The Sennheiser Orpheus 2? A First Look At The Sennheiser HE-1 (The New Orpheus)

[ToroFiestaSol]

   
Maybe but they are nowhere near as dumb as your average consumer. The average consumer goes for beats and bose which sound like garbage for the money.
 
Most small businesses go bankrupt. Even large companies do too.  My favorite fellow Japan audio product producer micro seiki has not been around since 2001. Even the mighty Technics disappeared for a while till recently and the only good headphone Sony produces anymore is the V-6. Stax has never been big and commercial and I do not see that changing. I do not remember everyone saying the 009 is crazy expensive and not worth the money 3 years ago. An sr-011 to take on the Orpheus 2 would be cool.
 
Have you ever sold anything for a living before? At least to me the most important thing is making sure your product is awesome. Everything else falls far behind that.

 
They got the hardest thing right, an awesome product.
But, hey, is this correct?
 
Japan: 2731€
http://www.pricejapan.com/front/e_good_info.php?code=1048&category=10
 
Germany (nearest dealer to Spain): 5000€
http://www.audiotra.de/startseite/marken/stax/elektrostatische-kopfhoerer/sr-009/
 
Why I have to pay 2269€ extra to have my product from an european dealer?
 
Look at this:
 
Sennheiser HD800S: 1699$ in USA (1530€)
http://www.moon-audio.com/sennheiser-hd800s-headphones.html
 
1599€ in Europe
http://www.supersonido.es/p/sennheiser-hd800s
 
You're paying the Sennheiser even cheaper than me, and I live in the European Union (no taxes for me, same price as buying it in Germany).
 
 
Why?
 
If Stax did the hardest and most important thing right (doing an awesome product) why they don't do the "easy thing" right like every other company? That's why I think they're dumb.
 
PS: Sorry if my english isn't perfect, is hard for me to explain me right in such a complex subject.

 

[jibzilla]

   
They got the hardest thing right, an awesome product.
But, hey, is this correct?
 
Japan: 2731€
http://www.pricejapan.com/front/e_good_info.php?code=1048&category=10
 
Germany (nearest dealer to Spain): 5000€
http://www.audiotra.de/startseite/marken/stax/elektrostatische-kopfhoerer/sr-009/
 
Why I have to pay 2269€ extra to have my product from an european dealer?
 
Look at this:
 
Sennheiser HD800S: 1699$ in USA (1530€)
http://www.moon-audio.com/sennheiser-hd800s-headphones.html
 
1599€ in Europe
http://www.supersonido.es/p/sennheiser-hd800s
 
You're paying the Sennheiser even cheaper than me, and I live in the European Union (no taxes for me, same price as buying it in Germany).
 
 
Why?
 
If Stax did the hardest and most important thing right (doing an awesome product) why they don't do the "easy thing" right like every other company? That's why I think they're dumb.
 
PS: Sorry if my english isn't perfect, is hard for me to explain me right in such a complex subject.

 
I'm pretty sure us in the U.S. have to pay a high premium as well if we want the sr-009 through say staxusa or headamp etc. I think the sr-009 was $4450 usd if I'm not mistaken.
 
I personally have had nothing but good luck buying through the grey market. All of my carts and my tonearm came from 2juki and my former airbow, th-600, and 009 headphones all came from pricejapan with zero issues. I used EMS and all 3 headphones arrived in great condition and super fast, like 2days. If a sr-011 does come out I'm for sure going through pricejapan.
 
I can see your point but there are still end arounds and I have owned the he1k and demoed the abyss and the 009 is still the headphone I would go for even at $5k. I like my $1500 hd800, lcd-x and 007mk1 more than the he1k and abyss fwiw. Properly driven they are pretty special and have a nicer build quality and comfort.  

 

[arnaud]

Also, I was under the impression stax was realigning prices in europe and us last year (was discussed on french forum by reseller in contact with distributor). Supposedly, it was being finalized which would then decrease the variations in price to 10-20% (don't recall the figures exactly), the rest being vat.

Arnaud

 

[fhuang]

Thank you Sennheiser for the opportunity to listen to the new Orpheus. I listened to Gregory Porter's 'Water' album on a T+A MP3000HV CD player connected to the Sennheiser HE-1 system, otherwise known as the Orpheus. After hearing the system, I promptly went back to my own system (the MSB Analog > DIYT2 > Stax SR009) at my office and listened to the same tracks.

