[prismstorm]

 
It's like a special edition of the WA22 but the thing outputs like 10 watts at 25Ohm or something like that. ie. powerful! Those who know more about the specs than me, feel free to chime in. 

Will this be priced higher or lower than the WA5LE  (revised version)? Which one is of a higher 'tier' in Woo's lineup? 

 

[bazelio]

The latest version of the Eddy Current Zana Deux. 

I believe this is @velvetx's Zana Deux that was turned into a Zana Deux Super as a prototype model and it not the latest production version. Can someone confirm? 

Indeed not the latest version.

 

[Mediahound]

  Will this be priced higher or lower than the WA5LE  (revised version)? Which one is of a higher 'tier' in Woo's lineup? 

They said pricing has not been set yet but it should be $5k or under. 
 
I think @bosiemoncrieff tested it with his HE-6's and it drove them quite well? (Which is no small feat since those are notoriously difficult headphones to drive well).
 
I also heard it, liked what I heard. 

 

[HiFiGuy528]

  hey bosiemoncrieff
 
Have you tried to compare WA5 vs WA22SE?

 
WA5/WA5-LE was not at the show. WA22-SE will not use 300B tubes so the two models would sound different. 
 
@Currawong, we figured out what went wrong. Weak solder... lost connection when the amp got hot. Of course, this would be resolve in the next prototype and in production. 

 
Quote:

  Will this be priced higher or lower than the WA5LE  (revised version)? Which one is of a higher 'tier' in Woo's lineup? 

 
Pricing is not set, ballpark may be $5000–$5500. Look for more info at RMAF and production in Spring or Summer 2017.
 
Some pics from the show.
 

 
 

 

 

 

 

[meomap]

Hi,
 
First time attending this kind of HP meeting. Most of the time is the CAS.
 
Spent most of my time listened to Utopia/Elear all day and compared between the two. For $1K pricing, Elear is definitely worth it for a lot of end game hi-fi. Utopia is too much at 4X the price even though the sound was cleaner, seductive mid, precise fast, not base heavy, and very airy and long extension. Probably, the Beryllium material is the key to this airiness and fast attack.
There was one thing if anyone paid attention or not though: both the Utopia & Elear have the same setup/cable/volume knob no change, but the volume/sound open a tad more with the Elear. They both have the same ohms output. I found it a little bit strange. Both played with the same song. Has anyone noticed that minor thing.
 
Cable: Don't see Focal setup for Dana Cable.
Most setup in the big Magic Room was from Kimber = Sound nice = Don't know about the price.
Heard one setup with Nordost Hemdall 2 = I think $800 = I believe roughly the same or just a tad over Kimber = Look is cheaply made though. Looks cheaper than Kimber.
Heavenly Blue from Nordost sounded thin through Elear.
The cable was interested me most is the DHC ( Could be Comp4 top model, SE 6.3mm to 3.5 mm) in Woo Audio room connected the Utopia through WA22 was very very very good to hear. I must have been coming back there about 3 times to hear the same song, compared between Utopia & Elear for final decision on what to get for my end game. After listened to some top name cable vendors and went back to stock cable and listening before going home. Like, what the screw is this? Where was the magic? Not Focal fault though, all hp vendors do the same thing.
I think I know what cable vendor to get after or if l decide for Focal product. It will be my end game for a long time in the future.
 
Mobile/Transportable : Tested Elear/Utopia with my QP1R/CDM(1-10 o'clock position: 5 position)   against QP1R/WA8(knob at 4 ) = I like my combination a lot better than WA8, but it just my own opinion. I think I've tested running QP1R alone by itself, and it's pretty good but not as dynamic and oomph as the CDM combo.
 
Well, thank you from the vendors and organizers for this wonderful meet. Wondering how come no item vendors are doing together with HP?

 

[jazzfan]

I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed the meet. It was great to catch up with old friends, and it was nice to see a good mix of vendor and member displays. Having the vendors in separate rooms provided a somewhat quieter listening environment than what I've experienced at past meets. The rooms provided a great opportunity for critical listening with many new pieces of equipment. There were a number of interesting headphones and systems on display, many of which have already been mentioned. Here a brief summary of some of the exhibits that stood out for me.
 
