So correct me if I’m wrong, but you found the ferrum too sterile and lifeless with the susvara correct? The AHB2 is going to be that way even more so than the ferrum stack is, it’s a strong macro focus that sacrifices some nuance, sweetness, spatiality, and microdynamics for the most control over the driver and large impact and swings. Personally I can’t say I was a fan of that pairing since it really decided to focus more on the large scale side of things which isn’t why I personally grab for the susvara
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Yes, more than I care for.
OK - good to know that will help save time and money, lol.
I’ve been wondering, I honestly enjoy the Susvara a bit more when working from the V550 - I like the timbre - everything just sounds a bit more natural as I expect it to be. I admit too that I have been trying to force it to be an all in one, it is not and never will be the king of slam like a TC. When I listen to it without putting expectations on it (Susvara) I super enjoy it with the gear I have. I will also admit that regarding the Ferrum Stack and the Susvara - I do like that it has a bit more punch n feels faster. So, perhaps maybe that is why I am interested in trying a different DAC with that amp.
Or I could just save the money on amps - I like the Susvara off the v550, so I could just spend the amp and DAC money on a 1266 TC and call it a day lol
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Would agree
That is nice
So you are looking for an amp that combines traits of both then, hmmm, I do think that looking toward things like an aic-10, primavera, or potentially egoista 845 (but that could potentially be too dry) would be worth the look, but you likely aren’t looking to spend that yet. I think a reasonable upgrade if you could find one would be a cavalli liquid gold or an amp 23r (although that could potentially be too relaxed). I think you are really in the range though where I would either stick with what you have, or move up, because I don’t know if sidegrading will really get you where you want to be from what you say imo
That’s also a potential option, could be pretty worthwhile as well, and admittedly actually likely cheaper than moving to some of the aforementioned amp options
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No pretty much nothing has bass impact like the TC.
The Susvara can have excellent Bass extension, with good dynamics, but it’s not going to be a TC.
If that’s the sound your looking for it’s certainly worth exploring.
I think I’m finally moving towards the point where I may sell my 1266 TC.
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The 23R is something I think about, and is one reason I’m considering a Morpheus, as it should work better with the 23R than the more balanced optimized output of the Spring 3. My thoughts were get a Morpheus in to put with the Ferrum stack and see if it can help fill out the sound with the Susvara more to my preferences. If it doesn’t work out, then I was thinking of getting an 23R in for a demo and trying that out with the Morpheus while I still have the Ferrum stack to compare and decide what if, if any I prefer with Susvara, and go from there.
No, honestly I’m not. If I can keep individual core component pieces of the Susvara chain (HP, DAC, and AMP) each to 5Kish or less, that’s where I’m comfortable.
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It is ‘A’ sound I’m looking for - Most days even with current gear, I like the Susvara but, there are times with certain Albums/Artists and Tracks that I long for a little more decadent fun jam. When I had the TC in for demo it left a hole when I sent it back. I got the Susvara not long after and the 1266 TC was still fresh in my head and I was like - “These two pieces are where it would be” Susvara for 60% of what I listen to and the TC for the other 40% that is still sort of where I am at.
That would be a great opportunity for some folks in this forum - selfishly speaking.
But also would be sad to see you part with it.
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Makes me wanna get an XS lol!
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Nevermind LOL
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Just want to say thati had the same experience.
W/ bad dac: wa33 just boing and not l that impressive
W/ good dac: mind blowing technicals (still kinda boring though tbh)
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So i spent some hours with Susvara on my head and I am kind of not getting what I was expecting. There were some tracks I found amazing and some that were like fainted picture. Obviously not enough time with them to have any opinion. I can for sure say that they are the best open backs I had on my head
I suppose might be my chain not set up in a right way.
I had to set vio to +18db gain to get them to some normal volume but still would expect that my chain can give me a good idea of what those beauties are capable of.
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It’s taken me some time to ‘get’ them as well, and had a similar feeling of not quite getting what I expected. I think part of it is that my chain is on the laid back side. I’d still like to get a little more energy and impact out of them with a DAC change from the La Voce S3, but they still bring it for some recordings, and I can appreciate what they do well the rest of the time. Especially the upper mids through treble are just incredibly ‘right’…so much detail and nuance, and so natural. Bass is present and digs deep, but not all that punchy, and into the mid bass and lower mids seem to lose a little definition in busy passes at times, but I feel that’s likely more source related.
