Sash Deaux V2 Impressions

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by ChaChaRealSmooth, Oct 29, 2019.

  1. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    **Thanks to @Roderick for bringing these to my attention and sending his personal pair in. This is no small feat considering geographic location.

    Kind of like the Verum 1, these are Ukrainian-made planar magnetic headphones that cost $350 (unsure what the price would be if you ordered it from the US). I haven't managed to find the website, but @Roderick told me that that the majority of members here would need Google Translate to read it. Very small company, and previous experience with the Verum told me these might hold some merit.

    20191021_175714.jpg

    Technical details copy and pasted from the conversation between @Roderick and I:
    - Planar magnetic drivers for better dynamics and frequency response
    - Premium leather for style and durability
    - Large film diaphragms
    - Double-sided magnetic structure
    - Style: Over-ear, open-back, сlosed-Back
    - Transducer type: Planar magnetic
    - Magnetic structure: Proprietary magnet array
    - Magnet type: Neodymium N52
    - Transducer size: 100 mm
    - Maximum power handling: 5W RMS
    - Maximum SPL: >130dB
    - Frequency response: 10Hz – 20kHz
    - Impedance: 14 ohms
    - Sensitivity: 96dB/1mw (at Drum Reference Point)
    - Minimum power requirement: >100mW
    - Recommended power level: >250mW

    As far as build goes, these don't quite have the industrial/mass-produced feel that the Verum 1 has. The gimbal screws can get loose (I'm hesitant to put something like Loctite on it since I don't know how it's constructed). However, the overall build is good; headband feels solid, cup rings are wrapped in leather and feels good. The pad system is painless; you just have to rotate the pads a bit and then the pads come loose. Nowadays I really don't think that there's a single good reason to glue the pads on.

    The real interesting thing here is that these came with some padded cups for the option to use these as closed-backs. I think this is kind of cool, but it's not executed super well here; the headphone kind of sounds like ass when used as a closed back. It's not completely terrible, but I'd say don't bother.

    I find these headphones quite comfortable, but if I had a nitpick it would be that the clamp seems a touch tight. This might be due to my freakishly large head (I have to extend my Auteur's yokes to the last notch, the Verite and Utopia on the penultimate one), so unless your head is as large as mine or larger, I expect fit to actually be comfortably snug on most. Also, it weighs less than any of the other headphones mentioned.

    I'm not sure if the cable that @Roderick included is the stock one, but if it is, it's decent. No microphonics, lightweight, and terminated in a 3.5 mm jack with a 1/4 inch adapter. Looks to be around 5 ft in length.

    In terms of amp pairing*, this headphone confused me greatly. It's common knowledge that most planar magnetics are happy with moar power, so originally I plugged it into Lyr 3. With the Lyr 3, the Verum 1 is happy and sings, but I found the Sash Deaux to be too mid-forward, a bit shouty, and the treble had some splash. Even more weirdly, the low end was too recessed in comparison to the mids and highs to really be heard; tonal balance seemed to be off. Plus, the timbre of the bass was just weird. It was honestly disappointing in comparison to the Verum out of Lyr 3. However, plugging it into the Starlett with the low Z output woke this headphone up and suddenly it really sang. This makes absolutely no sense to me, but I'll move on and refrain from mentioning this. Just keep in mind that when I talk sonics, I'm talking about pairing the Sash Deaux with Starlett (when Asgard 3 comes back I'll test both these headphones with that amp, but meanwhile keep in mind some sonic characteristics talked about below are going to be differences in amps).

    Compared to the Verum 1, the Sash Deaux is a touch restrained and softer in transient attacks, but seems to be a touch faster. I don't see this is as a good/bad thing; just different, although this could be the difference in amp. Decay in both headphones is satisfying and they both resolve decently well. Details and layering aren't either headphones really strong suite, but they're not bad in that area (the Sash Deaux sounded better to me here, but I think that's the amp).

