[d1337tion]

If the quality of your headphones are even half the quality of the group of people you seem to be, then I think the Ora GQ should be just fine.

Honestly, even though I may seem critical of the pair of headphones in my couple of impression posts, I do like them. They're meant to fill a different need than my HD600/6XX.

 

[SilverEars]

Sorry, not to debate, but to understand... what’s the game Josh is playing? It would seem perfectly plausible that people hear gear very differently from each other due to everything from personal taste, to hearing health, to anatomy. Head-fi I think has numerous examples of this. I am definitely not defending Josh - I barely watch any of his reviews.

Although I don't think Josh was deliberately trying to crap on Ora as there is no reason why somebody would do so. As it seemed like he was interested in the graphene technology and it's potential at the start. It's most likely didn't meet his expections, and his taste.

I've always not been entire agreement with his reviews with certain statements he makes. Like certain headphones are 95% performance of the higher-end model. I also don'f agree with his HD600, 650, and 660S comparisons. With this one, he off the popular opinions on the differences, so his impressions are off the mainstream.

The latest review that got me really suspecious of him is the FA A8000. I have heard from other reviewers that it has treble emphasized response, but he would not put it this way. He would just say it's 'detailed' and balanced. He was provided with the sample from Final Audio, and it's possible he's not telling us everything we need to hear. I also saw the frequency response, and sometimes there is no denying of what the frequency response show of the treble, which was the case with A8000.

I can also see this for Massdrop items as well, so that he'd get more review units in the future. This is generally the reason why I don't really take reviewer's sound impressions seriously.

If you see a thread with lots of reviewers hanging around with barely any non-reviewers, it's a product samples were sent out of reviewers, but was not well received.

The reviewers will be influenced by review samples.

 

[Seazer]

Honestly, even though I may seem critical of the pair of headphones in my couple of impression posts, I do like them. They're meant to fill a different need than my HD600/6XX.

Most definitely, personally I don't like any of the Sennheisers besides the 800s. 58x, 650, 660 are all not for me. I do really like the 800s though.

 

[Seazer]

So after listening more with them I keep getting the feeling like I am hearing the microphones in the videos I'm watching. I guess that is a sign to these headphones reproduction. It sounds less like a headphone and more like a direct feed for the mic's input. I can really pick out and tell the differences in the quality of microphones being used in the various media I've been watching its very interesting. I feel like this is the sort of resolution these headphones have.

It's a bit different than most of the high end extremely resolving headphones out there, who tend to flavor their sound with the extreme resolution. Take the hifiman he1000se for example. Extremely fast transients approaching estat level, insane amounts of air and sparkle, they sound amazing partly because they take the sound and elevate it into this magical hifi flavor.

These headphones don't have that extra air and sparkle, and instead sound like a direct line from the input that recorded it. It's very interesting.

 

[kman1211]

So after listening more with them I keep getting the feeling like I am hearing the microphones in the videos I'm watching. I guess that is a sign to these headphones reproduction. It sounds less like a headphone and more like a direct feed for the mic's input. I can really pick out and tell the differences in the quality of microphones being used in the various media I've been watching its very interesting. I feel like this is the sort of resolution these headphones have.

It's a bit different than most of the high end extremely resolving headphones out there, who tend to flavor their sound with the extreme resolution. Take the hifiman he1000se for example. Extremely fast transients approaching estat level, insane amounts of air and sparkle, they sound amazing partly because they take the sound and elevate it into this magical hifi flavor.

These headphones don't have that extra air and sparkle, and instead sound like a direct line from the input that recorded it. It's very interesting.

That description of it basically being a direct feed to the mic sounds a bit like how the first dynamic headphone presents sound, the DT 48. If it does have similar sound properties as many impressions seem to suggest, I can see why there may be some mixed impressions on these as it's very different than the norm. But I'll have to listen to a pair of Ora's sometime to see if they really do share those traits.

 

[Beagle]

That’s not surprising to me in the least bit. His review was an eye opener for me, and not in a good way. I will definitely be skipping his ‘reviews’ from now on, since I now know the game he’s playing.

Maybe he has no point of reference when comparing gear sonics. Sure seems like it at times. Maybe he has never attended an unamplified music event at a proper venue in order to know and define what true live sounds are. Maybe he's just comparing one headphone to another and guessing what the 'correct' sound signature is. Or he likes what he likes. I don't know. I don't care.

