[yyzSB]

I also had the JotR with the RAAL JotR cable for a few years before I recently sold it. I was a bit veiled in comparison to my other ways of listening to the RAAL SR1a and CA-1a.

In the past my CA-1a and SR1a were better than the Magnepan LRS+ speakers I also have in the office. That is not the case today. I moved my amazing CODA #16 amp and got some Audience FrontRow speaker cable, and the sound is so good that it is actually too distracting. Hard to get any work done. It is better than the CA-1a + VM-1a. I no longer have the SR1a so I cannot say if my LRS+ has surpassed the SR1a.

Interestingly, the following $18k speaker, Diptyque, is a direct competitor to my $1000 LRS+. The reviewer also reviewed the RAAL CA-1a and discusses the similarities between the $18k speaker and the CA-1a. I have been saying similar things about the CA-1a and the LRS+. Today my LRS+ is the king in the office.

https://www.hifi-advice.com/blog/re...peakers-passive-reviews/diptyque-dp-140-mkii/

For those unfamiliar with planar dipoles, the DP 140 MkII’s bass behavior reminds me of the Quad ESL 988 Electrostatics and arguably has more in common with an excellent pair of headphones than the average dynamic speaker in its price range. With “excellent”, I mean at least a Sennheiser HD 650 or similar, but in many respects, the Diptyques are considerably better than these headphones. For instance, by not having even a trace of synthesis or artifice and having even higher resolution. From the midrange up, they actually remind me of the superlative performance of the RAAL requisite CA-1a headphones. As conoisseurs will know, these headphones contain pure ribbon drivers which, of course, explains a lot.

 

[jlbrach]

Your experience is echoed in MokhaMark’s ‘review’ from last weekend where he clearly stated that the obvious superiority of the VM-1a compared to the JotR when using the SR-1a is almost completely gone when using Magna and Immanis. This was his conclusion when listening for several hours in the peace and quiet of his own home. I think it is wrong for anybody to disagree with his statement unless they have heard the same combinations of amps and phones also in the peace and quiet of a good listening environment.

I will leave it to others to listen to the jotr rather than the VM..I owning both will be listening to my VM...I will say however that if the jotr does the job for someone they will be saving a ton of cash so more power to them

 

[gammi]

I also had the JotR with the RAAL JotR cable for a few years before I recently sold it. I was a bit veiled in comparison to my other ways of listening to the RAAL SR1a and CA-1a.

In the past my CA-1a and SR1a were better than the Magnepan LRS+ speakers I also have in the office. That is not the case today. I moved my amazing CODA #16 amp and got some Audience FrontRow speaker cable, and the sound is so good that it is actually too distracting. Hard to get any work done. It is better than the CA-1a + VM-1a. I no longer have the SR1a so I cannot say if my LRS+ has surpassed the SR1a.

Interestingly, the following $18k speaker, Diptyque, is a direct competitor to my $1000 LRS+. The reviewer also reviewed the RAAL CA-1a and discusses the similarities between the $18k speaker and the CA-1a. I have been saying similar things about the CA-1a and the LRS+. Today my LRS+ is the king in the office.

https://www.hifi-advice.com/blog/re...peakers-passive-reviews/diptyque-dp-140-mkii/

Yeah, most people agree the VM1 is better with the SR1a and CA-1a. MokhaMark's point though was that the gap is smaller with the more efficient Magna/Immanis.

Btw, GR Research just released a crossover upgrade for the LRS+, you should check it out. I bought it for my pair.

I will leave it to others to listen to the jotr rather than the VM..I owning both will be listening to my VM...I will say however that if the jotr does the job for someone they will be saving a ton of cash so more power to them

Are you purchasing a Magna or Immanis? I would love to hear your comparison between Jot R and VM1 with them rather than with SR1a and CA-1a.

 

[yyzSB]

yyz, when you say you are looking to hear the serene “naked” on these phones I’m presuming you mean you will use the new interface?

Yes, naked with the TI-1b same as with the Mjolnir V3 preamp.

Though it likely will work without it. My CA-1a (and sold SR1a) both worked without the TI-1b but it was not as good as using the interface. I forgot to put the interface in once when I was listening with the modded Peachtree GAN1 I have, and it sounded pretty good.

I may have messed up that GAN1 amp since I demoed it to Danny, and it did not have the magic I remembered from the past. I never expected that amp to last since it had some Frankenstein mods done to it. I am putting it back into my network today. It is a DAC and amp rolled into one. It only takes SPDIF input and has no volume.

