I'm Sailing Away

Where does this result in the widest portion of the pad being situated?

Back top. So the seam / wide corner doesn’t sit on back of jaw, it sits up top and back above the ear.

Looking at the L cup, thats 10-11 oclock. Looking at the right cup, thats 2-3 oclock.

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My headphone purge continues … and may accelerate.

My ZMF Aeolus and Eikon (both fabulous headphones) are now gone. So is my HEDDphone (I’d revisit a future AMT headphone without question, probably would have kept it if I could have gotten the yokes swapped).

My MySphere 3.2 is listed for sale.

Assuming suitable performance … a new “LCD-5” or “AB-1266 Phi XYZ” (IF it used a new frame/suspension/band design) or “Susvara.NEXT” (if it doesn’t feel and look like it was cobbled together in a musty shed) would result in both my LCD-4 and RAD-0 going by the wayside.

My HE6SE V2 is not long for my world … but it was so relatively inexpensive I’ll probably keep that one longer than I should. It’s not going to depreciate much from where its at today.

HD800S and HD820 … I have them more because I like “owning” them than because I listen to them anymore. That won’t last.


Only have two setups at the moment, one of which is there just because I haven’t decided what to do with the hardware* yet.

My primary rig is currently:

CONDUIT → Chord Blu-Mk2 (M-Scaler/CD Transport) → Chord DAVE

I use the direct headphone output on DAVE for efficient conventional headphones.

Then DAVE feeds:

  • Woo WA234MK II MONO → All Dynamic & Planar Headphones
  • Chord Ultima 5

The Ultima 5 feeds:

  • iFi Pro iESL → STAX SR-009S | SR-007 MK2 (“2.9”)
  • RAAL-requisite SR1a Ribbon Interface → SR1a

The iFi Pro iESL will likely stay in that chain, as it does some interesting things, when properly driven, that true electrostatic amplifiers don’t.

I’m also adding a HeadAmp BHSE, which will also be fed from the Chord DAVE, and a Mjolnir-Audio Carbon CC (once they’re available again, or I find a used copy), that’ll ride off the pass-through outputs on the BHSE.

The use of advanced convolution filters/DSP has had a significant effect on my thoughts regarding flagship electrostatics, and how I can use the SR1a.

It’s been a while, months in fact, but I am slowly starting to get my interest on headphones up again.


*RME ADI-2 Pro FS R BE → RAAL HSA-1b → Pro iESL … with the RME feeding IEMs and moderately-demanding conventional cans, the HSA-1b feeding more demanding stuff, the SR1a and providing speaker-output-juice to the Pro iESL for my electrostatics.

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One of the things I’m particularly enjoying about my headphone rig in its current state is that it means I am ALWAYS using my best source chain (Blu-Mk2 → DAVE), no matter which headphone or amp I am listening with.

Prior to that, while DAVE was always connected to the WA234 MKII and the Étude/Ultima 5, other amps/rigs were sometimes fed from DAVE, but mostly from the Hugo TT2, RME ADI-2 Pro FS R BE or a Linn DSM unit.

This not only greatly simplifies the setup, reduces the number of DACs I need, and most importantly also removes another choice to be made when sitting down to listen.

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The “easy” part of my full-size headphone purge is now complete; “easy” meaning the flavor, specialty, “I just want it” and “for the sheer hell of it” units. None of those made up my mainstream listening rotation, even though I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of them.

This means the HEDDphone, HE6SE V2, MySphere 3.2, ZMF Aeolus and Eikon are all now sold (technically the MySphere is “pending”).

I am left with:

  • Audeze LCD-4
  • Focal Stellia & Utopia
  • RAAL-requisite SR1a
  • Rosson RAD-0
  • Sennheiser HD800S & Sennheiser HD820
  • STAX SR-007Mk2 (2.9) & STAX SR-009S
  • ZMF Vérité LTD (Cocobolo) & Vérité Closed LTD (Stabilized Maple Burl)

The hard question now becomes … what to cull from here?

If it was just down to what is and isn’t getting used, the Stellia, HD800S, HD820, RAD-0 and Vérité Closed LTD would all be on the chopping block. I love ALL of them, for different reasons. And they all sound fantastic. But they’re not getting any head time, and haven’t for months.

The Apple AirPods Max fulfill what little need I have for closed-back headphones now.

But … I really don’t see the ZMFs going anywhere … at least this not this side of Zach coming up with something that apes them on both sound and aesthetics.

