[gmc]

The following review is gathered from about a week with the SR-007/SRM-007t combination. Other's experiences are welcome.

Equipment used for review:

Mark Levinson 31.5 Reference CD Transport
Mark Levinson 30.6 Reference Digital Processor
Transparent Balanced Reference XL Interconnects
PS Audio P300 Power Plant

Summary:

An outstanding system that, with a reference level source (this is crucial), will provide a class A+ listening experience.

The Hardware:

SR-007

The Omega II earspeakers, with the exception of the cables, look like oversized dynamic headphones. Two metal bands and a leather strap go over the head to hold the unit in place. The leather covered ear pads, while circular on the outside, are "D" shaped on the inside and rotate to allow for forming a semi-airtight seal over the ear. The housings containing the transducers also rotate to allow one to orient them as well. The metal bands are adjustable to provide a proper fit over the head. After fiddling with the various adjustments, the Omega IIs fit very comfortably. Note that properly adjusting the earspeakers is important to not just comfort, but to achieving the best sound as well.

SRM-007t

This unit provides a combination dual FET first stage and twin triode (6FQ7/6CG7) second stage tube amplifiers for each channel for driving Stax earspeakers including the SR-007s. It has two sets of line level inputs, one of which is single-ended (RCA) only, while the other can be switched between single-ended and balanced (XLR) connectors. The amplifier design is balanced, so using corresponding sources and interconnects provides for a cleaner signal path. One oddity is that the XLR connector polarity has the non-inverting signal on pin 3 and inverting on pin 2, opposite of what's found on most American XLR connectors. I tried using phase inversion feature on the No. 30.6, but heard little, if any, difference. The SRM-007t has three jacks for connection to Stax earspeakers: 2 "Pro" (580 V bias) and 1 "Normal" (230 V bias). The SR-007 is a "Pro" earspeaker. There is also a quadrupled double-spindle volume control for true balanced attenuation into the first stage amps. The unit takes about 15-30 minutes to reach optimum operating temperature, consumes 55 W, is warm to the touch, and has no fans, so adaquate clearance for cooling is essential. The whole unit weighs over 10 pounds (4.7 kg), and measures 7.7 in. (195 mm) wide, 4 in. (103 mm) high, and 16.5 in. (420 mm) deep. Given its heat dissapation requirements and size/shape, the unit is difficult to place efficiently. It's too deep to stack on anything but a shelf and may present problems in enclosed racks. I ended-up placing mine beside the P300 on a seperate open shelf.

Sound:

The sound out-of-the-box was excellent, but somewhat cold and analyitical, but after breaking it in for a few hours, that began to change. It started to sound warmer and the mid-range accuracy improved. After about 36 hours, the sound was spectactular. The imaging precise, the depth, detail, and feeling of prescence were amazing. The entire audio range was crisp and full. The bass is very solid and its reproduction of mid-range and highs are equally breathtaking. While not quite as open and clear sounding as my Revels powered by Mark Levinson No. 33s, it was nevertheless one of the best reproductions of sound I've heard. I used various CDs including: Rebecca Pidgeon's "The Raven", Suzanne Vega's "Solitude Standing", Tori Amos' "Under the Pink", the MFSL version of Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon", the MFSL version of Sting's "... Nothing Like the Sun", the MFSL version of U2's "The Joshua Tree", "Koyaanisqatsi" the original soundtrack, various J. S. Bach organ works played by Kevin Bower, and Mozart's "Cosi fan tutte".

 

[eeyssjr]

Greg, thanks for the review. i have to say my experience of the same Omega 2 System over a four day period were very dissappointing. Most dissappointment was not sound related, but to the overall quality of the product.

The sound using my Meridian 506.20 was very good, but revealed all the sibilances on my recordings, making many recordings unlistenable. Although prior to buying them i was looking for a true neutral system, a tool for home enjoyment and professional analysis, my views changed.

If you listeb to reference recordings like those you list most of the time, the problems are reduced, but i don't, and need to enjoy recordings made with poor equipment in someones bedroom. This is not Omega territory, nor should it be.

