[KingKrush]

I believe the weak link in your chain is the U7 integrated headamp, a Magni 3+ and keep using the U7 as a DAC would probably be enough to not handicap the Ora:s. The U7 actually has a very good DAC chip in the Cirrus CS4398 it just needs some amping.

Thanks for the info! Interesting to know that the U7 has a good DAC.

Just to have matching components, and to not worry about the longevity of the Asus U7 (already RMA'd once), I'll get a matching Modi 3 to go with the Magni 3+ and give the U7 to a family member. It's a mission to import from the US, so I'd prefer to do it once for this audio stuff.

 

[darkfireblade25]

Received mine last Thursday and I gotta say, that frequency graph is pretty accurate. Anyway, I paid $250 for it and it's pretty good so far. I have M-100 original and 6xx ran through magni3/modi m/eitr. Closed back to closed back comparing wise, the m-100 seems to have a wall of sound signature compared to the Ora. Like the Ora has this separating quality which I can't identify if it is its signature in comparison or it actually is doing way better separating. 6XX I like the openness too much to compare this fairly. But the V shape of the Ora is different for sure. I can say that this thing is very fast though.

 

[SDBiotek]

Received my set a few hours ago. So far I am quite happy with the it. Build quality seems fine for the price. Comfort is fine for me and clamp force is fine around my ears. The headband feels like it can handle a bit of tweaking if you want to adjust the fit a bit.

Passive isolation is very good, and noise bleed is minimal (unless you listen at foolish volume levels).

Bluetooth works ok for me with my Ibasso DX220, but the volume jumps from being a bit quiet to a tad too loud. May behave differently with other sources. It sounds fine and has decent detail in wireless mode, but the bass seems more pronounced and tends to be "one-note".

Wired...this is how you want to use them. I agree with other folks comments about the black background, very good detail retrieval, and solid bass. Listening to Freddy Freeloader from Miles Davis' Kind of Blue, I am impressed by the sense of air around the instruments, and can actually get the bass line very well. Generally it is faint or just an indistinct background sound when I use other headphones. With the Oras, you can tell it is an actual instrument.

 

[bbfoto]

Received mine last Thursday and I gotta say, that frequency graph is pretty accurate. Anyway, I paid $250 for it and it's pretty good so far. I have M-100 original and 6xx ran through magni3/modi m/eitr. Closed back to closed back comparing wise, the m-100 seems to have a wall of sound signature compared to the Ora. Like the Ora has this separating quality which I can't identify if it is its signature in comparison or it actually is doing way better separating. 6XX I like the openness too much to compare this fairly. But the V shape of the Ora is different for sure. I can say that this thing is very fast though.

^What particular Frequency Graph are you referring to?

I paid about the same as you and ordered more than one pair. I have yet to check the others to see if there are any unit-to-unit inconsistencies, whether they might be in operation or SQ. I think this will be interesting and somewhat revealing.

I, too, thought that there was some L/R side imbalance at first, but that is completely gone now...verified with multiple types of test tone/evaluation tracks.

I'm going to wait a fair bit longer before listening to the new sets in order to make sure that I have the unique properties of this first set firmly registered in my brain.

The GQs certainly aren't perfect, but at the moment I am very content with the price/performance and feature set given the early adopter cost. At this point, I would probably not be quite as thrilled if I had paid MSRP, but they still seem to be improving, so?

One of the GQ pairs will be sent to a friend of mine who regularly hosts headphone meets at his home and attends HP GTGs hosted at the homes of other members in the group. He owns both the HD600 and the Focal Utopias, and within his local group they own and listen to an extensive variety of HPs and IEMs at all price points, along with a wide variety of DACs & HP amps (Tube & S-S). I'm interested to know their impressions and where they would rank these.

So far, with my initial pair of GQs, there has been a notable change in the response with increased listening time. As a musician, I'm fairly certain that it is not my own ears/brain or aural perception simply adjusting to their unique sound signature over time. Sure, there may be some of that, but I believe that it is truly a result of driver "burn in", and/or possibly the ear pads being "worn in" a bit as well, whether or not you believe in either of those.

