[nfandi]

Will there ba a chance to get Magna with silver cable instead? Or only with Satis and buy STAR-8 Mkll on top?

Post #240 in this thread shows list of purchase options.

 

[MokhaMark]

Can EQing the Immanis rattle the head as much or better than the Magna?

You mentioned that the Immanis enlarges the instruments from left to right, but what about the center stage (front to back and height)? I ask because it often seems that the center vocals are placed at my forehead or above, and maybe a bit too close with the SR1a (more or less obvious depending of the recording). Have you experienced something similar?

Thank you for your review!

Good morning, I got some sleep finally after nearly an all nighter listening the previous night.

I hope I have not mis-spoken. To be clear: The Immanis has a crap ton (as we said in the deep south) of bass. It is really a function of how and where it is delivered. Having not seen a FR for either, I suspect that the Magna has a touch more mid/upper-bass, but that the Immanis is flatter down to 20hz? It is mammoth, and completely satisfying.

I apologize, but I was not with my Roon core and did not EQ trials with either, and I used no filters with the SR1a for these comparisons.

Regarding imaging, this I find very hard to describe, but the Immanis enlarges the placement of the sources, it creates a big hall and sends signals coming from what I perceive outside my head. This "image" is all of the above bigger than the SR1a now, wider, deeper, taller, etc. The Immanis takes the SR1a strongest features and delivers them with a new tonal richness and bass extension that would evade the physics of the open baffle design. In comparisons, the Magna is more "conventional" in its scope, in line with the very best of other headphone designs, but with the speed, detail, and ribbon bass that is unique to the Raal.

 

[yyzSB]

Magna and Immanis Quick Impressions

I ended up with only 2 days with these new headphones, a fraction of the time it took UPS to fumble them for over a week. Since I will not have a lot of listening time tomorrow, I want to post my initial 24 hour impressions.




I boarded the Raal train in the early days of covid. I have tried lots of different headphones since, including e-stats, but I have always come back to the SR1a as my favorite. I will not posture here as anything other than a fan boy but will do my best to share impressions as objectively as I can. I’m lucky to have both the Magna and Immanis on hand at the same time, in a quiet place. Based on Danny’s word, I had pre-ordered the Magna before receiving these copies. I do not get to keep either of them. I’ll be in line with everyone else after I send these back to him. These are both well worth the wait.

This is not a review. I am volunteering these impressions as an informed amateur and no more. I do not wish to make detailed comparisons with conventional headphones I no longer own (such as Susvara), and very little with those I still have on hand. My primary objective with this informal entry is to put the new Raal 1995 in context with the SR1a (and CA1a from memory) for existing Raal owners. As I write this, I realize I have no envy for those who endeavor to put such a subjective activity into words routinely, or professionally.

Amplifiers Used

Raal VM1a

Schiit Jotunheim R

Donald North Audio Stratus v3 via interface

Sources Used

Topping DX7 Pro+

Sonic Frontiers SFD2 mkII via BNC & Coax (kind loan from @roark)

Comparisons Made

Raal SR1a

Raal Magna

Raal Immanis

For the past couple weeks, I listened to not much besides the SR1a so that the early listening with the Magna and Immanis would be from the ribbon mind set. Over the last 24 hours, I listened to all combinations I could think of with the VM1a, Jortunheim R, and DNA Stratus with interface. I determined quickly that the 16 ohm output from the TI1a interface played the nicest with the Stratus, so stuck with that most of the time. I did also try the 32 ohm input on the adapter (both the TI1b and cool new stand version), but I favored the lower impedance pairing. The 32 ohm had less gain and did not drive any of the headphones sufficiently on the Stratus, more on that later.

Magna

Immediately the Magna’s higher sensitivity is noticeable, requiring some attenuation to volume match the SR1a.

Overall sound compared to SR1a is richer in body, significantly more bass and mid-range body. However, it is every bit as detailed as the SR1a. Those of you who know the SR1a will know this is saying something. The SR has more front to back depth, and comparatively the Magna is more intimate in its vocal placement. We are closer to the stage with the Magna, vocals are more in our head. Of course, the baffle angle of the SR1a impacts this so depending on how close you wear the SR to your ears, this effect will be maximized/minimized in comparison.

