[gsferrari]

Dixie Flatline, cetoole, stryker, and others -

I am ashamed to say that I did not get to really associate names with faces. You guys were all fantastic. Some of the new kids were great...full of enthusiasm which was a refreshing sight for a meet-hardened bunch of people. I noted one attendee making notes on his "Blackberry" handheld...I just got one of those thingies for myself

Can the new guys who interacted with me please PM me and identify yourselves in the pictures that will surely follow my posts? I really feel bad for not spending more time talking to you guys...


Stevio -
It is always a pleasure to interact to one of the most interesting people I have had the fortune of meeting through HeadFi. I felt pretty bad to leave so early and miss what else you had to say. Needless to say I am sure we will spend a LOT more time in Florida. I urge you to join us all for the usual "one-day ahead and one-day after" style of meeting. We stay at a hotel one night ahead of the meet, spend the next day listening to stuff and then talk about everything overnight. A lot more relaxed way of meeting and the perfect opportunity for me to talk to you in detail.

BTW - The Qualia experience is still unbelievable. The reversal of my opinion is not something I hesitate to admit to...but the amount by which these Qualias seem to have turned around from the Qualia I heard at ayt999s place just leaves me stunned!

 

[lan]

NICE! The crazy thing is how come I didn't read about this meet until now?

 

[tom hankins]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsferrari Dixie Flatline, cetoole, stryker, and others - I am ashamed to say that I did not get to really associate names with faces. You guys were all fantastic. Some of the new kids were great...full of enthusiasm which was a refreshing sight for a meet-hardened bunch of people. I noted one attendee making notes on his "Blackberry" handheld...I just got one of those thingies for myself Can the new guys who interacted with me please PM me and identify yourselves in the pictures that will surely follow my posts? I really feel bad for not spending more time talking to you guys... Stevio - It is always a pleasure to interact to one of the most interesting people I have had the fortune of meeting through HeadFi. I felt pretty bad to leave so early and miss what else you had to say. Needless to say I am sure we will spend a LOT more time in Florida. I urge you to join us all for the usual "one-day ahead and one-day after" style of meeting. We stay at a hotel one night ahead of the meet, spend the next day listening to stuff and then talk about everything overnight. A lot more relaxed way of meeting and the perfect opportunity for me to talk to you in detail. BTW - The Qualia experience is still unbelievable. The reversal of my opinion is not something I hesitate to admit to...but the amount by which these Qualias seem to have turned around from the Qualia I heard at ayt999s place just leaves me stunned!

Which systems did you hear the Qualias in, and what about them made you turn your thoughts around.

 

[gsferrari]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tom hankins Which systems did you hear the Qualias in, and what about them made you turn your thoughts around.

Hello Tom. I will be posting detailed impressions shortly. To put a long story short for the time being - they sounded fantastic in almost every setup that was at the meet...I HOGGED the Qualias for the entire duration of the meet and went from amp to amp to get a good idea of its abilities.

Tell you what...I am not even tempted anymore...waaaay past that stage and into the "waiting for new job so I can buy Qualia" stage...the Qualia ROXXORS!

 

[gsferrari]

Me getting some of my stuff together for the LONG drive...

tkam's setup. Stand by Headphile

I spent a lot of time discussing stuff with this headfier and I dont remember his name

Please PM me...

Thrice really built a stonker. I loathed the PPA...this thing is a HUGELY better sounding amp...more pleasing...warmer than the PPA. This is the M3.

Hirsch's setup(s)...

Bryan a.k.a Highflying9 - Dude...it was awesome to meet you in person. You are a lot less crazy than I thought you would be

The Audiovalve is gorgeous. I want the Wadia though

Wadiaaaaaah...eargasmic!

Chinese amp and the cult-classic...Wheatfield HA2

meh

Driving to and from the meet was not pleasant at all. Conditions were TERRIBLE...and it just kept getting worse and worse

With all the snow outside - I am putting away all this audio stuff and hitting the slopes with my new skiing gear

More impressions to follow. Where is everyone else?

No impressions to share??

 

[ayt999]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gsferrari BTW - The Qualia experience is still unbelievable. The reversal of my opinion is not something I hesitate to admit to...but the amount by which these Qualias seem to have turned around from the Qualia I heard at ayt999s place just leaves me stunned!

I guess that shows the improvements the 010 makes as it burns in.

(and gets matched up with more synergistic components.)

it's not hard to imagine a change in your impressions when going from a brand new 010 with less than a day on them connected to whatever amplifier I had around... to a pair with lots of hours on them with an upgraded cable, connected to a system that was probably matched to the headphone.

so with all the equipment there, what was the best combo?

 

[tyrion]

Finally, some pics. Thanks Guru! It looks like there was a lot of cool stuff. That last picture reminds why I live in Florida. Keep the impressions and pics coming.

 

[rhizome]

hey guys. looks like a great meet. unfortunately something came up on friday night and i couldn't make it. too bad - lots of interesting new stuff. looking forward to more pics and impressions!

 

[gsferrari]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ayt999 I guess that shows the improvements the 010 makes as it burns in. (and gets matched up with more synergistic components.) it's not hard to imagine a change in your impressions when going from a brand new 010 with less than a day on them connected to whatever amplifier I had around... to a pair with lots of hours on them with an upgraded cable, connected to a system that was probably matched to the headphone. so with all the equipment there, what was the best combo?

