RMAF show impressions...

[Grainger49]

You are hooked up to Paramounts, but I don't know what the square looking headsets are.

[xcortes]

Those are th K1Ks

[Jim R.]

Yes, I wish I could have listened to the K1Ks in a more suitable environment -- too much ambient noise to really enjoy them, but really interesting nonetheless.  I would have also liked to  have tried them with the s.e.x. amp

Just know there was nothing there that was less than wonderful, just different flavors or amps and cans.  I did think the akg k701 (or were they 702s) on the s.e.x. was a bit thin and bass starved, but I've not liked those in any setup I've heard them in... and some people love them, and that's the way it goes in this hobby.

-- Jim

[Doc B.]

As the guys say, it's actually a shot of you with the K1000s and Lee listening to some HD600s with balanced cables. You both look like you're listening pretty deep. The HD800s were on loan from ironbut - thanks bro! And for a brief moment Andy Regan of Cardas had them running on the Cardas cable with balanced connectors, which really kicked ass on the Smack. It became clear at the show that if your are trying to demo amps you really have to bring first tier cans only, and so I am working up new list of headphones we need to get, with the 800s at the top of the list. I may be thinning out the herd of cans that I have been assembling lately. Watch for some of them in the special deals forum.

[Grainger49]

It might serve the Bottlehead crew well to sticky a post with the most pleasing headsets for each of the headset amplifiers.

This, of course, would not mean that others won't find some other sets most pleasing, personal taste and all.  But it can serve as a measure of what set you might want to try when considering a purchase.

[denti alligator]

For me the standout, and a real game changer for me personally, was the high-current Crack

What's the "high-current" Crack, and how is it different from the stock one?

[Doc B.]

We increased the current in our prototype Crack to lower the output impedance. We're going to run it a while and see how it holds up before we decide whether or not to offer it as an update. 

[ironbut]

Hey Doc,
You're welcome to use the 800's anytime! (like in Feb.)
I really loved the way they sounded with both the high current Crack and the Smack!

[Jim R.]

Steve,

What was the cable on the  800s?   Was that a stock cable?

-- Jim

[ironbut]

Yup, just the stock one.