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My new Stax 717 arrived in the mail today from EIFL Japan. I have been running a number of Stax phones from a couple of SRM-3 amps and an older SRA 12-S preamp/headphone amp. The SRA 12-S still runs well as a pre-amp although the headphone amp has been problematic for some years, but since it only runs low bias, I have not bothered fixing it. The SRM-3's run fine but I have wanted to try a newer model. Stax has put out both the 313 and the 717 since the SRM-3.
The Stax 717 is the biggest of the Stax transistor amps, it weighs about 12 pounds, runs about 45 watts and delivers 450 volts. This is about 50% more than any other Stax amp, although I am not sure how this compares with the various non-Stax amps such as the Gilmore and McAlister.
Cost-wise it is almost $3K US from the local dealer but only $1200.00 from EIFL Japan. I chose EIFL because of past successful dealings and because they sell the unit adapted to US 117 volts, rather than Japanese 100 volts as does Audiocubes. Apparently it is all to do with the fuse panel inside the unit.
I should probably open it up and take a photo for general information.
I am now in the process of checking the amp out/breaking it in with 3 different Stax phones. While you can just plug phones in and get a decent result, I personally believe that Stax phones need to be warmed up, used regularly and left plugged in, even if not turned on, to get the best sound.
I started with a set of Lambda Nova pro's which had been in use on an almost daily basis with the SRM-3. I pulled out the SRM-3 and plugged the 717 in its place, using its power cord, IC's and the like, and started some serious listening after about an hour's warm-up. The most striking initial observations were the marked increase in detail. I was listening to a Purcell vocal piece and heard a cello accompanying the harpsichord, for the first time. The bass was clearer and somewhat more powerful, as was the treble. In fact the treble was slightly edgy, but this cleared up after the unit was on for a few more hours. Still the most striking feature was the increased detail. It was like the intremodulation distortion was markedly lowered. For example two soloists singing, stood out very clearly from each other, they seemed to be standing so distinctly in different locations that I could reach out and touch them.
Later in the day I took the unit home and plugged it into its intended location, as a headphone amp with a CEC 51z belt drive CD player, Musical Fidelity A324 DAC and Monarchy Jitter reducer. The phones were old Stax Sigma pro's that had been listening to for a few weeks.
The Stax Sigma is an old design, which predates the Lambda models. It is often described as a pair of shoe boxes on the head. It takes the diaphragms away from the ear and places them facing forward and back. The sound is thus projected over the ear, somewhat in the manner of normal listening to real sounds in space. I am unaware of anything like them still being made and for all their ugliness, I wish that Stax would still make them. There is somewhat more sense of forward projection of sounds with them, as opposed to "in the head" sound with most phones. But their biggest strength is a big improvment in airiness and ambience of sound and I particularly like them with vocal/choral music. They have somewhat of a lower-mid bass peak, especially when not warmed up, but generally thiis is acceptable. As well, because the diaphragms are moved away from the ears, they are notably less efficient than Lambdas and sometimes seem to distort in loud choral passages.
So what, I wondered would the 717 do with them. Most strikingly, there was no more of the sense of distortion and running out of power that the SRM-3 gave. Now pop music rocked, classical music crescendos were clean and powerful. Everything was just cleaner, in sound, the soundstage was wider and I was experiencing some real eargasms.
Evidently much of the edginess which is often attributed to Stax phones, is an amplifier issue. These types of phones appear to need the 450 volts the 717 gives. I do not believe that any of the other Stax amps exceed 350 volts and some are less than 300 volts. the SRM-3's I believe are 280 or 300 volts
For the moment I am enjoying the Sigma's too much to plug in the Lambda 404's, Stax's current high end Lambda model and second to the prohibitively expensive Omega's. I will probably give them a shot in few days though.
The Stax 717 is the biggest of the Stax transistor amps, it weighs about 12 pounds, runs about 45 watts and delivers 450 volts. This is about 50% more than any other Stax amp, although I am not sure how this compares with the various non-Stax amps such as the Gilmore and McAlister.
Cost-wise it is almost $3K US from the local dealer but only $1200.00 from EIFL Japan. I chose EIFL because of past successful dealings and because they sell the unit adapted to US 117 volts, rather than Japanese 100 volts as does Audiocubes. Apparently it is all to do with the fuse panel inside the unit.
I should probably open it up and take a photo for general information.
I am now in the process of checking the amp out/breaking it in with 3 different Stax phones. While you can just plug phones in and get a decent result, I personally believe that Stax phones need to be warmed up, used regularly and left plugged in, even if not turned on, to get the best sound.
I started with a set of Lambda Nova pro's which had been in use on an almost daily basis with the SRM-3. I pulled out the SRM-3 and plugged the 717 in its place, using its power cord, IC's and the like, and started some serious listening after about an hour's warm-up. The most striking initial observations were the marked increase in detail. I was listening to a Purcell vocal piece and heard a cello accompanying the harpsichord, for the first time. The bass was clearer and somewhat more powerful, as was the treble. In fact the treble was slightly edgy, but this cleared up after the unit was on for a few more hours. Still the most striking feature was the increased detail. It was like the intremodulation distortion was markedly lowered. For example two soloists singing, stood out very clearly from each other, they seemed to be standing so distinctly in different locations that I could reach out and touch them.
Later in the day I took the unit home and plugged it into its intended location, as a headphone amp with a CEC 51z belt drive CD player, Musical Fidelity A324 DAC and Monarchy Jitter reducer. The phones were old Stax Sigma pro's that had been listening to for a few weeks.
The Stax Sigma is an old design, which predates the Lambda models. It is often described as a pair of shoe boxes on the head. It takes the diaphragms away from the ear and places them facing forward and back. The sound is thus projected over the ear, somewhat in the manner of normal listening to real sounds in space. I am unaware of anything like them still being made and for all their ugliness, I wish that Stax would still make them. There is somewhat more sense of forward projection of sounds with them, as opposed to "in the head" sound with most phones. But their biggest strength is a big improvment in airiness and ambience of sound and I particularly like them with vocal/choral music. They have somewhat of a lower-mid bass peak, especially when not warmed up, but generally thiis is acceptable. As well, because the diaphragms are moved away from the ears, they are notably less efficient than Lambdas and sometimes seem to distort in loud choral passages.
So what, I wondered would the 717 do with them. Most strikingly, there was no more of the sense of distortion and running out of power that the SRM-3 gave. Now pop music rocked, classical music crescendos were clean and powerful. Everything was just cleaner, in sound, the soundstage was wider and I was experiencing some real eargasms.
Evidently much of the edginess which is often attributed to Stax phones, is an amplifier issue. These types of phones appear to need the 450 volts the 717 gives. I do not believe that any of the other Stax amps exceed 350 volts and some are less than 300 volts. the SRM-3's I believe are 280 or 300 volts
For the moment I am enjoying the Sigma's too much to plug in the Lambda 404's, Stax's current high end Lambda model and second to the prohibitively expensive Omega's. I will probably give them a shot in few days though.
