[eric65]

Hi all.

Personal ranking of headphones of @isquirrel on head-fi:
1. Abyss Phi TC
2. Kennerton Thror with special stabilised Karelian birch
3. Hi-FiMan Susvara (sounds great, built like a toy)
4. LCD-24 (preferred to LCD4 and 4Z).

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/audeze-lcd-4z-impressions-thread.876943/page-93#post-15369461

My personal ranking is:

1. Kennerton Thekk, wooden cups with special stabilised Karelian birch, cabled with the Kennerton Custom Litz cable.
2. Kennerton Thror in bog Oak, almost on par with the Thekk, with for the Thror an excellent precision, precise layered spatialization, good neutrality and aeration ; but the fuller sound of the Thekk, with a higher bass SPL level than the Thror (also with more impact) and a high-mids (3-3.5 KHz) less emphasized than the Thror, and a better dynamic, while remaining very precise, detailed and natural pleases me more.
3. Kennerton Odin mk2 in natural Karelian birch ; very good for rock, but less listened to since I have the Thekk. Thekk is above Odin mk2 for precision, and for tone, more balanced, more natural and true.
4. Kennerton Magni.
5. Kennerton Vali (Old Vali).

 

[Bergamot]

5. Kennerton Vali (Old Vali).

Hi.
Do you like new version Vali?

 

[eric65]

Hi.
Do you like new version Vali?

Hi Gold !

As far as I know, no one has yet been able to listen to the New Vali in France; only Russians and Americans so far.

A few years ago I had, on loan, the old Vali which I could compare to the Odin mk1. At that time, I prefered the Odin mk1 to Vali for the more detailed and fine sound.

William Murdock seems to have described the main differences between the old and the new Vali ; this is my main element of comparison so far.

 

[Arcamera]

Eric, can you remind me: how is the treble/top end between the Thekk and the Thror?

 

[eric65]

Eric, can you remind me: how is the treble/top end between the Thekk and the Thror?

Hi Andrew.

Thekk versus Thror.

Treble is soft and fine for the two headphones, not analytical, less present and rough than the treble of the Odin mk2 and mk1 (more present), but:

. Upper mids (3-3.5 KHz) are less emphasized with the Thekk.

. Top : both headphones have a small narrow peak (around 4-5 dB) in the upper treble around 8-9 KHz (ssss more emphasized if they are present on the recording).
This small narrow peak is more easily audible with the Thekk than the Thror, perhaps due to the fact that the Thror also has a presence peak (around 3-4 dB) in the upper mids around 3-3.5 KHz, that the Thekk does not have.

The sound of Thekk is full and whole; it would be almost perfect if it wasn't for that little accent at 8-9 KHz.

The sound of the Thror, although very precise, and fairly neutral (not very colorful), is a little less full and whole than that of Thekk; it would be almost perfect, if it weren't for this little accent at 3-3.5 KHz (in the upper mids) and at 8-9 KHz (in the upper treble) and a slight lack of presence in the bass, of around 2-3 dB (corrected by the Thekk for bass and also the upper-mids).

Use a neutral, dynamic, and transparent cable, but wich not emphasizing the treble; Kennerton's Custom Litz cable work well with the Thekk ; it is better than the Stock cable (because more qualitative for the build, and for the sound, more transparent and even more neutral and dynamic).

 

[Arcamera]

Great, thanks. On the limited edition note, this one is a beauty:

 

[Strayngs]

Anybody know where Kennerton parts can be found. I need to buy new yokes. I got too aggressive trying to adjust clamping force.

 

[Arcamera]

 

[eric65]

Great, thanks. On the limited edition note, this one is a beauty:

https://kennerton.com/shop/thekk-bog-oak-karelian-birch/

WOW, great !

it's a bit more expensive than the serial Thekk, because they had to cannibalize 3 Thekk headphones to achieve this result.

Congratulations to Kennerton's chief designer!
Both original, amazing and beautiful.

 

[Arcamera]

Anybody know where Kennerton parts can be found. I need to buy new yokes. I got too aggressive trying to adjust clamping force

Whoa! :-O

 

[eric65]

Anybody know where Kennerton parts can be found. I need to buy new yokes. I got too aggressive trying to adjust clamping force.

Request an arrangement with @VKazanzhi (pm) or to the Kennerton website (official) or in Facebook.

It has happened to me before with a headphones Kennerton; the height adjustment arms, made of aluminum alloy, are brittle (do not twist them) ; to reduce clamping, only twist the two steel blades of the primary hoop (after unhooking the secondary suspension band).

 

[Strayngs]

Request an arrangement with @VKazanzhi (pm) or to the Kennerton website (official) or in Facebook.

It has happened to me before with a headphones Kennerton; the height adjustment arms, made of aluminum alloy, are brittle (do not twist them) ; to reduce clamping, only twist the two steel blades of the primary hoop (after unhooking the secondary suspension band).

Thanks man. As usual you are a wealth of information.

 

[Bergamot]

Hi Gold !

As far as I know, no one has yet been able to listen to the New Vali in France; only Russians and Americans so far.

A few years ago I had, on loan, the old Vali which I could compare to the Odin mk1. At that time, I prefered the Odin mk1 to Vali for the more detailed and fine sound.

William Murdock seems to have described the main differences between the old and the new Vali ; this is my main element of comparison so far.

Thank you very much, Eric! I listen my 2019 from DAP FiiO M11(560mvt/32 ohm) on balance and with custom cord 4.4 I Do not want to make hasty conclusions, but it also seemed to me that the bass of the new Vali is less structured, angry if appropriate. I don't have a desktop setup for a long time and maybe they just don't have enough gain. So I'm not saying anything, just observations. Though old Vali at me also were connected to a DAP Cayin N6(in addition to my then desktop setup) and then I all the same did not hear such handwriting. Too many questions. Have a nice day!

 

[eric65]

Good morning, everyone,

And Merry Christmas for tonight (while waiting for Orthodox Christmas in Russia, a little later).

For Gold , the new Vali is quite different from the old Vali; two different sound aesthetics; each should have its own audience.

Otherwise, nothing to do with Kennerton, except that I'm sure Hans Zimmer would like to listen to one of the many variations of Kennerton headphones for his rock (live) and classical (symphonic) concerts (nb: lend him a Vali, or an Odin, or a Thror and why not the latest Thekk "tricolor" in the picture above; I'm sure he would like, for a professional and personnal use, both the look and the sound).

I'm a fan of Zimmer (and also of Kennerton products, in case you haven't noticed it already ... ),

So, for our Russian friends, go and listen to the classical concert "The World Of Hans Zimmer - A Symphonic Celebration (Shows)" in Moscow or St Petersburg on February 6th and 8th 2020.

https://www.worldofhanszimmer.com/

(Note: for my part, I have already reserved a place for this symphonic concert in France, in the city of Lyon, for November 6, 2020; 80% of the places are already reserved !).

And for our American friends, you can watch this excellent Making-of of a preparation of a Live Concert of Zimmer in LA in April 2017, while waiting for his return in ... 2021.



Merry Christmas, with your favorite music and headphones.

... and may the odds be ever in your favor !

(Note : I'm a fan of the Hunger Games, too (see my avatar) ... )

Eric

 

[Bergamot]

For Gold , the new Vali is quite different from the old Vali

So they are different.)) From what I can hear well this is a very spacious and voluminous soundstage.
With all respect. I don't want to offend anyone, but I like Vali only on rock music and metal. For symphonic music it is better to buy isodynamic models from Kennerton.