Best headphone under 10k$?

https://www.rivieralabs.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Review-RAAL-REQUISITE-SR1a-DOC.pdf

The author claimed that Raal Sr1a give more details than Stax 009s.
He prefers Sr1a to Abyss 1266 TC(p13) on overall performance.

“You can argue about the rustic look of the SR1a, but not about the tonal qualities. The SR1a is therefore not only the best headphone I’ve heard to date, but also the new heir to the throne in my personal olymp. He replaces the ABYSS AB1266 PHI TC accordingly and from now on of course takes first place in my TOP10 on Musicalhead. And of course this decision wasn’t easy for me.”



I received Sr1a on Jan 2nd.



Amplifier with more than 100 Watts for 6 ohm is recommended for Sr1a.


But I started with Marantz PM5003 which got a favorable review from Stereophile.


Marantz PM5003 integrated amplifier



Even with 50 Watts available at 6 ohm, this one has no difficulty driving Sr1a with crisp high and reasonably tight bass.




But soundstage is not that wide or deep as I had tried with Chord Etude amplifier on last November.




I played "Autumn Leaves" sung by Eva Cassidy, " I am so lonesome tonight" by Elvis Presley


"Sound of the West and William Tell Overture " in Roundup Telarc CD and Schumann Piano Trio played by Pierre Fournier, Henryk Szeying. Arthur Rubinstein.


Also I played some old K pops that I am familiar with.


I used ripped CD's stored in SSD of Cocktail Audio X30 and Dac is Chord Dave and HMS.




Then I played same list of music using Rogue Cronus Magnum II fitted with Nos Telefuken 12Ax7 and Amperex 12Au7 (100Watts for 8 ohm)


Now Sr1a really sings with wide and deep soundstage with more refined treble.


This amp seems to work with Sr1a very well.



Then I moved to Crown XLS 2502 (This one has 775W for 4 ohm ).


I got this one to drive two 18 inch subwoofers of Scaena 3.2 speakers.

Wow this PA amp impressed me with lot of headroom and snappy transient but without hard edge.




Of course, Rogue sounds sweeter than Crown but latter does sound neutral not on the dry side.



I went back to Stax 009s driven by Kgsshv Carbon amplifier to play same list of music for comparison.


Stax give more relaxed and nuanced details although the absolute amount of details are on par with each other.


But Sr1a give much faster and open sound reminding me of Apogee Duetta Sig that I had used from 1989 to 1999.


Soundstage width is similar but Sr1a has an edge on depth of soundstage.


I think Raal Sr1a may be the best headphone under 10K$ overall although Stax 009s is musical with relaxed presentation.



Rogue Apollo monoblocks with 250 watts may work better with Sr1a with more headroom.

Also, Schitt will market "Jotuheim R", the dedicated amp for Sr1a forgoing interface early half of this year.

I will try it out with Sr1a after it is released.

 

What's best under $10K or even $5K is so subjective. I don't want to choose a best. I just want to find one that works for me for what I want out of headphone audio. Doesn't need to be best. Needs to tickle the right things for me. And I mean tickle literally. The music listening needs to give me goosebumps.

I want to hear the SR1a. I'm doubtful it will be the right headphone for me due to my desire for bass as the foundation that music builds on (need a solid foundation of rock, cannot build on a foundation on sand). But I do want to hear. I need to hear. I need to find out what they do so I can relate and compare.

The SR1a also requires completely different headphone amps than what I've got. I like the amps I have. I don't want to abandon them. So for me the SR1a is unlikely even if I like its sound. What interests me now is the HEDD headphone. HEDD Air Motion Transformer (AMT) drivers in a headphone. Big potential. A big concern though, even with that design, is bass response. Will the bass satisfy me? Will the rest of the sound style satisfy me? My existing headphone amps will be able to drive it. And it's under $2K which makes it affordable for me. I'm very curious and interested in this headphone.

 

OT

It's OT but I'm a bit skeptic about the HEDDphones: It will be a nice trick if they manage to pull the trick of giving the same or better sound detail as electrostatics without the need of the bulky energizer. Now they need to prove it can be done without introducing other problems.

