[FLTWS]

True.

 

[Turcoda]

I know many of you have owned your headphones for some time. I was wondering if you could tell me what DAC's you are using so I can better understand what works with these headphones. I want a higher end DAC and have been looking at the Holo Audio May DAC. The downside of this DAC is the size, but one thing I really like is its exceptional USB module that has Titanis 2.0 USB circuit and galvanic isolation. This could possibly allow me to stream from my desktop computer without worrying about compromising the sound. It would also save me money from not needing to purchase a separate streamer. I'm not opposed to making a streamer purchase and I'm open to all solutions. I was also looking at the Chord DAC's and possibly even the MH-DA005.

Because of yyzSB and others, i have ordered an 005 and was in the same boat as you. Mine just shipped yesterday from shenzhenaudio. I can report back when it arrives and let you know. I was gonna go r2r but im a gamer and latency doesnt mix well with that hobby. The 005 seemed to be the best built high end delta sigma dac for the price.

 

[SageM]

Received my Headphones last week and FedEx just delivered my New VM-1a amplifier this afternoon. I haven't really had any listening time yet, but initial impressions are that it did sound better at the CanJam despite all of the noise. This is completely expected since these items are brand new with no burn in and I'm using and old DAC I had in the closet (Yulong Sabre DA8) compared to the Chord DAC at the show. Two surprising things for me was the amplifier had JJ EL34 tubes instead of the Mullard EL34 tubes they had in the Amplifier at the CanJam show. This was a bit disappointing for me. The EL34 tubes were all APEX matched. Also they claim the weight of this amp at 29 pounds on their web site.

Full weight of the amp for me came in at 21.6 pounds. My guess is the boxes could possibly add another 2-4 pounds to this total. Another possible factor in my sound is I'm taking USB straight out of my gaming computer. I will be buying a new DAC (Much higher quality) and possibly a new streamer right after I attend the AXPONA show next month. My guess is this will greatly improve the sound. I'm using a brand new Zavfino Fusion (1.5 meter) interconnect and the stock power cord with the amplifier. Also just using a standard computer grade USB cable. I do plan on doing upgrades to both cables very soon. My streaming is being done via Tidal on my computer. What's exciting is with all of these exceptions I know things will improve significantly after I've made upgrades and tweaks. So far I've only listened to Triode mode. Very exciting!

​

I'm not sure if you received my call regarding tube substitution from Mullard to JJ. There was no answer so I left a message. Once Mullards become available again, we will be happy to replace any JJ with Mullard. I don't know how long to expect this Russian tube drought to last but, we are hopeful and will continue to search beyond our usual sources. At this time, even JJs are difficult to get.

Very best,

Danny McKinney
RAAL-requisite

 

[Makiah S]

Received my Headphones last week and FedEx just delivered my New VM-1a amplifier this afternoon. I haven't really had any listening time yet, but initial impressions are that it did sound better at the CanJam despite all of the noise. This is completely expected since these items are brand new with no burn in and I'm using and old DAC I had in the closet (Yulong Sabre DA8) compared to the Chord DAC at the show. Two surprising things for me was the amplifier had JJ EL34 tubes instead of the Mullard EL34 tubes they had in the Amplifier at the CanJam show. This was a bit disappointing for me. The EL34 tubes were all APEX matched. Also they claim the weight of this amp at 29 pounds on their web site.

Full weight of the amp for me came in at 21.6 pounds. My guess is the boxes could possibly add another 2-4 pounds to this total. Another possible factor in my sound is I'm taking USB straight out of my gaming computer. I will be buying a new DAC (Much higher quality) and possibly a new streamer right after I attend the AXPONA show next month. My guess is this will greatly improve the sound. I'm using a brand new Zavfino Fusion (1.5 meter) interconnect and the stock power cord with the amplifier. Also just using a standard computer grade USB cable. I do plan on doing upgrades to both cables very soon. My streaming is being done via Tidal on my computer. What's exciting is with all of these exceptions I know things will improve significantly after I've made upgrades and tweaks. So far I've only listened to Triode mode. Very exciting!

​

We appreciate your feed-back! I quite like the JJ Tubes as well as the New Stock Mullards, one big difference from what you heard at the show VS what you have at home is your source. With something as resolving and detailed as the VM-1a and SR-1a you'll notice a difference between digital sources more easily. Feel free to reach out to my-self for some DAC recommendations, I've got a VM-1A here in my office, I'm working on a review and can give you feed back on what DAC's I like the most with it at a variety of price points!

We were using the Chord TT2 DAC at CanJam New-York running off exclusively off Network Streaming, I hope that you enjoy your new DAC alongside of the VM-1A and SR-1A combo. Regarding the tubes I reached out to Danny and he responded with this:

I tried to reach out to him by phone, no answer so I left a message. Once Mullards become available again, we will be happy to replace any JJ with Mullard. I don't know how long to expect this Russian tube drought to last but, we are hopeful and will continue to search beyond our usual sources. At this time, even JJs are difficult to get. Very best, Danny McKinney RAAL-requisite

 

[Aleksandar R.]