The Magna bass is incredible, reaching very deep, and hitting very hard. This is NOT e-stat like bass! This is a dynamic, engaging, electrifying listen. Detail is top notch, coming across sometimes just at touch brighter and more incisive than even the Immanis. It is all put together in a cohesive image that I felt nothing out of place. I could not find any range I wanted to EQ. Even with bass, no shelf is needed. The organ at the beginning of Zarathustra positively rattles the head, but then the texture of double bass tremolos immediately after is textured and accurate, like being 12 rows back from the section.

What is astonishing here with the Magna is just how much of the recording space we get, normally a hallmark of the SR1a. Even with complex piano sounds, I hear upper partials and harmonics just like with the Sr1a.

It is just a fun as hell headphone, powerful, dynamic, and very live sounding.

Immanis

Even higher sensitivity is noticeable, requiring more attenuation to volume match the SR1a.

This is an extraordinary headphone experience like none I have ever heard. I can hardly call this a headphone. This is the IMAX of headphones.

There is to my ears a touch more warmth in mid-range vs. the Magna and SR1a, even though it is placed slightly more distant. But the Immanis treble is more laid back than either of them, it splashes less and runs even less risk of anything resembling sibilance. The Magna and SR1a are “crispier” in the treble. This does not mean the Immanis is dark, it is still a detail monster on par with anything I have heard. It is just suave and composed.

The Immanis gives the most expansive, concert hall like sound I have ever heard in a headphone. I suspect the surface area and huge cup just simply make for a massive stage. There are times it is almost counter intuitive; the stereo image is so wide. For example, a recording of the Esbjörn Svensson Trio, the drum kit spans so far left to right, the mind thinks there may be two drummers! It is wider even than the SR1a.

The Immanis bass seems to reach even lower than the Magna, but with a little less outright slam and impact. It really depends on what you think bass is as a listener, what you prioritize. The Magna compresses the cranial cavities more dramatically, but the Immanis goes deeper, with more texture and specificity of pitch.

Donald North Audio Stratus v3 via interface

One of my biggest hopes with the Magna and Immanis was that the Stratus would have enough power to drive them. With the SR1a, it is just shy of sufficient juice for most genre, but timbre and imaging are so promising. There is more volume and bass with the Magna and Immanis, but even with the Immanis we are maxed out. Unlike with the SR1a, there is ample richness of body and bass, but not compared to the VM1a. For my ears, this is not game ending combination, our beloved DNA amps just do not have enough power. However, there may be DACs with higher output voltage that work better. The best combination with the Stratus I heard was the SFD balanced out into a transformer box to single ended. But even this paled in comparison to the VM1a. I believe the Magna and Immanis will require a more powerful circuit than the Stratus, but I would love to hear differently from someone with a different DAC or an active pre-amplifier in front of it. Let’s all keep an open mind with this question for more trials by others with more appropriate gear.

Jotunheim R

I am a big fan of Schiit’s little amplifier. In fact, I recently bought another one as a backup. It drives all the ribbon headphones very well. However, with the SR1a in particular, it can sound comparatively strident vs the VM1a. The Magna and Immanis are not as picky. They sound exceptional off the Jotunheim R. I don’t care what anyone else says, the Jot R is a worthy amplifier for these new headphones. I compared directly to the VM1a as objectively as I could, and with the Magna and Immanis, the VM1a simply does not show the same level of improvement as it does for the SR1a. That may be a controversial statement, but it’s what my ears are telling me today. One of my favorite combos was the Sonic Frontiers DAC balanced into the Jot R (Siemens tubes).

Raal VM1a

This is still the very best amplifier I have heard for the SR1a. The new headphones also sound incredible here, holographic, a bit warmer, with just a touch more reverb/decay. However, my VM1a is not dead silent right now, and the new headphones can reveal a little noise floor especially if I cup my hands over the earcups. I used exclusively Triode mode, as you know with the VM you have to power it down to change tube modes and I did not bother. I had to go to sleep eventually……Point is, if you have a VM1a, the cup design and higher sensitivity of the new headphones will tell you more clearly if you have a noisy tube than the SR1a will.

