[Ultrainferno]

Like I said, the article is more about the experience. I really loved it and to me it is the best I have heard.
I haven't seen many Orpheus 2 impressions that weren't enthusiastic

 

[up late]

i haven't seen many orpheus 2 impressions period

 

[ALRAINBOW]

While I think the new O2 is a great product I do feel there is not much left to be done in flag ship head phones.
We are playing with maybe 10 percent in variance in flagships even though some sound very different
Next is the dac and source used in any system when it's my turn it must be with my dac and music. I do not expect to be blown away but I do expect to smile and be amazed at its overall sound signature. I like the stax 009 and he60 very much but they are very different.
Even my own reference IRS v setup is amazing but does need a great dac and source to hit its mark. And it like all stats shows more exactly what is there as in the good the bad and the ugly

 

[Deftone]

id like to see why they chose a DS and not multibit design.

 

[karlgerman]

I could imagine that the Orpheus2 will be best of the best, but as i heard from people who visit a preview session, the units existing are preproduction and not finished to 100% perfection. There is a distortion on some frequencies??? but some of the testers reviews ignore that. Hmmm,!!!!
 
This is a typical "new product hype" situation and a serious review will only be possible as the units get delivered and be heard longer than one hour, IMO.
 
At HighEnd Munich i will have a small taste of this product and if it blows me away, ok, i might buy it, no matter how it look or unimportant gimmicks Sennheiser will build in to it.

 

[james444]

  There is a distortion on some frequencies??? but some of the testers reviews ignore that. Hmmm,!!!!

 
They did not ignore the distortion, but you obviously only notice it at very high volume. I listened at "normal" volume (80-90dB at max) and heard no distortion.

 

[wink]

Yep, if you turn the volume high enough, any headphone will produce distortion.
 
Some more some less, just before they go real quiet.............   

 

[Sal1950]

  Yep, if you turn the volume high enough, any headphone will produce distortion.
 
Some more some less, just before they go real quiet.............   

And those changes can occur either in the headphones, or your ears. Either alteration is usually permanent. 

 

 

[ALRAINBOW]

While I have not heard one yet. I cannot beleave that someone would play a demo unit so loud that it disrupts it's sound without the rep ripping out ones hands. I do think it's not perfect yet I also think it's the amp section not the headphones themselves weather it's the amp in the headphone or in the main. Has anyone here become awaire that this yet not released headphone has already got an award lol. Funny how things work some just awards like best product of the year and other truly great products obtain no such award. Food for thought.

 

[mulder01]

  id like to see why they chose a DS and not multibit design.

 
I did read somewhere, somebody saying that they didn't think this product was aimed at serious audiophiles because who puts a single chip sabre dac in a system like this, and instead market things like "the same marble used in the statue of David" and motorised tubes that rise up out of the chassis... Valid point.
 
OTOH, (my experience with dacs is limited, but) I couldn't really tell any difference between Violectric's V850 DS DAC at $2k Aussie and Schiit's Yggy Multibit DAC at $4k Aussie in a volume matched, instantaneous input switching situation in a quiet shop... Which kinda supports what the guys in the sound science forum will tell you.  So maybe Sennheiser is on that side of the fence and just doesn't consider it important or think it makes any difference?
 
One other thing worth noting, is that considering this system was 20 years in the making, they probably didn't anticipate that purrin would come along and get in Schiit's ear and convince everyone on head fi that you had to have a multibit dac, and now all of a sudden everyone seems to care, when nobody did 2 years ago... Maybe the final production version will go multibit just to silence any possible criticisms...

 

[edstrelow]

While I think the new O2 is a great product I do feel there is not much left to be done in flag ship head phones.
We are playing with maybe 10 percent in variance in flagships even though some sound very different
Next is the dac and source used in any system when it's my turn it must be with my dac and music. I do not expect to be blown away but I do expect to smile and be amazed at its overall sound signature. I like the stax 009 and he60 very much but they are very different.
Even my own reference IRS v setup is amazing but does need a great dac and source to hit its mark. And it like all stats shows more exactly what is there as in the good the bad and the ugly

I would disagree regarding the improvements  to flagship and other phones, based on my experience of damping  the vibrations in headphone earcups.
 
  http://www.head-fi.org/t/744839/damping-mechanical-energy-distortion-of-stax-and-other-phones-with-sorbothane-and-other-materials  
 
  I started this work with the Stax SR007 A and various other Staxen and can say that Stax is behind the curve on this issue.  However  few  companies have addressed the issue of the energy that gets into the cups directly from the driver mount,or even shown any awareness of the problem  preferring to discuss things like  driver design and  cables.
 
