[silvrr]

Any Ether-C owners in the Chicago land area that would be willing to let me have a listen?
 
I'm looking for a new set of closed cans and the Ether C is on the top of my list.  Problem is I haven't heard the Ether-C.  I have had some time with the Ether and read a bunch of reviews on the differences and think that I would be happy but there is nothing like a bit of head time with the actual thing.  

 

[eserafinojr]

  They confirmed that all their stock is the 1.1 version with dum cable.
 
I actually plan to buy a liquid carbon not long after I buy a totl headphone which most likely be ether C, I'll be checking the amp for sale section regularly.
 
I've done some calculation actually buying from mr speakers is the best bet, however including duty/import fee and shipping it becomes more expensive, not to mention  wait time for the shipping period, custom clearance, and the simplicity of taking the headphones to the dealer if something goes wrong makes up for it, etc.
 
It is just that much easier to buy straight from the local dealer, my local dealer is very reputable actually, it's addictedtoaudio which happens to be official dealer listed in mr speakers website.
I'm in Melbourne Australia
 
all in all, if its the same price I prefer to buy straight from mr speakers with 3.5mm hp jack DUM cable for ease of use with mojo atm

 
Great!
 
Yeah I enjoy my 4 Pin XLR DUM cable greatly. They voiced the Ether C with the DUM cable during development, that's probably why the paring is so good.

I don't own any Cavalli gear, but everyone in the community and here in the Ether forum love their stuff, and for good reason... they are TOTL amps at very fair prices.
 
I'm not impatient per se, but I'm not big on making a deposit and waiting 16-20 weeks + for an amp.
 
If it's more of a highly regarded boutique amp company or guy where it's more of a personalized one on one interaction with the builder and buyer after the same exact time frame of waiting for a Cavalli amp you get something completely custom instead.
 
Like the DNA or Eddie Current amps.
 
Just not into the bulk build cycles where there are hundreds or thousands that have ordered their Cavalli amp and wait.
 
By all accounts the wait is probably worth it, but if I had to wait that long it would be for something completely custom. 

 
Although I'd love to try a Cavalli Liquid Glass (Tube Rollers Dream), maybe if a mint one comes up one of these days!
 
The Ether C loves tube gear, the Woo Audio amps are what I would consider TOTL as far as headphone amps go with their higher end offerings.
 
Especially the WA2, WA22 and WA5.
 
I have the WA22, with great NOS tubes and absolutely love the Ether C with it.
 
One of the guys on here (Sorry don't remember your username!) uses an ALO Studio 6 with his Ether C which is another killer tube amp, an end game one at that.
 
For you sounds like it would be a lot easier to buy from your local dealer, and if they're the same price or very close I'd go with them.
 
If the Chord Mojo will be your main rig, then go for the 3.5mm TRS DUM cable. You'll be able to use the same cable with the Cavalli amp using a 3.5mm to 6.3mm plug adapter.
 
But look into a balanced cable. The soundstage, dynamics, bass control, depth, texture and overall impact is better with a balanced connection IMHO.
 
Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[JerseyD]

To be fair, Jude makes the ETHER C seem warmer than the ETHER open in the first post of this thread, so I can see where some confusion may come in...
 

I love both the Ether and the Ether C, but Jude was wrong. Perhaps he did not listen head-to-head, or had different amps or source material. The open Ether would be considered the warmer of the two by 9 out of 10 doctors.
 

 
Any reputable retailer should be only too happy to let you spend as long as you like making your mind up and have no objection to you walking away to consider further.
 
This thread has lots of people who love the Ether C, but there are also lots of people who have other preferences and are not represented here.
 
My advice is don't automatically believe the evangelism, but take your time to consider options and make your own decision.
 
Happy listening 

Absolutely. Any dealer that will not let you listen for as long as it takes you to make a decision should get out of the business. A recent customer went back and forth between Ether and Ether C more times than I could count. Loved it.

 

[potkettleblack]

Absolutely. Any dealer that will not let you listen for as long as it takes you to make a decision should get out of the business.

Audio affair in Birmingham asked me if I was going to buy something within 10 minutes of listening. ''Come on you know you want it''.

Not now I don't.

I never went back.

Hifi lounge in Bedford allowed me to listen for hours and days. The result is me returning over and over again and only spending my money with them.

If you own a shop that has the latter approach, I wish you and your company all the best for the future.

 

[JerseyD]

Audio affair in Birmingham asked me if I was going to buy something within 10 minutes of listening. ''Come on you know you want it''.

Not now I don't.

I never went back.

Hifi lounge in Bedford allowed me to listen for hours and days. The result is me returning over and over again and only spending my money with them.

If you own a shop that has the latter approach, I wish you and your company all the best for the future.

Thanks, potkettleblack!  Yes, folks can listen as long as they want...

 

[goldendarko]

  One of the guys on here (Sorry don't remember your username!) uses an ALO Studio 6 with his Ether C which is another killer tube amp, an end game one at that.
 

That's me, second your comment about the Ether C loving tube's, sounds amazing with the Studio 6, end game closed can for sure.

 

[antsin3d]

A few random things I've noticed about these as I use them more:
1. It's really cool to be able to hear the size of rooms in certain recordings. Was playing some Kurt Elling today and the jazz guitar in my left ear was very clearly bouncing off the wall to my right. The speed, clarity and detail, and staging make this possible.
2. My ears and head do start to get hot and to ache after enough hours of listening at work. It's a mix of air pressure and head clamp. My oversized sconce exacerbate this. I might get some velour pads to try, see if that helps the air pressure part. Anyone know ones that fit?
3. The staging, how it so cleanly places instruments to my left and right, is amazing. However I often used to work with one ear off so that I could hear stuff in the office. If I do that now I miss half the song

 

[MattTCG]

The hm5 pads will fit snugly. Can't promise you'll like the sound though.

