[Hiker816]

I generally like the design, but my one concern is precisely the inability of the cups to pivot about the vertical axis. It seems like this could impact comfort and/or the quality of the seal. Thoughts?

@Aleksandar R., please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the idea is that you can bend the headband to whatever cup angle you want, right?

 

[Aleksandar R.]

I generally like the design, but my one concern is precisely the inability of the cups to pivot about the vertical axis. It seems like this could impact comfort and/or the quality of the seal. Thoughts?

Good question!

The prongs at front and back are independent from one another, so they are self adjustable to toe-in/out.

 

[Aleksandar R.]

@Aleksandar R., please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the idea is that you can bend the headband to whatever cup angle you want, right?

Not necessary any more. +/-6° softly adjusts itself, which is enough for variations in skull shapes.

You can bend the upper part of the headspring to regulate the clamping force.
I might do the factory setup to a mild force, but you can squeeze it if you need more.

these ventilate ears very, very good, so no sweating, allowing for long sessions, so a mild force is better for long sessions.

 

[jlbrach]

I have my Dave set to -20 and my VM1a at step 5 (about 9 o'clock) for the CA1a. Yes, I listen at very low volume relative to most, but 1 o'clock, with Dave at zero, would cause my head to explode.

I am usig the mitch filters as well...I do not listen very loud so we must have a mismatch somewhere..if I listened with the dave at -20 and the VM set at 9 o colock I would literally hear nothing lol

 

[Ciggavelli]

I have my Dave set to -20 and my VM1a at step 5 (about 9 o'clock) for the CA1a. Yes, I listen at very low volume relative to most, but 1 o'clock, with Dave at zero, would cause my head to explode.

-20? Damn... I'm f-ing around with -6. I'll give it a try though

 

[Hiker816]

-20? Damn... I'm f-ing around with -6. I'll give it a try though

Didn't you say you listen in the 80s dB SPL? I'm in the high 50s to low/mid 60s. I'm weird. You prob won't hear anything at -20 either.

 

[jlbrach]

Didn't you say you listen in the 80s dB SPL? I'm in the high 50s to low/mid 60s. I'm weird. You prob won't hear anything at -20 either.

you have supersonic hearing lol

 

[nfandi]

Today I’ve been thinking about the CA-1a and its role in life once Magna and Immanis are unleashed upon us. Based on the design of the new phones I can still see a relevance to the SR-1a/b and its variable angles of openness etc but it seems to me that the CA, even though it’s the younger sibling, has been well and truly superceded. I currently use the CA more than the SR because I think it fits better with a wider range of genres so I’m wondering if it still has a life after Immanis?
Would love for people to share their thoughts on this, and also if we should petition Aleks to open a home for retired CA’s in ?

 

[Hiker816]

Today I’ve been thinking about the CA-1a and its role in life once Magna and Immanis are unleashed upon us. Based on the design of the new phones I can still see a relevance to the SR-1a/b and its variable angles of openness etc but it seems to me that the CA, even though it’s the younger sibling, has been well and truly superceded. I currently use the CA more than the SR because I think it fits better with a wider range of genres so I’m wondering if it still has a life after Immanis?
Would love for people to share their thoughts on this, and also if we should petition Aleks to open a home for retired CA’s in ?

While I suppose it's possible the CA-1a will become irrelevant for those who buy the Immanis, how may people is that? With the Immanis over 3x the cost of the CA-1a, I suspect the baby brother will remain alive and well.

 

[Failed Engineer]

What is the pricing on the two phones? Naked and full kit.

 

[Hiker816]

What is the pricing on the two phones? Naked and full kit.

Not sure how final it is, but the 6moons preview said:
--Immanis: 8,600 Euros full = $9,282.80 USD; 6,470 Euros naked = $6,983.69 USD
--Magna: 5,700 Euros full = $6,152.55 USD; naked not mentioned

Edit: The conversions from Euros to USD are mine from google, not from RAAL

 

[SageM]

I'm disappointed that the VM-1a uses stepped volume control. I wonder how that will work with the Immanis.

Works very similar as it does with VM-1a. Since new models are a bit more sensitive, your volume setting will be approximately 2-steps down.

 

[SageM]

He said the new 3 ribbon needs less volume. The CA is already not using that much volume on the VM. There aren't that many steps left. If it was a continuous volume control, it could be better fine tuned. But with the steps, there is no in-between

For audio quality, steps are a good way to control level, however, steps are more detectible on headphones than speakers. Clearly, this can be annoying. If, by chance, you have an output level control on your DAC or preamp, fine tuning can be accomplished. Ultimately, refitting with a continuously variable pot is always an option. It's a bit of a project but, totally doable.

 

[SageM]

I am at about 12-1 o clock on my CA with the VM-1a..I use the dave and blu2 and have it set to 0

You have your source output in a good spot. Input transformers are happy and you have good up/down range on the attenuator.

 

[nfandi]

While I suppose it's possible the CA-1a will become irrelevant for those who buy the Immanis, how may people is that? With the Immanis over 3x the cost of the CA-1a, I suspect the baby brother will remain alive and well.

Yes I see that but what I meant was if you buy the Immanis does the CA still have a reason to stay in your collection?