[FastAndClean]

  stax 009 looks like a steal now

it is 3500, buget cans

 

[FastAndClean]

after one year we will call stax 009 "poor man Hifiman"

 

[kapanak]

At this point, Head-Fi moderation should close and delete this entire thread. Then, open a new one with the first post having all photographs and information officially released by Fang. That way, the justifications stated will be front and centre, and a meaningful discussion, or bashing, can take place.
 
I'll say this though, since my very long, detailed post was deleted. A luxury boutique brand must earn its price. Simply raising the profit margins to 300 fold is not what makes something a luxury product. Focal can charge $4000 for its Utopia headphones, because not only is Focal an established uber luxury brand, but they also introduced a disruptive product with near universally praised sound quality and performance, and built it with high quality, top of the line materials and with a build quality that rivals the very best of what makes a luxury product.

 

[conquerator2]

  after one year we will call stax 009 "poor man Hifiman"

Lucky for us there's the Shangri-La, so we can do it right now 

 

[FastAndClean]

  Lucky for us there's the Shangri-La, so we can do it right now 

oh man, i almost forgot about the 50 000 dollars electrostatic hifiman headphones, good point

 

[Beagle]

  Once upon a time it was said "you get what you pay for". I like the older adage of "there's a sucker born every minute". I've owned the HighWayRobbers phones and they have been very cheaply constructed. I was an early HE-5 adopter and was an unwitting beta tester. A new model was introduced before the resonance decayed in the diaphragm, from the playing of the very first song. This has been going on for a very long while. 

 
I had the HE-5 and it fell apart on me. The metal bail just snapped off. I've had pita sandwiches that stayed together longer. The new frames employed on the HE-400i and HE-560 are much, much better..and lighter.

 

[kapanak]

One other matter at hand is the claims for CNC costs and the nanotechnology used for the driver membranes.
 
HE1000 drivers tend to fail quite a lot, possibly due to thin membrane and being overdriven.
 
The assumption is because a lot of them is handmade and the membrane is very thin. Except, Hifiman's Dr. Fang does not have the three generations of Germans who have trained for such handling.
 
With respect to CNC, mention of the rise of the cost by 3-5X due to it seems to lack a distinct air of knowledge regarding industrial productions. To be really proud of CNC could suggest it is because that is the first time Dr. Fang has had to hire a CAD engineer and purchase a high end CNC machine.
 
Either way, a 5 fold increase in production costs cannot justify a five fold increase in overall price of a product.

 

[SeaWo|f]

It took an additional 25~ years but the 2 channel effect is in full swing with personal audio. Considering that a good part of the consumer base is here because of what happened in 2 channel, the level of support for products in this price range regardless of their perceived quality or lack there of will be interesting to track. 
 
I have handled and listen to a few of the current TOTL headphones from Stax(007mkii 009), Hifiman(HeKv1 HeXv2), Audeze(LCDx LCD3 LCD4), Senneheiser(HD800) and Beyerdynamic(T1), and simply don't find a great deal of difference in construction. I have unfortunately have yet to get my hands and ears on the new Focal headphones. 
 
I am wondering what people want from a materials stand point from the edition 6? If they are wood+metal+leather what other considerations with regard to their production do people feel is necessary for a headphone of this price?

 

[mithrandir38]

It took an additional 25~ years but the 2 channel effect is in full swing with personal audio. Considering that a good part of the consumer base is here because of what happened in 2 channel, the level of support for products in this price range regardless of their perceived quality or lack there of will be interesting to track. 

I have handled and listen to a few of the current TOTL headphones from Stax(007mkii 009), Hifiman(HeKv1 HeXv2), Audeze(LCDx LCD3 LCD4), Senneheiser(HD800) and Beyerdynamic(T1), and simply don't find a great deal of difference in construction. I have unfortunately have yet to get my hands and ears on the new Focal headphones. 