I will write a more detailed review later. The short answer to the question you are probably asking, is YES: the HE-1 is the best headphone I have heard.

The SR009 (even driven by the best amp available in the world, the DIYT2) is close in many aspects, including in terms of realism, detail and transparency, save that the Orpheus portrays a wider and much taller soundstage that envelops you. The Orpheus has noticeably better clarity and instrumental separation, perhaps thanks to the wider stage. It also has more bass quantity, but probably not a whole lot more of bass extension.

I did not find the new Orpheus a perfect headphone per se, for instance some may like the wetter and more organic portrayal of vocals on the SR009/T2, but it is very, very close to perfection.

The price tag of the Orpheus may not be justified compared to the much lower price I paid for my SR009 system, but I am seriously considering purchasing it. Did I mention that it looks like a piece of art?

 
 
i heard this too couple days ago.  would've been nice/nicer to listen to it in a quiet room.  still, it was so very nice

 

[lojay]

i heard this too couple days ago.  would've been nice/nicer to listen to it in a quiet room.  still, it was so very nice

I got to listen to it for a brief while in the acoustically treated room. Made a big difference.

 

[schalliol]

For an open headphone, listening in a room that isn't quiet is just plain silly if you want to hear the detail in the music. I still like my HD 800 if it's not the quietist, but I have the T5p system for that purpose.

 

[padam]

First of all, I would like to thank everyone involved for this event. It was a very friendly atmosphere and I've met really great people there.
 
First, the HE1s. Very comfortable. The sound is very clear, full of resolution and texture, very solid bass foundation and wide dynamic range, very precise but at the same time they still had that smooth and delicate presentation electrostatic headphones are known for. I felt they just played the recording as it is. No signs of strain even if the volume is pushed up. Impressive. The time I got was probably not enough to really get accustomed to how impressive they really were. In fact, with the technical limitations pushed to the extremes, it pointed more towards the limitations of "still being headphones", now I could feel those even more, which was kind of interesting. Moving away from this requires the use of very high quality equalizers, and there are products already on the market, which I am sure would pair stunningly well with these. 
 
On the second day just before leaving home, I just managed to spend a little more time, but this time alongside the HE90s. What a revelation! It has that same delicate quality, but even more so and more importantly, much more musical, full of emotion. Maybe the sound had a slight "glow" to it, but I didn't find to be either too bright or too dark and now, the new one sounded a bit "off" in comparison. This really was music that I've never heard before, and this was much more in line about how I would imagine in real life. Very natural, but somehow it emphasizes more on the "human" element of the music, which I really liked. Putting them down was a sad moment indeed. A beautifully crafted sound, it was just a more special listen for me. Which is good, because I don't think either of these are going to be used all the time.
 
Maybe the old ones are have type of sound that impresses you at first, and then you slowly the realizing the niggles (like the bass, detail or staging isn't quite as clear, but still on a fairly high level) and the new ones emit the sort of sound, that is appreciated more in the long term, and also one that is more impressive with all sorts of music. So they maybe more of an all-rounder (I would like to point out that almost everything I brought was classical, modern music is usually mixed quite differently). This is something that needs more careful evaluation.
All I know is from what I've heard in that system, the old one was simply more in line with how I wanted to hear the recordings.
 
I also bought my own Stax system to the hostel I was staying at, gave it a good listen both before and after, and I think it resembles the old one more in its musicality (one can argue that is another reason for my choice).
 
However, now I am quite aware that there are obvious flaws in there, especially on more complex and dynamic passages, it just can't quite keep up and generally it is just a slightly muddy sound. Which is kind of interesting, because I got used to it pretty well aware of its issues. I always knew that the staging wasn't as good and the bass output is too low, but I always thought it sounded very clear in the midrange.
I pretty much minimized its cost, so finding a way to move it closer without spending too much will be very hard.
Maybe Sennheiser could also help, if they could produce a more "commercial" electrostatic headphone , so that people could use whatever amp and source they like to fully customize the sound to their preference. I hope so, I think the target market of enthusiasts are there, and the technology is certainly there on their part. Just like with the originals, the lesser model followed later on, so there is hope

 

[astrostar59]

Facinating responses, thank you. I would say though, my old Lambda Nova Signatures are no match for the 007 which IMO is no match for the 009, which again is no match by those headphones driven by a BHSE for example. What I want to know is how close is the 009s driven by a top amplifier and DAC.
 
