CES 2016 Las Vegas, NV 1/6/16-1/9/16

Discussion in 'The Meeting Place' started by velvetx, Dec 30, 2015.

  1. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    Yes it is :)
     
  2. Altrunox

    Altrunox Friend

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    The Audeze Sine looks well built in the pictures, is that true in real life?
    Hope you'll post about non audio stuff too :D

    And at 3:14 suddenly a wild dude with an hawaiian shirt appears, anything good at Marshall @Tyll Hertsens

     
  3. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    As a gamer I will be posting some computer stuff wanted to focus on work and SBAF today. Then get into more of the other tech goodies :)
     
  4. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    Also, yes the sine build from Audeze was solid. It felt well built and very light.
     
  5. mtoc

    mtoc SBAF's Resident Shit-Stirrer

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    velvetx, would you please have look at the AK4497?
     
  6. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    For you mtoc anything. I have to find them :) the other thing is I wonder if they will have a device with it implemented.
     
  7. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    CES Day 2: The Suites

    A little vinyl porn for you vinyl lovers:

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    A little HFM for the people who wanted to see the Shangra La:

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    Some Questyle Love with their new amps. Please note the 600i has the new AK4490 chip (according to Bruce) and the 800r Golden is sporting a sweet Wolfson chip:

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    LH Labs also had some cool stuff on display like the naked Da Vinci, the Geek Source, ViDAC tube, and metal housed Geek Out V2+

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  8. JewBear

    JewBear Almost "Made"

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    If it's not too much trouble, can you also check out the Moon Neo230HAD?
     
  9. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    Sorry but the 230HAD wasn't plugged in only the 430HAD. Listened to the abyss off of it and man what a sound that made :)
     
  10. JewBear

    JewBear Almost "Made"

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    Ah, f**k me. I have to make a choice between the 230HAD and a Schiit stack in the next day or so.
     
  11. Chris F

    Chris F Boyz 4 Now Fanatic - Friend

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    Hey velvetx if you see a VPI Avenger turntable hanging out can you snap some pics? VPI blog says there are some there but I have no clue where....

    Edit: There is one in the Rogers hi-fidelity room 29-124 at the Venetian if you happen to be cruising there :)
     
  12. imackler

    imackler Key Lime Pie Infected Aberdeen Wings Spy

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    When you say the Geek Out V2+ is "metal housed," does that mean it is normally plastic? I've get to hold one...
     
  13. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    Yes. But they have metal plating now. Still has a bit of plastic just looks for more premium.
     
  14. TMoney

    TMoney Shits on SBAF over at Head-Case to be cool

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    Hey Nick. If you have a chance, would you mind checking to see if Pass Labs has their headphone amp at CES?

    If Pass Labs has a room I'm sure its with the rest of the stereo stuff.

    EDIT: looks like it did launch. Reno Hifi has it. I sure do wonder how it sounds.
     
  15. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    Thanks for the reporting! I love Larry and his skills, but man I am all but done with the company and their horrible design choices. I think my GOV2 looks like cheap crap compared to the V1, but damn if it doesn't sound good. I still prefer the V1 Pulse chassis way more than V2, and the abomination of the Vi Dac. But then again, I am turning Japanese with my obsession with clean, simple, and compact design.
     
  16. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    That Hifiman E-stat amp looks pretty damn good. And thanks for the vinyl porn. The hipster in me wants a vinyl rig, but I can't afford LPs.
     
  17. Tyll Hertsens

    Tyll Hertsens Grandpappy of the hobby - Special Friend

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    Yeah, the Pass labs amp was there but in a static display.
     
  18. TMoney

    TMoney Shits on SBAF over at Head-Case to be cool

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    Ah, thats a bummer. About the only public information I've seen about the amp since your CES report from last year is a press release Pass Labs must have put out back in November.

    Too bad no one is going to get to listen to it. With so little information out there about the amp I guess they must be planning on selling to to existing Pass Labs customers on faith?
     
  19. velvetx

    velvetx Gear Master West/Vendor Spotlight Moderator

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    CES Day 2/3 Write Up

    RHA Audio - Finally got to sit down and listen to the T20 which is their flagship and I must say I was pretty impressed. I like the bass that their stock filter had as well as the neutral tonality. First actual metal housed earbud I liked. Looking forward to doing a loaner program with them. I think 2016 will be the year of the return of IEMs as I am focused on getting some more IEM loaners. At the end of my visit John Darko walks in and the dude is funny as he is a personality on his own. Talked with him for about 10 minutes he's really an interesting guy to say the least. No punches were pulled in this conversation.

    MOFI - This booth I visited specifically for @drfindley being the vinyl nut he is. Unfortunately didn't find anything he needed however did find out that MOFI is coming out with a turntable. It sounded pretty sweet playing Santana on the speakers.

    LH Labs - This booth was quite interesting I felt as every design was uncased so you could see the open design of the Da Vinci (part of it), Vi Dac, LPS Pulse, and the Pulse X. Also got to see their new metal housing for the Gov2+ which I thought was pretty cool. Larry Ho is an awesome dude to talk to. Da Vinci DAC is $35-38k and Larry says they are selling like hot cakes. Obviously not my market but more power to them. They didn't have the portable Geek Wave but did have the Geek Wave Source which is going to be competing directly with Aurender (around $2-3k) which is cheaper than most of Aurender's products.

