I just wrapped up a wonderful two weeks living with both the Immanis and Magna. The Immanis is mine, but I have
@MokhaMark to thank for the Magna. I’m pretty sure he only owned his Magna for a week or two before letting me borrow it. I’ve been asking myself if the roles were reversed, would I have been willing to give up my new and astonishingly great headphone to let someone else demo it for two weeks. I’m not sure I could have done it. I think I’m too selfish and couldn’t have given it up like that. All that is to say thank you,
@MokhaMark, for being a better person than I am!
The comparison below is based on about 80 hours of listening on the Immanis (running in for about 125), and about 40 hours of listening on the Magna (presumably it already had some hours on it from Mark). RAAL’s Star 8 cable was used with both. Both were run off the RAAL-requisite VM-1a, Zahl HM1, and RAAL-requisite HSA-1b.
The majority of the music used was instrumental progressive metal and rock, like Night Verses, Intervals, Syncatto, Bernth, Animals as Leaders, etc., some prog metal and rock with vocals like Dream Theater, some acoustic guitar like Rodrigo y Gabriela, and a few vocal-centric tracks and classical / orchestral tracks. I rarely listen to vocals or classical, so it’s tough for me to properly assess if it sounds better or worse than it is supposed to (but none of it sounded bad!). I didn’t listen to any jazz, rap, hip hop, or country because I literally have no idea how that is supposed to sound and anything I could say would be at best useless and at worst misleading. Sorry.
Please keep in mind that this is a comparison of the Immanis and Magna. It is not meant to be a comparison to other non-ribbon headphones—that is coming later. So, when I say one of these RAALs sounds worse to me with respect to some characteristic, don’t infer that this means it is bad compared to other headphones. It almost assuredly does not mean that. These two RAALs are, to my ears, two of the best headphones in existence. The weaker of the two in one category may well still trounce any other headphone in that category.
SQ Assessments
Staging: One of the biggest differentiators between the Immanis and Magna is the headstaging. The Immanis sounds quite expansive—everything sounds big. Not cavernous like the HD800S, but certainly more big-venue than smokey lounge. The Magna is noticeably more intimate. Not quite reach-out-and-touch the instruments like the Spirit Torino Valkyria, but certainly closer to lounge staging than concert hall. This difference in perceived staging has some spill-over impacts as mentioned below.
Dynamics/Punchiness: This category is an important one. Most of the Immanis vs Magna impressions shared so far have noted that the Magna sounds punchier—that the Immanis was more an SR-1a successor and the Magna more a CA-1a successor. That had me worried that I chose the wrong headphone by ordering the Immanis. I love both the SR1a and the CA1a, but I do really appreciate the extra punchiness of the CA1a. In fact, if I were being completely honest about it, if someone asked me which I liked more, some days I would say the SR1a, and some days I would say they’re even, but probably the slight majority of days I would say the CA1a. Thankfully, I had no reason to worry about ordering the Immanis. The dynamics on both the Immanis and Magna are top notch. Simply incredible, in fact. The more expansive staging on the Immanis does mean the instruments sound farther away, yet rather than that perceived extra distance making the notes sound more diffuse, it as though they are shot at you with a laser beam. It’s almost like, as the stage on the Immanis expands, the instruments themselves also get bigger. Another analogy might be your opponent in a boxing match. With the Magna, your opponent is a powerful compact fighter who lands blows from close range. With the Immanis, you’re fighting someone who has a longer reach and attacks from a foot farther back. But those Immanis punches still land and they still hurt (in a good way)! Nonetheless, the instruments sound farther away on the Immanis than on the Magna, and that Magna closeness could be perceived as punchier or more energetic. For the vast majority of music I listen to, though, the difference I perceived was just intimacy, not dynamics. In fact, I was able to identify one—just one—song that sounded better to me on the Magna than it did on the Immanis. That one track is Queen’s Killer Queen. This is not a track I listen to often, but I went back and forth several times, and am confident it sounds slightly better to me on the Magna than on the Immanis. My best assessment of why is live venue energy. By that, I mean that even if you’re at a big venue, there is an energy difference being in the front row than the middle or back. I wouldn’t even say this is a difference in dynamics—at a concert, the sonic sweet spot may well be back from the front row. Yet, there’s an undeniable energy, which really isn’t directly correlated to the music itself, with being right in front of the musicians. Somehow, on this one song, the Magna captured that energy in a way the Immanis did not. However, if you enjoy music technicalities as much as the energetic feeling of a live venue, the dynamics of the Immanis are, IMO, just as good as those on the Magna. Note, both the Immanis and Magna need a little bit of volume to come alive. 68 dBs will do it, but they sound lackluster at, say, 63 dBs.