I think my Qualia impressions changed over time. Yours sounded terrible because they were new and had stock cables...nothing wrong with your amp or source. Stevio's Qualias were burned in for more than 1000 hours and had the black dragon cables by Moon Audio. These Qualias sounded fantastic out of every setup we had there...

I think it will suffice to say that - if you can afford a Qualia - go for it BUT only if you are prepared to spend time (1000 hours on burn in?) and money (aftermarket cable).

The cables made a HUGE difference. Hirsch also has a recabled Qualia which sounded more analytical and leaner on the bass. Stevio's Qualia had a warmer tone and BIG bass...I think the bass would have eclipsed the SA5000 bass with ease.

Also - Stevio's Qualia was a perfect fit for me...I want to ask him if I can borrow them for a short while...but I will ask only after people close to him will assure me that he doesnt have a firearm of some sort

FL could be fatal to me if this is the case

gs

 

[cetoole]

I had a great time at the meet, it was great to finally see all of you. There were some cans there that just blew me away, the HE60 being my favorite. Thanks Thrice for having us over. I am afraid this meet will have a huge negative effect on my wallet, as I will have to get new portable phones

, several new amps, and sources. I also want to upgrade my home cans, but I am afraid I won't be able to get anything that I can justify

BTW: I am #1 (in unnamed people)

 

[ayt999]

why did Hirsch's 010 and Stevio's 010 sound different? can you elaborate on that? I think I want Stevio's 010, if it has a medium size headband that is.

so you think that matching an amplifier to the 010 isn't something that is really necessary?

 

[gsferrari]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ayt999 why did Hirsch's 010 and Stevio's 010 sound different? can you elaborate on that? I think I want Stevio's 010, if it has a medium size headband that is.

Different cables?
Different levels of burn in?

Im not sure. Hirsch's also had the blue pads (although im not crazy enough to think that had something to do with the sound

).

Quote:

so you think that matching an amplifier to the 010 isn't something that is really necessary?

YMMV because these impressions are not based on close quiet ABing as I usually prefer to do.

Which is why I want to approach Stevio for the Qualia loaning...I will PM him and see what he has to say.

gs

 

[stevieo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ayt999 why did Hirsch's 010 and Stevio's 010 sound different? can you elaborate on that? I think I want Stevio's 010, if it has a medium size headband that is. so you think that matching an amplifier to the 010 isn't something that is really necessary?

i have a small & my moon black dragon has hundreds of hours on it. hirsch's black dragon arrived just a couple of days ago & his 010 arrived a week or two ago. it is still in it's infancy.

 

[tennisets]

I'm "#4" in the pictures, listening to the SA1K. I'll post some detailed impressions of everything sometime in the near future, when I feel up to it (I've been REALLY tired lately, for whatever reason).

Just to very briefly sum up my experience, it was really great getting to meet some other head-fiers, especially those who I didn't meet at Hirsch's place last June. As far as equipment goes, my favorite setup was the G08 feeding the Headamp GS-1 driving Grado RS-1s. I couldn't get enough, I could have sat there for a long time if I hadn't had to leave (I didn't get to that setup until late in the meet). I also greatly enjoyed the Sony SA series phones being driven by the Veda Audio Dynahi, paired with a Music Hall Maverick. The Sony's were also good off of another solid state amp I tried them with, I don't remember which one though. I didn't like them as much with tubes.

I was very interested in hearing the K1000s, and I thought I might want to buy them before I heard them, but I only wound up listening to them for a few minutes total. I just didn't like those headphones.

Another standout setup was the Senn HE60 being driven by a Stax tube amp, I think that amp was hooked up to the Wadia. I said this was a standout setup, and it sounded really good from a technical standpoint, and I can see how people like these headphones, but I guess I just don't like the Senn sound. I owned HD-600s for a while, until I sold them to buy a speaker system. I listened to HD-650s at the meet, and I just couldn't stand them. They sounded dark and syrupy, and they were very boring. Definitely not for me.

I didn't like the PS-1s. I don't know if it was the cans or the Headphile C-Pads or what, but they had a way overblown bass (to my ears), and also were pretty uninvolving and dull (I never thought I would say that about a Grado!).

I didn't care for the woody CD3K with K1000 drivers, and I didn't hear the HP1000 CD3Ks.

The third setup that I really loved was the Stax 404 headphones being driven by a Headamp KGSS running off the Meridian G08. I had a hard time deciding what I liked best out of the RS-1s, SA5Ks, and 404s. I don't know what I'll do when it comes time for me to buy headphones late this summer (I'm going to college, so I've gotta have headphones! Heh, the excuses I make to buy audio gear). I'm leaning toward Grados of some sort (MS2i, perhaps, and a Gilmore Lite?), but the Stax were unbelievably immersive and involving in a way I've never heard before. I think the SA5K were probably my least favorite of the three favorite setups that I listed.

And of course, thank you Thrice for being such a wonderful host and taking the time to let all of us head-fiers into your home!

-Edward

 

[ayt999]

so stevio, how about you send me your 010 and I can use my medium-sized headband with them. lol

what did you think of the Qualia on different amplifiers?