[goldendarko]

When is this NY Meet? 

 

[zachawry]

The ETHER C's have been a great boon to me, these last few days. When not dealing with red tape and stuff, I plug in the ETHER C and get lost in the music. The isolating factor of the ETHER C's allowed me get lost in the music, and the music has been such a comfort. Kate Bush sounds so sublime, she is celtic Skylarke. The ETHER C is great for during the day, but at night I use my open back headphones.


Reddog, if you don't have it, the second CD of her Aerial album is some of the most sublime music I know of on hps. I'd love to hear it on C's, but I'll have to do with open Ethers for now...

 

[mrspeakers]

  When is this NY Meet? 

Saturday, Stamford CT (I know, not "NY" but it's called a NY meet).  Look in the "meets" forum.

 

[Middy]

I think it's grin removing cream, as Ether owners wife's have started complaining to Dan via face book....

 

[bflat]

Just got my Ether C but only about 8 hours of burn in and 2 hours listening. Very much in line with what folks have generally been describing for sound, no surprises. I compare to T5P and Laylas and I consider both to be fairly neutral with the T5P having a brighter, slighter harsh high end that is tamed by my WA7 amp. Ether C sounds neutral to me and the highs are as extended and detailed as T5P, but smoother. I don't find the mids colored but ever so slightly forward. Bass is definitely neutral and correlates really well with my Laylas. My personal preference is +2-3 dB bass boost at 64 Hz on down for a little oomph at the volumes I listen to. The Ether C needed +2.5 dB plus +1.5 at 128 Hz for my tastes. This will probably change once I get my balanced cable. Also I'm still tweaking the fit and there are times I can apply a very light pressure to the cups and the bass presence increases noticeably. This tells me I have not found the perfect fit yet and may not need EQ at all once I do since the adjust is so minor. I may also go back to some Holland tubes. Fun!
 
Soundstage and depth are really impressive. I would never mistake the T5P for an open headphone, but with Ether C, I could be fooled in a blind test and a quite room. The C isolates very well which is the main reason why I need to go with closed. These are very comfortable headphones imho and the rectangular cutouts of the pads are just big enough for my entire ear to fit inside so there is zero pressure on my ear lobs which I do get with the T5P.
 
One aspect I have to disagree with some folks is can the Ether C work with DAPs and portable amps? I can't imagine it works well because on my WA7 high gain, I need to go to 1-2 o'clock on the volume to get to my desired listening level. My T5P on the other hand goes to 10-11 o'clock and designed for high sensitivity for portables. If anyone is thinking portable for the C, I would make sure the amp can drive at least 500 mW at 32 Ohm. I plan to keep Ether C purely for desktop.
 
Last note - comparing the WA7/Bimby stack with the MJ2/Gumby, I have to go with MJ2 with the Ether C. The high end is simply breathtaking with the Reflektor 75 tubes on MJ2 and Gumby has more detail without harshness compared to Bimby. My T5P on the Gumby stack is too bright so much better with the WA7. However Ether C sounds great on either, but the edge goes to MJ2.

 

[x RELIC x]

I'm driving the ETHER C from the AK240, X5ii and my desktop gear. The AK240 drives them at around 105-120/150 volume level depending on the track. The X5ii drives them at around 85-95/120 volume level depending on the track. On the HA-1 balanced, with the DAC-19 as the DAC, the volume is set to around 10-11 o'clock depending on the track. For comparison the LCD-XC balanced on the HA-1 is usually at 9 o'clock on the volume pot. It makes sense as the ETHER C is 22 Ohm and 92 dB whereas the LCD-XC is 26 Ohm and 96 dB efficient.

From the portable gear there is a certain lack of dynamics compared to my desktop gear, but the ETHER C certainly gets up to my listening level with a bit of room to spare. No clipping or distortion from the portable gear. I usually listen from around 80-90 dB depending on the mood.

 

[NZtechfreak]

Isn't the Ether C sensitivity 96dbSPL/mW, not 92 (and 23 ohm impedance, not 22)?

Whatever the case, absolutely gobs of headroom with either the GOV2 or Mojo.

EDIT: Hmmm, can't seem to find the Ether C specs anywhere, they are less sensitive than the open, which are the ones with the 96dbSPL/mW rating. Where did the 92 figure actually come from?

 

[x RELIC x]

Isn't the Ether C sensitivity 96dbSPL/mW, not 92 (and 23 ohm impedance, not 22)?

