[branislav]

My first meet ever...well, except for Canjam...I gotta say I wish there was more listening and less talking, it was pretty hard to judge some headphones with everything that was going on. The best sound from what I heard (havent heard all the setups) goes to  Senn HD800 with the Decware that were the highlight of the show and that's with the stock cable!

 

[bbophead]

  My first meet ever...well, except for Canjam...I gotta say I wish there was more listening and less talking, it was pretty hard to judge some headphones with everything that was going on. The best sound from what I heard (havent heard all the setups) goes to  Senn HD800 with the Decware that were the highlight of the show and that's with the stock cable!

 
Typical headphone meet.  Lots of jabber.

 

[jazzman7]

Did anyone take pictures of the Mr. Speakers Alpha Dog close up that is willing to post them?   I did not snap photos given the quality of my beater smartphone's camera, and it appears that the latest version (production version?) has not been photo'ed in the wild yet.  

 

[Nick Dangerous]

I have a few... will post pics later tonight.

 

[Nick Dangerous]

Travis, Chris, and Keith enjoying the Leben-powered vinyl goodness.
 

Dan (aka Mr. Speakers) deservedly beaming over his exceptional Alpha Dogs.
 

Alpha Dogs docked with Schiit Mjolnir/Gungnir stack.
 

Everyone was surprised how high the Koss Porta-Pros were capable of scaling with good equipment.
 

Chris takes the Resonessence Concero HP for a spin.
 

Resonessence Concero HP, HD, Herus portable prototype, and original Concero at right.
 

Schiit-a-plenty at this meetup!
 

A trusty classic: MG Head OTL using transformer output to drive the PS500.
 

Portable obsession comes in many colors!
 

Alpha Dogs with the Burson Conductor.
 

...and the sign don't lie. Do you dare to ride the Habanero Express?
 

I was impressed with this custom Beta 22 stack by Rockhopper Audio. It drove the LCD3 and HD800 superbly well.
 

Everyone likes Grace, and Grace liked the Alpha Dogs. Actually, everyone liked the Alpha Dogs too.
 

Grace gestures toward the Alpha Dogs: "Now THESE are some nice cans!"
 

Beethoven, tubes, and vinyl = a great way to end the day.

 

[Nick Dangerous]

It was a fun meet & overall I'm glad my HD800 + Concero + Decware CSP2+ rig is still delivering the goods. I'm happy to stay put with this "value tube platform".
 
The Alpha Dogs were clearly the celebrity hit of the meetup. They isolate very well, have a nice finish, are comfortable, and deliver great quality and soundstaging. For $600, they're an easy "auto-recommend" pair of closed cans. In fact, with the exclusion of IEM's, I can't think of a single closed headphone which measures up... all things considered. Better get in line soon, fence-sitters.
 
Obviously, vinyl is not dead. It was great to hear a quality vinyl rig through the Leben... but of course I'm spoiled by the modern convenience of digital sound. The idea of having to "find" my music, clean the platter, drop the needle, pick it up again, etc. is amusing in a modern context. Nevertheless, when you've got a good vinyl rig dialed in, it sure sounds nice!
 
As Chris mentioned, the differences between the Resonessence Concero/HD/HP are more incremental than evolutionary, though all deliver a big bang for the buck. Regrettably the Herus didn't get much of a workout but the HP proved to be a superb portable DAC and amplifier in one. It's just too easy to throw it into your laptop bag and hit the road. So unless you want to play with DSD/DXD, I recommend sticking with the original Concero or picking up the HP for listening on the go/at home/anywhere. Kudos to Mark Mallinson for sending us his latest offerings to play with. 
 
I was impressed with the Rockhopper Beta 22 amp. I'm a "tube guy" for sure but I did quite enjoy the sound of this solid-state unit. It drove the LCD3 and HD800 with equal finesse which was impressive. If you're a DIY-type, the Beta 22 might be your ticket for a headphone collector who wants an "all in one" amp. 
 
Great meetup! Next Texas meet will be in Austin this coming January. Ahhhhh... to be in Austin when the weather is NOT over 90 degrees! I'll put it on my calendar.

