QUAD ERA-1 Thread
May 13, 2020 at 2:13 PM Post #916 of 2,237
Planars tend to sound best with a "bit" more power on hand.
While the Era-1 sounds good out of the V30 and Btr5 i own, they are not capable to deliver the rumble presented by my R28.

So to speak, if you want all the lows from the Era-1, you've to spend much more power.
It's really crazy how they'll change, especially in the lows, with a good amount of current delivered. :wink:

I'll stick to my CTH for now! Thank you!
 
May 13, 2020 at 2:32 PM Post #917 of 2,237
Planars tend to sound best with a "bit" more power on hand.
While the Era-1 sounds good out of the V30 and Btr5 i own, they are not capable to deliver the rumble presented by my R28.

So to speak, if you want all the lows from the Era-1, you've to spend much more power.
It's really crazy how they'll change, especially in the lows, with a good amount of current delivered. :wink:
Do you mean you hear more bass on the R28? To me the desktop amp mostly helps with making the sound snappier and sharper across whole spectrum. The bass may hit harder, bit it's also cleaner.
 
May 13, 2020 at 2:41 PM Post #918 of 2,237
Do you mean you hear more bass on the R28? To me the desktop amp mostly helps with making the sound snappier and sharper across whole spectrum. The bass may hit harder, bit it's also cleaner.
For me, it's better articulated.
Where rumble should be, the Era comes close to a closed back in termes of "earthshaking deep lows".
Never heard that out of the V30, the Btr5 nor out of the Atoll HD100.

Not even the closed back PM-3 or the Monitor 5 are capable to reach that lows. :L3000:
 
May 13, 2020 at 6:23 PM Post #919 of 2,237
For me, it's better articulated.
Where rumble should be, the Era comes close to a closed back in termes of "earthshaking deep lows".
Never heard that out of the V30, the Btr5 nor out of the Atoll HD100.

Not even the closed back PM-3 or the Monitor 5 are capable to reach that lows. :L3000:
I see! Better deep bass maybe :)
 
May 17, 2020 at 5:42 PM Post #920 of 2,237
I think the Quad is a sure bet for someone looking for a Sennheiser HD6** with deeper bass :wink: It shares the same main quality: you can listen to them for hours without any auditory fatigue. It may just be a bit brighter depending on which Sennheiser you compare it to.
with you 100%. I'd tried Beyers and Grados, but then settled on Sen HD650s for a few years. The Quads have similar qualities to Sens, but better bass and well just better across the board really, and without the fatiguing (too much mid-range emphasis, for me at least) character of the Grado/Beyer. I don't find Quads overly bright at all, sounds very natural. I also like Audioquest Nighthawks for what its worth, which are also a very nice HP, not that far off Sen 650s sound, just a tad darker maybe. But the Quads beats all :)
 
May 18, 2020 at 9:28 AM Post #921 of 2,237
with you 100%. I'd tried Beyers and Grados, but then settled on Sen HD650s for a few years. The Quads have similar qualities to Sens, but better bass and well just better across the board really, and without the fatiguing (too much mid-range emphasis, for me at least) character of the Grado/Beyer. I don't find Quads overly bright at all, sounds very natural. I also like Audioquest Nighthawks for what its worth, which are also a very nice HP, not that far off Sen 650s sound, just a tad darker maybe. But the Quads beats all :)
The only thing I just don't know if I like better than the Sennys is sound texture. Sometimes I find it a bit too holographic/ethereal with the Quad, similarly to what you can hear on electrostats (with more body though). And believe it or not, I think the Quad is sharper/faster than my basic Lambda setup. The level of detail on cymbals and drums just amazes me. My HD600 sounds sluggish in comparison... but it does have good texture/timbre. And probably even more with tubes. I don't remember if the lovely Audezes I heard (LCD 2 & 4) had this slightly ethereal sound like the Quad or more body. But I know planar technologies can sound very different from each other (the low-end Hifimans I heard for instance, I'm not fond at all...).

Edit: in fact i think the leather pads bring the sound closer to what I remember from the Audezes. Much more body basically. Like turning the Quad from a Stax to an Audeze basically.
 
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May 20, 2020 at 2:02 PM Post #922 of 2,237
Thanks for valuable input guys. Especially Mr ClearBright out there. I got a pair of Quads today, and they do move me to tears. Was some bad info out about them being a generic remake or whatever. The guy I bought them from assured me they were not, so he got my Senn HD650es and a few bucks and I got these darlings that truly open up another chapter for me. I also preferred the HD700 to the HD650 and I still have them, but today they were dethroned. Apropos 650 I did more or less immediately order some HD58X second hand as well since I did feel an emotional loss. Sorry for rambling. Now I have to make due and pinch my pennies for a whiles so, So long and thanks for all the fish, as the saying goes.-)
 
May 30, 2020 at 9:37 AM Post #924 of 2,237
I was having fun yesterday listening to some movie soundtracks (Terminator 2...) and I was thinking damn, those planar drivers must be fantastic for movies! It's all there: the sense of scale, the impact, the clinical accuracy of soundstaging... Makes me want to grab some Maggie speakers for my home cinema setup :) or maybe some Quads hehe.
 
May 30, 2020 at 11:24 AM Post #925 of 2,237
Four weeks (approximately 150 hours) with the Quads and I really feel that I made a good choice getting these. I also think the 150 hours of using them made them sound even better than right out of the box. Especially clarity and bass impact is better. At first they sounded good but a little bit veiled like my HD6XX compared to my TR-X00 PHs. Nowadays both the clarity and the way the bass hits are alot closer. I love my purplehearts but the Quads are nowadays my first choice.
 
Jun 4, 2020 at 1:38 AM Post #927 of 2,237
I am in love with these things. Ive been listening to them next to my Elex's. Elex has better dynamics, soundstage, more mid-centric, these are just monsters in almost every area. I think they got the treble just right on these.
Welcome to the club. :beerchug:

If you like to listen to a really great speaker system, the Quad shares very much similarities, i think.
Everytime i switch from the Monitor 5, made for linear monitoring purposes, to the Quads, they show me its ability for relaxed musical enjoyment. :)
I'm really happy i made this decision.
 

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