[Pashmeister]

I wonder how will the heat dissipate when the chassis is closed without any gaps? Either the surface will get hot like a frying pan or the power gets castrated.

i found in one dedicated h26 thread here that one person found the heat to be fine — his dap was warmer in fact. Looks like it does go into class AB mode at high power but unknown at what point that happens.

 

[rangerid]

Since we are on the discussion on cables related to susvara. Assuming people have a very high end setup. What other kind of cables did you see make a difference and by your own subjective opinion , what percentage or rating would you give each?.

1. Power cables
2. Interconnects
3. Headphone cables.

Which one of the cables would make the most noticible difference?

Please note, this poll is purely based on your experience or opinion. I do not want any arguments or trolling on this.

Thankyou.

I have almost as much invested in power components/cords as actual components. Highly highly underrated part of hifi. I'd say that order you listed is in order of importance power cable >>> interconnect > headphone cables. You can significantly tune & improve a system with power cables, especially summit fi ones. I have a highly revealing system and I can create transducer/headphone level changes by switching where a power cords is placed on which component.

Power related I'd say though a power conditioner is much more important and should be prioritized before individual power cords on a component, it's sort of a "rising tides raises all ships" kind of deal. The power cord going into the conditioner is by far the most important one in a system and where you should upgrade first.

 

[audionewbie123]

Power related I'd say though a power conditioner is much more important and should be prioritized before individual power cords on a component, it's sort of a "rising tides raises all ships" kind of deal. The power cord going into the conditioner is by far the most important one in a system and where you should upgrade first.

I can get the lampizator power distribution krafrwerk/silk. would you recommend it?

 

[rangerid]

I can get the lampizator power distribution krafrwerk/silk. would you recommend it?

I'm familiar with Lampizator DACs but not their power products. In general I highly recommend getting a demo for power conditioners, even moreso than any other component, like a DAC or Amp. The right fit in your system can take sound to levels unimagined, the rising wave, but the wrong synergy can just as easily ruin everything, a crashing wave lol, speaking from experience...

 

[MN8372]

As has been said by many on here, it’s amazing how the Susvara scales with better gear. Previously I thought the gap between the ZMF Caldera and Susvara was not that big with the Calderas playing in the same tier. But ever since I got my 300B tube pre-amp a month ago (running into my CFA3 amp) the gap has opened up quite a bit. The Calderas are still a great headphone (and fantastic value for money with a more elevated mid-bass). They look cool too. But in every other respect I now prefer the Susvara. Much more transparent and holographic. Much bigger soundstage. More detail and spatial cues (particularly noticeable with live recordings). Great sub-bass. Mid-bass less elevated but tighter (and doesn’t impose on the midrange as much as the Calderas). And I’ve lost the slightly brittle/etherreal nature that I never fully jived with (the so called “Hifiman sound” that stopped me from falling in love with my old HEKSE headphones). It’s just an incredibly evenly poised fine musical instrument with the perfect level of solidity for my taste. YMMV and all that.

I had been thinking that my next move was to buy another pair of headphones to add to the collection. I’m ditching that plan and going to go all in on optimising my current chain.

 

[OCC7N]

As has been said by many on here, it’s amazing how the Susvara scales with better gear. Previously I thought the gap between the ZMF Caldera and Susvara was not that big with the Calderas playing in the same tier. But ever since I got my 300B tube pre-amp a month ago (running into my CFA3 amp) the gap has opened up quite a bit. The Calderas are still a great headphone (and fantastic value for money with a more elevated mid-bass). They look cool too. But in every other respect I now prefer the Susvara. Much more transparent and holographic. Much bigger soundstage. More detail and spatial cues (particularly noticeable with live recordings). Great sub-bass. Mid-bass less elevated but tighter (and doesn’t impose on the midrange as much as the Calderas). And I’ve lost the slightly brittle/etherreal nature that I never fully jived with (the so called “Hifiman sound” that stopped me from falling in love with my old HEKSE headphones). It’s just an incredibly evenly poised fine musical instrument with the perfect level of solidity for my taste. YMMV and all that.

I had been thinking that my next move was to buy another pair of headphones to add to the collection. I’m ditching that plan and going to go all in on optimising my current chain.

