[C_Lindbergh]

Is it fine to leave the T's plugged into a PC? Even if the lights keep blinking like in this vid? The power will bypass the internal battery yes?

https://imgur.com/a/UwJUxsi

 

[GermanBoy]

I see many posts in last few months about quality control problems in the construction of the B&W PX8. I see, too, posts about some not great aspects of the Focal Bathys (hiss specially). This is independent of good or or not so good sound in this headphones.

I'm very happy that after almost 9 months after releasing the ST, people aren't reporting problems about quality control in construction or electronics, hiss or other similar problems. I think the only 'problem' for some people is that the earpads aren't so big like in other BT/ANC headphones, a valid concern for some, yes, but this is the design of the ST from the first day.

And is more remarkable the good quality control aspect of the ST when considering that B&W specially, but Focal too, both having very more financial resources than T+A.

1.There is just one thing that bothers me about construction… at one point at the right side of the earcup, where you can move around the earcup, it is a bit to narrow and I have there some scratches but it is nothing major. It is not a problem on the left side, so there is a quality difference.

2. You can see on the pictures that the glue which holds the synthetic leather at end of the headband is lose on the right side. I am carefully with my ST and did nothing extra ordinary when I am changing the wideness of my headband.

So there are some flaws but nothing major I guess. Nothing what could destroy the experience with the ST.

 

[ekjellgren]

Guess you've seen this?

 

[TheOneInYellow]

Guess you've seen this?

Yes, yesterday (and commented on Darkø's vid); this was the first time I considered going Patreon to watch the full version too, alongside his Sony WH-1000XM5 video that's exclusive to Patreon (never going on YouTube).

However, I've been obsessed playing Armored Core VI:Fires of Rubicon videogame of late too, and forgot to post here

In summary of Darkø's comparison between the Mark Levinson No. 5909 and T+A Solitaire T, and his opinions, usage, and feedback on the Solitaire T respectively, I nearly agree with almost all said.
He covers a vast amount of what makes the Solitaire T tick, addresses any shortcomings (no LDAC, transparency mode activation issues, cables are not of premium quality not aesthetics, etc), whilst championing it's strengths, including passive mode and general sonic quality, as well as lesser headphone aesthetic Cyberman effect!
He also briefly covers that the Solitaire T were initially designed passively before electronics were added later, but in the YouTube version of his video he did not mention how the wireless sonics are closely matched to the passive modes; perhaps that's in the Patreon version of the video?

I wholly agree on the included cables feeling lesser in quality than other headphones. That's not good, but he does mention both single-ended and balanced cables included.
I wish he covered this are a bit more, including sonic differences between passive mode options and against the No. 5909, as well as the uniqueness of the Solitaire T having internal balanced cabling. However, again, this may be explored in the longer Patreon version.

An area I disagreed with was aesthetic quality, in that Darkø found the Solitaire T not as premium looking or feeling over the No. 5909.
I think it's the other way around, but that is his opinion and I'm sure there will be a split on this in the wider community anyway.
At least an unintended advantage is that, even with the white/silver Solitaire T model or more subdued black/silver variant, neither have very blingy looks, nor have wider public recognisable brand naming, so less chance of theft (I hope...).

I'll rewatch the video later, but all in all, a solid review covering a lot of ground, and in favour towards, the T+A Solitaire T.
What Hi-Fi! and Darko Audio have done incredible jobs reviewing these headphones!

 

[angelom]

Guess you've seen this?

I'm hoping for a review of the ST from Darko for many months because I think Darko is one of very few (very) good and fair reviewers, without a bias and with a lot of experience with not only headphones, but with speakers and other top end equipment. So, by now, after almost 10 months of release, I'm thinking that he will not reviewing the ST. So, of course, seeing this video review is a big surprise. And is very useful for other people that he's comparing the ST with what for me, too, is the second best ANC headphone in the market, the ML 5909. And what is very interesting here, too, is that he's using the ST and comparing with the 5909 for more than 2 months, so this isn't just a quick opinion and comparison after just few hours or even few days.

 

[TheOneInYellow]

Guess you've seen this?

Forgot to post his written overview of his video review here.

I'm about to read it now, perhaps it may cover ground not in the (YouTube version) of his review!

---

I'm hoping for a review of there ST from Darko for many months because I think Darko is one of the very few (very) good and fair reviewers, without a bias and with a lot of experience with not only headphones, but with speakers and other top end equipment. So, by now, after almost 10 months of release, I'm thinking that he will not reviewing the ST. So, of course, seeing this video review is a big surprise. And is very useful for other people that is comparing the ST with what for me, too, is the second best ANC headphone in the market, the ML 5909.