We've also tried to find some Russian EL34's through our Bulgarian supplier of all-tubes-Russian, who has a direct connection to tube stocks in Russia and he's all out of 34's, has no info when they might be available again. The problem is that all supply to Bulgaria was going by land through Ukraine. No good solution for that problem now.

 

[jlbrach]

chord dave/blu2 for me with my sr1a

 

[Aleksandar R.]

Anybody know if KT88/6550's can be used in the VM-1a? Or just KT77/EL-34's.

No to 6550, unfortunately. I forgot what was the actual reason, we're developing this thing since June 2020 so memory fails me, but it was something about electrical compatibility that wasn't working right. So, just direct replacements to EL34 will work.

 

[FLTWS]

Thanks.

 

[yyzSB]

Here are the John Swenson white paper links for streaming,

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/...ables—and-a-money-saving-surprise-at-the-end/

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/musetec-lks-mh-da005-dac/post?postid=2322722#2322722 (need to drill down on this link)

 

[Hiker816]

Here are the John Swenson white paper links for streaming,

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic/62477-john-swenson-tutoring-paper-considerations-regarding-usage-of-external-reference-clocks-etherregen-and-other-sine-vs-square-impedance-cables—and-a-money-saving-surprise-at-the-end/

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/musetec-lks-mh-da005-dac/post?postid=2322722#2322722 (need to drill down on this link)

Thanks! Much appreciated.

 

[Mobiustereo]

Not sure if this topic has already been broached? But has anyone tried a Class D amp (using the amp interface)? with the RS1a’s? Just seems like it might be a really pure signal and have the benefit of high efficiency. There’s a plethora of great Class D amps now in the market - NuPrime, Bel Canto, NAD, Rogue, etc. All have at least 140 watts per ch. and are mostly around or under the $2k mark.

 

[yyzSB]

Not sure if this topic has already been broached? But has anyone tried a Class D amp (using the amp interface)? with the RS1a’s? Just seems like it might be a really pure signal and have the benefit of high efficiency. There’s a plethora of great Class D amps now in the market - NuPrime, Bel Canto, NAD, Rogue, etc. All have at least 140 watts per ch. and are mostly around or under the $2k mark.

1) I tried the D-Sonic M3a 800s (Pascal) amp. Tons of power but not as good with the Sr1a as some other amps similarly priced.
2) The LSA Voyager 350 GAN. Very clear with power but something was off. Maybe the lack of warmth,

I preferred a Parsound A21+ (used $2500) over the above Class D amps.

If I had kept either one of the 2 Class D amps listed above, I would use the SR1a with a very warm DAC. I prefer not to do that with DACs.

 

[paradoxper]

Here are the John Swenson white paper links for streaming,

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic/62477-john-swenson-tutoring-paper-considerations-regarding-usage-of-external-reference-clocks-etherregen-and-other-sine-vs-square-impedance-cables—and-a-money-saving-surprise-at-the-end/

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/musetec-lks-mh-da005-dac/post?postid=2322722#2322722 (need to drill down on this link)

Good read. Thank you.

 

[eboleyn]

Not sure if this topic has already been broached? But has anyone tried a Class D amp (using the amp interface)? with the RS1a’s? Just seems like it might be a really pure signal and have the benefit of high efficiency. There’s a plethora of great Class D amps now in the market - NuPrime, Bel Canto, NAD, Rogue, etc. All have at least 140 watts per ch. and are mostly around or under the $2k mark.

I have tried a moderate collection of amps on my SR1a headphones, including:

• Pass Labs XA30.8 (Class A)
• Pass Labs X250.8 (Class A up to ~15 watts)
• VTV Purifi 1ET400A Stereo (class D)
• Topping PA5 (class D)
• Schiit Magnius (class ??, running it as a speaker amp can you believe it!) - can't run it loud, but I like quiet listening.

Historically I've found class D amps don't seem to drive speakers with complex crossovers as well as the Pass Labs amps.

The SR1a however seem to be more ... I guess I'll say "forgiving", maybe due to their more pure resistive nature with the speaker impedance matching box. I.e. there's just no "resonance frequency" issue of energy in the SR1a that has to be fought against unlike some cone speakers.

In any case, I liked all the amps for different reasons, with the class D amps being more "super-accurate", and the Pass Labs amps being more "engaging" for just random listening, but both can be fun for different reasons.

 

[RickyV]

So It finally arrived thanks to the local custom’s. The burn-in can begin, looks pretty cozy just like a fire place.

Mine came with apex Mullards.