[capetownwatches]

The SR-L300 LTD just arrived.
SR-L700 Mk.2 are due in about a week or so.
: )

Spill the beans mate!

I'm extremely keen to hear a pair of L700 of either mark.
Given the not insignificant price difference to my L500 they would truly need to blow me away to justify the upgrade.
Perhaps its time to chat to my local Stax pusher...

 

[chococya96]

Is it crazy to ask for velour pads on L700s?

Leather is nice and all but in terms of comfort, I still prefer velour/suede over leather/pleather (plus less sweat inducing).

 

[AudioThief]

On my second go-round with the SR-L500 Mk.2 and enjoying them even more than before.
Was looking at the SR-L700 Mk.2, but ended up getting the SR-L300 LTD instead--or is it in the interim?
Am hoping that the L500Mk.2 and the L300LE are different enough to warrant keeping both.
Eventually want to try the L700Mk.2, though.
Had the 007Mk.1/Omega II for a while, but seem to have a greater affinity for things Lamda.

Haven't heard the L300 LTD (only the original), but the L500 and L700 are so similar that you will definitely not need both. You can barely hear the difference between them. In my opinion based on memory (got rid of the 700), it is slightly more dynamic / V-shaped. Better for EDM and certain rock/metal genres. L500 a bit more even sounding. A tad bit let fatiguing.

 

[pataburd]

To my ears, the L500Mk.2 sound more evenly balanced, frequency-wise, than the 300LTD. The L500Mk.2 have a pleasing transparency and sense of airiness to them as well.

The 300LTD do sound more midrange-focused, but with much better resolution, tonal richness/realism and macro dynamics.

I was planning to upgrade my DAC (to the Gustard X18) before the L700Mk.2 arrive (which might be within the next several days) but am having difficulty loading their USB driver onto my Windows 8.1 system.

UPDATE: Driver issues solved. Gustard X18 now installed. (Just in time for the arrival of the SR-L700 Mk.2.)

 

[pataburd]

The L700 Mk.2 just arrived.
Running COLD: SR-L700 Mk.2<--Mjolnir KGSS HV<--Gustard X18<--qobuz via USB
My very first impressions (and relying on memory for the time-being) is that the L700(2) bear a much closer sonic resemblance to the L300LTD than to the L500(2), which makes sense. Thicker textures, rounder and broader tones, slightly harder and more constrained edges, more well-anchored imaging and finer resolution. Not as "see-through" and balanced sounding as the 500, though.
Need to let the amp and the 700 "run in" for a while, since I just turned on the amp and plugged in the 700 minutes ago.
More later, Deo volente. I really need to do a randomized a/b/c of the 500(2), 300LTD and 700(2).

 

[pataburd]

Have had the L700(2) up-and-running for a few hours and everything has settled down into a lovely listen.
Very detailed and engaging, now playing with delicacy and ease.
One thing I want to try is swapping cables between the 500 (6N OFC) and the 700 (6N OFC + SPC).

 

[lambdastorm]

Have had the L700(2) up-and-running for a few hours and everything has settled down into a lovely listen.
Very detailed and engaging, now playing with delicacy and ease.
One thing I want to try is swapping cables between the 500 (6N OFC) and the 700 (6N OFC + SPC).

I've always wanted to do that. I find the L700's treble a bit too hot for my liking and was wondering if the OFC cable on the L500 can help tone it down.

 

[pataburd]

The L700(2)'s treble sounds just right to me (as the recording and upstream equipment allow).
Want to do a preliminary a/b with the L500(2), then might try cable-swapping.

 

[pataburd]

Just swapped in the L500(2).

These sound a bit more neutral (in a good way) and balanced than the 700, but lack the overall refinement and absolute soundstage width and depth of the 700. The 500 are a bit tonally drier by comparison, too, lacking that tonal "bloom" that lends a touch more naturalness to the 700's presentation.

Could I be content with the 500 never having heard the 700? Sure.

