[3X0]

Hey I spent 3.5k for mine came with everything except the original box but I got a pair of NOS pads and 2 NOS headbands.

You mean the Kiri/Paulownia wood box? If so, I would think that would constitute a substantial component of value...
 
Didn't you also get it through a friend who had to go out to some place weird to scoop it up? And wasn't your purchase of them ancient history by now?
 
To be honest it's hard to assess the value of headphones like these since they'll generally go for whatever some buyer's willing to pay at any given point in time. Sales are rare enough that I wouldn't be surprised to see them sell at over that $4500 "sane" value hereon, especially as economies recover and people have more money to burn on toys. Time will tell.

 

[DefQon]

You mean the Kiri/Paulownia wood box? If so, I would think that would constitute a substantial component of value...

Didn't you also get it through a friend who had to go out to some place weird to scoop it up? And wasn't your purchase of them ancient history by now?

To be honest it's hard to assess the value of headphones like these since they'll generally go for whatever some buyer's willing to pay at any given point in time. Sales are rare enough that I wouldn't be surprised to see them sell at over that $4500 "sane" value hereon, especially as economies recover and people have more money to burn on toys. Time will tell.

Well the original box ain't a big deal because the buyer managed to procure them from else where, NOS pads and NOS headbands go for greater value because they wear out and are no longer to be found anywhere, sourcing these parts are just as rare as the headphones itself.

Yes I sold them to the person who helped me buy it over in Germany. I still have access to them.

I've had lengthy discussions with Radiohead before through pm's about him trying to obtain a pair, his had talks with MF when she obtained hers and the given going value is around 3.5-4.5. Yes they can go for more than that as well as lower than that, if one the ebay sellers I messaged last year allowed the sale I would've snagged an Omega + T1 deal for $1800 before the seller changed his mind.

 

[spritzer]

  Just want to add that the reliability issues for the Omega are a bit too mystified. There is only one pair I know of that was broken under the ownership of a head-fi-er. That's it.
The rest, which had replacement SR007 drivers probably broke much earlier, there were definitely some manufacturing problems with the drivers.
Treat it "normally" and it is not likely to break and the headband can be replaced if the hinges stay intact.

 
It really isn't.  I've fixed 11 sets so far, some I could save while others are beyond saving in the sense my repairs would have been so invasive that they weren't SR-Omegas any more.  Not something I'd ever do...
 
As for the failures, the most common is imbalance which is one of two things - parasitic charge or the coating simply failing.  I've gotten close to the original coating but not been able to recreate it properly.  I need to go high in resistance which leads to slow charging but it's a trade off from small corona issues.  I've also seen one set with ripped mylar and burns which makes them a total write off.  It's actually not that hard to make new diaphragms for them but its a large investment in terms of money and time.  New brass retainers would have to be made in mass and that's not cheap.  I do have the correct film so it would just be a matter off recreating the correct tension and heat treatment then find/design a coating that works. 
 
The biggest problem is the housing though, that plastic frame can only be repaired to a certain extent and then they are toast.  It's possible to recreate it but it wouldn't be cheap.  No way to 3d print it either given the materials used in those printers. 

 

[3X0]

It would be a pretty huge deal for the collector (s/he who will pay to the northern end of the range) given the matched serial plates. Getting one even with mismatched serials would be an additional expense worth considering.
 
Conversely pads would be of greater value to the listener rather than the collector (though I'm not sure whether the listener would pay more for pads or the collector for the matching box). At least the original pads don't suffer from serious issues like the HE60/HE90 pads that make replacement absolutely imperative; the main issue with Omega pads is that they become stiff. I believe at least one owner (Birgir?) has had success treating the original pads to make them a bit more supple, albeit nowhere near new.
 
We know HE90s are worth about 15k because they rot around if they list for much more. We know MDR-R10s are worth in the neighborhood of 5k because much more than that and the same phenomenon occurs. I actually haven't seen enough lasting listings of the Omega to affirm that position with such certainty -- they are much closer to the rarity of the HE90 than R10s, aren't priced out of accessibility like the HE90s, and the existence of the SR-009 makes them less interesting to people who just want sound without fuss.

 

[shipsupt]

I've not been able to run across replacement ear pads for sale since I got my Omegas... I've almost all but given up on finding them.  My current pads feel nice, but I know time will get to them eventually.  When that time comes I'll likely have something custom built to replace them.  

 

[DefQon]

It would be a pretty huge deal for the collector (s/he who will pay to the northern end of the range) given the matched serial plates. Getting one even with mismatched serials would be an additional expense worth considering.

