[alvin sawdust]

 
Can you tell me what name brand amp, dac, interconnects, and power cords are used here with the Abyss?

Looks like the amp is the Alo Studio 6. Can't help with the rest.

 

[Crashem]

In the nex weeks i will be hearing abyss throw hifiman adapter and sunaudio 300B SE (i had it repaired as it didnot survived the postage). I know from Piotr Ryka (see hifiphilosophy.com) that orthoplanar sound very good with 300B SET. We will see.
So you will not have to wait for  months
Well i did not hear vivaldi stack but i am still impresed how much a good source can do (totaldac). I have had some good sources in my systems ( linn ikemi, accuphase 75v, krell 280cd, dcs puccini auralic vega) and it was always a small step ahead, but totaldac was more a jump than a step.
The combo stax sr009 - woo audio wes is a very good one, but it lets me still looking for improvement (ebay, audiogon etc. it costs my time, money and nerves) With abyss throw totaldac i had the 1 time for a long time a feeling i am near at my goal. I really hope that a combination totaldac + d1 server + EC 445 will let me forget that it always can be better and that i can just enjoy the music und visit this forum once a week or so and not every few hours
From what i heard yet without an amp i believe it is possible.

Your sr009 could use an amp upgrade as well

 

[m2man]

I heard the Abyss this weekend at the Seattle Head-Fi meet. They were just amazing on my EC 2A3x4. The bass was better than the LCD-3. The sound stage is crazy. Much better than the HD-800 IMHO. I was listening to a 20 year old EDM track, which is normally muddy and pretty boring truthfully. It was just awesome on the Abyss. The mids are just so clear is kind of triply. I didn't listen near long enough. The combo got lots of wow's and holy ****s....from long time head-fiers. It takes a ton of power, I had the volume up near 1 o'clock. The HE-6 was only at 10 o'clock. I'll be getting an Abyss pronto.

 

[Kiats]

I heard the Abyss this weekend at the Seattle Head-Fi meet. They were just amazing on my EC 2A3x4. The bass was better than the LCD-3. The sound stage is crazy. Much better than the HD-800 IMHO. I was listening to a 20 year old EDM track, which is normally muddy and pretty boring truthfully. It was just awesome on the Abyss. The mids are just so clear is kind of triply. I didn't listen near long enough. The combo got lots of wow's and holy ****s....from long time head-fiers. It takes a ton of power, I had the volume up near 1 o'clock. The HE-6 was only at 10 o'clock. I'll be getting an Abyss pronto.

Heheh! Good for you! The Abyss is a pretty wonderful piece of gear once you can get past the price. What is outstanding about it is that it manages to breathe life into recordings that are not stellar. I listen to music all the way from 5th century church music to the latest indie music. And it performs all comers with ease.

All I can say is: Enjoy!

 

[Music Alchemist]

I heard the Abyss this weekend at the Seattle Head-Fi meet. They were just amazing on my EC 2A3x4. The bass was better than the LCD-3. The sound stage is crazy. Much better than the HD-800 IMHO. I was listening to a 20 year old EDM track, which is normally muddy and pretty boring truthfully. It was just awesome on the Abyss. The mids are just so clear is kind of triply. I didn't listen near long enough. The combo got lots of wow's and holy ****s....from long time head-fiers. It takes a ton of power, I had the volume up near 1 o'clock. The HE-6 was only at 10 o'clock. I'll be getting an Abyss pronto.

 

Heheh! Good for you! The Abyss is a pretty wonderful piece of gear once you can get past the price. What is outstanding about it is that it manages to breathe life into recordings that are not stellar. I listen to music all the way from 5th century church music to the latest indie music. And it performs all comers with ease.

All I can say is: Enjoy!

 
Can't wait to join the club!

 

[Kiats]

Can't wait to join the club!

And we look forward to welcoming you!

 

[Music Alchemist]

And we look forward to welcoming you!

 
hehe, I talk about the Abyss all the time to people on this site and receive a lot of criticism related to it in just about every category. What I mean is that I try to defend it, based on the countless reviews and impressions I've read (only 5-10% of them being negative), but get so many questions and complaints for which I'm not knowledgeable enough to fully address.
 
I kind of want to record a comprehensive interview with Joe to alleviate many of the concerns of the public.
 
Since you own all those flagships, have you published any detailed comparisons between them and the Abyss?

 

[pearljam50000]

A not so good review:
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/jps-labs-abyss-ab-1266-planar-magnetic-headphones

 

[Music Alchemist]

A not so good review:
http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/jps-labs-abyss-ab-1266-planar-magnetic-headphones

 
Everyone's already seen that. It was published over a year ago.
 
Tyll supposedly had a flawed review unit as well, and was later surprised how much better other ones he heard sounded.

 

[pearljam50000]

OK, good to know.

 

[Kiats]

hehe, I talk about the Abyss all the time to people on this site and receive a lot of criticism related to it in just about every category. What I mean is that I try to defend it, based on the countless reviews and impressions I've read (only 5-10% of them being negative), but get so many questions and complaints for which I'm not knowledgeable enough to fully address.

I kind of want to record a comprehensive interview with Joe to alleviate many of the concerns of the public.

Since you own all those flagships, have you published any detailed comparisons between them and the Abyss?

I haven't actually gotten around to doing any detailed comparisons by way of reviews. I've only done reviews for custom iems. But who knows?

 

[Kiats]

I recall a previous discussion on possible tube amplifiers for the Abyss. Of course, that was still early days. How has the experience been since more sets of Abyss would have burnt in by now? Would love to hear how the pairings are going in respect of tube amps.

Your views would be much appreciated.

 

[Music Alchemist]

I haven't actually gotten around to doing any detailed comparisons by way of reviews. I've only done reviews for custom iems. But who knows?

 
Well, feel free to post any comparisons here. I'm sure many (including myself) would appreciate it.
 

I recall a previous discussion on possible tube amplifiers for the Abyss. Of course, that was still early days. How has the experience been since more sets of Abyss would have burnt in by now? Would love to hear how the pairings are going in respect of tube amps.

Your views would be much appreciated.

 
I have a text file full of positive Abyss reviews from all over the Internet, organized chronologically, with quotes pertaining only to sound quality. I will share it here eventually.
 
It seems the Woo Audio WA234 MONO is the best-sounding tube amp for the Abyss. If I ever get both, I'll share my impressions as well.

 

[up late]

I heard the Abyss this weekend at the Seattle Head-Fi meet. They were just amazing on my EC 2A3x4. The bass was better than the LCD-3. The sound stage is crazy. Much better than the HD-800 IMHO...

the abyss had spacious soundstage but it didn't outdo the hd800 in that department imo. nothing i've heard has.

 

[Music Alchemist]

the abyss had spacious soundstage but it didn't outdo the hd800 in that department imo. nothing i've heard has.

 
Yeah, the HD 800 remains the soundstage king. Unfortunately, many consider it to be unrealistically wide, which only works well with classical, apparently.
 
I think when people claim a headphone outclasses the HD 800's soundstage, they may be referring to other aspects like height, depth, a sense of three-dimensionality...or perhaps some see a not-as-wide soundstage as being more realistic and thus superior.