Here's my humble report with headphone impressions!
I don't have perfect hearing. To better understand my impressions, here's my audiogram:
I have a noticeable middle frequency dip. However, this graph approximates the
Fletcher-Munson curve, so I'm still within normal parameters. I also have an asymmetric head, with my left ear being a bit smaller than my right and being positioned differently. You can spot that the left ear canal volume is smaller than my right. That means that if I position headphones flush on my head, the sound usually localizes a bit to the right of my head. I can work around this a bit with full-sized headphones, but I can't wear earbuds/IEMs as a result.
This was my first meet. Not knowing what type of input the meet would accept, I burned two CDs with a variety of tracks from a variety of genres. Imagine my surprise when I saw everyone with laptops and USB ports! I could've just brought a USB drive with all the tracks. Anyway, I played clarinet and was in numerous bands for about 10 years, plus I attended numerous concerts at Roy Thomson Hall, so there was a fair bit of lossless orchestral and jazz material. There was also a bit of eurobeat ripped from vinyl records from the mid-1990s. I specifically chose this era because it was during a time where sound quality mattered to engineers; loudness wars and compression weren't at the forefront. Lastly, I included some overcompressed material just to see how well the high-end headphones could cope.
One thing I noticed at the meet was that almost every single headphone felt like a vicegrip. I was deathly afraid of damaging others' equipment, so I didn't adjust any of the headbands to compensate for my above-average head diameter. This probably had a negative effect on many of the headphones I listened to. I prefer my headphones to only lightly touch my head.
Headphone impressions:
SR80 (grill mod) vs SR225i (7-hole vent mod) vs HF1 vs HF2 vs HP2: So many Grados in one room! I had to try them all out and compare, since most people only make assumptions about each Grado model. The SR225i was mine, punched with 7 holes for extra bass. The SR80 and HF1 immediately sounded inferior, so I didn't spend much time on those, though the HF1 does sound better than an unmodded SR225i. The HF2 definitely had the most bass, but almost a bit too much. It also lost much of the midrange sparkle I was used to, and it weighed too much. The HP2 didn't sound like a modern Grado at all. I found the sound with flats unacceptable so I tried them with bowls. Better, but they still didn't really wow me considering how much they command on the secondary market. Perhaps that's a good thing because they're supposed to be more neutral. Overall, I couldn't consider any of them to be an outright winner over the SR225i, though that might've changed if there was an RS1 in the mix, or if I spent more time with the HP2.
ESP950 on Stax amp: Pretty good first impression, but unfortunately I couldn't critically review it, as it really needs a quiet environment because I heard too much talking around me. In addition, charliex warned me about the fragile headband, so I simply wore it without any adjustments. I'd love to spend more time with it if I could.
ATH-M50: This kept getting recommended on GameFAQs so I wanted to hear what it was all about. This is a great headphone for the price, although being closed, it does have a midrange veil and isn't as airy as I'd like. Still, I can see why it's a recommended starter headphone for those who aren't as discerning as the people here.
LCD-2: After hearing much buzz about this, I couldn't wait to try it on.
This was, in my humble opinion, the disappointment of the meet. First off, the thing weighs like a brick. I had purchased the SR225i over the SR325is because I thought the latter was too heavy. This thing weighs more than three times as much as the SR225i. Second, and I couldn't believe this, but it had less soundstage than a Grado with bowls. Third, due to my middle frequency dip, the headphone sounded terribly dark and unnatural on Pavel's rig, like there was a piece of paper between my ear and the driver. Later I tried these on someone's Headroom Max amp with the filter switch on "bright" then "brighter". Brighter improved things a little but that still didn't solve the sound congestion and weight issues, which ruined any enjoyment that I might have had. It was amazing to see everyone around me react to this headphone positively, yet I was probably the only person in the room who was outright disappointed. The HD800 at Bay/Bloor Radio sounded better than this. I wouldn't pay $300 for this headphone, let alone $1000, and yes, that means I would even take my SR225i over this. Call me crazy, but this thing had no redeeming qualities.
HE-6: I liked this a lot better than the LCD-2, so the guy who owns this should be happy. It's still a bit too heavy for my tastes, though, so I wouldn't personally want to own one.
K1000 bass heavy: Wow! This was beyond amazing because it dealt with all of my personal hearing issues. 1) It's light, 2) It didn't grip my head, 3) The hearing balance issue was compensated by me moving the left driver out a little more, which confused charliex at first, since anyone who looked at me would've spotted the asymmetry. Oh, and of course, the sound was wonderful bliss. This was my favorite headphone of the meet, and it was so good I went back to it two more times before the meet was over.
Jecklin Float: I should've listened to these for more than a minute, but they were waaaaay too uncomfortable. Of course, I did pose with them. =D
Anyway, thank you very much for allowing me to come to the meet. I had a very good time.
