[catscratch]

Neil, I feel really sorry for you man. Once all those are gone, you'll have to go back to your 650

 

[tourmaline]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jorg And what about your R10 love? Is it gone now?

orpheus=r10 crusher.LOL

 

[tourmaline]

great to have all those gorgeous headphones for auditioning.

a while ago i saw an orpheus for sale on ebay though.
i looked a bit fishy to me though.

 

[TrevorNetwork]

W2002 / L3000 = R10 crusher.

 

[NeilPeart]

Some better pics:

ayt999,
Thanks again for letting me borrow your stuff, regardless of my penchant for clumsiness…

Bifcake,
I know I look dorky with all these cans on but we’ll just have to agree to never speak of this moment again – it truly was derived from a moment of weakness…

Edwood,
No molestation pics this time…my thoughts regarding the soundstage are listed below.

Alu,
Well I must remain faithful to my custom title…

Shang-Ti Chen,
I’m only cool-looking when I’m wearing the Orpheus…

bhd812,
This is the only way Grados exhibit soundstage!

Jorg,
I still love the R10, but I love the HE90 more…

bg4533,
You are all welcome to visit so long as you bring some yummy foods.

Talonz,
The focus is trying to snap the pic with one hand and holding the camera steady with the other.

fureshi,
I haven’t been to the Brit in some time myself…

Jahn,
Thankfully I have not yet taken a wife!

catscratch,
Actually the balanced HD650 holds up remarkably well to the other cans believe it or not.

Tourmaline,
The HE90 is my choice for best headphone EVAR.

TrevorNetwork,
The W2002 is way off from challenging the R10, and while the L3000 improved the W2002 quite a bit, it still lacks that special seductive charm of the R10.

Here are some updates after 20+ hours charge time/warm up (since 9pm last night):

Things other headphones do better than (or equally as well as) the HE 90:
AKG K 1000: better frontal soundstage (headstage?); the best headphone that I’ve heard in this regard (the closest to a speaker-like presentation I’ve heard in a headphone; the HE 90 comes close but not as close as the K 1000 in this regard)
Grado HP-2: certain details in the bass are revealed; the HE 90 is the only other headphone that I’ve heard resolve such minute and obscure details hidden in the bass-lines – it matches the HP-1000 in this regard
Grado PS-1: more bass quantity (probably more than any other headphone I’ve heard, especially when driven in balanced mode), but the sound is muddy without authoritative amplification
Sennheiser HD 650 with balanced Zu Mobius: features the best bass impact of any headphone I’ve ever heard – it is perfectly integrated into the rest of the spectrum while hitting fast and hard; it’s the one area that I feel no other headphone has reached, not even the might Orpheus
Sony MDR-R10: a certain seductive quality to the midrange (especially female vocalists) that the HE 90 almost reproduces, but doesn’t quite attain (though it comes closer than any other headphone I’ve heard; perhaps this midrange magic is a result of the wooden enclosures of the R10)
Stax Omega II: this headphone presents a very wide soundstage with extremely fast transients and dynamics, something that the HE 90 matches; however, the bass quantity is more present on the Omega II, and this gives it an unbalanced, bottom-heavy sound that seems to obscure some treble energy (which lends the cans a dark tonality); some people when comparing the two may find the opposite is true: that the HE90 is too detailed, un-involving, bass-lean and thin-sounding (I am NOT one of those people

)

Even when considering these facts, the HE 90 is simply so strong in every audio arena that its subtle deficiencies (when compared to other top-end cans) are obscured by the positive characteristics of this headphone – it is the only headphone I’ve heard that achieves near-flawless sound. I can listen to the HE 90 and not think about listening to the same tune on some high-end speakers or whether this or that setting is optimal. The HE 90 somehow synthesizes un-holy resolution/detail/analytical characteristics with groove/PRaT/toe-tapping qualities, and it’s the only headphone I’ve heard that has truly mastered this difficult hybrid. Even the R10 and Omega II could not quell my balanced HD650 fetish, but the HE 90 has managed to do just that quite easily. D@mn...

 

[agile_one]

Now this is what I call a kid in a candy store.

