[eric65]

Hi, Arnaud,
 
In Japan, what do you prefer: the apple or the orange? 

 
http://www.homecinema-fr.com/forum/post178182802.html#p178182802

 

[rgs9200m]

Here of some photos of my installation with biasing of RCA cleartops in my 007t/ii for my SR009. I got astonishing results. 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/415385/tube-change-biasing-a-stax-006t-ii/30#post_10708955

 

[timkk]

Thx for the suggestions. Unfortunately, I don't know how to do necessary checks of my T1 . TBH, it's all new to me. Have you got this amp yourself?
 
Quote:

Well I veer this direction myself and hate the glare you sometimes get from digital recordings. Often its not the DAC that the problem but over-produced compressed recordings more suitable for car radios and low quality ipod/earbuds 

 
First thing would be to get your T1 checked out to make sure its up to snuff as its possible some of the components may be past their sell by date by now. You can also experiment with some tube rolling if you want a slightly brighter or more euphonic sound. Personally I prefer the original Stax Gold Aero valves for the T1 but they are very difficult to obtain these days, so a good Japanese produced one (Toshiba, Matsu****a etc) are good alternatives as they are near to the original voicing of the amplifier. If you want to try something brighter then the RCA clear tops. Personally I wouldn't just replace the tubes for the sake of it as some service engineers fell obliged too. If they are still in spec and you like the sound then stick with them.
Personally I don't find the Stax bright unless the recording has hot treble and is that way inclined. The Stax have such extended treble in comparison to what else is out there some people interpret this as bright.
 
On the DAC front I would listen to some NOS DAC's first, like the Metrum and AudioNote. The battery based DAC's from John Kenny JKDAC32 and Ciúnas are well worth a listen.
Try comparing these to some of the over/up samplers like the Benchmak, Arcam, Renaissance etc whch might give you a hint as to which direction you want to go in. Often its not necessarily the DAC chip that has a specific sound but how its been implemented, output stage, jitter reduction, quality of USB implementation. So its usually the sum of the parts which make for a good or less good sound IMO.

 

[timkk]

Hi astrostar59
yeah before I made a jump into Stax's world I was reading about it for quite a bit . Thx for all the tips as well. Regarding DAC's. I'm gonna try V90 for sure. Also I've read DAC Magic plus is similarly good as well as Audinst MX2.... but I'm really curious about NAD D 3020/1050 DAC as ppl say it crushes the other ones....A lot of testing ahead ).
 
Quote:

Hi Timkk
p.

First, congrats on entering the weird and wonderful world of Stax headphones (Ear Speakers).

1. Buy a decent budget DAC like a Musical Fidelity - great quality for low money:
http://www.musicalfidelity.com/v90-dac/

Yes the headphone out is a disaster buddy. Once you get streaming USB data to your new DAC you will be AMAZED trust me.
Your T1 will work fine from the RCA out of the DAC.

2. DACs do make a significant difference so the SQ. I know many will say not. But I have tried 20 or more DACs over the years, and some are good, others horrid.
The thing to test a DAC is the quality of the treble. Many can sound processed and 'hifi' not real. I prefer none oversampling but that is another subject.

3. Make sure you use Audirvana+ or similar on your Laptop. iTunes is a step back on its own. And optimise your Laptop by closing apps and turning of WiFi when
using it for tunes. If it has 2 meg of RAM and enough room for Flac or WAV/AIFF files cool. Avoid Mp3s as they sound rough compared to full resolution CD files.

4. Ripp your Cds with XLD (free app.).

5. Mods on the headphones, not really. buy new earpads, that's about it. If they work leave them alone.

I think that covers the basics. I hope this helps you. There is shed loads of info on this forum, but it can get overwhelming.
Bottom line is, you can get a great for for not much money. Yes, you can spend 10K on the 009s and fancy amps, but the Lamda Novas
(I had 2 for years) can bring lots of musical pleasure. I like to look at the Stax sound as a sophisticated sound, not bass monsters or V shaped
happy response. They are very detailed, transparent and fast. The caveit of that, as even with good dynamics, is you need a good base system
to enjoy them. I think you can get that on a small budget if you are careful what you buy.

http://files.head-fi.org/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

 

[3X0]

Any advice for long-term storage?

