Spirit Torino Radiante Ragnarr Professional Edition

Lets get right into this... I am Italian- and these headphones are from Italy. BUT I promise there is no allegiance or preference given here due to my heritage at all. I am 100% unbiased as in all my reviews- I will tell you as I see's it or in this case hears it. But lets get real... The Italians typically are known for many great things on our planet after all...awesome food, beautiful architecture, beautiful paintings/sculptures, amazing super cars sought after and lusted after the world over, beautiful fashion, to name just a few and well of course... beautiful audio gear. Think Unison Research, Sonus Faber, Zingali Acoustics and Pathos... gorgeous looks and what really counts... amazing sound. With the Spirit Sound Designs company they certainly do continue this tradition.

The review today is for the specialized Spirit Torino Radiant Ragnarr Professional Edition. A solid milled aluminum cup system accented by all leather hand stitched headband. These are a closed back designed with a passive radiator driver on the exterior of the cup- featuring a rubber surround accented with a star pattern. The radiator adds to both beauty and functionality of the unique bass sound signature. The laser etched engraving of the double dragon (Viking King) is part of the Ragnar Edition and the wiring is part of the Professional Series denotation - a specialized high end company (Portento Audio) from Italy supplies the high purity silver wire which is directly soldered to the drivers and the cable without removable connectors usually found on the non professional series- you can order them either way. This is is a highly customizable headphone design in many ways but lets talk sound...

Bass is written in the DNA of Radiante’s signature. Depending on the track you are playing -It is sometimes overpowering but always controlled. The bass sits above everything else in most recordings- with sub-bass playing a prominent part, with peak volume around 30 Hz and a slight decrease at 20 Hz. This bass domination leads one to think this a slightly dark sound signature but it hardly dark at some ranges of the upper mid and highs... Bass is large, relentless, rich, detailed... It is a basshead’s wet dream. I think of a live event standing next to studio monitors at the club or venue. Some Tracks such as House of God by Chris Cowie are amazing as they make you feel transported to the live event at the club. It’s massive experience few if any headphones I know of can match. Spirit Torino goal of achieving the impact of a live event is unchallenged. For me the mids are not really suffering here because it is not leaking over the mids. In the Torino it does not suffocate the mids like some other dynamic drivers HP's tend to do when they try to re-create tons of bass . Bass stays well-controlled and lets midrange blend naturally. Detail and layering is present and really a breath of fresh air and openness for such a closed back headphone. Stage surrounds my head nicely - probably due to the design around the ear cups and synergy of the driver and customizable tuning but we will get into that further...
From the manufacture web site: "The motor of a Spirit headphone could only be exceptional, the basic unit is made to our specifications by driver wizard Jaco Burger and then prepared at the Spirit lab depending on the intended use, with a series of vibration damping, ventilation parameters variation and magnetic enhancement.
The optimization of the aerodynamic flows and the elaborate composite structure make it possible to reproduce the musical message with extreme timbre fidelity."

Shown above is multiple vent holes found on the open back versions- my version/closed back came with only one vent hole (see image below)- a new design for the Torino Radiante Ragnarr Professional. The variable ventilation system is used in the Spirit range. This system has two distinct purposes- one to increase soundstage outside your head and to control bass. By covering the hole- bass can increase even more! I preferred it left in stock mode but its nice to know it gets even crazier if one prefers...

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CABLING​

Different cables for different fields of application. The Standard and Torino 1706 fittings include detachable cables made in collaboration with Portento Audio that combine lightness and flexibility.
All the termination standards on the market are available and it is possible to choose a double section version to improve performance with high current amplifiers.
Detachable cables can be configured to further customize the sound signature.

• standard cable: OFC copper designed for mobility, supplied as standard equipment.
• double section cable: OFC copper for greater control of the low range with current amplifiers
• copper/silver cable: silver-plated copper for more openness in high range sound and high definition
• double section copper/silver cable: for uncompromising listening, dedicated to high-end amplifiers

The Ragnarr version and all Twin Pulse units, on the other hand, feature uncompromising silver wiring directly soldered on the drive, avoiding two soldering points and one contact point for optimum current transfer.
The wiring includes a 4 strand braid of coaxial cable of quadruple cross-section compared to the one usually used in headphones.
Connectors and sleeves of the highest quality complete a high-end construction that will last over time.

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PADS DEVELOPED WITH DEKONI​

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In a headphone, the pad has a fundamental function because it delimits the chamber in which the sound takes shape to reach our ear, but it is also the element of contact with our head, so its design must take into account technical/acoustic and comfort aspects. Spirit Pads are made with a combination of fine leather and Alcantara to offer breathability and comfort. Each pad also includes a careful study of the pressure relief flow channeling to make the driver workload symmetrical in compression and decompression of the chambers. This is a new design feature updated now in the line up.​

UNIQUE TUNING SYSTEM:
The headphone comes with a rotate-able soft felt die cut pad that fits in the headphone after removing the ear pads. I prefer it installed and rotated so all holes are in unobstructed view as opposed to slightly rotating the felt disc to covering the metal underneath. For me-the the non-blocking one to sound best, as the other one places a larger emphasis on upper midrange and slightly veiled at other frequencies.



