Coda no 16 amplifier

[shawnf]

@shawnf I had the Immanis | Magna | CA-1a in the house for a week (Thanksgiving). I also had the RAAL VM-1a and the Schitt Mjolner preamp | Schitt Aegir v1 amp. I used the RAAL T1-1b amp interface to connect the Aegir to the phones. The TI-1b is a lot better than the original amp adapter that RAAL sold. That one needed an amp like the CODA #16. The much better TI-1b requires much less power, and my Aegir v1 at 20 watts is near the top limit of power for the safe use of the adapter.

Both setups used the incredible Schitt Yggi+ OG DAC.

The Immanis is an experience, A huge sound taking the SR1a sound to new levels of greatness. However, it does not sound 2-channel-ish like the SR1a. There is more of everything on the Immanis. It was great with both my amps. There is a lot of sound leakage on the Immanis.

Even though I loved the Immanis, I decided to repurchase the SR1a that I had sold in anticipation of buying the Immanis. The Immanis was too distracting for me to get work done. I use the phones for late night work, like right now. It was also too loud and would disturb my family that are sleeping close to my home office.

The SR1a is not as good overall as the Immanis but is it great in its own way and that 2-channel like sound stage is something I like more than the headphone presentation of the Immanis. The Immanis gets close to the presentation but not as good. I am a 2-channel person so that is my subjective preference. A lot of people like the Immanis for the opposite reason.

I did have an AHB2 in the house with the Immanis. It was good with the warm Mjolnir v3 preamp but nothing spectacular. It is also too powerful with the TI-1b adapter. The Schitt Aegir was a better match.

Even though Alex in Serbia designed the RAAL using the AHB2, do not use the AHB2 with RAAL phones it is not a great match. With my SR1a it is a bad match, with the Immanis is OK but the amp is too powerful.

Saying all of this I may still get the Immanis because I moved the VM-1a amp to the bedroom, and I can close a door there to listen late at night. Though relaxing like that is a rare treat.

@yyzSB Thanks for the feedback. Great to hear.

I have an AHB2 driving at Hifiman Arya Stealth. Also heard the Susvara before and it was a great pairing. The source is an Antipodes CX into an MSB Premier DAC.

I'm thinking of getting a CODA amplifier to power a set of speakers. Still deciding whether to get the integrated CSIB or the power CS16. They are both on the shortlist as they support speaker bi-wiring.

Have you tried bi-wiring with the CODA? And what are your thoughts on the sound compared to other amps you previously owned.

FYI I've been told you can also bi-wire using a single AHB2 by using running both the binding posts and Speakon speaker outputs at the same time. But havent tried this yet.

 

[yyzSB]

@yyzSB Thanks for the feedback. Great to hear.

I have an AHB2 driving at Hifiman Arya Stealth. Also heard the Susvara before and it was a great pairing. The source is an Antipodes CX into an MSB Premier DAC.

I'm thinking of getting a CODA amplifier to power a set of speakers. Still deciding whether to get the integrated CSIB or the power CS16. They are both on the shortlist as they support speaker bi-wiring.

Have you tried bi-wiring with the CODA? And what are your thoughts on the sound compared to other amps you previously owned.

FYI I've been told you can also bi-wire using a single AHB2 by using running both the binding posts and Speakon speaker outputs at the same time. But havent tried this yet.

Sorry for the late reply. I was not on this site for a while.

I have not bi-wired any CODA amps nor any amps recently.

I did use an AHB2 at one time with Audience FrontRow speaker cable which had SpeakON connections at the amp end. It sounded great and I love the FrontRow cables.

I owned the CSiB, #8, and the #16. The #16 is much better. If the lower cost amp makes more sense to you, then I would get a Schitt Wotan over the #8 or CSiB. I now only have the #16 and Wotan. The Wotan is not better than the #8 or CSiB, but it is not worse either. It costs $2k.