Anyway, on to my main point to ask you. When you recived your Omega headphones, you got packed with thema little note (in poor english) about how if you hear noise due to changes in air pressure between inside and outside, that this is normal and not to worry.

My problem was that i found they did this for even the slightest movement, touch of earspeakers of lying down on my bed etc. It became so very annoying, that i became really discouraged. They seemed to be impractical beyond their pricetag (way way beyond). - Did you experience any of the air pressure noise (if we call it that)???

Also, on my pair, one side the earspeaker and earpad rotate independantly as you mention, where as on the other side the earpad and earspeaker are attached together, though able to rotate together, not much use for making the things comfortable. I'm sure this was a fault of the demo version. A new design of earpad replaced after damage leaving the older style (not independanlty rotatable) left still there.

The headband on mine was definitely NOT adjustable, and there was no effort in the insturctions to clarify in which way the headphones are adjustable. Not to mention STAX supplied a Japanese power lead for a set that had been circulating the UK sice omega release i 1998. I mean come on, get serious stax, i just got you £3000 headphones out the box and have to raid my PC for a power lead!!

The lead was way way too short, this is just stingy. There should be at least 3 metres as standard. Instead, it looked more like 2 metres, of thick unwieldy cable. I mean, not everyone sits on a arm chair next to their hi-fi do they. I think this is the image stax has in their head, which is old fashioned and plain backward. If this could pass off as a portable/home design, i would accept it, but we all know that isnt the case with Omega (!).

Also, it took me at least 5 mins of pure frustration to work out that the 007t energiser has independant volume for each channel. STAX kindy failed to supply a manual, and i initially thought there was a fault straight out the box as one channel was much louder than the other. I doubt the manual even mentions it anyway, does it?

OK, now another dusturbing experience. When i put on the omega one day, i touched the outer housing and put my hand on the energiser 007t to turn the volume. I was shocked to suddenly hear a whole load of noise caused by a ground loop i assume. This is shocking, i cant get perfect sound quality when toucheing the headphone and energiser at the same time. Whats more in fact, is if i touched the headphone only, i got a little squeal from the earspeaker on that side. What the hell is that about?! And if my fingers stayed there for a little while, 30 secs, and a little sweat built up, yep, you guessed it it, i got a little low voltage electric shock tingle, like if you put 9v battery on your tounge. And these headphone go round your head.

The Omegas went back with mixed feelings, and the sound didnt even seem to make up for the "shortcomings" making many recording i have more or less unlistenable, due to their super revealing nature. The thing is, if you play audiophile recordings with them, the gains just didnt seem to improve my enjoyment, over say my CD1700 s. To be honest, when i put my SOny's back on, i felt like, i know these are a class well below, but hell i',m enjoying the music so much more. The vocal especially, so very much more satisfying. The bass, although fatter and more distorted (in technical terms that is, the Sony actually has extremely tight bass) was more enjoyable. I found myself almost dancing sometimes with the sonys on, like i could FEEL the music, and i just forgot about the headphones they are way more comfortable that the STAX (although the stax weren't perfectly set-up, i dont think anything could better the sonys for me in comfort). With the stax i had to concentrate on the music, and yes, i could hear masses of detail, instumental separation, definition, bass control. But the miunte i stopped trying to listen, i seems to loose the feeling of where my £3000 pounds had gone.

I was left feeling that the gains just simply didn't warrant the extra performace over my Sony CD1700. After all, i was enjoying music so much more with the latter. I decided to get The CD3000, and decent head amp (though sony's sound so great straight out any jack really) and put, wait for it... £2500 in my pocket! That's alot of good CDs. Good music, through some damn good headphones the CD3000 is. You can't reject that saving easily, when you listen to the the STAX product for yourself. Of course if cost was no object, and i mean NO object, i'f have them all.

//==========================================

Just a footnote. I just read my article, and understand it makes the Omega 2 system sound a little bad. Please take all comments with a pinch of salt. The pair i was using were possibly a beat up pair as they were a UK demo. This may account for some of the things that i weren't ahappy about. I'm sure you'll get the right power lead, matching earpads, adjustable headband and instructions with any new pair you buy. Please feel free to email me with any questions if you want to know about anything specific about my time with them.