Conversely pads would be of greater value to the listener rather than the collector (though I'm not sure whether the listener would pay more for pads or the collector for the matching box). At least the original pads don't suffer from serious issues like the HE60/HE90 pads that make replacement absolutely imperative; the main issue with Omega pads is that they become stiff. I believe at least one owner (Birgir?) has had success treating the original pads to make them a bit more supple, albeit nowhere near new.

We know HE90s are worth about 15k because they rot around if they list for much more. We know MDR-R10s are worth in the neighborhood of 5k because much more than that and the same phenomenon occurs. I actually haven't seen enough lasting listings of the Omega to affirm that position with such certainty -- they are much closer to the rarity of the HE90 than R10s, aren't priced out of accessibility like the HE90s, and the existence of the SR-009 makes them less interesting to people who just want sound without fuss.

I find the Sony stuff more rarer and harder to come by then the Stax, for instance Larry has reduced the population of the CD3k's because his butchered them all for wooden creations.

Collectors or listeners, it's hard to say which is more because I know some collectors on this board who are frequent listeners so it's hard to set apart the distinctive groups.

For me I'm bit of both but more so a listener, yes the original box is nice but I'd rather pads and headbands because they affect the functionality of the headphones, it's no good as a complete collectors item with the box and all If the pads or headband are completely mangled.

 

[rawrster]

So recently i've been thinking of selling my dynamic rig or at least my dac/amp to start with. I have a SR007 already and I'm not a huge fan of the SR009. Is there anything else that I should look at?

 

[bearFNF]

Could try some vintage Stax like LS or even LNB

 

[DefQon]

So recently i've been thinking of selling my dynamic rig or at least my dac/amp to start with. I have a SR007 already and I'm not a huge fan of the SR009. Is there anything else that I should look at?

Sell off your amp and dynamic headphones and invest in a better amp for the O2's. Upgrading DAC's ain't going to give a huge diffetence.

 

[preproman]

Sell off your amp and dynamic headphones and invest in a better amp for the O2's. Upgrading DAC's ain't going to give a huge diffetence.

 
No but it will give him some what of a different sound.  Going from the Buffalo III to say a Lampi or an AMR, or even a HEX, you might be surprised.

 

[DefQon]

Different sound maybe but not much of an upgrade in terms of how much detail can be revealed which so much hyped emphasis is placed on these days since the dawn of ESS sabre chips.

 

[cat6man]

Sell off your amp and dynamic headphones and invest in a better amp for the O2's. Upgrading DAC's ain't going to give a huge diffetence.

 
YMMV, but yesterday I had a chance to put a MSB platinum DAC into my system and the change in sound with 009s/BHSE was incredible.
Much more bass and change in frequency balance with even more detail, smoother more continuous soundstage, totally changed by view of what my 009 and my Nola speakers were capable of.
And I was happy with my old system!
 
Too bad it is out of my price range
 
DACs can make a huge change in sound, the question is the synergy with the rest of your system and what price range can be considered.
I'm still trying to get my mind around how incredible the difference/improvement was.

 

[negura]

   
YMMV, but yesterday I had a chance to put a MSB platinum DAC into my system and the change in sound with 009s/BHSE was incredible.
Much more bass and change in frequency balance with even more detail, smoother more continuous soundstage, totally changed by view of what my 009 and my Nola speakers were capable of.
And I was happy with my old system!
 
Too bad it is out of my price range
 
DACs can make a huge change in sound, the question is the synergy with the rest of your system and what price range can be considered.
I'm still trying to get my mind around how incredible the difference/improvement was.

 
+1 If the amplifier is transparent enough and there are no other bottlenecks, DAC scaling can result in startling improvements. The "cheaper" Analog is also in a very high SQ ballpark.

 

[arnaud]

...totally changed my view of what my 009 and my Nola speakers were capable of.
...DACs can make a huge change in sound, the question is the synergy with the rest of your system and what price range can be considered.

Couldn't agree more, although I haven't heard the msb gear, they have such good reputation wherever you read it.

In my case, listening to the TotalDac D1 was similar experience and I can't imagine what it would have been with the bhse!

But in the end, just like you, timing is not right to fork out such large sums of money on a DAC... So, I am going to live concerts instead .

 

[DefQon]

Until I hear an MSB or dcs stack I'll stick by what I've said because I haven't heard one to the extent of big enough improvements go by glowing reviews online.