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Originally Posted by M3NTAL /img/forum/go_quote.gif
were there any more impressions on the bottlehead s.e.x. unit?
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Yes indeed. I have refrained from reporting my meet impressions thus far. Just wasn't inspired, I guess, though it was my first meet, and I was mightily impressed with the extraordinary display of gear, and with the generosity of the participants, who seemed not just willing, but positively eager to allow me to listen to it. But how dare I report on my favorite sound of the meet, when I did not stop at every table, including some very impressive-looking ones? How dare I report on the sound of the engaging and energetic Donald North's Sonnet, when my only listen was at a time when the noise level in the room was too high to draw any conclusions at all, while wearing my HD800s, that most open of headphones?
So on to the Bottlehead. I spent some time at the table of a friendly gentleman who was a Bottlehead customer, and had, admirably, brought his personally-built amp, and the build instructions, each page lovingly protected by plastic, in a binder, for any and all to flip through. I plugged my DX1000s in, and it was nothing to write home about. Low impedance may not be their forte. I plugged my HD800s in, and was rewarded with the best bass performance I've ever heard from them. I played my ultimate bass track, Little Feat's Spanish Moon, from the great Waiting for Columbus live album, and it rocked, it shook, it displayed the insane bass that this track is supposed to have. The track sounds very good here at home, with the WA6SE, but the performance of this amp made me wonder whether 2 watts is the right place to be, if you're going to put HD800s on your head.
I'm afraid that that startling bass impression has overshadowed any other impressions I might have had about the S.E.X. amp on the HD800s. How was the midrange and treble? I just don't remember. I just remember my happiness at hearing what that combo did to "Spanish Moon," and I certainly wouldn't have been that happy if the other elements weren't at least right enough not to offend. Let us grant that I should have spent much more than 2 hours at the meet, exploring such things. But I did come home with the idea that maybe I should blow the dust of my long-neglected soldering iron, and build myself a S.E.X. The price is right.
While I'm at it, let me report some more impressions. I listened to a lot of things, or so it seemed. I listened to Grados, and learned that I should not dismiss them as all having fiddly treble, but that they're still not right for me, or right enough to justify the cost of the ones that would be OK. I listened to Ultrasones, and learned why people might like their straightforward character, but again heard nothing that would threaten my wallet. I listened to someones Omega MKII, hooked up to a freaking Blue Hawaii. I did not want to like this. It's a whole different chain to buy. But I thought it was pretty darned wonderful. I had hoped to dismiss the Stax thing as "oh yeah, just like those Magneplanars I sold, incredibly delicate, but no guts." Apparantly it's not that simple, at least not if you spend zillions of dollars on one of the coolest-looking amplifiers I've ever seen.
Then I foolishly listened to someones L3000s, hooked up to a Woo WA5 with carefully-selected tubes, including, if I heard right, "the real deal Western Electrics." Holy crap! The Hi-Fier who owned it heard me say "wow" as I took off the L3000s. I don't even want to think about what this implies. This is all above my pay grade. But what a sound!
I also listened to the JH13Pro, during which someone here apparently captured a picture, while my eyes were closed. So much for the semi-incognito visit. He captioned me as something like "another victim," and I can't really argue with that. The JH13Pros were great. If I find a place in my life for IEMS, I'll get some, and damn the cost. Fortunately, it's not practical at this point. I can't shut the world out, given my work and home situation. But I also have to say, as amazing as they were, I'd still have to have some headphones around. I'm not precisely sure why. Maybe to have the music just a little more distant from my head.
Amazing meet, amazing people. I have to spend more time at the next one.