 

I agree with you that the best headphone is subjective judgement.

If Jot R(800$) will be able to drive Sr1a effectively, then it could be good solution at reasonably affordable price.

Another strong candidate is Abyss 2066 TC and Hifiman Susvara.

I also enjoy Stax 009S due to its nuanced details and musicality.

Heddphone appears to be too heavy for my comfort.

Thus even with decent sound and price, I do not consider auditioning of it.

In addition, it is not easy to drive with low efficiency, that is, it may require expensive headphone amplifier.

 

I'm optimistic that the HEDD will have a palpable bass that will be enough for me. Some of the reviews have mentioned that you can feel that the bass is physically moving air. That ought to do for me. I'm not after boosted bass. I want palpable and layered and nuanced. Something more palpable than "stat bass". And something that goes down to 20 Hz for pipe organ and such. I'm hopeful and optimistic. Because if the HEDD doesn't do it the other headphone options I'd want as an upgrade get quite a bit more expensive.

 

I've been using the LCD-2 as a daily use headphone since 2011. My neck and head is ready for the HEDD. And I've got amps that can drive the HEDD (Cavalli Liquid Fire, Liquid Glass, and Liquid Platinum and soon the Liquid Gold X). The same amps are also all well suited for the Abyss or HiFiMan or the Audeze LCD-4.

The SR009S with the Carbon amp and DAVE is really awesome. Except for that stat bass. Daft Punk needs more bass oomph than what the SR009S can deliver. But for orchestral and such the SR009S stat bass is fine.

I'm not about just the bass. The bass is just the foundation. I am also after the imaging and space and deeper headstage and great mids and a sense of "you are there" with your ears as the microphones. That "you are there" part is the most elusive part to find in a headphone system.

 

If you get Heddphone, please let us have your opinion on it.

It is priced reasonably than other Totl headphones.

 

Audeze has redesigned the awful original headbands. I have both the LCD-X and LCD-XC (with new headband) and the latter feels much more comfortable. You can upgrade with replacement parts if you really like the LCD-2.

 

Gramophone Dreams 32: RAAL-Requisite SR1a headphones Page 2

Nice review on Sr1a by Stereophile's Herb Reichert .

He also made comparison between Abyss 1266 Phi and Sr1a.


Are the $3500 SR1a's better than the $4999 Abyss AB-1266 Phi's?

A: No.

But they are not inferior.

The Abyss AB-1266 Phi's remain my reference headphones. When powered by the Pass Labs XA25 amplifier, the Abyss 'phones deliver the most natural, lifelike audio reproduction I have experienced. The Abyss headphones are also quieter and more transparent than the SR1a's.

The RAAL-Requisites are more conspicuously open and dynamic than the Abyss 'phones. But . . .

Please understand . . . the Abyss and RAAL headphones sound more alike than they sound like any other headphones out there


I got the similar impression between them when I tried them side by side with courtesy of Torq last November.

Abyss sounds more accurate while Sr1a sound more open and exciting.

Herb noticed clipping with Rogue Stereo 100 which I also experienced with Rogue Magnum II while playing full volume of Pink Floyd's Wall.

He must be playing pretty loud since I did not notice clipping very often with Magmum II.

It is too bad he could not try Jot R on it.

Nevertheless Herb gave highest rating A+ on Sr1a.

 

No mention of Focal Utopia in this thread? Or of how atrociously ugly both the RAAL SR1a and the Abyss AB-1266 are?

 

Gramophone Dreams #17: Abyss AB-1266 Phi headphones Page 2

I've spent a lot of time with another five-star headphone model: Focal's Utopia ($3999). The Utopias make music with a sparkling neutrality that reminds me of dry Champagne. They also possess a unique, breathy athleticism that may exceed the dynamic capabilities both the Stax SR-009s and the Abyss Phis—but! The Abysses took absolute openness, lack of grain, and relaxed purity further than the Staxes or Focals could go.

The problem of Utopia is its soundstage is not that wide or deep.

 

No sponges as an accessory?

