I have 3 sets of speakers and 2 headphones (both SR-1a and CA-1a) with RAAL ribbons in them, and they all still work great, even considering that I bi-amp 2 of the sets of speakers with no crossovers in them and a few times cross-wired the bass output into the ribbons! (NOTE: I don't recommend...

I've personally been handling this via having multiple pre/amp setups to swing between "high accuracy" and "sweet (or mushy) goodness" ... or whatever one would call the second one, with of course many variations of "sound character" that could be had. My take is the the SR-1a/b is so far the...

I'm going to call out to @Aleksandar R. here to comment, as he assisted me with this in recent history, and defer to him to give the definitive comments, but will tell you the short answer version he told me. Basically, he told me that the glue holding on the grills is purposefully not...

To each their own, I use EQ myself. :) What do you mean "non-proprietary" EQ convolution file? Do you mean FIR filter tap set (i.e. linear phase filter) ? I haven't actually computed one yet, though been meaning to. I have a miniDSP Flex digital between the sources and the DAC/amp stack...

Indeed I've found I prefer the EQ in the digital domain for my SR-1a (and CA-1a) too. There are more options with how to do it when going digital. You could do it either with traditional digital EQ (which technically behaves somewhat like the analog EQ), or one could use Linear Phase filters...

As a comment on the power "required", I think it depends a lot on your average listening level. If you like quiet listening like myself, then a low-powered amp producing 1-ish watt at 16 or 32 Ohms is probably fine. Frankly I was using a 1 watt amp for my SR-1a with the old resistor interface...

I use at least 3 different stacks for fun and different sound (from "sweet/tubey" to "neutral" depending on my taste of the day), but my least expensive stack, the Schiit Modius/Magnius stack, currently available new for less than $450 new (plus shipping ... and get some cheap/short balanced...

I've tried out a sub with the SR-1a and it worked well. Without any compensation, depending on how far I was from the sub and which frequency I crossed over at, it could lead to a bit of lag in the bass region. To make it work "seamlessly", I'd cross over really low like 50 Hz or less, or...

I have noted that (IMO of course) my SR-1a edges out the CA-1a for ultimate clarity, though I'm pretty happy with having both of them, due to the CA-1a being more versatile in deployment, haha. But indeed the SR-1a still doesn't beat the best speakers, even with the problems that come with room...

As an early CA-1a owner who got the updated pads, I switched mine and it's very easy to swap. There is a tab on the top and a tab on the bottom that the plastic frame the pads are glued onto then fit in. You just slightly bend the plastic pad frame to pull it out of the tabs to remove, and...

Got my new pads as well. The different angle of mounting is a clear improvement, with both new sets having a more ... I guess I'd say "settled" or "stable" feel on my head, with no tendency to fold over.

It will absolutely work with any unbalanced output, you just need a converter cable from the standard headphone jack 6.35mm -> 4-pin XLR, like the following: 6.35mm male to 4-pin XLR male Amazon link. The basic rule is that you can always go from unbalanced output -> balanced input, but NOT...

Well, even before using EQ to try to make it hit the Harman Target, I very much noticed that un-EQ'd, the CA-1a has a real bit of bass "thump" that the SR-1a doesn't. Measurements I made between an SR-1a, CR-1a, and Hifiman HE-6se show the bass roll-off of the CR-1a is less and it has less...

Disclaimers: The usual + realize this was measured from the miniDSP EARS, which is *not* a professional calibrated headphone measuring methodology. I tried to deconvolve the EARS 4-5Khz phantom extra peak and account for some other subtle issues, but it ended up all being eyeballing it and...

I have compared a digital filter on a DEQ2496 (i.e. digital version of "standard EQ" style algorithm, not say an FIR linear phase filter) of the OB correction with the built-in filtering on the old resistor-based amp/ribbon interface box. Simple testing showed no discernable difference. Having...

On using a Harman Target curve as my EQ target: Summary: Using the Harman Target for me cleans up the sense of being able to hear at all volumes cleanly. More details: I had found that to differing extents all of my high-end headphones were ... I guess I'd say "shouty" or something similar...

Haha, yes, you got me. Previously I've taken some pro measurements from Audiosciencereview and some other sources for the SR-1a and Hifiman HE-6se and very roughly averaged them for EQ'ing to a Harman Target curve for each device. The results have considerably improved my listening experience...

I finally got a chance to do a decent EQ pass on my CA-1a. Important note: This is still using the current notch-in-the-front earpads. Will re-do when the final pads are received. Subjective summary: With the EQ using a DEQ2496 unit (all in digital domain), the CA-1a with the Schiit...

I'd noticed that but forgot to mention. Nice that you're narrowing in on those fine details!

To be clear, are both types of the final pads going to go to the existing CA-1a owners and go with the production CA-1a units coming soon?

Just received my CA-1a (which, FWIW, have the pre-production "extra notch" in the front of the earpads). Personally I rather like the semi-industrial look of it and the SR-1a unit too. It doesn't look or feel cheap to me at all. I also REALLY like how it fits on my head and the feel of the...

Ready to order a "naked" CA-1a whenever. Were there any left over for those of us willing to be early adopters? I already got my TI-1a... :wink:

As someone who regularly uses digital correction, they are more flexible than the analog implementation in general, and I personally like them. You can both implement near-exact copies of the analog filters and new types of filters not possible in analog. There are 2 basic "best" digital...

Oh no question the TI is far more flexible and opens up the range of available usability scenarios due to higher sensitivity. But we're audio geeks and I have the modded RI box left over, so there you go. Even if it does measure better (which I have no empirical evidence for at this time), I...

I admit to being kind of curious if there is still a marginal benefit in, say, phase coherence to the result. I.e. does it smooth out the response for the amp in some way. Human ears are notoriously terrible at detecting such things, but still curious. I'll probably do some measurements with...