A $1000 budget for headphones. What would you do?

Bugler said:

+1 on this. I have Sennheiser HD650 with a Schiit Valhalla tube headphone amp. I listen mostly to jazz, classical, and some classic rock. Mostly from analog sources. I couldn't be happier.

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When I listened to the HD-600, I did not like what I heard at all. If I was going to spend less, it would have been on a pair of Hifiman's. But when I heard that sweet natural sound the LCD-2s are capable of, there was no going back..

Anyway, I just wanted to say I am still very happy with the headphones. I think they are breaking in because I notice they keep opening up and sounding better and better. One thing I had to change was to stop using my iPhone as a source, it sounded a bit lifeless through the LCD-2s. So, now I am either using my Denon CD player or, if I am listening to them in my high end setup I am using my Denon turntable or the DACs inside the Yamaha. I tell ya though, when you feed these cans with a quality source and good amplification, wow! They are really something else.


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canuckaudiog said:

When I listened to the HD-600, I did not like what I heard at all. If I was going to spend less, it would have been on a pair of Hifiman's. But when I heard that sweet natural sound the LCD-2s are capable of, there was no going back..

Anyway, I just wanted to say I am still very happy with the headphones. I think they are breaking in because I notice they keep opening up and sounding better and better. One thing I had to change was to stop using my iPhone as a source, it sounded a bit lifeless through the LCD-2s. So, now I am either using my Denon CD player or, if I am listening to them in my high end setup I am using my Denon turntable or the DACs inside the Yamaha. I tell ya though, when you feed these cans with a quality source and good amplification, wow! They are really something else.


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Not sure what you're powering them with, but the LCD-2's may very-well end up being my next headphone upgrade. Right now I'm running Grado RSIIi's, which I do like a lot (Didn't realize they have an RSIIe version now, along with the other ****e models), but I do hope to take it even further in the "lifelike/3D" direction, not to mention something even sweeter and vibier. Tough to say though. The RSII's sound awesome with my vinyl rig, especially tube-cut LP's. I don't know, I just want to find the perfect headphone match for my Fisher 800C. Something thata¾uauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauuuu u auauauauauauauaualllworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboyallworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboyAllworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboyAllworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboy...

Sorry....Drifted off for a minute there.... Long week.

Gang-Twanger said:

Not sure what you're powering them with, but the LCD-2's may very-well end up being my next headphone upgrade. Right now I'm running Grado RSIIi's, which I do like a lot (Didn't realize they have an RSIIe version now, along with the other ****e models), but I do hope to take it even further in the "lifelike/3D" direction, not to mention something even sweeter and vibier. Tough to say though. The RSII's sound awesome with my vinyl rig, especially tube-cut LP's. I don't know, I just want to find the perfect headphone match for my Fisher 800C. Something thata¾uauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauuuu u auauauauauauauaualllworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboyallworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboyAllworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboyAllworkandnoplaymakesJackadullboy...

Sorry....Drifted off for a minute there.... Long week.

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Right now a Sansui AU-555a primarily, or once in a while the dedicated headphone amp in my Yamaha RX-V1. I'm in the process of restoring a Sansui 500a tube receiver and I'm curious to see how that will sound with the LCD-2s. It'll be a couple of months, but I'll be sure to report on it when it's running.

About the only knock I have on the LCD-2s is their somewhat dark voicing. However, they are super smooth sounding and the dark character is minor in comparison to what I really like about these 'phones. I wouldn't call them accurate, more on the colourful side, and that's what I like about them because they make music sound pleasing. I'm not sure if the LCD-2s are up your alley, but as I recall about the Wharfedale W60s and W70s they had a way of making music just plain enjoyable. The LCD-2s will be of a similar ilk. Actually, they might even edge out your W90s - I have found myself preferring music through my LCD-2s as opposed to through my IMFs for some recordings! I was a little surprised to find that. They are really good headphones.


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THESE auditioned well...sorry mates, as you were,...carry on !

Can anyone weigh in on:

King Sound KS-H3 electrostatic at $875 list

King Sound KS-H2 electrostatic at $550 list

Fostex TH500RP planar at $700 list

Has anyone heard these models & your sound impressions ?

Your thoughts ?