CA1a

I came very close to buying the CA (again) just so I could compare them real time for this entry. The human mind is not to be trusted with its own memories on subjective issues such as this, at least mine isn’t. I know there are a lot of CA owners wondering if Magna is an upgrade.

So, from memory, this is the opinion I offer, and the most I ever will until I have them side by side again:

Yes.

In every way except value, because the CA1a remain an astonishing value and a very engaging, dynamic listen. I am not sure there will ever be a less expensive ribbon headphone from Raal. The Magna is not an extension or evolution of the CA1a, it is an altogether different approach to a different goal, IMO.

The Immanis is extraordinary, but it is also more idiosyncratic. There may be listeners who find it’s imaging too spread out, too alien as a headphone experience. The Immanis is its own concert hall. The question becomes, is that the hall in which you want to hear everything? (For me, yes, it is). I predict the Magna will appeal to more people, and not just because of the price.

Why I will still never sell my SR1a

Open baffle. It’s different, and better, (for me) in some ways. I find it less fatiguing, and lighter on the head. When my tinnitus acts up, The SR1a are my preferred way to listen. There are times I do not want bass compression acting on my ear drums. They are also the only headphones that work in stereo for my daughter (cochlear implant). There is also some nostalgia as the oldest headphone in my little stable.

I still love the SR1a, but I submit that the two new headphones have surpassed it in most ways. My own personal opinion is that these are the best headphones I have ever listened to. I’m not stupid enough to call anything the best, but currently I know of nothing better.

Thank you to Danny @SageM and David at Requisite. Thank you also to @Aleksandar R. for doing all the hard work to develop this technology and transfer it to headphones. My hours with the Magna and Immanis brought a strong visceral reaction to music. I have been transported multiple times, out of body, into complete involvement in my listening. These are extraordinary headphones that enrich the musical experience.

Thanks for the review this is exactly what I wanted to do my self but have been too busy to contact Danny.

I will be using a VM-1a for the Immanis however, I also have a Schitt Mjolnir V3 preamp/headphone amp. It is underpowered to drive the CA1a. I am curious if the Immanis can be driven by the Mjolnir. This is a warm Class A amp.

https://www.schiit.com/products/mjolnir-3


Another headphone amp I am curious about is the Benchmark HPA4. It is not warm at all and may work nicely with the Immanis if the power is enough. I can trade my unused Benchmark AHB2 for a HPA4.

 

[Litlgi74]

Curious why this thread is not in the Summit-fi section?

 

[MokhaMark]

Also I want to second what you said about the Jot R. What a shame this amp is no longer made because I was also very impressed with it at CanJam, dare I say it even made a better impression upon me than the VM1. But that may be because the Jot R is what the Magna was plugged into on my first listen so it really had that wow factor being the first time hearing the Magna/Immanis. Either way, the new headphones sounded VERY good on Jot R.

Much of the conversation now about these surrounds really expensive tube amplifiers. The system cost of these $6000-$12,000+ amplifiers will limit the audience.

With the Jot R no longer made, it will be important to share info together about what affordable amplifier options work well with the new headphones. Obviously it is subjective, but I wrote that the Magna and Immanis are easier to drive and were less amplifier picky than the SR1a. I am looking forward to learning which amplifiers that are under $1000 (think Schiit Lyr+ for example) work with the new transformer stand for the Magna in particular. It is already an expensive headphone (worth every penny), I think affordable amplifier will open the market for it.

In the meantime, hold onto your Jotunheim R!

 

[MokhaMark]

I will be using a VM-1a for the Immanis however, I also have a Schitt Mjolnir V3 preamp/headphone amp. It is underpowered to drive the CA1a. I am curious if the Immanis can be driven by the Mjolnir. This is a warm Class A amp.

I cannot predict, except to say, often what the specs are on paper is meaningless until they are plugged in together. This is why I was sad the Stratus did not deliver. But, the Immanis is significantly more sensitive than the SR1a (did not have CA on hand to test) and its tonality and delivery require not very much volume to get a complete and balanced listen. I can speak for everyone I am sure we look forward to learning your findings.