NielPeart - you must feel like the boy in Willy Wonka with all that great stuff. Thanks for sharing via the nice photos, and enjoy your time in headphone heaven.

 

[D-EJ915]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReasonablyLucid Only slightly overkill

owned, hahaha

That's realy nice of him

 

[saint.panda]

Whereas NeilPeart gets a taste of the splendors of headphone heaven and predestinated to part with it someday, ayt999 is just taking a break from it

Bump for more impressions!

 

[ayt999]

Quote:

Originally Posted by saint.panda ayt999 is just taking a break from it

well... I just arrived in Japan and will begin testing out the new cans that have come out within the past few months so I don't know about that. other than getting some more time with the 010 at the Qualia store none of the headphones I'll be looking at are of the same caliber as the ones I let NeilPeart borrow, but they still are nice cans to listen to (MDR-SA5000, ATH-AD2000....).

so ya, any updates / further impressions?

 

[Hunter_Killer]

Neil, tell me which headphone suits Opeth better! More specifically, which set of cans make Orchid and Morning Rise sound the best...what it is like?

 

[raif]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilPeart Edwood, No molestation pics this time…my thoughts regarding the soundstage are listed below.

Darn straight, you said you would wait for me before getting "personal" with any more of ayt's headphones.

 

[bg4533]

I think AYT is going to come back and NeilPeart and a few other members will have disappeared with all of AYT's gear.

 

[NeilPeart]

Well I'm still finding more to love about the HE90's sound - the soundstage is simply unbelievable, the detail is amazing, and something else: there is a certain characteristic of well-recorded vinyl and hi-rez digital (SACD and DVD-A) played back on hi-end speaker systems that I've heard only several times in certain rooms. The HE90 is the only headphone I've heard that captures this "air" or treble detail that sits beyond the range of hearing actual sounds. I first noticed this phenomenon when Morsel and AMB demonstrated how certain CDs sounded "beheaded" when compared to their vinyl counterpart and it truly was amazing to behold. Since then I have been collecting DVD-Audios like mad and I've noticed the same vinyl-like sound with certain discs; however, that sense of air was absent, and I always attributed that to vinyl's lingering superiority over digital (even hi-rez). However, after hearing this same magic with the HE90, it was simply a fact that my headphones and speakers weren't able to reproduce what my source and media were providing.


Hunter_Killer: Morning Rise and Orchid sound best with the HE90, even though they aren’t well-recorded (Opeth’s later material is much better recorded, and therefore sound even better with the Orpheus). Opeth has always included subtle layering and details in their music (which is another reason I prefer them to the average metal band), and this is translated very well by the HE90. I realize some may question this selection, because they may cite the HE90s affinity towards detail and electrostatics lack if impact as a whole. I disagree; the HE90 simply sounds better to me with every musical piece I’ve tried (even AC/DC). However, I bet if I had an external amp (Supra, Stealth, Max, Prehead, etc.) the HP-1000 or W2002 would be my choice for Opeth headphones – the DAC1’s headphone amp simply has poor synergy with most headphones other than the HD580/600/650.

Raif: You’re welcome to drop by anytime and “enjoy” Alex’s collection…

bg4533: Alex trusts me…though I don’t know why; especially since I’m moving somewhere in South America around mid-January…oh I forgot to mention that to him…

Head-Fi member Scrith is dropping by today with his upgraded MPX3 (with tons o’ tubes) and the Sony Qualia 010…

Pictures and impressions will be posted here…

 

[TrevorNetwork]

Neil:

You have a great opportunity, and it looks like you're really taking advantage of it! Let's get some more impressions up! Although I have not heard the L3000, I will have to respectively disagree with your view of the R10 vs. W2002. I feel the W2002 have are faster, have better bass, and superior detail. The W2002, like many headphones requires a really clean, SS amplifier to sound its best. I hope you attend the Seattle or Chicago meets coming in January, I'll prove it to you.

Nevermind the fact that I'd love to meet the Berkeley crowd.

Cheers!

 

[kramer5150]

holy $hit that will feed my family for a year and pay for my kids college tuition..