amartignano
1000+ Head-Fier
[size=small]Nik's OMEGA II + EGMONT REFERENCE RevieW!!![/size]
Hallo,
I want to share with you my experience with the best audio (Music!) system I've ever heard (and probably the best audio system ever!). [sorry for my english...]
The equipment:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SOURCE: Linn Sondek CD12
CABLES: Shinpy Spheros
POWER: Siltech Octopus Signature
AMPLI: Rudistor Egmont Reference (with tubes Sylvania NOS 6sn7 GTB - Telefunken ECC803s "The Holy Grail")
SHELVES: Music Tools
EARSPEAKERS: Stax Omega II
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
i.e. the BEST in every single stage of the flow of the audio signal.Yes, it is Nik's equipment. Nik gave me the possibility to listen to this system with great courtesy and ospitality. First, I want to underline the beauty of this headphones: simple shape, very "pro", various champagne colors. Another object of unbeatable beauty is the Linn Sondek CD12: dimensions, color, movements of the cd, it is an object that make you happy to have spent all the money, even before listen to it! The amplifier has big dimensions for an headphone amp (not for Nik, however, who had the Angstrom), solid shape and very pro, two controls for the volume, a great tube amp!
After a long burn-in, made by Nicola in the morning, I began to listen to the system with some of my cds, some of Nik, and one from Alessandro (ale.espo) in order to test the OMEGA with a strange type of music (for an electrostatic speaker).
Well, the first impression was not as good as I expected. Nik said me that the OMEGA make the sound come from outside the head with GREAT detail and unbeatable natureness (does this word exist?!? well, you understand me, don't you?): I was hearing the sound form inside the head and I was feeling that the mid-highs were recessed. The CD was the 2nd of Mahler in a cheap DG edition: I've always been confident in the quality of this record... I was wrong! Next CD, Nik's one: jazz and female voice... APOTHEOSIS!!! EUREKA! The mid-highs is not recessed, very extended bass and without any kind of distortion, details never heard, where detail means capacity of extract all the nuances of the sounds from the CD and not 15 kHz at +10 dB!!! The sound is incredibly warm and natural and "harmonic", probably also for the tube amp, but it is a true monitor, revealing all the defects of the recording, without make it sound annoying. (The King Crimson of "the court" are warm and natural, and it is not really an audiophile recording!).
And the soundstage? What it's surprising it's the fact that the near sounds are within the head, but the far sound are OUTSIDE the head: but NOT OVER, like in any other headphone, but AROUND, so AHEAD, RIGHT, LEFT and even BEHIND in particular cases. But there's another thing that make this headphone sound different from any dynamic headphone: in the "common" headphones there are many bidimensional distinct "plans" at different distances on which the instruments are projected. With the Stax we have a real tridimensional continuous volume in which the instruments move with continuity. It's impossible to say it with words, but believe me. I try to made an example: with a very good recording of a church organ (Simon Preston plays the Toccata e Fuga in D- recorded by DG), you can say immediately the distance between the microphones and the organ, how big is the cathedral and which group of pipes are playing. I'm wordless. The timbre of the instrument is simply natural (I know very well the real sound of a pipe organ), with the tremendously extended and correct bass, the warmness and the infinite extension on the highs... and the mids... wait a moment, we'll speak about mids.
This capacity to give the dimensions of a recording give the possibility to understand immediately the quality of a recording from this point of view. For example it's clear the lack of tridimensionality with electronic instruments compared to the natural instruments. It's not that the Omega sound bad with the electronic instruments, it's that they can't express all their sonic beauty.
Let's return to the bass. The sound of the jazz bass is full-bodied, woody, harmonic and with a great power. You can say the movement of the hands on the instruments without problems, and other headphones can't tell you this. The bass doesn't have any type of distortion, but what is impressive is that at any volume you are listening, it seems that the bass of the OMEGA can sound twice the power you are listening, this is quite frightening!. With the Omega the concept that the sound of the speakers are more "physic" and with more impact compared to the sound of headphones, does not have sense anymore. The olographic level of the soundstage make the things very very material and "touchable".