 

[Robert_NP]

Hello All,
My audio system was sounding really good but I felt the need to go further and recently upgraded a McIntosh MC152 amp to a Coda 16. What was missing? A certain bit of clarity, the ability to place instruments in the soundstage, and an amp that is consistent in quality with the rest of my equipment.

McIntosh is one of the amplifiers that pairs well with my Focal Kanta 2s. I thought about a more powerful McIntosh but didn’t go there, heard a Luxman M900u in a dealer’s showroom that was OK, but a demo of the Coda turned my head. The Coda is an eye-opener in the clarity and power it brings to the system, but it has thrown the balance off. I am now struggling to overcome some brightness in two channel audio (it is not a problem with my home theatre setup), a slight edge that I had previously managed to defeat by changing cables, rolling tubes in my preamp and adding the Mac.

My listening space is not ideal and can use acoustic treatment to tame the highs, but things sounded pretty good before. The focus and bulk of time (say 85%) is with home theatre, but when I play two channel, I want it to be high quality. The obvious path is to sell the Coda and look elsewhere, but the thought of shipping that beast to a new owner is daunting. An alternative is a different (warmer?) preamp to better match the Coda (must have HT bypass and XLR connections), or perhaps something like a MiniDSP with Dirac to tweak the sound. I'm even contemplating warmer speakers to replace the Kantas, but that means three speakers (L/C/R) for home theatre.

I appreciate any words of wisdom or solace from Coda owners on a strategy to fix this issue. Thanks,

Robert

 

[yyzSB]

Hello All,
My audio system was sounding really good but I felt the need to go further and recently upgraded a McIntosh MC152 amp to a Coda 16. What was missing? A certain bit of clarity, the ability to place instruments in the soundstage, and an amp that is consistent in quality with the rest of my equipment.

McIntosh is one of the amplifiers that pairs well with my Focal Kanta 2s. I thought about a more powerful McIntosh but didn’t go there, heard a Luxman M900u in a dealer’s showroom that was OK, but a demo of the Coda turned my head. The Coda is an eye-opener in the clarity and power it brings to the system, but it has thrown the balance off. I am now struggling to overcome some brightness in two channel audio (it is not a problem with my home theatre setup), a slight edge that I had previously managed to defeat by changing cables, rolling tubes in my preamp and adding the Mac.

My listening space is not ideal and can use acoustic treatment to tame the highs, but things sounded pretty good before. The focus and bulk of time (say 85%) is with home theatre, but when I play two channel, I want it to be high quality. The obvious path is to sell the Coda and look elsewhere, but the thought of shipping that beast to a new owner is daunting. An alternative is a different (warmer?) preamp to better match the Coda (must have HT bypass and XLR connections), or perhaps something like a MiniDSP with Dirac to tweak the sound. I'm even contemplating warmer speakers to replace the Kantas, but that means three speakers (L/C/R) for home theatre.

I appreciate any words of wisdom or solace from Coda owners on a strategy to fix this issue. Thanks,

Robert

My suggestion to you may be a bit unexpected on this site but I have tried a few preamps with the CODA #16 and my Yamaha NS5000 speakers and I am certain my preamp search is done with the Benchmark HPA4.

I am using the Schitt Audio Yggi+ OG DAC and will be converting my 2nd Schitt Yggi+ MIB DAC to the new Byggi (not heard yet). I also have at home a demo of the new Allnc D-15000 Signature OTL/OCL DAC. I never expected to want to spend 20k+ for a DAC but this Allnc in phenomenal. Unfortunately, I do not have 20K+ yet

I have tried the following preamps

CODA 07x | Holo Audio Serene | Schitt Audio Freya+ | and some others that were forgettable.

The Serene is the next best but the HPA4 (or LA4) is perfect match to the CODA#16. I say this with confidence because I trust my ears but also, I had someone over recently that owns a mega expensive system ($300k) and he had demoed the HPA4 and returned it. His comment on the CODA #16 | HPA4 | Yamaha NS5000 was that he should have heard this before he spent a lot more. Which I assume he loved the HPA4 with the CODA.

