[NCUS]

Did you get any color changes once it was applied and does it seem to keep the oils and sweat out?

I had a slight dark ring on the front edge of the leather band from oils coming off my hair. Since applying the product, the ring didn't expand, and my headphones have no additional oil or sweat marks after a good 6 months of use. I just put a drop of water on the leather head band right now and it still beads. So, I assume the product is working. I didn't notice any color change caused by the product, itself.

 

[chaz_flhr]

I had a slight dark ring on the front edge of the leather band from oils coming off my hair. Since applying the product, the ring didn't expand, and my headphones have no additional oil or sweat marks after a good 6 months of use. I just put a drop of water on the leather head band right now and it still beads. So, I assume the product is working. I didn't notice any color change caused by the product, itself.

Great and thanks for the quick reply, the other product LTT mentioned way back in the thread comes from UK and shipping was as much as the product so I will order some today currently have mine wrapped in plastic wrap.

 

[VandyMan]

I bought something called Colourblock for aniline leather. It came with a cleaner and protectant. Seems to work very well. You can get it on Amazon for about $40-$50.

Is this the one you used?

 

[chaz_flhr]

For anyone else who is looking for the leather protectant in .....

Is this the one you used?

Yes colourlock not colourblock is the one I believe he was talking about as colourblock didn't return any products on a search.
That's what I found on Amazon but couldn't post the pic on my commute into work this AM and didn't notice it posted without it Thanks VandyMan.

 

[NCUS]

Is this the one you used?

Sorry for the typo. That is the one I used. Mine came in a 2 pack with a cleaner and a protectant.

 

[chaz_flhr]

Sorry for the typo. That is the one I used. Mine came in a 2 pack with a cleaner and a protectant.

No worries you found a good product available here instead of ordering from UK, thanks, soon I will be able to unwrap my Stellia, my wife laughs at me like the old lady with plastic over the couch.

 

[noplsestar]

New Dekoni Stellia pads. Maybe worth a try: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/dekoni-ltd-stellia-pads.949716/

 

[Ryan Cao]

I’m running it off the Absolute at the moment. Fantastic pairing. However I find the single end to be very noisy even with neg fb all the way applied prob because of stellias low impedance and high sensitivity combo. Push pull has no noise so I use that with no feedback, I find it to be a pretty neutral tuning but still gives the great tube bloom benefits and the middle ground in all of Absolute's settings. Gotta listen to SE again some day, you don't hear the noise when music is playing just during quiet passages it's very apparent. Maybe I'm too picky and others won't mind, it is a very very sweet and euphoric sound... still going through my collection on Push pull then gotta revisit single end again. I should have my Wywire power cord and better interconnects by then as well...

Same experience here. The noise is much more obvious in SE mode. Have you figured out a way to reduce it?

 

[TooFrank]

I had a slight dark ring on the front edge of the leather band from oils coming off my hair. Since applying the product, the ring didn't expand, and my headphones have no additional oil or sweat marks after a good 6 months of use. I just put a drop of water on the leather head band right now and it still beads. So, I assume the product is working. I didn't notice any color change caused by the product, itself.

FWIW: Don’t worry to much of the (dis)coloring of the headband. Eventually, it will turn into a very nice brown color....I have never used any “protection”....If you should wish, I can post a couple of pics?

 

[rangerid]

Same experience here. The noise is much more obvious in SE mode. Have you figured out a way to reduce it?

Yep, I upgraded the power cord to the Wywires Juice 2 Platinum. Noise went from a distracting buzzing (feedback all the way at -10db) to a soft hum (feedback at about 3'o clock), so a pretty big improvement. With the stock cable it wasn't like the noise was audible when music was playing but it was annoying during transition between songs and after a day or so I just CBA listening to SE anymore. However, ever since I upgraded the power cord I've been using SE and feedback not even fully dialed in. There is also very noticeable sonic improvements across the board in soundstage & dynamics. I'd definitely recommend looking into upgrading the power cord from the stock that came with the Absolute.

With a low impedance/high sensitivity headphone like the Stellia the "cleanness" of power seems extra important for the Absolute. I am also looking into getting an additional power conditioner. Seeing the improvement even a simple power cable can make in both noise/sonic improvement I think that will be quite an upgrade. Another member a few pages back got an AQ Power conditioner and noted big improvements in the Arche amp. I don't think this amp/SE & Stellia combo will get to that blackness that solid state amps have but you can significantly lower it to barely audible/non annoying levels with better power sources. The jump in performance is also very nice bonus on top.

 

[Ryan Cao]

Yep, I upgraded the power cord to the Wywires Juice 2 Platinum. Noise went from a distracting buzzing (feedback all the way at -10db) to a soft hum (feedback at about 3'o clock), so a pretty big improvement. With the stock cable it wasn't like the noise was audible when music was playing but it was annoying during transition between songs and after a day or so I just CBA listening to SE anymore. However, ever since I upgraded the power cord I've been using SE and feedback not even fully dialed in. There is also very noticeable sonic improvements across the board in soundstage & dynamics. I'd definitely recommend looking into upgrading the power cord from the stock that came with the Absolute.

With a low impedance/high sensitivity headphone like the Stellia the "cleanness" of power seems extra important for the Absolute. I am also looking into getting an additional power conditioner. Seeing the improvement even a simple power cable can make in both noise/sonic improvement I think that will be quite an upgrade. Another member a few pages back got an AQ Power conditioner and noted big improvements in the Arche amp. I don't think this amp/SE & Stellia combo will get to that blackness that solid state amps have but you can significantly lower it to barely audible/non annoying levels with better power sources. The jump in performance is also very nice bonus on top.

Thanks for the info! Super helpful!

Actually I think the noise is not only for low impedance headphones. When I pair HD800s with Absolute, at high gain, the noise is even more obvious than Stellia.

I will check out the power cord. Please keep me noted about power conditioner

 

[Hoegaardener70]

It has been brought up before, but there was no first-hand experience or concrete answer at that time. But may be now - what are the thoughts on the Dekoni pads for the Stellia?

 

[NCUS]

FWIW: Don’t worry to much of the (dis)coloring of the headband. Eventually, it will turn into a very nice brown color....I have never used any “protection”....If you should wish, I can post a couple of pics?

Thanks. At some point, new equipment becomes older and you recognize why you bought the new equipment in the first place. I now spend more time listening than looking for blemishes

I would have thanked you sooner, but I posted something in the Airpods Max subject in this forum, and the activity on that is so exceptionally high, all I got was dozens of notifications about Airpods, which doesn't interest me that much. I thought there was a high number people who bought Sony equipment that are too invested in a brand to think rationally, but nothing can beat Apple in this regard. That is one crazy thread.

 

[KPzypher]

It has been brought up before, but there was no first-hand experience or concrete answer at that time. But may be now - what are the thoughts on the Dekoni pads for the Stellia?

I'm awaiting UPS delivery on the limited Stellia pads, so will let you know in a few days. Design wise, they look similar with the cloth lining on the lower inside face of the pads and without mesh. So assuming the dimensions are the same, SQ shouldn't deviate too much from the original pads, unlike other pads (hybrid, fenestrated, etc.). At least that's what I'm hoping for.

 

[KPzypher]

Eight months after the purchase, I'm finally beginning to appreciate the Stellia.