I'll look at them, can you send me 4-5 DAC manufacturers that are worthy of Rognir?
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Kennerton ODIN, MAGISTER, VALI, Magni, Gjallarhorn, Rögnir, Thridi, Wodan, Thekk, and Thror Discussion.
- Thread starter bowei006
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Others can chip in on that, I'm sure. I only use Chord DACs. Probably I'll also get a Bakoon DAC at some point. Holo May I'm sure would be good.
If you want a simple option, just got for TT2.
dude120
100+ Head-Fier
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- Dec 11, 2010
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I felt pretty similarly till I tried the stealth with a CFA3. Its a pretty weird/polarizing headphone though.
Definitely prefer the rognir overall (better tonality, easy to drive) - but the stealth was impressive on a powerful amp.
Heard good things about CFA3 but impossible to demo, it seems. I did demo Stealth with TOTL gear (I think the amp was a Paltauf KHV-ESD II) but it wasn't for me. I kept turning the gain up to generate more dynamics, but none came. But as I say, if you want studio presentation, uncoloured, then I can see the appeal.
ChJL
500+ Head-Fier
So only a few month ago I had a small streamer, a Questyle 12 to a Clear OG and Magni.
Then I upgraded all of it within a few weeks and then I decided to try a planar, the (Dylan's) D8k pro.
Now as mentioned the Final kind of shed some light of truth on the OG and Magni.
So I can't see myself getting another HP that is not on the same level.
I'm NOT looking for more bass in per se but the HP has to be capable to show it "like a boss" when it's there.
Now the D8k pro upgraded my whole catalogue and my more emotional, deeper, sweeter tracks even more so!
So I'm out for one that handles the other spectrum...(same genres though)
Bass tuned RP with regular and ECL-03 pads that's what I'm thinking about as well.
cantcacheme
100+ Head-Fier
I listen to all sort of genres, from modern (rap ,pop,edm etc) to classical, acoustic, soundtrack, rocks etc.. this is why bass is important to me, but also technical capabilities are of high importance. Ideally Rognir would surpass D9200 (my current general-purpose closed back hp) in most categories, as it should given 3x price
This is a trait I value quite highly , already d8000 pro was quite fast to my ear. But yet I also enjoy the engagement factor of the D8000 pro. Perhaps you can't have it all ..
It funny how d8000 pro was supposed to be a studio 'pro' headphone .. but its more engaging then a headphone not designed for this role. I also heard that Stealth was comparable to LCD-5 in this regard, both neutral headphones which sacrifice enjoyment for harmon tuning . perhaps I should scratch stealth off my list, but then I see reviews raving about its insane detail performance.. lol
cantcacheme
100+ Head-Fier
I felt exact same way about D8000 Pro, fantastic resolution and detail but just so engaging .. absolutely destroyed Utopia in this regard imo
Though with how much Rognir cost I would hope it could be equally as engaging but perhaps more bass and detail ..
revolutionz
100+ Head-Fier
Could take a look at Burson's offerings, with changeable opamps and a massive amount of power these things can power any can out there and sound great doing it while being able to tailor the sound to your taste. I quite enjoy my Conductor 3R with my Rognir Dynamics, so much so that I bought their smaller Playmate 2 for one of my other setups. However, I'm not sure they play in the same arena as some of those other names, the Burson units are as high as I've gone with DAC/Amp setups. After owning the 3R I honestly stopped looking.
paradoxper
Headphoneus Supremus
I dislike Stealth quite a bit, however, it's very capable and you should keep it on your list and give it a trial and temper the hyperbole with your own experience.
In case anyone's interested, I have my Rognir Planars up for sale. I agree with the others in that it's a very engaging headphone 
I'm constantly tempted to change my mind, but gotta free up some space and resources 
I'm constantly tempted to change my mind, but gotta free up some space and resources 
Lickumms
500+ Head-Fier
This is going to be kind a hodgepodge of a comparison. I have been in an out of the Hospital for the last 2 months due to my health. Still not quite all here. So forgive me if I babble incoherently about something that doesn't make sense. I will also try to upload the Fequency Response charts of my headphones once I get a chance. I personally don't care about them but I know they are important to some.
Rognir: ECL-03 pads. Thror: ECL-02 pads. Final: Stock pads. Listened to all on my R8MK2 connected to my Master-9 which is then connected to a 3 way switcher for rapid headphone swapping.
The Rognir, Thror, and d8k Pro are pretty similar in overall performance. which is to be expected once you get into the Flagship market of headphones. The main differences will more-or-less come down to tuning.
