[jlbrach]

I recently received my raal and I must say it is truly a revelation...I am listening through my chord dave and schiit amp at between 10-11 on remastered rock stuff...around 12 on more neutral stuff and as high as 2-3 on acoustic jazz and high dynamic range stuff....as one privileged to own and to have owned pretty much every high end HP other than the stax I have to say this is remarkable in so many ways...no it doesnt have the gut level bass impact of the abyss tc but the size of the sound stage, the space and detail is astonishing....last night I was listening to the beatles white album and could literally hear the band talking to one another and I heard harmonies I had never heard prior ...listening to court and spark I could hear tape damage from the transfer that I never heard before and listening to classic dylan albums I heard things in the mix I had never heard before...it is actually an amazing product and while everything has weaknesses IMHO it is a bargain relative to say the LCD-4 or Utopia which sell for the same price or even the susvara which is spectacular but retails for 6K...the only downside as far as I am concerned is that you need a separate amp for the Raal which makes it a bit of a nuisance to switch back and forth between HP's...I recently sold my loudspeaker system giving me the means to experiment with a few products I have been interested in for a while and in this case it has thus far been a home run

 

[Jon L]

I recently received my raal and I must say it is truly a revelation...

This thread would say "told you so."
What actually puzzles me are the fair number of luke-warm reviews and user experiences out there with Raal. I must presume huge differences in personal preference and/or failure to reach a certain system synergy level.

Another plus with Raal is that it forced me to change ancillaries for my Abyss TC setup to improve certain aspects that are the strengths of Raal, which has elevated my Abyss enjoyment as well.

 

[jlbrach]

the only downside as I mentioned is the hassle of having to change amps to listen to the different HP's...at least in my case

 

[Ciggavelli]

the only downside as I mentioned is the hassle of having to change amps to listen to the different HP's...at least in my case

Go XLR out of your headphone amp and put it in pre-amp mode to the JotR

 

[jlbrach]

the biggest problem with improvements in equipment HP's etc is source material gets exposed all the more and some of our favorite music was recorded so poorly and is difficult to listen to...on the other the well recorded stuff is rendered even better...it is a real conundrum

 

[JLoud]

jlbrach, how would you compare the Raal to the TC, LCD4, and Susvara? I currently own the TC and LCD4. Was thinking of adding the Susvara, but the Raal has been an interest of mine as well. Just bought a new house, so buying both is not an option right now.

 

[paradoxper]

Sigh. Second go on the merry-go-round. This incessant behavior is silly!

 

[jlbrach]

jlbrach, how would you compare the Raal to the TC, LCD4, and Susvara? I currently own the TC and LCD4. Was thinking of adding the Susvara, but the Raal has been an interest of mine as well. Just bought a new house, so buying both is not an option right now.

I do not own the lcd-4 but have in the past.....the raal is special, something completely different...if I was going to own 2 pairs of HP's right now it would be the TC and the RAAL but the susvara is fabulous as well....when I want more of a HP experience I reach for the susvara, when I want more of a larger soundstage I reach for TC and if I want a speaker like presentation I take out the raal....the only issue with the raal to me is having to change amps...the schiit amp option eliminates the need for a speaker amp and the converter box and works really well....

 

[deafenears]

the only issue with the raal to me is having to change amps...the schiit amp option eliminates the need for a speaker amp and the converter box and works really well....

The HSA-1a might be a good option for you - all in one box, even speaker taps for the Susvara.

 

[Torq]

The HSA-1a might be a good option for you - all in one box, even speaker taps for the Susvara.

You're actually better off using the SR1a headphone output (not the conventional headphone output, since it has outputs for both, see below) with the included adapter cable to drive the Susvara via the HSA-1a than you are coming off the unit's speaker taps. Though the speaker taps will give you 1.3W into the Susvara's 60 ohm load, which will drive them to 114 dB/SPL.

 

[FLTWS]

Perhaps the Pandemic is slowing down either production or delivery (or both) of the revised HSA-1a as shown above.

 

[jlbrach]

it does seem the HP has become quite popular recently..with the schiit option it is 4k and quite honestly probably better than all but the susvara and TC which are simply different

 

[FLTWS]

Different is the correct answer. Depends on sonic priorities, physical interaction, how it interacts with ones available amplification, etc. "Best" among all is in the ear of the listener. And unlike "Highlander", there can be more than one.

 

[jlbrach]

I completely agree there is no best just like there is no best when comparing a mercedes and BMW just personal preference and budget etc

 

[koven]

I couldn't adapt to the fit and bass on the SR1a, I hope they eventually make a circumaural version, that'd be cool.