Yep, and it was actually his initial announcement of the T+A Solitaire T (here) on how I found out about these headphones, but took me time and patience before I made the purchase last Christmas.

---

Edit: amended my post.

 

[rael67]

Nice video, did he mention the size of the earcups? I think some people like me prefer bigger earcups even if they look like cyberman.

 

[TheOneInYellow]

Nice video, did he mention the size of the earcups? I think some people like me prefer bigger earcups even if they look like cyberman.

Sortof...

He mentioned his comfort wearing both headphones on his physical attributes, but not on earcup size per se.

I'd recommended watching the video, it's quite a good review and comparison!

 

[angelom]

Nice video, did he mention the size of the earcups? I think some people like me prefer bigger earcups even if they look like cyberman.

He don't mentioning ear cup size, but maybe this post is useful: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/t-a-solitaire-t-wireless-headphone.964925/page-84#post-17595172

 

[rael67]

Yes his videos are very good, he is an authentic reviewer who can explain things in a simple but profound way.

 

[vanez1985]

Could someone please compare ST in terms of sound signature (not scene or details) to D9200 / Aeon 2 Closed / AP2000Ti / Radiance / Kennerton GH50 or even my current MSR7b (which I like for different reasons) vs Elegia / WP900 / Celestee / LCD2C?

I'm considering these as a one-stop gift to myself for Alli my home/office/travel needs, both wired (25%) and wired (75% based on the reasons listed in my post here but do not feel sure if their signature will be a proper fit for me as I value a proper note/voice weight a lot and crave for a proper deep voice (e.g. Barry White, Billy Idol, Bill Withers, Alicia Keys, Annie Lennox, Lana Del Rey etc.) as well as acoustic instruments (cellos/violins, bari sax etc.) timbre, being equally interested in time domain accuracy (thus loving R2R NOS DACs and hating most ESS ones) as in frequency.

Given that, do you think that ST would be a good choice for me? Initially I considered PX8 because of many reviewers saying that it's remarkable specifically in (low) mid-range but many praise on ST natural tonality (and ability to run these passively) made me rethink it.

 

[vanez1985]

Happy New Year!
Hope you all had an enjoyable holiday and New Years with your family, friends, and fav audio gear!

Just wanted to recap the last few weeks as a summary, and provide another mini-impressions review between my existing systems and my newly acquired and upgraded laptop*.

I have been enjoying my new T+A Solitaire T headphones, passively wired (single-ended) and wireless Bluetooth since arriving on 14th Dec '22; I love these cans so much that I am likely to sell/trade off my old AKG K 712 Pro, Audeze EL8 Ti, and Focal Elear headphones!

Hopefully, in the next few months, I could try and acquire the FiiO M17 as my new all-in-one streamer, source DAC, and amp, to pair with the Solitaire T (wired balanced, single-ended, Bluetooth), whilst using my Android phone for wireless use when I am commuting to and in the office at work!

Cannot believe how the core sound signature of the Solitaire T matches so closely between each mode, wireless and passive, and continue to be a highly engaging neutral voicing that is utterly engrossing!

---

Purpose of Test:
Though I have spoken before on this in parts, I really wanted to identify on how serious I am at trading away or selling three of my current headphones in collection, simply because the T+A Solitaire T have been a transformative experience. I do not think I have heard a better system in years, and I consider these to be crazy affordable for what these headphones can do. I am not joking.
I may not have as much experience with multiple high-end headphones or gear at hand as other peeps, so please take the above with that in mind, but based upon my current gear and lifelong experience of audiophile gear (including demo'ing gear or going to audio events), I believe my thoughts are as honest as they can be.

Two are almost certain to leave my collection, simply because I have not used either in many years: AKG K 712 Pro and Audeze EL8 Ti. The Solitaire T essentially rendered both obsolete in my honest opinion.
My much older legacy AKG K 701 Pro's will never leave, as these are my nostalgic cans and first major over-the-head audiophile headphone purchase, even if unused. Likewise, I will almost never sell or get rid of my Meze 99 Classics in walnut/silver, as these are much too nice and lovingly adored, as well as used on occasion when I want a bit of soulful sweetness to my music listening.
Also, my Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 1 earphones died earlier in December 2022, and instead of going for the MTW3, went all out for the Solitaire T (what a crazy upgrade ).