I will do my best to explain the difference between them to the best of my ability. Though, I'm not great at this once the price of headphones gets this high. I figured, since bass seems to be the main thing people want to know about, and it is easy enough to compare, I would do a quick direct comparison between the Rognir, Thror, and D8000 Pro
Bass- Rognir>D8000 Pro>Thror
Rognir:
This is still the king of bass to me. It has more quantity than the other 2 with out it being over barring. It has incredible speed and control with out taking any of the life out of it. It reaches deep into the lows with excellent sub rumble.
D8000 Pro:
Reaches just as deep as the Rognir but lacks the quantity and presence of the Rognir. It has a great sub bass rumble but seems lacking compared to the Rognir. Bass is just as fast and controlled as the Rognir.
Thror:
Least amount of bass of the 3. It's bass so tight and controlled with such a hard and tight snap that it tends to lose a little of its life. Doesn't reach quite as far in to the sub bas as the other 2. Lacking in sub Bass rumble compared to the other 2.
Now on to the rambling.
Basically all I learned from doing this is that all 3 headphones are incredible. They all have there strengths and weaknesses. Though due to how velvety the D8000 Pro is the Thror and Rognir end up sounding hollow when you swap to them after listening to the Final.
The D8k Pro is a Velvety smooth listening experience that is incredibly hard to beat when it comes to kicking back, putting your feet up and just listing for pure enjoyment. Though I did find that micro details and and very quite instruments tend to get pushed to the back can can be lost in the sea of velvet that is these headphones. Of the 3 the sound stage is the smallest on these but only by a very small amount. They are also the most comfortable and least fatiguing of the 3. You can, and I have, listen to them all day with out any problem.
Example of quieter instruments being pushed back on the Final. In the beginning of the song, City in Florida by DeadMau5, there is a pretty quite "squishy" noise that plays along with the beat. On the Final it is about half as loud and much further pushed out of focuses compared to the other 2. It is still there just much less noticeable when compared to the Rognir and especially when compared to the Thror.
The Rognir is all about speed and attack with an in your face sound signature that is super engaging and energetic. They have a fantastic airy quality to them that give a boost to the overall sound stage that surpasses the Final and is on par with the Thror. Which is incredible for a closed back headphone. They are perfect for high energy songs and listening. They have pretty similar detail level to the Final, maybe, ever so slightly, a little bit less. They are the best when it comes to bass and are going to be hard to de-throne. Due to how energetic they are. They can be pretty fautiuging for long listening sessions. They demand to be listened to at high volume and you will find it hard to disagree with them. So I can really only listen for 2-3 hours at a time before my ears need a break. They are also probably the least comfortable of the 3. Not say they are bad just not a big fan of self adjusting headphone since I can't set the fit to be perfect for me.
The Thror is the most neutral of the 3. They kinda fall between the Final and Rognir as far as signature goes. Not nearly as lush as the Final and no where near as violent and in you face as the Rognir. When it comes to micro details the Thror is so accurate it is frighting. While listening to Spokey Dokey by the Seatbelts I was able to hear the lips of the harmonica player make the slightes "smack" has they would come off the harmonica when he would go to breath a detail that doesn't even exist when listeing to the song on the either the Rognir or the Final. I thought there was something wrong with the Thror when first listening to the song since the sound didn't exist in the other 2 headphones. Of the 3 headphones the Thror is the best when it comes to instrument separation, presence, micro details. It as has the largest sound stage just beating out the Rognir. They have the least bass of the 3 and have almost on sub bass rumble. So you are trading Sub bass and bass quantity for absolutely insane levels of detail.
In summary. If you want maximum detail get the Thror. If you want the most enjoyable all day listening with excellent bass get the Final. If you want energy, bass, and excitment get the Rognir.
P.S. Was to lazy to pad swap on the comparisons. So just used what I considered to be the "best" pads on the headphones.
Rognir: ECL-03 pads. Thror: ECL-02 pads. Final: Stock pads. Listened to all on my R8MK2 connected to my Master-9 which is then connected to a 3 way switcher for rapid headphone swapping.
The Rognir, Thror, and d8k Pro are pretty similar in overall performance. which is to be expected once you get into the Flagship market of headphones. The main differences will more-or-less come down to tuning.
I will do my best to explain the difference between them to the best of my ability. Though, I'm not great at this once the price of headphones gets this high. I figured, since bass seems to be the main thing people want to know about, and it is easy enough to compare, I would do a quick direct comparison between the Rognir, Thror, and D8000 Pro
Bass- Rognir>D8000 Pro>Thror
Rognir:
This is still the king of bass to me. It has more quantity than the other 2 with out it being over barring. It has incredible speed and control with out taking any of the life out of it. It reaches deep into the lows with excellent sub rumble.
D8000 Pro:
Reaches just as deep as the Rognir but lacks the quantity and presence of the Rognir. It has a great sub bass rumble but seems lacking compared to the Rognir. Bass is just as fast and controlled as the Rognir.