And now the best... the mids! And the mids more difficult to reproduce are the voices. In other parameters I will give a possibility to the dinamic headphones (I've listened to Grado Rs-1 and Senn HD650) to reach (in a future) the quality of the Omega (but not in the soundstage), in the mids area the Omega are unbeatable. They are simply superior: the voices are real. Period. I say only this: listen to the Omega once in a life if you have the possibility.
Another feature of this Stax that surprise me is their capacity to make evident the harmonic decays of the instruments and of the reverbs: with other headphones simply they are not audible. This gives the Omega the possibility to define in a marvellous way the tridimensionals space in which the sounds move.
And there is the attack of the sounds of the instruments, drums and percussion in primis, but also the strings of a guitar. In dynamic headphones the sounds begin as it is, with the Omega you will find a lot of micro-events that are in the attack of the sound, before the real note begin. It' s incredible the quantity of information that are present in our cds and get lost with normal speaker or headphones.
Which genre of music for the Omega II? Probably you think mostly acoustic instruments and in little number... no, the big orchestra is fully reproduced without any kind of compression in the "fortissimo", and with detail and class in the "pianissimo". Electronic instruments? Yup, but you will find immediately that they are electronic (for example a piano or an electronic drum), and if it is an old Moog, that's good! Jazz, well, you know, the best. And metal? METAL?!? With the Stax? I put in the Sondek the album "Destiny" by the Stratovarious and I expect the first defallance of the Omega and... no, it's impossible: distorted guitar are tigers, the bass has a real "slam", the drums are very detailed and percussive, the voice are very good, neverthless it's all very "effected" (but this is normal with this type of music and recording). Yes, Omega promoted even with the metal.
Terrific monitor, warm and natural, comfortable, beautiful, expensive and unbeatable Omega. Period.
Andrea
PS. Thanx to Nik to gave me the possibilty of this "experience"!!!
Hallo,
I want to share with you my experience with the best audio (Music!) system I've ever heard (and probably the best audio system ever!). [sorry for my english...]
The equipment:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SOURCE: Linn Sondek CD12
CABLES: Shinpy Spheros
POWER: Siltech Octopus Signature
AMPLI: Rudistor Egmont Reference (with tubes Sylvania NOS 6sn7 GTB - Telefunken ECC803s "The Holy Grail")
SHELVES: Music Tools
EARSPEAKERS: Stax Omega II
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
i.e. the BEST in every single stage of the flow of the audio signal.Yes, it is Nik's equipment. Nik gave me the possibility to listen to this system with great courtesy and ospitality. First, I want to underline the beauty of this headphones: simple shape, very "pro", various champagne colors. Another object of unbeatable beauty is the Linn Sondek CD12: dimensions, color, movements of the cd, it is an object that make you happy to have spent all the money, even before listen to it! The amplifier has big dimensions for an headphone amp (not for Nik, however, who had the Angstrom), solid shape and very pro, two controls for the volume, a great tube amp!
After a long burn-in, made by Nicola in the morning, I began to listen to the system with some of my cds, some of Nik, and one from Alessandro (ale.espo) in order to test the OMEGA with a strange type of music (for an electrostatic speaker).
Well, the first impression was not as good as I expected. Nik said me that the OMEGA make the sound come from outside the head with GREAT detail and unbeatable natureness (does this word exist?!? well, you understand me, don't you?): I was hearing the sound form inside the head and I was feeling that the mid-highs were recessed. The CD was the 2nd of Mahler in a cheap DG edition: I've always been confident in the quality of this record... I was wrong! Next CD, Nik's one: jazz and female voice... APOTHEOSIS!!! EUREKA! The mid-highs is not recessed, very extended bass and without any kind of distortion, details never heard, where detail means capacity of extract all the nuances of the sounds from the CD and not 15 kHz at +10 dB!!! The sound is incredibly warm and natural and "harmonic", probably also for the tube amp, but it is a true monitor, revealing all the defects of the recording, without make it sound annoying. (The King Crimson of "the court" are warm and natural, and it is not really an audiophile recording!).
