NeilPeart
Headphoneus Supremus
The SJ meet was a resounding success and I saw a lot of new faces and some familiar ones as well. I’ll post a more complete review of the meet when I have some more time, but here are my favorite systems from the meet, in no particular order:
Meridian 588/Gilmore Reference 2-Box/GradoPS-1 Pro Balanced w/JG UWB cable
Accuphase DP-85/Singlepower MPX3 w/Sylvanias/Sennheiser HD650 w/Zu Mobius Cable
Meridian 588/Carlo-moded Sugden Headmaster/Audio-Technica ATH-L3000
Linn Ikemi/EAR HP4 w/Sovteks and 60's Amperex/Grado HP-1 w/JG UWB cable
Sonic Frontier SFT-1 Transport/Mark Levinson No. 36 DAC/RKV MkII w/Telefunkens/Sennheiser HD600 w/Cardas Cable
The balanced Grado PS-1 Pro was surprisingly much better than the regular PS-1; perhaps the quality of the cable factored into that improvement as much as the balanced configuration. The difference was easily noticeable and not subtle at all.
The 600ohm DT990 also surprised me with their quality, as the 250ohm DT990 is one of the worst Beyerdynamic ‘phones IMO – this 990 was a different beast and I preferred it to my DT531. The DT531 also displayed its sometimes splashy character, and I may sell it in the future (but it still grooves so well that it will require some debate before I sell the rare headphone).
The L3000 again displayed its superiority over the W2002, and in many ways over most other cans at the meet, but it fell short of the PS-1 Pro and HD650/Zu IMO. The modded Headmaster was nearly identical to the standard Headmaster, save for a very subtle difference in the treble presentation, which was a bit peaky and harsh on the standard non-modded HM. The modded Headmaster was slightly smoother, but the difference was only really noticeable on the PS-1; the L3000 slightly masked the variances.
Another surprise was the prototype SDS Labs/PPA hybrid amp, which is currently unnamed and referred to tentatively as the MMM-amp (Morsel's Mosfet Monstrosity - thanks, Morsel and Ti). This was easily my favorite SS amp, and I preferred it to my Corda HA-2, the Emmeline HR-2, PPA and Grace 901. I eagerly await its completion, but I realize it may not be ready for prime-time for quite a while. This amp sounded magical with the Senns, Beyers, Grados and ATs I listened with.
Thank you Bruce, for graciously hosting the meet and thanks to all the members who attended (especially the one who brought the delicious cookies)! I look forward to another meet soon and will post more detailed impressions as time allows.
Meridian 588/Gilmore Reference 2-Box/GradoPS-1 Pro Balanced w/JG UWB cable
Accuphase DP-85/Singlepower MPX3 w/Sylvanias/Sennheiser HD650 w/Zu Mobius Cable
Meridian 588/Carlo-moded Sugden Headmaster/Audio-Technica ATH-L3000
Linn Ikemi/EAR HP4 w/Sovteks and 60's Amperex/Grado HP-1 w/JG UWB cable
Sonic Frontier SFT-1 Transport/Mark Levinson No. 36 DAC/RKV MkII w/Telefunkens/Sennheiser HD600 w/Cardas Cable
The balanced Grado PS-1 Pro was surprisingly much better than the regular PS-1; perhaps the quality of the cable factored into that improvement as much as the balanced configuration. The difference was easily noticeable and not subtle at all.
The 600ohm DT990 also surprised me with their quality, as the 250ohm DT990 is one of the worst Beyerdynamic ‘phones IMO – this 990 was a different beast and I preferred it to my DT531. The DT531 also displayed its sometimes splashy character, and I may sell it in the future (but it still grooves so well that it will require some debate before I sell the rare headphone).
The L3000 again displayed its superiority over the W2002, and in many ways over most other cans at the meet, but it fell short of the PS-1 Pro and HD650/Zu IMO. The modded Headmaster was nearly identical to the standard Headmaster, save for a very subtle difference in the treble presentation, which was a bit peaky and harsh on the standard non-modded HM. The modded Headmaster was slightly smoother, but the difference was only really noticeable on the PS-1; the L3000 slightly masked the variances.
Another surprise was the prototype SDS Labs/PPA hybrid amp, which is currently unnamed and referred to tentatively as the MMM-amp (Morsel's Mosfet Monstrosity - thanks, Morsel and Ti). This was easily my favorite SS amp, and I preferred it to my Corda HA-2, the Emmeline HR-2, PPA and Grace 901. I eagerly await its completion, but I realize it may not be ready for prime-time for quite a while. This amp sounded magical with the Senns, Beyers, Grados and ATs I listened with.
Thank you Bruce, for graciously hosting the meet and thanks to all the members who attended (especially the one who brought the delicious cookies)! I look forward to another meet soon and will post more detailed impressions as time allows.