 

[darth nut]

Eeyssjr, wonder which company you got the demo pair from?

It is not a good idea for audio shops to loan defective units for home audition, because it just gets people frustrated and angry.

Especially headphones, because NO ONE is going to be sonically impressed with a defective pair that is uncomfortable to wear!

Discomfort leads to frustration; frustration leads to anger; anger leads to...

Loss of a sale!

 

[eeyssjr]

Darth, i got the Headphones direct from the UK Stax Distributer, Path Premier. The shop was called Audio T, but i saw them ring Path Premier to order the Omegas for me. They are the single nd only UK demo pair available.

Your right, i felt axactly "frustrated and angry". And it did lead to loss of sale. Maybe i will try them again sometime, i had the reddies in my pocket itching to go. But alas, they went right back in. I think i will get the CD3000 just for now, next year or two, then re-assess stax. Perhaps that interesting new closed back model.

 

[gmc]

eeyssjr,

I agree for the price, there should be less plastic and more metal or even carbon fiber in the construction of the earspeakers, but I didn't experience the problems you did. Sibilances didn't seem exaggerated, instead the sound seemed to be natural and refined. I'll try some more modest quality CDs to see if my opinion changes.

Regarding the noises while repositioning the earpads: once I had them properly adjusted, I had almost no problem with the noises even when moving my head. I did notice the sound when placing pressure on the diaphragm with my fingers, but in normal use, I didn't experience the "pressure noise" even when laying down. I also didn't experience the stuck earspeaker/earpad. They both moved independently.

The SRM-007t manual mentions the double spindled volume control and there is a little logo above and to the right of the volume knob indicating the mapping of the spindles controlling the left and right channels.

Quote:

OK, now another dusturbing experience. When i put on the omega one day, i touched the outer housing and put my hand on the energiser 007t to turn the volume. I was shocked to suddenly hear a whole load of noise caused by a ground loop i assume. This is shocking, i cant get perfect sound quality when toucheing the headphone and energiser at the same time. Whats more in fact, is if i touched the headphone only, i got a little squeal from the earspeaker on that side. What the hell is that about?! And if my fingers stayed there for a little while, 30 secs, and a little sweat built up, yep, you guessed it it, i got a little low voltage electric shock tingle, like if you put 9v battery on your tounge. And these headphone go round your head.

I've had no such problem with my unit. I did, however, just notice the AC plug is non-polarized (in case you didn't know, the AC recepticles in the US allow for non-grounded and non-polarized plugs) and felt a AC tingle on the case of the 007t if the plug was inserted incorrectly. Why the IEC cable provided with the unit isn't polarized and doesn't have a ground pin is beyond me. In any case, when inserted correctly, I had no ground loop or other noise problem. The sound was dead silent when nothing was playing. Not being an expert in UK power systems, I'm wondering if the cable mapping isn't correct and the "hot" line is being fed to ground inside the 007t somehow. It's also possible you had a defective unit.

I'm sorry the Omega IIs didn't work out for you, but, as with any piece of audio or video equipment, all evaluations are subjective. One should only buy equipment they are feel offers the best overall performance for their particular circumstances and audition the components in their home (as you did) before making any decision.

 

[acidtripwow]

That gear is just so sweeeeet! I wish I could afford something like that but for now I'm going to have to do with a used Lambda/SRM-T1 combo. Some day though...

 

[Brett]

eeyssjr

These Stax amps are not quite up to the standard of the headphones in terms of potential sound quality. Even the SRM-T2 may be just scratching the surface. I think the construction quality and comfort of my Omega 2 is excellent. Anyway, about the amp problem. I found a guy off the internet that lives near me and knows how to design tube amps. Not just any tube amp but the ultimate tube amp if your into it. Of course I'm the worlds biggest extremist so I've started building this prototype with Joe's experience and opinions and my mania. I bought this 2'x4' sheet of plywood to build it on and found that it wasn't enough space. There's no way I'll be able to carry this by myself. Should be quite the amp when it's finished in a couple weeks. I'll post pictures of it if I can when I'm done.