I'm probably not going to be using my SR-Omega for quite a while, so my concerns are functional integrity and preservation of the parts. They'll be in the original paulownia box.

So far I can only think of ensuring the pins are shorted out before storage (to prevent long-term parasitic charges) and some desiccant in the box.

I want to make sure the foam and pads don't deteriorate either. Not sure why this is so common on the Sigma and some Lambdas but it's my understanding that the Omega is less susceptible to passive disintegration.

 

[gepardcv]

Any advice for long-term storage?

I'll gladly take one for the team and “store” them for you! I promise the Omegas will be well fed and get plenty of exercise.

 

[kothganesh]

I'll gladly take one for the team and “store” them for you! I promise the Omegas will be well fed and get plenty of exercise.

Part of which will be loaning to your best buddies that will of course baby the Omegas. Only 3 hour listening sessions ( at a time)

 

[complin]

Yes I have a T1 in my collection and its one of my favorite Stax tube amps. Not that much different from current production but much cheaper to buy.
You will find instructions on this and another forum of how to install and bias the tubes. It would be worth getting an experienced engineer or DIY contact to check out those components which deteriorate with age like capacitors to see if they should be replaced. This happens with all vintage audio equipment as the components were never designed to last 20 plus years. 
 
Quote:

 

 

[rgs9200m]

I hope you fine the Lambda Novas comfortable. There was like no room for my ears when I got mine new in 1998. They did sound nice though with the T1W amp.
In some ways, I liked them better than the SR007/007t combo I got a year or so later. The Lambda was more, well, immediate sounding.

 

[timkk]

Guys, what DAC would be better then NAD D 1050 (500$ range) which has been getting all the rave recently?? Since I've got STAX system I don't really need AMP that's integrated with NAD D 1050. I'd think you can get better bang for the buck with just a standalone DAC. Although, I need XLRs for my active speakers...any suggestions ?? My budget is around 500$. Don't really want to spend more on a DAC. 

 

[rgs9200m]

I like my Meridian Director in that sort-of price range. Even the Dragonfly is not bad and great for the price.

 

[timkk]

  I like my Meridian Director in that sort-of price range. Even the Dragonfly is not bad and great for the price.

no XLR in the Meridian I think

 

[rgs9200m]

  no XLR in the Meridian I think

true. you could get an xlr to rca cable, but that's not balanced of course.

 

[timkk]

On the DAC front I would listen to some NOS DAC's first, like the Metrum and AudioNote. The battery based DAC's from John Kenny JKDAC32 and Ciúnas are well worth a listen.
Try comparing these to some of the over/up samplers like the Benchmak, Arcam, Renaissance etc whch might give you a hint as to which direction you want to go in. Often its not necessarily the DAC chip that has a specific sound but how its been implemented, output stage, jitter reduction, quality of USB implementation. So its usually the sum of the parts which make for a good or less good sound IMO.
 

Geeez, finding a proper DAC now sounds really time-consuming... Shouldn't I just pick the most flat DAC out there? I see you're from Oxford, maybe a small meet-up one day ?
I'm tempted to get NAD D 1050 for now and then compare it to different ones. Although, I'm a little bit afraid it's not flat since I couldn't find any scientific graphs yet....

 

[davidsh]

 
Geeez, finding a proper DAC now sounds really time-consuming... Shouldn't I just pick the most flat DAC out there? I see you're from Oxford, maybe a small meet-up one day ?
I'm tempted to get NAD D 1050 for now and then compare it to different ones. Although, I'm a little bit afraid it's not flat since I couldn't find any scientific graphs yet....

I think you should find a DAC that measures good. Personally, I think one can know whether equipment is transparent throught measurements. Many don't think so.