1. Start with the source. If you running ATX PSU. Get the Corsair AX1600i without any hesitation. This upgrade is not small from Corsair RM750. It’s another server after this. All your audiophile cards will get a bump up. This ATX/PSU is so good I recommend you to shut off the LPSU for the NET XE and use the internal molex to start with. I have custom ghent cables to connect to the DC port from the Corsair AX.

2. Get a motherboard that has more CPU connected slots for all audiophile cards and use it. If you only have NET XE. GPU slot is fine and you dont need another mobo, unless you are depended on NVME quality of system/files. The first one is usually connected to CPU, but not the second on the cheaper boards.

Trust me 3 months breakin time….you are flying

 

[Malcyg]

As has been said by many on here, it’s amazing how the Susvara scales with better gear. Previously I thought the gap between the ZMF Caldera and Susvara was not that big with the Calderas playing in the same tier. But ever since I got my 300B tube pre-amp a month ago (running into my CFA3 amp) the gap has opened up quite a bit. The Calderas are still a great headphone (and fantastic value for money with a more elevated mid-bass). They look cool too. But in every other respect I now prefer the Susvara. Much more transparent and holographic. Much bigger soundstage. More detail and spatial cues (particularly noticeable with live recordings). Great sub-bass. Mid-bass less elevated but tighter (and doesn’t impose on the midrange as much as the Calderas). And I’ve lost the slightly brittle/etherreal nature that I never fully jived with (the so called “Hifiman sound” that stopped me from falling in love with my old HEKSE headphones). It’s just an incredibly evenly poised fine musical instrument with the perfect level of solidity for my taste. YMMV and all that.

I had been thinking that my next move was to buy another pair of headphones to add to the collection. I’m ditching that plan and going to go all in on optimising my current chain.

That‘s the beauty - and frustration - of Susvara. For a long while, I knew it had more to give and was underperforming, but when you get there it’s wonderful. I’ve had mine 6 years now and have, on occasion in the past, thought of selling but am certainly very glad that I didn’t. It says a lot that Susvara has been around since, I think, 2017 and is still at the top end of the heap which is unusual in this day and age of periodic new releases and upgrades.

 

[AussieMick]

As has been said by many on here, it’s amazing how the Susvara scales with better gear. Previously I thought the gap between the ZMF Caldera and Susvara was not that big with the Calderas playing in the same tier. But ever since I got my 300B tube pre-amp a month ago (running into my CFA3 amp) the gap has opened up quite a bit. The Calderas are still a great headphone (and fantastic value for money with a more elevated mid-bass). They look cool too. But in every other respect I now prefer the Susvara. Much more transparent and holographic. Much bigger soundstage. More detail and spatial cues (particularly noticeable with live recordings). Great sub-bass. Mid-bass less elevated but tighter (and doesn’t impose on the midrange as much as the Calderas). And I’ve lost the slightly brittle/etherreal nature that I never fully jived with (the so called “Hifiman sound” that stopped me from falling in love with my old HEKSE headphones). It’s just an incredibly evenly poised fine musical instrument with the perfect level of solidity for my taste. YMMV and all that.

I had been thinking that my next move was to buy another pair of headphones to add to the collection. I’m ditching that plan and going to go all in on optimising my current chain.

Yep, there’s so much more to be gotten out of these top flight headphones than I suspect most of us ever hear. Headphones like Susvara and Utopia are too often dismissed as “picky” when all they’re doing is telling you exactly what’s happening upstream. I’ve read so many forum posts dismissing these two headphones in particular when they really long for a signal of much greater control and refinement. It’s a bit unfair to ask a $1500 amp to get the absolute best out of a $4000 headphone. I know more money doesn’t always equal more better, but there’s a certain case of getting what we pay for. Not to mention ever-better streamers and DACs that these ‘phones can really make worthwhile.
The headphone market is really starting to reach some kind of maturity at the moment and we can look forward to better to come. We’re entering a bit of a golden age for digital, I reckon.
Keep upgrading everything else over time and the Susvara will reward. Remove as much electrical noise as possible, get the amplifier pairing you really love, then keep working on DAC and streamer. Endlessly!

 

[theveterans]

You’ll never get bored upgrading incrementally every year with Susvara and enjoying new musics in new heights

 

[Leporello]

Keep upgrading everything else over time and the Susvara will reward. Remove as much electrical noise as possible, get the amplifier pairing you really love, then keep working on DAC and streamer. Endlessly!

