[Kelowna]

Refreshing take on this Alex. Thanks for the post.

@cconnaker probably wouldn't like an interface like this. The sound might be too "refreshing"! But soon 5 SR1-a owners will understand very well that what I've been saying has a lot of merit

I just found out that another friend of mine has these headphones as well. So that makes 6! All members here. Following this thread as well. In fact most 10+ year members!

 

[dieslemat]

I'll tell you guys what. If my 5 friends who own the SR1-a headphones love the interface box, I'll give the entire design away for free. I'll provide links for all parts, and where to get the case at wholesale cost. All for free to the audiophile community. Since I'm no longer in retail sales I might as well be Santa Claus!

I'm curious. I am keen to build your design.
But if you really want to give it away for free then why have a condition where it depends on your 5 friends liking your design?

You can just share it and let others build it and hear for themselves. How much will your design cost to build?

 

[Kelowna]

I'm curious. I am keen to build your design.
But if you really want to give it away for free then why have a condition where it depends on your 5 friends liking your design?

You can just share it and let others build it and hear for themselves. How much will your design cost to build?

Because I trust these guys ears. And they have a long history with proven rich experience with very high end gear. And I wouldn't want anyone to waste a penny on buying these parts unless they represent the best possible way to enjoy these headphones.

As I mentioned earlier the BOM is around $700 for all parts and the nice Japanese made Takachi case. This is including Neotech UPOCC pure silver wire for wiring the resistors, from the Furutech FT-807 binding posts to the Neutrik headphone output. And of course all resistors soldered with silver solder. All parts can be sourced from many places. So choose to buy the parts from anywhere they're sold. I have absolutely no financial interest in this project. All for purely hobby reasons.

This interface will represent the very best possible interface box money can possibly buy. Give me a million $ to spend and I won't be able to do better.

I got out of retail audio last month. But that doesn't mean I'm no longer an avid audio gear hobbyist. So why waste all I've learned over 26 years and not share it with others who share my same hobby? So I decided I'm going to start giving designs away of the very best way to make different types of audio gear. All for free. I really believe in these headphones, so it's something I thought would be a great 1st project. I'm a perfectionist, and anything less than the very best is garbage in my mind. So I will only share things that represent the best possible way to do things, and only after verified by the best ears out there first.

 

[dieslemat]

And I wouldn't want anyone to waste a penny on buying these parts unless they represent the best possible way to enjoy these headphones.

Dont worry. I'm ok to waste 700 usd if it doesn't work out. Just want to try it out.

 

[Kelowna]

Dont worry. I'm ok to waste 700 usd if it doesn't work out. Just want to try it out.

Sorry but you'll need to be patient. Because I'm extremely anal about having my designs verified by several others before making them public.

 

[dieslemat]

Sorry but you'll need to be patient. Because I'm extremely anal about having my designs verified by several others before making them public.

I understand.
So your process would be (and i am over simplifying)

1. Design it
2. Build it
3. Have your trusted friends try it out
4. If it passes then show it to the world

 

[Kelowna]

I understand.
So your process would be (and i am over simplifying)

1. Design it
2. Build it
3. Have your trusted friends try it out
4. If it passes then show it to the world

Yep you got it right. And with absolutely no motive but to make people happy. I know that may be a concept that many in this industry find hard to grasp, but it's the truth! I have the knowledge, and it's no skin off my ass to do this. In fact I enjoy it. It's my hobby. Some people climb mountains, some go hunting, some make shareware software. I want my hobby to be solving problems with audio gear that vastly improve performance, and the quality of life of audiophiles. And save them money at the same time.

 

[tunes]

Yep you got it right. And with absolutely no motive but to make people happy. I know that may be a concept that many in this industry find hard to grasp, but it's the truth! I have the knowledge, and it's no skin off my ass to do this. In fact I enjoy it. It's my hobby. Some people climb mountains, some go hunting, some make shareware software. I want my hobby to be solving problems with audio gear that vastly improve performance, and the quality of life of audiophiles. And save them money at the same time.