Also, this guy thats helping me build this amp (it's his design in every way with me determining the scale of it) knows about twenty hardcore audiophiles in the area and almost all of them are using modified Quad electrostatics for speakers. One problem with this speaker is that it is so low in distortion and coloration and so revealing of the source material that YOU DON'T WANT TO LISTEN TO CD'S through it. Vinyl only. Use dynamic speakers for CD.

I modified my Sony SCD-1 a while ago with the Audiocom parts. While the improvement in the sound was tremendous, CD still gets fatiguing after a while listening throught the Omega 2's. I dought that any accurate amplifier can solve this. Can't wait for SACD to grow as a medium.

Brett

 

[RickG]

eeyssjr,

It sure sounds like you received a funky demo set-up and I don't blame you for being upset. I would have been furious. My unit came factory fresh. Everything- cables, papers, etc were sealed in plastic and the headset was packed with foam rubber strips, sealed in a bag, and neatlly situated in its way cool case. I am searching desparately to discover any cheap construction or shotty workmanship on the units and it just ain't there. The fit and finish of both the headset and the SRM-007t tube amp are impecable. I don't understand the reference to the problem with adjusting the headband. My headset is of the self adjusting style much like my MDR-3000 and others. Both ear cups rotate freely and are easily situated to give a good seal.

I agree with gmc that they the sound was somewhat cold upon listening right out of the box. However, I've had them running for over 30 hours now and they seem to sound better by the minute.

I just received "The Complete Columbia Recordings 1955-1961" boxed set by Miles Davis and John Coltrane. The detail is breathtaking. I understand why these things have been referred to as an "audio microscope". You can hear everything... little things like Miles taking a gasp of air before a riff, or Coltrane's pads clicking on the sax as he wails.

Brett, I disagree, that the quality of the amp is not on par with the earspeaker. The noisefloor is a bottomless pit and the speed and attack of the bass is as good as I've ever heard. There is a chilling dead blackness between notes and the image is such that one feels he can almost reach out and touch the musicians.

Keep in mind- these are first impressions. The amp needs to run substantially longer and I have some Homegrown Audio Silver Lace IC"s on the way. I'm listening with some cheaper MIT's for the time being.

I'll write more later.

Rick

 

[RickG]

ooops!!

 

[RickG]

ermm, sorry about the double post!

 

[Mumrik]

Nice review gmc...

I get the impression that you must have quite an income

Mark Levinson *drool*...

 

[headster]

phoneprone:

Quote:

the speed and attack of the bass is as good as I've ever heard.

Now, who say electrostatic doesn't do bass? Wait until you fully break them in with your new cables. Boyz...get ready for the ultimate sonic bliss review.

 

[TerriblySorry]

Quote:

Originally posted by headster phoneprone: Now, who say electrostatic doesn't do bass?

Add some clean power, and it just gets even better.

 

[headster]

TerriblySorry,

I have, just haven't gotten hold of the P300 yet.

Btw, those Nordost Valhalla cables sound spectacular with your system eh? I'd a chance to audition one of their lesser model and I was speechless.

 

[gmc]

After initial testing of the SR-007 and SRM-007t on my main system with the ML No. 31.5/No. 30.6, they have been moved to the bedroom where they are driven by a new ML No. 390S CDP. Using power directly from the wall, the new combo produced wonderful results. The new D/A section in the 390S is superb. While not quite as detailed and "open" as the 31.5/30.6 (as one would expect) the 390S still is one of the best redbook players available and is well matched to the Omega IIs.

Interested in its effect on the new combo, I yanked the P300 from the main system and connected the 390S and SRM-007t to it. As it did in the main system, the P300 significantly enhanced the listening experience. The sound was more detailed, natural, and had enhanced depth.

If your bank account can stand it after buying the Omega IIs, the sonic improvements made by the addition of the P300, IMHO, justifies its cost.