The correct bias is crucial and so is the correct ballast resistor. Even though some of the newer HE90's were supposed to be optimized for the Stax pro bias I haven't ever seen any evidence of them doing anything different with those drivers. My old set certainly didn't have the high value resistors needed to do that.
I must say I doubt that given how the project came about. It just looks like it was built by somebody with access to the parts and not wanting to fork out for the OTT chassis. Why cram the purpose designed PCB's in a square chassis and they are also stuffed with the wrong parts. If I could see the other side of the boards then I could determine which version of the HEV90 this was (there were 3).
Yes, yes. It was someone who wants to do things easy. It was professor Sennheiser and it is Orpheus prototype, used to optimize construction. Head-Fi member Wiktor bought it straight from Sennheiser. It is museum piece.
Yeah the HE90 was not a great sounding phone through the BHSE and vise versa with the O2/Aristeaus combo, but switch them around and magic happens. The Aristeaus reveals some of the flaws of the HEV90; not that you couldn't live with them though. The rounded, slower, super warm tubey sound is replaced by a more fleet of foot solid state/tube sounding amplifier, IMO. This amp makes listening to different varieties of music more enjoyable, not just classical. The HE90 becomes faster, more detailed, less diffuse and just a more technically sound headphone. If I had to choose one it would be the Aristeaus hands down but the HEV90 would be my second chioce for classical alone, that and the wow look at me factor. Gary
Yes, yes. It was someone who wants to do things easy. It was professor Sennheiser and it is Orpheus prototype, used to optimize construction. Head-Fi member Wiktor bought it straight from Sennheiser. It is museum piece.
@El_Doug : In a minimeeting of Thai headfiers last month, we listened the DIY T2 built by Chinnasettawong (XF2 Mullard + Telefunken Cca).
Chinsettawong set two outputs : Stax (580v) and HE90 (500V) The phones in that meeting included HE90, HE60, SR009,
SR Omega and O2mkI. The DIY T2 drove the HE90 beautifully , most Thai head-fiers said that it was the best combo while
the SR009 and O2mkI were next.
Had a pleasure of auditioning this setup and the SR009 & HE90 were equally great IMO. The HE90 still retain its signature but is more dynamics sounding.
Why not, they sold at least 100 HEV90's (if not more) which are basically broken and then sneaked in two revisions until they got one which is at least half way decent.
Hype and rarity. The sound is overhyped. People pay top dollar to own the hype. Once they have spent top dollar, psychology dictates that they will boost the hype further to justify their expense.
I owned the HE90 - bright sounding, poor bass, definitely not worth even 1/5 of the asking price
I spent 5 years with the Orpheus combo it's like drinking strawberry juice everyday ,the Stax Sr-009 is like crystal clear water
wich one do you choose in the long run?
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
