davidmiya
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2003
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This would probably be the first Hawaii Head-Fi mini-meet in about 2-3 years. I met Vertigo exclusively to hear the SRM-717 and Stax Omega II combo. This mini-meet was unlike any other meet with lots of people, food, long/loud conversations, and rapid changes and gear-swaps. It was just the two of us in this room listening to each other's systems. It was relatively quiet, and free from disturbance.
The gear at this meet was as follows:
My setup:
Monster Power HTS-5100 SS
Absolute PCs
Pioneer DV-47Ai (Modwright transport modded)
Transparent Premium Digital Cable
Bel Canto DAC2
Cardas Neutral Reference ICs
RS Audio Emmeline II Stealth
Sennheiser HD650
Vertigo's setup:
Audio Prism Quietlines
Monster Power HTS-2000
Zu Mother PCs
Arcam FMJ CD23T
Zcable Live V5 ICs
Stax SRM-717
Stax SR-007 Omega II
I got to pretty much cycle through all of my favorite CDs at this meet and got the chance to really listen closely to the fine details. Ok, here it goes.
Stax SRM-717/Omega II:
When I first put on the phones, what struck me first was the weight. The Omega IIs weren't heavy and metallic like I thought they would be. Rather, they felt almost as if they were floating on my head due to that nice soft leather headband. At first the "D" shaped ear cups got me confused. But I figured out how to position them properly to get a good seal. In general, these phones are the least intrusive and least "noticeable" of any set of phones I've ever had the chance to audition. The CD3000's were pretty comfortable from my recolection, but tended to move around a little bit too much.
The first CD I put on was one of Kenny G's CD's. I usually use this CD to test the midrange and peak treble response of phones. It also has some pieces with som heavy bass, so it serves a double purpose. Since I was really curious about the bass, I instantly skipped to that track. Man was I BLOWN away. I swear that the bass I heard was just as percussive as with the HD650's. It also appeared to go just as low as the Sennheiser bass. The only differences were a lack of bone-shattering vibration and excessive resonance. Bascially what I'm saying is that, you can still have "slam" and "impact" but not have the physical vibration that you hear with a subwoofer. To me, this bass is not as "real" but acceptable enough for my purposes. Though, I must say one thing. The bass, which most attribue to the SRM-717 is somewhat muddy at higher volumes (I listen loud) and tends to spread out a bit. this attribute is probably the thing that bothered me most about this system.
The midrange on the Stax system actually seemed quite in-balance to me. It wasn't too recessed (like in the HD600) and it wasn't too forward (like the Grados). I felt that it landed in a happy medium. Actually, on second thought, the presentation was just a tad laid-back...just enough to give the music a polite, non-grating feel. The midrange itself was very very very crisp and clear. I heard no harshness, but still heard sharp leading edges and precise transients. Basically, the voices and instruments sounded very natural and controlled. Unlike with my dynamic rig, I didn't get much sibilance.
The treble was not really the highlight of this system. It is definitely not as crisp at the Stealth treble. However, I must comment that the Stealth treble can get a bit splashy at times and can lead to minor fatigue at higher listening levels. The treble on the Stax system seemed a bit rolled off on the very top end. However, it still had punch and was generally "satisfactory." To add to my previous comment about sibilance, perhaps there was little sibilance because the top end was rolled off.
Overall, I'd say that the Stax sound is very "fast" and "transparent." By fast, the leading edges are generally crisp and there is no smearing or mushiness or lag. By transparent, there is blackness between the notes and a sense of delicacy. There is no extra reverb, but there is still that all-important decay. I think people tend to mix up decay with bad reverberations that were not part of the original recording. I believe that the Stax setup has none of those bad reverberations that many dynamic setups suffer from. Sennheiser has attempted to reduce this reverberations by using some silk padded as well as an open-air design. They get pretty far, but not far enough my my opinion.
The detail in these phones is insane. It doesn't just pick up treble detail, but conveys the entire spectrum with near-equal accuracy. I would say that the Stax system picks up just as much detail as the ER-4S, but with none of the compressed soundstage and tinny sound. Speaking of soundstage, the Omega II's image a tad better than my dynamic rig. In comparison, my dynamic rig sounds somewhat "flat" and compressed. It's as if the musicians are standing in a 2D plane and really aren't spread out around me like they should. In general, I'd like to say that the Omega II's were slightly more engaging, but not by a big degree.