But, the question remains … what to cull?

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Oh, and I guess this would lead to a new “Headphone Top 10” (with no real need for separate open/closed categories anymore) …

  1. RAAL-requisite SR1a
  2. STAX SR-009S
  3. ZMF Vérité LTD
  4. Focal Utopia
  5. Audeze LCD-4
  6. STAX SR-007 MK2
  7. ZMF Vérité Closed LTD
  8. Rosson RAD-0
  9. Sennheiser HD800S
  10. Focal Stellia

Positions 1 & 2 could swap based on musical genre.

I am excluding HE90/HEV90 (offers you can’t refuse suck, should have kept those) and HE 1 on the basis they are complete systems, not just headphones.

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Personally, I would axe everything but the RAD-0 and ZMFs. Just me tho.

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I agree with the Prof, axe everything!

Then treat yourself to a nice set of Grado’s and some Beyer’s.

(I just want to point out, before the Wraith of Torq, that I am joking!)

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I was offline from the forum for a bit; it was great to catch up with your travels over coffee this morning, and congrats on getting settled in the new home. I love hearing about your transition back to speakers as I share your love for speaker listening. I can’t wait to follow your dedicated room setup/build as I am confident it will be awesome and educational as well! Cheers :coffee:

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Interesting developments.

Notable deletions: MySphere, AB-1266, HEDDphone, Aeolus, HD650.

Notable additions: STAX, HD800S.

Notable omissions: D8000 Pro, Susvara, T+A Solitaire P.

It would be interesting to hear if what you listen for or your sonic preferences have evolved.

There can only be 10. What a time to be alive.

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The new list is limited to headphones I actually own.

There were some items on the first list I posted that I didn’t still own but held in high regard. But that doesn’t really make much sense (since if I liked them that much, I’d still have them/would buy them over lower-ranked cans that I do still have), hence the change there.

I sold my AB-1266 Phi CC in October 2019.

There are two main reasons I don’t have one, or the Phi TC, anymore:

First, I bought the original AB-1266 in early 2016, then the Phi and Phi CC as upgrades. When the Phi TC came out there was no upgrade option. You bought the thing new and whole, or you didn’t. I wasn’t interested in spending $5,000 again to get something minimally different from what I already had.

This was not helped by the rapid drop in used prices for the Phi CC.

Second, I didn’t think the Phi TC was an across-the-board upgrade over the Phi CC. In fact, as best I felt it was just different rather than outright better. And I think it is less tonally correct than its predecessor, which is, let’s face, it a hugely enjoyable and very exciting, but definitely colored presentation.

At this point, I figured I’d just hold on to the Phi CC for a bit, sell it if I got a reasonable offer (which happened in October 2019), and wait for whatever came after the Phi TC. Given Abyss’ history, I didn’t think that would wind up being a nearly three-year span (and counting).

I’m very interested to see what follows the Phi TC.

That said, I won’t be buying it unless it includes a change to a more practical frame/headband/strap. Even if that means having to have adjustable vents on the thing to deal with the fact the driver does not work right with a firm seal. Maybe it’s an age-related thing, but I’ve become ever less tolerant of comfort and practicality issues.

On “omissions”:

I am an, apparently rare, non-fan of the Susvara.

I have never owned these. I have never had the desire to. I’ve had them on loan, several times, for anywhere from a week to a month at a time. And I’ve run them on headphone and speaker amps of more than ample quality and power to bring out the best they have to offer. So I have a good feel for their performance.

I do not care for the build at all. I find them tacky looking and cheap and tinny feeling. That’s a huge turn-off for me at their price point. Especially when others are routinely doing it better for 1/20th the price.

But the two main reasons I don’t have a set are:

As a very broad-genre listener, I don’t find them to be a good enough all-round performer to warrant their asking price. In the areas they excel, they are certainly worthy and competitive flagships. Depending on your preferred genres, I can totally see them being regarded as the best planar headphone around. If I listened primarily to acoustic jazz, small ensembles, and basic singer/songwriter stuff, I’d have snapped them up and probably wouldn’t need anything else.

But I don’t.

There’s plenty of that in my collection, and it gets its fair share of play-time, but there’s also a lot of everything else … including huge orchestral and operatic productions, stuff featuring big church organs and a huge array of music that lives or dies on its bass-foundation. And there I find Susvara lacking … extension is fine, but the impact, drama and slam doesn’t satisfy vs. other headphones I have.

