The Stax SR-507 Thread
Sep 15, 2013 at 5:10 AM Post #196 of 361
  I've spent some more time now with my SR-507 + SRM-600 combo and find it to be an incredibly satisfying combination.  The SR-507 is wonderfully clear and detailed but doesn't come off sounding bright or shrill in any way.  I've thrown every genre of music I have at these and found so sound satisfying with everything, which might be a first for me.  Sure the HD800 or K1000 might have beat these on a few aspects on a few songs but they were not as consistent in the level of performance (especially in the bass).  The signature of this combo is very neutral sounding but still musically engaging similar to the K1000 but has all the detail of the HD800.  The soundstage is great and is generally appropriate to the recording, where the HD800 or K1000 might have inflated to come off as more spacious sounding.  It's worth noting that my SRM-600 was modified by its original owner who upgraded several of the lack luster components in the amp with better performing audiophile components.  I can't comment on the sound of the stock amp, but what ever was done seems to have only improved it.  It's great when you get new gear that really shows off new details and nuances in the music rather than just hearing the same stuff but just presented differently.  It's generally hard for me to be satisfied with a single headphone, the HD600 + Bottlehead Crack being another great generalist pairing which exhibited great synchronicity.  For my first Stax purchase I'm very impressed and satisfied with the results.  I'm still very curious to try some of the more famous vintage Stax Lambda models but I'm pretty skeptical that they will perform on the same level as the SR-507 with all music leaving me with a headphone which is just marginally better with only a handful of songs.  
 
Can't be sure until I've tried it for myself though....
 

 
I have the original normal bias Lambdas and they do have their merits over the 507 in my view. They are leaner in presentation with the bass and midrange being lightweight compared to the 507 but with this brings an even more transparent presentation. It seems to suit instrumental/classical  very well and small scale music. I also found it very pleasing on stuff like Peter Gabrial. It does make you want to crank the volume more than the 507 but the leaness brings with it a sense of even moor agility and in some respects musicality thats quite addictive. If I have to let one pair go it will be the original Lambda ( and this is a possibility due to my missus complaining on the number of headphones i have which is modest in my view but oh well. ) However it is very nice to have both and i would recommend you seek out a pair assuming you have the normal bias output on your amp.
 
Sep 15, 2013 at 6:20 AM Post #197 of 361
  Ive just got a pair of new 507s and I am wondering about burning in. Dynamic drivers form experience require it but is this the same with new Stax Phones. They sound very good as is with only about five hours on them and I have read comments some saying they improve some saying they will not. hat is your experience? Thanks for the help.

 
How do the 407s compare with the 507s. Are they as close as in performance as others here have suggested?
 
Sep 15, 2013 at 9:29 AM Post #198 of 361
Similar yes. The 507s seem a little more defined perhaps a touch colder. Backing vocals that i could hear with the 407 but sounded a tad muffled sometimes seem clearer. Bass is more controlled on the 507s. Im not sure the percentage difference in price is entirely justified on sonic grounds alone but having said that ive spent way more than the UK difference of £250 on cabling in my main system before for similar gains. I also asked for and got a 10% discount from my dealer so the 507s came in at £670. They do look nice too compared to the kind of Army surplus look of the 407s.
 
Sep 15, 2013 at 11:30 AM Post #199 of 361
   
How do the 407s compare with the 507s. Are they as close as in performance as others here have suggested?

 
I did that comparison between the 407 and the 507 and found that putting the 507 pads on the 407 resulted in the two sounding identical to me. I owned the 407 and wanted to see the difference so I borrowed the 507's then I changed the pads which I had ordered from  Price Japan. I could not tell any sonic difference when they had the same pads.
 
Sep 15, 2013 at 2:32 PM Post #201 of 361
Hi all,
I never regretted buying the 507. I found it clearly better than the 404LE (more detail and deeper, yet more solid bass, more delicate highs).
But now I'm open for offers for my 507, as I'm upgrading to a SR-007.
Look at www.ebay.de (German), nr. 151122904845. I do not ship intercontinental, nor to some European countries, though.
 
Sep 16, 2013 at 11:13 AM Post #202 of 361
  Hi all,
I never regretted buying the 507. I found it clearly better than the 404LE (more detail and deeper, yet more solid bass, more delicate highs).
But now I'm open for offers for my 507, as I'm upgrading to a SR-007.
Look at www.ebay.de (German), nr. 151122904845. I do not ship intercontinental, nor to some European countries, though.

Curses that would have saved me a few quid. Still good luck with the sale
 
Sep 19, 2013 at 11:31 PM Post #204 of 361
The level of performance is really best for anything in it's price range from my own experiences.  I had the HD800 paired with a good tube amp but still wasn't really into it even after several months.  My SR-507 was less expensive (not including amp) and have a much more appealing sound to them.  I still need to play around with my SRD-7S/B some more before I decide if it can perform on the same level as my SRM-600.  My current speaker amp is a 2 WPC SET amp which is under power for the full abilities of my SR-507 but still manages to sound damn good, but just at lower levels than I'd like.  Either way the performance of the SR-507 is impressive in most respects.  
 
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Sep 20, 2013 at 12:20 AM Post #205 of 361
  The level of performance is really best for anything in it's price range from my own experiences.  I had the HD800 paired with a good tube amp but still wasn't really into it even after several months.  My SR-507 was less expensive (not including amp) and have a much more appealing sound to them.  I still need to play around with my SRD-7S/B some more before I decide if it can perform on the same level as my SRM-600.  My current speaker amp is a 2 WPC SET amp which is under power for the full abilities of my SR-507 but still manages to sound damn good, but just at lower levels than I'd like.  Either way the performance of the SR-507 is impressive in most respects.  