Four more models gaining interest made by Mr Speakers creating a buzz in reviews. They use a Fostex T50RP Planar driver, but highly modded in design. These are:

Alpha Prime planar at $1000

Alpha Dog planar at $600

Mad Dog Pro planar at $450

Mad Dog planar at $300

Has anyone heard these & your sound impressions ? Seems they overcame deficiencies in that particular Fostex design. Anyone weigh in ? Your thoughts ?

luvmusik said:

Four more models gaining interest made by Mr Speakers creating a buzz in reviews. They use a Fostex T50RP Planar driver, but highly modded in design. These are:

Alpha Prime planar at $1000

Alpha Dog planar at $600

Mad Dog Pro planar at $450

Mad Dog planar at $300

Has anyone heard these & your sound impressions ? Seems they overcame deficiencies in that particular Fostex design. Anyone weigh in ? Your thoughts ?

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+1

I bought the Alpha Dogs last year, and were my favorites until the new pesky Hifiman HE-400i came out, which gets the majority of my time lately.

Although, I am on the waiting list for the upgrade to the Alpha Prime.

Earlier in thread, believe the Oppo PM-1 planar were mentioned - $1100.

There is also another Oppo PM-2 planar - $700.

Anyone weigh-in on either model or both & sound impressions, and maybe comparison to other planars and also electrostatics ?

Glancing only at the planar and electrostatic manufacturers, it looks like there are only NINE current manufacturers. Can anyone add additional companies to these currently made ?

Electrostatic -
Stax
Koss
KingSound

Planar -
Audeze
HiFiMan
Oppo
JPS Labs Abyss
Mr. Speakers
Fostex

Koss esp950

Koss ESP950 on sale direct from Koss today only at 40% off. Regular $999, sale at $600 new-first-quality cans which is a real deal. Together with their lifetime warranty, this is a fantastic price on hi-end electrostatic headphones. Have seen them on sale before at $750. Just pointing out if anyone interested, as thread earlier talks of deep-discounts on this model, so mentioning here; not buying or selling for Dollars and Sense - just trying to help out if someone was ready to buy these - deal is for today - cyber Monday only. If so, let us know how you like them !

The esp 950 has some issues. One koss itself is not doing well, no lifetime warranty if they go away. Two the lady who handles the returns is notoriously rude to customers. Three they do not send you back a new esp950 but a refurbished one, sometimes worse, at your expense. Four the koss amp is not all that great and you have to modify the cable to use stax amps.

The bright side is the only lambda's that can compete is the 404le and the airbow's which can be more expensive and the koss is a bit more comfy.

As far as the other headphones you mentioned the Audeze's, oppo's and mad dogs are on the dark side with emphasis on beautiful mids, the hifiman's are on the bright side along with the stax with an emphasis on beautiful treble. The fostex planar I do not know about but they use the same t50rp driver as mad dogs so I would imagine dark. The th-600/900, d2k-7k are v-shaped with recessed mids and treble and bass emphasis. You did not mention the hd800 but it is bright but very, very amp dependent, the hd700 I would avoid, but a hd600 or 650 with a $1k amp can be some of the best out there. The 600 is bright, the 650 is dark. IMO of course.

Great info. Curious about non-dark electrostatic and planar models that tend to be neutral to bright, my preference - which achieve the deepest, cleanest bass respone ? Guessing maybe a Stax model, or KingSound for stats and maybe HiFiMan for planar ?
I have heard some Koss have repair issues, not sure which models though.
Would love any input on KingSound. And, any rundown on the brief list of Stax models and their attributes - they are sensational, although maybe hard to find demo. I think ordering, testing & exchanging may be an option for Stax. I would like to learn what sonically distinguishes the models in the Stax line at this price max level per thread. Any thoughts ?

What would I do? I bought Oppo PM-1's.

capt.chaos said:

What would I do? I bought Oppo PM-1's.

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I wish I had the opportunity to audition those. Unfortunately, my local dealer didn't have them - but, from what I've read the Audeze LCD-2 is similar in a lot of ways, but of course have their own pros and cons.

Since i already have my esp-950 and a few electrostatic amps I'd probably be on the hunt for a good pair of Stax Sigma or Lambda Nova Signature.

luvmusik said:

Great info. Curious about non-dark electrostatic and planar models that tend to be neutral to bright, my preference - which achieve the deepest, cleanest bass respone ? Guessing maybe a Stax model, or KingSound for stats and maybe HiFiMan for planar ?
I have heard some Koss have repair issues, not sure which models though.
Would love any input on KingSound. And, any rundown on the brief list of Stax models and their attributes - they are sensational, although maybe hard to find demo. I think ordering, testing & exchanging may be an option for Stax. I would like to learn what sonically distinguishes the models in the Stax line at this price max level per thread. Any thoughts ?