The Serene is like the CODA 07x but cleaner and quieter, it is also warmer than the HPA4.

The other person to hear this system was a person involved as a consultant in the design of the Allnc D-15000 Signature OTL/OCL DAC. On Wed, he is coming over to hear his DAC with the CODA #16 and the Yamaha. He loves the speakers, and he told me the Allnc was the best DAC he has heard (I agree). He did tell me that Allnc also has a linestage that is phenomenal, but I am not interested in that since my HPA4 is end game for me. I am sure the tube based Allnc will add what tubes do, but for my ears the HPA4 is end game.

Benchmark HPA4 Headphone / Line Amplifier

Benchmark Media Systems, Inc. and THX, Ltd. have partnered to introduce the Benchmark HPA4 headphone/line amplifier featuring THX Achromatic Audio Amplifier (AAA™) technology. Featuring the flagship THX-888 amplifier design, the revolutionary HPA4 headphone amplifier incorporates the same...

benchmarkmedia.com

https://allnicaudio.com/products-2/#preamplifiers
- I may ask my friend Danny Mckinny to bring the Allnc linestage he loves on Wed to my place so I can add my impression here.

This is the DAC he is taking back to demo at the LA CanJam this weekend.

https://allnicaudio.com/product/allnic-d15000-2/

I had goosebumps, tears, and I was throwing my hands in the air (some metal) when I was listening to this DAC. It is phenomenal.

 

[yyzSB]

BTW - for DSP I think you can do better by remotely consulting with the DSP genius Mitch Barnett. It will cost $700 to get DSP filters custom made for your setup. Now if you use ROON or JRiver that would make the solution he uses very simple to deploy. I now longer use DSP (and never did with the CODA). I had DSP when I had a too big speaker in a small office.

Mitch had some incredible posts on AudiophileStyle.com and then I read his book on DSP. I then contacted him because I realized I was too dumb to really do DSP correctly.

Digital Room Calibration Services, Convolver, Headphone Filtersets

We provide digital room calibration for stereo and multichannel. Software provider of audio convolver, plugin host, and headphone filtersets.

accuratesound.ca

 

[plind]

Hello All,
My audio system was sounding really good but I felt the need to go further and recently upgraded a McIntosh MC152 amp to a Coda 16. What was missing? A certain bit of clarity, the ability to place instruments in the soundstage, and an amp that is consistent in quality with the rest of my equipment.

McIntosh is one of the amplifiers that pairs well with my Focal Kanta 2s. I thought about a more powerful McIntosh but didn’t go there, heard a Luxman M900u in a dealer’s showroom that was OK, but a demo of the Coda turned my head. The Coda is an eye-opener in the clarity and power it brings to the system, but it has thrown the balance off. I am now struggling to overcome some brightness in two channel audio (it is not a problem with my home theatre setup), a slight edge that I had previously managed to defeat by changing cables, rolling tubes in my preamp and adding the Mac.

My listening space is not ideal and can use acoustic treatment to tame the highs, but things sounded pretty good before. The focus and bulk of time (say 85%) is with home theatre, but when I play two channel, I want it to be high quality. The obvious path is to sell the Coda and look elsewhere, but the thought of shipping that beast to a new owner is daunting. An alternative is a different (warmer?) preamp to better match the Coda (must have HT bypass and XLR connections), or perhaps something like a MiniDSP with Dirac to tweak the sound. I'm even contemplating warmer speakers to replace the Kantas, but that means three speakers (L/C/R) for home theatre.

I appreciate any words of wisdom or solace from Coda owners on a strategy to fix this issue. Thanks,

Robert

Well, the most natural choice must be a Coda Preamp I guess. I have a 07x Fet together with my Coda 15.0. Warm and natural sound with great dynamics.

 

[Robert_NP]

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[YamFan]

I had a rather poor experience with the Coda CP preamp. Yeah, it was able to mimic tube sound to a degree, but it was also one of the noisiest preamps I’ve tried in my system, even noisier than full tube pres. The noise issue negated the advantage of the ultra low noise floor of their amplifiers. From what I’ve gathered, the O7x is similarly noisy. If so, it’s completely unacceptable for a preamp of that price (same can be said for the CP’s price), especially considering the company is capable of making amps that are dead silent despite giant transformers.

 

[KrellFan1]

Well, the most natural choice must be a Coda Preamp I guess. I have a 07x Fet together with my Coda 15.0. Warm and natural sound with great dynamics.

Looking for a little guidance here from any Coda No 16 user who has had experience with a Krell Class A amplifier. I love my Duo 300 XD but have the itch to upgrade. Now using my Lyngdorf MP-60 as my preamp with D-D feed via AES/EBU cable from my Antipodes K22 to MP-60 input. I am satisfied the Coda is a GREAT amp; the big question is, would this be a lateral move or would it represent any significant upgrade driving my Dyanudio Confidence C2 loudspeakers? My listening room is 18X20 w 8 foot ceilings. Thx.

 

[Antmou]

So a $2k amplifier + $500 in mods gets close to a $17k amplifier?

Yes that’s really laughable to hear/read that knowing the performance of the Coda 16.0 (which compared favorably to AR, Ayre, Pass, Dante Agostino…). Let’s all buy a GAN lol

 

[KrellFan1]

Yes that’s really laughable to hear/read that knowing the performance of the Coda 16.0 (which compared favorably to AR, Ayre, Pass, Dante Agostino…). Let’s all buy a GAN lol

Fair point made here! Anyone have the opportunity to compare a Coda No 16 to a Pass Labs X250.8? This are both tops one my list at this stage.

 

[GSOphile]

I would suggest you try a Pass XP22. Probably more refined than Coda offerings, but Pass and Coda come from the same tree, and the XP22 is an excellent, well reviewed pre that doesn't need Pass amps to sound good. I've had its big brother XP32 in my system (paired with a Luxman M-10X), and it was very good.

 

[KrellFan1]

I would suggest you try a Pass XP22. Probably more refined than Coda offerings, but Pass and Coda come from the same tree, and the XP22 is an excellent, well reviewed pre that doesn't need Pass amps to sound good. I've had its big brother XP32 in my system (paired with a Luxman M-10X), and it was very good.

I have been in discussion with my Coda distributor and he claims that neither the X250.8 or X350.8 are a match for the No 16, despite the fact that both boast more power. It’s more about current than anything else. Im actually considering their Signature series S150 which separates out the current from the voltage supply and is set to sound even better..I understand that Pass is legendary for the two preamps you mention here. https://coda.cc/coda-system-s150-amplifier

 

[shawnf]

@shawnf I had the Immanis | Magna | CA-1a in the house for a week (Thanksgiving). I also had the RAAL VM-1a and the Schitt Mjolner preamp | Schitt Aegir v1 amp. I used the RAAL T1-1b amp interface to connect the Aegir to the phones. The TI-1b is a lot better than the original amp adapter that RAAL sold. That one needed an amp like the CODA #16. The much better TI-1b requires much less power, and my Aegir v1 at 20 watts is near the top limit of power for the safe use of the adapter.

Both setups used the incredible Schitt Yggi+ OG DAC.

The Immanis is an experience, A huge sound taking the SR1a sound to new levels of greatness. However, it does not sound 2-channel-ish like the SR1a. There is more of everything on the Immanis. It was great with both my amps. There is a lot of sound leakage on the Immanis.

Even though I loved the Immanis, I decided to repurchase the SR1a that I had sold in anticipation of buying the Immanis. The Immanis was too distracting for me to get work done. I use the phones for late night work, like right now. It was also too loud and would disturb my family that are sleeping close to my home office.