    Timbre isn't bad (except the bass exhibits some weirdness); a touch more airy and ethereal than the Verum 1, which has more of an old-school planar sound. It should be noted that the Sash Deaux favors the plasticky timbre instead of grainy. Tonality is where the Sash might not agree with some; I find this headphone very forward in the vocal region. More forward than any other headphone I've heard. It's very clearly a mid-focused, vocal-centric headphone, and to my ears it was to a point I found it almost piercing and fatiguing on a song like "Starlight" by Muse (it's close to the edge of tolerability for me). This does seem to be the only fault with the headphone's tonal balance though; treble and bass are quite balanced, but not as prominent as the mids (common theme with the presentation). Treble has decent resolve, sounds fairly even, and has good air up top (better than Verum 1 unless you're using perforated pads on your Verum, in which it's equal), and the bass has that planar extension, with decent texture and tactility. Bass pitch differentiation is on par with Verum 1.

    Using an EQ I found for Foobar, I found that dialing down the bands from 630 Hz to 1.25 kHz about 2 dB is all the headphone needed to be reigned in. With these settings, I really liked these. However, I do consider this a slight fault since none of my other headphones in my stable make me want to bring out an EQ of any sort (the fact I sought one out speaks volumes to me). That being said, I haven't properly auditioned a stock HD600, but needless to say, if you feel the HD650 is too forward for you in that region do NOT apply here.

    Overall, I think these do have some merit and they're really not bad. Like Verum 1, they don't compete with TOTL gear, but at their price no one should expect that. I'm just not sure how one could actually get their hands on one here.

    Special lo-fi ChaCha quality pics to be added later.

    *Note: Having the 3F in the house, I couldn't resist plugging it in and holy smokes; this headphone sounds really good out of the 3F. For some reason, the peakiness of some of those mids became less egregious, the bass gained more tactility and meat, and the headphone sounded a touch less plasticky. While I'm not quite sure it would find its way in my regular rotation (it's sound and stage is still very planar, which I kind of dislike), what this does show is that this headphone requires users to carefully match their amp to pull the very best sound.
     
    Last edited: Nov 8, 2019
  2. Roderick

    Roderick Facebook Friend

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    Thanks to @ChaChaRealSmooth for taking the time to take a listen and and write impressions.

    I shipped the headphones over the pond because I think these headphones deserve more exposure. These days it seems everyone thinks they can slap in some planar drivers on some housing and charge $2000 for it. It's great that Verum's have become a success. I think we need more stuff like that. Good products at a reasonable price. About the price of sash deux: it's $350 + whatever it costs to ship them to buyers location. I think Ukraine and EU have a trade agreement so there should not be any custom fees if any european members are interested.

    Cable I shipped with the headphones is the stock cable. Termination is customizable on order. I chose 3.5mm as a lot of my listening is done while I wander around the house. 6.3mm to 3.5mm adaptors add too much bulk and using an adaptor plug when I'm on my desktop setup is not a big deal.

    Besides the cable buyer can choose the wood used (oak or walnut) and frame design. Solid wood option without seperate protruding part for cables is quite similar to old Audeze LCD-2 and the one I have has the mentioned leather covered design more a kin to newer Audezes that have metal part connecting the circular part. I love wood headphones but I love wood+leather designs even better :) Varnish(color) used is also up to the buyer. Mine makes it look even more like Audeze LCD-XC but it's just my personal preference. With different choices cups could be black for example.

    [​IMG]

    Ordering the headphones was quite a simple process. I contacted Sasha through Studio Audio Sound Handmade facebook page and after I was set with my customisation options I got a paypal invoice for payment. During the process he sen't me pictures of the headphones and asked about stuff like whether I want more polish on the cups or do I want to maintain the more natural wood grain. It was quite an unique experience. I think it took 4 weeks from order to receiving the headphones.

