[yyzSB]

For my fellow RAAL enthusiasts. I am comparing 3 amps with the RAAL. The CODA #8, the Benchmark AHB2, and the brand new LSA Voyager 350 GAN amp (only 86 hours on my amp so far).

https://www.underwoodhifi.com/products/lsa-electronics

The Coda #8 and AHB2 are incredible with the Accurate Sound Convolution filter. For the AHB2 this filter is essential. However, with the Voyager I found it approaches the level of the other 2 without the filter. The Voyager is $3K and I traded-in my old Class D amp for it. If you are looking for a RAAL amp give it a try, highly recommended.

 

[smodtactical]

I have tried these amps and I agree 100% with your reviews. I run a Holo May.

In my experience @number1sixerfan the Raal takes amazingly well to the Primaluna evo 200/400. The 200 is only 44w per channel but the Sr1a sounds so incredible off it, that I had to email Danny and check.

To elaborate on the pairing with PL 200/400, the sound has more body than on SS amps, there is a hint of warmth in the midrange, bass sounds fuller, and treble energy is tamed a tad. In fact, I have been listening to the SR1a non-stop the last 3 days, 8 hours a day, off the PL tube integrated.

The PL also drives the TC and the Susvara very nicely off the speaker taps. I don’t enjoy either HP off the PL’s HP out tho.

Another serious contender is the McIntosh MA352. But the 352 is a hybrid with tube pre. Sounds quite nice but overall, I like the EL34’s with the SR1a.

Is the evo400 + sr1a combo your current favorite? Do you like it more than evo400 + TC?

 

[nagi8404]

Hi all, I wonder if any of the Luxman integrated amps are capable of driving the SR1As.
Currently I'm looking at the L-505u, L-505uXII.

Buying new is a bit hard on the wallet at the moment, so I'm considering other older used integrated amps:
Marantz PM-11S1, Marantz PM-12, Luxman L-509S.

Most of these amps are 100W at 8 Ohms, which is right at the recommended ballpark or should I want more power?

 

[Drumonron]

I just purchased the Chord Qutest DAC to feed my Raal HSA-1B and yeah, the SR1A ribbon earspeakers are that good - I'm all in. Thanks Headamp - I eagerly await.

These Earspeakers are just emotional machinery and from the Benchmark DAC2HGC to the HSA-1B, the SR1As are simply on another level. Nuances are evident now that where indistinguishable before and the composition as a whole are just so live it is intoxicating. I've been curious what the Qutest would bring to my listening sessions and I do have a need for a 2nd DAC for another listening station in my home.

 

[Homrsimson]

Regrettably selling a mint sr1a kit with the jot r amp dac and hard case for a good price, if someone is looking to make the plunge (optional moon audio cable). Wish they didn’t have to go, they are astonishing :/

https://www.head-fi.org/classifieds...cable-and-hard-case-excellent-condition.9849/

 

[jlbrach]

Regrettably selling a mint sr1a kit with the jot r amp dac and hard case for a good price, if someone is looking to make the plunge (optional moon audio cable). Wish they didn’t have to go, they are astonishing :/

https://www.head-fi.org/classifieds...cable-and-hard-case-excellent-condition.9849/

IMHO this combo being offered for sale is on a price basis better by leaps and bounds relative to any HP on the market and I have or have heard almost all lol....shame you have to sell

 

[Homrsimson]

IMHO this combo being offered for sale is on a price basis better by leaps and bounds relative to any HP on the market and I have or have heard almost all lol....shame you have to sell

preaching to the choir. As paradoxper knows, it’s very close with the TC but I have a DIY Gilmore amp with the TC that’s about as good as that headphone gets. If I wasn’t so heavily invested in that setup I would keep the s1ra. They are definitely a pair you could keep, complement each other well. I’m certain I will acquire them again one day, and I don’t say that about many headphones I sell

 

[paradoxper]

SHHHHH

TC rules all.

 

[jp11801]

BTW just posted a black dragon RAAL cable and RAAL 6 ft extension in the classified.

 

[Vangelis]

I received my SR1as a few week back. Stunning sound, from either my Aesthetix Mimas or Mola Mola Kula amplifiers feeding the interface box.
I was wondering how I could ramp up the performance and looked over at my REL sub I had turned off prior to hooking the phones. I had some reservation that the additional load might be a tipping point for the impedance my amp might see, but It worked like a champ. The net effect of the sub woofer running with the SR1a is tremendous. After a few very judicious adjustments in crossover, volume and placement I achieved a near seamless transparent blending. Now when I listen to Jaco’s fretless bass the harmonics all come together.

I’ve always had certain detachment while listening to music via headphones, what was missing was the fleshed out physical wave form that live music always has. What the sub injects back into the presentation is that visceral physical connection that only speaker cabinets and room resonances bring to the gestalt of a musical experience. Another tangible benefit of the subwoofer is a far greater sense of the venue the recording took place in and the way in which the music pressurized the room.

