this pre + solitaire P is just fantastic. dead silent for a tube component. swapped out all the drivers for NOS Mullard 12au7 tubes, and dropped in a pair of Brimar 5r4gy rectifiers to replace the stock 5ar4 tubes.
those Brimar rectifiers.. mids and bass for days! slightly bloomy low end but still early days and these are unused NOS tubes (supposedly) so I am hoping they will tighten up just a bit. no lack of bass, punchiness or rumble at all. blasting Mir (Buddha bar) and it seems almost like I can crank up the volume endlessly and everything still sounds correct. staging seems even wider and I love the front back depth and layering these tubes are giving out.
I also recently swapped out the power cord to the Furutech DPS 4.1 with gold connectors on both ends. that really took some edge off the top. I'm contemplating swapping out the power amp cord for another DPS 4.1 but slightly worried it'll blunt the sound too much.
all the minor niggles I had with the ultra wide pads seem to have resolved with the changes to the pre. really glad I went with the Brimar recs over the oft suggested Philips 5r4gys; was told by a few guys on the Primaluna fb group that the mids and low end with the Brimars were great, and they weren't wrong!
MMMmmmm. Nice setup. I think the SolP are very technically proficient with amazing low end. My only niggle is on my system voices can get slightly sibilant. My guess is tube warmth with these headphones would be an ideal combo. Do you remember if the sound got sweeter, slightly more rounded with the tube pre added?
MMMmmmm. Nice setup. I think the SolP are very technically proficient with amazing low end. My only niggle is on my system voices can get slightly sibilant. My guess is tube warmth with these headphones would be an ideal combo. Do you remember if the sound got sweeter, slightly more rounded with the tube pre added?
No I'm using stock XLR and stock pads right now. Thinking about buying an adapter so I can try it out with the Magnus cable with pure copper silver coated plugs. Recently tried some Elites, which I didn't fancy and going to try out some Atriums shortly.
Edit: SolP just sounds more raw in my setup. Very detailed but not as sweet as the Susvara even though its darker in the treble. They are great cans but for me personally I think I need a lot of added warmth from tubes to have them sound ideal.
I am not bothered by the P being the tiniest bit sibilant. I do have tubes in an Envy amp (and Dave) and the combo is very good with the P BUT, I agree the Sus may be a bit better other than the bass.
I find I listen to the Sus and LCD-5 more than the P.
Not to compete with your listing but I may be putting mine up on the classified at some point too, we'll see.
Heard the solitaire T there but I’m not impressed by it after hearing the P and P-SE. The T’s sound quality maybe equivalent to a pair of $600 wired headphones.
Heard the solitaire T there but I’m not impressed by it after hearing the P and P-SE. The T’s sound quality maybe equivalent to a pair of $600 wired headphones.
T+A lists the Solitaire T now on its website - TA-HiFi.de . The 'T' stands most probably for 'travel' - this would explain the appropriate sound-quality.
Interestingly, the user-manual / catalogue says: "Designed in Germany / Made in China" - TA-HiFi.de .
The Solitaire T has: "two wired inputs, which are either digital and analogue - for the purist - or combine the advantages of both worlds: the Solitaire T can be operated fully digitally via its USB-C socket without any form of data compression. In purely passive mode the Solitaire T transfers signals fully symmetrically to the transducer via Pentaconn, 3.5mm or 6.3mm connectors directly."
From the Solitaire T specifications: "42 mm dynamic precision driver with cellulose diaphragm and edge damping · Frequency response: 4 - 22,000 Hz · Qualcomm QCC5127 chipset · ESS ES9218P Sabre DAC · compatible with Android, iOS, Windows, macOS · Bluetooth 5.1: A2DP, AVRCP, HSP, HFP, SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD · Li-Ion Battery 1200 mAh · Lifetime: 70 h, 35 h in HQ mode · Charging Time: 2 h · Weight: 326 g".
Price: € 1300. In Germany expected to be available at the dealer from 10 October 2022.
I am finding it odd that some of the "usual suspects" reviewers haven't written about the Solitaire T's. They are arguably the most expensive bluetooth headphones out there, and they are from a very well respected audio company. Surely, there must be some aspect of these headphones that justify the price. You would have thought that CanJam SoCal 2022 would have been the perfect time and place to introduce these to the US audiophile market. T+A was there, but there has been almost no mention of them from the Head-fi crowd. I wonder what the story is?
I am finding it odd that some of the "usual suspects" reviewers haven't written about the Solitaire T's. They are arguably the most expensive bluetooth headphones out there, and they are from a very well respected audio company. Surely, there must be some aspect of these headphones that justify the price. You would have thought that CanJam SoCal 2022 would have been the perfect time and place to introduce these to the US audiophile market. T+A was there, but there has been almost no mention of them from the Head-fi crowd. I wonder what the story is?
Yeah certainly weird. In munich it was only there to be looked at, not available for audition.
And at canjam you could even Audition them but nearly nobody did.
Might be a niche market for most of the hardcore audiophile Headfiers surrounded by TOTLs on such an exhibition.
Have to confess though that some years ago I ve enjoyed listening to Beyerdynamic Amiron Wireless.
Nowadays I am wearing Airpod Max solely for movie watching
The T+A rep only mentioned the P and P-SE and left out the T until I pointed at it. Connected through bluetooth with my iphone and using tidal app, I find the details were faint, highs were rolled off, bass was light and sounded diffused. The mids were pretty nice though and sort of reminded me of the P-SE but a level less refined. If the T's were intended for wireless use, it sounded very underwhelming from my very brief audition.
I've been following the T's for a while now and I have to wonder if T+A will see the light on what strikes me as an obvious marketing strategy for them. They haven't been officially released yet, so time can still tell but it does seem curious that they were not being pushed harder at the show just before launch. Sure, T+A sells upmarket products and the T is at the entry level by comparison, so maybe even the reps just don't see it as an important product - but it could be. Plenty of potential customers may not be able to swing the money needed for the P or P-SE plus appropriate source gear, but the T could be a great brand entry point if positioned well.
This next part leans heavily on something as yet undetermined and that is how well it performs in wired mode. Wireless operation will always have caveats because of simple limitations in codecs and transmission standards, volume available for battery and therefore maximum output power as well as DAC and amp circuitry. Unless someone designs a gargantuan ear cup cavity, thick headband, or some other such space affording solution, a travel friendly design just has precious little space to compete with quality wired sources - even portable ones and completely forget competing with transportable sources. As a result of all that, I wouldn't ultimately judge nor market the T based on its wireless capabilities.
So, if its wired chops are up to snuff and could compete with $1k+ wired competition, that is how I would market it. A premium, portable friendly, wired, audiophile grade, closed back headphone that also offers BT and ANC when you want it. The easy take on these is that they are the most expensive BT+ANC headphone on the market by a wide margin. If T+A lets the conversation get framed that way I think they miss an opportunity. They could be pushed first and foremost as a very good wired performer that offers your flexibility other wired performers in the price category simply don't and can't. Again, this all hinges on how good that wired performance actually is.
Focal sent out a teaser email this morning about a new product announcement on October 4th. My guess is that they are finally launching the Bathys, their high end BT model with ANC. Will be interesting to see the price point on those as well as passive wired performance. With the T launching finally next month as well, it will make for an interesting comparison.
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