[swt61]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kalidor WOW!! tha base is maple right.. looks really nice.. Hi swt61, at the rate tat you are making stands for Team DR150, Larry could have a serious competitor real soon!!

The base is natural Cherry, as well as the little triangles. the triangular post is Bloodwood.
I don't want to be competition for Larry. I won't make the same type of stand twice. It's got to be custom, and i just don't have time to go into serious production.

 

[brn80]

Double post

 

[brn80]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kalidor Hi brn80, let me know how the DR150 sound as compared to the AD900, which I see is part of your stable of headphones. I had a chance to hear the AD900 and thought that the bass response wasn't as good as the DR150, but was rather a tad clearer than the DR150.. It'll be interesting to hear what you hear from the 2 of them..

I most definitely will. I have my K701's burning in, (about ~72 hrs atm) and I hope I can have all 3 on hand for comparison. Although my plastic is crying out to me to get rid of them.. which I hope to eventually want to do to 2 of them.. well that's the idea.. we all know how notions of that goes ...

Bass is something I am a bit picky about as well. So far I found the bass of the AD900 to be precise and tight. But it's not as weighty as it seems on the K701. The K701 seem to have I guess a more all round bass signature is what I can best describe it for now. Although the airiness and soundstage of the AD900 is holding me in it's favor real heavy for now.

Speaking of; hificablesuk emailed me cos they had some problem with my credit card for my DR150 order. But a quick call fixed that, and they're on their way

.. should be here sometime next week.. can't wait. Talked to a really nice cheery fellow on the phone as well.

 

[Artsenna]

I have owned the DR100 for 2 weeks with average use and have noticed that the headband (both ends) have started to show signs of peeling (ie. I can see into the part where the headphones extend out). Just wondering if other DR150 users have experienced this. Still usable but quality nowhere in Senn territory.

 

[swt61]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Artsenna I have owned the DR100 for 2 weeks with average use and have noticed that the headband (both ends) have started to show signs of peeling (ie. I can see into the part where the headphones extend out). Just wondering if other DR150 users have experienced this. Still usable but quality nowhere in Senn territory.

I have not experienced this with my DR150's and they get a lot of use. Have you contacted Goldring about it? I agree that the Senns. have a higher standard in terms of the look and feel of parts, However the Goldrings are substantialy less money. I believe they had to sacrifice somewhere to come in at their pricepoint. Mine are holding up nicely though, I'm happy to report.

 

[wowie11]

Quote:

Originally Posted by swt61 I have not experienced this with my DR150's and they get a lot of use. Have you contacted Goldring about it? I agree that the Senns. have a higher standard in terms of the look and feel of parts, However the Goldrings are substantialy less money. I believe they had to sacrifice somewhere to come in at their pricepoint. Mine are holding up nicely though, I'm happy to report.

Agree with swt61 here. Mine are holding up well, although like swt said, not as nice build quality as Senns. That being said, I think their quality on the non-defective phones seem to be quite high at their price point.

On a separate note...anybody else get their DR150's?

 

[brn80]

Just got mine on this past Monday

as I was just leaving the house for a short trip, so took it along with me. Didn't get to listen to it out of my normal setup, just out of my laptop for now, but it sounds pretty good so far. Must say they shipped it really quick and it got here pretty fast. Shipped on the 10th and it got here the 15th; 5 days.

Initial impressions:

Very nice forward presentation; leaning towards the bright side.

Prominent bass right out of the box, extends fairly well. Kalidor: I'll A-B them later in the week with my AD's; but from what I remember, the bass on the goldring does seem to have a bit more weighty presence, more of an impact if you will.

Soundstage is smaller than the K701's and AD900. It's pretty good, but not wide or expansive.

I agree with what people have said about these before; refined Koss 75's.

What I'm worried about is the size of these, the cups in particular. I see what people mean by barely big enough to be circumaural. Granted I'm probably spoiled rotten by my AD's and the 701's the past few weeks but I like something that are large and comfortable. Have to use them for longer sessions to see how they fare.

 

[The_Duke_Of_Eli]

...still waiting....

Checked mantra's site:

Delivery Schedule Please allow up to 10 business days for delivery to UK and Europe destinations and 25 business days for delivery to some worldwide destinations. We endeavour to despatch stock items by return post.

25 business days! That's 5 weeks. They apparantly shipped on May 1st so now I may not even get them until Early June...that blows...

 

[warrior05]

Just got back from a Sunday-today (Wed) mini vacation and glad to see our thread still going. On my trip I brought the GRs, my Zen Sleek and my new-to-me Supermacro 3V3. So I'm here to post my experience of listening to the GRs through the SM and will try not to make this a review of the SM.