I have long known that driver burn-in is real from designing and building home DIY speaker systems, along with installing high-end car audio systems in all of my vehicles.

If you want just one reference to driver "burn-in" or "break-in" being real, complete with multiple "before & after" test measurements, check out the "Burn In/Myths" links on the www.gr-research.com home page.

The initial anomalies I heard upon first listen to the GQs, and what I am experiencing now, can simply not be attributed to my ears & brain adjusting my own perception. The differences are too great and the anomalies too unique.

A musician is acutely aware of minute changes in tone and the harmonics of their own instruments, and also that of the others playing around him/her, whether that be in a small quartet, large orchestra hall, or a rock band, etc. We are constantly monitoring and concentrating on our tone just to simply ensure that our instruments are still accurately "in tune" individually and with each other, and also to maintain "balance" and "synergy" with the rest of the band.

darkfireblade25, if you are referring to the "separating" aspect of the GQs as having good Imaging and Sound Stage properties, then I agree with you.

However, I've never heard the M100. I'm more a fan of open back headphones, and the only closed-backs I currently have are the AKG K553 PRO, which I still enjoy for their easy-listenable, somewhat laidback character and above average sound stage and imaging. They are my everyday "kick around" set that I don't have to be too worried about losing or damaging, tho' I would be a bit heart-broken if I couldn't find replacements.

My particular GQs provide a truly excellent sound stage! (With well-recorded music) there is exceptional pinpoint focus and detail of instruments & vocals, with distinct separation and "black" space between each instrument and/or vocal. There is also very good delineation in sound stage depth. And you can easily perceive the size and type of room the instruments are in (when that is captured in the recording).

I'm a former drummer/percussionist and saxophonist (I still play & record a bit, but just as a hobby now). If I understand your use of the term regarding the GQs being "fast", I also agree. There is no overhang on dynamic transients. Real notes are played and heard with no smearing or blurring, and the only decay is that of the natural room/instrument reverb (again, when that is captured in the recording).

Regarding the fit, with a bit of experimentation, I was able to achieve a very comfortable fit, wearing them for hours at a time. I have an average size head, but with large ears.

The fit will also affect the spectral balance. Make sure that the clamping force on the ear pads is not too tight, or too light. While playing a reference track, try very slowly and gently pushing in, and then pulling out on both ear cups to vary the clamping pressure. Note the change in tonal balance and adjust/expand/contract the headband a bit by gently bending it into a wider or tighter arc. Most of you know this stuff! But sometimes it is easy to forget when you're just trying to "listen" to the cans.

I'd also advise all of you to listen to a wide variety of genres and tracks on random/shuffle play, with both average recordings and exceptional ones. This will give you a good sense of how these perform and how it handles or presents each type. I've been pleasantly surprised, especially the more time I spend with them! And I was initially under the same impressions as the very negative YouTube reviews. Let them run and burn in every night while you sleep with some bass heavy music. It might not help...but it certainly can't hurt anything, right?

I plan to write up a full review soon.

 

[bbfoto]

Received my set a few hours ago. So far I am quite happy with the it. Build quality seems fine for the price. Comfort is fine for me and clamp force is fine around my ears. The headband feels like it can handle a bit of tweaking if you want to adjust the fit a bit.

Passive isolation is very good, and noise bleed is minimal (unless you listen at foolish volume levels).

Bluetooth works ok for me with my Ibasso DX220, but the volume jumps from being a bit quiet to a tad too loud. May behave differently with other sources. It sounds fine and has decent detail in wireless mode, but the bass seems more pronounced and tends to be "one-note".

Wired...this is how you want to use them. I agree with other folks comments about the black background, very good detail retrieval, and solid bass. Listening to Freddy Freeloader from Miles Davis' Kind of Blue, I am impressed by the sense of air around the instruments, and can actually get the bass line very well. Generally it is faint or just an indistinct background sound when I use other headphones. With the Oras, you can tell it is an actual instrument.

In reference to the text I put in bold above, IME this will improve greatly with burn-in. I had a VERY disappointing experience in my out-of-box evaluation with the bass & kick drum in Gretchen Parlato's "All That I Can Say" & "Better Than" from her album, The Lost And Found.