 

[AHorseNamedJeff]

Oh man, the rega got there, and there were LCD3s!!! AHHHHHHHHH. I'll have to stay much longer next time. LCD3s are a must hear on my list.

 

[grizzlybeast]

Would you mind being specific here? In you honest opinion what genres? Quote:

Good to see everyone again. Missed seeing a few people, notably Al.


I also liked the Alpha Dogs, but found them a bit genre limited. I don't really like any closed headphones, but these were alright (one of the best closed I've heard). If you feed them the right kind of music, they are very engaging.
 

 

[Maxvla]

I think they would be good for intimate settings with a focus on midrange. They don't have the detail for proper acoustic like folk or chamber music, nor do they have the soundstage for classical or the type of electronic music I like. They would be good for jazz and rock, perhaps metal, and pop. Some forms of electronic would probably be ok.

When I was listening to them I was having difficulty deciding what to play since I had to narrow my options to a few genres. I put on some Brazilian jazz that sounded great. Dan listened to it and enjoyed the record also. I listened to the new Daft Punk album Dan had on the MacBook and thought it sounded very good, but was missing the sense of air and space I am used to.

I generally don't like closed headphones because most are genre limited in a similar way that these are, but I think these are some of the best closed I have heard yet. I also like the K550 because it somehow does have a large soundstage and air about it, but the frequency balance is a little off, lacking in the bass (both quantity and quality) and the midrange could be better.

 

[burritoboy9984]

Looks like a good time. Wish I could have made it. I'll be in Austin though.

 

[tritonesub]

This was my first audio-related-anything meet, and definitely not my last. 
I came and listened to some great stuff on some great equipment, met a bunch of cool people, and had a ton of fun.
And I'm glad someone liked my Grados!!! 

 

[AHorseNamedJeff]

This was my first audio-related-anything meet, and definitely not my last. 

I came and listened to some great stuff on some great equipment, met a bunch of cool people, and had a ton of fun.

And I'm glad someone liked my Grados!!! 

Looking forward to next time. And Plano east this Saturday.

BTW if anyone is in the Plano area Saturday, Triton and I are performing in the Plano East Marching Invitational. He's from McKinney High and I'm from McKinney Boyd. We go on at very close times, (my band at 3:45 pm and his at 4:15pm) you should come watch, both our shows this year are awesome and I'm sure you'd enjoy them! It's at Clark stadium.

 

[goldtuba]

I wish that I could have arrived sooner, but family events come first.  I'm still very impressed with the Decware.  I think that it got overshadowed by the Liquid Glass and all of the extreme high end headphones at the last meet, but I'm glad that I finally got a chance to get some real impressions from it.  It may end up being my next audio related purchase.  At least I know that Hd800s sound great with it if I were to ever decide to upgrade.  Which tubes were you using at the meet?  I'm assuming that they were not stock.
 
I also very much enjoyed listening to the Kuzma.  Once I finally acquired a record player that is a nice introduction into true Hi-Fi, somebody shows up with something that blows my Rega out of the water.  As always, I wish that I had more time to listen

 

[MorbidToaster]

I wish that I could have arrived sooner, but family events come first.  I'm still very impressed with the Decware.  I think that it got overshadowed by the Liquid Glass and all of the extreme high end headphones at the last meet, but I'm glad that I finally got a chance to get some real impressions from it.  It may end up being my next audio related purchase.  At least I know that Hd800s sound great with it if I were to ever decide to upgrade.  Which tubes were you using at the meet?  I'm assuming that they were not stock.

I also very much enjoyed listening to the Kuzma.  Once I finally acquired a record player that is a nice introduction into true Hi-Fi, somebody shows up with something that blows my Rega out of the water.  As always, I wish that I had more time to listen

It'll be in Austin come Jan.

I'll say your Rega is no slouch though. I almost ended up with an RP8. I guess the whole weight over rigidity thing spoke to me with the Kuzma.

 

[bbophead]

I was hoping for some more pics.  The only pic of the Kuzma was MT at home?