Hardly. Acoustical transducers - no matter how high end - will inevitably be the bottleneck in any system. I understand the idea of 'scalability' makes many enthusiasts feel better about their chosen headphones (it is related to the 'amp-upmanship' mentioned earlier in the thread). However, the sad truth is that even the best headphones reproduce the source signal rather poorly compared with the electronics of the system.

 

[jlemaster1957]

Yep, there’s so much more to be gotten out of these top flight headphones than I suspect most of us ever hear. Headphones like Susvara and Utopia are too often dismissed as “picky” when all they’re doing is telling you exactly what’s happening upstream. I’ve read so many forum posts dismissing these two headphones in particular when they really long for a signal of much greater control and refinement. It’s a bit unfair to ask a $1500 amp to get the absolute best out of a $4000 headphone. I know more money doesn’t always equal more better, but there’s a certain case of getting what we pay for. Not to mention ever-better streamers and DACs that these ‘phones can really make worthwhile.
The headphone market is really starting to reach some kind of maturity at the moment and we can look forward to better to come. We’re entering a bit of a golden age for digital, I reckon.
Keep upgrading everything else over time and the Susvara will reward. Remove as much electrical noise as possible, get the amplifier pairing you really love, then keep working on DAC and streamer. Endlessly!

Looking for speaker amp advice vis-à-vis driving Susvara (not specifically from @AussieMick, also from other thread regulars/Sus owners).

As I’ve noted before, my current driver chain for Susvaras is Roon (from a dedicated Mac-Air, eventually will replace with a Sonore server when it dies)-> Sonore Optical Rendu->Yggdrasil OG->Burson 3XGT 2023 + SPO2 powermodule. Power is from a dedicated line and power is clean/adequately conditioned IMO). SQ for Sus on this chain is good, bass is textured and impactful, mids/treble are smooth but detailed. Blackground is good. Soundstage and imaging are good/not great- images for the most part float just in front of me. More expansive soundstage is my main goal for changes in the chain

Plan is to add a Freya+ with upgraded matched gain tubes, eg. Tungsol VT-231, Redbase 5692s- this Spring.

Question here is re : speaker amp: I have strongly considered AHB2, which most reviewers report as having great dynamics, imaging and detail retrieval and that other elements of coloration will be transmitted faithfully from DAC/pre-amp, and to pair will with Sus. Some report mids/lower treble thin and lifeless (though most also stat that this is probably attributable in most circumstances to other elements upstream in the chain especially DAC/pre-amp used). I will be using in the context of middle/high gain setting on AHB2, and using an NL4-XLR cable out. Alternately to Freya+ (when solid state pre-amp is preferred) I’ll use the 3xGT as a preamp, which has pre-outs. Cost of AHB2 new is $3500 USD (probably I’d buy new so I could use the 30-day return if I don’t like what I'm hearing).

The alternative is a pair of Schiit Aegir monoblocks, cost new from Schiit currently (as they are being discontinued) is $1400/pair. Reviewers find the Aegir monos similar to Class A “lit from within” sound re mids/treble with good bass extension/texture/impact, i.e. mids and treble tonality is good. Dynamics, imaging and clarity will likely be not QUITE as good as AHB2. I have seen the SineCraft and NewRecordDay YTs on this, so I know it's been done for Susvaras.

I’m not picking up any big difference of reviewer opinion for the 2 alternatives (AHB2 vs Aegirs) on soundstage — most that I am reading report that both AHB2 and Aegirs transmit that which is fed to them upstream from the rest of the chain, and that this also applies to staging information.

I don’t yet have funds available to purchase the AHB2 now, I’d need to save up for that. The Aegirs I could afford, BUT will soon be unavailable from Schiit as they are being phased out, and thus may have good resale value once they are gone (plus there is the 15 day return window to Schiit IIRC). If I do not purchase Aegir monos, the AHB2 is (obviously) not the only option for alternatives- I realize there are many other speaker amps out there that may drive Susvaras very well as well as alternative HP amps eg. CFA3. If I let the Aegirs go, there will be plenty of time/opportunity to read up on other options while I am saving up.

Consider too that my budget ceiling for alternatives is $4k (I know there are many other options in the $8-15K region). Thoughts?