Could I be content with the 500 after having heard the 700? Probably. (After about 20 minutes or so with the 500, I've already settled into a bona fide Stax "groove".)

Could I be content with the 500 after having heard the 700, given their price differential? Certainly.

 

[pataburd]

Settled in with the SR-L500 Mk.2 for the remainder of last night. Very balanced and consistent performers. When I listen to music with the 500, everything feels adequate and in its proper proportions and place. I am freed from the (audiophile's) all-too frequent anxiety of "waiting for something to happen" in that listening experience, because chances are that it already is happening.


My plan--Deo volente--for today is to:

(1) Get some re-introductory head time with the SR-L300 LTD.

(2) Randomly select either the 500(2) or the 700(2).

(3) Randomly select either stock or "other" cable for initial listen with earspeakers selected from (2).
For example, if the 700(2) are selected in step (2), then "other" is selected in step (3), that would be the 700(2) with the 500(2)'s cable.

(4) Follow-up with the remaining cable for subsequent listen.
For example (continued), subsequent listen would be 700(2) with its stock cable.

(5) Randomly select cable assignment for remaining earspeakers.
For example, (further continued), flip a coin to determine which cable the 500(2) gets on its initial listen. Heads=stock 500(2); Tails="other" 700(2) cable.

(6) Conclude last session with cable not already selected in step (5).

Hopefully, I can determine:
(a) With which cable the 500 or 700 sound better.
(b) An overall winner (if possible): (i) 500 w/500 cable, (ii) 500 w/700 cable, (iii) 700 w/700 cable, (iv) 700 w/500 cable.

And NO, LET'S NOT consider pad-swapping, too! That would require a 2 x 2 x 2 design (which I may not live long enough to complete).

 

[pataburd]

Left-to-Right: Stax SR-L500 Mk.2, SR-L300 LTD, SR-L700 Mk.2



Associated equipment: Lenovo G50 [Windows 8.1, qobuz] <-- (USB Disruptor, Wyred4Sound Recovery) Gustard X18* <-- Mjolnir KGSSHV
(*In oversampling mode with linear-slow filter. Single-ended outputs used--until the balanced XLR arrive.)

Part (1):
Re-introductory listen to the SR-L300 LTD

Have not had these on for over a week. The plastic construction is a structural and aesthetic negative. Fit is loose(r) and initially feels sloppy and heavier after wearing the L500 and L700. Head strap rides close to the plastic band, which is smaller/shorter than the band(s) on the 500 and 700 (see very first photo). The 300 use a sliding height adjustment, the 500 and 700 the more secure "10-click" adjustment. The horizontal clamping force from the Mk.2 versions 500 and 700 has garnered complaints. However, I find the vertical pressure that the L300LTD exerts atop the head even more problematic.

The 300LTD (and to a slightly lesser degree, the 700) sound thicker, bolder and more dynamic than the 500. On poorer recordings, this can degenerate into a fatiguing hardness/sharpness. The 300LTD also sound more liquidy and nimble than the 500 but fall shy of the subtlety and refinement of the 700. The 300 seem the most midrange-forward of the three.

. . . to be continued . . .

 

[catscratch]

Always interesting to hear impressions on the L700. I think it's very fit dependent because impressions seem to vary more than those of other headphones. In my own testing, the mk1 and mk2 versions of the 700 sound quite different, and the most obvious physical difference is in the pads. I can get a good seal with a modded mk1, but not with the mk2, even if I apply the same mods, and I'm guessing pads and fit are to blame.

FWIW the L700 responds really well to EQ, and whatever tuning quirks it has will (mostly) disappear with a good personalized EQ profile. When I tune it to have a similar FR to the HD600 (though with more linear bass), it sounds a bit like one too, but with better technicalities.

No experience with the L500 here but it seems like out of the box, with no tweaking, it might be the way to go.

