[HA-1]

The review of the Solitaire P-SE from the German HiFi-Magazine Stereo 4/2021 (pg. 30-33) is now available as print as well as e-paper - Stereo.de , United Kiosk .

About the Solitaire P-SE they say that he's tonally always very close to the P or on par, but voices sounding a bit fuller, more opulent and a bit airier on the P. The sound of the P appears less in the head. Stereo finds that the dry bass of the P or the a bit juicier bass of the P-SE is a matter of taste, in case of doubt the P would win. The P-SE has its own engineered cables, they're different from the P. Stereo gave a ranking of 97 out of 100% for the P-SE and full 100 out of 100% for the P.

 

[DarginMahkum]

The review of the Solitaire P-SE from the German HiFi-Magazine Stereo 4/2021 (pg. 30) is now available as print as well as e-paper - Stereo.de , United Kiosk .

About the Solitaire P-SE they say that he's always close to the P or on par, but voices sounding fuller, more opulent and a bit airier at the P. The sound of the P appears less in the head. Stereo finds that the dry bass of the P or the a bit juicier bass of the P-SE is a matter of taste, in case of doubt the P would win. The P-SE has its own engineered cables, they're different from the P. Stereo gave a ranking of 97 out of 100% for the P-SE and full 100 out of 100% for the P.

There are so many contradicting opinions now. I totally agree that voices sound fuller, more opulent and a bit airier with the P. P also has a larger but _closer_ image, so I don't understand how they find the P-SE more in your head. Also I didn't find the bass of P-SE so far juicier. Maybe time will change it?

Without comparison, I thought P-SE is airier, when I compared them side by side, it was the opposite.

 

[DarginMahkum]

What we have seen in the P-SE photos of Nomax can only happen if the pads were abused. True, they are not as robust as the P pads but I tried taking them out a few times and there are no issues. Unlike the P pads, they are easy to remove.

The P-SE (cup +pad)s are different from P. There is quite a bit more space inside the cup and I think SE drivers are slightly further away compared to the P.

After one day of burn in, the treble feels closer to P. I will try to make a physical comparison video this week.

 

[DarginMahkum]

After overnight burn-in, I had a short listen and compared with P.

- P definitely has a closer sound image and this is the first thing that strikes me other than anything else. The center image is more in your head. I don't know if it is due to the driver placement or the driver itself but it is there.

- The treble is catching up, but I don't feel it is more airy. Maybe the closer image of P makes the treble more shiny sounding but in the end the perceived treble is not more than P - at least for now. Noting that treble changed for both in time and the difference was bigger for mids and treble out-of the-box.

- P has a more 3D and bigger sounding image with more depth. I think the main difference comes from 400-450 Hz down. Upwards, they are very similarly tuned.

- Oh, and don't choose P-SE just because it has less impedance. At the same volume level P is still louder, especially due to the closer image.

 

[DarginMahkum]

 

[DarginMahkum]

Here are some close up photos of P and P-SE cups. I realized making a video might not be as easy, dealing with focus etc., so I made some photos. So, as you see the P pads are thicker, and there is much more space with the drivers and the pads on P-SE. The pads are not compatible. I guess if you force the P-SE pads on P, you might deform them and get something like the Nomax photos.

P-SE pads, as they are and after I removed and reinserted them, are nothing like the earlier photos. I have to admit, P pads robuster.

 

[DarginMahkum]

There is considerable change in the sound in such a short time. It is not just me but just after getting it I wanted my wife to try it in the studio to listen to the mix that she was preparing but she took it off in 5 seconds due to lacking mids and treble. We tried it again today with the same mix and this time she was quite satisfied with what she was hearing.

It was the same thing with the P. Never judge these with the out-of-the-box sound.

 

[ThanatosVI]

Thx for the comparison pictures, much appreciated

 

[DarginMahkum]

Oh, man! P-SE is really an amazing sounding HP. I started to like the more out-of-your-head rendering of music. Stage is large and instruments are more scattered. The center image is further away compared to P. But that gives a very good sense of depth. The source separation is spectacular. The less thicker (vs P) lower frequencies and mids lets the bass shine-through in a different way: You realize the speed and extreme precision of bass even more.