Basically, there was a tradeoff going on between delicacy, details and accuracy of the Stax and pure power, punch, and treble of my dynamic rig. While I really like the visceral impact of the Senns, the sound feels muddy to me after hearing the Stax. The feeling of putting the Sennheisers back on after listening to the Stax's for almost an hour was something like "Hmmm, did the sound just get worse, or are my perceptions forever changed?" I think the latter occured. The Senns have a great sound that I personally like. However, I now feel that they just don't portray all that there is to hear in a recording. While the physical part of a headphone-listening experience is important nonetheless, the mental part is probably most important. The Stax have so much detail and imaging to offer that the mind is captivated...note the word "captivated" and not simply just interested.
All in all, I'd say that Vertigo's setup was pretty amazing. However, not as great as I thought it should have been. I think my perceptions have already been warped by listening to great headphones for such a long time. I keep on forgetting about the rule of diminishing returns. The Stax are better, but maybe only 10% "better". I hate to use the word "better" because it can mean so many things. I'd like to define "better" allowing the listener to get "lost" in the music and not have to think about the phones on his head. Everyone knows that this experience is subjective, so this 10% may be meaningless to you. However, I'm sure that my opinions on the general sound of the Omegas may have been helpful to many. Judging by the publicity that the Omega II's have been getting lately by Nik and Kevin, I'd like so say that they are somewhat overhyped. They definitley aren't the last word in audio. My BOSE/Sony composite speaker system blows the Stax Omega II's out of the water in every way. Bose isn't a great company for high-end, but can sound not-bad with a great source and decent amplification.
I think people just need to get a few things straight in their heads. The best headphone system in the world won't solve your upgraditus problems because headphones simply don't offer what a speaker setup can offer. However what it can offer is a close, intimate listen that has the ability to extract the smallest details and "whisper" them into your ears. It's a very personal experience as opposed to the flamboyant experience attributed to speaker setups.
Anyways, those were my opinions on our little meet. Will I actually sell my dynamic rig and buy an electrostatic rig? Maybe, maybe not. I will definitely have to think on it a little bit more before I jump to any conclusions. Though, if you were to hold a gun to my head and tell me to make a choice between the two setups, I'd probably pick the Stax setups just because of the details and transparency. However, I'm sure the line would become more indistinct with more listening.
The gear at this meet was as follows:
My setup:
Monster Power HTS-5100 SS
Absolute PCs
Pioneer DV-47Ai (Modwright transport modded)
Transparent Premium Digital Cable
Bel Canto DAC2
Cardas Neutral Reference ICs
RS Audio Emmeline II Stealth
Sennheiser HD650
Vertigo's setup:
Audio Prism Quietlines
Monster Power HTS-2000
Zu Mother PCs
Arcam FMJ CD23T
Zcable Live V5 ICs
Stax SRM-717
Stax SR-007 Omega II
I got to pretty much cycle through all of my favorite CDs at this meet and got the chance to really listen closely to the fine details. Ok, here it goes.
Stax SRM-717/Omega II:
When I first put on the phones, what struck me first was the weight. The Omega IIs weren't heavy and metallic like I thought they would be. Rather, they felt almost as if they were floating on my head due to that nice soft leather headband. At first the "D" shaped ear cups got me confused. But I figured out how to position them properly to get a good seal. In general, these phones are the least intrusive and least "noticeable" of any set of phones I've ever had the chance to audition. The CD3000's were pretty comfortable from my recolection, but tended to move around a little bit too much.
The first CD I put on was one of Kenny G's CD's. I usually use this CD to test the midrange and peak treble response of phones. It also has some pieces with som heavy bass, so it serves a double purpose. Since I was really curious about the bass, I instantly skipped to that track. Man was I BLOWN away. I swear that the bass I heard was just as percussive as with the HD650's. It also appeared to go just as low as the Sennheiser bass. The only differences were a lack of bone-shattering vibration and excessive resonance. Bascially what I'm saying is that, you can still have "slam" and "impact" but not have the physical vibration that you hear with a subwoofer. To me, this bass is not as "real" but acceptable enough for my purposes. Though, I must say one thing. The bass, which most attribue to the SRM-717 is somewhat muddy at higher volumes (I listen loud) and tends to spread out a bit. this attribute is probably the thing that bothered me most about this system.