Can you elaborate on what makes the 507's more appealing than the HD800 as im considering both options at this point. What did you like/dislike about each?
Also, do you find the 507's to perform better with certain music genres.
 
Sep 20, 2013 at 7:09 AM Post #206 of 361
  Can you elaborate on what makes the 507's more appealing than the HD800 as im considering both options at this point. What did you like/dislike about each?
Also, do you find the 507's to perform better with certain music genres.

 
I would strongly suggest you listen to both and make your own decision. In my experience the 507's are not overall on the same level as the HD800. The 507's have a much smaller soundstage and are less involving than the the HD800. I listen mostly to classical music and in my own system the HD800's were far superior in creating a realistic image on good recordings. I also preferred the tonal quality of the HD800 as I found the 507 to be accurate but less musical. The 507 excel  in transient speed but to me the instruments sounded more real with the HD800. I had both in my home and having said all that I wound up buying the Beyer T1's for it's sweeter tone and deeper bass. Honestly I don't think it is really fair to compare the 507's to the HD800 but that's just my own experience from my own listening preference. I should also mention there is a vast comfort difference in favor of the HD800.
 
Sep 20, 2013 at 9:12 AM Post #207 of 361
   
I would strongly suggest you listen to both and make your own decision. In my experience the 507's are not overall on the same level as the HD800. The 507's have a much smaller soundstage and are less involving than the the HD800. I listen mostly to classical music and in my own system the HD800's were far superior in creating a realistic image on good recordings. I also preferred the tonal quality of the HD800 as I found the 507 to be accurate but less musical. The 507 excel  in transient speed but to me the instruments sounded more real with the HD800. I had both in my home and having said all that I wound up buying the Beyer T1's for it's sweeter tone and deeper bass. Honestly I don't think it is really fair to compare the 507's to the HD800 but that's just my own experience from my own listening preference. I should also mention there is a vast comfort difference in favor of the HD800.

Thanks for the advice Chodi, i have listened to the hd800/hdvd800 and the 307/006ts, but cannot audition the 507's locally. To my ears, the hd800 combination was musical, but really not in an engaging way. I left that listening session quite uninspired, it didnt really do anything wrong, but i could not justify that amount of money for something which did not engage me. Maybe another amp would be more suited for my tastes. Maybe the in-built dac is only average.
The much cheaper 307 combination sounded more vivid, life like and musical to me, which is why i raise the question of comparisons between the hd800 and 507. I can only assume the 507 is a step up from the 307.
Out of interest, which amps did you use with the hd800 and 507?
 
 
Sep 20, 2013 at 10:55 AM Post #208 of 361
  Thanks for the advice Chodi, i have listened to the hd800/hdvd800 and the 307/006ts, but cannot audition the 507's locally. To my ears, the hd800 combination was musical, but really not in an engaging way. I left that listening session quite uninspired, it didnt really do anything wrong, but i could not justify that amount of money for something which did not engage me. Maybe another amp would be more suited for my tastes. Maybe the in-built dac is only average.
The much cheaper 307 combination sounded more vivid, life like and musical to me, which is why i raise the question of comparisons between the hd800 and 507. I can only assume the 507 is a step up from the 307.
Out of interest, which amps did you use with the hd800 and 507?
 

 
At that time I had an Audio-gd 2.2 (good solid state) and a Lafigaro 332C tube amp for the dynamic headphones and Stax 006t. I only heard the 307 briefly at a dealer but I though the 507 was a clear step up. Neither are suitable for long listening session on my head. Ear cups are just too small. Based on your comment about the HD800 I would say you are a candidate for the T1's. Sounds like we have similar taste. The HD800 does better on tube amps until you get into the very high end (spelled expensive) solid state amps. On lower level solid state or with a bright dac they can be very bright. Strangely the HD800's work very well with the Matrix M Stage which is dirt cheap solid state the exception to the rule.
 
Sep 20, 2013 at 2:37 PM Post #210 of 361
   
I would strongly suggest you listen to both and make your own decision. In my experience the 507's are not overall on the same level as the HD800. The 507's have a much smaller soundstage and are less involving than the the HD800. I listen mostly to classical music and in my own system the HD800's were far superior in creating a realistic image on good recordings. I also preferred the tonal quality of the HD800 as I found the 507 to be accurate but less musical. The 507 excel  in transient speed but to me the instruments sounded more real with the HD800. I had both in my home and having said all that I wound up buying the Beyer T1's for it's sweeter tone and deeper bass. Honestly I don't think it is really fair to compare the 507's to the HD800 but that's just my own experience from my own listening preference. I should also mention there is a vast comfort difference in favor of the HD800.

 
I had the Beyer T1's.  Great headphones, BUT, to me, the SR 507 is a couple steps up in overall performance.  The 507's are no doubt clearer and more accurate (truer to the source material). The SR 507's do need a proper source and head amp to sound their best.  Currently using a SRM 007tA Stax amp (with NOS tubes), and either a Oppo BD-105 or a Yamaha CD-S2000 for sources.  
 
Agree that anyone should listen to all available candidates and make up their own minds.  It's almost impossible to get people to agree on the "best" for all this fine equipment.  
 

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