JonJeffman
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2009
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Okay, I just got back from Japan and had a chance to test out a bunch of Stax gear, which is pretty rare to find in my neck of the woods, so figured I'd share my review of the new SRS-2170.
Disclaimers: (1) I don't claim to have a golden ear. (2) I didn't spend as long listening as I normally would, as I didn't want to spend all of my vacation in hi-fi shops. (3) I'm pretty low-class on the headphone scale, so basically everything I listened to is better than my frame of reference (I have Denon D2000's and Shure SCL4's).
I checked out a few stores in Tokyo, and was definitely blown away by the amount of gear on display at the Yodobashi Camera store in Akihabara, but the best prices I found for the SRS-2050 or SRS-2170 were at Audio Union in Ochanomizu. At Audio Union, the prices were:
SRS-2170 = 46410 JPY
SRS-2050A = 44415 JPY, discounted to 32077 JPY since they're no longer the current lineup.
At Audio Union, I had a CD of my own that I'm very familiar with (and uncompressed files), they had a somewhat expensive looking Philips CD player as source (can't remember the model), but I had to switch the power and source cables between the SRM-252A and SRM-252S amps so there was a bit of delay between comparisons.
Basically, I compared the SR-202 vs SR-207 on both amps, with a fairly quick change over. I find these 'phones to be extremely similar. I really don't know that they changed anything between the two. If I had to pick something, I might say the SR-207's are slightly more sensitive, and a little louder when plugged into the same amp, but if they are, it's so minor it easily could have been my imagination. They definitely keep the same sound signature, and they sound quite bright, and not as smooth as the 404's, but I really like them both. I like the 'sparkle' they have over the 404's, but I could see some people finding them a tad harsh with the high frequencies.
As for construction, they looked pretty much the same to me. If they are made from a different resin, like the SR-507's, I couldn't tell. Also, they did not have the headband adjustments that 'click' into place like the new SR-507's, just the same slider mechanism on both of them.
At this point, I thought I might be leaving with the SRS-2050A cause it was such a discount. But then I compared the amps, and this is where the differences came in.
The SRM-252S (which comes with the new SRS-2170 system) seems noticeably more powerful than the SRM-252A it's replacing. As close as I could get it with the delayed switch-over to change cables, to get the same volume between amps, what was at the 12:00 position of the 252A, I only needed about a 10:00 - 10:30 position on the 252S. But more importantly than just the extra volume, it seemed to really strengthen the bass.
But not just strengthen the bass in terms of loudness, but to tighten it up and make it noticeably more distinct and give it it's own space in the soundstage. I didn't get a chance to compare the SRM-252S to a more expensive amp like the SRM-323, but it was a very noticeable step up over the 252A. After listening to the SRM-252S, the bass on the 252A just seemed weak and muddled into everything else.
So basically, I decided to not purchase anything (even though both systems were much cheaper than in Canada), cause either way I didn't get a warranty, plus had to deal with different voltages, and figure I liked the SRS-2170 a lot more, so hopefully by the time I have some more disposable income, some used SRS-2170's will be hitting the for sale pages.
Disclaimers: (1) I don't claim to have a golden ear. (2) I didn't spend as long listening as I normally would, as I didn't want to spend all of my vacation in hi-fi shops. (3) I'm pretty low-class on the headphone scale, so basically everything I listened to is better than my frame of reference (I have Denon D2000's and Shure SCL4's).
I checked out a few stores in Tokyo, and was definitely blown away by the amount of gear on display at the Yodobashi Camera store in Akihabara, but the best prices I found for the SRS-2050 or SRS-2170 were at Audio Union in Ochanomizu. At Audio Union, the prices were:
SRS-2170 = 46410 JPY
SRS-2050A = 44415 JPY, discounted to 32077 JPY since they're no longer the current lineup.
At Audio Union, I had a CD of my own that I'm very familiar with (and uncompressed files), they had a somewhat expensive looking Philips CD player as source (can't remember the model), but I had to switch the power and source cables between the SRM-252A and SRM-252S amps so there was a bit of delay between comparisons.
Basically, I compared the SR-202 vs SR-207 on both amps, with a fairly quick change over. I find these 'phones to be extremely similar. I really don't know that they changed anything between the two. If I had to pick something, I might say the SR-207's are slightly more sensitive, and a little louder when plugged into the same amp, but if they are, it's so minor it easily could have been my imagination. They definitely keep the same sound signature, and they sound quite bright, and not as smooth as the 404's, but I really like them both. I like the 'sparkle' they have over the 404's, but I could see some people finding them a tad harsh with the high frequencies.
As for construction, they looked pretty much the same to me. If they are made from a different resin, like the SR-507's, I couldn't tell. Also, they did not have the headband adjustments that 'click' into place like the new SR-507's, just the same slider mechanism on both of them.
At this point, I thought I might be leaving with the SRS-2050A cause it was such a discount. But then I compared the amps, and this is where the differences came in.
The SRM-252S (which comes with the new SRS-2170 system) seems noticeably more powerful than the SRM-252A it's replacing. As close as I could get it with the delayed switch-over to change cables, to get the same volume between amps, what was at the 12:00 position of the 252A, I only needed about a 10:00 - 10:30 position on the 252S. But more importantly than just the extra volume, it seemed to really strengthen the bass.
But not just strengthen the bass in terms of loudness, but to tighten it up and make it noticeably more distinct and give it it's own space in the soundstage. I didn't get a chance to compare the SRM-252S to a more expensive amp like the SRM-323, but it was a very noticeable step up over the 252A. After listening to the SRM-252S, the bass on the 252A just seemed weak and muddled into everything else.
So basically, I decided to not purchase anything (even though both systems were much cheaper than in Canada), cause either way I didn't get a warranty, plus had to deal with different voltages, and figure I liked the SRS-2170 a lot more, so hopefully by the time I have some more disposable income, some used SRS-2170's will be hitting the for sale pages.
