[BassicScience]

Can I run Immanis off of a VM-1a?

Yes.

How does it do?

Fantastic, based on my brief audition at CanJam NYC, and other user reports. You can search this thread for "VM-1a" for further details...

 

[Hiker816]

Another couple of amplifiers that do justice to the Immanis, in two different ways ... The Serbian Connection rules




Although the Italian pair available at the booth (the AIC-10 and the Viva Egoista 845), was just as beautilully sounding with their own character.

The Immanis has a very straightforward way to display the peculiarities of the components that drive them, so the usual care for synergy is further emphasized here.

Also the impedance of the adapter plays a role on the sound signature, for any given amp.

The Susvara was there for comparison as well. If you have the chance, paying a visit to Room 137 at the Munich Hifi Deluxe is well worth the trip, definitely more clarifying than forum opinions.

And the hosts are such knowledgeable, passionate, humble and amiable people!

Ditto what @ThanatosVI said--please tell us more about that Solaja Audio amp! I'm actually so desperate for impressions, I started a thread to try to induce people to provide them: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/solaja-audio-amplifiers-impressions-thread.972799/

Edit: Also, great photography as always!

 

[nfandi]

Ditto what @ThanatosVI said--please tell us more about that Solaja Audio amp! I'm actually so desperate for impressions, I started a thread to try to induce people to provide them: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/solaja-audio-amplifiers-impressions-thread.972799/

Edit: Also, great photography as always!

How can there be any impressions? Nobody owns one because it isn’t on-sale yet. Look at Solaja’s web-site, the VM-1a is still available for sale but the new amps aren’t listed yet.

 

[Hiker816]

How can there be any impressions? Nobody owns one because it isn’t on-sale yet. Look at Solaja’s web-site, the VM-1a is still available for sale but the new amps aren’t listed yet.

Because they're being shown at the Munich show right now.

 

[nfandi]

Because they're being shown at the Munich show right now.

Oh ok. Are they in a quiet room or out in the main hall?

 

[Hiker816]

Oh ok. Are they in a quiet room or out in the main hall?

I think a room--on facebook they said Marriot Room 137. And based on this post from a few minutes ago, I think they might be sharing a room with RAAL 1995 / Aleks:

Either way, I realize impressions under show conditions are not ideal. But I'll take any I can get!

 

[nfandi]

I think a room--on facebook they said Marriot Room 137. And based on this post from a few minutes ago, I think they might be sharing a room with RAAL 1995 / Aleks:


Either way, I realize impressions under show conditions are not ideal. But I'll take any I can get!

Ah ok, that’s the HiFi deluxe get together at the Marriot hotel. Alex said they’d have a quiet room there with a frankly obscene list of amplifiers. Immanis is good enough to allow the different characteristics of each amp to shine. You should get some good feedback from this.

 

[chrisnyc75]

Regarding the Staging compared to HD800S, to me Caldera stages better than HD800S

Staging "better" and staging "wider" are not the same thing. One is too often confused with the other. Caldera and Susvara both stage "better" than HD800S, but neither stages "wider". HD800S has an artificial widening that blows out the sound so that it is all around you, but never touching you. Caldera, Susvara, and presumably Immanis, cast a wide sound field, but the staging is more realistic, with far away sounds coming from way out and close-up sounds coming from right in your face.

HD800S's wide soundstage (and Caldera's, IMO) is the product of a particular frequency response plus the size of the drivers. Susvara & Immanis mostly from their physically open cup design and the physics of planar & ribbon drivers.

 

[Hiker816]

Update to my Immanis impressions from a couple days ago:

I spent a few hours yesterday and most of today driving the Immanis with the Zahl HM1 through the TI-1a interface box.

The incredible holographics of the Immanis continue to catch me off guard. And the bass keeps surprising me. I had hoped for bass that wouldn't fall too far behind your average dynamic and planar HPs. Instead, it's better than anything I've heard (though the 1266 is still in the running).

My Zahl isn't jiving very well with the Immanis, though. The mid and upper bass has a bit too much bloom and sounds boomy--like a bad car stereo. And noise--I'm hearing noise. I'm noticing this through both the 16 ohm and 32 ohm interface inputs, in both Class A and Class A+Servo mode on the Zahl, and with my Supratek preamp both in and out of the chain. To make sure I wasn't imagining it, I switched back to the VM1a. All the problems instantly and obviously vanished.