  Recently Grado started using a proprietary polycarbonate in the cups which will supposedly reduce this vibration and some of the reviews I have read about the new Grados sound like what  I and  others note using sorbothane to dampen the earcups, better tonal accuracy, dynamics  and definition.  Grado claims the effect is to improve transient response.
 
Senheisser may also be on this trail, since they discuss using anti-resonance damping materials in the headband of the  HD800 ( just as I did in the Stax SR007. However, I don't know if they have done enough on the HD800 or if they have applied this knowledge to the new electrostatic. If not, this new  phone is already obsolete. 

 

[ALRAINBOW]

I did read somewhere, somebody saying that they didn't think this product was aimed at serious audiophiles because who puts a single chip sabre dac in a system like this, and instead market things like "the same marble used in the statue of David" and motorised tubes that rise up out of the chassis... Valid point.

OTOH, (my experience with dacs is limited, but) I couldn't really tell any difference between Violectric's V850 DS DAC at $2k Aussie and Schiit's Yggy Multibit DAC at $4k Aussie in a volume matched, instantaneous input switching situation in a quiet shop... Which kinda supports what the guys in the sound science forum will tell you.  So maybe Sennheiser is on that side of the fence and just doesn't consider it important or think it makes any difference?

One other thing worth noting, is that considering this system was 20 years in the making, they probably didn't anticipate that purrin would come along and get in Schiit's ear and convince everyone on head fi that you had to have a multibit dac, and now all of a sudden everyone seems to care, when nobody did 2 years ago... Maybe the final production version will go multibit just to silence any possible criticisms...

Do not sell yourself short In not hearing the diffrence . I. Can tell you atleast a couple of good reasons.
First off music choice and quality of it. If you did not know the music well and ona Stella system as a comparison how could you be a good judge. Next up is source if it froma simple laptop there is not much diffence as both dacs are being sold short of how good they can sound. So agin less change to judge by. Regarding singe or multi bit or even chip less I would not let a blanket statement on any one for the or type. There are great dacs of all kinds even some fpga that are a type of chip less as there is no mass produced chip but purely programmed as ps audio and Hugo does.
Regarding the choice of the chip , I own a hdvd800 its dsc has some very good qualities if fed froma caps or USB to spidif converter . It's thin but very clean and detailed . Now yes there is far better of course and I own some of them but still it does work well under certain circumstances . I do not think they made this setup to not be a legacy in that two world class min production stats to have or own. Below a person is posting about the ear cups I think that person is correct but I do feel the 10 percent is still true .

 

[up late]

I did read somewhere, somebody saying that they didn't think this product was aimed at serious audiophiles because who puts a single chip sabre dac in a system like this, and instead market things like "the same marble used in the statue of David" and motorised tubes that rise up out of the chassis... Valid point.

it's aimed at football players and formula 1 drivers of course. no serious audiophile would be interested in it (with jude being a notable exception).

...If not, this new  phone is already obsolete. 

lol!

 

[mulder01]

it's aimed at football players and formula 1 drivers of course. no serious audiophile would be interested in it (with jude being a notable exception).

 

 
I did offer a few alternate points of view...  I think it's worth noting, at the very high end, lots of head fi-ers are very dac focused, and this product isn't going to appeal to that part of the market so much.  From what I can tell, Jude is more of a headphone man though (like myself) so it doesn't really seem to bother him.  And from my experiences with dacs so far, it's not a deal-breaker for me either.  
 
The two main concerns with this product people keep pointing out though, are price (obviously) and an under-done dac section.  A lot of people in that very high end of the market and can afford it, are at least a little put off by the dac, where most of the rest of us are just put off by the price.

 

[up late]

sure - just having some fun with you. having said that, i've noticed that your posts are invariably critical of the orpheus 2.

i wouldn't presume to know whether jude is less interested in the quality of dacs and other ancillary gear than he is in headphones. he certainly has access to an array of quality ancillary gear. what i do know is that he's heard the orpheus 2 system for himself and was profoundly affected by it.

regarding the first main concern that you've highlighted - yes, we know that the orpheus 2 is an expensive statement product and that point has been repeated ad nauseam in this thread. clearly it's out of reach for the majority of head-fi'ers but we are talking summit-fi.

regarding your second main concern about the dac, i note that you describe it as "under-done". have any of these people you refer to who are "a little put off by the dac", actually heard the result of sennheiser's implementation of it in the orpheus 2, or are they judging it based on criteria / experience that is not directly related to the orpheus 2's performance? i'd caution you against judging audio gear on its technical specs alone when the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts.