[axtran]

@Pharmaboy - How's the Audio-GD SA-31SE? I looked up the specs and that thing looks CRAZY. I just bought an Audio-GD C-2 11th Anniv. Edition--hoping it is a good amp when paired with the Ori!

 

[Pharmaboy]

  @Pharmaboy - How's the Audio-GD SA-31SE? I looked up the specs and that thing looks CRAZY. I just bought an Audio-GD C-2 11th Anniv. Edition--hoping it is a good amp when paired with the Ori!

 
Quite a morning--my ormosia henryi Ori is here! These headphones are beautiful, easily the best I've ever heard. Literally cold, right out of the shipping box, they sound amazing.
 
I have burn-in to do, then a lot of listening on multiple amps. I suspect these headphones will only get better...
 
Re the Audio GD SA-31SE: I've had this unit just 3 days, but have already tried it with all my headphones & currently use it as a preamp/amp in my desktop system. Just listened to the Ori on it.
 
My headphone listening time has been somewhat limited by headaches (unrelated); here's what I can tell you so far:
 
1 - The SA-31SE is shaping up to be the best headphone amp I've ever used. Its sound is really something special.
 
2 - I expected power (loads of power) would be the predominant characteristic of this amp. Instead, what jumps out at me are the black background people talk about (true); more note separation/space between instruments than I've ever heard; and very nuanced soundstaging/intrument placement w/in the soundfield. Through headphones, music sounds significantly different, and in some ways, better, compared to my other amps (I have some pretty decent ones).
 
3 - The SA-31SE seems to have certain sonic qualities I associate with tubes: a sense of depth, separation between notes; greater rendering of space/ambience; and very detailed w/o being bright or aggressive in the least.
 
4 - The pairing of this amp w/the Ori is spectacular, yet calm. My 1st time hearing a planar, so take this w/a grain of salt--but I've never heard anything sound as good as these headphones on the SA-31SE. Musical notes start, build, then decay--zero "splash" or distortion. When the music has impact & dynamics, the sound really jumps. Bass is the best I've ever heard (quality & quantity, perfect balance).
 
5 - And using it as a preamp--streaming low-volume classical music from the Netherlands (I do this 8+ hrs/day) I slowly realized I'm listening to this "background" music more closely than usual. The sound projects a bit more, has more clarity at low volume than my usual preamp (Matrix M Stage HPA-1). No brightness or "shoutiness," nothing weird--just sound that's somehow harder to ignore.
 
Comment about "usability": initially I struggled with the SA-31SE's user interface--a somewhat inscrutable  alphanumeric display & button-actuated volume control. However, the seller of the amp explained how the display and volume + and - controls actually work (he got me totally straightened out). Now it's 2nd nature to operate this unit. There's actually a considerable flexibility of gain-matching & fine volume control here. And a remote!
 
I still have to play with the "Warm-1" setting of the SA-SE31. On the Head-Fi thread devoted to this amp, a number of people commented on that setting being the best in their opinion.
 
PS: the Ori does suck up more power than I'm used to w/low impedance closed back dynamic HPs. But it's just a question of degree. For example, with the Marantz MPH-2, "45" (out of 99 steps) on the SA-31SE @low gain is moderately loud. For the Ori, it's ~60 steps for moderate loudness. I'm not sure I could listen to the Ori at anything close to max @low gain. I'll try high gain after burn-in (don't literally "need" that--just want to hear how it sounds).

 

[canali]

interesting...i've seen this company on the radar for some time...per Ty's kudos on them from a recent show (RMAF?) or so.
...might investigate them....currently have senn 650 and sony closed studio cans 7520.
DACs/Amp: chord mojo, dragonfly red, ifi Micro idsd and mapletree earplus HD tube amp.
 
seeking something balanced, very detailed, great bass impact when called for (but not bloated or smears into other areas)
and good soundstage.
for rock, blues, jazz.
 
a very competitve field, for sure:
so many cans out there now...even meze is coming out with a newer more $$ one...then the mr speakers closed planar Aeon etc.

 

[whirlwind]

  interesting...i've seen this company on the radar for some time...per Ty's kudos on them from a recent show (RMAF?) or so.
...might investigate them....currently have senn 650 and sony closed studio cans 7520.
DACs/Amp: chord mojo, dragonfly red, ifi Micro idsd and mapletree earplus HD tube amp.
 
seeking something balanced, very detailed, great bass impact when called for (but not bloated or smears into other areas)
and good soundstage.
for rock, blues, jazz.
 
a very competitve field, for sure:
so many cans out there now...even meze is coming out with a newer more $$ one...then the mr speakers closed planar Aeon etc.

I use the Ori for blues and I love it.
 
I would think it will sound great with your MadEar.

 

[Pharmaboy]

  interesting...i've seen this company on the radar for some time...per Ty's kudos on them from a recent show (RMAF?) or so.
...might investigate them....currently have senn 650 and sony closed studio cans 7520.
DACs/Amp: chord mojo, dragonfly red, ifi Micro idsd and mapletree earplus HD tube amp.
 
seeking something balanced, very detailed, great bass impact when called for (but not bloated or smears into other areas)
and good soundstage.
for rock, blues, jazz.
 
a very competitve field, for sure:
so many cans out there now...even meze is coming out with a newer more $$ one...then the mr speakers closed planar Aeon etc.

 
You have some good headphone amps there. I haven't heard either of your headphones--though the Senn HD650 is kind of famous on Head-Fi, lots of people owning/liking them.
 
Still, I'm going out on a limb to say (based on my listening experiences to my new Ori), the Ori may play in a higher league than you're used to. It certainly sounds that way to me in my system...
 
I have a couple of inexpensive closed back headphones, real overachievers that I like a lot; also have the Fidelio X2's, which are open back and have a more nuanced sound profile than the others. The Ori is miles ahead of all them.
 
I'm still trying to distinguish the sound of the Ori from the sound of a new headphone amp (Audio GD SA-31SE), so can't be certain the nice things I'm hearing are totally due to the Ori. But I can tell that they've really upended my listening biases:
 
1 - I tend to listen for a combination of bass quality/quantity, non-hyped midrange and treble, and a good sense of dynamic impact (I shy away from "treble-cannon," highly detailed HPs that give me a headache). Anyway, the headphones I have satisfy my tastes--they sound good to me.
 
2 - But w/o realizing it, I've fallen into the habit of using the volume knob to get more of everything I like...always goosing the volume to open up the headphones.
 
3 - But w/the Ori, I quickly realized they are giving me so much new detail and soundstage nuance that I never listen  for (because my other headphones don't do that).
 
A practical example: I love the blues--also rhythm & blues--so I was listening to some cuts w/the Ori. And damned if the drumming/percussion & keyboards didn't sound so incredibly "present" & detailed (w/o any brightness) that I stopped "listening for" bass and starting focusing on the midrange. And the bass is all there on the Ori, believe me. The bass in phenomenal...every note of an electric or string bass is 100% there.
 
This is with tunes I've heard 100s of times. I thought I was hearing every in them, but I wasn't.I now realize that my amplification and DAC kind of outclassed my headphones, until the Ori showed up. It's a new learning curve.
 
The other thing about the Ori that's really striking to me (this may be a planar thing--these are the 1st planars I've heard) is that the notes emerge from blackness/stillness, then blossom, then stop very quickly when the notes are over. It's an odd sense of total calm/composure, even when all hell is breaking loose, musically. Very addicting.

 

[canali]

thanks Pharmaboy and Whirlwind for your imput...appreciated.
....still trying to distinguish sound sigs, esp between this Ori and the highly praised Eikon.

 

[Pharmaboy]

Just received the pictures Zach took of my still-quite new ormosia henryi Ori (thanks, Zach!). 3 appear below.
 
These headphones sound just as beautiful as they look. BTW, these pix are a bit contrasty. IRL the wood is a little softer-looking, a little warmer. It's amazing woodworking IMO.
 

 

 

 

[tvnosaint]

I've been using the iha6 with the Omni / ori for a week now. This amp really opens them up. The sound is so clear, the bass is so tightly controlled the ori sounds very different / better in nearly every respect than on the LC , h10 , pulse or lyr (with Cca tubes ). It sounds like an open headphone. I'm loving the combo. I think having a tubed multibit dac is a great addition to this chain . The iha6 is a touch on the bright and dry side and the dac compensates for that.

 

[rudra]

Totally agree with your assessment of ori with cayin. A warmer dac complements the cayin. I also like the pairing of ori with the LD

 

[Jbmorrey]

So I have had my Ori's (Cherry) for about a year now and even though I go through headphones all the time trying the new hyped up ones and such, I keep coming back to the Ori, it's my absolute favorite. I've owned a few different Hifiman's and really enjoyed them paired up with my Hifiman ef5, no longer have my hifimans and I am wondering if I could drive the ori's better with a different amp. Can't spend too much on it, so please let me know any good under $400 amps as I could sell the ef5 to help pay for the new amp.

Thanks so much!!

James

 

[AlterAnthony]

So I have had my Ori's (Cherry) for about a year now and even though I go through headphones all the time trying the new hyped up ones and such, I keep coming back to the Ori, it's my absolute favorite. I've owned a few different Hifiman's and really enjoyed them paired up with my Hifiman ef5, no longer have my hifimans and I am wondering if I could drive the ori's better with a different amp. Can't spend too much on it, so please let me know any good under $400 amps as I could sell the ef5 to help pay for the new amp.

FWIW, I love my Omnis/Oris with the Schiit Jotunheim. Best amp you can get for that price, IMHO.