The mid-bass & bass smearing and bloat was extreme. This has mellowed out and become MUCH more refined with extended listening time on the GQs.

It's still not perfect, but WAY better. At first, my hopes for these GQs were dashed and my heart sank a bit.

No more!

Thanks for posting your impressions. I'm in agreement.

 

[AlwaysForward]

Mine have shipped from China this weekend! I found the tracking in my spam folder, so I’ll have impressions soon. Should I... not open them right away if they’re from Shenzen?

 

[bbfoto]

Mine have shipped from China this weekend! I found the tracking in my spam folder, so I’ll have impressions soon. Should I... not open them right away if they’re from Shenzen?

Congrats!

From what I've read, medical professionals have stated that the coronavirus can survive up to 9 days on inanimate, undisturbed surfaces. I think most "normal" flu viruses are just 2-3 days. Both depend on temperature & humidity.

Mine were shipped from Quebec, not China, and took 9 days to arrive to me in SoCal, USA. I was busy the day they arrived so I didn't crack them open until the 10th day. It just happened to work out that way for me.

I'm fairly certain my GQs were assembled in Quebec, but I was not 100% positive on this, and most of the parts are manufactured in China, so there's that.

I figured that I had already waited how many years & months to get these?...so I felt that I could wait a week or more if needed just to be safe before opening them.

I did thoroughly wipe down the outside of the package and my hands with a disinfectant/anti-bacterial wipe as soon as they were delivered and before bringing them in the house, LOL. I really don't like being sick or spreading anything to others, plus I've got a weak immune system...so there's that. But you can call me paranoid if you want to, haha. It's all good.

Enjoy them when you get them and don't judge them too harshly on first listen. If you've read my posts above, I really do believe that they need some burn-in time, and getting the fitment/clamping force right is important as well.

 

[Beagle]

Enjoy them when you get them and don't judge them too harshly on first listen. If you've read my posts above, I really do believe that they need some burn-in time, and getting the fitment/clamping force right is important as well.

It sounds like the ORA is a particular signature that takes some adjusting to get used to? Some of my favourite headphones (Yamaha YHD-1) required me to go through a similar "deprogramming" before I came around to their 'way of thinking'. Perhaps it is also the case here.

 

[HipHopScribe]

You can't get COVID-19 from a package through the mail people, don't believe everything you read on the internet

 

[DixieLandBlues]

Just wondering if any Europe based backers have received their headphones as yet?

 

[AlexGgg]

If you want just one reference to driver "burn-in" or "break-in" being real, complete with multiple "before & after" test measurements, check out the "Burn In/Myths" links on the www.gr-research.com home page.

Well, in this case the manufacturer explicitly claims there'll be a burn-in period with these, in the FAQ (on their website, not on Kickstarter)
https://www.ora-sound.com/gq-headphones

Do the Ora Headphones require a “Burn-In” time?
Yes. The suspensions that support the GrapheneQ™ membranes are a bit stiff from the manufacturer since they haven’t needed to move much yet. As they vibrate, the suspensions will stretch out a bit and the drivers may begin to sound a bit louder. In theory, a burn-in time shouldn’t really be necessary since both drivers (Left and Right) should break-in simultaneously. In some cases, due to vibrations during shipping, it’s possible that one driver will wear-in a bit more than the other. If you experience this, Ora recommends pressing the ear pads with the palm of your hand to both soften the pads and to put pressure against the driver to stretch the suspension. It will also help the drivers to settle in if you play loud, bass heavy music for a few minutes to allow the suspension systems in the drivers to stretch out a bit. This is not necessary, however. After a little while of regular listening, the membrane suspension will stretch out naturally and the drivers will settle in. Once settled, the drivers will maintain their performance.

 

[HipHopScribe]

Well, in this case the manufacturer explicitly claims there'll be a burn-in period with these, in the FAQ (on their website, not on Kickstarter)
https://www.ora-sound.com/gq-headphones

Which doesn't necessarily mean it's true

 

[KingKrush]

Thought I'd share something weird I've discovered, at least in my own subjective capacity:

After being curious as to whether the music streaming service I'm using makes a difference to my listening experience, I compared all the services I have access to with my GQs.

