Master "deals" (massdrop, ebay, Amazon, etc.) Thread on Audio Product Sales

[VintageFlanker]

How would you compare those to a pair of JBL 305 ?

I don't know. Never own these onces. Also, would be hard to compare passive customer bookshelf vs active monitoring (perhaps designed more for near-field listening).

What are you driving them with?

RME ADI-2 DAC + two NC250MP monoblocks. Both are objectively transparent and distortion-free.

Is it intentional or not?

Focal is one of the few manufacturers who still design/build/measure all enclosures/filters/drivers in house. So, I guess this is intentional. My own theory is that the rise in upper frequencies is supposed to bring some soundstage and openness. Measurements also show a good off-axis FR, BTW.

This does not negate your experience given the individual differences. And one man’s bright is another’s norm!

Sure. Not really relevant on ASR, but most customers found the Aria range to be really smooth. Some even say Arias are "too smooth" and lack highs. My thoughts is people are confusing "Highs" and "High-mids". And I'm still thinking this rise above 13Khz is less unpleasant than a peaks at 2, 6, or 8khz. Enven more if the rise is smooth and progressive and not a straight peak coming from nowhere. About that:

People who cannot hear past say 12k for example may find that spike irrelevant

Come on, I'm 30 and don't have any hearing damage to my knowledge. I'm still very sensitive to brightness (I've sold/returned many speakers/headphones due their "brightness", at least in my room).
At last, compare, for example the similarly priced, and very popular B&W 685 S2 with the same measurement process:

Aria 906s:

I would call the Aria 906s "smoother" hands down. Both peaks at 4Khz and 9-10Khz would bring brightness/harshness.

 

[daftcombo]

Perhaps what he meant by brightness is caused by the off-axis peak at around 8kHz:

 

[daftcombo]

RME ADI-2 DAC + two NC250MP monoblocks. Both are objectively transparent and distortion-free.

Driving a pair of 208€ (now) speakers with a 1000€ DAC and a pair of around 300€ mono blocks, is that reasonnable though?

 

[VintageFlanker]

Perhaps what he meant by brightness is caused by the off-axis peak at around 8kHz:

. Yep, I see it. It still way beneath lower frequencies.

Driving a pair of 208€ (now) speakers with a 1000€ DAC and a pair of around 300€ mono blocks, is that reasonnable though?

. First, this is not my only pair of speakers (still a deal at 416€/pair, regular price is between 500 and 800€, depending of finish) the ADI-2 DAC is my SwissKnife and also drive my headphones. Second, I tend to not often see correlation between price and performance.

 

[audimus]

People shouldn’t conflate smoothness of a graph with “smooth” aural perception. People don’t hear a graph. This is a continuing problem with the tech-nerdy nature of this site that confuses measurement with audibility.

What people perceive is tonal (and harmonic) balance not peaks and troughs (although the latter can affect the former).

The “brightness” people perceive is the combination of mids and the harmonics/resonances in the higher frequencies. Sound from content is not a pure frequency like test equipment. Perception of a cymbal sound, for example, is spread across multiple frequency zones in the upper spectrum. Rolling off at the higher end mute some of the higher harmonics and the cymbals sound muted or dull. Rising highs make them sound tinny and harsh. When flat, they sound natural with the correct ratio of the harmonics/resonances.

This is very similar to what happens at the low end. A rolling off low end makes the overall sound thin while boosted low end makes it sound muddy and booming.

You cannot attribute these perceptions to localized peaks and valleys in a graph (except when they are way out of proportion as might happen with room resonances).

I don’t see any advantage to an elevated response at the far end across a band of frequencies and cannot imagine why that would be intentional. If it is, it is as bad as electronics manufacturers introducing harmonics intentionally or rolling off a response to make the sound warmer.

Why would people spend huge amounts of money on “perfect transparency” (as measured by flatness in FR and lack of spurious harmonics) in electronics regardless of whether they are audible or not and then choose speakers that by the same logic destroy that “perfect transparency” with the excuse that it sounds better despite it? Seems like an inherent contradiction.

 

[Mr. Olinad]

Sorry for this not to be specifically a "deal", but as I see too many of us looking for the upcoming Topping DX7 Pro, the good news is that it seems to be launched.
The bad, at least for me, is the price.
https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/...-dsd1024-wireless-decoder-headphone-amplifier

 

[AnalogDE]

Sorry for this not to be specifically a "deal", but as I see too many of us looking for the upcoming Topping DX7 Pro, the good news is that it seems to be launched.
The bad, at least for me, is the price.
https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/...-dsd1024-wireless-decoder-headphone-amplifier
View attachment 34816

Not quite a deal...

 

[amirm]

Sorry for this not to be specifically a "deal", but as I see too many of us looking for the upcoming Topping DX7 Pro, the good news is that it seems to be launched.

Their stuff routinely lands on drop.com at discount so let's wait for that. And the review....

 

[maxxevv]

Their stuff routinely lands on drop.com at discount so let's wait for that. And the review....

Oh ... also the 11:11 sale too!