As been mentioned, the DR150s are certainly amp sensitive. Obviously, coming from a PA2V2 I was expecting a difference but I wasn't expecting as much as one that I heard. With the SM, the DR150s become more detailed throughout. The bass response was the same slightly elevated and punchy bass we've come to love of the DR150s but with the SM there seemed to be more of it. In other words - extended. The mids was where you could here a lot of detail. As for the highs - during one listening session the sibilance seemed to have returned. I have to go back and verify this because since my allergies have kicked in my right ear has been affected and hears differently than my left. I tend to be pretty sensitive to treble and sibilance so it just may have been accentuated by my condition. On a separate listening session where the volume level was low, I detected no sibilance whatsoever.

The most interesting thing I experienced was the amount of air and soundstage that increased. Yes, the forward nature was still there but it definitely broadened. To the point where listening to classical became more enjoyable. I don't listen to much orchestral music but I had noted it was one of the genres where admittedly the DR150s fell a little short due to its forward presence and somewhat narrow soundstage. The SM took care of a lot of that and just made the GRs that much more adaptable. With my downtempo and ambient electronic music I was in heaven. Sound was just reverberating ALL around me.

Another interesting experience - I thought I was a fan of crossfeed. Maybe it was due to the sensitivity of the GRs but crossfeed was definitely NOT the way to go. With it turned on it narrowed the soundstage too much.

As I mentioned previously, I had a listening session with the volume low. I never listen to music at high volumes - my ears are too sensitive but I had the volume set lower than usual since my wife was asleep. It was a wonderful experience because I found my listening to be more focused and I heard a lot of detail. I highly recommend you try this when you have some real quiet time and you can just listen. Don't do anything else... just listen.

So, obviously, the GRs mated with the SM amp is a terrific combo and one I highly recommend. It just makes the GRs even better.

EDIT:
My right ear has cleared up and have gone back to a couple of songs I remember being bothered with simbilance. Good news - much much better. The problem was mostly with me, not the GRs.

 

[swt61]

Yep just confirms the amp/source sensitivity. I got a new toy yesterday (well 3 actually). I'm upgading my system, headphone and speaker systems. Part of that upgrade was the Lavry DA10 DAC/headphone amp. I've read great things about this DAC, and they all seem to be correct so far. The DAC is spectacular! The detail and sounstage are impressive as all getout. What I didn't expect was a high quality headphone amp. I figured it would just be an afterthought. Wrong! This thing even drove my K340's decently. I prefer my PPA, but I was surprised at how well it did. But the real shocker came when I plugged the DR150's into it. WOW!!!!! Talk about synergy! This thing takes these headphones to a higher level, and that's no easy feat for a set of cans that already bely their pricetag. I can't begin to express what a difference this amp makes. Soundsatge & detail are on a different plain with the Lavry. Of coarse I'm fully aware that the DAC is adding a major upgrade to the sound, but I hooked my PPA up downstream of the Lavry, and while things improved noticably, it's just not as good as the Lavry's amp with the Goldrings. I know $1000.00 is a big sum for an amp for $125.00 headphones, but if anyone is looking to add an incredible DAC to their system, this is a major bonus for DR150 owners. I suspect it will be a nice amp for many other cans as well, as my Koss' and AT's all sound great from it. I'll post some pics soon, after my other toys arrive.

 

[tonyli3]

Quote:

Originally Posted by warrior05 Just got back from a Sunday-today (Wed) mini vacation and glad to see our thread still going. On my trip I brought the GRs, my Zen Sleek and my new-to-me Supermacro 3V3. So I'm here to post my experience of listening to the GRs through the SM and will try not to make this a review of the SM. As been mentioned, the DR150s are certainly amp sensitive. Obviously, coming from a PA2V2 I was expecting a difference but I wasn't expecting as much as one that I heard. With the SM, the DR150s become more detailed throughout. The bass response was the same slightly elevated and punchy bass we've come to love of the DR150s but with the SM there seemed to be more of it. In other words - extended. The mids was where you could here a lot of detail. As for the highs - during one listening session the sibilance seemed to have returned. I have to go back and verify this because since my allergies have kicked in my right ear has been affected and hears differently than my left. I tend to be pretty sensitive to treble and sibilance so it just may have been accentuated by my condition. On a separate listening session where the volume level was low, I detected no sibilance whatsoever. The most interesting thing I experienced was the amount of air and soundstage that increased. Yes, the forward nature was still there but it definitely broadened. To the point where listening to classical became more enjoyable. I don't listen to much orchestral music but I had noted it was one of the genres where admittedly the DR150s fell a little short due to its forward presence and somewhat narrow soundstage. The SM took care of a lot of that and just made the GRs that much more adaptable. With my downtempo and ambient electronic music I was in heaven. Sound was just reverberating ALL around me. Another interesting experience - I thought I was a fan of crossfeed. Maybe it was due to the sensitivity of the GRs but crossfeed was definitely NOT the way to go. With it turned on it narrowed the soundstage too much. As I mentioned previously, I had a listening session with the volume low. I never listen to music at high volumes - my ears are too sensitive but I had the volume set lower than usual since my wife was asleep. It was a wonderful experience because I found my listening to be more focused and I heard a lot of detail. I highly recommend you try this when you have some real quiet time and you can just listen. Don't do anything else... just listen. So, obviously, the GRs mated with the SM amp is a terrific combo and one I highly recommend. It just makes the GRs even better. EDIT: My right ear has cleared up and have gone back to a couple of songs I remember being bothered with simbilance. Good news - much much better. The problem was mostly with me, not the GRs.