 

[nfandi]

Yes, naked with the TI-1b same as with the Mjolnir V3 preamp.

Though it likely will work without it. My CA-1a (and sold SR1a) both worked without the TI-1b but it was not as good as using the interface. I forgot to put the interface in once when I was listening with the modded Peachtree GAN1 I have, and it sounded pretty good.

I may have messed up that GAN1 amp since I demoed it to Danny, and it did not have the magic I remembered from the past. I never expected that amp to last since it had some Frankenstein mods done to it. I am putting it back into my network today. It is a DAC and amp rolled into one. It only takes SPDIF input and has no volume.

Looking forward to reading your comments once you’ve received the new phones. I wonder how many times you’ll listen to When the Levee Breaks and whether it will be Magna or Immanis that you prefer.

 

[yyzSB]

Yeah, most people agree the VM1 is better with the SR1a and CA-1a. MokhaMark's point though was that the gap is smaller with the more efficient Magna/Immanis.

Btw, GR Research just released a crossover upgrade for the LRS+, you should check it out. I bought it for my pair.


Are you purchasing a Magna or Immanis? I would love to hear your comparison between Jot R and VM1 with them rather than with SR1a and CA-1a.

Thanks for the tip on the LRS+. I use Magna Rizers with their plug for the speaker inputs. Amazing upgrade.

I got MokaMarks point about the JotR. That was a very interesting observation since I found the JotR my least favorite. Though the RAAL JotR cable made some nice improvements.

 

[yyzSB]

Looking forward to reading your comments once you’ve received the new phones. I wonder how many times you’ll listen to When the Levee Breaks and whether it will be Magna or Immanis that you prefer.

I think this time it is going to be Donna Summer's Bad Girls. Cannot get that tune out of my head after hearing in on the office LRS+ system.

 

[moha97]

I am trying to quickly find a proper cable for the XLR1 headphone output of the Holo Serene preamp so that I can test out the new RAAL 1995 Magnis and Immanis that I am getting to my home this week. I only found out yesterday that the phones will be coming my way.

I have the RAAL VM-1a tube headphone amp | Schitt Mjolnir V3 preamp/headphone amp | Schitt Aegir amp | Benchmark AHB2 | PeachTree GAN1 amp to all try with the 2 new phones. I would also like to try the Holo Serene preamp directly with the phones. The Serene is connected to the Aegir amp via RCA so I will hear some of the preamp. However, I am also looking to hear the Serene naked on these phones.

Anyone with a Holo Serene know what cable to use? The Serene is a slightly warmer sounding Benchmark HPA4 on my 2-channel. I have the Benchmark LA4 preamp in my Livingroom system (same as HPA4 minus headphone amp).

I have contacted Tim at https://www.kitsunehifi.com/product/holo-audio-serene-preamp/ , but no response yet. So, I thought I would ask the headphone experts on here.

Excited to hear your impressions! Sounds like you have a whole lot of great gear to test them on.

 

[yyzSB]

Are you purchasing a Magna or Immanis? I would love to hear your comparison between Jot R and VM1 with them rather than with SR1a and CA-1a.

I sold the SR1a to raise cash for these new phones. I may have a buyer for my Sanders Magtech amp that I previously used with the LRS+. I may sell the AHB2 but I kind of like to keep that. I may be able to crawl across the financial goal line to buy one of the phones. If not now later in the year.

 

[nfandi]

I sold the SR1a to raise cash for these new phones. I may have a buyer for my Sanders Magtech amp that I previously used with the LRS+. I may sell the AHB2 but I kind of like to keep that. I may be able to crawl across the financial goal line to buy one of the phones. If not now later in the year.

If you still have the TI-1b you can buy a naked Immanis.

 

[MokhaMark]

. MokhaMark's point though was that the gap is smaller with the more efficient Magna/Immanis.

Hi All, @gammi and @nfandi have re-emphasized my point regarding the VM1a and Jot R but maybe I can add to it now. I hoped to avoid any controversy in sharing my opinions, and this one point seems to need elaboration.

@jlbrach and I are both proud owners of the VM1a and we have both been on record here stating how clearly better it is for the SR1a. I have never heard it sound better. He and others have also stated how great it is for the CA1a. The VM1a is a dramatic improvement to my ears for the open baffle Raal. It is not subtle.

I want to add to my earlier comments, with a little more time to have digested the listening experience. I went into my marathon session with the Magna and Immanis expecting a similar leap up in obvious quality with the VM1a, which I listened to with three amps and two DACs in all combinations. The gap was narrower. So much so in some instances it was simply a difference. How?