The last and probably largest and most surprising contribution of adding subwoofer to SR1a is what happens to the sound stage. With the addition of the subwoofer, the soundstage really opens up with far greater density and atmosphere.

While some may view adding the subwoofer to the SR1a as heresy, but I couldn’t live without it now. From my experience, adding the subwoofer goes beyond complementing the SR1a, it completes it.

 

[Roasty]

I tried a sub, but my wife thought I was crazy, and she got annoyed cos all she could hear (and feel) was the subwoofer, even from another room. She also said our neighbours would probably complain if this continued on in the night.

Oh well..

 

[BassicScience]

I tried a sub, but my wife thought I was crazy, and she got annoyed cos all she could hear (and feel) was the subwoofer, even from another room. She also said our neighbours would probably complain if this continued on in the night.

Oh well..

Maybe you can invest in one of those rumbling chairs like the gamers use... LOL.

 

[Sajid Amit]

Is the evo400 + sr1a combo your current favorite? Do you like it more than evo400 + TC?

Hey man, sorry, missed this.

I personally don't like the TC with the EVO 400 as much. I didn't like the TC on any tube amp I have tried.

I love the TC as it is, and I like an amp that does justice to its dynamic qualities. My Accuphase e380 makes the TC even more punchy, sharp, well-defined like an 8K TV, the treble has zing, the right amount of bite, and it's a damn good ride.

I love the Raal SR1a with my EVO 400. The midrange is more meaty, "romantic," and the treble is tamed just enough, on the UL mode. If I am playing the SR1a for friends who are more treble-sensitive, I switch to the Triode mode, and the treble becomes *very* well-behaved while the rest of the strengths of the HP are retained, more or less. And on the May DAC - EVO 400 chain, I find that the SR1a has fuller bass.

Lastly, I enjoy the Sus on the EVO 400. I have relegated the Sus to laidback listening duty. With the EVO 400, the Sus becomes fuller, lusher, warmer, and perfect for days when I don't want to "rock out" or days I haven't slept well, lol. @number1sixerfan is right. The Sus does play well with the EVO 400, especially if you are looking for some laidback enjoyment.

 

[Sajid Amit]

I received my SR1as a few week back. Stunning sound, from either my Aesthetix Mimas or Mola Mola Kula amplifiers feeding the interface box.
I was wondering how I could ramp up the performance and looked over at my REL sub I had turned off prior to hooking the phones. I had some reservation that the additional load might be a tipping point for the impedance my amp might see, but It worked like a champ. The net effect of the sub woofer running with the SR1a is tremendous. After a few very judicious adjustments in crossover, volume and placement I achieved a near seamless transparent blending. Now when I listen to Jaco’s fretless bass the harmonics all come together.

I’ve always had certain detachment while listening to music via headphones, what was missing was the fleshed out physical wave form that live music always has. What the sub injects back into the presentation is that visceral physical connection that only speaker cabinets and room resonances bring to the gestalt of a musical experience. Another tangible benefit of the subwoofer is a far greater sense of the venue the recording took place in and the way in which the music pressurized the room.

The last and probably largest and most surprising contribution of adding subwoofer to SR1a is what happens to the sound stage. With the addition of the subwoofer, the soundstage really opens up with far greater density and atmosphere.

While some may view adding the subwoofer to the SR1a as heresy, but I couldn’t live without it now. From my experience, adding the subwoofer goes beyond complementing the SR1a, it completes it.

Very nice description. I have considered getting a sub with the SR1a. Let's see.

 

[Shahrose]

I received my SR1as a few week back. Stunning sound, from either my Aesthetix Mimas or Mola Mola Kula amplifiers feeding the interface box.
I was wondering how I could ramp up the performance and looked over at my REL sub I had turned off prior to hooking the phones. I had some reservation that the additional load might be a tipping point for the impedance my amp might see, but It worked like a champ. The net effect of the sub woofer running with the SR1a is tremendous. After a few very judicious adjustments in crossover, volume and placement I achieved a near seamless transparent blending. Now when I listen to Jaco’s fretless bass the harmonics all come together.

I’ve always had certain detachment while listening to music via headphones, what was missing was the fleshed out physical wave form that live music always has. What the sub injects back into the presentation is that visceral physical connection that only speaker cabinets and room resonances bring to the gestalt of a musical experience. Another tangible benefit of the subwoofer is a far greater sense of the venue the recording took place in and the way in which the music pressurized the room.

The last and probably largest and most surprising contribution of adding subwoofer to SR1a is what happens to the sound stage. With the addition of the subwoofer, the soundstage really opens up with far greater density and atmosphere.

While some may view adding the subwoofer to the SR1a as heresy, but I couldn’t live without it now. From my experience, adding the subwoofer goes beyond complementing the SR1a, it completes it.

I found many of the same benefits...but if I'm going to use a sub, I might as well use my speaks, which is what I end up doing. If privacy/noise disturbance weren't factors, I'd rarely turn the sub off.