THX Measurements
 
One of my highlights of the day was having an opportunity to have free headphone measurements taken by THX.  Since I modified my HE-6, I jumped on the opportunity for measurements. The setup allowed for measuring only one earphone at a time. I began with the left ear cup and finished with the right. It was interesting to watch the process which only took a few minutes for each ear. I'm looking forward to receiving a copy of the frequency response charts that were generated (Thank you, Patrick, for taking the measurements).
 
Mr. Speakers

Since I shared a member table with aamefford, I had an opportunity to spend some quality time with my Alpha Primes and aamefford's Ether-C and Ether-C Flow. As you would expect, both Ether-Cs were a step above the Alpha Prime. I consider the Alpha Prime a fun headphone and the Ether-C a much more refined closed-back. The original Ether-C is noticeably brighter than the Flow. Which Ether-C signature you prefer is a matter of personal tastes.
 
Amplification

As an HE-6 owner, the two amps that stood out for me were the Woo Audio WA22-SE and the Wells Audio HeadTrip, both drove the HE-6 very well, however, both are also stratospherically priced ($5k and up). Wells Audio was also showing another more affordable amp prototype, the Milo, priced at $1,499 that seemed to adequately drive the HE-6 as well. I don't recall when the amp will be ready for production.
 
DanaCables

The big surprise for me came at the headphone cable test demo sponsored by DanaCables. On display was an A/B test station with two identical headphones (I don't recall the model used). A spliter was used to send the signal to each headphone. One headphone was connected using a stock cable; the other was connected with a DanaCables headphone cable. I queued up Hotel California by the Eagles and began listening to the stock cable which sounded fine. Then I switched to the headphones with the DynaCable. What was immediately apparent was an improvement in detail and openness to the sound. In disbelief, I quickly switched back to the stock cable and indeed, the stock cable sounded thinner and drier than the DaynaCable. For me, this was eye opening experience. For the first time, I had the opportunity to quickly switch back and forth between two different headphone cables, and there was a noticeable difference. In hindsight, what I should have done at that point was to bring my HE-6 with the DynaCable down to the THX room to have them remeasured. I'd like to spend more time with this cable to better understand what I heard. I may need to take advantage of the free 30-day trial offered with this cable.
 
Taction Technology

Now for something different... Taction Technology will be releasing a headphone with a built-in audio-tactile feedback system. The headphone is called the Taction Kannon. Gamers and bassheads may find this just right for them. I had a brief demonstration of the bass augmentation technology (think home theater bass shaker in a headphone). The demo definitely left me with a visceral impression of what the technology can do. I listened to a 5Hz to 100Hz (I don't recall the exact top cutoff frequency) THX frequency sweep demo. At the beginning of the demo, my vision was actually blurred by the low-frequency vibration generated by the tactile feedback system. The effect was a bit intense for me, but for those who are into extreme bass you may find this tech very appealing.

Again, I'm glad I was able to make it to what turned out to be another great meet. A big thank you to Ethan, Jude, the Wikia team and everyone else who had a hand in putting together this meet. I look forward to attending again next year.

Happy listening!

 

[bmichels]

 
Mobile/Transportable :
Tested Elear/Utopia with my QP1R/CDM(1-10 o'clock position: 5 position)   against QP1R/WA8(knob at 4 ) = I like my combination a lot better than WA8, but it just my own opinion.
 
 

Please could you elaborate why you prefer CDM than WA8 with the Utopia.  I remember testing the WA8 with my HE-X and liked it a lot !
thanks

 

[bmichels]

 
 
- I could hear no audible difference with audiophile cables. My verdict: bullschiit. 

