[Malevolent]

I just purchased these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/304101481290. If you can't see it, it's an open-box LCD-2 Closed (or did I just buy closed-box Opens?? ), the later model with the "Audeze" brand printed on the cups. I'm very happy with the price paid ($625 + tax), the seller's (tradeportusa) good reputation/feedback, the condition, the return policy, and the headphone's quality & characteristics (based on input here).

Thanks everyone for your advice and your patience!

Great! Enjoy your headphones! Sorry about your wallet... and your neck!

 

[Terriero]

Great! Enjoy your headphones! Sorry about your wallet... and your neck!

Some headphones should include a "neck warning" in the packaging

 

[Malevolent]

Some headphones should include a "neck warning" in the packaging

It should be an automatic warning for (almost) all of Audeze's headphones then!

 

[Malevolent]

Woah.... Dan Clark Audio has just launched a TOTL closed-back headphone, the Stealth.

Wow, am I glad that I didn't buy the Stellia (yet). I was seriously considering getting 1 - and of course, I've always had an eye on the Rögnir.

But this new Stealth looks very intriguing! Sadly, the price is also insanely high - $4,000 is a huge chunk of change!

 

[Terriero]

More options for you... Like you, I'm also considering the Empyrean (but for a future, now I can't use open headphones, just some days), I have considered the Clear (regarding to your desired Utopia) and you know that the Rögnir is in my wishlist... I'm waiting to a little push (and now that Eric65 came back to Kennerton thread, if he finally gets them...) and of course to have that ammount of money.

I don't like the design of the Stealth, reminds me a little the Senn HD 820 due to the big cups and the glass? isolating them.

 

[Malevolent]

More options for you... Like you, I'm also considering the Empyrean (but for a future, now I can't use open headphones, just some days), I have considered the Clear (regarding to your desired Utopia) and you know that the Rögnir is in my wishlist... I'm waiting to a little push (and now that Eric65 came back to Kennerton thread, if he finally gets them...) and of course to have that ammount of money.

I don't like the design of the Stealth, reminds me a little the Senn HD 820 due to the big cups and the glass? isolating them.

Sadly, the prices of these new flagships are getting into "very expensive" territory - any purchasing decision has to be carefully made, considered, and pondered over... repeat ad nauseum.

So far, the Stellia and the Rögnir are the 2 that come to mind. I was actually set on making the Stellia my next closed-back purchase, but the Stealth has thrown a spanner into the works. Suffice it to say, I'd probably only end up buying 1 of these 3 flagships; having 2 or 3 of them is not only going to cause a huge hole in my wallet, but my wife would probably hang me - upside down - from the rafters! She'd have no problem doing so, too, since she'll have some really thick cables to work with!

 

[plakat]

Re Stealth: Dan does interesting things for sure, and he is a really nice guy. Yet I don’t support the price regions this is going into (not with DCA nor any other company). Therefore I will most probably not even try it out. Been there, done that. The Abyss I once owned was very instructive regarding price/value relations…

 

[AudioDuck]

Re Stealth: Dan does interesting things for sure, and he is a really nice guy. Yet I don’t support the price regions this is going into (not with DCA nor any other company). Therefore I will most probably not even try it out. Been there, done that. The Abyss I once owned was very instructive regarding price/value relations…

This is a great point (says the guy who recently went into Stellia territory- albeit at pre-owned pricing )!

Nonetheless, I think a key part of this hobby/obsession is to determine where YOU feel the price/budget point of diminishing returns is, buy the gear that fits that point for you, and enjoy.

Before that Stellia-enabling birthday gift came my way, I felt there was a strong case for that point being around $1,000 USD for headphones (ie Celestee/Radiance territory in the Focal lineup, or low-end ZMFs), and roughly $700-800 USD for amps. With source devices it’s trickier, but once you spend more than $1,000-1,200 USD for a DAC I could see audible gains shrinking rapidly.

Obviously this is with my aging brass ears- younger and/or more capable listeners may find I’m way off base, to use an American baseball term.

 

[someguyontheinternet]

Seems like the Stealth took quite a significant amount of RnD to be made. So I can understand that this investment needs to be offset.
I would certainly be happier if it was cheaper, but I have the impression that this headphone is very close to what I would consider perfect for me.

I'm also pretty sure that DCA will release more headphones with this new technology and deliver a cheaper option at some point. It would also be interesting if they made mod parts using this concept (as Dan has hinted the possibility in the interview with Headfi). An Aeon priced headphone with even better sound quality would really be a high value product.

