SoCal (ZMFestivus) meet Fall 2019 - Impressions

In reference to @E_Schaaf 's modded ADX5000, any more info on these? I'd love to hear how they stack up to the ZMFs that were present.

 

@captkirk How about I send them your way and you see for yourself?

I don't have a 4-pin cable for them, which is part of the reason it was difficult to compare at the meet. Impact quoted me $150 to make a copper cable for them. MMCX certainly isn't a popular termination on full-sized cans.

Here are some pre mod measures for them -



Post-mod -


I wouldn't pay much attention to that 5-6k scoop (might be there a little bit but doesn't feel as dramatic as the measurements suggest), these were quick and dirty measurements. Sound better than they measure in any case. And my EARS comp curve always shows a bit more at 3-4k than is actually there too.

Yes, they do sound T H I C C. I specifically tuned them for the more commercial genres of music out there - they won't do classical well but I haven't heard a headphone that makes pop / rock / EDM as listenable and *fun* as these. Surprisingly, they're actually tuned the most like my L55s than any of my other headphones. Despite looking like they'd be a bit overbearing in the bass, those huge dynamic drivers cut through much of the veil that might result from an FR like this. They like being turned up.

Mods I did were kind of a fusion of HD650 + HD800 mods (seemed appropriate given the stock ADX5000 has some qualities of each) -

Dynamat on back of magnet assembly like HD650K
Adhesive foam on baffle bracing (also like HD650K)
Sealed rear baffle port
Swapped pads
Replaced internal magnet foam (coarse and dense) with melamine (fine and fluffy)
TP + secret-sauce RAD acoustic paper on earside
HD800 rug liner cutout on ear-side baffle

Stock HD6XX for reference (shows a bit of those same artifacts mentioned above) -


Verite for reference too -


Sorry the graphs look a bit different - same comp and coupler were used.

 

I'd love to give them a go. My L-2 is SE only, so no need for a 4 pin cable. I'll shoot you a PM.

 

I know I'm late to this but I'd like to thank @ChaChaRealSmooth and his family for hosting the meet, and for everyone who showed and contributed gear and refreshments to it.

I was a little surprised that very few people at the meet had actually heard the Black Widow 2. Hopefully those that did have a good idea of what it does. I was able to listen to the 3F myself and understand now why it is so coveted. Unfortunately I'm also hearing that it will become as OOP as the Black Widow. The few things I heard with the BW worked pretty well with my ears so I feel vindicated in keeping mine and not just wandering around with another amp.

I'm not much of a reviewer but meets like this need to continue even when bigger shows steal much of the spotlight nowadays. The people and camaraderie make these meets great. Great stories from @netforce and different discussions of background and other things kept things going.

Next year we should likely put this in a hotel banquet room.

Thanks again!

 

Hey guys!

Event was awesome! Had a great time myself and had a blast telling stories.

Thanks to @ChaChaRealSmooth for hosting the meet, had a great time. Thanks for also the food, love me some Korean fried chicken and those pears rocked.

Good times seeing old friends and some new faces. Thanks to those who put up with my silly stories, seems like folks quite enjoy me telling them. I might make a thread one day and just have a centralized placed just to tell them.

Gear wise, thanks for all the honest feedback regarding the gear I brought, especially the Raal. New companies really appreciate the honesty and it helps them make better gear.
The Cayin HA-1A mk2 was a total last minute piece I grabbed so I am happy people enjoyed it. The Cayin stuff doesn't seem to get mentioned much for their desktop stuff so I was happy to bring it.

And good news @fp627 just spoke with Danny, he said they are making a small video about how to bend the headband in such a way to stretch it out for big heads.

Thanks to everyone who attended, I had fun telling some of my wacky stories. I might go write a few of them out in a thread for a good laugh here and there.

Onto the gear.

-DNA Starlett and Stellaris were both amazing. Starlet had no issues with the HE-6SE @neogeosnk brought (the newer headband and weight on the HE-6SE is a little tight on my head). Love the Starlett and its price point. Wish I had the space at home to integrate it into my system.
-The Stellaris from @fp627 was awesome, I had a good time with it and the Verite Closed. The Verite Closed might be my favorite closed back of recent memory.
-ECP DSHA 3F from @tommytakis I heard in the store with the Utopia few weeks back was probably one of my favorite pairings I heard the Utopia on. Glad hearing it again verified this for me. Awesome amp.
-Rosson RAD-0 was very interesting, good sound. Comfort I wasn't feeling too much, quite tight on the head and pretty hefty weight. Very pretty though. Price point is a little high though, would love to check it out side by side to an Audeze.

Thanks to @JK47 for the beer and jerky
Had a great time talking to everyone @tommytakis @insidious meme @ultrabike @Clemmaster @BillOhio @PTS @E_Schaaf

 

@zach915m took care of my scratched Verite headphones. They look brand new again. Thanks again Zach for being the best!

 

Interesting to read lukewarm reviews of the SR1a. Everything else I've read has been overwhelmingly positive, to the point that I was seriously considering doing something dumb and buying them.

 

Almost did the same thing. Try them before buying them, I ended up not liking them after 10 minutes.

 

Hi everyone, I am new to this forum and also reside in the SoCal area and would love to join if you guys have another similar event in the future. Also down to grab some coffee and chat as well. Look forward to brainstorming and learning new things!