I might suggest a casual database of affordable amplifiers that work with the new headphones with transformer.

 

[ThanatosVI]

Curious why this thread is not in the Summit-fi section?

It's an official thread and sponsors are only allowed to post in this section or something along those lines

 

[Litlgi74]

It's an official thread and sponsors are only allowed to post in this section or something along those lines

Bummer... It would be nice if these headphones got the same exposure as others.

 

[Litlgi74]

Jotunheim R

I am a big fan of Schiit’s little amplifier. In fact, I recently bought another one as a backup. It drives all the ribbon headphones very well. However, with the SR1a in particular, it can sound comparatively strident vs the VM1a. The Magna and Immanis are not as picky. They sound exceptional off the Jotunheim R. I don’t care what anyone else says, the Jot R is a worthy amplifier for these new headphones. I compared directly to the VM1a as objectively as I could, and with the Magna and Immanis, the VM1a simply does not show the same level of improvement as it does for the SR1a. That may be a controversial statement, but it’s what my ears are telling me today. One of my favorite combos was the Sonic Frontiers DAC balanced into the Jot R (Siemens tubes).

Curious what cable you used with Jot R... And what cable @Aleksandar R. would recommend for use with the Immanis/Magna Jot R combo.

 

[Aleksandar R.]

...

Regarding imaging, this I find very hard to describe, but the Immanis enlarges the placement of the sources, it creates a big hall and sends signals coming from what I perceive outside my head. This "image" is all of the above bigger than the SR1a now, wider, deeper, taller, etc. The Immanis takes the SR1a strongest features and delivers them with a new tonal richness and bass extension that would evade the physics of the open baffle design. In comparisons, the Magna is more "conventional" in its scope, in line with the very best of other headphone designs, but with the speed, detail, and ribbon bass that is unique to the Raal.

I couldn't have said it any better myself! Thanks!

 

[Aleksandar R.]

Thanks for the review this is exactly what I wanted to do my self but have been too busy to contact Danny.

I will be using a VM-1a for the Immanis however, I also have a Schitt Mjolnir V3 preamp/headphone amp. It is underpowered to drive the CA1a. I am curious if the Immanis can be driven by the Mjolnir. This is a warm Class A amp.

https://www.schiit.com/products/mjolnir-3


Another headphone amp I am curious about is the Benchmark HPA4. It is not warm at all and may work nicely with the Immanis if the power is enough. I can trade my unused Benchmark AHB2 for a HPA4.

I think Mjolnir will be just about enough for Immanis, for not feeling underpowered.
But it's all individual, so we'll see what you think, eventually.

 

[Aleksandar R.]

Curious what cable you used with Jot R... And what cable @Aleksandar R. would recommend for use with the Immanis/Magna Jot R combo.

I can do that assessment easily.
With or without it's own DAC?

 

[MokhaMark]

Bummer... It would be nice if these headphones got the same exposure as others.

If I have done something wrong or posted in the wrong place, I'd be happy to re-post somewhere else. I am "newish" here and only active in the Raal threads so it seemed like the right place. Please do let me know if there is a better protocol.

 

[MokhaMark]

I can do that assessment easily.
With or without it's own DAC?

I recommend an external DAC. The build in DAC for the Jotunheim R seems to have low voltage, despite being internal. It has less gain than XLR input.

 

[Aleksandar R.]

I cannot predict, except to say, often what the specs are on paper is meaningless until they are plugged in together. This is why I was sad the Stratus did not deliver. But, the Immanis is significantly more sensitive than the SR1a (did not have CA on hand to test) and its tonality and delivery require not very much volume to get a complete and balanced listen. I can speak for everyone I am sure we look forward to learning your findings.

I might suggest a casual database of affordable amplifiers that work with the new headphones with transformer.

Not entirely...
The Stratus specs say:
• All XLR and 1/4" TRS outputs provide the same power: 1.8W into 50 ohms, 900mW into 100 ohms

So, it's a clear mismatch with 32 Ohms of the Interface, probably delivering ~1.2W at higher distortion than at 50 ohms.