This left the remainder headphone, Focal Elear, and it is this that I have had the biggest argument within myself, as I tried to rationalise and justify it's purpose in my active collection alongside the Meze 99 Classics and T+A Solitaire T. Was my emotional nostalgic connection to the Elear's clouding my logical mind?

Time to check, and I did so via a very unfair test simply based upon my internal rational that the Solitaire T's sonics traits are that good.

My Focal Elear's are hooked up, via an unnecessarily expensive pure silver balanced cabling system, to two Class A monoblock amps connected to an old DAP.
My T+A Solitaire T will compete with the above in both USB-C DAC mode via my laptop, and via single-ended mode with my DAP.
Yes, this does sound unfair, but my hypothesis is this:

Or:

---

Headphone, app, and device system info:
T+A Solitaire T Headset-Version: 4.0.5

For context, the T+A Companion App was not used in any of the testing as this is not available on either my old Onkyo DP-X1 DAP nor Microsoft Windows 11.

All audio was conducted via the following setups:

System 1:

• Onkyo DP-X1 Gen 1 (Android 5.1.1)- streaming from Tidal HiFi, via the frontend USB Audio Player PRO (v6.0.9.2) in bit-perfect mode. DAP set to Balanced Output and High Gain mode, with digital filter set at Short, and Lock range Adjust set to Normal.
• NuForce HA-200 Class A monoblock amps x2 (discontinued). DP-X1 source connected to monoblock amps via Double Helix Cables pure silver 2.5mm to dual 3-Pin XLR balanced interconnect.
• DHC Complement4 pure silver dual 3-Pin XLR balanced adapter from each HA-200 monoblock's 3-Pin XLR output.
• Focal Elear connected to above adapter via DHC Prion4 pure silver 3.5mm TRRS x2 to 4-Pin XLR balanced cable.

System 2:

• Onkyo DP-X1 Gen 1 (Android 5.1.1)- streaming from Tidal HiFi, via the frontend USB Audio Player PRO (v6.0.9.2) in bit-perfect mode. DAP set to Single-Ended Output and High Gain mode, with digital filter set at Short, and Lock range Adjust set to Normal.
• T+A Solitaire T headphones in single-ended mode with 2.5mm TRRS to 3.5mm TRS cable connected to DAP.

System 3:

• *ASUS ZenBook 14X OLED Space Edition (UX5401ZAS-KN110W). Windows 11 Home v22HT (OS Build 22621.963).
• Streaming from Tidal HiFi (v. 2.33.2.611-release) and using KoordASIO Control (beta Release 2.0.1 prelease 1).
• T+A Solitaire T headphones in USB-C DAC mode connected to laptop via USB-C/Thunderbolt 4 port.

---

Album:
Profound Mysteries II, by Röyksopp (16 bit/44.1 kHz).
Album was streamed via Tidal HiFi, whether Android (not pictured from Onkyo DP-X1 DAP) or Windows 11 (screenshots below).

Windows 11 KoordASIO T+A Solitaire T settings:


T+A Solitaire T Settings within Tidal HiFi:

---

Song #1:
Let's Get It Right feat. Astrid S, by Röyksopp.

Tidal HiFi
Spotify
YouTube Music
YouTube (Official music videos)



System 1 (Focal Elear, Balanced):
Sound was thick with lots of impact almost universally across the frequency spectrum, and the soundstage was wide and deep.
There is lovely air from the ethereal ambience of the song, and a warmish club presence.
The synthesised drum hits have a soft thwack sound that sounds almost un-drum like.
The finger snaps are clearly loud: the mid-tone of the snaps are clear and echo, but the bass and high tones of the snaps are a little soft. The snaps are bodied but a little one-dimensional.
I was surprised that the Elear had as much top-end as it did, but not sparkly or as present as the thicker low and mid-ranges. The decay of the treble synthesised notes were disappointing, almost just phasing out with no musicality.

System 2 (T+A Solitaire T, Single-Ended):
Sound had less meat-on-the-bones than the Elear, until one realises that the overall sound is much less fluffy.
Soundstage is more intimate, and much smaller than the Elear's, yet the experience is far more engrossing than System 1. I felt like I was listening to the song in a studio, and it was eerie and amazing.
The drum, though still synthesised, sounded instead as if they were live recorded then later heavily processed; the realism of the drum thwacks, even if crushed with effects, was present.
Finger snaps were not as loud as the Elear's in System 1, but now sounded truly real, with proper ASDR. More so, the snaps were organic too, where you can hear the body and texture of each snap within the mix. I do find it strange that the Elear presented these snaps more pointedly than System 2 Solitaire T SE, but the latter was not distracting as the former (when comparing that section repeatedly).
Treble here was very, very present, having it's own presence to harmonically interlock with the muscular bass response in order to create the song's atmosphere. No sibilance, but lots of sparkle, albeit a little a tad (and I mean a tad) fuzzier than System 3.