Thror:
Least amount of bass of the 3. It's bass so tight and controlled with such a hard and tight snap that it tends to lose a little of its life. Doesn't reach quite as far in to the sub bas as the other 2. Lacking in sub Bass rumble compared to the other 2.
Now on to the rambling.
Basically all I learned from doing this is that all 3 headphones are incredible. They all have there strengths and weaknesses. Though due to how velvety the D8000 Pro is the Thror and Rognir end up sounding hollow when you swap to them after listening to the Final.
The D8k Pro is a Velvety smooth listening experience that is incredibly hard to beat when it comes to kicking back, putting your feet up and just listing for pure enjoyment. Though I did find that micro details and and very quite instruments tend to get pushed to the back can can be lost in the sea of velvet that is these headphones. Of the 3 the sound stage is the smallest on these but only by a very small amount. They are also the most comfortable and least fatiguing of the 3. You can, and I have, listen to them all day with out any problem.
Example of quieter instruments being pushed back on the Final. In the beginning of the song, City in Florida by DeadMau5, there is a pretty quite "squishy" noise that plays along with the beat. On the Final it is about half as loud and much further pushed out of focuses compared to the other 2. It is still there just much less noticeable when compared to the Rognir and especially when compared to the Thror.
The Rognir is all about speed and attack with an in your face sound signature that is super engaging and energetic. They have a fantastic airy quality to them that give a boost to the overall sound stage that surpasses the Final and is on par with the Thror. Which is incredible for a closed back headphone. They are perfect for high energy songs and listening. They have pretty similar detail level to the Final, maybe, ever so slightly, a little bit less. They are the best when it comes to bass and are going to be hard to de-throne. Due to how energetic they are. They can be pretty fautiuging for long listening sessions. They demand to be listened to at high volume and you will find it hard to disagree with them. So I can really only listen for 2-3 hours at a time before my ears need a break. They are also probably the least comfortable of the 3. Not say they are bad just not a big fan of self adjusting headphone since I can't set the fit to be perfect for me.
The Thror is the most neutral of the 3. They kinda fall between the Final and Rognir as far as signature goes. Not nearly as lush as the Final and no where near as violent and in you face as the Rognir. When it comes to micro details the Thror is so accurate it is frighting. While listening to Spokey Dokey by the Seatbelts I was able to hear the lips of the harmonica player make the slightes "smack" has they would come off the harmonica when he would go to breath a detail that doesn't even exist when listeing to the song on the either the Rognir or the Final. I thought there was something wrong with the Thror when first listening to the song since the sound didn't exist in the other 2 headphones. Of the 3 headphones the Thror is the best when it comes to instrument separation, presence, micro details. It as has the largest sound stage just beating out the Rognir. They have the least bass of the 3 and have almost on sub bass rumble. So you are trading Sub bass and bass quantity for absolutely insane levels of detail.
In summary. If you want maximum detail get the Thror. If you want the most enjoyable all day listening with excellent bass get the Final. If you want energy, bass, and excitment get the Rognir.
P.S. Was to lazy to pad swap on the comparisons. So just used what I considered to be the "best" pads on the headphones.
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Lickumms
500+ Head-Fier
I own the D9200. It is kinda hard to compared the D9200 to the Rognir. Since it is comparing Dynamic to Planar. How would you compared the D9200 to the D8000 Pro?
If you love the the Final D8000 Pro the Rognir is on par with it performance wise but more energetic with some more bass quantity.
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Lickumms
500+ Head-Fier
I would recommend getting the Rognir Bass tuned version over the Thror since the Thror lacks in sub bass compared to the Final and the Rognir. The Rognir is just as capable and precise as the Final but, to me, far more energetic. You could also look at the ZMF line of headphones. They are also very high quality headphones.
Also, the try swapping the pads on the D8000 Pro for the pads that come stock on the D8000.
https://audio46.com/products/final-audio-earpad-f-type-for-d8000-pro-edition
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First, sorry to hear of the hospital stay - wishing you good health from hereon!
Second, great post, buddy! This needs to be pinned somewhere. I basically agree with everything you say, aside from one issue - comfort. Of course, comfort is very personal, so it varies, but for me Rognir is the most comfortable. The head-strap isn't the most attractive, but it just works on my head. Thror is also verry comfortable, but one thing that irks me is that the pads do not seal as well at the back.
Just as an aside, I've really come to the conclusion that the Kennerton Thror is a seriously underrated/overlooked headphone. It amazes me how little they're discussed, especially when these easily compete with and often out-perform most of the TOTL headphones. Someone should send a pair to some of the major reviewers to open up discussion on the Thror.
Anyway, thanks for this - I'm sure it will be helpful to many people.
Hello, I want to buy headphones. I'm thinking about wodan or thekk, but I wonder what the difference is .And do you have any recommendations for headphones? Rognir didn't fit me.
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