 

Its soundstage may not be wide in and of itself, certainly nothing like the Sennheiser HD800; however, the imaging within its soundstage is very precise and it never feels claustrophobic or unnatural. I disagree that its soundstage is not deep, though this in large part depends on the amp used with them. Utopias are very revealing of upstream components, sometimes to a fault because you may make tweaks to a system based on what sounds better on Utopia that may not necessarily translate to a speaker system on the same chain.

Horses for courses, just think there's a lot of FOTM with the RAAL SR1a and the like lately.

 

I also have HD800S which offer very wide and deep soundstage like Sr1a.

But Sr1a sound much more open and fast than HD800s.

Stax oo9s driven by Kgsshv Carbon also offer pretty wide soundstage but not as deep as HD800s or Sr1a.

Stax give more refined sound than Sr1a.

 

If Heddphone can get balanced sound of bass, treble with good soundstage under 2k$, it would be a feat since most Totl headphone cost above 3K$.

Let us see what happens after commercial release.

 

Your optimism is catching. I just placed an order for the HEDDphones.

 

It is going to be interesting to make comparison between Sr1a and Heddphone.

One guy who pre-ordered Heddphone will do that, not me.

Hedd Audio HEDDphone - Official Thread

I have no plan to buy more headphone.

I have had a lot of fun with Stax009s, Sennheiser HD800s and Raal Sr1a during last one year.

But now I am done with it.

Headphone has an advantage of intimacy and being able to play music while wife sleeping.

But it has a limitation of dynamics compared with speaker.

Sr1a is close to speaker but way short of Lansche 4.1.

 

I am listening to above music through Sr1a now after listening to same one through my Lansche 4.1 speaker.

It appears that Sr1a driven by Crown XLS2502 has more speed than my 2 channel speaker system.

Thus it is fun to listen to Sr1a.

No more purchase of headphone after Sr1a.

This is my end game headphone.

Although, I also enjoy nuanced details out of Stax 009s driven by Kgsshv Carbon amp, Sr1a give fast and exciting sound.

 

You should try them out with the Riviera unit used in the review you first posted.....it's an incredible headphone amp.

AIC-10 - Riviera

 

It may have good tonality but will clip at louder volume.



https://www.amazon.com/Crown-XLS2502-Two-channel-Power-Amplifier/dp/B0129IKF32

Crown XLS2502 is on sale(50$ off).

If you want fast transient out of Sr1a, you may try this one.

Of course, if you do not like it, you can return it within 30 days of Amazon purchase.

The only thing is that you can fry out the interface if you play too loud with more than 500 watts available at 6 ohm.

Be careful!

You can leave the amp 24/7 on.

Actually it sounds better after 24 hours on and it is also sensitive to clean power like other D class amp so good power conditioner is must.

I am having good result with 2kW isolation transformer.

 

Not likely......it provides extremely high peak currents.

And from the review you posted:

"At no time do I get the impression that the AIC10 is acoustically overtaxed with the SR1a. Up to very ambitious listening levels, the RIVIERA also convinces dynamically in its function as an official integrated amplifier."

 

You move faster than I do. I'm waiting to get to hear it first before buying. There is going to be several of them in Seattle so I'll get a chance to hear them at a meet within the next 6 months. So I'm waiting. Patiently.

I'm expecting the Liquid Platinum will be a good pairing with it. You'll need to get a balanced cable for it. I think it uses the Audeze cable wiring standard.

 

That review is misleading.

He claims Sr1a give more details than Stax 009s.

But I found that both give similar details while Sr1a sounds more open and fast.

I downgrade his review since Dac he is using is not top tier.

One guy who is using AIC10 with Sr1a reported clipping in Headfi thread.

 

My hunch is that Sr1a will sound better than Heddphone.

Torq will report his result in a week.

But it depends on personal choice, so you never know until you try yourself.

 

I would expect your hunch that the SR1a will be better than the HEDDphone will be right. But the SR1a won't work with my existing headphone amps. So it is not as interesting to me as something for me to own. I want to be able to use my existing Cavalli amps and a future all tube amp with whatever headphones I get.