System 3 (T+A Solitaire T, USB-C DAC):
Very unusual. I expected System 2 to be superior to System 3.
My first long testing proved an eye-opener; System 3 rendered bass with more nuance than the Solitaire T in SE mode.
The bass had a tighter focus, faster snap and twang, but more importantly, lifted the presentation of the track.
Soundstage sounded marginally wider, more expansive, but now the studio-feel felt closer to an experience where you listen to a mastered track on an amazing speaker system in a well built room, rather than a studio.
The drums had an attack velocity that neither System 1 or System 2 replicated, and, and further convinced me that the drums were indeed recorded, but the effects I mentioned above are far less profound, perhaps much less edited than I had realised! I was gobsmacked at this revelation; I have heard this track, since the album dropped in August 2022, via both my Elear's and (mostly) Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 1, and I feel robbed that neither rendered the processed drums accurately as the Solitaire T do.
The finger snaps also took me aback as well, I now notice that the two snaps are repeated, but each are different; I thought it was one finger snap repeated over an over!
Ah, now, the treble reproduced in this system is what I wanted; that added extra clarity that System 2 got close to, but did not match. Now the treble snapped as fast as how the bass notes snap; toned top-end?! Crazy good! There is more treble pressure here, almost piercing, but again, no sibilance.

---

Song #2:
Unity feat Karen Harding, by Röyksopp.

Tidal HiFi
Spotify
YouTube Music
YouTube (Official music videos)



System 1:
Soundstage was, expectedly, wider and deeper, but felt a little...artificial? No, that's not right, but the soundstage had a lack of sincerity (when compared to System 2 and System 3).
Bass had a little bit of texture, but mostly flatter with high-impact; very monotonous.
Treble was...airy yes, but fluffy, and a little indistinct (again, when compared to System 2 and System 3). Bass was more sustained, longer than I think was intended by the song, as now the upper-bass and lower-midrange started to sound muffled.
Where this really presented issues was the reproduction of the piano. Under the Elear, it was very in your face, but just did not sound real. It sounded almost synthesised. That is because System 2 and System 3 were better at presenting the hammer strikes on the piano note strings better. Until these tests, I thought the Elear's in balanced were grand, and now I feel that these cans in this system left me wanting.
Harding's voice was very bodied, but blurry from the thumping bass mid-tones (not bloomy, just too much bass impact). This impacted Harding's treble, as these were much less distinct and a bit more abstract compared to System 2 and System 3. Still lovely, but now that I have heard better, very hard to come back to the Elear's representation of vocals (as per this test).

System 2:
Immediately the soundstage woke up; as before with Lets Get it Right song above, the soundstage is juts more expansive despite it's smaller space. A clearer window, though I sort of dislike that analogy...
Bass was detailed, had nuances and bounce that was (almost) not apparent on System 1 Focal Elear setup, but also did not linger either. The mid-range...sigh...breathtakingly accurate and almost flawless . Nothing sounded artificial, just natural.
Harding's voice here had a remarkable quality of sincerity and focused body, whilst flowing between the vocal ranges she displays (alongside some of the intentional trailing effects as part of the song's identity).
More so, Harding's treble matched the energy of the song's high-frequency acrobatics; sparkly and tuneful, but not

System 3:
I am really unsure at how many times I can be shocked at this system testing. I had to repeat this track over all three systems over and over, on sections and full length, because I still could not believe the differences.
In short, however T+A have tuned and implemented the ES9218 DAC* with Class A amplification is astonishing, and superior to the Solitaire T in SE as per System 2 (and lets not forget that the ES9218 is likely superior to the two ES9018K2M DAC's in my Onkyo DP-X1 DAP as well).
Alive is the operative word here, I felt like I was at a live event for one audience, me, and I was just giddy! The Solitaire T still have a small soundstage, but it is also expansive as a canvass on how much music can be represented; rich, accurate, detailed, with a little bit of flair from the strong and precise bass.
The piano sounded real, and just like the song Lets Get it Right with the drums, Unity with the piano sounded like a real piano, with minimal (if any) effects applied. Even if this is still a synthesised piece of the song, the notes and replication of the hammers on the piano strings are well defined, meaning if this is not a real piano, then the software designers behind the synthesised piano (in whatever DAW was used) deserve recognition.
The bass was very, very well defined, highly textured, the headphones had powerful grip on each bass note, and the energy here was, even with a small soundstage, almost atmospheric unto itself (never experienced bass do that!).
The mid-range on the vocals was breathy, musical, ghostly, smoky, and you can truly hear the movements of the mouth and vocal chords as singer- Karen Harding- sings. Just hearing the moments of her breathing the split-second she sings a note is wondrous, adding the right amount of anticipation to hear her move in the song. The panning is very nice too, but unfortunately due to the smaller soundstage is a little less obvious, however, almost not obvious in either System 1 or System 2! The extra sparkle from System 3 and extra refinement nailed Harding's voice, grounding it beautifully as if she were singing live.