As said before, treble is a bit more audible on P, but that is mainly due to the intimacy. As an example, the cymbal hits around 1:56 and 3:04 are pretty much in your ear with the P and it might sound too strong (one of the reasons I sometimes EQ'ed the treble). But on P-SE, though it has a similar tuning, it is not as strong. P-SE also sounds a bit airier.

https://open.qobuz.com/track/89608

or on YT (but better listen to it from Qobuz, Tidal etc.):

 

[DarginMahkum]

You can your your existing 3.5mm cable work with P-SE but it might need to be modified a bit.

 

[DarginMahkum]

So I unpacked the D8000 Pro (which is on sale) and did a quick comparison with P-SE.

P-SE is, to my ears, a mix of P and HD800S. I think T+A did a spectacular job on P-SE with the treble and treble extension. Cymbal and horn timbre is spot on, nothing exaggerated, nothing piercing, and nothing in your face. If you don't like the immersive sound of P and prefer a larger, more distant soundscape, yeah, this is it.



I find the metal (cymbal, horns) timbre of P-SE better. D8000 Pro sounds a bit more nasal. Also sound is bigger on P-SE and more expansive. Bass is more impactful on P-SE. D8000 has the advantage of being airier and having a bit more reverberations of the sound room, but I prefer the overall dryer but more consistent sound of P-SE. With this piece, for example, when you listen to both back to back, you might notice the slight nasal nature of D8000 Pro, especially with the keys starting at around 2:02:



Build quality is hands down D8000 Pro, but that also means weight. As long as you are not thinking of headbanging with P-SE, you should be fine.

 

[DarginMahkum]

One last note about the HA200 pairing: If you think you are missing the air compared to D8000 Pro, the EQ of HA200 works wonderfully on P-SE. Just one click of increase will give you lots of air without making anything harsh.

 

[ScornDefeat]

I've seen a lot of conflicting views and hyperbole regarding the build quality of the P-Se; is it truly as "junk-y" as some of the opinions out there? It's tough to tell from the photos, which don't seem to reflect a high-end product at all; is it really mostly a plastic (and I mean, readily-obvious plastic you get on $100 gaming headphones) build?

I don't want to open old wounds, but just looking for some definitive clarity around this point because some reviews and opinions have been hyper-critical. "Plastic" is a pretty-wide catch-all term so it's tough to tell.

 

[DarginMahkum]

I've seen a lot of conflicting views and hyperbole regarding the build quality of the P-Se; is it truly as "junk-y" as some of the opinions out there? It's tough to tell from the photos, which don't seem to reflect a high-end product at all; is it really mostly a plastic (and I mean, readily-obvious plastic you get on $100 gaming headphones) build?

I don't want to open old wounds, but just looking for some definitive clarity around this point because some reviews and opinions have been hyper-critical. "Plastic" is a pretty-wide catch-all term so it's tough to tell.

The parts that are aluminium on P are hard plastic on P-SE. And that is cup frames and hinges. I frankly don't know what to say. Nomax said, for example, that he likes the signature but in fact the signature is not too different from P, and the sound image is smaller. The part that he doesn't like, the upper mids, is exactly the same. P is even closer sounding. Also I checked the cups, removed and inserted them myself and didn't notice anything like in the earlier photos and sent my own photos.

So, I don't really know what to say here. Yes, it has a cheaper frame, like Hifiman Arya (though the headband is more robust), but again, as long as you don't abuse it or smash it on the ground it should stay stable. If you are after a whole metal frame, it is not this one.

Frankly, just due to the comfort, if there was a P with lighter plastic frame, I would take it over the metal frame, as it is lighter. Rest is for you to decide.

 

[ducanh712]

I have short listening P-SE compared directly with my P, both driven by HA200
My first impression P-SE is as good as P on overall sound. If you r ready to buy P at 6000$, then SE at 3600$ is great choice.
SE will win at value/money, but P to my ear sounds better in image, natural sounding.