The SR1a is not as good overall as the Immanis but is it great in its own way and that 2-channel like sound stage is something I like more than the headphone presentation of the Immanis. The Immanis gets close to the presentation but not as good. I am a 2-channel person so that is my subjective preference. A lot of people like the Immanis for the opposite reason.

I did have an AHB2 in the house with the Immanis. It was good with the warm Mjolnir v3 preamp but nothing spectacular. It is also too powerful with the TI-1b adapter. The Schitt Aegir was a better match.

Even though Alex in Serbia designed the RAAL using the AHB2, do not use the AHB2 with RAAL phones it is not a great match. With my SR1a it is a bad match, with the Immanis is OK but the amp is too powerful.

Saying all of this I may still get the Immanis because I moved the VM-1a amp to the bedroom, and I can close a door there to listen late at night. Though relaxing like that is a rare treat.

@yyzSB Just wanted to do a follow up post of my current AHB2 experience.

I have been testing quite a few power cords this year ranging from over $5000 from various brands. Whatever changes I could hear was really subtle, showing how stubborn the AHB2 in the power partnering department.

I was planning to focus on interconnects instead. But one day I happened to chance upon a brand called Hijiri which had a local dealer who allowed home demos. I got in the entry level Nagomi power cord for a long term loan. I first plugged it into my Premier DAC powerbase - it sounded slightly worse compared to the Tyr 2 I had on hand.

I then swapped and plugged the Nagomi into the AHB2 direct from wall. WOW! It was like a component level upgrade! Holographic, more resolving, more textures (especially in the highs), more body and speed. It was also engaging while remaining slightly on the warm side of neutral.

I will be spending a bit more time with the Nagomi to test with some higher end interconnects inbound before I make a purchase decision. But at this stage, I'm very very keen.

 

[KrellFan1]

“I will be spending a bit more time with the Nagomi to test with some higher end interconnects inbound before I make a purchase decision. But at this stage, I'm very very keen.

Glad you’ve found a great power cord that has brought new life to your system. I would highly recommend you try just one Cerious Tech Lumniscate PC and connect to your most coveted digital device - DAC, server, streamer, etc. same for their interconnects. I have the full loom and it as though I have an entirely new an upgraded system. https://cerioustech.com/

 

[yyzSB]

@yyzSB Just wanted to do a follow up post of my current AHB2 experience.

I have been testing quite a few power cords this year ranging from over $5000 from various brands. Whatever changes I could hear was really subtle, showing how stubborn the AHB2 in the power partnering department.

I was planning to focus on interconnects instead. But one day I happened to chance upon a brand called Hijiri which had a local dealer who allowed home demos. I got in the entry level Nagomi power cord for a long term loan. I first plugged it into my Premier DAC powerbase - it sounded slightly worse compared to the Tyr 2 I had on hand.

I then swapped and plugged the Nagomi into the AHB2 direct from wall. WOW! It was like a component level upgrade! Holographic, more resolving, more textures (especially in the highs), more body and speed. It was also engaging while remaining slightly on the warm side of neutral.

I will be spending a bit more time with the Nagomi to test with some higher end interconnects inbound before I make a purchase decision. But at this stage, I'm very very keen.

That is really interesting. I tried a few PC on the AHB2, and it never made a difference. I have heard from someone else that owns the Hijiri that it was a nice cable. I may have to try this on my CODA #16. CODA like Benchmark say that a PC does not matter.

BTW - I am leaning towards getting the Meze Empy II phone to pair with my Benchmark HPA4 preamp. I have this single preamp hooked up to my Livingroom system with 25-foot Benchmark XLR, and also my Office system with 8-foot Benchmark RCA. Might as well get the headphone amp working on it too.
I love the HPA4 + CODA #16. Only preamp I liked better on my system was the top end Allinic preamp which cost $33k, and I am not getting that.