---

Conclusion:
Erm...if not obvious, my Hypothesis #1 was correct

I have much enjoyed the Focal Elear in my system since 2015/2016, and I have pushed it mostly as far as it can go. Sure, a much better source to my monoblock amps, or a new system (starring with the FiiO M17 or better) may enhance my System 1, but this won't change the core sonic signature of the Elear's.
The T+A Solitaire T, in single-ended or USB-C DAC mode, presented a fantastic experience I do not think the Elear's can match.

I believe it is time to move on my old Elear's onto someone who may enjoy them (or trade them in for upgrades!), but I wanted to also make a case for the Elear's too. The Elear's are still unique in terms of pure ferocity and intensity of musical playback, and are very impactful. I consider these attractive qualities. They are good at representing a body of a song too, and can hit with authority.
However, in direct comparison to the T+A Solitaire T (which I intentionally handicapped), the sonic traits of the Solitaire T cannot be denied. The finesse, instrument separation, detail retrieval, exquisite realism of vocals and instruments (even if synthesised or modified), sheer accuracy of notes and space within a smaller soundstage, just make me want to listen to the Solitaire T almost exclusively.
Only my Meze 99 Classics interrupt the honeymoon, as I still adore their soulful tuning with clarity. Nothing like the Solitaire T, yet just as engrossing.

Anyway, lengthy read, and yes, will start to get the old boxes, tidy up, and photoshoot three headphones that I will part with: AKG K 701 Pro, Audeze EL8 Ti, and Focal Elear.

Cheers for reading!

Oh, thanks for this one! The downsides of Elegia you mentioned here are exactly the things which bothered me last time I heard them, so probably ST could be the right choice for me then

 

[WDitters]

Opaz chimes in with his review of the Solitaire T. He is slightly crictical and not necessarily fully sold by them. But interesting review nonetheless.

 

[angelom]

Opaz chimes in with his review of the Solitaire T. He is slightly crictical and not necessarily fully sold by them. But interesting review nonetheless.

This is a very interesting and, in several ways, strange review.

Of course everybody is have an opinion about design, but showing photos of a very old wired Bose headphone and saying is looking like the ST is a little strange. For me the Bose is looking very different, and knowing this model well I know the construction and design is very different too. I'm one of the persons that liking a lot the not "look at me" design of the ST, a design that is more conservative but that will ageing very well, a more classic design. My preference is that the T+A logo is more small in the metal arms and I prefer that is not showing at all in the headband, but this small preferences don't changing the general discrete design of the ST.

About the sound, the reviewer and I have VERY different opinions. I think that not only he's like the 5909 sound more, but is his primary headphone for a long time. In this case, the difference in sound is very obvious when changing to the ST, but I completely not agree about his description of the midrange and highs of both ST and 5909.

I describing the ST sometimes in this thread as 'boring', the 'boring' type of sound that is very exciting for me because is more transparent with very, very little colouration, a sound that is (very) far from many mainstream headphones, and a signature that is different from the Harman curve. For me the ST is more honest in the reproduction of music than the 5909 and many others headphones, not only ALL others ANC/BT headphones.

Is interesting that he never mentioning HQ mode vs normal BT mode. Only at end of the video he's very quickly saying something about listening to HD, maybe meaning HQ?

And then he's saying that the EQ presets really making the ST great sounding, more than in flat EQ setting....he don't even saying which presets specifically (they are very different!) he's preferring! BUT for me, and I think for the majority in this thread, NOT one single EQ preset is sounding better than in off/flat position.

I imagine that if I don't know this 2 headphones at all, and only trusting his opinion, I think I receiving a shock after 'testing' the two headphones and hearing for myself the real sound. And this isn't in relation to preferences but in more precise descriptions of sound differences and our reference/s for this descriptions.

 

[rael67]

Maybe he has chosen EQ Presets from Auto EQ.
Edit: The Solitaire T is not yet listed there.