[nvfan]

This is true, but he has also heard many of the TOTL headphones at Tyll's Big Sound 2015 event, to which he brought his own modded SR-007s (which means that he owned them at least since then). If you've read his blog he has a pretty high end speaker system, which he uses in his day job, he has a trained ear which he uses daily in his business, and finally, he uses his own material which he mastered, so he knows better than most what it should sound like - that is an advantage that very few of us have. You don't have to agree with his opinion, but he has better backup for it than most of us here.

OTOH, there's this:

1) the SR-007 Mk II is significantly cheaper than the SR-009, this allows a bigger budget for an amp - good ones include SRX Plus, KGSS Carbon and Blue Hawaii SE.
2) well known recording engineer Bob Katz considers the SR-007 Mk II (with port mod) superior to the SR-009 in tonal balance, see his recent blog post on InnerFidelity, "I have a love affair with my Stax SR-007 Mk2 phones, which I judge to be superior, smoother, more musical and accurate than the expensive SR-009 model."

https://www.innerfidelity.com/category/katzs-corner

He uses a Dynaudio Confidence speakers system as well which is well known for it's smoothness (aka, rolled off details). In general it seems Bob Katz prefers smoother sound vs analytical (LCD-4 vs Utopia for instance).

 

[JimL11]

He uses a Dynaudio Confidence speakers system as well which is well known for it's smoothness (aka, rolled off details). In general it seems Bob Katz prefers smoother sound vs analytical (LCD-4 vs Utopia for instance).

I've never heard the Dynaudio, but this seems reasonable, as he prefers the 007 to the 009. Having both, I also prefer the 007 to the 009, but I can see why others might feel otherwise. In any case, if you know how your preferences compare with his, you can use his impressions to help judge whether something will appeal to you, or not.

I will note that he tends to focus on tonal balance, whereas others might be more interested in detail, soundstage, or other factors, and for those folks his impressions might be less useful.

 

[XLR8]

It really depends, the guy who asked the question has a lot of Grado headphones in his signature, so more than probably he'll prefer the 009 if he likes Grados.

Actually, I prefer the less shouty sound of my lambda L300 to the Grado sound.

Would like to add to my stax collection hence my questions.

The opinions and thoughts have been enormously appreciated.

Looking for an analog sound via the stax headphones.

Decisions decision....

 

[thinker]

Better than 009/007?

yup,and even more details and musicality than 009 but not sure about resolution.Canorum needs break in time, after two weeks it's quite better.This is the best phone i have owned

 

[JimL11]

He uses a Dynaudio Confidence speakers system as well which is well known for it's smoothness (aka, rolled off details). In general it seems Bob Katz prefers smoother sound vs analytical (LCD-4 vs Utopia for instance).

I would also note that a number of reviewers have commented that recordings (which are generally made with microphones close to the performers) tend to have more highs than one hears in a live setting, so some degree of roll-off actually sounds closer to the live experience. I suggest you Google "Down with Flat" by J Gordon Holt.

 

[ToroFiestaSol]

Yep, just take a look to the frequency response of some uber expensive legendary microphones (Telefunken 251, Sony C-800G, Neumann U47, etc)...anything but flat

 

[ToroFiestaSol]

Oh, and Bob doesn't use Dynaudio Confidence speakers (10k to 20k), he uses Dynaudio M5P Evidence (+70k), big difference between both, he also EQed them and corrected the phase response with Acourate Convolver, and tweaked his (already wonderful sounding) room for the new Dynaudios, his system probably is one of the most accurate you can hear (B&K curve FR, phase and time coherent and room made for the speakers, that's far from rolled off or bright living room regular hifi system).

 

[wink]

Yep, a few cuts above a pair if LS50's in a dungeon.......

 

[weasel1979]

5. MK2 2015 on is faster and more alive / accurate than the pre 2015 MK2, and IMO as good as the Mk1 maybe better

What serial number are we talking when you say "Mk2 2015" ? Thanks! I really wanna know!

I had both, Mk2 SZ3-10xxx and MK1 701xx, I liked the Mk1 much better. Age is no problem with Stax cans, come on guys, you know that. MK1 is audio heaven for me. I compared them, it's the balance, the calm, that was much better.

Plus: SR-007 do not sound veiled or boring to me at all. To me, the SR-009 sounds distant and boring. It has lasersharp presentation, which I liked very much, but the sound was distant at the same time.
I owned all three and kept a very old SR-007 Mk1, which makes me happy. But yes, it is not completely neutral. It's a bit coloured. In an awesome way.

 

[Trance_Gott]

My SZ2-21xx is the best Stax headphone to date i had. SR009 is too bright and the MK1 is too smooth for my taste and don't have the energy of the SZ2. I don't like the port mod for my type of music metal and rock. For slower type of music the MK1 is maybe the better choice.
The only headphone comes close and is better in the bass department is the LCD4.

 

[paradoxper]

Get a T2.

 

[florence]

Hey guys,

Anyone heard/own sr-507 srm-006ts combo before? I need some advices whether I should get this system or not.

Coming from paw gold, micro idsd black, hd600

 

[Pahani]

Hey guys,

Anyone heard/own sr-507 srm-006ts combo before? I need some advices whether I should get this system or not.

Coming from paw gold, micro idsd black, hd600

Have not heard the 507 specifically. But my 207 + SRM252S compares very favorably against my HD600. Same generally Neutral sound, with more energy and speed, and MUUUUUCH lower bass extension. L700 + 353X steps it up substantially from there.

I do still love my HD600 and HD6XX, though I rarely use them anymore. They're "keepers" in my collection, even if mostly just as a sonic reference.

 

[JimL11]

Hey guys,

Anyone heard/own sr-507 srm-006ts combo before? I need some advices whether I should get this system or not.

Coming from paw gold, micro idsd black, hd600

Haven't heard that particular combo, but have heard the SR-507 with SRM-T1 which is essentially the same circuit as the SRM-006. The 507 is brighter/harsher than your HD600, but doesn't have that Sennheiser veil. Reportedly the 207/307 is more neutral sounding, but I can't say from personal experience.

 

[XLR8]

I have done a mod to my L300 lambda's that has resulted in more bass and stax fart sound.

Woot, this is fantastic sound..just what i wanted from stax.. Very ☺ chappy

Thank you stax and everyone here..