 

[Slater]

I don't know. I don't care.

Agreed.

 

[Lunar Eclipse]

Surprised no one has posted this review as it's been out for a bit. Ora backers, do you hear any bt amp background noise in a quiet room?

 

[HungryPanda]

At the bottom of the indiegogo contribution page

WHAT'S IN THE BOX?

• Ora GrapheneQ Headphones
• 1.2m (3.9’) Audio cable with gold plated 3.5 mm (1/8”) connector and 6.3mm (1/4”) adapter
• USB-C to USB-A cable for charging and updating
• Protective Carrying Case
• Quickstart Guide
• Warranty Information Card

 

[Seazer]

Surprised no one has posted this review as it's been out for a bit. Ora backers, do you hear any bt amp background noise in a quiet room?

No I don't hear any bt amp background noise. Maybe a tinyyy bit but if it's there its borderline inaudible. The Audeze Mobius is MUCH worse in this regard, it has significantly more background hiss.

I'm restricted to aptx and can't use aptx HD so maybe the problems are solved there, but on regular aptx there is a little bit of artifacting in the high frequencies. It may just be a restriction of the aptx (non HD) codec though.

 

[Seazer]

At the bottom of the indiegogo contribution page

WHAT'S IN THE BOX?

• Ora GrapheneQ Headphones
• 1.2m (3.9’) Audio cable with gold plated 3.5 mm (1/8”) connector and 6.3mm (1/4”) adapter
• USB-C to USB-A cable for charging and updating
• Protective Carrying Case
• Quickstart Guide
• Warranty Information Card

No case or quarter inch adapter lol

 

[AlwaysForward]

Surprised no one has posted this review as it's been out for a bit. Ora backers, do you hear any bt amp background noise in a quiet room?

I posted that, actually. I don’t hear noise and agree that the Mobius is much noisier. Lol, actually the Mobius was worse at launch and I was the one who sounded off in a way about it that I became the test subject for the fix. Was a pretty cool way to meet the team there.

 

[AzNyCans]

You’re not getting a good seal my friend. Mine will reach skull crushing bass levels.

Try repositioning the headphone on your head. If you look at them from the side, the cups are slightly angled and the headphone is designed so that the headband is worn further back on the head. Also, the pads are angled, so make sure the fat part of the ear pad is facing towards the back of the head. Finally, consider getting some HM5 pads, which may provide a better fit. Better fit=better seal=better bass.

This exactly. These GQ's have insane bass if they're powered property and have a proper seal. Super deep and punchy.

 

[brams]

Got to try the Ora GQ with the DCS Bartok headphone amp today in a very simple setup at a local ultra high end dealer: Roon source directly to Bartok. What an experience! The amp is fantastic, but should be at its suggested selling price. However, what was astonishing was how well the headphones scaled up in the system. The GQ is the real deal and could easily be endgame for most ... don't be afraid to upgrade around it.

Also got to try it with a number of different Audioquest 3.5mm to 3.5mm Aux cables at various price points from the Evergreen up to the Angel. Subtle differences were noted with each, but that will have to be the subject of another discussion. The bottom line is the stock cable is already quite good.

 

[Seazer]

Got to try the Ora GQ with the DCS Bartok headphone amp today in a very simple setup at a local ultra high end dealer: Roon source directly to Bartok. What an experience! The amp is fantastic, but should be at its suggested selling price. However, what was astonishing was how well the headphones scaled up in the system. The GQ is the real deal and could easily be endgame for most ... don't be afraid to upgrade around it.

Also got to try it with a number of different Audioquest 3.5mm to 3.5mm Aux cables at various price points from the Evergreen up to the Angel. Subtle differences were noted with each, but that will have to be the subject of another discussion. The bottom line is the stock cable is already quite good.

I used my car stereo to compare the stock ORA 3.5mm cable with the kabeldirekt 3.5mm cable I had already been using in my car, and I can confirm that I could hear less noise when I turned the silent radio up to max volume, indicating a good cable.

Whaich cable was your favorite?

Also I was at my local store the other day and tried the ORA on a Questyle amp, an A&K SP2000, the HeadAmp GSX2, and the Mytek Liberty DAC.

My favorite amp pairing with the ORA was the Mytek Liberty DAC personally