[Nomad]

Well, this is kind of weird.

I've been listening the Baby Orpheus for 5 days now. I know the amp needs to be running for a while and the stators need to be charged. I'm having my setup "On" 24/7 apart from 2 brief pauses (5 mins) while moving the set from/to home from/to work. I'm always avoiding the discharge of the HE60s by touching the jack while packing.

By running the system 24/7 (with no music playing on it) I'm avoiding the weird sound and dramatic channel separation associated to a "cold" set. However when I start my listening sessions it sounds pretty much like a (bit brighter) HD650 (with "average" amp, I'm not talking about Blockhead here). Then the sound starts to change and after 3 or 4 hours by playing music they start to sound really amazing. The sound gets fuller and richer. A really pleasant listening experience.

I'm finding myself listening music until really late night because it sounds better after a few hours (it is not because of the quieter environment) and working less late afternoon (again because of the sound, not because I'm tired). I'm starting to leave the system playing music all the time, instead of to simple leaving it "On".

Is this normal? Is it because of the HEV70? Because of the HE60? or... (probably) Because of me? I'd like to know if anyone else had the same experiences with any electrostatic setup.

It really is strange. I think it has to be a subjective impresion, but it really sounds pretty obvious to me.

 

[catscratch]

I leave my SRM-313/SR-404 combo on at all times, and I really haven't noticed improvements in sound quality from having them play in the way you describe. It could just be "mental burn-in" - however, I somehow doubt it. It could simply be that the HEV70 is underpowered, and doesn't charge the stators enough without some sort of stronger, continuous signal coming through it... Eh, something like that. I'm not an engineer.

I have, however, noticed that if I leave the volume on my 313 at 0 while letting them charge, the system doesn't sound as good as when the volume is left at normal listening levels (4.5). I often wondered if this was purely a mental thing too, as I don't see why the stators should be charged any less with the volume at 0 then they would be at 4.5

I never listen for more than 2 hours, so I couldn't really tell you if there would be a significant improvement after 4 or 5, but at the 2 hour mark, the sound is pretty much what it was before.

 

[Beagle]

Do all electrostat phones need to be charged before they reach optimum sound? That is, should I keep my Stax Basik 2020 powered on 24/7?

 

[JaZZ]

If playing music on «standby» makes a difference, it's unlikely that it's a charging phenomenon. I for one don't experience any audible charging delays with my Stax-based (Lambda Pro/Signature Pro) electrostatics. When I plug them into the amp, they sound good from the start and don't change their characteristic from then on. But warming up the SRM-T1 for 2 or 3 hours makes a subtle, but noticeable difference. Maybe the HE-60 behaves differently, but somehow I don't understand the concept of the long charging time advocated by others. Couldn't it be that the HE-60 benefits from mechanical break-in before every listening session? (The idea sounds a bit strange as well, but is not completely absurd.)

 

[Nomad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beagle Do all electrostat phones need to be charged before they reach optimum sound? That is, should I keep my Stax Basik 2020 powered on 24/7?

A 24/7 approach shouldn't be necessary. However it would be a good idea to leave the set on around 1-2 hours before the listening session. The time really depends on the stators/apm. Some sets need more time, some less. I had no experience with your set so I can't comment much.

 

[Nomad]

Thanks for the feedback, catscratch and jazz. It really is strange.

I'll have a KGSS in a few weeks, so I will be able to see if this is because of the HEV70.

Cheers

 

[rawhit]

Nomad,
have you noticed the effect during the day time also? Its possible that the power supply fluctuations are lesser at late night hours and thus the system starts sounding better.
HEV-70 power supply is just an unregulated wall wart and wouldn't handle power fluctuations well.


cheers
Rohit

 

[Nomad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rawhit Nomad, have you noticed the effect during the day time also? Its possible that the power supply fluctuations are lesser at late night hours and thus the system starts sounding better. HEV-70 power supply is just an unregulated wall wart and wouldn't handle power fluctuations well. cheers Rohit

Hi Rohit,

Sorry about the delay. I was doing some tests regarding this before to post again. I think it is going to be the amp and not the power supply fluctuations (I can't be 100% sure). See my next post in order to see why I think is the amp.

Cheers

 

[Nomad]

Hi,

I was doing some test these days regarding this strange issue.

I had yesterday the system on 24/7 with no music at all. After 24 hours I tried it and not only they were sounding far from perfect but I could even detect some sights of the dramatic channel separation of a "cold system" (althouhg not at the same degree of a really cold set).

I did realized as well that the amp gets warmed while playing music. After 24 hours On without playing music, the amp was almost cold, and while music is playing it gets warmer (although not too warm at all).

So it seems like is not a charging problem, but a "warming up" Amp issue then.
(At least with my system). This can explain some very negative feedback for the Baby Orpheus for some people that maybe were thinking that just leaving the amp "on" was enough in order to guarantee its best performance.

Cheers