 

[Terriero]

Re Stealth: Dan does interesting things for sure, and he is a really nice guy. Yet I don’t support the price regions this is going into (not with DCA nor any other company). Therefore I will most probably not even try it out. Been there, done that. The Abyss I once owned was very instructive regarding price/value relations…

It seems that the new "mid-fi" region is the 1000 to 2000 $/€ range... given the prices of the new TOTL headphones (2500/ 3000 to 6000 $/€)...

By the way, and a little offtopic (sorry Malevolent ) I'm very curious and also interested about your Abyss 1266 experience... They are insanely expensive, so ugly IMO, some people say that they are uncomfortable, others find them comfortable (YMMV), will be so weird to do adjustment in the headphones every time you put them on.... but... everybody here praise for them with metal music (maybe those cans are so forgiving...) that's why I'm curious about...

 

[MatW]

It seems that the new "mid-fi" region is the 1000 to 2000 $/€ range... given the prices of the new TOTL headphones (2500/ 3000 to 6000 $/€)...

By the way, and a little offtopic (sorry Malevolent ) I'm very curious and also interested about your Abyss 1266 experience... They are insanely expensive, so ugly IMO, some people say that they are uncomfortable, others find them comfortable (YMMV), will be so weird to do adjustment in the headphones every time you put them on.... but... everybody here praise for them with metal music (maybe those cans are so forgiving...) that's why I'm curious about...

You can also leave them toed in when putting them on the Abyss stand. Minimal adjustment required.

 

[Malevolent]

Re Stealth: Dan does interesting things for sure, and he is a really nice guy. Yet I don’t support the price regions this is going into (not with DCA nor any other company). Therefore I will most probably not even try it out. Been there, done that. The Abyss I once owned was very instructive regarding price/value relations…

Sadly, the market has slowly inflated itself to a level that was hitherto unseen in the headphone space - from my perspective, flagships must now cost in the region of $2,000 to command any sort of attention in the contemporary space. Look at Beyerdynamic's T5 (3rd Generation) and Denon's AH-D9200. These sub-$2,000 headphones aren't talked about much. In fact, the new T5 appears to have fallen off the radar completely. On the other hand, the Stealth has garnered so much attention in the span of a couple of days. How much of this is due to its halo status as a $4,000 flagship remains to be seen.

This is not a knock on the headphone or Dan Clark Audio; I appreciate the brand and its offerings, and I respect them for pushing the boundaries. Plus, I love the look of their headphones. In fact, the AEON 2 Closed is one of my favorite daily drivers.

 

[Malevolent]

This is a great point (says the guy who recently went into Stellia territory- albeit at pre-owned pricing )!

Nonetheless, I think a key part of this hobby/obsession is to determine where YOU feel the price/budget point of diminishing returns is, buy the gear that fits that point for you, and enjoy.

Before that Stellia-enabling birthday gift came my way, I felt there was a strong case for that point being around $1,000 USD for headphones (ie Celestee/Radiance territory in the Focal lineup, or low-end ZMFs), and roughly $700-800 USD for amps. With source devices it’s trickier, but once you spend more than $1,000-1,200 USD for a DAC I could see audible gains shrinking rapidly.

Obviously this is with my aging brass ears- younger and/or more capable listeners may find I’m way off base, to use an American baseball term.

I think that brands are "forced" to price their flagships - and the subsequent lower-tiered products - at a sufficiently-high level to command any sort of attention.

I have no doubt that the Stealth sounds brilliant; however, is it twice as good as their previous closed-back flagship, the Ether C Flow 1.1? I hope that this question can and will be answered (in a favorable manner) in the coming months. I, for one, am intrigued with this headphone.

 

[Nostoi]

I think that brands are "forced" to price their flagships - and the subsequent lower-tiered products - at a sufficiently-high level to command any sort of attention.

I have no doubt that the Stealth sounds brilliant; however, is it twice as good as their previous closed-back flagship, the Ether C Flow 1.1? I hope that this question can and will be answered (in a favorable manner) in the coming months. I, for one, am intrigued with this headphone.

Definitely also intrigued myself, though the gamerish aesthetics and product name are a major turnoff, alas. As ridiculous/snobby as it sounds, I'd find it hard to justify spending 4k on a headphone called "Stealth."

 

[paradoxper]

Woah.... Dan Clark Audio has just launched a TOTL closed-back headphone, the Stealth.



Wow, am I glad that I didn't buy the Stellia (yet). I was seriously considering getting 1 - and of course, I've always had an eye on the Rögnir.

But this new Stealth looks very intriguing! Sadly, the price is also insanely high - $4,000 is a huge chunk of change!

Don't forget the Abyss C is on the horizon and many of us are champing at the bit for this one.

In the meantime, I did order a Stealth. My guts says it won't perform up to the TC or Rognir but hearing is believing.