• Well, the sheer energy of the Jotunheim with the Magna and Immanis is just simply on fire. For example, with the Immanis, I was at hardly ever more that 9 o'clock on the knob vs nearly 12 on the SR1a. The Magna is in between. It is just electric, it stages huge, on the Immanis it never risked sibilance. If either of the might have leaned toward the more strident SR1a combination, it would be the Magna on some recordings. The Magna has a rock and roll attitude, as I think about it. It's profile is just kinda what I might grab for if all I listened to was classic rock and bass heavy genre and I felt like dancing around like an Apple iPod ad silhouette in a neon color. The Immanis kept the same suave, debonaire, poised character it had on all the DAC/amplifier combinations I tried. But it tickled Hades' toes on both the JotR and VM1a. It just plums the depths on either.
• Both the Magna and Immanis in Triode mode on the VM1a showed a slightly more laid back character, as is normal for this amplifier with the SR1a, one of the primary things I love about it. What I mean about that is a treble oriented thing, not a speed issue. The VM1a loses NO, NONE, ZERO speed to the JotR in the bass or impact area. This is the amplifier, after all, that actually gives the SR1a more bass impact than anything else I have heard. The VM1a is not a slow, soft, tooooby amplifier. But there are elements of being very slightly more reverberant, adding something to the already reverberant nature of the Magna and Immanis. Of the two new headphones, in my very humble opinion, the one that it could be argued benefited the most from the VM1a, is the Magna. Again, informed by only two days with these headphones, my humble opinion is the Immanis may be very easy to get sounding extraordinary off of modest equipment.
• Noise floor. If you are for sure absolutely clinical in needing a dead silent noise floor, my VM1a made noise on both the new headphones. I absolutely respect this could be a tube issue, the power on hand, etc. I am only relating my experience in this circumstance. The Jotunheim R is as quiet as a dead mouse on both.

The most important point I was trying to make in the amplifier comparisons was that it is possible, just possible, these already expensive headphones can be made to sound extraordinary on modest equipment.

In the months and years to come there will be ample opportunity for others to have a similar opportunity in their own home and gear to listen as I did. I cannot wait for other impressions to come. And I will most certainly expect others not to agree exactly or even partially with what I arrived at. And I will receive those contradictions with the camaraderie I hope us rare ribbon fans can extend all around.

 

[Hiker816]

The most important point I was trying to make in the amplifier comparisons was that it is possible, just possible, these already expensive amplifiers can be made to sound extraordinary on modest equipment.

Fantastic write-up! Thanks! In the above sentence, did you mean "headphones" instead of "amplifiers"?

 

[jlbrach]

Yeah, most people agree the VM1 is better with the SR1a and CA-1a. MokhaMark's point though was that the gap is smaller with the more efficient Magna/Immanis.

Btw, GR Research just released a crossover upgrade for the LRS+, you should check it out. I bought it for my pair.


Are you purchasing a Magna or Immanis? I would love to hear your comparison between Jot R and VM1 with them rather than with SR1a and CA-1a.

yes I plan to and I expect to use my VM-1a or my envy with it...my jotr has been relegated to a travel amp or an emergency amp..this is not an issue of power the jotr has tons of power and drive the CA and SR without effort and the new HP's are easier to drive...the jotr simply isnt in the league of the other amps but again go for it and save the cash..I would expect a very efficient HP to generate some tube noise when not playing music...my envy does unless I put it on low gain when I listen with efficient HP's...that I couldnt judge at canjam the environment is just too hectic and noisy...what I could discern immediately with the Immanis was the soundstage which was glorious which for me is a selling point

 

[MokhaMark]

Fantastic write-up! Thanks! In the above sentence, did you mean "headphones" instead of "amplifiers"?

Thanks, edited!

 

[Aleksandar R.]

Thumbs up - even for the use with Immanis?

Well, there is no cable out there that has less inductance than STAR-8.
In this particular system, STAR-8 will get the most HF "dust in the air", if that is important for the listener.
As for the midrange, I don't know what Silver Dragon does in comparison, as I haven't listened to it.
It may be great, but I doubt it can be better. We were making the same topology of cables and we moved on to star-octo topology for good reasons.

In any case, Star-8 cable comes with Immanis, and I have instructed the sales network to sell Immanis headset-only to people who already own Star-8 cable.
Whether that will be honored or not, I can't say for sure, but with that cable, I can guarantee client's satisfaction.
Without it, I can't, and I doubt that others will show the full potential of the headset.