ETHER 2

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by Ice-man, Oct 3, 2018.

  1. Ice-man

    Ice-man Friend

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    I would not say that they have the breath ability of the hd800...no. But, I did much of the testing when it was hot as hell here in Georgia and I didn't not have any sweat issues.
     
  2. Magnetostatic_Tubephile

    Magnetostatic_Tubephile Friend

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    Guys, any luck with the potential loaner? Maybe giving too much hope into it... but somewhat Ether 2 really appeals to me so far. Would love to see them measured and reviewed by SBAF folks.
     
  3. Ice-man

    Ice-man Friend

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    I am not sure about the status of a true sbaf loaner. @purr1n or @Vansen would be the people to check with. I would still offer to step in with my own pair if necessary.
     
  4. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    @Ice-man
    Have you heard any specific shipping date for the first batch (because you already seemed to order it)? My inner-idiot is leaning toward giving E2 a shot. lol
     
  5. Ice-man

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    Dan said "shipping in October." Don't be surprised to see shipping notices possible this coming week. He likes to put out a reasonable date on this kind of thing and then deliver before schedule when possible.
     
  6. TMRaven

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    When I got the Aeon Open, I said to myself I was done for good with the headphone game.

    Yeah, well... I couldn't pass up on the opportunity for even more comfort.

    I don't care how good any headphone sounds, it's not worth a damn if it isn't comfortable.
     
  7. netforce

    netforce MOT: Headphones.com

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    Dan is saying he is starting to ship this week, backorder is 2-3 weeks.
     
  8. kirayamato

    kirayamato Friend

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    Just got a reply from Dan thought i'd share it

    Hi Saad,

    The material on the pads is our synthetic we use on the AEON headphones. It’s the highest grade synthetic on the market, and is routinely mistaken for lamb leather. It’s very comfortable and is about as breathable as leather but it isn’t a velour in that regard. The ear hole is designed to ergonomically follow the ear and while it looks small it fits every ear we’ve ever tested for size, including some very large ears. This is our most comfortable headphone to date, and the ear pad is a big part of that.
     
  9. Ice-man

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    Just announced, ETHER 2 are starting to ship this week...FYI.
     
  10. Ice-man

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    Just got my production e2 this morning. Everything is sounding truly impressive. I have not been this happy with any planar thus far. Hek v2 and lcd-3 were good headphones, but do match e2 for purity of tone, transparency and comfort.

    I have several amps here and I've been going through each one with the e2 to get a sense of scale and pairing. I'm surprised at how good e2 sounds all the way down to the CTH. There is certainly some scale as you step up to lyr 3 and then to mjo2, but the gaps between each amp for performance is smaller than I would have expected.

    I feel that quite possibly the difference with source is more important and significant with e2 than amps. Going from modi 3 to Gungnir Multibit A2 makes a more substantial improvement. Better dynamics, bass is tighter and deeper and the treble sounds more natural and transparent. The difference is easier to hear within the source arena.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2018
  11. Ice-man

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    My test for sub bass these days is this track: Scann-Tek-Unit. It goes down to around 20 hrz. ETHER 2 is going down there easily without roll off and still maintain all the detail.
     
  12. James Whiting

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    What about soundstage; depth, width, height and layering of that depth. Image focus and dimensionality as well?

    Just wondering as it is either Ether 2's or ZMF Verites I will be getting myself for belated Xmas present! Snicker, Snicker....lol!
     
  13. Baten

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    That's some choice to have lol
     
  14. LunaC

    LunaC New

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    Curious how if any side-by-side of the EFO1.1 and E2 has been done. Just playing with the new tuning, and understanding piss-poor audio memory , I'm pleasantly surprised at the EFO1.1 with white foam and the removal of the 3 position blobs. For-instance, listening to the Caspa mix, it hits hard and more holographic. As Dan's tuning preference morphs, I wonder if this is being portrayed in the upgrade kit tuning

    https://music.amazon.com/albums/B01BO970ZS?trackAsin=B01BO97292&ref=dm_sh_5589-e6d6-979c-d654-94411

    *Disclaimer: Granted, I have special cups I printed to give me reprieve from wife's fussing and suppress leakage oddly little change in sound is noticed so will ignore that. Howe
     
  15. James Whiting

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    indeed...currently have Auteur Blackwoods....so need to go to the next level....lol!
     
  16. jexby

    jexby Posole Prince

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    owning Auteur Blackwood for a couple months + after listening at RMAF-
    the Ether2 is in no way "the next level" unless planar bass is the only characteristic of interest.
    music on Ether2 still (as always with Dan products) didn't have any depth and instead sounds 2D flat line.
    and that was with a high end Cavalli Liquid (something) amp driving it.
     
