The Stax thread (New)

[Lunatique]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Region2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
No shower curtain for your O2s?  I'm rather paranoid so they're either in the flight case or on the stand with dust cover.
 
And since they're right next to each other have you had a chance to do a more indepth A/B on the LCD-2 and O2mk2?

I might make a simple cloth cover for the entire headphone stand/group, but I'm not sure yet if it's really necessary. The Stax manual seems to be pretty cautious with the various warnings and it didn't mention anything about protection for normal household dust--it only mentioned VERY dusty conditions. So unless you live in a desert where there's sandstorms, you probably don't need to worry about it?
 
I have been doing extensive testing all day today, and I'll be doing more in the next few days, and I'll post the results when I'm done. So far I'm pretty surprised by how well the LCD-2 is holding it down, and a pink noise comparison showed me why some people are saying these two have a similar sonic signature--they really do, but there are also important differences too. I'll talk about them when I post my official review/comparison.
 
In the meantime, here are a few more shots of the O2 and 717 hanging out in the studio, making new friends:



 

 

[les_garten]

I always feel like I live in a dusty environment.  My Wife uses Baby Powder.  That stuff gets everywhere!

 

[middachten]

Quote:

I might make a simple cloth cover for the entire headphone stand/group, but I'm not sure yet if it's really necessary. The Stax manual seems to be pretty cautious with the various warnings and it didn't mention anything about protection for normal household dust--it only mentioned VERY dusty conditions. So unless you live in a desert where there's sandstorms, you probably don't need to worry about it?
 
I have been doing extensive testing all day today, and I'll be doing more in the next few days, and I'll post the results when I'm done. So far I'm pretty surprised by how well the LCD-2 is holding it down, and a pink noise comparison showed me why some people are saying these two have a similar sonic signature--they really do, but there are also important differences too. I'll talk about them when I post my official review/comparison.
 
In the meantime, here are a few more shots of the O2 and 717 hanging out in the studio, making new friends:



 

Interesting to see the contrast in equipment!
The Stax setup and a set of K+H 300 on one hand and a Samson C-control on the other

 

[frenshprince]

Quote:

I have been doing extensive testing all day today, and I'll be doing more in the next few days, and I'll post the results when I'm done. So far I'm pretty surprised by how well the LCD-2 is holding it down, and a pink noise comparison showed me why some people are saying these two have a similar sonic signature--they really do, but there are also important differences too. I'll talk about them when I post my official review/comparison.

 
I can't wait to read your review.
Especially because, so far, I'm not really satisfied with the sound from my LCD-2 (but a Concerto on its way is supposed to change that) and the Omega is my next step too.
 

 

[gilency]

I listened to both at the LA meet, and to my ears, it was no contest, O2Mk1's hands down.
Te LCD2's sounded a little bloated in the mid bass, not as clear as the O2's. Granted, it was at a meet, but I already unsubscribed to the LCD2 thread.

 

[Region2]

Quote:

I can't wait to read your review.
Especially because, so far, I'm not really satisfied with the sound from my LCD-2 (but a Concerto on its way is supposed to change that) and the Omega is my next step too.
 

x2
 
A friend is shipping me his LCD-2 to examine in case there are any problems so he won't have to deal with frequent trips to customs so I'm going to do my own comparisons, but I'm looking forward to your comparisons, Lunatique to see how they match up.

 

[silverlight]

Quote:

I listened to both at the LA meet, and to my ears, it was no contest, O2Mk1's hands down.
Te LCD2's sounded a little bloated in the mid bass, not as clear as the O2's. Granted, it was at a meet, but I already unsubscribed to the LCD2 thread.

I agree.  I purchased a pair of LCD2's, and while I returned them b/c they were physically uncomfortable on my head (weight, pinch), I hands down prefer my O2Mk1's and to my ears it was a clear difference (ease, detail, separation, better perceived integration top to bottom, LCD2 sounded a little compressed/nasally in comparison).  Driving them with different amplifiers (WES Maxxed vs RWA Isabella w/ v good Amperex tubes) so this could be part of it and also LCD2's not fully broken in.

 

[MuppetFace]

 
Quote:

I listened to both at the LA meet, and to my ears, it was no contest, O2Mk1's hands down.
Te LCD2's sounded a little bloated in the mid bass, not as clear as the O2's. Granted, it was at a meet, but I already unsubscribed to the LCD2 thread.

 
I agree that the O2mk1 is the better headphone now that I've actually heard it amped properly. I still enjoy the sound of the LCD-2, although I haven't worn them much since discovering the cracked parts on mine. I'm awaiting replacement "L" and "R" blocks in the mail.
 
Oh, and I unsubscribed to the LCD-2 thread ages ago, though for reasons other than whether I like the LCD-2 or not.

 

[n3rdling]

Nice to see the LCD2 hype train slowing down.  I like the headphone a lot for the price, but the O2 (and Omega) is still my favorite.  I posted some impressions on the LCD2 in comparison to the O2 here:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/453116/audeze-lcd-2-orthos/4695#post_6925782

 

[Lunatique]

I think what I have to say about the LCD-2 vs. the O2 might surprise some people in some ways, as both headphones have pros and cons depending on the material. This is surprising even to me because when I tested the 007mk2 against the D7000 months ago, the Stax destroyed the Denon, but against the LCD-2, there are just as many similarities as there are differences.
 
Quote:

Interesting to see the contrast in equipment!
The Stax setup and a set of K+H 300 on one hand and a Samson C-control on the other

Yeah, I'm not a gear snob at all. I give all gear the benefit of the doubt and test them myself instead of only listening to people's biased opinions. If cheap gear performs with flying colors and I couldn't detect any unacceptable problems with coloration, distortion, workmanship, reliability...etc, then it stays in the studio and lives happily along with my higher-end gears. I think blind bias against budget gear is kind of stupid--you really need to test them for yourself. Also, with budget gear, sometimes what people bitch about is the quality control of the products, and part of the bad reputation comes from people getting a lemon. But when you don't get a lemon, many budget gear sound absolutely fine--in fact I think many people won't be able to tell many of the budget gear from the higher-end ones in double blind tests. This has been proven many times at gearslutz.com already. I bet if head-fi were to hold a big double blind testing session of various head-fi related gears, we'd see similar results.

 

[frenshprince]

When do you think we'll have the pleasure to read your review ?

 

[Lunatique]

Quote:

When do you think we'll have the pleasure to read your review ?

 
Probably today or tomorrow, I hope.

 

[Scottsmrnyc]

Anyone have an information about the Omega 3s and their Bass Response? 

 

[Currawong]

The only info we have about the Omega 3s is that picture from Fujiya.  Other than that, we know nothing whatsoever.
 
Lunatique: I look forward to your impressions about the O2 vs. LCD-2s. So far, it's a toss-up for me between the O2/717 and the LCD-2/Phoenix. Sometimes the O2s sound like a breath of fresh air, and sometimes the punch of the LCD-2s is what I'm in the mood for.  

 

[Gu Sensei]

Quote:

The only info we have about the Omega 3s is that picture from Fujiya.  Other than that, we know nothing whatsoever.

 
Gotta keep an eye on Sasaki's blog for the latest scoop:
 
 
Quote:

/img/forum/go_quote.gif

Speaking of the highlight of the show, as you may already know new STAX flagship (O3?) could be there. Here is a picture of the coming new STAX flagship on Fujiya blog. It will be out around the next Spring and would be priced almost $3000 - $5000.
http://www.fujiya-avic.co.jp/d-style/1010_headphone_fes.html