[Audio Jester]

Seriously, what is all this hating about? This is SummitFi, the section of the forums where we should be championing ambitious products such as these! From the reviews of people who have actually listened to these headphones it seems that the Abyss needs decent gear to sound it's best. So instead of complaining that a headphone does not sound great out of the gear you WANT it to sound great out of and reprimanding companies for pushing the envelope, we should be focusing on how we can get the most out of this headphone that is possible.

I for one look forward to hearing this headphone at its best.

 

[citadel]

Quote:

Guys, we're all friends here. Friendly discussions please.

 
Ladies and gentlemen, my apologies for my harsh comment... I got upset that he did not even bother to read what the review stated and fed up with his strongly expressed opinions that lacked substance. One of his recent comments were:
 
 

 "oh because it has good bass, it is the best"

 
The review mentioned nothing specifically about bass. This is just how some hold a dogmatic view rather than an open and honest mind. This is what the review actually said with regards to the Stax SR-009
 
 
 

I only know of one headphone that can, in some respects, give the AB-1266 a serious run for its money and that would be the Stax SR-009 electrostatic headphone. One might argue, in fact that the Stax may be, by a hair, just slightly quicker (in terms of transient speed) and perhaps just slightly more resolving (at least at some frequencies). However, the Stax cannot, I think, equal the Abyss in terms of sheer accuracy of tonal balance nor can it match the Abyss’s uncanny ability to sound equally focused and coherent at all frequencies. But the biggest and most obvious differences fall in the area of dynamics, where the Abyss captures both large- and small-scale dynamic contrasts with greater impact, subtlety, and precision than the Stax can. And, when or if push comes to shove, the Abyss can just plain play more loudly—and do so more gracefully—than the Stax can.

 
 
To follow up, a statement like the following:
 
 
 

This thread on other hand brings nothing special to the table and nor does the Abyss.

 
is both childish and disrespectful to all of the thread contributors. Really, should someone state such views if he/she is disinterested in a thread? Why not gracefully unsubscribe? That would be the mature thing to do.

 

[dBel84]

Headfi Journey  - a bloggers view 
 
 
and I am sure Frank would not object to linking his LA meet impressions here either 
 

 
2) The "Abyss" orthodynamic headphones. These are the most butt-ugly headphones I've ever seen. At a $5.5k price point, until I listened to them, I thought they couldn't be anything except a very expensive and very tasteless bad joke. Sonically, they are anything but a joke. The frequency response may be a little ragged, but they do things I've never heard in any other headphone. Imagine mating the sound stage of an AKG K-1000,  the speed, detail, and imaging of Stax., and the tight, articulate bass and rich midrange tonality of an LCD-3. It's not ready for prime-time yet, but there's real potential to set a whole new standard for headphone performance here. I hope this is just the beginning, and that eventually we see a refined product at a real-world price.
 
 

 

 

[wink]

Keep up the good work, DefQon.
A spade needs to be called a spade, and everyone's opinion is still an opinion.

 

[citadel]

Quote:

Keep up the good work, DefQon.
A spade needs to be called a spade, and everyone's opinion is still an opinion.

 
What spade was actually called a spade, by the way? 
 
There is an etiquette for expressing opinions. Firstly, claims are expected to be back by facts
or at least qualified personal experience. Secondly, flaming, arrogance, narrow-mindedness, or obnoxious comments should not be made.
 
We all come here knowing that we have different opinions, tastes, and preferences for music and for headphones. What is the point of making comments like 'WA5 is crap', 'NFB-27, LOL!! (laughing at my source amp)', and so on...? It is hard to find 'black and white' assessments with hifi level equipment, and if you are making such an assessment, one should be courteous enough to explain why.
 
I

 

[jerg]

Quote:

Headfi Journey  - a bloggers view 
 
 
and I am sure Frank would not object to linking his LA meet impressions here either 
 
 
 

That Abyss diaphragm:
 

 
Reminds me of the HE6 diaphragm
 

 
I wonder what the purpose of the fine woven metallic mesh is, in both HE6 and Abyss.

 

[VisceriousZERO]

Seriously, what is all this hating about? This is SummitFi, the section of the forums where we should be championing ambitious products such as these! From the reviews of people who have actually listened to these headphones it seems that the Abyss needs decent gear to sound it's best. So instead of complaining that a headphone does not sound great out of the gear you WANT it to sound great out of and reprimanding companies for pushing the envelope, we should be focusing on how we can get the most out of this headphone that is possible.

