ring breaks you can either loose all bass (not much there to begin with) or get some nasty midbass bumps if the gap is small and can act as a port.
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