[Andrew Seeley]

Woah, didn't see that coming from Oneoddphoton or anyone else. This was sold and delivered a month ago.
I included quality rca cables as requested and sold the unit for a little less than 750$ Shipped and $799 gross. where Ebay has them listed much higher. 1k and above as was recenty discussed here.

There are 56 pm message feeds between myself and Levi regarding the transaction privately available

The Last thing that happened and came was A thank you pm

with permission if there is some kind of miscommunication for readers and Oneoddphoton.
Your 727 has the feedback mod, yes. As was discussed.

I've also sold a multi thousand dollar audio processor and leant to a forum member in Dire need for two weeks. Feedback for the third transaction should post by Friday.

If someone is dissatisfied with Me. They should please communicate with Me first beforehand so that I can do my best to improve. The item was clearly well well packed, "almost too well packed" and delivered in two days, and Levi has Been listening to the feedback modified 727 since 9th or 10th. It was delivered September 8th. I have to do a double take and I feel obligated to speak up.

To clarify, Levi has a good modified 727 headphone amp most people are pleased with.

 

[DecentLevi]

Hey @Andrew Seeley you totally misread me. This had NOTHING to do with you or your product or service. It was packaged & shipped in top-notch order and your communication was good, you even were up front about the small cosmetic issues. The only reason I mentioned you on the last page was to clarify whether or not said CCS mod had already been applied - nothing more.

My mixed impressions of the 727 energiser had to do with the design of the Stax SRM-727 itself, and probably synergy with the L300 Limited Edition headphones (said to be the same as L700), which while I found have amazing soundstage & detail, was too bright / thin for most any music genres making it thus far preferable only for the likes of movies.

I'm also getting improved results using ferrite beads on the RCA cables and especially with them on the Stax AC power cable which is still in process (along with USB cable, etc.). I recommend anybody to experiment with STAR-TEC and STAR-TEC LFS ferrite beads of proper size for your cables for a more balanced and organic sound; the regular version works well to isolate high frequencies and the LFS version is for low frequencies, which both work well together.

 

[OneOddPhoton]

Apologies for appearing to throw the Cat amongst the Pigeons here. My post was inferring the (expected) onslaught of Stax Mafia Minions offering up opinions on KGSSHV Carbon etc. being the only options for the best results and that any modded Stax amp will not cut the mustard...as has been the case so many times on this forum.

No disrespect to the original seller was intended (or implied), or indeed to the Stax Mafia aficionados for that matter.

Back to the topic at hand...

If the L300 Ltd does indeed sound like the L700, then from my experience (of owning the 700), they A) Take a very long time to burn in and B) Amp synergy has been more miss than hit. It took me 4 Amps to get the sound I was after. I had issues of flabby (overblown) bass that bled into the lower midrange and shouty treble. However, I do consider these 'properties' to be a representative of the tuning of the L700 (after an A/B session with a 009S) on the same KGST amp.

 

[DecentLevi]

Indeed I've been especially curious how the top Stax energisers stack up against the KGSSHV and Blue Hawaii? Or even the top units from Mjolnir Audio?

 

[DougD]

Indeed I've been especially curious how the top Stax energisers stack up against the KGSSHV and Blue Hawaii? Or even the top units from Mjolnir Audio?

Well that is a highly subjective question, and I haven't heard any of them, so I certainly won't offer up my impressions (directly.)

However, you CAN reasonably infer that the people designing and/or building the alternatives are doing so for one or more reasons, and AFAIK none of those reasons is that the top-tier Stax amps ... except the T2 ... are especially rare and hard to find.

Now whether your ears and brain would perceive a benefit justifying the cost is really a question that only your brain could answer.

Seattle seems to be a pretty active area for some serious headphone people. Hopefully at some point we will be able to get back to life as it used to be, and you may get to listen to some of these models at a local head-gathering. And then you will be better able to make an informed decision.

 

[DecentLevi]

I tried the Blue Hawaii around 5 years ago at one of the CanJams but can't remember much, and since then so much has changed with DACs, etc. it must be different. Looking for anyone here with recent experience with these. We can also infer alternatives are made to be even better than Stax.

 

[padam]

There are lot of options to consider, even with an amp like this, the SR-007 Mk2 will have more bass slam the the detail and imaging are on a whole new level, Lambdas just can't reach to those heights. It is a very different sound overall, but a decent match with the modified 727, which I think is a bit brighter and flatter than the hybrid Stax amps with tubes which do a good job at "rounding off" Lambdas, but not as dynamic.
They seem to be going for fairly decent prices used, an SR-L700 Mk2 costing more just shows how much Lambdas have gone up in price.