This should be a good measuring one, except maybe the output impedance for the headphone. They state 4.7 Ohms and 9.4 Ohms. Not particularly inspiring for IEMs though it should be fine for most headphones bar a few exceptions, since most low impedance planars are not adversely affected by output impedance of amps.

 

[ZeDestructor]

Sorry for this not to be specifically a "deal", but as I see too many of us looking for the upcoming Topping DX7 Pro, the good news is that it seems to be launched.
The bad, at least for me, is the price.
https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/...-dsd1024-wireless-decoder-headphone-amplifier
View attachment 34816

Those measurements are mighty impressive though. Can't wait to see em on the bench

 

[VintageFlanker]

Why would people spend huge amounts of money on “perfect transparency” (as measured by flatness in FR and lack of spurious harmonics) in electronics regardless of whether they are audible or not and then choose speakers that by the same logic destroy that “perfect transparency” with the excuse that it sounds better despite it? Seems like an inherent contradiction.

Far off topic for me, however:
Transparency of DAC/Amps is needed especially when you have different speakers/headphones with different signatures you like...You can then pair your electronics with whatever you want, "neutral" or not. Electronics not being acting as tone control, you may enjoy (or not!) the rest of your equipment, knowing where you would upgrade if needed...
... Unfortunately, there is no perfectly neutral speaker or headphones in this world. The best you can get is the ones with close to "flat" FR once measured. And even in this case, it will depend of measurements conditions, instruments, process, smoothing, compensation etc... and even more important for speaker: the room (which will differ quite a bit from yours in all cases).

 

[gvl]

Can we keep at least one discussion on topic please?

 

[g29]

When it is TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE ....

This Questionable ETailer is listing a Topping D10 for $40. Trust index of 1%.

 

[maxxevv]

When it is TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE ....

This Questionable ETailer is listing a Topping D10 for $40. Trust index of 1%.

Most definitely a scam if you look at all the other items they list.

Edit: To ADD ... from a quick google maps search, their stated address seems bogus. There is no Century Plaza on the stated road name, and they don't have a unit number either, which is not possible given that is one of their main shopping streets in Shenzhen.

to ADD again:

The address based on a Baidu search is not correct. Only the postal code is correct.

The "2301" is a room number/ a unit / PO Box number of a building called Huafeng Building, or in chinese 华丰大厦. Not "Centuray Plaza" as stated in the address. And the street number is 6006 instead.

Because if it was real, I don't see why they should publish their address as shown on website.


STAY CLEAR.

 

[WHO23]

. This is a youtube video from a reviewer Joshua Valour talking about Massdrop x Empire Ears Zeus Universal IEMs . In the description there is a link that can reduce $250. Seems only valid until 7 October from a comment. I have not seen many people talking about this iem, what do you guys think about it?

The soundstage of the Drop EE Zeus is the one of the widest I’ve heard in IEM. The Sony MDR-EX1000 is the only other IEM that can compete. Audeze iSine & Stax SR-003 soundstage is also exceptional due to their fully open back nature but they are not really IEMs.

EE Zeus is diffuse field tuned and so the bass isn’t as full sounding as the Campfire Andromeda. Vocals sound full and clear but timbre is not as good my dynamic driver Ocharaku Donguri-Kaede & AK T8iE mk2.

Treble is tasteful and not sibilant. However it can get sharp if you don’t get the right insertion with the silicone tips.

Oh and expect to spend a bit more on cables because the stock ones, though functional, feel plasticky.

 

[g29]

The soundstage of the Drop EE Zeus is the one of the widest I’ve heard in IEM. ...

Isn't the IEM's soundstage width an artifact of one's hat size ?

 

[WHO23]

Isn't the IEM's soundstage width a factor of one's hat size ?

I’m primarily a headphone guy and the Zeus’ tuning is the only IEM I have that makes vocals sound farther in front and not in my head. Even then it's still not headphones or speaker size. I highlighted soundstage primarily because newer IEMs can trounce it in just about any other category. A way of looking at it is pretty much an Etymotic with soundstage.

 

[daftcombo]

This may interest some EU customers:

Focal Aria 906, Walnut finish at 416€/pair. Price at launch was 850€ (EU), 760£ (UK), and even 1500$ (USA)...(actually, 1K$ on Amazon.com)

HomeCinéSolutions.fr is an excellent reseller, with easily the most competitive prices in France and a very good customer service. I ordered a lot of gears there, and will continue. They say they ship worldwide, BTW.

The Aria 906, on the other hand, is (subjectively speaking) an excellent bookshelf speaker. Decent bass performance, huge soundstage, and very smooth high-mids/highs. I still own a pair of these and it became my main speakers for average/small room. Because we're still on ASR, here are some measurements from SoundStageNetwork:

Price x2 now.

 

[JJB70]

Sennheiser are doing the HD650 and HD660 Apogee Groove bundles again. These seem to be recurrent but not continuously offered deals from Sennheiser and offer great value if you want the headphones and a Groove DAC/amp.

 

[JJB70]

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