 

[GSOphile]

I have been in discussion with my Coda distributor and he claims that neither the X250.8 or X350.8 are a match for the No 16, despite the fact that both boast more power. It’s more about current than anything else. Im actually considering their Signature series S150 which separates out the current from the voltage supply and is set to sound even better..I understand that Pass is legendary for the two preamps you mention here. https://coda.cc/coda-system-s150-amplifier

I wasn't suggesting that you consider switching to a Pass amp. What I was suggesting was that due to their common roots, the excellent Pass XP22 pre, would probably pair well with your Coda No. 16.

 

[KrellFan1]

I wasn't suggesting that you consider switching to a Pass amp. What I was suggesting was that due to their common roots, the excellent Pass XP22 pre, would probably pair well with your Coda No. 16.

I understand and appreciate the suggestion; however, because of my love for RoomPerfect and the excellent performance of my Lyngdorf MP-60, I am pretty much married to that as a preamp for the time being. I had an excellent setup with my MM Tambaqui DAC and Makua preamp but instead opted for the amazing D-D connection whereby I now run an AES/EBU cable out of my Antipodes player direct to the input of the MP-60, and out to the Krell. The EQ offered by RoomPerfect is simply impossible to replicate for me in a room in which I wish rot retain some modicum of aesthetics without a lot of acoustic treatment

 

[shawnf]

That is really interesting. I tried a few PC on the AHB2, and it never made a difference. I have heard from someone else that owns the Hijiri that it was a nice cable. I may have to try this on my CODA #16. CODA like Benchmark say that a PC does not matter.

BTW - I am leaning towards getting the Meze Empy II phone to pair with my Benchmark HPA4 preamp. I have this single preamp hooked up to my Livingroom system with 25-foot Benchmark XLR, and also my Office system with 8-foot Benchmark RCA. Might as well get the headphone amp working on it too.
I love the HPA4 + CODA #16. Only preamp I liked better on my system was the top end Allinic preamp which cost $33k, and I am not getting that.

@yyzSB $33k for a preamp is definitely insane but in this hobby who can say what is/or is not value for money.

Just to share. I am running an entirely headphone setup myself. My Premier DAC is plugged directly into my AHB2 with Audio Envy XLRs (starting to become the bottleneck). I then use a speakon-to-4-pin XLR adapter to drive an Abyss JOAL headphone. My network transport is the Antipodes CX and I always use LMS for playback. With the Hijiri cord in the AHB2, the sound is a bit tube-like. I say a bit because in some bright songs, i still get the odd sibilance in the vocals.

Before the JOAL, I spent 5 years with the same setup running a variety of Hifiman headphones with the highest end I owned being the Arya V2. Hifimans have a specific house sound with a tendency towards the treble and very large soundstage. I moved to the JOAL because all my units had driver failures after a few years and I didnt want to pay Hifiman for repairs.

Moving on to the JOAL: It loses out on soundstage width (and a bit of depth) against the Arya. But it outperforms the Hifiman in all other departments, especially in the midrange where the body, timbre and toe-tapping smoothness were several levels better. At it's price point, I would say IMHO the JOAL is the midrange and speed virtuoso. It pairs well with the AHB2 and you literally listen to it for hours if you have a warmer setup.

Coincidentally, when I was demoing the JOAL, I also did a demo of the Meze POET. The deviation from the original Meze Empyrean was quite startling - gone is the warm tube-like sound replaced by something that is more akin to a Hifiman sound, especially on the treble side. Technically, the POET sounded very competent. But when I did an A-B with the JOAL, it was clear the JOAL was more engaging and enjoyable for me.

Also suggest you do a demo of the HPA4 before buying: Very neutral and resolving amplifier but has problems driving low impedance headphones. My friend tried his Abyss 1266 with it and we could tell the HPA4 was struggling.

