West Sydney "mini" meet
Jul 5, 2009 at 10:59 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 62

nickyboyo

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Here we go folks, please post your impressions here, and any photo's you all may have.

A quick post from me, just to get the ball rolling. To be honest, an absolutely outstanding meet. Purely on the equipment level, there was nothing that i was underwhelmed with after listening to. The electrostatic rigs were amazing, the Woo ges and H60, yeah baby, from classical to Metallica to Tommy Emmanuel- everything was just right. The Naim set ups, too good, and vinyl=
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John's B22 and HD800 was also right on the money, very nice rig John, the 800's are a big step up from the 650's to my ears bud. Jason's Woo rig, you're a lucky man Jas, the rig is lovely, i was never a fan of Sennheisers before, but your amp ties in very nice with your 600's, so much so my view of Sennies has been well and truly changed. this also goes for Mark's GD amp, it also drove the 600's ,and all the 'phones i tried with it very nicely. Bargain of the day Mark, i really like the amp. Alex k's preamp was also an eye opener, i will be in contact with him in the not to distant future to discuss build, great drive and control all round. I also really enjoyed Jose's portable amp and dac set up, a very nice little amp that drove all the 'phones i threw at it with ease- once again making the Senn's sound lively and detailed, which was something i thought the 600's and the 650's were missing. Owen, hat's off to you mate, your amps are top drawer. I was amazed by the starving student, amazing for the size and the cost, plus the panache of tubes. To both Camerons, thank you for bringing the 'phones and the amps, even though i was a little preoccupied ensuring folks were fed and watered, i did listen to your gear. Your recabled 600's and 650's were very nice, and Good times Cameron, they sounded great with your amps- not impressed with the Hornet to be honest, but then i never have been- SR71,P3+ and D10 as dac combo were awesome with all of the headphones at the meet which could be used (everything bar Johns balanced 800's). Tom, enjoy the T4 mate, it is a superb little gadget, and the size and form factor make it a winner.
Portable fans- as soon as i have some chips that make the P3+ sound similar to the SR71 i will be posting it, along with the T3 prototype around for the portable fans to sample and report your views on.

Gents, it was a great day, i thank you all for the respect you gave to the venue and the equipment, and i thank you all for turning up, providing and enjoying the equipment. The meet would never of happened without your support, so well done to all. I must give an extra special mention to Ian, your tables, time in setting up, equipment and advice were invaluable mate.

There was so much to listen to, and it was so impressive, i really wish i had more time to have been able to spend more time with all the set ups. My head hurts now i am trying to process all the information i had to take in today, and i am still a bit spun out as to how well the day went, so if i missed any names, please forgive me. Great day folks
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(photos to follow soon)
 
Jul 5, 2009 at 12:37 PM Post #3 of 62
First off big thanks to Nick for hosting! Great guy and a great comfy house for the meet!
Being the first meet'y sorta thing I've been too I thought it was awesome and now can't wait for the UNSW one :>

The gear here really supprised me! I was totally not prepared for the calibre or breadth of systems that people were bringing!

I'm really horrible with names so if I have named your equipment with an imaginary character, do yell at me ><

Ian's stat extraviganza was just fantastic. Being the first time I have really had a decent listen to a stat phone I (perhaps naturally?) gravitated towards the Stax O2 Mrk1's. They seemed to be the closest to the dynamic phones that I'm used too while still being different enough for me to be gobsmacked ^^
Listening to some nice vinyl through them was just icing on the cake.
The WooGES was a glowing treat for the eyes! The Woo stuff is really nicely designed.
Unfortunately I don't think I spent enough time with the HE60s to be realy wowed by them. However, I can see (well... hear) hints of why people may like them and look forward to a day when I can give a more attentive listening session.

John's Beta22 only makes me peev'd that I haven't finished mine yet!
Truely awesome job dude! He gave me some great tips on finishing and I plan to use them
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My first thought when I placed the HD800 on my head (before even music was playing) was just how different they feel. To me they are just a massive (!) phone, esspecially compared to my DT880pro's.
I tend to find that my ears slightly touch the inside of alot of circumaurals in a way that causes some discomfort in extended sessions. The HD800's internal volume is so big I could swear the inners were at least another 10 mils or more from my ear. Crazy.
As for music well... being so accustomed to the DT880's I'm used to a reasonably uncoloured (opinion disclaimer!) sound so I immeadiatly felt... familiar? But listening to NIN's "The Frail" remix of Things Falling Apart made me realize it is the highs where this phone is just intense. Wow.
It was nice to listen to a song on them that I thought I knew
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Jason's Woo6 SE was just... holy crap. Just like Nick above I was really impressed with the HD600 out of them. I can see why he is so content.
A wonderfully designed amp, it had a truely fun sound that I really hope I can listen to again. When/if my HF-2's arrive I want to give them a try with it if I get the chance. This is partly because I was greatly confused by the GS1000 out of it. I know this is a love or hate it phone but I swear that I invented a new category of "grey". The first song I "a/b'd" it with the HD600 on there was no competition and the senny ate it alive. Mainly because the highs were... painfull? I'm not sure how to word that, sorry.
However the second song "Hunter and Prey" (I think. Jason?) I really liked, esspecially the solo'ish guitar part towards the end. This was a seriously What phone for me haha.