But isn’t the best interface box NO BOX? Like that employed by the Shiit folks with their JOT-R?

 

[Pale Rider]

But isn’t the best interface box NO BOX? Like that employed by the Shiit folks with their JOT-R?

My thought on this is: “of course.” And certainly, my experience so far with the JotR vs. Buffer/Vidar confirms that. But at an abstract level, the JotR is just another interface box in between the signal with amplitude and the SR1a. Depending on its topology and construction, a buffer that was made as transparent as possible while doing whatever EQ it needed (or potentially even better, off-loading that to an adequate DSP platform), could be just as or more satisfying. I briefly and carefully connected my Merrill monoblocks to the buffer box for a short time, and that experience seriously hinted at the potential for the SR1a.

 

[tunes]

My thought on this is: “of course.” And certainly, my experience so far with the JotR vs. Buffer/Vidar confirms that. But at an abstract level, the JotR is just another interface box in between the signal with amplitude and the SR1a. Depending on its topology and construction, a buffer that was made as transparent as possible while doing whatever EQ it needed (or potentially even better, off-loading that to an adequate DSP platform), could be just as or more satisfying. I briefly and carefully connected my Merrill monoblocks to the buffer box for a short time, and that experience seriously hinted at the potential for the SR1a.

Doesn’t the driver in these have limited excursion and exceeding this could cause clipping? At the NYC CanJam this past weekend, due to the loud ambient noise, listening the the SR1a via the JOT-R was difficult and few times at higher volume noticed clipping with distortion. The Shiit folks said the SE1a pair on display with the JOR-R hadn’t been very well burned in. I am not sure that was what caused the clipping.

 

[Pale Rider]

Doesn’t the driver in these have limited excursion and exceeding this could cause clipping? At the NYC CanJam this past weekend, due to the loud ambient noise, listening the the SR1a via the JOT-R was difficult and few times at higher volume noticed clipping with distortion. The Shiit folks said the SE1a pair on display with the JOR-R hadn’t been very well burned in. I am not sure that was what caused the clipping.

I do not know if the ribbons have "limited excursion." According to Torq:

'Just to be clear, the SR1a ribbons do have limits to their excursion also. But that’s really the only thing to be aware of. At a peak listening level of 85 dB you’ve got 26 dB of room to play with, however.'​

I suppose in a noisy environment, one could find that challenging. Still, in my home, the JotR drives the SR1a to more than adequate listening levels, and is capable of uncomfortable ones.To me, that's separate from whether another direct drive amp, or another buffer/amp combo might drive the SR1a better and with even better SQ.

 

[Kelowna]

But isn’t the best interface box NO BOX? Like that employed by the Shiit folks with their JOT-R?

If the Jot R contained the worlds best amp, do you think there would be a market for the upcoming higher end Raal branded amp? The resistors I'm using, along with the wire and connectors are so transparent, the amp and DAC before it becomes the only bottleneck in the system.

 

[dieslemat]

If the Jot R contained the worlds best amp, do you think there would be a market for the upcoming higher end Raal branded amp? The resistors I'm using, along with the wire and connectors are so transparent, the amp and DAC before it becomes the only bottleneck in the system.

Hello, would you like to start a new thread for you great resistor/amp for the Raals?
You can promote your up and coming great invention there

 

[Kelowna]

Hello, would you like to start a new thread for you great resistor/amp for the Raals?
You can promote your up and coming great invention there

I'm already getting posts deleted so probably a bad idea. Educating the public is bad for business. I already have a thread on it elsewhere.

 

[dieslemat]

I'm already getting posts deleted so probably a bad idea. Educating the public is bad for business. I already have a thread on it elsewhere.

Cool man. so for now we can keep this thread about the Raal and some concrete amps that people can buy and build. Once you have your amp or invention up maybe we can discuss it further here. I'm cautious that people might think you are flooding this thread with things that they may not be interested yet in knowing because its not yet tangible.

good look on your endeavour