Dynamic Range: Both the Immanis and Magna have incredible dynamic range, competently reproducing the quietest and loudest notes in any track with apparent ease. I would, however, give the nod to the Immanis as being just a tiny bit better at handling the extremes.
Timbre: Wow. The timbre on both new RAALs is simply stunning. Every note is reproduced with so much information—so much
accurate information—that every drum strike and guitar pluck, every piano note and the vibration from every violin string, is incredibly lifelike and beamed directly to your ears. The attack of every note is spot on and erupts out of nowhere, and the decay is wholly believable and clearly a reflection of the instrument—the decay is from the note, not driver inertia or cup reverb. The texture of everything is astonishing. That said, between the Immanis and Magna, the Immanis holds pole position here. I presume because of the third ribbon, it takes life-like to another plane.
Resolution & Clarity: In my experience, the SR1a owned the resolution and clarity space, with competition coming only from the best e-stats (of which I have only had some brief auditions), and (for resolution only) the DCA Stealth. Move over SR1a, because the Immanis and Magna have you beat. This might not immediately jump out at the listener, I suspect because the Immanis and Magna are less fatiguing and sound less etched than the SR1a, and thus the two newer models might be perceived as sounding smoother. Avoid falling into that trap, though, and the exceptional resolution and clarity is apparent. Here, the Immanis is a bit ahead of the Magna. I would guess that’s a combination of two things: (1) the third ribbon cancels out errors (analogizing to room modes) more; and (2) the superior instrument separation (in part from the more expansive staging) gives it a leg up in avoiding congestion on busy tracks.
Instrument Separation & Imaging: Instrument separation on the Immanis surpasses the Magna, though both are great compared to other headphones. But here, the more expansive soundstage on the Immanis is perceived as pulling the instruments apart in space, and that has exactly the affect you would expect on separation, particularly when that extra distance doesn’t make instruments sound more diffuse, which it doesn’t on the new RAALs. Both are very holographic, with the Immanis slightly ahead. Imaging on both is also remarkable, though again, the Immanis takes the crown.
Speed: I perceive both the Immanis and Magna to sound incredibly fast. They seem even to me in this category.
Bass: The bass on both the Immanis and Magna is exceptional. And I don’t mean exceptional for a ribbon. I mean exceptional compared to all headphones on the market. Bass extension, texture, detail, control, and—once the ribbons are broken in—slam, are simply amazing. Here, again, I have to give the nod to the Immanis, though. It extends deeper, and has superior texture, detail, and control. Perceived slam I would put at about equal, with the intimacy of the Magna balancing out the Immanis’ advantage in moving more air with its larger driver surface area.
Mids: Both Magna and Immanis have great mids and the flat FR curve means the mids aren’t being overshadowed by the bass or treble—both are very balanced. Here it will likely come down to personal preference. Which is more important to you when you’re focusing on the mids—intimacy or texture/timbre/instrument separation?
Treble: Both RAALs excel in the treble region. Clarity, texture, timbre are all top notch, though the Immanis runs a bit ahead. Neither headphone is fatiguing (more on that below), assuredly thanks to the multiple ribbon drivers, but the Immanis is a touch smoother in the treble. Interestingly, the Magna seems to have slightly better treble extension (more on that below, too), but it’s very hard to notice that when enjoying music.