 

[yyzSB]

@yyzSB $33k for a preamp is definitely insane but in this hobby who can say what is/or is not value for money.

Just to share. I am running an entirely headphone setup myself. My Premier DAC is plugged directly into my AHB2 with Audio Envy XLRs (starting to become the bottleneck). I then use a speakon-to-4-pin XLR adapter to drive an Abyss JOAL headphone. My network transport is the Antipodes CX and I always use LMS for playback. With the Hijiri cord in the AHB2, the sound is a bit tube-like. I say a bit because in some bright songs, i still get the odd sibilance in the vocals.

Before the JOAL, I spent 5 years with the same setup running a variety of Hifiman headphones with the highest end I owned being the Arya V2. Hifimans have a specific house sound with a tendency towards the treble and very large soundstage. I moved to the JOAL because all my units had driver failures after a few years and I didnt want to pay Hifiman for repairs.

Moving on to the JOAL: It loses out on soundstage width (and a bit of depth) against the Arya. But it outperforms the Hifiman in all other departments, especially in the midrange where the body, timbre and toe-tapping smoothness were several levels better. At it's price point, I would say IMHO the JOAL is the midrange and speed virtuoso. It pairs well with the AHB2 and you literally listen to it for hours if you have a warmer setup.

Coincidentally, when I was demoing the JOAL, I also did a demo of the Meze POET. The deviation from the original Meze was quite startling - gone is the warm tube-like sound replaced by something that is more akin to a Hifiman sound, especially on the treble side. Technically, the POET sounded very competent. But when I did an A-B with the JOAL, it was clear the JOAL was more engaging and enjoyable for me.

Also suggest you do a demo of the HPA4 before buying: Very neutral and resolving amplifier but has problems driving low impedance headphones. My friend tried his Abyss 1266 with it and we could tell the HPA4 was struggling.

I already own the HPA4 and the LA4 before that. I had the Alllnic preamp in place of the HPA4 for a day and it was the only time I thought the HPA4 was bettered as a preamp. I asked the guy with the Allnic to take it home or I would start thinking crazy thoughts about figuring out a way to buy it.

My favorite headphone is the RAAL SR1a. It was built using the AHB2 as the reference amp for it. I actually bought the SR1a because of that history. Though the AHB2 was terrible with the bright SR1a.

I owned the following preamps in order:
- Bryston BP-20 (too bright)
- Benchmark LA4 (l loved it)
- Benchmark HPA4 (love it)
- Coda 7x (too noisy)
- Holo Audio Serene (not bad)
- Benchmark HPA4 (love it)

When I owned the HPA4 for the first time I used the Meze Empy 1 with it. It was good with the HPA4 but a much different sound than the SR1a. I sold the Meze and the HPA4 with the intention of not using any other phone but the SR1a. The SR1a is so vastly different from all other phones that I find it hard to beat. Even against the $7k-$10k RAAL 1995 Immanis, which a lot of people consider the best headphone in the world. I sold the SR1a thinking I would buy the Immanis, but after a weeklong home demo, I decided to go back to the SR1a.

That has been the case so far but since I repurchased the HPA4 I have that headphone jack sitting idle. The Empy II is not as warm as the Empy I and not as neutral as the Poet or Elite. I think it will be a nice contrast to my SR1a, but it will not be as good as the SR1a. The HPA4 is very powerful for the Meze phones.

The HPA4 was never able to drive the SR1a in the past but today it can with a special RAAL adapter. It works well but the SR1a is really too bright for the HPA4. I have the RAAl VM-1a tube amp for the SR1a and that is the best amp for that phone. It was made specifically made for the SR1a.

Raal SR1a ribbon headphones and Schiit Jotunheim R direct drive headphone amp

Raal SR1a headphones and Schiit Jotunheim R direct drive amp (no DAC) both in perfect condition.

www.usaudiomart.com

BTW - a great headphone amp for the price is the $1200 Schitt Mjolnir v3.