    Questlye Audio - Bruce Ball is an interesting guy to say the least. He works very hard in coming up with new things and this time was no different. He had some wireless things which I forgot about however he has two new amps. The 600i (amp/dac for $1200-1300) which sports the new AKM 4497 chip. The the flagship piece which was the 800r Golden which in my opinion took the cake. The stack I posted above with the two 800r amps, source, and preamp was $12,500 I believe but it sounded pretty damn good. Again not my cup of tea but it sounded great with the LCD-3s. Nothing new on the portable audio front but expect something in the pipeline soon (think adding things like Tidal and streaming services). In terms of the 800r versus the 600i I would say the 800r with the Wolfsen chip provided a more warmer and lusher enjoyable sound. Unfortunately the 600i was just too neutral for me with the new AKM 4497 chip. I think it's too hard to tell at this point whether the AKM 4497 chip is better than predecessors but as more people implement it I think we will see what more people think.

    Chord - I know for some this is a little sore spot but I went to Chord and had a great time there. I listed to the Hugo and the Mojo. I actually preferred the Hugo to the Mojo as I think the Hugo is more tonally accurate and has some heft when it comes to certain pieces of music that the Mojo lacks but overall a very pleasant experience. Can't say I really liked the LCD-4s out of the DAVE because I felt it was a bit too neutral and thin sounding (LCD4 sounded better on The King amp). Looking forward to some loaner stuff just need to work out some logistics.

    Moon Audio - There wasn't much hooked up only the HAD430 which was running the Abyss and HEK headphones. Again as soon as the Abyss headphones went on the HEK was all but forgotten. I know a lot of people like them on here and I will say it again it really is an awesome headphone if you can get a good pairing. I felt that the Abyss which was running dual XLR setup was a really good pairing with the HAD430. PHAT BASS :)

    HIFIMAN - So I did get to listen to the Shangra-La and I was impressed. Definitely better than the HEK and a more neutral tone. The issue I have always had with the HFM booth and this time was no different was their choice of music. I respect Fang for what he likes to listen to but not everyone in America listens to classical or Chinese music. The only American track I recognized was Celine Dion but let met tell you that the track sounded amazing. The tonal balance and accuracy were definitely there and it was a very tubey neutral sound much different than what I will be talking about next. The mids and highs were well represented but unfortunately there were no songs with lows or bass so can't really comment there. Again at the price point of $35-$38k and no certainty whether HFM will sell the headphone separate more than likely not a purchase for anyone around here (myself included).

    Sennheiser - The Orpheus 2 which comes in at a whopping $55k comes with a solid marble amp/dac chassis. This thing is a work of art. You can tell a lot of time was put into the build of this product. From the sexy mechanisms which raise the tubes and extend the volume knobs out really brings out the ingenuity of German engineering. 12 years in the making and not having listened to the Orpheus 1 I expected something neutral and clinical beyond what they had done with the HD800. Boy was a wrong. The track that Sennheiser follows as one of their test tracks was "Hotel California" SACD version by the Eagles. A great track and a sure favorite for many audiophiles. The sound piece was something of an astonishment as from my limited experience with electrostatic headphones they tend to pull out a lot of details focused on mids and highs while the lows are tight and punchy but not impactful. Sennheiser throws out the window what you think of a typical electostat headphone and adds this bass impact that I have heard in other headphones but never out of a STAX. It was definitely special I don't think the sound stage was as wide as the HD800 but the sound was lush, deep, and very detailed. Not neutral in tone but just very tubey, a little warm, and the music had a lot of body. It was an intimate sound and again everyone in the room was awed at the sound. It was really a surreal experience for me. If you have the chance listen to this yourself. Obviously too expensive for me but damn I think if I had the money I would buy it just because it looks amazing and also sounds great. I just want to thank the Sonic Electronix team for allowing me to come in and listen to this with them. A big shout out to Sedric and Seth as I don't think I would have been able to listen to this without them. Beers on me next time I'm in town with some time on my hands.

    Now the question is the Orpheus or the Shangra-La. At this time you can't compare as the Sennheiser booth had something I think everyone is familiar with sound wise versus something that very few people are familiar with. I will reserve my judgement but I think both can coexist as the sound itself is very different. Sennheiser I would say I would love rock and roll, hip hop, and EDM on. HFM I would enjoy classical or things which are very vocal focused. Keep in mind though I didn't hear high end vocal tracks on the Orpheus just like I didn't hear anything with bass on the Shangra-La. The looks award though goes to Sennheiser. Also in terms of marketing I think Sennheiser did a better job than HFM. Sennheiser had Scott Wilson there to give us an explanation and answer any questions we had regarding the Orpheus 2. He did a great job and it made the experience feel more intimidate. HFM just let you sit and listen to it which honestly I think with a flagship piece such as this you should have an experience and not just a listening session.

    Razer - A company which at times I felt can make some cheap products did a great job with this new Razer Blade Stealth which starts at $999 and comes with a Retina display, 128GB of HDD, 8GB of RAM and is very small and portable was amazing. Comes updated with the new skylake mobile processor (U version) and looks really sweet. The other thing they had which has a lot of applications and could potentially revolutionize how we game on laptops is their external graphics card solution which comes with a 500W PSU and is PCI-E connected via any laptop with a thunderbolt port. Imagine your laptop being able to play games with this. They estimate price between $200-$500.

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    Last edited: Jan 8, 2016
  20. steve

    steve New

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    Man the pics look great. About your concerns I'll try to drop Fang a message and hopefully next time you'll here the Hotel California! :)

    How's the Vi tube/SS output? I read LH's post and they mentioned the Vi can output both at the same time for a easy comparison.
     

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