Also, if you change to a balanced source you become less dependant on cables (better noise rejection), the Stax amps (including the aftermarket amps) are inherently balanced by design, so you are eliminating an unecessary unbalanced->balanced conversion with that (you also get +6db gain which is set lower on the 727 compared to other amps) for me it becomes a bit warmer and more dynamic, a positive change.

Some people are driving a top-tier headphone with a mediocre amp that sounds congested but overall still on a much higher level of detail and imaging, while others do it the polar opposite way, and it is quite difficult to evaluate, which is best.
But whatever you get first, you might end up upgrading all three things, in which case, it is quite a huge jump in price (but also sound quality) people can only really argue about what's the best order to do that (and more crucially, where to "stop")

If you intend to stay with the L300LE, then the KGST or an SRX+ should be decent upgrades without going higher to a Carbon or a BH, as long as you find a good builder for them.

 

[bigjako]

If you intend to stay with the L300LE, then the KGST or an SRX+ should be decent upgrades without going higher to a Carbon or a BH, as long as you find a good builder for them.

I’m freshly into Stax and trying to upgrade my amp situation. Can you, or anyone else, recommend a good US-based builder?

 

[padam]

I’m freshly into Stax and trying to upgrade my amp situation. Can you, or anyone else, recommend a good US-based builder?

Kerry comes to my mind at first
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/blue-hawaii-stax-amp-for-sale.932652/
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-stax-thread-iii.677809/page-1273#post-15865857

 

[Rushton]

[Edit: New home found; no longer available] I have a 35+ year old pair of Stax SRX Mk.3 headphones and SRD-7 adapter that I bought new, and a SRA-3S amplifier that I bought used that needs repair, all of which I'd like to give away to a good home for just the cost of shipping. The headphones play nicely but could use new ear pads. The SRA-3S amplifier plays, the caps seem okay with no leakage visible, but it has hum in both channels and circuit board plug-in sockets are cracked from a previous owner. With my SR009S headphones, I have no have a use for the SRX Mk.3 headphones and my wife says I need to get them out of the house. I'd hate to have them just end up in the landfill if someone would like to have them to play around with or possibly repair the amp. This is not a sale, it's purely a gift to someone willing to pay cost of shipping from Huntsville, Alabama. If you're interested, please PM me. They will be gone a week from today or sooner if someone takes them.

I recognize that this post should probably go in the For Sale forum, but I've been a long time reader with few posts so don't have privileges to post there. Since I'm giving these away and just looking for a good home, I hope the moderators will offer some grace and leave this up as something of value to members.

 

[ESL-1]

PM Sent....

 

[Rushton]

PM Sent....

Got it, thanks. Reply sent.

 

[Rushton]

I have a 35+ year old pair of Stax SRX Mk.3 headphones and SRD-7 adapter that I bought new, and a SRA-3S amplifier that I bought used that needs repair, all of which I'd like to give away to a good home for just the cost of shipping....

The headphones, adapter and amplifier have found a new home and are no longer available. Thanks to all for your support.

 

[bigjako]

Kerry comes to my mind at first
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/blue-hawaii-stax-amp-for-sale.932652/
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-stax-thread-iii.677809/page-1273#post-15865857

Thank you for that, I’d seen one of those ads before and looked him up but could only find some insurance company CEO. Any ideas how to reach Kerry or someone else? I even put a job up on Upwork to see if any electrical engineers would bid on it, but no real luck.

I have one other related question - I’ve come across an opportunity to buy the amplifier from the Jade II system. No phones, just the amp. Has anyone tried their Stax on the Jade amp and if so, does it do them justice more so than say a SRM-1/Mk2 or 323s? Or am I barking down the wrong, thin, dry tree?

thank you for any help!

 

[padam]

Thank you for that, I’d seen one of those ads before and looked him up but could only find some insurance company CEO. Any ideas how to reach Kerry or someone else? I even put a job up on Upwork to see if any electrical engineers would bid on it, but no real luck.

I have one other related question - I’ve come across an opportunity to buy the amplifier from the Jade II system. No phones, just the amp. Has anyone tried their Stax on the Jade amp and if so, does it do them justice more so than say a SRM-1/Mk2 or 323s? Or am I barking down the wrong, thin, dry tree?

thank you for any help!

https://www.head-fi.org/members/kerry.70759/

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/jade-ii-tear-down-rebuttal.903210/