    I very much agree with ChaCha's impressions. That 400hz to 1khz is quite problematic. It does make these some fine toe tapping headphones for stuff like AC/DC but fatigue might follow. I have measured the headphones using mini dsp HEARS with suggested stock compensation and 1/12 smoothing. Problem area is quite obvious. It's a comparison with LCD-3f. I think I had some seal issues with the Audeze so take the measurement with a grain of salt.
    [​IMG]

    Overall I ended up preferring Sash Deux over LCD-3f. I'm not saying it's a better headphone but it did the similar sound signature with a tad more brightness and managed to avoid the nasality off the LCD.3f that kept bugging me.

    Comparing Sash Deux to Verum 1 is a much harder task. Verum 1 is tonally the most correct planar I've heard and Sash Deux is more colored be it a good or a bad thing. Compared to similarly priced Hifiman Sundara Sash Deux sounds more fullbodied, while Sundara is notoriously quite thin, even a bit plasticky sounding headphone. I also prefer Sash over Mr.Speaker AFO's. AFO's were not that bad but compared to Sash Deux bass lacked some serious punch. I don't know how to put it better. It's the same thing that many newer hifiman models suffer from. Bass is audibly there, it is measurably there but it kinda sounds like "whop" instead of "thump". Being hit in the head with the worlds softest pillow is how someone put it.
     
    Last edited: Oct 29, 2019
  3. ZzzMonster

    ZzzMonster New

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    Went to the facebook and saw there is a Sash Deux V3, why did you get the V2?
     
  4. Roderick

    Roderick Facebook Friend

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    I've had V2 for quite a while now. V3 is new. I've ordered a set last week. It should be interesting. V3 has new magnet design and softer earpads with larger openings. According to Sasha's measurements it is less scooped in upper mids and bit more even around 1khz.
     
  5. Roderick

    Roderick Facebook Friend

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    @ChaChaRealSmooth I noticed your take on the the new LCD-1. Do you still have the Sash Deux? Brief comparison with Audeze's would be awesome if you have the time. :)

    I understand that such a comparison would not be that usefull for most people here but in europe market for 300€-500€ open back planars is quite thin so any input would be appreciated.
     
  6. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    The Sash is with @Vtory for measurements and review.

    They're very different planars. The LCD-1 takes a bit of the grainier angle, the Sash is a bit plasticky. Sash has better transients in delineation of attacks and decay. LCD-1 has better bass timbre, but worse midrange and treble. Sash is more resolving in the mids and treble by a lot.

    They're also voiced very differently. The Sash is mid-centric. The LCD-1 is probably the more neutral of the two, but it has an upper mid suckout somewhere.

    Both headphones are very efficient and can piggyback off tube amps designed more for dynamics.

    The Sash has a much better pad system. The LCD-1's pads are still glued on (for f***'s sake Audeze, there's NO reason to keep doing this).

    I found the LCD-1 much more comfortable on my head, but that's partly because my head is borderline too big for the Sash. The LCD-1 makes a better pair for in-bed listening (in fact I'm doing that right now).

    Ultimately picking between the two boils down to sonic preference and/or feature set, but the Sash is probably the technically better headphone.
     
  7. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    For the reference, I didn’t get the Sash yet. It’s on the way here though (estimated to arrive this afternoon). Look forward to starting to listen with sash tonight!
     
  8. penguins

    penguins Friend, formerly known as fp627

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    @Roderick
    Any thoughts on the V3 so far?
     
  9. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    For the reference, I'm having this product (v2 open) now, and @Roderick told me via pm that it would be fine for him to have a little longer US loaner tour if there exists any interested party.

    For any friends or contributors with good status who are interested in this headphone, contact him to get an approval. Once approved, I'll send it to the next (approved) person when I'm done with evaluation.
     
  10. Roderick

    Roderick Facebook Friend

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    @fp627
    I have not received the tres yet. Our national post workers were on strike so I told Sasha not to rush building my headphones. Also this gives me time to figure out what kind of cups I want. There's three sizes to choose from and optional semi-open cup.

