solomon
Member of the Trade
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2001
- Posts
- 126
- Likes
- 10
WHEN: September 19, 2004
WHERE: Shanghai, China
WHAT: The most de luxe headphone pageant in Shanghai, ever
WHO: you guys know none of us, so.
WHY: fun!
Beauties:
Headphones:
1. Sennheiser: Orpheus, Baby Orpheus, HD540 GOLD 600 Ohms, HD580, HD600
2. SONY R10
3. STAX 007
4. STAX 4040 system
5. ETYMOTIC ER4S
6. SHURE E5C
Head-amps:
1. Audio-technica 2002
2. 8PR (DIY by Mr Yeli in Beijing, China)
3. 8PS (DIY for electrostatic phones by Mr Yeli)
Sources:
1. PHILIPS LHH800、SONIC FRONTIERS SFD-2 MkII
2. Marantz CD15
3. WADIA 830
My comments:
1. SONY R10: This is a record-breaking dynamic phone in the sense that it even surpasses Orpheus and 007 in details and sheer speed. The sound is astonishingly quick and detailed. Nothing can hide, even the slightest detail and artificial sound effects created by post-production are exposed to the finest degree. The bass is not especially deep or powerful, but it strikes me as the cleanest.
Despite its speed and analytic power, the tone is smooth and warm, if not the most neutral. It produces bel canto all the time. There are people who say R10 is not better than HD600. They are very wrong. The only area where HD600 might be a little better is the weight of bass.
Two things need to be taken care of when using R10: firstly source and amp mean a lot, and secondly engineering of CDs is also critical. The better a CD is recorded, the more enjoyable R10 is; if you listen to poorly-recorded or engineered CDs thru R10, you will be astounded how nasty these artificial effects are.
Weaknesses? I noticed two. The speed is unnecessarily quick, and it is overly detailed, often times exposing the imperfections of recordings. Some people also might think the midrange is a bit thin, or, not mellow enough. No matter what this is the highest achievement of dynamic headphones, especially in the department of speed and analytic power.
However personally I would like it better if it is a tad less detailed, a little slower, and a little more mellow in the midrange.
2. HD540 GOLD: this one has the best c/p in all the headphones present. Very balanced and transparent sound. Pure and simple. Also very musical. Ideal for classical music, except large-scale symphonic works, due to its less-than-perfect dynamic range. R10 is more detailed, but like I said R10 is just unnecessarily TOO detailed. It loses to Orpheus in airiness and openness of sound-stage, and it loses to HD600 in dynamic power. But it is very close to perfection. I love it.
3. Orpheus: No need to say anything but that this is THE BEST in the world. A little slower than R10, in the positive sense, because R10 is too quick to be enjoyable. It has the widest and most natural sound-stage, and the best combination of sense and sensibility. An all-rounder. Very musical and attractive. Personally I don't believe the 8PS we used is the best partner for it, so there is more to dig out.
4. Baby Orpheus: sound is a bit hollow compared to Orpheus, and bass is much weaker than Orpheus. Of course its not fair to comment Baby this way, because no headphone can stand a comparison with Orpheus.
5. STAX 007: Exceptional bass. Very deep and clean. Though the sound is very "correct" it just lacks the ability to really move people. I think it sounds dull. It might have to do with the amp, because we used 8PS instead of the original STAX amp.
6. STAX 4040 system: a bit narrow in sound-stage, and not as clean and detailed as 007 and R10. But it has more character than 007. Good value at this price level.
7. HD580: natural and open sound. However, loses to HD540 GOLD in almost every area.
8. HD600: only thing worth mentioning is the weight and thickness of low-end, making it an ideal phone for large-scale symphonic works. Otherwise it loses to HD540 Gold.
9. Audio-technica 2002 headphone amp: good for R10, but poor for the 600-Ohm HD540 GOLD. Need to crank up to 2pm to get enough volume. Very quick and open sound. Can make R10 sound lightning speed. Too responsive to details and dynamic changes. I would rather it is less sensitive, and less dynamic, so I can more enjoy the beauty of its sound.
10.Shure E5C: only good for rock and vocal. Sound is not neutral, classical music sounds distorted. To a certain degree it is not dissimiliar to Grado RS-1. This is an overpriced earphone.