I have Apple Music thanks to the Apple folks in the family with a family plan, YouTube Music thanks to the Googlers in the family, Deezer with a trial I started earlier this year and Spotify which I've always maintained a personal subscription for thanks to the quality of its recommendations.

• Deezer was last for me. Tracks are utterly lifeless imo. Everything feels soft and far, far away.
• Surprisingly, given its solid performance with my M50x, Apple Music is second last. Even without EQ, most stuff has a slightly distorted quality to me. I'm not in with the cool audio terms, but the lows seem to lack precision and the highs are almost screechy. I don't like it at all.
• Spotify next up. Sort of the baseline I guess. No major complaints or compliments.
• I have been blown away by how outstanding YouTube Music sounds. It's immediately apparent every time I switch back to it that tracks have so much more 'life' and dynamism, from rock to classical. The new Superblood Wolfmoon single from Pearl Jam is meh on other services and a headbanger on YouTube Music. I've been comparing mostly classical and there's no contest when YouTube Music produces such a pleasing low-end with cellos, double basses etc. Sometimes I feel like the instrument is nearby with how the vibration of the strings comes through, on particularly good recordings. I have felt that sensation zero times outside of YouTube Music with my GQs.

Apparently the DAC in my Asus U7 is okay, but perhaps the poor built-in amp is playing a big part here. I wouldn't know.

And of course, I haven't tested any lossless/HD services or account tiers. Seems pointless to me without ensuring there aren't bottlenecks elsewhere.

 

[SilverEars]

Thought I'd share something weird I've discovered, at least in my own subjective capacity:

After being curious as to whether the music streaming service I'm using makes a difference to my listening experience, I compared all the services I have access to with my GQs.

I have Apple Music thanks to the Apple folks in the family with a family plan, YouTube Music thanks to the Googlers in the family, Deezer with a trial I started earlier this year and Spotify which I've always maintained a personal subscription for thanks to the quality of its recommendations.

• Deezer was last for me. Tracks are utterly lifeless imo. Everything feels soft and far, far away.
• Surprisingly, given its solid performance with my M50x, Apple Music is second last. Even without EQ, most stuff has a slightly distorted quality to me. I'm not in with the cool audio terms, but the lows seem to lack precision and the highs are almost screechy. I don't like it at all.
• Spotify next up. Sort of the baseline I guess. No major complaints or compliments.
• I have been blown away by how outstanding YouTube Music sounds. It's immediately apparent every time I switch back to it that tracks have so much more 'life' and dynamism, from rock to classical. The new Superblood Wolfmoon single from Pearl Jam is meh on other services and a headbanger on YouTube Music. I've been comparing mostly classical and there's no contest when YouTube Music produces such a pleasing low-end with cellos, double basses etc. Sometimes I feel like the instrument is nearby with how the vibration of the strings comes through, on particularly good recordings. I have felt that sensation zero times outside of YouTube Music with my GQs.

Apparently the DAC in my Asus U7 is okay, but perhaps the poor built-in amp is playing a big part here. I wouldn't know.

And of course, I haven't tested any lossless/HD services or account tiers. Seems pointless to me without ensuring there aren't bottlenecks elsewhere.

You need to test out bit-perfect mode. There is an app on Android called USB Audio Player Pro that does Tidal in bit-perfect. On windows you can run Deezer and Tidal in bit-perfect or exclusive mode. Check the sound settings. Also called WASAPI.

 

[KingKrush]

You need to test out bit-perfect mode. There is an app on Android called USB Audio Player Pro that does Tidal in bit-perfect. On windows you can run Deezer and Tidal in bit-perfect or exclusive mode. Check the sound settings. Also called WASAPI.

I've looked around the Deezer app and Googled a bit. Doesn't seem like Deezer has any bit-perfect, exclusive, WASAPI etc. option, at least for Windows. Lots of feature requests and complaints about it.

I had a trial once for Tidal and never returned. Recommendations and curated playlists were 99% hip hop stuff for me.