The midrange on the Stax system actually seemed quite in-balance to me. It wasn't too recessed (like in the HD600) and it wasn't too forward (like the Grados). I felt that it landed in a happy medium. Actually, on second thought, the presentation was just a tad laid-back...just enough to give the music a polite, non-grating feel. The midrange itself was very very very crisp and clear. I heard no harshness, but still heard sharp leading edges and precise transients. Basically, the voices and instruments sounded very natural and controlled. Unlike with my dynamic rig, I didn't get much sibilance.
The treble was not really the highlight of this system. It is definitely not as crisp at the Stealth treble. However, I must comment that the Stealth treble can get a bit splashy at times and can lead to minor fatigue at higher listening levels. The treble on the Stax system seemed a bit rolled off on the very top end. However, it still had punch and was generally "satisfactory." To add to my previous comment about sibilance, perhaps there was little sibilance because the top end was rolled off.
Overall, I'd say that the Stax sound is very "fast" and "transparent." By fast, the leading edges are generally crisp and there is no smearing or mushiness or lag. By transparent, there is blackness between the notes and a sense of delicacy. There is no extra reverb, but there is still that all-important decay. I think people tend to mix up decay with bad reverberations that were not part of the original recording. I believe that the Stax setup has none of those bad reverberations that many dynamic setups suffer from. Sennheiser has attempted to reduce this reverberations by using some silk padded as well as an open-air design. They get pretty far, but not far enough my my opinion.
The detail in these phones is insane. It doesn't just pick up treble detail, but conveys the entire spectrum with near-equal accuracy. I would say that the Stax system picks up just as much detail as the ER-4S, but with none of the compressed soundstage and tinny sound. Speaking of soundstage, the Omega II's image a tad better than my dynamic rig. In comparison, my dynamic rig sounds somewhat "flat" and compressed. It's as if the musicians are standing in a 2D plane and really aren't spread out around me like they should. In general, I'd like to say that the Omega II's were slightly more engaging, but not by a big degree.
Basically, there was a tradeoff going on between delicacy, details and accuracy of the Stax and pure power, punch, and treble of my dynamic rig. While I really like the visceral impact of the Senns, the sound feels muddy to me after hearing the Stax. The feeling of putting the Sennheisers back on after listening to the Stax's for almost an hour was something like "Hmmm, did the sound just get worse, or are my perceptions forever changed?" I think the latter occured. The Senns have a great sound that I personally like. However, I now feel that they just don't portray all that there is to hear in a recording. While the physical part of a headphone-listening experience is important nonetheless, the mental part is probably most important. The Stax have so much detail and imaging to offer that the mind is captivated...note the word "captivated" and not simply just interested.
All in all, I'd say that Vertigo's setup was pretty amazing. However, not as great as I thought it should have been. I think my perceptions have already been warped by listening to great headphones for such a long time. I keep on forgetting about the rule of diminishing returns. The Stax are better, but maybe only 10% "better". I hate to use the word "better" because it can mean so many things. I'd like to define "better" allowing the listener to get "lost" in the music and not have to think about the phones on his head. Everyone knows that this experience is subjective, so this 10% may be meaningless to you. However, I'm sure that my opinions on the general sound of the Omegas may have been helpful to many. Judging by the publicity that the Omega II's have been getting lately by Nik and Kevin, I'd like so say that they are somewhat overhyped. They definitley aren't the last word in audio. My BOSE/Sony composite speaker system blows the Stax Omega II's out of the water in every way. Bose isn't a great company for high-end, but can sound not-bad with a great source and decent amplification.
I think people just need to get a few things straight in their heads. The best headphone system in the world won't solve your upgraditus problems because headphones simply don't offer what a speaker setup can offer. However what it can offer is a close, intimate listen that has the ability to extract the smallest details and "whisper" them into your ears. It's a very personal experience as opposed to the flamboyant experience attributed to speaker setups.
Anyways, those were my opinions on our little meet. Will I actually sell my dynamic rig and buy an electrostatic rig? Maybe, maybe not. I will definitely have to think on it a little bit more before I jump to any conclusions. Though, if you were to hold a gun to my head and tell me to make a choice between the two setups, I'd probably pick the Stax setups just because of the details and transparency. However, I'm sure the line would become more indistinct with more listening.
