I would love to see an assortment of the under $100 headphones (Sony 7506, Koss PortaPros, and the Sennheiser HD280's for 3) and a way to compare them to the Beats. For affordable hirez players get a Tascam DR-07mkII that sells for about $140 and load it up with some 2496 wav files or the DR-05 that sells for under $100. SDHC cards are cheap and getting cheaper. Different cards could hold different genres of music.
New York Headphone Alert!!! Stereo Exchange Headphone Lounge Opening Event July 31st!
I've written about how I think headphone stores are a good idea, and about how HeadRoom's first foray with a storefront here in bozeman seems to be working well. (It still is, by the way.) Steve Guttenberg and I had a long conversation here about why high-end stores should be taking on headphones in a much more serious way. Well, things are looking up for New Yorkers, Stereo Exchange has just opened up a new "Headphone Lounge" in their Manhattan store and it looks terrific.
To celebrate, they're holding an open house event July 31, from 1PM-9PM, at 627 Broadway, New York, NY. Full details can be found here.
I looked down the pretty hearty list of gear they're carrying and found quite a few I'd like to hear:
Grado SR60e ($79)![]()
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Phonon SMB-02 ($350)![]()
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Martin Logan Mikros90 ($299)![]()
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McIntosh MHA100 ($4500)![]()
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Astell&Kern AK100II ($899)![]()
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ARURALiC VEGA DAC ($3499) and Taurus Mk2 Headphone Amp ($1899)![]()
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Steve Guttenberg ($Priceless)![]() Y'all have fun now. Don't forget, two weeks from tomorrow, Thursday July 31st. Have fun!!!
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How can they sound "very, very good?" They sound like muck. See my comment below.
Thanks,
Mr.TAD91

You're not kidding about Phonon's unusual products!

Even my blind 90 year old aunt can see both of those shirts!

8)
It's a shame these kinds of things only happen in the US and far eastern, I live in the wrong place.

I hope you will audition the new Focal Spirit One S when you get the chance as it seems like a new budget killer that some may even prefer OVER Spirit Classic/Professional and it even comes with better pads than those and a sexy carrying case. Very interested in those.

Hi Tyll, for a system you use daily, you sure know how to misspell it :P

Tyll,
You said the Beats Solo 2 are very, very good. I disagree.
I was in the apple store today and auditioned them with some 320s, and redbook from my phone - the Sony ZL.
The bass quality is a step up from the previous generation - but still wooly, and the mids are forward. There is nothing that impressed me about them, and it puzzles me as to why you would say: they're very, very good. A headphone like the NAD HP50 is very, very good. Do do you mean much better compared to the original solo and the solo HD?

It isn't quite up to the Headroom store in Bozeman, but I'm glad little ole sleepy New York is catching up in sophistication with Bozeman.
I'm going to try and catch this event at Stereo Exchange. Smart move by them, and I think if it goes well, they will hopefully expand more into personal audio with more rooms, more inexpensive headphones and systems to show first timers how good their laptop or even portable music can sound for not much money. It used to be J&R and B&H were the only stores in NYC that had a decent selection of headphones to actually listen to prior to purchase, now J&R is gone. Great to see the dedicated audio stores getting more into personal audio before they are all gone too.

I was over there today for the "opening event" and it was not a good shopping experience for me. I congratulate the store for trying something new, but the salesmen (all middle-aged white men) were not into it at all. How about hiring some younger salespeople who frequent this site and Head-Fi? *This* middle aged white guy would much rather get advice from a genuine enthusiast than someone who knows much less about headphones than me.

Nick,
Too bad you got there early. I got there around 6PM, and there were a lot of manufacturers reps there, as well as Sterophile and ex-Stereophile staff, some of them not-quite-as-old-men. Everyone that I spoke to was knowledgeable and extremely will to help demo equipment.

That is great to hear. I wish them well. However, I had a much better experience at the last Head-Fi meetup than here. I would suggest that they send their sales guys to the next meetup, so they can learn about the scene and see how it is done. The issue for me at the store was that the sales people were watching me like hawks when I was trying to listen. I was not sure if there was someone waiting for the equipment (there wasn't), if they were bored, or what. So, I felt very uncomfortable and left without really hearing the things I wanted to hear. Plus, one sales guy kept trying to pitch me while I was listening, which really works poorly when the customer is wearing IEMs! Still, I think NYC needs a headphone focused store and they can be it with some (a lot) of refinement.

Please see if you can review all the Phonon gear - I clicked the link you provided and it's like entering another dimension of audio gear designed for aliens or something - lol.
Their PHD Black Star Edition from what I could make of it's description seems to be some kind of time travel device for audio waves? Pretty cool sounding for sure, unless it's snake oil in a different form factor...

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