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I really need to research the various 'stat models before I even THINK about buying any. You know me, I like the slightly-warm stuff, so it would likely be something along those lines. Thing is, right now I'm really happy with the Fisher 800C/Grado RSII combo. I use the earpads from my old SR80's, which fit my ears perfectly and dial up a nice, fat, punchy upper-bass. Even if I upgrade, I'm still hangin' on to these things. They don't have that 'stat-like imaging, but they have great detail and have a lively, engaging sound with a touch of warmth that really gets it's hooks into you. Good PRAT. It took being away from them for a while for me to realize how much I liked them.

By the way, the bass-player from Jamiroquai kicks ass... (I'm listening to "Traveling Without Moving", and I never really focused just on the bass before... That dude jams).

luvmusik said:

Great info. Curious about non-dark electrostatic and planar models that tend to be neutral to bright, my preference - which achieve the deepest, cleanest bass respone ? Guessing maybe a Stax model, or KingSound for stats and maybe HiFiMan for planar ?
I have heard some Koss have repair issues, not sure which models though.
Would love any input on KingSound. And, any rundown on the brief list of Stax models and their attributes - they are sensational, although maybe hard to find demo. I think ordering, testing & exchanging may be an option for Stax. I would like to learn what sonically distinguishes the models in the Stax line at this price max level per thread. Any thoughts ?

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The hifiman is to me the best bang for the buck s.q. wise but put together like a highschool project. Carrying case, headband, earpads, and especially cable are lackluster. Audeze takes this up a notch but still very heavy and a decently different sound signature. Stax I like the airbow sr-sc11 and 404le over the 407 and 507. One could also argue the hd-600 and 650 being a better bang for the buck with the right amp. The d2k-7k, th-600/900 are kind of niche and decently off the neutral but closed and fun sounding.

Cool info. Feel the same about HiFiMan; only wish they upped their construction, maybe will happen with later production.

The Stax line 207,307,407, 507 is interesting. That 404le must be really nice. How long ago did Stax stop making the model ?

Just learning about airbow's line. Can you fill me in a little ? I see it widely discussed on Head-Fi. Is it a seperate company that mods Stax, and are the drivers from Stax ? Is there a website translated into English ? Where can they be bought from in Japan, & are there any USA distributors or demo locations ? How many years is airbow around ? What models do they make or mod ?

Have Stax SR-30 Professional (SR-34 box package), Sennheiser HD-650 and AKG K-701 all which I greatly like for so many different attributes. Thinking of a future jump into a pair from either HiFiMan, Stax, Koss or KingSound, as electrostatics or planars under $1K. Like full range, deep clean bass and sparkling exquisite highs with a detailed mid, to describe my liking; even my lesser cans follow this characteristic sound. Not looking for any masked or veiled presentation. Know pairing proper dedicated headphone amp is a must match. Right now not getting full sonic potential as have been thinking of which single dedicated amp under $500 will suit both the 2 models currently- AKG & Sennies. (Stax have their own SRD-4 box). Be great to find one amp that works really well for both - I prefer solid state. Thinking the future headphone buy would be a step up & want to explore electrostatic or planar.

Noticed Oppo now has 2 headphones models marketted.

It's tuff to demo some mfrs's - really far drive or none around.

Ever had chance to hear KingSound electrostatics ?

Really need to hear the cans & it makes comparisons tuff driving far to different dealers. I think some retailers that sell many manufacturers online will allow exchanges, but don't know time-frame for exchange or if some money is lost just by swapping to another model (or if full amount is creditted), despite price differences of models.

Found the Airbow site online, google translates it well from Japanese language, although a little hard to understand as often the case.

Two current models -brown 11 and black 21. Seems model 1 may be discontinued, and may have been improved upon with two current models, maybe ?

Which Stax model #'s are these modded headphones ? I see PriceJapan offers a reasonable price.

Still wonder about same questions from post 118 here, other than finding the site.

Will try to read up on Airbow on Head-Fi forums. Any advice where to look to read more Airbow info, or any other site threads that discuss Airbow ?

They look nice, I really like the general Stax sound, does the Airbow mods make a hugh improvement in some ways ?

Spritzer the stax guru did not think that the sr-sc1 deserved the high price tag for cyro treating. Later he tried it and said it was cryo'd but also had a stax modified driver in it. The sr-sc1 and 404le are his fav. lambda's and the 404 one of his least fav. as far as I know. Never tried the 404 or sr-sc1, but did try the 404le. There is not much difference between the 407 and 507. If you like the color black or find a deal then go for it I guess. The airbow sr-sc-11 sounds less bright and harsh than the 407 and 507. I also like the 404le for the same reason. PriceJapan is where I bought mine. The airbow's are modified stax 404, 407,and 507 not their own headphone from scratch.