Vocals: The difference here again comes down to intimacy, at least for me. Are you drawn to intimate vocals or those delivered in a bigger venue? Either way, vocals on both headphones are amazing—the detail and texture conveyed is out of this world. If you’re looking for the excitement of the front row or mosh pit, irrespective of technicalities, you might find the Magna vocals more exciting as the Queen track seemed to suggest to me. If you prefer more distant large-venue vocals, the Immanis will sound more natural. For example, with “Into the Unknown” on the Frozen 2 soundtrack (go easy on me please—I almost never listen to any vocals and since I have two young daughters, it was the first example I could think of with a skilled female vocalist), the vocals actually sound more natural and compelling on the Immanis than on the Magna, likely because they were not recorded to sound as intimate as say, the Queen track.
Frequency Response: When listening to music, both the Immanis and Magna strike me as very balanced. I don’t have any testing equipment and wouldn’t trust myself to set it up and run tests correctly even if I did. I can, however, listen to a sine sweep. That, of course, will expose as much about the limits of my own hearing as the limits of the headphone. And, while I did this at the higher end of my preferred volume, that’s still very low compared to pretty much everyone else (68 dBs). With those caveats, I can sense something starting around 22 Hz with the Immanis, and actually hear it audibly starting at about 25 Hz. I hear a small peak around 3 kHz, small dip around 3.8-4.2 kHz, quite noticeable dip around 6.2-6.7 kHz, small peak around 8.8-9.7 kHz, and a very pronounced rolloff starting at 11 kHz until I can’t hear anything just past 12 kHz. On the Magna, I can sense something starting around 28 Hz, and hear it audibly starting around 33 Hz. I hear a small dip around 3.8-4.1 kHz, quite noticeable dip around 6.2-7.3 kHz, small peak around 8.9 kHz, and a pronounced rolloff starting at about 10.8 kHz, with it becoming inaudible at about 13 kHz. Thus, the Immanis extends a bit deeper. The Magna starts to roll off just the tiniest bit earlier in the treble but extends a bit higher than the Immanis before becoming inaudible (to me).
Fatigue: For some music, on some amps, and for some people, the SR1a could get a bit edgy. The Immanis and Magna remove that fatigue without losing any detail. I’ve heard the new RAALs described as “smooth”—especially the Immanis. For me personally, “smooth” is usually a dirty word as I associate it with loss of resolution and dynamics. Thankfully, that’s not a problem at all with either the Immanis or Magna. Instead, “smooth” just means not harsh or fatiguing. In terms of the difference between the two, I would say the Immanis is slightly less fatiguing in the treble, but the Magna is no slouch.
Non-SQ Assessments
Comfort: The fit is very similar between the Magna and Immanis, as you’d expect based on the similar design. Both have what I consider to be the perfect amount of clamp. Enough to get a seal but not uncomfortable, even after long listening sessions. No hot spots on the head with either. Each time I swapped from the Immanis to the Magna, I thought to myself that the Magna was slightly more comfortable. Then, when I swapped back to the Immanis, I thought no, actually, the Immanis is slightly more comfortable. I ultimately figured out that the pads were cooler on whichever I swapped to for the first minute, which was refreshing in the warmer weather. All that is to say that I think they’re equally comfortable. I never noticed the extra weight of the Immanis. But I’m also used to the Abyss 1266 TC and Valkyria. If you are sensitive to weight, perhaps you’d find the Magna more comfortable over long listening sessions.
Quality: Both the Magna and Immanis exude quality. They both appear to use premium materials with great attention to detail. No worries about the material quality or durability of either, as far as I can tell.
Aesthetics: Appearance obviously comes down to personal preference. I will say that gold usually strikes me as too gaudy. Not so with the Immanis, though. For some reason, to me, the gold grilles match slightly better with the wood veneer on the cups and comes across as classy and luxurious without stepping over the line toward ostentatious. I also like the very subtle sun at the top of the grilles on the Immanis which I probably wouldn’t have noticed had Aleks not said anything. It’s the little things. I think both headphones are stunning.
Choosing Between the Immanis and Magna
You might prefer the Magna if:
- The significant price difference between the two is important
- You prefer a more intimate soundstage, including but not limited to more intimate vocals, even if it comes at the expense of some technicalities, timbre, and texture
- You prioritize front-row live venue energy and spend most of your time listening to tracks that can capture that
- You quickly find heavier headphones uncomfortable
If these don’t describe you, or at least don’t take priority over other characteristics, get the Immanis. It’s the better headphone in nearly every conceivable category.
