Not a chemistry expert so please correct me if I am wrong, isn't silver suppose to react more easly with air producing a silver sulfide layer which can "potentially" degrade the long term performance of the planar drivers, fyi, gold dont have this issue, in cables I understand silver is inside...

Even if Susvara prices comes down which I expect, but to sound good it has specific amp requirement which will eventually bring up the cost more.

Yup, I suggest an audition first before pulling the trigger, if you can visit a Canjam near your city they should have these and many more gears.

HE1000SE + BF3 or Soekris DAC2541 + MJ3, Hifiman planars pairs very well with R2R DACs.

I see that you also own the Caldera, if you can do a comparison with the SE will be great!

Thanks both of you for your impressions this is just what I wanted to hear, the headphone I mostly use with my V550 is HE1000 SE (not a greatly dynamic h/p but not too poor either) and V550 is hooked to my Spring 3, as of now exclusively using NOS mode which is possibly bit softer for some...

Other than the use case above for everthing else though I like HekSE more, I may try the ZMF HE series earpads which is supposed to give more mid bass attack to the HE1000 series.

This is bugging me a bit, so is the V550 bit less dynamic than other headamps in its price tier, in WaveTheory's review below he says it is more polite and less dynamic (in comparison to V281), is it only because V281 is more dynamic, not because V550 is less dynamic, folks who have compared...

In my system I like the LCD-X (2021) more than HekSE for not so greatly recorded / mastered rock / metal (which are quite a lot), for well recorded stuffs the HeKSE is probably better because the better imaging and separation comes across more than LCD+X, LCD-X is hands down more dynamic than HekSE.

Heard good things about Soekris dac2541, R2R tech so imaging and layering should be better than Topping but said to be on neutral side.

I know but not sure though if planar tech can bring more advancement in the price range of HeKSE, particulary the resolution aspect which is the usp of HekSE, hope to be proven wrong.

At $2999 (hp+energizer) Is the ShangriaLa Mini going to be successor to the HekSE.

The higher price maybe because they are factoring in higher repair rate because of the open driver, and since it's silver it's not too expensive considering the typical lifetime of a top tier headphone, it does make business sense from Hifiman's perspective.

Many said Susvara lacked dynamics, maybe this fixes that.

Susvara Unveiled, unveiled 🙂 https://www.head-fi.org/threads/new-hifiman-susvara-unveiled.973067/#post-18157672

Because of Silver it may be bit more efficient though.

Now it comes with a cover, not sure if people will like it. also Silver oxidize more easily, will this effect long term durability? is the diaphragm coated by some other material.

No gold diaphragm so will it be a cheaper Susvara?

Found the link in Susvara thread (use google translate). https://weibo.com/u/1905697204

Which forum? My hunch is they may introduce 2 new models, one to bridge the gap between HekSE and Sus and the other successor to Sus, they have to as the market is brutal right now they can't keep reducing the price endlessly as that will affect their brand value.

In this link it is $1699, though the actual product page is still $1999, looks like they are in the process of updating it. https://store.hifiman.com/clearance-sales

I purchase a final sale Focal Clear from headphones.com, when I asked them they said return is possible in case of manufacturing defect but not for any other reasons.

This is unreal, I guess this price will be the norm soon going by past Hifirman pricing strategy.

I think it's not just the power the Vio is just a better amp with higher quality design and components.

Hifiman HE1000 series pairs well with R2R.