Is ED10 a good choice for a Full-sized can Newbie?

[googleli]

Looking back at this thread is funny.
 
When I first posted this, I had no headphones at all (except a set of Pioneer 5.1 channel headphone system if you could call that a headphone). The UE18 Pro, the Hifiman 801 and the Black Bird (and a bunch of universal IEMs) were all I got, and I thought I had the world with those.
 
Then I decided to hit the button and bought ED10. Three months later... Look at my signature block now lol
 
All I can say that the ED10 is good for a noob - once I got it, the following events happened - the defective earpads and the eventual fix, the choice of an amp, the purchase of a US$3K+ DAC, tube rolling, power cables, interconnects...  all these certainly burnt a hole in my wallet, but what a ride!  During these few months my knowledge in tubes, sound matching increased considerably, and better yet I have set up an office rig with Hifiman driving the Beyerdynamic T5p (same price as the T1 but portable).
 
It wasn't until I got my LCD-2, a pair of headphones highly praised on Head-fi, did I start to appreciate the tonal differences in headphones. I know in what ways the LCD-2 is better or worse than the post-earpad-fix ED10. Although in the end I still prefer my ED10, I do not regret getting the LCD-2.
 
Now I gotta stop a little. I need an upgrade to my roadster which I've been using for ages. Which of the BMW Z4 or the Mercedes SLK do you guys like more?
 
 

 

[tyoung8]

This is jokes.  I like the I want one headphone to rule them all and I don't want to spend any more after I get my one headphone and ... LCD2 x Leben.. nice one.  

 

[googleli]

Lol that's what I thought when I bought the ED10. Then came the amp... still couldn't tame the highs to what I'd like. To some disappointment I bought myself a pair of T5P to compensate. They sound different but still very good - a bit bass weak, but its mid is very smooth - a bit too artificial to my liking though. But I am very happy with it as a simple office rig matched with the Hifiman 801.
 
Then I was staring at my Leben one day and thought it could do better than driving a portable headphone. So I pre-ordered the LCD2. Friend came and said source could be improved big time - I was sitll using Hifiman line out as a source then, using a QED 3.5mm to RCA connector wire to connect to my Leben. Read some reviews and bought the Esoteric D-07. It was a hard choice, among the Estoeric, the Weiss and the Chord DACs - the Weiss DAC 202 is the best in terms of 3D sound stage and vocal but at nearly US$8K I don't think it is worth twice as the Esoteric D-07. The Esoteric shines more balanced and really good with orchestral music as well.
 
News on the ED10 earpad problem came out from Randall of Head-fi. The first time I had some hope on the ED10 again. I emailed Ultrasone Germany direct and got some positive feedback - they were going to ship the earpads to Hong Kong!
 
During which I decided not to give up on IEMs yet - to me the UE18 Pro straight out of headphone still sounded really good and didn't have all the troubles of amp matching and stuff. So I ordered the Westone ES5. At the same time bought a pair of Westone 4 as birthday present for my younger brother.
 
The ED10 earpads came and the distributor asked me to bring my ED10 for a change. I couldn't believe how the earpads could change the sound so much. Frankly the ED10 was already very good at the low mid range before the change - but after the change - it just seems unreal - the sound of acoustic music and female vocal is just amazing.
 
Then I changed the power cable of the Esoteric DAC to a US$800 Siltech cable - big improvement to my surprise - Siltech really lives up to its standard. When I think everything is set - comes the order page of LCD-2. And during all of the things happening above I have alaready spent around US$1K for tube rolling on my Leben and finally settled down on my 1950's Amperex long plate "D" getter 12AX7 and 1950's Mullard EL84s. LCD-2 came. Then I switched the cable of LCD-2 to Norse cable.
 
Yes - what a ride - I was hoping to get the most expensive new production dynamic headphones on earth and end it once and for all. Well it has come to a temporary end for me at the moment - and the ED10 still ends up to be my preferred headphone (albeit only among the Beyerdynamic T5P, the LCD-2 and the ED10 itself) - but what I went through was quite different from what I expected when I paid for the ED10 at first. 

 

[tyoung8]

Great Story mate.  For me, I just hope to one day in my life time get the LCD2 and I would be happy.
 
Well, if you ever feel the itch to try another headphone out, the Stax SR 009 is coming out in late April.  

 

[DemonicLemming]

"Not rich - quite the opposite".  And by the end of the thread, more spent on headphones, amps, and wires than the total yearly disposable income of me and the other two engineers I work with.
 
Balls, and I thought spending $1300 on a set of orthos, an amp, and a DAC was money...
 
Although, I would say about the SLK and the Z4 - screw both and buy a Zonda.