[tigermilk]

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I'm obviously not spritzer, nor have I heard the 507 yet, but I'm guessing it's due to your amp. The O2 is classically misunderstood as being dark because people don't give it the power it needs to fully shine. On the BHSE and KGSS the O2 is hardly dark, and I'll be willing to bet the 507 is described by spritzer differently for the same reason. His amps are just better suited to power it.

Or just one of those instances where ears aren't objective but subjective.  I will say that the nice thing of having listened to the 507s in Tokyo and judging for my own ears if they were worth the money, my subjective conclusion was that the "upgrade" wasn't worth the cost at this time.  Had I mail ordered them without having heard them first, I'm willing to bet my subjective opinion would be that they "objectively superior" regardless of amp.  Honestly, to me the biggest upgrade feature of these are not the sound but the build quality, which is nice improvement.  All modern day Stax sound great, and it comes down to personal preference and adaptation of your brain to the sound.  But then again, I never admitted to having those mythical golden ears.

 

[MuppetFace]

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Or just one of those instances where ears aren't objective but subjective.  I will say that the nice thing of having listened to the 507s in Tokyo and judging for my own ears if they were worth the money, my subjective conclusion was that the "upgrade" wasn't worth the cost at this time.  Had I mail ordered them without having heard them first, I'm willing to bet my subjective opinion would be that they "objectively superior" regardless of amp.  Honestly, to me the biggest upgrade feature of these are not the sound but the build quality, which is nice improvement.  All modern day Stax sound great, and it comes down to personal preference and adaptation of your brain to the sound.  But then again, I never admitted to having those mythical golden ears.

Well, I agree that people's opinions will obviously vary on how a headphone's sound should be described, but it's NOT subjective that the O2 requires lots of power to sound its best. Simple fact there.
 
You see it over and over again: people not giving the O2 the power it needs and then selling it short by describing it as "dark." Listen on the KGSS or the BHSE however, and it's a whole 'nother story.
 
As for the SR-507, I never claimed to know what it sounds like because I obviously haven't heard it yet. I made a simple observation based on:
 
1.) spritzer's description says that they weren't dark. spritzer uses really high-end amps.
2.) tvrboy's description says that they were dark. tvyboy uses a lower-end amp.
 
Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not.

 

[spritzer]

It could also be a rather simple explanation, what one person considers to be bright/dark.  I for one would never call the SR-007 dark, regardless of the amp used.  It is also well known that a BH will tame the excessive brightness of Lambdas, certainly it is true with the Lambda Sigs.  Right now I'm just too bloody tired to hook up the SRM-1 Mk2 to the loopout of the ESX...

 

[n3rdling]

Most headphones are varying degrees of bright to my ears.  Also, the Lambda Sig is a brilliant headphone, probably my favorite Lambda.

 

[jaycalgary]

Lambda Sig are great I think. I have to go get a bottle of contact cleaner. I am still dealing with a left right channel imbalance. I think it may be the sound card I am using.
It is just a Musiland 02 and it may be the problem. A slight tap on the usb and the audio will kick out. I cleaned it but sprayed some spray that I thought would work but
now its 1 channel is out but fiddling with cable and will bring it back. So I will get cleaner and open it up and resolder the usb and left right rca's.
Any new new on the Omega 3? Do you think they will be even higher priced then the Omega 2?

 

[spritzer]

The new model might be twice as expensive as the SR-007,  300-500KYen...

 

[n3rdling]

They should cost $36-60!!!

 

[tvrboy]

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They should cost $36-60!!!

36 to 60 dollars? that's realistic...

 

[n3rdling]

I was only teasing because jay never does research lol

 

[sokolov91]

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The new model might be twice as expensive as the SR-007,  300-500KYen...

lol so they don't know if it is going to be 3700$ or 6200$? not exactly a precise estimation. I really hope it is not over 4k. Not only due to my wallet, but due to the precedent it sets. Prices in audio need to go DOWN not continuously up. If they spent, oh I don't know, maybe more than 50 cents on marketing they would be able to make up in volume what they would lose by lowering prices.

 

[tigermilk]

Quote:

Well, I agree that people's opinions will obviously vary on how a headphone's sound should be described, but it's NOT subjective that the O2 requires lots of power to sound its best. Simple fact there.
 
You see it over and over again: people not giving the O2 the power it needs and then selling it short by describing it as "dark." Listen on the KGSS or the BHSE however, and it's a whole 'nother story.
 
As for the SR-507, I never claimed to know what it sounds like because I obviously haven't heard it yet. I made a simple observation based on:
 
1.) spritzer's description says that they weren't dark. spritzer uses really high-end amps.
2.) tvrboy's description says that they were dark. tvyboy uses a lower-end amp.
 
Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not.

Ah, but words like "lots" and "dark" are subjective terms.  As an engineer, I try to avoid those warm fuzzies.  Now make a comparison of those various amps in terms of technical specs and also the power/voltage requirements of a chosen headphone, and can talk Fuji apples to Gala apples.  But the bottom line is that it's difficult to turn an inherently subjective issue to an objective one.

 

[MuppetFace]

 
Quote:

Ah, but words like "lots" and "dark" are subjective terms.  As an engineer, I try to avoid those warm fuzzies.  Now make a comparison of those various amps in terms of technical specs and also the power/voltage requirements of a chosen headphone, and can talk Fuji apples to Gala apples.  But the bottom line is that it's difficult to turn an inherently subjective issue to an objective one.

What you're saying really isn't news to anyone. In my post I even said as much: "people's opinions will vary on how sound should be described."
 
In my post I do not claim "dark" is an absolute, universally accepted value. I merely point out that people often cite the O2 as being "dark" when they have used amplifiers that are not powering it to its full potential. Conversely, people will often report differently when hearing the O2 on a more powerful amp. That's not denying the subjectivity of the term "dark." On the contrary it acknowledges it.
 
Yes, you can't very well describe something QUALitative in a QUANTitative way. I agree with this wholeheartedly. That doesn't mean qualitative things aren't worth discussing, however.

 

[svyr]

It'd be nice if dark was described as trough of y1,y2,y3 DB at a,b,c hz...
 
need moar tasteh graphs...Incl ones of own hearing relative-FR perception charts (ELC?), earspeakers, dac/driver unit... and something to make sense of it all, combine all 4 to be able to better to pick and match gear... Except no-one seems to do it - too hard?
Quote:

Ah, but words like "lots" and "dark" are subjective terms.  As an engineer, I try to avoid those warm fuzzies.  Now make a comparison of those various amps in terms of technical specs and also the power/voltage requirements of a chosen headphone, and can talk Fuji apples to Gala apples.  But the bottom line is that it's difficult to turn an inherently subjective issue to an objective one.

 

[spritzer]

Running off my modified SRM-1 Mk2 (via XLR inputs) the 507 is more forward then it should be.  Having used them every chance I could get from since late Friday the forward nature doesn't bother me any more though.  The fit is also getting better with use. 

 

[tvrboy]

Quote:

Running off my modified SRM-1 Mk2 (via XLR inputs) the 507 is more forward then it should be.  Having used them every chance I could get from since late Friday the forward nature doesn't bother me any more though.  The fit is also getting better with use. 

I guess it's just a difference of opinion then. I don't think my opinion is SO far off reality though. I don't think the O2 is dark. The 507 is just about perfect for classical and jazz in my opinion. It's a great headphone and kills most dynamics. Just not good for rock. I'm glad I tried it out. Anyway, I'll be selling the it in a month or two, cause I can't take it with me. So somebody will get a good deal secondhand.