I for one look forward to hearing this headphone at its best.

hear hear.

I'm just gonna wait for mine to arrive then tell you guys what I think. Reminding you all I love the LCD as my favorite.


I'm happy we have summit-fi and hope it continues to grow in number.

 

[faverodefavero]

hear hear.


I'm happy we have summit-fi and hope it continues to grow in number.

Numbers, yeah, just not in price. Any 1000+ headphone is ALREADY quite sumit-fi (HD800, T1, PS1000...).

I mean, I don't believe that they've expend more to develop LCD3, or ABsomthing than - for example - Sennheiser did with HD800. So, the sound quality R&D, technologically and material wise should be quite close. Only because, let's say, it sounds better, it does not justifies a price that was not expend in the product itself in the form of development, really new technology and build quality.

I mean, something can be budget to make and sound really great, them we should not encourage companies to charge premium just because it sounds good, if they don't pay premium to make the product in first place.

Just me afraid that in a few years from now, we all end up building single-use (headphone) sound-systems that cost as much as a Bentley (at least), for it be considered hi-end or whatever you wanna call it.

 

[Audio Jester]

Numbers, yeah, just not in price. Any 1000+ headphone is ALREADY quite sumit-fi (HD800, T1, PS1000...).

I mean, I don't believe that they've expend more to develop LCD3, or ABsomthing than - for example - Sennheiser did with HD800. So, the sound quality R&D, technologically and material wise should be quite close. Only because, let's say, it sounds better, it does not justifies a price that was not expend in the product itself in the form of development, really new technology and build quality.

I mean, something can be budget to make and sound really great, them we should not encourage companies to charge premium just because it sounds good, if they don't pay premium to make the product in first place.

Just me afraid that in a few years from now, we all end up building single-use (headphone) sound-systems that cost as much as a Bentley (at least), for it be considered hi-end or whatever you wanna call it.

I agree that inflated costs are a concern, but many of the expensive top tier hp's do have decent value (imo). The Abyss is a HUGE step for a first hp (considering it was aimed at being king of the hill) and there would have been some considerable costs involved in getting it to market. At the end of the day we are talking about headphones. Once the price gets too high the product will have to compete with speakers, DSLRs and overseas holidays. There will always be a market for extreme $$$ gear but it will inevitably become so niche that most companies will not bother.

 

[jackskelly]

Quote:

I agree that inflated costs are a concern, but many of the expensive top tier hp's do have decent value (imo). The Abyss is a HUGE step for a first hp (considering it was aimed at being king of the hill) and there would have been some considerable costs involved in getting it to market. At the end of the day we are talking about headphones. Once the price gets too high the product will have to compete with speakers, DSLRs and overseas holidays. There will always be a market for extreme $$$ gear but it will inevitably become so niche that most companies will not bother.

 
Yeah, the best headphone rigs are still an order of magnitude cheaper than the best speaker set ups, and there are a lot of advantages to headphones compared with speakers (but there are also just as many ways that speakers are superior). I think I'm getting close to my ideal headphone rig, but for speakers, I still have a while before I can afford a reference set-up. In a way, headphones are quite special (which is why I imagine a lot of us are here on head-fi), and it's quite exciting that the market is expanding so rapidly.

 

[Hutnicks]

Quote:

 
What spade was actually called a spade, by the way? 
 
There is an etiquette for expressing opinions. Firstly, claims are expected to be back by facts
or at least qualified personal experience. Secondly, flaming, arrogance, narrow-mindedness, or obnoxious comments should not be made.
 
We all come here knowing that we have different opinions, tastes, and preferences for music and for headphones. What is the point of making comments like 'WA5 is crap', 'NFB-27, LOL!! (laughing at my source amp)', and so on...? It is hard to find 'black and white' assessments with hifi level equipment, and if you are making such an assessment, one should be courteous enough to explain why.
 
I

Wow. You've obviously not stumbled across the trillion pages of "Insert product name make model here" appreciation threads. Or the "science forum"

 

[wink]

I believe this thread needs this insertion to keep things on a more even keel..............
 

 

 

[citadel]

A new review is up:
 
http://headfijourney.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/abyss-ab-1266.html?view=classic

 

[VisceriousZERO]

These reviews are getting toxic...

 

[etherlite]

Quote:

A new review is up:
 
http://headfijourney.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/abyss-ab-1266.html?view=classic

 
Repost >.> 
Quote:

Headfi Journey  - a bloggers view 
 
and I am sure Frank would not object to linking his LA meet impressions here either