WHERE: Shanghai, China
WHAT: The most de luxe headphone pageant in Shanghai, ever
WHO: you guys know none of us, so.
WHY: fun!
Beauties:
Headphones:
1. Sennheiser: Orpheus, Baby Orpheus, HD540 GOLD 600 Ohms, HD580, HD600
2. SONY R10
3. STAX 007
4. STAX 4040 system
5. ETYMOTIC ER4S
6. SHURE E5C
Head-amps:
1. Audio-technica 2002
2. 8PR (DIY by Mr Yeli in Beijing, China)
3. 8PS (DIY for electrostatic phones by Mr Yeli)
Sources:
1. PHILIPS LHH800、SONIC FRONTIERS SFD-2 MkII
2. Marantz CD15
3. WADIA 830
My comments:
1. SONY R10: This is a record-breaking dynamic phone in the sense that it even surpasses Orpheus and 007 in details and sheer speed. The sound is astonishingly quick and detailed. Nothing can hide, even the slightest detail and artificial sound effects created by post-production are exposed to the finest degree. The bass is not especially deep or powerful, but it strikes me as the cleanest.
Despite its speed and analytic power, the tone is smooth and warm, if not the most neutral. It produces bel canto all the time. There are people who say R10 is not better than HD600. They are very wrong. The only area where HD600 might be a little better is the weight of bass.
Two things need to be taken care of when using R10: firstly source and amp mean a lot, and secondly engineering of CDs is also critical. The better a CD is recorded, the more enjoyable R10 is; if you listen to poorly-recorded or engineered CDs thru R10, you will be astounded how nasty these artificial effects are.
Weaknesses? I noticed two. The speed is unnecessarily quick, and it is overly detailed, often times exposing the imperfections of recordings. Some people also might think the midrange is a bit thin, or, not mellow enough. No matter what this is the highest achievement of dynamic headphones, especially in the department of speed and analytic power.
However personally I would like it better if it is a tad less detailed, a little slower, and a little more mellow in the midrange.
2. HD540 GOLD: this one has the best c/p in all the headphones present. Very balanced and transparent sound. Pure and simple. Also very musical. Ideal for classical music, except large-scale symphonic works, due to its less-than-perfect dynamic range. R10 is more detailed, but like I said R10 is just unnecessarily TOO detailed. It loses to Orpheus in airiness and openness of sound-stage, and it loses to HD600 in dynamic power. But it is very close to perfection. I love it.
3. Orpheus: No need to say anything but that this is THE BEST in the world. A little slower than R10, in the positive sense, because R10 is too quick to be enjoyable. It has the widest and most natural sound-stage, and the best combination of sense and sensibility. An all-rounder. Very musical and attractive. Personally I don't believe the 8PS we used is the best partner for it, so there is more to dig out.
4. Baby Orpheus: sound is a bit hollow compared to Orpheus, and bass is much weaker than Orpheus. Of course its not fair to comment Baby this way, because no headphone can stand a comparison with Orpheus.
5. STAX 007: Exceptional bass. Very deep and clean. Though the sound is very "correct" it just lacks the ability to really move people. I think it sounds dull. It might have to do with the amp, because we used 8PS instead of the original STAX amp.
6. STAX 4040 system: a bit narrow in sound-stage, and not as clean and detailed as 007 and R10. But it has more character than 007. Good value at this price level.
7. HD580: natural and open sound. However, loses to HD540 GOLD in almost every area.
8. HD600: only thing worth mentioning is the weight and thickness of low-end, making it an ideal phone for large-scale symphonic works. Otherwise it loses to HD540 Gold.
9. Audio-technica 2002 headphone amp: good for R10, but poor for the 600-Ohm HD540 GOLD. Need to crank up to 2pm to get enough volume. Very quick and open sound. Can make R10 sound lightning speed. Too responsive to details and dynamic changes. I would rather it is less sensitive, and less dynamic, so I can more enjoy the beauty of its sound.
10.Shure E5C: only good for rock and vocal. Sound is not neutral, classical music sounds distorted. To a certain degree it is not dissimiliar to Grado RS-1. This is an overpriced earphone.
