Indeed. I wouldn’t pay more than $300-$500 for any HiFiMan product, and fully expect them to fail.
They also have rather distinct ‘ergonomics’ that may cause instant dislike, or just not be your cup of tea.
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Oh yeah. That too. I think I failed to mention that due to post-tramatic memory loss.
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I mentioned you in the Stream with ZMF today @ProfFalkin 
between you and @Torq both of you got me into ZMF headphones and I really appreciate it!
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Thanks!
I got home in time to watch the first part of the stream. I was commenting with my YouTube account (Elnrik).
My Aunt, who is 80+ and lives with my mother, took a nose dive into the toilet reservoir and shattered it with her face at 2am this morning.
Unfortunately, while sitting on my couch I fell asleep some time before the stream ended. I’ll have to go back and rewatch it.
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Ahhh your Elnrik!!! Awesome I mentioned your taffy comments as well😀
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Yep, that’s me.
I’m catching up on the video from where I fell asleep. Looks like it was just past the halfway point.
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Sorry about your Aunt. Age and balance are a tough mix.
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Physically? She’ll be ok.
In any other regard we need to define “ok” first. That
damn frootloop needs to cool her jets.
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Hahahahaha 
glad she is physically ok!
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I had the pleasure of listening to the Ether 2 in one of the small, side rooms at CanJam NY a couple of years ago and very much enjoyed them. They struck me as having good resolution, an open, reasonably wide and fairly deep soundstage, decent imaging, and a nice warm signature - all qualities that I thought would make the Ether 2 pretty popular, so I’ve likewise been surprised by the relative lack of excitement about them. I think @ProfFalkin is entirely right about the Vérité stealing their thunder. By contrast, the Ether 2 are less exciting; they’re not as fast as the Vérité, I don’t think, and they don’t have the microdetail or the macrodynamics. If you like jazz, put it this way: Bill Evans sounded lovely through the Ether 2; Charles Mingus was a great big, fun blast of engrossing pleasure on the Vérité.
I should think that while the Vérité might be described as dark - please correct me, folks, if I’m wrong here - the Ether 2 are warm while the Arya are brighter. In other words, I think it’s crucial that you figure out what kind of sound signature you’re after.
If you like bright headphones, try the Arya, HD 800S, the ATH-ADX5000 (although I’ve not heard these, I’m inferring from others’ reviews), or the Focal Clear. The Auteur might also be worth listening to, as well, although I’m not sure it can be called bright exactly (more neutral).
The Ether 2 was $2,000 when it came out; now that it sells for $2,200, it might makes more sense to stretch to the Vérité. Or, if you’re committed to a darker, planar sound, you might consider the Rosson Audio RAD-0, which has received a lot of positive reviews (full disclosure: I’ve not heard them, but am intrigued).
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You can frequently find these discounted open box or gently used. They are nice headphones. IMO I think the E2s are a touch overpriced at $2200. I’ve had mine around 18 months.
I like DCA stuff - they are a good company. (own three pairs of his stuff)
Headamp has a set of Open Boxs. Link below.
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Trying to decide if these are the right move for me. It’s either the Ether 2 or the Rad-0. Going by Head-Fi, everyone loves their Ether 2s, but going by Youtube reviewers and other forums, it seems like a much more mixed bag with people going so far as to call them boring and unremarkable. Is it that they don’t live up to their list price, or is there a characteristic of their sound that makes them seemingly controversial?
I’m coming from a Campfire Audio Cascade so I imagine either of these would be a huge step up for me sound quality and attribute wise, just trying to see if the extra money on the Rad-0 is worth it over the Ether 2. Given that it’s so light and aesthetically pleasing, I’d love to love them but would be curious to hear some thoughts.
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I have a pair of E2s. Boring and unremarkable? Yes and No. E2s are accurate and comfortable, but they don’t seem to give me the wows like my ZMF cans, or even my Focal Clears. Sound quality wise, I actually prefer my power hungry HE6se. But I have to run those with another amp. The E2s are good cans, but they have a low WOW factor.
The E2s are one of my higher priced headphones, and about mid-pak in order of my go-to. They are comfortable and light. If the price is a concern be patient. They go used and open box frequently for under $1500.
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@Torq I’m kinda thinkin about letting your LCD 2’s go and getting an E2
People who have heard PreFazor LCD 2 [Good ones] how do you feel they compare to E2? I’ve heard E2 enough times that I kinda feel it’s a step up. Honestly “boring” is a buzz word I like reading as I tend to dig that signature…
Hi good morning
This thread is dead for more than a year ?? How can it be?
I bought my Dan Clark Audio Ether 2 headphones a few months ago and am delighted with them. I compared them to various other Sennheiser 800S and 820 headphones, Grade PS 1000e, Audio Technica ATH-ADX5000 … and it seemed quite superior to all of them. In the end the decision was made between the Sennheiser HD 820, Audio Technica ATH-ADX5000 and the DCA Ether 2. The balance fell towards the latter.
I find it very strange that such extremely good headphones (for my taste), have almost no presence in these forums.
What happen?
(English is not my mother tongue. This is a Google Translate translation. Sorry for mistakes.)
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It’s a good question. I heard the Ether 2 at CanJam in NYC a year and a half ago. From a brief audition in an environment that was less than ideal, I liked the Ether 2 very much - enough that I decided to keep an eye on people’s impressions of it and to consider it as a future upgrade. The relative quiet about it has been a slight cause for concern.
My guess is that two things may be happening: first, there were early reports of unit-to-unit variations (see above, with @Torq’s experience), which put people off; second, in its price point of $2K (later increased to $2,200), there’s a lot of competition now. Beyond well-established models like the HD 800 S and the ATH-ADX5000, there’s the Arya, LCD-3, HEDDphone, Vérité and, for not much more (relatively speaking, if you’re already willing to spent $2,200), the Empyrean and the Rosson Audio RAD-0.
My sense is also that people who bought the Ether 2 and liked it have been very happy - I’d say don’t let the lack of excitement bother you. Just enjoy them!
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Yes, no doubt … even if “the rest of the world” does not show any emotion for the Dan Clark Audio Ether 2 … it will not detract one iota of the enjoyment that I am experiencing with them. They come very close to the ideal headphone for me. I have them equalized with an Oratory 1990 curve that puts them at an incredible level … a pleasure for the ears. They do not know what they are missing!! I advise to have a careful listening of the DCA Ether 2 to all who are about to acquire good headphones. You won’t regret it … (English is not my native language. This is a Google Translate translation. Please excuse my mistakes)
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The Ether 2 is a weird one reputation wise for sure. People REALLY went hard on it negatively across various headphone communities and it had originally dissuaded me from getting it, which led me to my first TOTL purchase in the Rad-0. Eventually, I found a great deal on an E2 and swiped one up because my curiosity kept nagging at me to revisit that decision. Honestly, I’m glad I did because while I love my Rad-0, I also really like the Ether 2 for different reasons. Where the Rad-0 is boisterous and energetic, the Ether 2 is calmer and smoother. People say the E2 is boring but I disagree, it’s just not the most electrifying tuning. Does that make it bad? No, to me it’s just a different flavor, and one that I appreciate against the Rad-0 when I don’t feel like rocking out. Knowing more from owning one now, to a certain degree I blame certain Youtube reviewers for being very dismissive and harsh about it as for why the E2 have maintained it’s controversial reputation.
Along the way I’ve also owned a Verite Closed and have a newly acquired D8000 Pro, which are both highly regarded TOTLs. I wouldn’t say the E2 is inferior to either of them either. Will the E2 survive my having the D8000 Pro long term? Time will tell, but it will be a hard decision either way.
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