It could be that the Zahl just doesn't have good synergy with the Immanis. I think it might be something else, though. I get occasional shocks from the Valkyria off the Zahl, and Spirit Torino told me it's likely a grounding issue and to try a ground box. I wonder if I have a grounding issue that's injecting noise. I didn't notice noise on my other HPs when using the Zahl, but maybe the Immanis is just more transparent (or more sensitive to it?), so I am now picking up on it. I will troubleshoot. [Complete aside, but if you have suggestions for a technical ignoramus (me, I'm talking about me) on the most effective, reasonably priced, quick, and simple way to troubleshoot and fix a grounding issue on the HM1, please PM me].

 

[draytonklammer]

Update to my Immanis impressions from a couple days ago:

I spent a few hours yesterday and most of today driving the Immanis with the Zahl HM1 through the TI-1a interface box.



The incredible holographics of the Immanis continue to catch me off guard. And the bass keeps surprising me. I had hoped for bass that wouldn't fall too far behind your average dynamic and planar HPs. Instead, it's better than anything I've heard (though the 1266 is still in the running).

My Zahl isn't jiving very well with the Immanis, though. The mid and upper bass has a bit too much bloom and sounds boomy--like a bad car stereo. And noise--I'm hearing noise. I'm noticing this through both the 16 ohm and 32 ohm interface inputs, in both Class A and Class A+Servo mode on the Zahl, and with my Supratek preamp both in and out of the chain. To make sure I wasn't imagining it, I switched back to the VM1a. All the problems instantly and obviously vanished.

It could be that the Zahl just doesn't have good synergy with the Immanis. I think it might be something else, though. I get occasional shocks from the Valkyria off the Zahl, and Spirit Torino told me it's likely a grounding issue and to try a ground box. I wonder if I have a grounding issue that's injecting noise. I didn't notice noise on my other HPs when using the Zahl, but maybe the Immanis is just more transparent (or more sensitive to it?), so I am now picking up on it. I will troubleshoot. [Complete aside, but if you have suggestions for a technical ignoramus (me, I'm talking about me) on the most effective, reasonably priced, quick, and simple way to troubleshoot and fix a grounding issue on the HM1, please PM me].

You're tempting me to pick up a VM-1a to pair with my future Immanis.

 

[Hiker816]

You're tempting me to pick up a VM-1a to pair with my future Immanis.

Ha! The VM-1a is something special--that's true. I think it's too early to count the Zahl out, though. It might just be an easily fixable grounding issue with my chain.

 

[Hiyono]

It could be that the Zahl just doesn't have good synergy with the Immanis.

You have them all caged up and they unhappy about it.

 

[Hiker816]

You have them all caged up and they unhappy about it.

LOL! Yes, that's the most likely explanation.

(My kit lives at my office in a high-rise downtown, so I took some extreme measures with my audio rack to discourage any sticky-fingered visitors or cleaning staff).

 

[moha97]

Another couple of amplifiers that do justice to the Immanis, in two different ways ... The Serbian Connection rules




Although the Italian pair available at the booth (the AIC-10 and the Viva Egoista 845), was just as beautilully sounding with their own character.

The Immanis has a very straightforward way to display the peculiarities of the components that drive them, so the usual care for synergy is further emphasized here.

Also the impedance of the adapter plays a role on the sound signature, for any given amp.

The Susvara was there for comparison as well. If you have the chance, paying a visit to Room 137 at the Munich Hifi Deluxe is well worth the trip, definitely more clarifying than forum opinions.

And the hosts are such knowledgeable, passionate, humble and amiable people!

Could you give impressions on these other amps/how Immanis sounded on them compared to your chain at home? Any clear winners/losers in terms of synergy?

 

[jlbrach]

Ha! The VM-1a is something special--that's true. I think it's too early to count the Zahl out, though. It might just be an easily fixable grounding issue with my chain.

I have the vm-1a and love it but so reason the zahl shouldn't be excellent as well...makes no sense