 

[jfrocke]

Just found a nice Ether C demo track during my evening listening session.  Lots of spaciousness on this track.
 
Stevie Ray Vaughan - "Chitlins Con Carne" from the MFSL version of The Sky Is Crying album
 
Enjoy!

 

[Hotwire]

Anyone know of any place in the Netherlands or Flemish Belgium where I can give these a listen?
 
And to owners or those who have auditioned: do you consider this a genuine end-game product? I mean, do you find that there's very little left to be desired (in terms of sound, comfort, and durability) that will lead you to buyer's remorse in a few years down the road? (I know the "is this an end-game product" question has probably been asked a lot in this thread, but I felt needing to rephrase the question with a more specified definition of the phrase "end-game".)

 

[Robobandit]

Okay.. I gave in and bought a pair of Ether C's.
 
I'd blame everyone in this thread, but the truth is I didn't read everything until after I'd purchased them.
 
I was wanting a closed headphone for use at work due to some particularly noisy people in the office next to mine, so I started looking around.. then found Tyll's review over at InnerFidelity. 
 
I had been thinking about something cheaper.. say in the $2-300 range, but it was tax refund season.. and I decided to splurge a little.
 
 
Right out of the box, I love the sound of these cans. I won't make an attempt to describe it, as I'd just end up making **** up trying to describe how I think they sound. My ears aren't "trained", I just know what I think sounds good.
 
 
I'm certain that my upstream gear is holding the Ether-C and my other headphones (HD800) back, but I'm not at the point where I'm willing (or able) to spend a lot of money on upgrades.
 
Right now, I have the following - 
 
Bifrost Uber /w usb gen 2 (no multibit upgrade)
Vali 1
 
Obviously something like a Yggdrasil would be a massive upgrade, but currently I can't justify that kind of outlay for new gear, at least not so soon after buying the cans themselves.
 
 
I'm open to suggestions on potential gear upgrades!
 
 
Right now, I'm pretty happy sound wise with what I have and I'm sure the cans themselves will improve over the course of the burn-in period.
 
I was just thinking I'd start doing the research on where my setup can improve.

 

[CFGamescape]

  Okay.. I gave in and bought a pair of Ether C's.
 
I'd blame everyone in this thread, but the truth is I didn't read everything until after I'd purchased them.
 
I was wanting a closed headphone for use at work due to some particularly noisy people in the office next to mine, so I started looking around.. then found Tyll's review over at InnerFidelity. 
 
I had been thinking about something cheaper.. say in the $2-300 range, but it was tax refund season.. and I decided to splurge a little.
 
 
Right out of the box, I love the sound of these cans. I won't make an attempt to describe it, as I'd just end up making **** up trying to describe how I think they sound. My ears aren't "trained", I just know what I think sounds good.
 
 
I'm certain that my upstream gear is holding the Ether-C and my other headphones (HD800) back, but I'm not at the point where I'm willing (or able) to spend a lot of money on upgrades.
 
Right now, I have the following - 
 
Bifrost Uber /w usb gen 2 (no multibit upgrade)
Vali 1
 
Obviously something like a Yggdrasil would be a massive upgrade, but currently I can't justify that kind of outlay for new gear, at least not so soon after buying the cans themselves.
 
 
I'm open to suggestions on potential gear upgrades!
 
 
Right now, I'm pretty happy sound wise with what I have and I'm sure the cans themselves will improve over the course of the burn-in period.
 
I was just thinking I'd start doing the research on where my setup can improve.

At work, I use the iFi micro iDSD. It's fantastic with the Ether C.

 

[MattTCG]

 
At work, I use the iFi micro iDSD. It's fantastic with the Ether C.

 
+1...and the dual Burr brown dac is really nice in that kit. 

 

[rmoody]

  Okay.. I gave in and bought a pair of Ether C's.
 
I'd blame everyone in this thread, but the truth is I didn't read everything until after I'd purchased them.
 
I was wanting a closed headphone for use at work due to some particularly noisy people in the office next to mine, so I started looking around.. then found Tyll's review over at InnerFidelity. 
 
I had been thinking about something cheaper.. say in the $2-300 range, but it was tax refund season.. and I decided to splurge a little.
 
 
Right out of the box, I love the sound of these cans. I won't make an attempt to describe it, as I'd just end up making **** up trying to describe how I think they sound. My ears aren't "trained", I just know what I think sounds good.
 
 
I'm certain that my upstream gear is holding the Ether-C and my other headphones (HD800) back, but I'm not at the point where I'm willing (or able) to spend a lot of money on upgrades.
 
Right now, I have the following - 
 
Bifrost Uber /w usb gen 2 (no multibit upgrade)
Vali 1
 
Obviously something like a Yggdrasil would be a massive upgrade, but currently I can't justify that kind of outlay for new gear, at least not so soon after buying the cans themselves.
 
 
I'm open to suggestions on potential gear upgrades!
 
 
Right now, I'm pretty happy sound wise with what I have and I'm sure the cans themselves will improve over the course of the burn-in period.
 
I was just thinking I'd start doing the research on where my setup can improve.

 
Vali 2. Huge improvement over the Vali 1. Sounded great with my Ether C when I borrowed my bud's for the weekend. He damn near didn't get it back.

 

[ejong7]

  I was just thinking I'd start doing the research on where my setup can improve.

Liquid Carbon. You will not regret it. However, you have about a day to contemplate it as the pre-order phase is almost ending. This time, or never ever.