 

[bentwookiee]

FWIW, I love my Omnis/Oris with the Schiit Jotunheim. Best amp you can get for that price, IMHO.

I also have the jotunheim and it is great with the Omni/Ori! This amp is probably the best all-rounder you can get. It can drive the most sensitive iems and the most power hungry cans. It's the kind of amp you will always hold onto!

 

[Jbmorrey]

I also have the jotunheim and it is great with the Omni/Ori! This amp is probably the best all-rounder you can get. It can drive the most sensitive iems and the most power hungry cans. It's the kind of amp you will always hold onto!

 


This Schiit looks good... However can it only take a balanced input? I did not see a regular headphone input on it, or am I missing it?

Thanks,
James

 

[Pharmaboy]

I also have the jotunheim and it is great with the Omni/Ori! This amp is probably the best all-rounder you can get. It can drive the most sensitive iems and the most power hungry cans. It's the kind of amp you will always hold onto!

 
I'm very interested in the Jot--because it's nearly impossible to find any other balanced output, truly powerful HP amps in this price range. But I'm concerned about comments I've seen on other threads re brightness of the Jot.
 
Re my amp setup for the new Ori: my listening time has been reduced by work deadlines + some annoying tinnitus & headaches. But here's what I've heard so far:
 
The Audio GD SA-31SE is an extremely interesting match-up with the Ori. However, I got the SA-31SE just as the Ori was finished burning in, and most of my Ori listening has been w/it. Because both units are new to me, it's difficult to sort out which is responsible for various new sonic perceptions.
 
The SA-31SE has an extremely positive experience w/the Ori based on its superb soundstaging, note separation, black background, and especially its handling of delicate midrange transients (drums, percussion, keyboards), alll qualities I never heard this good w/any HP or amp. I just put in jumpers to adjust the SA-31SE to "Warm 1" setting...results not yet in. BUT (there's always a "BUT"), compared to other amps, the SA-31SE sounds a little bright, tipped up, also a bit low in absolute bass quantity & impact. Those things aren't at all what others say about this unit, so I need to do more listening, both with the Ori & other headphones, to figure it out. But in many ways, the SA-31SE is a spectacular match w/the Ori, not to mention the best amp I've ever heard. It's also an effective & versatile system preamp--the remote makes minute volume adjustments so easy.
 
Lake People G109-A: From the day I got this versatile, fine-sounding amp, it has been "Old Reliable," bringing out good sound in every headphone I've tried with it. The amp's basic sound never seems to change: it's relatively powerful, slightly warm, has clear but unhyped treble, and lots of dynamic impact in all parts of the frequency spectrum (real rock 'em/sock 'em bass on the G109-A). It falls short only in soundstaging, which is just average IMO. Still, the Ori sounded very good for the short period I tried it on the G109-A. And there's plenty of power, even on the lowest gain setting (I got the volume pot up to ~12:30, then cried uncle).
 
M Stage Matrix HPA-1: I just upgraded the opamp of this fine-sounding amp/preamp, and the results exceeded expectations. I really value this inexpensive over-achiever with the bassy, ear-friendly sound signature. Still, I didn't expect much when I tried the Ori with it, and results were mixed:
 
-- Even at the lowest of 4 gain settings, I got plenty of volume out of the Ori
-- But the sound never had the transparency, detail, or "ease" I can get w/the 2 other amps. It sounds somewhat forced & "shouty."
 
No rap on the HPA-1. It just lacks the power to handle a planar. It continues to sound very good on my easier-to-drive closed back headphones.
 
The amp I still haven't try w/the Ori is my Burson Soloist amp/preamp: a powerful, versatile, handsome unit. But my past use of it was held back by a stepped volume pot w/just 22 steps--so in low-to-medium volume range, there are too few steps for fine control. The stepped pot is high quality, but less than easy to use... So I arranged to have Burson send an Alps replacement pot-- I have high hopes that will increase the useability of this unit. Unfortunately, the pot they sent was incorrect (trying to sort that out now). In the next few days I'll re-install the stepped pot & finally try it the Ori w/it. I'm very interested to hear how that combination sounds.

 

[bentwookiee]

I also have the jotunheim and it is great with the Omni/Ori! This amp is probably the best all-rounder you can get. It can drive the most sensitive iems and the most power hungry cans. It's the kind of amp you will always hold onto!

 


This Schiit looks good... However can it only take a balanced input? I did not see a regular headphone input on it, or am I missing it?

Thanks,
James

It has both balanced in (XLR) and single ended in (RCA). I have the balanced DAC module, so I just use that as my input. You can switch between all 3 using the toggle switch on the front.

As for out you have a balanced output (XLR on the back) and single ended out (RCA on the back). And you also have the headphone outs (XLR and 6.5 mm) on the front.