RAAL requisite audio SR1a Review: HOLY MOLY! Buy this now!

SR1a Impressions:

SR1a + McIntosh setup

SR1a + some Chord speaker amp

@netforce listening to Utopia + ECP Ravenswood

I've been feeling a bit burnt out from all the studying and the repetitiveness of it, so I decided to make the drive out to the Source AV (TSAV) to try the Raal and a couple headphones with the 3F. I'll make this brief as the listening was done with an unfamiliar chain. Huge shoutout to @netforce for helping me with the different setups and had a blast talking to you!

Good:
- great transient, super clarity, while maintaining a sense of dynamism
- with the right pairing, amplification, these really do sound like near field speakers
- I like how you can adjust the wings to create a different type of experience. If you're into the intimate, personal sound, you can put the flaps closer to your ear and it sounds like your typical headphone. Or you can widen the angle to increase the stage width and tonality.
- the resolution on these is pretty crazy especially with classical and jazz. On some songs like Dave Brubeck's "Take Five" gave me goosebumps.

Nitpicks:
- Comfort is a bit lacking for me. Yes, it does create that "speaker-like" experience but the lack of comfort kind of withdrew me from the overall listening experience. Maybe I'm just not used to it, who knows. I guess ultimately, this will vary from person to person.
- Overall aesthetic feels like I'm holding a prototype even though it feels quite sturdy.
- with the wrong pairing, it leads to shouty vocals and listening fatigue. Alan let me try it with the SPL DAC+ Mcintosh integrated amp first and the SR1a sounded flat/limp and shouty. the Mcintosh amp didn't sound like it was really giving the SR1a's full potential. With the Chord setup (Qutest+ chord speaker amp), wow these really sing. Then Alan @netforce told me the price of the Chord amp and I just laughed.
- I like listening to a variety of genres like kpop/ k-ballad/ and the vocals can sound a bit peaky and shouty even with the Chord setup. Utopia + 3F/Ravenswood on the other end was much smoother sounding and tonally balanced. Maybe it was that $800 Magik Copper cable from Kimber I was using... lol
- Bass quantity is a bit lacking for me. It has excellent slam and heft, but needs a bit more body for my preference.

Final thoughts: I like these. I can see the potential behind this and super curious how this will sound with the Jotenheim R. However, there are trade offs to even the super resolving headphones like SR1a. Personally, I don't like the idea of getting speaker amps just to power these. So for now, I will wait until Schiit comes out with their Jotunheim R and give the SR1a another audition.

 

I'm curious how these earspeaker type headphones interact with all the fancy crossfeed DSPs or analog variants (such as from Meier, Phonitor, etc).

 

Thanks for sharing your impressions of the McIntosh MHA150 / SR1a pairing, @tommytakis . I’ll probably have to wait to hear it until AXPONA in April.

Did you guys happen to compare and contrast the headphone outs on the MHA150 and Ravenswood? I’m incredibly curious!

 

@dubharmonic shoot, I didn't. I was more curious about the Utopia +3F pairing. @netforce probably has heard the headphone out through MHA150 and heard it through my 3F yesterday so maybe he could answer your question. For me, I liked the 3F+Utopia more than any of the Raal setups. I've never heard Utopia sound so smooth and full sounding while not lacking in any detail or slam. Utopia + Liquid gold didn't sound as smooth and liquid sounding as with the 3F. I think Utopia +3F is up there with the Auteur +3F in terms of synergy, with Verite trailing slightly behind as 2nd/3rd place. I also realized that the Verite's treble feels a bit uneven compared to Utopia. SR1a is more resolving, open, spooky-realistic, but falls a bit short in terms of tonality. I can see why Marv adores these. There's absolutely no hint of haze when you listen to the Raal. Extreme level of clarity that makes other headphones sound hazy and grey in comparison.... I think it will convert a lot of skeptics once the Jotunheim R comes out. However, for people like me who only own a headphone setup, it doesn't feel logical to buy speaker amps just to power these. I'm sure you'll be impressed when you hear the SR1a yourself!

 

Thanks for your impressions @tommytakis. I am very interested in the RAAL-requisite SR1a but posts commenting on comfort have me a little wary. Once the Jotunheim R is in production I'll just have to get both in to see if they work for me. However, the HD800S have me spoiled for comfort, I can wear them all day if I want. If the SR1a aren't comfy I could send them back within the trial period. They only make sense for me if they can replace my HD800S.

 

Do you mind giving the chord amp specs or name? What kind of cable did you use to connect raal to those speaker amp?

 

@David De Lucena From the 3rd picture, I'm guessing Chord's cpm 3350 integrated amplifier. I used the stock cable on the Raal, no magical, sprinkled fairy dust $800 copper cable like on the Utopia lol

 

It was the amorphous transformer for the 3F. I couldn't hear any bright spots with the Utopia and very full sounding surprisingly.

haha yeah it was shouty and grating with the MHA150, it makes sense now. I think my right ear is still ringing from that experience.

 

Very clean, thorough and useful feedback. Many thanks!

 

the SR1A has pretty much taken over all my listening time, these past couple months. occasionally I listen to my old favorite - the Verite off the EC-Af, but not for long.

 

Are we going to do a tour for the SR1A?

 

Are you selling your AF?

 

Several months of usage is long enough to exclude early bias towards a new purchase. Looks like a firm thumbs up.

 

Anybody here get to play with the Jotunheim-R yet? Over on Headphones.com forum, Torq reviewed the “production qualifier” version. He noted that the Jotunheim-R-SR1a combo has better bass which is mainly what I’m interested in hearing about from peeps here.

 

i love the af far too much to part with it... but there are other pieces i’ve acquired along the way on my search that would be better off elsewhere

 

Would love to play with the Jot R and SR1A combo.

Funniest thing over at HF was the people who got upset when they found out the "new" version of the Jot only worked with the SR1A! LOL

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sch...view-head-fi-tv.818323/page-406#post-15177382