I had a chance to try the secret prototype amp and it sounded very good to me.
Total bummer! I was waiting for someone to fill out the survey, then I wandered off, thinking that I'd be back later. I made many rounds, and listened to practically everything several times, but never remembered to come back to it. Foolish me! I'll just have to wait until it's in production, I guess.
Actually, Hajime has it. Maybe you can convince him to bring it to the next LAOCAS function?
hahaha I'm new around these here parts but I got to admit the way you guys talk about the number of women at meets is comical.
Hey dude, there are like six women in all of Head-Fi. One was in Texas at the time of the meet. Another didn't show up. And four women were at our meet. I'm pretty proud of that.
Now if only I could get Grado to come to one of our meets (because they NEVER EVER go to meets), then my meet organizer bucket list will be complete.
I'ts a shame that a vast majority of people didn't go into the last room on the way to the restroom. There was a lot amazing gear in that room. I'd say the best gear in the whole place were all in that room.
You mean the room you were in?
Or the room that
@FrankCooter was in.
That deer-in-the-headlights look on
@Allanmarcus is priceless... bordering on memeworthy.
Hajime (third_eye) for being super nice
Oh wait, Hajime is just Hajime. Now that I think about it, I'm not sure he even has a Head-Fi account. Ethan is third_eye.
Nah, I think he's about to get the new (and as-of-yet-unannounced) K12. Wait, did I just say that out loud?
Anyway... I am here to tell all you folks that are reading this thread..NEXT TIME... don't miss out..put a head-fi meet on your bucket list if you must.. but go.. as a newbie.. I was so overwhelmed by both the welcome by other users and the graciousness of all the vendors in attendance...
So I ask you.. when the next meet is scheduled in your area.. what are you gonna do?... Make your day.. plan ahead.. and go have fun
Damn skippy!
Thanks for making the drive all the way out here man! BTW, how fast were you going? I went to your neck of the woods a few years back, and as I recall, it took longer than six hours.
I only had 2 1/2 hours to spend at the meet (turned into 3). As a first timer I thought it would be plenty of time.
LOLOLOLOL!
As a relativity new head-fier, I had an eye-opening experience at the Sennheiser table listening to a balanced hd 650 through their HDVA-600 amp. No veil and sounded great, which was not my previous experience with those headphones.
It really helps when they are properly amped right? I mean like, it's a whole other headphone.
I had a chance to try the secret prototype amp and it sounded very good to me. ...
What prototype ? from which Brand ??
I think it's a secret prototype amp?
But meeting people who hear exactly what you are saying and speak it back to you.... "I know right? And two transformers! E Core transformers that are custom wound!... BOOOSH! Mind Blower!"
I love that! Because how often do people just "get you" and get what this hobby is all about?
What a great-meet. I was the guy who ended up taking home the unloved Japanese-jazz import CD's from the raffle and they are really great (Jazz is my genre of choice).
And for those of you who were at the meet last year, Ben (dsound) is also the one who made us those headphone shot glasses, and brought us scotch!
Originally Posted by LemSkee /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Wish someone didn't beat me to that aluminum headphone stand purchase though LOL!
That happened to me once... ONCE.
Glad to see Apogee bring in some toys. Big fan of the company even though they have not been involved in our hobby much until now.
Ethan, Mike (Liang), and I went to NAMM earlier this year to convince them that they should consider hanging out is us personal audio folk... seeing as how they already have a small but rabid fan base here.
"Crossfeed" just had it's ass handed to it by Mr. Fong.
Darin, you should get permission to put that quote on your site.
It'd be killer!
My friend Alex and a couple people told me I should check out the the SUBPAC seat tactile transducer. Brian gave me a great demo. I think it would be a perfect complement to Out Of Your Head especially for watching movies. That sub-bass information makes a huge difference when watching an action movie.
Lol, when I first saw that, I joked with Ethan that we had just seen the birth of Ass-Fi.
I also think it's hilarious that the gentleman manning the super-secret headphone amp at your table was also celebrating his birthday!
I know, Hajime almost didn't make it because of that. But I'm glad he convinced his family to let him come!
There was another birthday at the meet as well, but I'm not sure I'm supposed to talk about that.
