The Stax Thread III

[3X0]

SR-009 also had (has?) the channel imbalance issue with the apparent solution having been shipping them to Japan and back -- allegedly Stax did nothing to the units and temperature changes and such from shipping resolved the issue.

All electrostatics are susceptible to channel imbalance, and if the culprit is a parasitic charge (rather than diaphragm damage and/or dust), the inconvenient remedy is to play them for days/weeks, futz around with the pins to taste, or stow them away for weeks/months until it goes away.

With persistence you can restore the balance on some of the oldest Stax if the drivers are OK.

Too much FUD in this area IMHO. In most cases only the people who have problems would be very vocal about them (however few), yet I haven't heard of a straight-up failure in years. DavidMahler's R10 was the most recent one I'm aware of.

 

[DefQon]

The 009 has had issues with imbalance out of the blue but that was years ago and theres a thread dedicated for it.

That was Birgirs advice from his own experience with his stats to continuously play music to rid itself of the parasitic charge but this method has not helped me.

With the helpful suggestion from wachara with a Stax SR3N no sound/imbalance repair, fixing imbalance issues means to recoat the membrane as a last resort, proven to work as I've done it.

 

[3X0]

I tried the continuous playback method with limited success as well.

Having to recoat the membrane would lead me to believe that the diaphragm was somehow compromised, and that the imbalance isn't a result of normal parasitic charges.

If undamaged, stowing them away allows the diaphragm to completely lose charge (short of opening them up).

Posts about SR-009 imbalance experiences are as recent as last month. Fortunately, nigh all cases have been temporary but it goes to show that imbalance is the nature of the beast in the stat game.

 

[karlgerman]

Had SR-009 imbalance experience with my first 009. That was as the sr009 was brand new to the market.
I recognized that the longer i used it, the worse it got, the left did not sound as loud as the right channel and also starts some kind of distortion.
 
Allowing the 009 to rest for a week or so seems to resolve the issue. But just for a short period of time. The failure came back after using the headphone for more than 3 hours and again got worse with continuous playback.
 
I returned the 009 for repair but they couldn't find any failure.
 
Returned it a 2.nd time with a exact description when and how the imbalance occurs and the hint for testing the unit longer than 4 hours.
 
Stax germany send me back a brand-new headphone which didn't  have any imbalance issues from beginning.
This was also my experience with my 007Mk2 which operates flawlessly since i own it.

 

[DefQon]

I swear man with all the imbalance issues popping up and stuff, why is it always the left hand side? Man it's a conspiracy. I swear. Stax e-stat illumnati NWO. When you get hit with imbalance you get hit on the left side first.

 

[3X0]

One week isn't sufficient in my experience. It can take months to fully discharge the diaphragms and confidently vanquish parasitic charges for the long haul.
 
I've seen and experience the opposite, with the right side being the quieter one -- probably because I'm on the imperial system. Must be a US thing.

 

[DefQon]

It's a damn conspiracy I tell ya.
 
Humidity has the biggest play with e-sat/ESL imbalance issues. 

 

[davidsh]

I find it quite interesting with the amp requirenments of stats. With 'ordinary' headphones you want to have at least 10dB more headroom before you can say they are 'well driven' compared to what you have with stats

 

[barid]

Honestly the fear of channel imbalances has been the biggest deterrent to ordering a 009.  Would be the most expensive gear I've bought....and could fail apparently.  I kind of think that's unacceptable for the price of them.

 

[3X0]

Not so much a failure as a temporary but silly inconvenience for what is a luxury product. Unfortunately it seems to be based on electrostatic principles but I'd be thrilled if Stax figured out a way to prevent parasitic charges in the future. It really is unacceptable to have to deal with an issue that compromises the core functionality of such an expensive product.

Temporary imbalance typically coincided with seasonal/temperature/humidity changes.

DefQon, you should get your friend to stow the Omega for a month or two until the imbalance is resolved and then consider whether you'll settle back to the 009. Not many people have ready access to snap up an Omega when they please, but the 009s will come and go.

 

[DefQon]

Chances are I will sell the 009 before even giving it some head time.

 

[RiStaR]

It's all planned out to be purchased in the future so it's all good. I would buy a set of Megatron boards if Lilknight would respond on the other site I'm not reluctant to drop the $ on boards knowing that I won't receive them in a long time. And I still need to find time to complete my offboard KGSSHV lol.

Speaking offboard PSU is this one of the new mini KGSSHV psu board or another one I'm completely not familiar with?
Nope too risky owning them.

 
Doesn't matter which version of the PSU board. The tubes draw about 2-3 times more than the KGSSHV - which is why you need to remove the current limiters for the Mosfets. It'll work with the onboard sinks - it just eats the LT1021s for me when cased up cause of the heat (and I use it in an air conditioned room).
 
Since you're building the offboard kgsshv, I'm certain you'll get the megatron up before that I think LilKnight is caught up in some stuff, he's always been a class act to me. I do hope he's okay, though.
 
Re alternatives to Sumr... try http://www.toroidy.pl/ I had a good experience with them.

 

[dj nellie]

Question about storing the 009s long-term:
 
I'm going to be moving soon, and I have 2 options:  Either take my 009s with me on a trans-Pacific flight using a Pelican case, or store the 009s in the original wood box where they'll be transported through humid climates and on board ships for about 2-3 months.
 
Which is the safer option?  Is the wood box really as good as Stax claims it is for limiting the potential damage of humidity?

 

[davidsh]

  Question about storing the 009s long-term:
 
I'm going to be moving soon, and I have 2 options:  Either take my 009s with me on a trans-Pacific flight using a Pelican case, or store the 009s in the original wood box where they'll be transported through humid climates and on board ships for about 2-3 months.
 
Which is the safer option?  Is the wood box really as good as Stax claims it is for limiting the potential damage of humidity?

You could include some of those small bags made to keep the air dry within the case/box. Dunno what they are called or what they are for that matter.

 

[bearFNF]

  You could include some of those small bags made to keep the air dry within the case/box. Dunno what they are called or what they are for that matter.

desiccant pouches