I am wondering what people want from a materials stand point from the edition 6? If they are wood+metal+leather what other considerations with regard to their production do people feel is necessary for a headphone of this price?

no matter what the manufacturer may say, veneer is cheap, and looks extremely tacky. I don't have a problem with the metal elements, other than that it is just a poor looking design. And it uses the same suspension design as their least expensive headphones, albeit with leather in the headband. The Shangri-La is a great sounding headphone with an awesome amplifier. But damn, let's get away from the butt ugly, cheap wood veneer. Other companies are bringing better design, and better materials to their headphones, and HFM should follow suit.

 

[Nankai]

I have mentioned that our headphones use multiple lays veneer plywood instead of a layer of veneer on the top of plastic. This material is very solid, thin and sound great. Our headphones are so reliable that it can survive after 1.5 to 2m drop test. Comparing to nature wood, it is easy to make, but much heavier, and easy to be damaged. Natural wood  earcup never passed 1meter drop test. I saw people never take my words and keep blind. 

 

[Beagle]

  I have to say this thread is just like the culture revolution 1966 - 1976. People don't listen, and don't want to listen, neither the headphone nor the technology. And they don't want to see the actual product as well. Attacking and bashing for nothing. Good night. 

 
Thanks for insulting us. To hell with you and your headphones. I'm done with Hifiman.

 

[gikigill]

People have had a bad experience, we aren't supposed to listen to you unless you prove yourselves.

The HEK was a bad enough experience and you're not redeeming yourself with the Edition 6 from the looks of it.

$6000 will get me the Utopia and my favourite Stax,the SR007MK2.

 

[SeaWo|f]

no matter what the manufacturer may say, veneer is cheap, and looks extremely tacky. I don't have a problem with the metal elements, other than that it is just a poor looking design. And it uses the same suspension design as their least expensive headphones, albeit with leather in the headband. The Shangri-La is a great sounding headphone with an awesome amplifier. But damn, let's get away from the butt ugly, cheap wood veneer. Other companies are bringing better design, and better materials to their headphones, and HFM should follow suit.

 
I completely understand the veener issue. Maybe some sort of staining with a nice lacquer would be a more desirable approach?
 
But the suspension system I actually find to be one of the nicer ones, to me it looks higher quality than Stax system or MrSpeakers. Although I have only seen the MrSpeakers system in pictures. I find the LCD4 suspension system to look especially slick with the carbon and the relatively small gap between the head band and the carbon support, but for me it creates a hotspot at the top.. because of that small gap. I find the older style audeze headband much more comfortable. I get that a form of it is also used on headphones that are much cheaper HE-400s, but if its reliable, has a solid feel to the adjustment and is comfortable why alter something that works further than making the headband leather?

 

[bosiemoncrieff]

  A luxury boutique brand must earn its price. Simply raising the profit margins to 300 fold is not what makes something a luxury product. Focal can charge $4000 for its Utopia headphones, because not only is Focal an established uber luxury brand, but they also introduced a disruptive product with near universally praised sound quality and performance, and built it with high quality, top of the line materials and with a build quality that rivals the very best of what makes a luxury product.

Frankly, releasing the price before people Jude, Tyll, and others could testify to its performance was a rookie mistake. I'm happy that we got to see it, but tactically, unless the price is a point in its favor (Vidar, for example), there's no reason to mention it until you absolutely have to. The whole rollout is an unmitigated catastrophe. Fang needs to hire a VP of Marketing who (1) speaks and writes in fluent, unbroken English, and has a working knowledge of American cultural norms, (2) can tell him to cease and desist when he's about to release an unfinished product that will require an imminent revision, and (3) has the emotional intelligence to accept criticism with grace, respect customers (including in pricing schemes), and spare us Fang's painfully awkward, borderline-egomaniacal public appearances. 
 
Nota bene: Tim Cook saves mentioning the price for the very end of the presentation, doesn't mention it eight months earlier when the product is originally announced, doesn't mention what the price goes up to, releases a technically identical $349 version, and replaces the gold version the following year for one a tenth the price (and another entry-level one for $269).
 
 

 

[Nankai]

I will post a video of drop test. Custom-made plywood earcup vs nature wood earcup. I am not sure about schedule yet, but I will try to have it before Chinese new year holiday.