Bottom Line: The Spirit Torino Radiant Ragnarr Professional is a unique collector headphone in my opinion, a headphone so unique in it's unparalleled aluminum construction of the ear cups and laser engraving, the hand stitched headband made of soft Italian leather and real genuine suede - a headphone so well made in fact I dare to say it is a statement in it's own right and worthy of a purchase as functional art. While it is built like a tank, it falls a little short for me on sound for the asking price. I might suggest the company Spirit Sound Designs spend less on whats in the box and even the box itself. The well crated wooden box must cost a small fortune to make. And the included box is so heavy, I can imagine shipping costs are very high to ship such a heavy large box. Why? The included box is just a place to store the headphones for shipping, not really a display box of sorts- not here anyway. It's not functional for carrying around either. As a comparison- the portable pelican box like the one I received with my Gold Planar GL2000's is everything every single manufacturer should ship their precious headphones in. Why? Its all the things a person wants: cheap, light sturdy, portable functional and wicked cool to boot. The GL2000 includes a carry case and shipping case that is so so light and functional after the shipment. I get it every unboxing should be special and the Spirit Torino Radiant Ragnarr is just that, a very special unboxing experience. But keep the costs down if it's not adding anything to after the sale.-eliminate that heavy useless box please! Ok- lets keep going on how to make the Spirit Torino Radiant Ragnarr even cheaper- by eliminating the included USB drive card, while unique and very generous by offering Spirit's own wonderful high resolution (FLAC/DSD) recordings and instruction manual all on one USB card- that card must cost something- eliminate that card and put everything on line for owners to register their headphones and receive after ownership. Next way to cut the price to keep these headphones more competitive- offer a plain all copper 6nocc cable that is not mircophonic and not by some super high end company like Portento Audio. To be clear- Spirit includes the craziest wire with the Professional Raggnar- I get it its their top model. But even with their base models the cable is made by the same crazy high end same Portento Audio. Offer the other high end cable separately as an option. Enough about keeping costs down or the box... bottom line I put the Spirit up against the closed back of my own personal dreams. My Kennerton Gjallarhorn GH50JM Edition that I tuned myself which you can read about in this link and that eventually went into full production after the tuning... this is my end all be all favorite HP so far- and I say that very sincerely and with a lot of thought through my many many years of listening (to IEM's, conventional over ear dynamic, electrostatic and or planar drivers, and of course even to speakers).

I know it may not be fair for me to say ' keep the costs down', 'do this' or 'do that' so more people can enjoy the Spirit Torino hard hitting bass juggernaut of a headphone with few if any peers in that relm- how dare I suggest Spirit cut corners. Ok maybe I am wrong... but I wish they were in the $1500-1800 at most- then I would say worth it 100% but based on price alone I have to be honest and shaved one star (half) off for the price vs performance and practicality.
If deciding to EQ these headphones, they compete with open backs on soundstage, imaging, separation, and clarity. If not, you really would only need these if you enjoy bass heavy music. These are the undisputed kings of heavy drums and heavy bass like metal, edm and organic bass drums and guitars- which is a resounding win in my book. If I leave you with one impression, I will certainly miss the Spirit Torino Radiant Ragnarr Professional when it ships from my home back to the distributor. It's a like a beautiful sports car - like a Ferrari- not really all that practical for everyday driving - but a truly once in a lifetime kind of experience to drive, very memorable, a show stopper and a collectors piece. Recommended for all of that and more. -JM

ABOUT ME:
So you know, I have 3 systems at my home- my speakers are Vandersteen 3a Signatures, Magnepan 3.6r and my desk top system which uses SEAS drivers in custom D'Appolito configuration.
I edit videos and film on location for professionals- I mix sound for a living occasionally after I film them in person- sometimes I am handed tracks that are terrible masters but am asked to make videos from them without re-mastering the sound. My IMDB page is https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8127846/
I am not a flake or hard of hearing at all-I get sound tested by my doctor each year or two. I grew up with sound engineers in the studio who were mixing albums at The Mix Palace and Platinum Sound Recording and The Power Station, Electric Lady Studios Studios in NY to name a few. When I like something I will review it such as the Kennerton headphones I reviewed on head-fi before. If I take the time to review something it has to be meaningful- it must have moved me and compelled me to do so- I do not get paid for any reviews. I do this because I care to set the record straight on what I hear and how I felt about a particular piece of equipment.