hello,
as there are limited options to audition any kind of variety of cans in the Emerald City (Seattle), i took the opportunity to visit my beautiful baby sister in the Rose City (Portland) as i had found this list on Yelp:
http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=Headphones&find_loc=Portland%2C+ORplease note these are close to drive by impressions as i made my visits early afternoon on a Saturday (11 October 2014), when places are hoping to be busy and have the registers ringing. as i only had time to hit two places i chose the ones that indicated online the largest selection.
first stop:
Fred’s Sound of Music Audio Video (
http://fredsoundofmusic.com/)
this is a two channel store, i would hazard the guess that headfi is VERY far from their hearts. cans are hanging on a kiosk in a very inconvenient location for any kind of audition, serious or casual. the cans are wired into a dedicated source and it seemed a great inconvenience for the chap who helped me to unplug the two i asked to hear so i could drive them with the dedicated source i had with me. there is no real place to sit down and listen, so i ended up on the cash wrap in the front of the store stools more than likely intended for people making credit applications for their new home system purchase. like many audio salons there was a lot of background music playing, but it was at low enough volume to not totally ruin the audition. at least i was left alone without being greeted multiple times. i requested to audition Sennheiser HD 600 and a pair of Grado SR60e as i was advised "I can't take my whole display apart, so pick a couple to listen to" from the get go. after running though a playlist on the Senns, i went back to return them and noted that the Grado hadn't been unplugged from the display. the chap helping me advised that the two were in "very different leagues" but i got the distinct impression that he was basing his remark on the difference in retail, not really on the quality or virtues of the cans themselves. he did emphasize the notion, well known to Washingtonians, that Oregon has no VAT so buying headphones from his store would be a good idea. i never heard "What's it gonna take to get you into a pair of these headphones today?" but i would suggest that was only due to some form of restraint as this was, after all, a stereo store.
not a happy experience.
please note that i approached people on this adventure as being a low maintenance shopper. i was courteous and not demanding or rude. i tried to be as unobtrusive as possible and not request anything not readily on display to be opened (i originally was hoping to compare the HD600 and HD650, neither place had the latter on display although both had them in stock.)
last stop:
Echo Audio (
http://www.echohifi.com/)
this may very well be a two channel store, but they know how to display headfi in a welcoming and accommodating way. not far into the store there is a headphone bar with stools, dedicated sources and wonder of wonders the cans are hanging, cables untethered so you can plug them into whatever source you brought in with you. (i wouldn't be surprised if they wouldn't let you plug your own Schitt into mains if you had it with you.) the cans are zip tied onto hanging pegs, but their cables are there for the plugging and if you can't reach your source, the zip ties are cheerfully cut so you can. there are even adapters available if the cans are hardwired 1/4' and you have a portable device. the full line of Audeze are there to tes
t your neck muscles if you are so inclined, and a nice selection of Senns and Grados as well. plus some other cans such as the AKG Q701 (dig the green cable.)
staff is laid back, non-commission and helpful only if you need it, attentive and low keyed if you do.
a very happy experience and if i decide to dodge the Washington State VAT, i know where i will be spending my money.
(the only negative note on Echo Audio: it was mentioned that if i were to listen to the LCD2 i would need "Some sort of preamp." no explanation offered. (i did expose my [modest] portable rig then.) i mention this as when my time was getting short [metered parking] a rather handsome pair of 30 nothings came in and gravitated to the hi-Z Audezes without any mention of comparing them to the lower impedance models hanging nearby. a sin of omission, i think, although very early in the encounter.)
an update:
hello,
the whole family went to PDX for the Turkey Day weekend, and the GYTW and i got to sneak off to Echo Audio on Grey Saturday.
same experience as before: great folks, nice store, left alone to audition for about two hours.
was hoping that the GYTW would like the HD600's, no dice. however she liked the HD800's well enough even driven by my C5. the takeaway was rather surprising to me as she said if we were able to buy anything that day it would be the Q701's. and i have to say that i too enjoyed them more this time around than the HD600's. (good thing i joined Massdrop.