Apparently the enclosure will be completely different from what we saw, so I won't comment on the looks/size/shape of the amp in question. As far as sound goes, it was the perfect time and place to try out the amp, since there were so many other LCD setups at the meet to compare with, albeit not immediate or directly so I was really going off memory so this is all IMO.
Yeah, almost everything outside of the amp's circuit design will be changed. That was mostly a field test of the amp's basic design and voicing. I agree in that I thought it sounds pretty darned good myself!
I was concerned with the gain though - it got really loud, really quickly, so unless it was packing a ton of power, this thing needs a more usable volume control. It would be tough to use this with sensitive headphones in the current setup, and darn near impossible with IEMs. Also, with it being balanced output only, it definitely limits the amount of headphones you can use with it, and I'm always an advocate for versatility in my amps, if you can do it without harming the signal.
Well then what I'm about to say will blow your mind... that amp - yes, that desktop amp - was battery powered.
They really sang, and I don't think I heard a better Audeze setup all day. If those small issues like smoother volume control and SE output are fixed with a price tag in the $600-$800 range I think this could be one heck of a good deal and easily compete with stuff in the >$1000 market sound quality-wise.
Wow, that's pretty high praise! I honestly don't know if the SE output will happen, as I heard it's supposed to be exclusively balanced (output). I will beseech the powers that be, but I'm just not sure that it will happen.
Best sound at the meet. Too bad like four people heard it.
Hey! I have an idea! Anybody out there want to chip in some money with me? Maybe we can get a member-supplied giveaway prize and get Frank in on the giveaway? That would be killer!
If everyone hears his stuff, it might lead to a whole new resurgence in DIY.
Sorry I missed the birthday dinner Warren! Mikey and I had to make a pilgrimige to Dr. Hogly Wogly's Tyler Texas Ribs. It's a mandatory stop every time I go to the valley.
No worries dude!
God willing, I shall have more birthdays.
Jumped in during a game and was shooting the wrong colors for like half the game
Hey, who's side were you on anyway?
Also, one of the Questyle reps said that his favorite rig at the meet was my vintage vinyl setup.
Along with your Sherwood.
You're rig reminded me of the wide-eyed wonderment I had for vinyl when I was five-years-old... which was exactly what I wanted to think about on my 40th birthday.
I think this was the mentality of a lot of the newer members for most of us we only ever read about the gear at the vendors tables, hearing about a piece of equipment and listening to it yourself are two different things.
I totally agree with this. Even though I write reviews, NOTHING beats an audition... nothing.
Huge thanks to Ethan and Warren for running a very well organized, well attended, and hugely fun meet. Absolutely killer raffle! Lots of new faces and the largest assembly of headphone related vendors I've ever seen. With the near extinction of "brick and mortar" audio stores, meets like this are about the only way one can audition a large variety of gear, establish personal preferences, and began to assemble a personally tailored audio system.
@FrankCooter, thanks for coming! I think everyone will agree with me unanimously on this one: you make every meet better!
Huge thanks to Ethan and Warren for running a very well organized, well attended, and hugely fun meet. Absolutely killer raffle! Lots of new faces and the largest assembly of headphone related vendors I've ever seen. With the near extinction of "brick and mortar" audio stores, meets like this are about the only way one can audition a large variety of gear, establish personal preferences, and began to assemble a personally tailored audio system.
I enjoy the gear, but after nearly a dozen meets my primary focus is on the people. I always get a recharge from familiar faces and never fail to make a new friend or two.
I appreciate the comments about my DIY 845 electrostatic amp.I have a tradition of bringing a new amp to each meet. Often these amps are less than a week old when they're shown. Some are hits and some are misses, but all criticisms and comments are welcome.
Despite the layout sheets, I think a fair number of people were unaware of the personal rigs around the corner from the main commercial rooms. Perhaps a few signs would be helpful next time around.
Yeah... but actually, we might have an even better solution for that. You'll have to come to the next meet to find out!
Each time I go, I hear something new to desire. This time: A pair of vintage Stax headphones and the Woo Audio GES.
You should ask Mike Liang what happened to those Stax... very, very sad.
The only thing missing was Michael Mercer to liven things up!
Always the life of the party, our boy Mercer!