Got to here these today at the Nashville meet.

In my humble opinion, they're the real deal.  Very fast, clear, and detailed without being harsh or aggressive.

I think they go toe-to-toe with the HD800s.  I don't have the expertise to distinguish which is technically better, but I enjoyed the Ether a bit more.

Listened via the Woo Audio WA5, a couple of Cavalli amps (Carbon and Crimson), as well as the Yggy/Rag.

Looking forward to seeing more of these in the wild...

Modded HD800 from a better amp is technically better. Myself and some others spent a good chuck of time comparing mine versus the best cherry picked Ether that could be found via balanced using the Liquid Crimson and Resolution Cantata. Compared to that sample, the tonality between the two was almost identical. That was the biggest surprise and the overall clarity was similar as well. The main difference was in maintaining the speed and imaging from the mids down. The 800 still had better strings, air, and bass transients and resolution where the Ether's bass was comparatively slower and more congested and pronounced. One person said they preferred the bloomier bass effect but that's simply not accurate. They said they liked having bass that was more diffuse because that's the kind of concerts they attend. Whatever, studios don't sound like that and neither do my reference tracks. I'd also need to know how well they scale using my reference rig versus an 800. Though we were already hearing differences so doubt it would be able to ultimately keep up the pace if one is chasing the upstream demon.

Overall, the Ether is simply Dan's best phone yet. However, we heard 3-4 samples and not all were of the same performance. So which will people receive? No idea. Also I's like to think people are getting their HD800's for $900-$1200 so I'd like the Ether to match or exceed that value proposition quite a bit. A $699-$799 MSRP would be pure win and an easy recommendation for me, but I'm a cheap bastard and others have a right to charge and pay whatever they like.

I agree with you that Ether is fast, clear, open. Absolutely understand why you enjoy the Ether more given that I am not a huge fan of the stock HD800. Ether has a lot similarities with the HD800. Both on the bright side, but Ether's response curve seems more even. Stock HD800 FR just seems wonky.

Ether's main weakness seems to be in the bass. Tried on a lot of amps from Rag to my 2A3 custom and seems to lack heft and texture in the bass. Not the worse bass, but not the best either.

Ether's main weakness seems to be in the bass. Tried on a lot of amps from Rag to my 2A3 custom and seems to lack heft and texture in the bass. Not the worse bass, but not the best either.

Bass extension seemed a bit lacking as well, based on the samples I heard at CanJam. A/B'ing with an LCD-3 off the Rag, it was quite noticeable.

Despite the HD800 having better technicalities, I do wonder if the Ether would be a better choice for people who want more of a plug and play headphone. The Ether's stock tonality was appealing to me. Kudos to Dan for a nice design - light and comfortable for a planar. I do wish it was cheaper though...$1K would be a far easier recommendation.

I don't know if MrSpeakers is the best at pricing stuff. He did price the Alpha Prime at $999...

I don't know if MrSpeakers is the best at pricing stuff. He did price the Alpha Prime at $999...

$150 MSRP