To drill down the HE1 IMO it needs a T2 / BHSE and the 009s plus a top DAC right next to the HE1 system. The ears get wowed in the first 30 minutes as the brain gets overloaded with information and the pace and quality of the output. I never get over the rush. A longer demo with full range music may be a better route?
 
To further control the demo I prefer to have 3 or 4 tracks I know very well and that are good recordings (full range and dynamic). Music is like looking at a painting you own, you always know if you have seen it in all it's glory. If you suddenly see (hear) something new and it is also painted in a more vivid colour, more accurate, then you are sure the system you are hearing is better.
 
I am believe it or not hoping the HE1 is ahead by some margin as that would push Stax and others to keep pushing out the envelope, and hopefully at real world prices.

 

[ALRAINBOW]

Great post , the truth is there is spammy variables in making choices at this level . Time of day , moods and even whet we eat make choices for us in ways you do not know. . How many hear there systems vary from one day or session to another. This is why it's not your power or DAC or source . Again great review .

 

[wink]

We all should just buy one for snob appeal......  

 
Anything else such as sonic performance is a mere bonus........  

 

[soundoholic]

...On the second day just before leaving home, I just managed to spend a little more time, but this time alongside the HE90s. What a revelation! It has that same delicate quality, but even more so and more importantly, much more musical, full of emotion. Maybe the sound had a slight "glow" to it, but I didn't find to be either too bright or too dark and now, the new one sounded a bit "off" in comparison. This really was music that I've never heard before, and this was much more in line about how I would imagine in real life. Very natural, but somehow it emphasizes more on the "human" element of the music, which I really liked. Putting them down was a sad moment indeed. A beautifully crafted sound, it was just a more special listen for me. Which is good, because I don't think either of these are going to be used all the time.  
Maybe the old ones are have type of sound that impresses you at first, and then you slowly the realizing the niggles (like the bass, detail or staging isn't quite as clear, but still on a fairly high level) and the new ones emit the sort of sound, that is appreciated more in the long term, and also one that is more impressive with all sorts of music. So they maybe more of an all-rounder (I would like to point out that almost everything I brought was classical, modern music is usually mixed quite differently). This is something that needs more careful evaluation.
All I know is from what I've heard in that system, the old one was simply more in line with how I wanted to hear the recordings. ...

First, I very appreciate and confirm most of your impressions. We were at the same place, at same time and could hear to the same stuff. I made a CDR with some 4 fragments of representative pieces and hope, you have saw it (maybe heard it?). I know well the old school Orpheus, that´s why I could say I had a contrary impression - the new one, so beautiful that sounds, is for me a little bit superficially effective. In the second moment and longer, this musicality and overall balance of the old one - in long session - it may convince more, without to overstrain in any aspect. A propos classical - my 4th fragment was finale of 4th symph. - P. Tchaikovsky. Wonderful orchestral tutti with complicated structures - a great exam for any phone or LS.    

 

[padam]

  First, I very appreciate and confirm most of your impressions. We were at the same place, at same time and could hear to the same stuff. I made a CDR with some 4 fragments of representative pieces and hope, you have saw it (maybe heard it?). I know well the old school Orpheus, that´s why I could say I had a contrary impression - the new one, so beautiful that sounds, is for me a little bit superficially effective. In the second moment and longer, this musicality and overall balance of the old one - in long session - it may convince more, without to overstrain in any aspect. A propos classical - my 4th fragment was finale of 4th symph. - P. Tchaikovsky. Wonderful orchestral tutti with complicated structures - a great exam for any phone or LS.    

No, I put on only my own material. Some of it were minimally miked and mixed possibly a bit better for judging what sounds "real" or not (but that's still subjective as well)
 
I also found a Polish page posted earlier which also seemed to share my opinion (unless I misunderstand the translation), again with different material.
As I already wrote, there isn't much time to make a proper judgement, meet impressions are what they are.
 
All I know is I expected the sound to grab me. And it did, only that was coming out of the old one, and not the new.

 

[soundoholic]

...All I know is I expected the sound to grab me. And it did, only that was coming out of the old one, and not the new.

I fully agree with your conclusion. Over and above that to work/compare with classical material (acustic instruments) is much more effectiv, than with some electronic m. records.

 

[Harry Deng]

Probably the best sound for next couple years!

 

[pila405]

They changed the branding from HE-1060 to HE-1. Should update the thread title accordingly.

http://en-de.sennheiser.com/sennheiser-he-1