 

[pataburd]

Always interesting to hear impressions on the L700. I think it's very fit dependent because impressions seem to vary more than those of other headphones. In my own testing, the mk1 and mk2 versions of the 700 sound quite different, and the most obvious physical difference is in the pads. I can get a good seal with a modded mk1, but not with the mk2, even if I apply the same mods, and I'm guessing pads and fit are to blame.

FWIW the L700 responds really well to EQ, and whatever tuning quirks it has will (mostly) disappear with a good personalized EQ profile. When I tune it to have a similar FR to the HD600 (though with more linear bass), it sounds a bit like one too, but with better technicalities.

No experience with the L500 here but it seems like out of the box, with no tweaking, it might be the way to go.

Had never heard the L700 Mk.1, but almost bought a pair a while back.
How would you denote the chief differences between 700 Mk.1 and Mk.2?

 

[catscratch]

I don't think my impressions of mk1 and mk2 are meaningful because I can get a good seal with one and not with the other, so I'm not getting as much performance out of the mk2 as I should. Also my mk1 is modded.

But FWIW the mk1 has a noticeably wider stage but with a more diffuse quality to the imaging, whereas the mk2 stages narrower but the imaging is a lot more pinpoint. The transient response on the mk1 is smoother and has a very silky and liquid quality, whereas the mk2 is more dry sounding.

The bass is also different but that's probably due to fit. Basically if the fit is good and you get a good enough seal it should be more or less linear with only a hint of rolloff below 40hz or so, but if the fit is bad, then you get a bump in the bass between 60-100hz and a steep rolloff below 60. Since I can get a good seal with the mk1 and its shallower pads, its bass sounds linear, but the mk2 with the thicker pads for some reason refuses to seal on my head and the bass is more rolled off.

I think with the same pads the differences should be minimal, unless there are some driver differences like diaphragm tension that Stax made without telling anyone about it. Which is par for the course for them.

But I see many people describing the mk2 the way I hear the mk1, so that's why I think the drivers are probably identical and fit matters most.

 

[pataburd]

Part (2)
Swapping 500 and 700 cables
First coin flip to determine which earspeakers: H=500, T=700
Result: T= 700

Part (3)
Second coin flip to determine which cable: H=500, T=700
Result: T= 700


SR-L700 Mk.2



Upper cable: L700Mk.2, faint gold/bronze dashed/solid markings Differences appear more discernable in second photo.
Lower cable: L500Mk.2, faint silver/gray dashed/solid markings

SR-L700 Mk.2 w/stock cable:
[The 700(2) fit more comfortably than the 300LE. Presentation is smoother, more transparent and coherent, overall, than the 300LE, with cleaner extension at either extremity. Leading edges are clean, but not as hard/crystalline-distinct as the 300LE. Transients and tonal decay sound more natural (less abbreviated) with the 700(2). In addition to a harder tonality, the 300LE do seem to produce a slightly wider and deeper sound stage.]

In general, I am happy with the 700(2) with stock Cu+SPC cable. Treble response is detailed and extended, but not sharp or strident to my ears. Midrange is clear and detailed. Bass lacks some thump/weight compared to the 300LE (and, to a lesser degree, the 500(2)), is fairly linear and extended, but a bit rolled off in the sub bass..

Part (4)
SR-L700 Mk.2 w/L500 Mk.2 cable:
To my ears, tones sound a bit more round, wet, full and dense. Soundstage loses dimensionality along all three axes (mostly along the vertical). Layering not as distinct. Grace Slick's vocals (on Lather, Triad) are more textured and natural-sounding. Treble not as extended, open/transparent. Cymbals don't sparkle/carry as much. Bass not as clean or extended.

Net gain: tonal realism (especially in the midrange). Net loss: transparency, verticality and frequency extension. I decidedly prefer the 700(2) with its (OFC + SPC) stock cable.

Will keep the 500(2) cable with the 700(2) for a while, and maybe bring the 300LE back online later.