That’s a big enough factor, with enough of my listening, that I don’t have a place for it in light of what else I have. Not at $6,000. And not even at what I’d actually pay.

And then it is, particularly for HiFiMan, very “late in their life”. Even if I wanted a set, at this point in their life I’d rather wait and see what comes after them. My luck would have me buy a set now and then have a better successor come out a couple of months later.

I don’t dislike them (sonically).

I totally get why other people love them; I’m just not one of them.

D8000 Pro? I could take them or leave them. There’s some appeal. But they don’t do anything notable vs. what I already have. They certainly wouldn’t replace anything. And I want less gear, not more.

T+A Solitare P? I’ve only heard them for about an hour. Liked them quite a bit, except the top-end was uncouth. If you combined the low-end of these, with everything else from the Susvara, but kept everything about the T+A’s build and aesthetics (even the price), I’d buy a set no question.


What’s changed/evolved in my preferences?

Lots of recent time on a properly sorted speaker rig.

I have that ideally placed, in an acoustically excellent room. The very small issues there I’ve treated physically. What few/minor issues remain after that have been corrected via DSP. That includes correction for each individual drive unit in terms of frequency, phase and time-alignment (a native feature of Linn’s “Exakt” system).

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That makes sense. As they say, people vote with their feet/wallet.

I appreciate your detailed reply and observations/progression, which are especially helpful for people like me who haven’t gotten their ears on everything.

I’m interested in trying STAX and then what HiFiMan and Abyss might release next. However, that would likely require an investment in additional amplification for me as I’m currently committed to single ended triode tube amps.

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This is exactly how I feel about Stax / nectar and Raal. I really am fascinated by them (and use electro stats in my 2 channel) but I’m so lazy I’m just afraid it would never get picked up instead of my ready to go easy plug and play setup.

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I think it’s interesting that after a few years of reading your posts, I’m seeing more interest in the STAX. Not having heard the RAAL, I’m still a partisan of the electrostatic sound. If the SR-007 ever makes your call list, PM me; a good used pair is on my radar.

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One aspect of it is only wanting (and needing) a single rig.

That makes spending on a couple of top-tier amplifiers (tube and solid-state, in a single rig), each of which costs more than the SR-007MK2 and SR-009S combined, more reasonable. I don’t have to do that multiple times.

Others are …

The ultra-low distortion replay is much more obvious. This may be down to having had time away from headphones in general making this more audible.

Prompting by a friend that I could use a Pro iFI ESL after all, for special situations (say to plug them into my speaker rig if I want), and it was just that it needed way more power to sound good and drive things properly.

And then the use of convolution filters and advanced DSP helped with impact and slam, which was really the only remaining issue.

Imagine I’ll keep the 007Mk2 and the 009S as complimentary pairs. The native bottom end of the 007Mk2 still has advantages over the 009S for some genres … even with DSP involved. But I will keep it in mind.

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Had an SR009 with BHSE, and it sounded great - but was always lacking in the low end. Eventually I tried this rig with a small subwoofer, which really filled in the blanks - but it also violated the whole purpose of using headphones. l ended up selling the SR009s and BHSE and moved to the SR1a + HSb1, and never looked back. Very happy with the current system.

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Even with EQ, I couldn’t quite the SR-009S to give me the bottom end I wanted … could get the levels … but not the “impact” or “slam”.

Using more involved DSP (starting with convolution filters), I’ve not only got the level where I want it but don’t feel I’m missing any impact or slam.

Same is true with the SR1a, though …

Still need to try Mitch’s convolution filters for the SR1a. Especially where you can buy his today. And I’m not sure if I just want to make my tool available, publish my filters (free or for sale), or keep them to myself …

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I’m in this club ha!

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You send me some software filter that increases slam and I will send you the money.

D8000 already has good slam. But I will pay for more.

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All in good time.

I have some talks lined up with interested (and interesting) parties pending patent filing (this is a different thing entirely to what I was talking about last year, which is still going to happen - and that will happen first) - and depending on how those go it’ll either be something licensed out (my preference) or I’ll spin something up to get it to market myself.

And to forestall the naysayers, there’s no “magic” here … it’s all just manipulation of the “amplitude over time” behavior of any transducer/replay system. There is a lot of “cleverness” in what those manipulations are, and how they are affected and, most importantly how they are generated.

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