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So this is actually very common for a lot of susvara owners, you always hear about people who own them for months and while they acknowledge it sounds good they don’t quite “get them” at first… until many moons later when it finally clicks. Sometimes it can be source related other times I assume it’s just expectations being too high due to all the hype driven around the cans, owners expecting very noticeable drastic sound changes compared to other hifiman totls, when really the aspects the susvara does best are subtle and take time and understanding to appreciate. I do think it’s easier to “understand” these phones when you don’t have a prior reference point, I for example have only heard one other hifiman and that is the 4xx… yep from the lowest tier to the flagship is my experience with the brand, and I feel that made it easier for me to get past the hype and get my mind blown right from the get go 
I don’t want to downplay source though because it is very important, to the point where depending on your setup you might just be better off saving the money and going with a he1kv2 or se that will be cheaper and get you mostly the same performance on lesser gear. Looking at your setup I would say you are just at the edge of what would be considered “worth it” so I think you are fine for now until you want to further your chain, but it will be mostly preference from here on out. For instance some people don’t like the Vio/nimbus voicing with the sus and opt for something with more power and current delivery to drive the cans more satisfactory. I believe @Delta9K uses his pair with the v550 so maybe he could chime in with his experience.
Also one more thing to note is that source also includes the material, this headphone will decimate poor recordings so you really need to make sure your are feeding it the good stuff. I have some old recordings from some of my all time favorite bands that just sound terrible on it.
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Yep, but it’s not even necessarily bit depth and sample rate, but recording/mastering quality. I notice it way more now than I used to.
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Pretty much agree with what’s been said. You just got them right? I’d give them much more time on your head and see how you feel, might take a bit to acclimate, and if they are new or barely used burn in will play a role in that as well. I do think the 550 is right on that edge of where they can be worthwhile, you can get a lot more out of them going higher, but I think it can still give you a satisfactory enough experience to see what the cans are about (your dac is plenty fine here). But I think really the biggest aspect is just getting more listening with them, it took a bit for me to really get the susvara as well. Of course not everyone will end up liking/preferring them, but I’d just make sure to give it at least a week or two before passing judgement
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Man yeah considering that you and others think is gear is probably fine enough in terms of capabilities I think it’s more on the preferences/synergy side. I also had a super interesting experience with the Fostex TH-900 MK2 PE where I have two amps, and at least one I know someone else who has tried the pairing and liked it and while I do like it too it’s not exactly what I’m looking for. Thankfully due to the other pairing I’ve been able to see what the headphone can do and just need to find the right amp for it to do exactly what I want. As you mentioned I’m sure some of it can just be the whole “curve” your expectations thing tho lol.
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I think the nice thing about the susvara is that it won’t shift it’s overall signature and voicing too much vs other headphones on different amps, still does but not to a massive extent, so it’s a good way to judge if you like what it has to offer at a base level from a tonality and presentation stance. The problem though is imo the most compelling and strongest suits of the headphone aren’t really capitalized on until you move up the source ladder, so it can sometimes just be absent from the experience which will lead to a lackluster or unworthwhile experience
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I can already say that it is generally very pleasing and in line with my taste.
This might be a tricky point. While I still think it is worthwhile on v550 and I am planning to for sure keep it(susvara), I think somehow they could offer better experience with different amp. The issue is that most of what would be considered upgrade is in the price range I will not be able to go or very hard to get used in Europe.
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I’m not one of the people who took time to “get” the Susvara, I have seen it happen on Head-fi though, I would try and avoid getting into the whole amp chasing part of owning one unless your convinced it’s what you want.
With an amp more suited to it, you can improve Bass Dynamics, but it’s never going to be a 1266. It’s magical aspect to me was a combination of resolution, speed and it’s micro dynamic abilities. They give it an almost EStat quality without the downsides of most EStats.
On amps that don’t do it justice, you lose a lot of the uDynamics.
The real problem if you do decide they are for you, and start looking for an amp, is being careful about online recommendations, there are a lot of not ideal amps recommended on forums, because honestly the Susvara really doesn’t sound bad on almost anything, and most people recommending amps haven’t heard it on a better amp than the one they are recommending.
Badly produced/mixed material sounds bad on it, I still use it to listen to that material, because generally they sound bad on most of my headphones. The 1266 can bail out some badly produced rock and metal, because it emphasizes the bass, and hides some of the worst of the mix.
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I feel like it took me a bit because it was underwhelming when I had demo’s at shows, but once I finally got it on a proper amp things really caught up (same problem I had with the utopia, at shows it was largely uninteresting and I didn’t have the right amp at the time)
That’s pretty much it, also texture
Can we just start abbreviating it to MuD?
There’s such a wild range people suggest it’s crazy, gets really stupid. Although to be fair it’s not just the susvara, the utopia is also a great example of why some recommendations can be very misleading. Although there does seem to be more of a general consensus of things like a 1266 for example, but still can really vary
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Since the HE1000 has been recommended as an alternative for those with lesser chains, has anyone heard both the HEKV2 and the HEKSE and can describe the main differences between the two? Both versions of the HE1000 are still pretty readily available (even on Hifiman’s own website!).
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