 

[theveterans]

Me personally, I'd take a SET amp over SS anyday for $1500. Makes Susvara sound like a grand concert-hall with its spooky mids and vocals but I know many people would want to get hit like a freight train with a $1500 SS than the jaw-dropping soundstage/layering/imaging of a $1500 SET amp

 

[BillinSF]

Looking for speaker amp advice vis-à-vis driving Susvara (not specifically from @AussieMick, also from other thread regulars/Sus owners).

As I’ve noted before, my current driver chain for Susvaras is Roon (from a dedicated Mac-Air, eventually will replace with a Sonore server when it dies)-> Sonore Optical Rendu->Yggdrasil OG->Burson 3XGT 2023 + SPO2 powermodule. Power is from a dedicated line and power is clean/adequately conditioned IMO). SQ for Sus on this chain is good, bass is textured and impactful, mids/treble are smooth but detailed. Blackground is good. Soundstage and imaging are good/not great- images for the most part float just in front of me. More expansive soundstage is my main goal for changes in the chain

Plan is to add a Freya+ with upgraded matched gain tubes, eg. Tungsol VT-231, Redbase 5692s- this Spring.

Question here is re : speaker amp: I have strongly considered AHB2, which most reviewers report as having great dynamics, imaging and detail retrieval and that other elements of coloration will be transmitted faithfully from DAC/pre-amp, and to pair will with Sus. Some report mids/lower treble thin and lifeless (though most also stat that this is probably attributable in most circumstances to other elements upstream in the chain especially DAC/pre-amp used). I will be using in the context of middle/high gain setting on AHB2, and using an NL4-XLR cable out. Alternately to Freya+ (when solid state pre-amp is preferred) I’ll use the 3xGT as a preamp, which has pre-outs. Cost of AHB2 new is $3500 USD (probably I’d buy new so I could use the 30-day return if I don’t like what I'm hearing).

The alternative is a pair of Schiit Aegir monoblocks, cost new from Schiit currently (as they are being discontinued) is $1400/pair. Reviewers find the Aegir monos similar to Class A “lit from within” sound re mids/treble with good bass extension/texture/impact, i.e. mids and treble tonality is good. Dynamics, imaging and clarity will likely be not QUITE as good as AHB2. I have seen the SineCraft and NewRecordDay YTs on this, so I know it's been done for Susvaras.

I’m not picking up any big difference of reviewer opinion for the 2 alternatives (AHB2 vs Aegirs) on soundstage — most that I am reading report that both AHB2 and Aegirs transmit that which is fed to them upstream from the rest of the chain, and that this also applies to staging information.

I don’t yet have funds available to purchase the AHB2 now, I’d need to save up for that. The Aegirs I could afford, BUT will soon be unavailable from Schiit as they are being phased out, and thus may have good resale value once they are gone (plus there is the 15 day return window to Schiit IIRC). If I do not purchase Aegir monos, the AHB2 is (obviously) not the only option for alternatives- I realize there are many other speaker amps out there that may drive Susvaras very well as well as alternative HP amps eg. CFA3. If I let the Aegirs go, there will be plenty of time/opportunity to read up on other options while I am saving up.

Consider too that my budget ceiling for alternatives is $4k (I know there are many other options in the $8-15K region). Thoughts?

FWIW I am very happy with AHB2 and use it with tube amp (Woo WA22) and SS amp (Ifi iCan), both as pre-amps. I am very happy in each configuartion. I tube pre-amp for jazzier tunes and my precious 1970's soul music.

 

[rwelles]

Hardly. Acoustical transducers - no matter how high end - will inevitably be the bottleneck in any system. I understand the idea of 'scalability' makes many enthusiasts feel better about their chosen headphones (it is related to the 'amp-upmanship' mentioned earlier in the thread). However, the sad truth is that even the best headphones reproduce the source signal rather poorly compared with the electronics of the system.

I fully agree that acoustic transducers are the bottleneck in any system. However, that does not negate the fact that making improvements to the electronics can make improvements if the transducer is of a high enough caliber. I certainly find that the improvements I've made in the electronics since getting the Susvara have in fact improved what I'm hearing.

@Leporello. out of curiosity, what electronics have you used when listening to the Susvara?

 

[Leporello]

@Leporello. out of curiosity, what electronics have you used when listening to the Susvara?

None. In fact, I have not even seen the Susvara.