And the soundstage? What it's surprising it's the fact that the near sounds are within the head, but the far sound are OUTSIDE the head: but NOT OVER, like in any other headphone, but AROUND, so AHEAD, RIGHT, LEFT and even BEHIND in particular cases. But there's another thing that make this headphone sound different from any dynamic headphone: in the "common" headphones there are many bidimensional distinct "plans" at different distances on which the instruments are projected. With the Stax we have a real tridimensional continuous volume in which the instruments move with continuity. It's impossible to say it with words, but believe me. I try to made an example: with a very good recording of a church organ (Simon Preston plays the Toccata e Fuga in D- recorded by DG), you can say immediately the distance between the microphones and the organ, how big is the cathedral and which group of pipes are playing. I'm wordless. The timbre of the instrument is simply natural (I know very well the real sound of a pipe organ), with the tremendously extended and correct bass, the warmness and the infinite extension on the highs... and the mids... wait a moment, we'll speak about mids.
This capacity to give the dimensions of a recording give the possibility to understand immediately the quality of a recording from this point of view. For example it's clear the lack of tridimensionality with electronic instruments compared to the natural instruments. It's not that the Omega sound bad with the electronic instruments, it's that they can't express all their sonic beauty.
Let's return to the bass. The sound of the jazz bass is full-bodied, woody, harmonic and with a great power. You can say the movement of the hands on the instruments without problems, and other headphones can't tell you this. The bass doesn't have any type of distortion, but what is impressive is that at any volume you are listening, it seems that the bass of the OMEGA can sound twice the power you are listening, this is quite frightening!. With the Omega the concept that the sound of the speakers are more "physic" and with more impact compared to the sound of headphones, does not have sense anymore. The olographic level of the soundstage make the things very very material and "touchable".
And now the best... the mids! And the mids more difficult to reproduce are the voices. In other parameters I will give a possibility to the dinamic headphones (I've listened to Grado Rs-1 and Senn HD650) to reach (in a future) the quality of the Omega (but not in the soundstage), in the mids area the Omega are unbeatable. They are simply superior: the voices are real. Period. I say only this: listen to the Omega once in a life if you have the possibility.
Another feature of this Stax that surprise me is their capacity to make evident the harmonic decays of the instruments and of the reverbs: with other headphones simply they are not audible. This gives the Omega the possibility to define in a marvellous way the tridimensionals space in which the sounds move.
And there is the attack of the sounds of the instruments, drums and percussion in primis, but also the strings of a guitar. In dynamic headphones the sounds begin as it is, with the Omega you will find a lot of micro-events that are in the attack of the sound, before the real note begin. It' s incredible the quantity of information that are present in our cds and get lost with normal speaker or headphones.
Which genre of music for the Omega II? Probably you think mostly acoustic instruments and in little number... no, the big orchestra is fully reproduced without any kind of compression in the "fortissimo", and with detail and class in the "pianissimo". Electronic instruments? Yup, but you will find immediately that they are electronic (for example a piano or an electronic drum), and if it is an old Moog, that's good! Jazz, well, you know, the best. And metal? METAL?!? With the Stax? I put in the Sondek the album "Destiny" by the Stratovarious and I expect the first defallance of the Omega and... no, it's impossible: distorted guitar are tigers, the bass has a real "slam", the drums are very detailed and percussive, the voice are very good, neverthless it's all very "effected" (but this is normal with this type of music and recording). Yes, Omega promoted even with the metal.
Terrific monitor, warm and natural, comfortable, beautiful, expensive and unbeatable Omega. Period.
Andrea
PS. Thanx to Nik to gave me the possibilty of this "experience"!!!