  17. Ice-man

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    Maybe meet conditions played a role here. In no way does ETHER 2 sound 2D.
     
  18. BillOhio

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    The last time I heard Mr. Speaker at a meet, they were running off of a Yggdrasil A2 that had been plugged in the morning before.
     
  19. luximal

    luximal Made things right

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    Having heard the ether 2 along with the hek se, he5 se (which was my favorite planar of the bunch), among other headphones, I wouldn't say it doesn't have depth, but it's definitely not very 3d sounding.

    It overall sounded a bit muddier and hazier compared to the hek se. It also had subpar dynamics comapred to something like the he5se. That being said the ether does has some heft to the sound which I like. The hek se lacked a bit of weight to the sound not unlike some estats.

    Overall the ether 2 a bit meh IMO considering it's 2k price point.

    This was at headfoneshop's booth at the toronto audio fest, IIRC it the chain was cayin ha-300 paired with the chord dave.
     
  20. TMRaven

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    Got my Ether2 in today. Am feeding it with a Schiit Jotunheim w/ balanced DAC through XLR cable. I currently only have the Aeon Open to compare to, and my reference PM3 are with my brother, but will bring it into the picture later on.

    The biggest difference between the Aeon Open and the Ether2 is definitely the balance of their upper midrange around 1-3khz. Ether2 represents this region with more fullness and bite, leading to a more more robust and livelier sound, whereas the Aeon Open can sound hollow, empty, or laid back by comparison. Yet, the Ether2 strikes a good balance of energy in this region without being overly emphasized and sounding shouty or tinny that the Audezes and something like the Massdrop Plus UIEM (on lower impedance amps) can suffer from.

    Compared to Aeon open, the entirety of the treble region is much more even and well controlled. Aeon open exhibits a broad depression in the 3-6khz region, and is a bit too emphatic in the 8-12khz region, which leads to a lack of breath and definition on consonants in vocal performances that can render them diffused and ill focused sounding, yet at the same time prone to sibilance with T, Z, and S. Ether 2 has a healthy amount of energy in the lower treble around 4-6khz, yet is more even-keen in the upper treble around 8-12. Center imaging on vocals is much more focused and realized, leading to increased realism and definition. The Ether2 is very much akin to an HD650 in its treble region. While it might lack the last bit of air and integrated bite the HD800 has, it gets 80-90% of the way there, while lacking any of the HD800 frequency response quirks that otherwise kill it.

    I find the soundstage of the Ether2 to not be as large as other impressions make of it. I'd say it's a little bit better than the Aeon Open, and again in the realm of the HD650, neither being large or claustrophobic. What it does have is very good layering and positioning within the medium sized image it throws, and I attribute most of this to its balanced treble response and what sounds to be clean sound that lacks any time-domain based ringing artifacts.

    Bass is good, very good. I tested it down to 25hz with tones and well audible. The Aeon Open by comparison is less assertive under 35hz. During busy passages in songs, these super low level frequencies will get lost, but the headphone has no trouble laying a foundation of low bass when it is called for. Think of an Audeze bass, but leaner and potent instead of thick and slightly soft. Aeon Open by comparison, with its omnipresent mid and upper bass region, tends to muffle its midrange. The Ether2, also being an open headphone, does not suffer from an inherent coldness to its lower midrange as a result of a cup coloration-- or depression in this region. This leads to a pleasantly warm transition to the midrange that doesn't leave you wanting for more thickness that I originally found with the Aeon Closed.

    Comfort is good, but a little more finicky than I had hoped. The size and shape of the earpad openings leaves for a comfortably circumaural experience, but compared to the massive openings of the Aeon open or something like an HD800, I found myself having to adjust the headphones a good bit until I found just the right positioning where my ears felt open, and I wasn't annoyed. Earpads seem to be a little firmer than Aeon Open, leading to a slightly less supple feeling on the side of the head. Clamping pressure can be alleviated (by a surprising amount) if one adjusts the sliders of the headband higher up the arc of the nitinol wires. I'll have to test the Ether2 in an extended listening session to see how long I can wear them before I develop a mild hotspot. For reference, the Aeon Open managed about 45 minutes before a small one appeared, and my current comfort king, the AD700, can be worn infinitely.

    Although I do not have an HD650 on me right now, I have owned it and heard it enough over the years to have a good remembrance of it. If I had to describe the Ether2 as an overall experience, I would say it's an HD650 with extended bass response down to the bottom of the earth. I don't think any other headphone would get this close, and I feel pretty comfortable saying that. Hifiman's Edition X v1 comes into my mind as well, but I recall that headphone being much larger in sound stage and much softer in transient attack.

    I don't care about cables so don't ask me about the new one.
     
    Last edited: Nov 2, 2018

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