Pleased you like your sm3 Warrior,i said earlier what a great job it does with the 150's!

 

[tonyli3]

Quote:

Originally Posted by swt61 Yep just confirms the amp/source sensitivity. I got a new toy yesterday (well 3 actually). I'm upgading my system, headphone and speaker systems. Part of that upgrade was the Lavry DA10 DAC/headphone amp. I've read great things about this DAC, and they all seem to be correct so far. The DAC is spectacular! The detail and sounstage are impressive as all getout. What I didn't expect was a high quality headphone amp. I figured it would just be an afterthought. Wrong! This thing even drove my K340's decently. I prefer my PPA, but I was surprised at how well it did. But the real shocker came when I plugged the DR150's into it. WOW!!!!! Talk about synergy! This thing takes these headphones to a higher level, and that's no easy feat for a set of cans that already bely their pricetag. I can't begin to express what a difference this amp makes. Soundsatge & detail are on a different plain with the Lavry. Of coarse I'm fully aware that the DAC is adding a major upgrade to the sound, but I hooked my PPA up downstream of the Lavry, and while things improved noticably, it's just not as good as the Lavry's amp with the Goldrings. I know $1000.00 is a big sum for an amp for $125.00 headphones, but if anyone is looking to add an incredible DAC to their system, this is a major bonus for DR150 owners. I suspect it will be a nice amp for many other cans as well, as my Koss' and AT's all sound great from it. I'll post some pics soon, after my other toys arrive.

Boy swt your getting into serious spending mode by the sounds of it! If your in need of some cheap cables at some point i came across some the other week that are only £850 a pair

made by some fella in Australia[plutonium cores or something like that] I hope your 150's appreciate all the time and expense your going to.

 

[Duranimal]

After reading this thread I had to give these a try. Only have about 10 hours on them, but a very fun phone. Thanks for all the impressions. I agree very easy to drive right out of my a2. At my desk I use them with a Portaphile V2. Been collecting some IEMs for a while, and a few portables, but these will be my primary home listening phones. Like to get myself a little shorter cord for using it around the house if anyone can give any advice on a good cable for not too much $$$. I saw it posted that the cable makes a pretty big difference in the sound. Thanks again for the opinions.

 

[swt61]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonyli3 Boy swt your getting into serious spending mode by the sounds of it! If your in need of some cheap cables at some point i came across some the other week that are only £850 a pair made by some fella in Australia[plutonium cores or something like that] I hope your 150's appreciate all the time and expense your going to.

WOW! Only 850 pounds huh. LOL. Yeah I am going a little crazy, I blame it all on philodox. He held me a gunpoint and made me order everything. Just kidding. He recommended the Lavry to me, and since he didn't steer me wrong on the K340 mods I decided to try it. He must like the same kind of sound as me, 'cause he was sooo right, it blew the Benchmark away IMO. I get the last of my toys tomorrow according to FedEx's tracking. I'll post pics then. But so far it's new DAC, Preamp, Power Conditioner and cables. Oh and new pads and headband for the 340's. The power conditioner came today, it's a Tice Audio unit. Very fitting since that's my last name. It's got this really cool way to tune the sound via 2 switches. More on that later. Hope you guys are still enjoying your DR150's! I know I am.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duranimal After reading this thread I had to give these a try. Only have about 10 hours on them, but a very fun phone. Thanks for all the impressions. I agree very easy to drive right out of my a2. At my desk I use them with a Portaphile V2. Been collecting some IEMs for a while, and a few portables, but these will be my primary home listening phones. Like to get myself a little shorter cord for using it around the house if anyone can give any advice on a good cable for not too much $$$. I saw it posted that the cable makes a pretty big difference in the sound. Thanks again for the opinions.

Hey Duranimal welcome to the DR150 club. I'm having a shorter cable made by Larry @headphile (1.5 meter). It shoud be coming soon I think. It was $75.00 I think, but don't quote me on that. I'll report on the sound once It comes in, but I have high hopes as I already own some of Larry's cables. I tried a Kimber, but didn't notice much difference and it was way too stiff and microphonic.

 

[Sladeophile]

Anyone else notice that the doctors sound very good straight out of a shuffle? I just got mine today, and listening to Tool on them is great! These things are so easy to drive, they were just as loud as my portapros were when I plugged them in. Very good synergy, IMHO.