[vapman]

*OK I know some here do NOT have this ability; in that case you really shouldn't enjoy such nice things anyways.

 
If only people who knew how to safely work with 600 volts and build one of these were allowed to post in this thread, it would be like three pages, and you know that.
Do you think this thread's average Stax fan can just throw together a KGSSHV on a whim gven enough time?

 

[carbonfet]

Pretty sure he means the ability to deal in the used market, not build amplifiers.
 
Speaking of builds, I'm still troubleshooting this but it does play music.

 

 

[milosz]

  Pretty sure he means the ability to deal in the used market, not build amplifiers.
 
Speaking of builds, I'm still troubleshooting this but it does play music.

 

 
What problems are you having?  Stax Mafia giving you any help?

 

[astrostar59]

  If you have a 007 or 009, just don't even bother with a KGSS. Go for the HV. Or maybe really nice deal on a KGST. They're available, even plentiful, for good builds at good prices if you have the slightest bit of patience and ability to deal like a sane human being* in the used market. 
 
*OK I know some here do NOT have this ability; in that case you really shouldn't enjoy such nice things anyways.

There are those who try to ignore the facts i.e Stax made the 009 to run with a none Stax amp. There is no other alternative. If I had to use a Stax amp,I would go for the second hand 717 as it is the closest to a KG design i.e. half decent. Anyone investing in a 3.5K headphone really needs to understand that the rest of the gear has to be about the same budget, so DAC 3K, amp 3K+ IMO.
 
There are no hidden Stax gems that are going to get your 009 to sing at its best period.

 

[comzee]

Got my 009, using it with my Mjölnir made Carbon. Also got confirmation that my Yggy shipped. 
Today is a good day. 
 

 

[preproman]

  Got my 009, using it with my Mjölnir made Carbon. Also got confirmation that my Yggy shipped. 
Today is a good day. 
 

Lets see some photos of that carbon...

 

[comzee]

 
Lets see some photos of that carbon...

I took some quick macro shots of the electronics when I got it, nothing special, but it gives you an idea. 
http://imgur.com/a/ckfdJ

 

[kugino]

new toy in the house thanks to @headinclouds haven't given it a listen yet...still cleaning and rearranging the listening station. just wanted to gloat 

 
it really is a beautiful piece of work by geoff...
 

 

[astrostar59]

  new toy in the house thanks to @headinclouds haven't given it a listen yet...still cleaning and rearranging the listening station. just wanted to gloat 

 
it really is a beautiful piece of work by geoff...
 

Nice, congratulations. I designed the faceplate for Geoff, and bought 2 of his KGSShv off-boards. Top bloke and a credit to the Stax community. Where are you located? I think Geoff delivered some of his builds, I picked mine up as he is only 2 hours away. He has a great DIY 'den', very jealous.

 

[kugino]

 
Nice, congratulations. I designed the faceplate for Geoff, and bought 2 of his KGSShv off-boards. Top bloke and a credit to the Stax community. Where are you located? I think Geoff delivered some of his builds, I picked mine up as he is only 2 hours away. He has a great DIY 'den', very jealous.

thanks! nice job with the faceplate design. the whole thing is very beautiful. my correspondence with geoff has been top-notch. he's been very helpful...
 
i think he shipped it on sunday and i got it half way around the world on wednesday.
 
now, the only problem...it seems my 007A has a channel imbalance. vocals localize at around 1:00. sigh...not sure what to do yet, but it's put a damper on things for a bit. anyone have any ideas?

 

[astrostar59]

  thanks! nice job with the faceplate design. the whole thing is very beautiful. my correspondence with geoff has been top-notch. he's been very helpful...
 
i think he shipped it on sunday and i got it half way around the world on wednesday.
 
now, the only problem...it seems my 007A has a channel imbalance. vocals localize at around 1:00. sigh...not sure what to do yet, but it's put a damper on things for a bit. anyone have any ideas?

When did this happen? Was it apparent on your old amp before the KGST?

 

[kugino]

 
When did this happen? Was it apparent on your old amp before the KGST?

i got these 007A earlier this year second-hand. i bought a used 717 that i paired with the 007A for a few weeks, but the 717 was damaged and i heard the imbalance then, but didn't know whether it was the 007A or the 717. i returned the 717 and haven't had an amp for around 6 months and then decided to buy one of geoff's kgst. so, it seems like it's the 007A and it probably had this imbalance from the very beginning, but i didn't test it well enough when i received it so i'm stuck with it. just looking to see how i might go about getting them repaired...without spending an arm and a leg.

 

[astrostar59]

  i got these 007A earlier this year second-hand. i bought a used 717 that i paired with the 007A for a few weeks, but the 717 was damaged and i heard the imbalance then, but didn't know whether it was the 007A or the 717. i returned the 717 and haven't had an amp for around 6 months and then decided to buy one of geoff's kgst. so, it seems like it's the 007A and it probably had this imbalance from the very beginning, but i didn't test it well enough when i received it so i'm stuck with it. just looking to see how i might go about getting them repaired...without spending an arm and a leg.

I would approach PJ and ask for a price for 2 x current 007A drivers. I took my 007 MK2.5 apart when I replaced the cables, and it is quite easy. You could do it. The biggest hassle is getting the ear cups back onto the frames, I took a few hours and plenty of swearing!
 
BTW my 007As which I bought from Pj 8 weeks back, they sound magic, much better than my previous 007 MK2.5s. If you bought new drivers you would get I expect, a better sound as well, depending how old the drivers are in your 007As. I suspect Stax updated the drivers for the 007s quite recently...

 

[Tinkerer]

Or he could, you know, adjust the balance pot of the weaker channel in the amp with a $4 ceramic screwdriver and not spend another thousand + dollars. It could even be drift in the amp after warm up or something going on with one of the tubes. He could check the balance and offset himself on the amp with a $10 multimeter.
 
There's a real straightforward description of how to read it right here http://www.head-fi.org/t/648596/stax-srm-1-mk2-re-cap/15
 
 
I just think checking the obvious cheap stuff or doing a simple adjustment would be better than diving right into the deep end of driver replacement.

 

[astrostar59]

  Or he could, you know, adjust the balance pot of the weaker channel in the amp with a $4 ceramic screwdriver and not spend another thousand + dollars. It could even be drift in the amp after warm up or something going on with one of the tubes. He could check the balance and offset himself on the amp with a $10 multimeter.
 
There's a real straightforward description of how to read it right here http://www.head-fi.org/t/648596/stax-srm-1-mk2-re-cap/15
 
 
I just think checking the obvious cheap stuff or doing a simple adjustment would be better than diving right into the deep end of driver replacement.

I would get to a Stax dealership and try your 007As on a Stax (new) amp. Then you will know for sure. The imbalance could be in your front end or cables or the amp or the headphone.
Only way to know for sure is try a different system that is known to be balanced.