Whatever the case, absolutely gobs of headroom with either the GOV2 or Mojo.

EDIT: Hmmm, can't seem to find the Ether C specs anywhere, they are less sensitive than the open, which are the ones with the 96dbSPL/mW rating. Where did the 92 figure actually come from?

From the box.

 

[NZtechfreak]

Mine didn't ship in the box, so there you go!

 

[x RELIC x]

It's interesting that the C is damped more than the O. The Mojo is so powerful for such a small device. I'm really grooving on these cans but found them a bit bright with the Mojo, but yes, gobs of headroom. Mind you that was straight to out of the box before I had to ship the Mojo on the Canadian tour. I'm going to miss the Mojo until it comes my way again, but I have the ETHER C to keep me company now.

 

[M-13]

I'm driving the ETHER C from the AK240, X5ii and my desktop gear. The AK240 drives them at around 105-120/150 volume level depending on the track. The X5ii drives them at around 85-95/120 volume level depending on the track. On the HA-1 balanced, with the DAC-19 as the DAC, the volume is set to around 10-11 o'clock depending on the track. For comparison the LCD-XC balanced on the HA-1 is usually at 9 o'clock on the volume pot. It makes sense as the ETHER C is 22 Ohm and 92 dB whereas the LCD-XC is 26 Ohm and 96 dB efficient.

From the portable gear there is a certain lack of dynamics compared to my desktop gear, but the ETHER C certainly gets up to my listening level with a bit of room to spare. No clipping or distortion from the portable gear. I usually listen from around 80-90 dB depending on the mood.

That's awesome Relic. I was thinking that I needed the Mojo for the Ether-C but if my AK100ii can drive them then I'll try to get the Ether-C first.
 
Are you using the balanced out of the AK240 or are you just using the single-ended?
 
I think the AK100ii SE and AK240 SE are close in power, but in balanced the AK240 is way more powerful

 

[x RELIC x]

That's awesome Relic. I was thinking that I needed the Mojo for the Ether-C but if my AK100ii can drive them then I'll try to get the Ether-C first.

Are you using the balanced out of the AK240 or are you just using the single-ended?

I think the AK100ii SE and AK240 SE are close in power, but in balanced the AK240 is way more powerful

Should have clarified, I'm using single ended with the DAPs. I feel that the ETHER C scales well with the source but it does sound good from the AK240. The desktop is obviously better with the ETHER C for various reasons.

 

[germay0653]

 
Saturday, Stamford CT (I know, not "NY" but it's called a NY meet).  Look in the "meets" forum.

Stamford is only 45 minutes from NYC via Metro North (train) so it's close.  Grew up there.  Is it being held at the Marriott?
 
If you like pizza and beer, try the Colony Grill on Myrtle Ave.  Thin crispy crust and quite good but not NY style.  Atmosphere is very casual, it's a bar and grill afterall, but the pizza is excellent.  If you're adventurous and like a little heat (spice) with your pie, try the hot oil pizza.

 

[mrspeakers]

 
Stamford is only 45 minutes from NYC via Metro North (train) so it's close.  Grew up there.  Is it being held at the Marriott?
 
If you like pizza and beer, try the Colony Grill on Myrtle Ave.  Thin crispy crust and quite good but not NY style.  Atmosphere is very casual, it's a bar and grill afterall, but the pizza is excellent.  If you're adventurous and like a little heat (spice) with your pie, try the hot oil pizza.

Thanks for the tips, but Fr I won't be staying there, I'll be in NY...  

 

[anorphirith]

I just had a listen at the Ether C's from a local shop and compared them to the audeze XC's. I also listened to the lcd3 and compared them to the he1000, I ended up buying the lcd3 today. best value I think
 
Comfort: Ether C much lighter and are easier to forget while wearing than the audeze XC. sound isolation seems to be a tad better than the XC, they sit much better on the head than the alpha dogs and the construction is excellent.
 
Sound: They're completely different from the XC's, the Ether C is much brighter.
I wouldn't say neutral or balanced at all, if I would describe the audeze XC's as a little dark let's say medium [minus], on the same scale I'd rate the ether C's as medium [plus] [plus]. the bass was really lacking. and not in a subtle way. the XC's sounded more musical and intimate. Although the Ether C did have a better soundstage maybe due to the apparent diluted sound. 
 
Anyway they're a definite upgrade from the alpha dogs