 

 

 

[musicman59]

 
Amplification

As an HE-6 owner, the two amps that stood out for me were the Woo Audio WA22-SE and the Wells Audio HeadTrip, both drove the HE-6 very well, however, both are also stratospherically priced ($5k and up). Wells Audio was also showing another more affordable amp prototype priced around $1200 (Wells Audio can correct me if I stated the price incorrectly) that seemed to adequately drive the HE-6 as well. I don't recall when the amp will be ready for production.
 
 

You are probably talking about the Wells Audio Milo. I listened to it a Canjam SoCal and for the price ($1,499) is a great option for difficult to drive headphones without breaking the wallet.
 
I just got a custom Enigma (it has upgrades almost to the level of the HeadTrip) and I am loving it!

 

[Joeybgood]

  I had a blast!  It was nice to meet new friends and see old friends.  Joe (great to meet you), Amos (great to meet you too, I'm glad you made the trip!) and Jude get the travel awards as far as I know.  Got to share a table with Larry (@jazzfan), see @shane55 after a loooooong time, @CEE TEE, @warrenpchi, @mrspeakers and @MrSpeakersPeter, @Stillhart (Nice to finally meet you also).  I met and saw others, but my memory suffers the "older than 55" syndrome, so please forgive me if I forgot to give you a shout out.
 
I got to hear most of what I wanted to - the Ether C Flow, the Focal Utopia and the Liquid Tungsten prototype.  I did miss the HD800s and trying a Schiit GMB with my amp, just to compare with the Dac-19 and see which one I liked the most.
 
Some verdicts - Hearing the Ether C Flow is gonna cost me some upgrade money in the future.
Luckily, I need closed cans, or I'd really wish I could afford the Focal Utopia - very nice (and way pricy) headphone.
The Liquid Tungsten was lovely, seems to be everything it has been noted to be, but this one won't cost me money - I'm not really a tube junky.
 
For those that asked me earlier - for me, the Ether C Flow is pretty much a guaranteed upgrade.  It has more and deeper low and mid bass, the midrange is filled out, the details are better and more present, and the highs are not overly bright.  The end result is what I wish the single black pad would do to the non-flow version ('cause then I wouldn't have to upgrade....).  It makes the headphone closer to my desired signature, and the best closed headphone I've heard.  For the record, I did not try the open flow.....  I had my standard Ether C and an Ether C Flow the @MrSpeakersPeter kindly loaned me for the day at my set up (AK100ii or iPhone as transport, Dac-19 10th anniv into Cavalli Liquid Crimson).  I talked to two people who preferred the Ether C over the Ether C Flow based on the brighter presentation.  My take on this - if you like a bright presentation, you may prefer the non-flow.  Everyone else liked the Flow version better, some found the difference more profound than others.  For me, the flow wins hands down.  Just a more realistic, "smoother" presentation for me.
 
Oh, I'm so lousy with names - whomever sponsored me a piece of the "vendor pizza - THANK YOU!  I was starving! 

I sold my Ether Cs as they were too bright for me. The flow sounds like a GO for me. tks for impressions!!

 

[fallofdave]

   
The kind gent making the measurements said he'd be sending them to me. 3 total... one each and one overlay. I'll post when received.

 
 
Looking forward to the measurements, thanks in advance for posting them!
 
Just out of curiosity, what are your impressions between the Ebony and the  D7000?  Did you like one more than the other, and if you did why?  

 

[velvetx]

Indeed not the latest version.

 
Actually it's not the chassis of the newest one as this one was a ZD turned into a ZDS.

 

[pfzar]

Hello all. Had a great time at the show. Will be sending out measurements today.

Thanks to all that stopped by and chatted and got headphones measured.

Look forward to doing again.

Cheers
Patrick

 

[bazelio]

Indeed not the latest version.

Actually it's not the chassis of the newest one as this one was a ZD turned into a ZDS.

What did they use for output impedance on this one since there is no selector switch? Or is there a switch hidden from view on this chassis?

 

[velvetx]

What did they use for output impedance on this one since there is no selector switch? Or is there a switch hidden from view on this chassis?

 
Original ZD didn't have output impedance switch if i remember correctly.  I'll have to verify.