    So far nobody has contacted me about wanting to test the Deux after @Vtory is done with his evaluation. If someones interested hit me a pm. I just like to know who will be receiving the headphones. There is no test you have to take to find out if you are qualified to audition the Deux :)
     
  11. muths66

    muths66 New

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    My tres will reach around end December or January and i will able AB with verum.
    I have call sash do some custom work on covers too.
     
  12. Krassi

    Krassi New

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    Hi there! i am new here and had to sign up because i am the third person getting his sash tres at the moment!
    My Tres will be a bit more exotic because i have mmcx plugs on them.. sash send me pictures today and they look nice.

    I also told him.. please NOT BEFORE CHRISTMAS!!! ... the worst time to send something that is not supposed to come broken from frustrated post workers that are having Christmas burnout and hate everything that looks like a parcel.
     
  13. Roderick

    Roderick Facebook Friend

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    @Vtory do you still have the headphones? I'm quite surprised that I have gotten no contacts (in USA) regarding the loaner. I understand that as one person diy from other side of the globe it is an hard to reach object and as such not so appealing.

    Anyway, if someone is interested just hit me a pm.

    I have not received the Sash tres yet. Headphones are ready though and now that our local post office strike is delt with I should receive them by the end of the year. Zmf style cups were made custom for me.

    [​IMG]

    It looks weird because the headband is not finished. It's a prototype headband more suited for a "freakishly large head" that @ChaChaRealSmooth mentioned in his review. :)

    Happy holidays everyone!
     
    Last edited: Dec 22, 2019
  14. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    Yup, I am having them. Working on the measurements and review -- hopefully will post them after the holidays.

    Great to hear that the post office strike is finally over.
     
  15. muths66

    muths66 New

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    Look Nice
     
    Last edited: Dec 23, 2019
  16. muths66

    muths66 New

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    Just received tres.
    Open sound amazing with it soundstage.
    Details are very good.
    I have sash to make custom make a spacer for close back and semi cover.
    The closed back with spacer is really amazing how wide the soundstage and the depth make it so balance for the whole sound.
    Will take some time to olay ard with damper to find perfect one for it.
    Comparing it with verum tres sound more warmer.
    Will give it a good burn in and review further.
    Another Ukraine creator make my days so much happy now.
    Have post some pictures on headfi as i dont know how to upload here.
     
  17. Krassi

    Krassi New

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    Hiho!

    Happy new year! f**k Yeah! and my tres are shipped

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    well look f'ing awesome! ordered minixlr to mmcx adapters from willow audio from china like muths.. so the hole shit should arrive soon... nice!! cant wait to test them
     
  18. muths66

    muths66 New

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    wrong
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2020
  19. muths66

    muths66 New

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    [​IMG]
    [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG]
     
  20. Roderick

    Roderick Facebook Friend

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    While ago I got the sash tres. To keep it short I'll just say it fixes the issues Deux had with midrange peaks. It sounds smoother and more spaciouss than Deux. Besides that there is not much difference that I can recall. Open version is still very much tuned like Audeze but better(IMO). Dark without lacking in clarity. Here is Deux vs Tres. Easy to see how mids are less peaky now.
    [​IMG]
    Another good news is that closed back version is now listenable. Admittably it is strange and very V-shaped. However it is a lot off fun to listen. Of course I'm coming from th900 and cascade so My tolerance for that kind of signature is high. Soundstage is HUGE for a closed back and particularly for a planar. I'd say it is as big as on Ananda. Quite strange how the closed version sounds more spaciouss than open.

    [​IMG] It's kind of like mirrored Image, really a two in one headphones.

    I also got the optional semi open cups. Unfortunately those sound quite bad. I did try some mods and I think there is promise. Sash technicalities with Verum tuning would be awesome.

    All in all I'd say tres is a tough one to beat at $400 and that is even without thinking about the closed back option.

    @Vtory how's it going with the Deux? If you don't need them anymore I could have them back and sell them.
     

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