Owen's Starving Student was just awesome! It was soooooooo small compared to how I have seen many others building them! Sound was not small thou. It also has a very fun sound to it. I loved it with his MS-1's (am I correct here? As he knows I keep calling them a Grado... doh!) and am seriously thinking of grabbing a pair of these. Together they had a (for me) great thump to them that was really cool to listen to.
He also had his fuse eating CKKIII there which was VERY nice! I think the fuse-munch adds character hehe o(^-^)o

I didn't get much time with any of them but I saw that the JayCar amp is REALLY popular. Everyone remarked that it was a straight forward build with heaps of possiblilty. Sounds like a great project
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I spent so much more time talking to the great people than listening that, beyond this point, I'm a little flakey. If anything else comes to mind I'll post it.

So, I won the raffle for the iBasso T4 IEM amp. I've been listening to the little thing for the last 2 hours and I am suitably impressed!
I'm using the Westone UM3x which, honestly, are decently on-the-move-listenable from an ipod hp out as they are quite easy to drive. However once in a quite'ish location the UM3x reveal how average and... hissy (?) the ipod hp out really is. The T4, using a little LOD I threw together for my Mini3, has a really nice sound to it that I can't fault for an IEM amp. As Nick and John now know I listen at extremely quiet levels whenever possible (that's just me) and while the T4 has a channel imbalance at the start of its travel, it comes together just as it reaches a comfortable listenable level for me. More than I can say for my gain 5x mini3 ggeeerrrr. I must lower that asap.
I'll try it with the DT880pro's latter to see how well it drives a (much) higher impedence phone.
All in all this will definitly be my new throw-in-the-pocket rig. Great little amp
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Sorry about the waffel, technical terminology (sarcasm supreme), and my spelling/gramma!

I'll post the pics in a tic.
 
Jul 5, 2009 at 12:45 PM Post #4 of 62
Hey Nick, Mate you were the ultimate host, it was an absolute pleasure to come to this meet. I think everyone had a hoot of a good time. So thank you so much for your hard work and time.
Also thanks to Ian for hauling that massive amount of equipment, huge effort.
 
Jul 5, 2009 at 1:07 PM Post #6 of 62
Sorry for the tripple posts but I completely forgot...

THANK YOU iBASSO!!!

I'm sure Nick can elabourate but they really looked after us and sound like great guys
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Jul 5, 2009 at 1:22 PM Post #7 of 62
I had an amazing time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fordgtlover /img/forum/go_quote.gif
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Congratulations on a successful meet.



Possibly the biggest understatement on the forum. Might have been a 'mini meet' by name, but the gear, hospitality, company, knowledge and love of music was awesome to be a part of.

Nick, I can't thank you enough for your hospitality. I felt guilty more than once that I didn't do more to help out - I really felt your time with the gear must have been limited due to your generosity and hospitality. A perfect host in every way, your home was a perfect, comfortable and welcoming venue.

Oh that Beta22... what a marvel. To be frank, I was greedy. I spent more than was my share in time with it, and hope that my affair didn't cut anyone elses time short. Stunning workmanship John. I have wanted to hear a beta since I first heard of it. I presumed that I would be a little underwhelmed by the time I got to hear the beast, but it was pretty much on par with my lofty expectations. The HD800 was a different story; like I mentioned a few times during the meet; not sure what I expected, but it was different... A significant departure from the 'signature' Sennheiser sound. Something I would have to live with at home for a few weeks to form a cohesive opinion of, but a headphone that has challenged my understanding of the music I know well - that in itself is a phenomenon.

Jason and the Woo. Wondered what the hell you had done with your money for a good ten minutes or so. I mean it sounded kinda alright...




Swapped the HD650 to High gain...




Yes. I am a duck head. The Woo was smoooooooooooooth. Niiiice and smmmmoooooooth. Rich smooth luxurious audio. Like the Beta, would love a few weeks with it at home. I really can't imagine that single ended sound would bet much better. To think that burn in might make it even better...

Ian, my thanks for your assistance on 'the Grotto'. It's always a pleasure to meet someone who has given advice, even if it took a while for my poor mind to catch up. I'm sure I will be calling on your expertise in the near future. I enjoyed the few brief conversations we had; I didn't agree with all that you proposed, but honestly enjoy being challenged on subjects that I 'take for granted'.

I have a great deal of thinking to do. I have spent a long time with my current setup as planned, but now feel it is time for an upgrade. This meet has suggested to me that I would benefit from an external amp. I'm going to try to hold off until the UNSW (Juz meet) to make my decision, but now understand that my decision will not be easy at all. I've really learnt a great deal by 'taking it slow', but there is a lot of very impressive sounding gear out there.

I think the best part of a meet is getting home and spending time with what you have. I actually find that quite hard to do, because for me, spending a short amount of time listening to and comparing gear I have wanted to hear for a long time; whilst trying to remain impartial, takes its toll. But to be honest my simple HD650 DAC1USB rig still sounds damn impressive to my ears... so to think there is a little room left for even more is a treat!

Mazz.

I only know Mazz because of prior meets. I missed his presence at this one. Hope all's well man, I always enjoyed your thoughts and opinions on previous meets and hope to see you at the next.

Nick, again, my sincere thanks to you and your family. You are welcome at my home any time.
 
Jul 5, 2009 at 1:27 PM Post #8 of 62
Quote:

Originally Posted by poo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
This meet has suggested to me that I would benefit from an external amp.


beta22?
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Jul 5, 2009 at 1:42 PM Post #10 of 62
Haha cool~

Did you get a chance to compare the 650 to the 600 outta the Woo6?
I was completely oblivious to the 650's floating around :'(
 
Jul 5, 2009 at 7:49 PM Post #14 of 62
Looks like a nice meeting!
Great gear and all those smiling attenders.
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Jul 5, 2009 at 7:51 PM Post #15 of 62
Looks like a nice meeting!
Great gear and all those smiling attenders.
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