[autoteleology]

The opinions I come by on the various Lambda frames are some of the most wildly inconsistent I've ever encountered on the forums. The signal to noise ratio is virtually nil, especially since almost nobody has experienced a wide range of them in a short time period, much less with any kind of controlled setting or gear.

 

[Solshock]

Yeah and the 202 was no slouch. One of the best Lambdas, certainly compared to the 303/404

Thanks again spritzer.  What's the major difference between the X02 line and the X07 line of lambdas?
Chris J - when you say similarly priced, do you mean Stax USA's price, or the used market price?

 

[DefQon]

  Thanks again spritzer.  What's the major difference between the X02 line and the X07 line of lambdas?
Chris J - when you say similarly priced, do you mean Stax USA's price, or the used market price?

 
There is only the 202 from the previous flagship Lambda lineup than the new X07 line of Lambda's. I find nearly all the newer Lambda's more brighter sounding than the previous 202, 303/404 lineup. Both the 207 and 202 are very nice sounding Lambda's. 

 

[NamelessPFG]

The SR-202 would appeal to those who like the HE-400's overall sound signature.
 
It's just that I don't know what Stax did that got in the way of the midrange on the set I had, but it was noticeably rougher, raspier and less transparent to my ears. Unfortunately, I couldn't isolate the amp variable at the time, as I didn't have my SRM-T1 yet, the SRD-7/SB is pure Normal bias, and the SRM-212 is pure Pro bias.
 
I don't expect anyone to share my particular tastes. Far from it, actually. But it should be noted that despite being based on the same frame, the Lambda models do have noticeably different sound signatures, some of which will inevitably be love-it-or-hate-it affairs.

 

[RedBull]

  There is only the 202 from the previous flagship Lambda lineup than the new X07 line of Lambda's. I find nearly all the newer Lambda's more brighter sounding than the previous 202, 303/404 lineup. Both the 207 and 202 are very nice sounding Lambda's. 

 
How do you rank treble brightness amongst HD800, SA3000 and SR207?
 
 
 
Hey, where's your punisher avatar??

 

[Chris J]

  Chris J - when you say similarly priced, do you mean Stax USA's price, or the used market price?

 
Good question!
 
I'm comparing my new SRS-2170 system (paid $750) to:
 
What I paid for the get a new Beyer DT880/600 Ohm and new La Figaro 336C with some NOS tubes (paid approx. $800)
OR
What I paid for a new AKG Q701 plus new Matrix M Stage amp (paid approx $600).
 
All these amp & headphone systems were in the ballpark of $600- $800, so that's all US new market price.
 
In that price range (and in my experience!) I think the SRS-2170 is the better sounding system.  Having said all that, I'm still keeping my Q701 headphones! Probably going to sell the other stuff and get a better amp for my Q701.

 

[donunus]

 
I prefer the 202's a bit more than the 207's which are still great sounding but a bit borderlining of being bit too bright for me. Both models are different sounding to the rest of it's family model's, neutral, balanced, uncoloured are some of the traits they carry with sound, so they may not be for everyone.

Can you expand more on this? What frequencies are brighter on the 207? highs above 10khz? or upper mids to lower treble? I liked the 202 but found them a little too soft sounding. So will the 207 remedy this?
 
And when you say different from the rest of the family, are you saying that even the brighter 207 is still dark vs the others? or are they different in other aspects of the sound?

 

[Zadok]

I've been teetering back and forth with the idea of buying some vintage Lambda's and many of them come with one of the transformer boxes instead of a dedicated amp, which is OK because I already have an amplifier.
 
My problem comes along because these vintage transformer boxes all have exposed wires to be connected to speaker terminals, which is a royal PITA and not compatible at all with my other gear. Are there any workarounds for this? Terminating those cables into RCA to go through my amp?
 
This is essentially the reason I have not purchased any Stax products yet because new they run too $$$ for what you get (Esp the driver units), but the used ones have issues like this.

 

[donunus]

  Most likely culprit is your source. Or wallwart?

 
I also had the humming issue with my old 2050 system. I think the 252 amp is just very sensitive wanting clean power or something because none of my other amps or dacs ever did that when plugged in the same outlet.

 

[K_19]

  Can you expand more on this? What frequencies are brighter on the 207? highs above 10khz? or upper mids to lower treble? I liked the 202 but found them a little too soft sounding. So will the 207 remedy this?
 
And when you say different from the rest of the family, are you saying that even the brighter 207 is still dark vs the others? or are they different in other aspects of the sound?

 
I personally don't notice any treble harshness with the 207's at all, if anything IMO they're rolled off at the very top.  Where they do have a bump is around 1~3k region which I find a bit too forward with some songs and makes vocals sound way too shouty.  I EQ this down and it sound awesome overall though.

 

[DairyProduce]

   
I personally don't notice any treble harshness with the 207's at all, if anything IMO they're rolled off at the very top.  Where they do have a bump is around 1~3k region which I find a bit too forward with some songs and makes vocals sound way too shouty.  I EQ this down and it sound awesome overall though.

 
why do you own both the 207 and 009s?

 

[shipsupt]

It shouldn't be that hard to find something...
 
http://www.iec.net/l74224-06.html
http://www.amazon.com/IEC-Speaker-Wire-Male-Cable/dp/B003U44LA8
 
 
 
Quote:

  I've been teetering back and forth with the idea of buying some vintage Lambda's and many of them come with one of the transformer boxes instead of a dedicated amp, which is OK because I already have an amplifier.
 
My problem comes along because these vintage transformer boxes all have exposed wires to be connected to speaker terminals, which is a royal PITA and not compatible at all with my other gear. Are there any workarounds for this? Terminating those cables into RCA to go through my amp?
 
This is essentially the reason I have not purchased any Stax products yet because new they run too $$$ for what you get (Esp the driver units), but the used ones have issues like this.

 

[K_19]

   
why do you own both the 207 and 009s?

 
I actually don't have the 009's yet, I've put it in my profile (it's bought already and in Asia) but I'll be getting it hopefully by the end of the month.  I bought the 207's from my friend who upgraded to 407's to tie over my 'stat hunger, so once the 009's arrive, who knows... but I am definitely enjoying them right now.

 

[Chris J]

I also had the humming issue with my old 2050 system. I think the 252 amp is just very sensitive wanting clean power or something because none of my other amps or dacs ever did that when plugged in the same outlet.

Weird.

I've plugged my 252 into various outlets and various DAC in three rooms in our house and never had any hum or noise problems.
OTOH, I almost always use a power conditioning power bar.

 

[miceblue]

No ham here unless I touch my other aluminum MacBook.