Corda Opera

[humanflyz]

So I've had about a week of listening time with TTVJ's loaner Corda Opera, and tonight some people came over to hear it as well.

Basically we were pretty disappointed by it: it just did not have enough power plain and simple. I tried both the HD650s and the K701s, and the Opera had trouble driving them to levels that I consider acceptable. For some of my harder hitting music, I had to use up the entire range on the volume pot on high gain to get enough dynamic swing out of the K701s (of course the K701s are dynamic to begin with). It's a little bit better with the HD650s, but the sound just reminds me of every other mid-fi SS gear I've heard: which is to say, nothing offensive but nothing special either. Overall I felt it was a ho-hum amp with not enough balls.

And I laugh at people on Head-Fi who claim that the 3-channel/active ground topology of the Opera can compete with a real balanced circuit. Oh how wrong they are! The GS-X handily handed wiped the floor with the Opera on the HD650s balanced. I especially like this guy's comment: "The only thing I have heard that may be in a higher class is the KGSS/ O2 combo." Statements like this seriously makes me wonder how many good stuff most Head-Fi users have actually heard in their own homes.

But still, build quality is not bad. For $1000, it's a decent amp/DAC combo. But like someone at my place said after he heard the Opera: it's mid-fi to the max.

[Patu]

Thanks for the comments. I had some interest towards Opera but this review pretty much killed it. I'd still like to hear it. I thought that could it maybe compete with my Stello stack because it's pretty much in the same price class (though Stellos are slightly more expensive) but obviously it can't.

[Nanoha]

Ah, I had my doubts on this one.

I have never heard a Corda that delivered real, impressive performance.

Nothing wrong with any of them (except the brightness of some), but nothing really great either.

[Filburt]

How long do you get to keep it? I'll be back around those parts in about a week and a half to two weeks.

[humanflyz]

How long do you get to keep it? I'll be back around those parts in about a week and a half to two weeks.

It's technically not my loaner; rather, TTVJ loaned it to Granodemostasa, who let me have it for a week. Now it's back to him. I don't know how long he will have it.

If you are going to be here, hit me up, because I am going to have some new stuff coming in.

[saint.panda]

Thanks for posting that. I already thought I was the only one who doesn't think too much of it. It's not even as good as the XLR line out from my Apogee Minidac. I've been saying that on headfi as well, but people only want to read the positive opinions.

And I'm a big fan of the Aria in its price range. But the Opera just doesn't cut it. Everytime I listen to it (and that's quite often since we have mini meets rather regularly) I don't get any emotional connection to the amp. Sounds boring.

The DAC is really good though.

[KenW]

Scratch that one from the bedroom rig candidate list I guess. Sheese, I didn't think I'd have this hard a time finding a SS amp for a second rig. Thanks for the comments. As the 650/600 and 701 are my preferred cans, the Opera doesn't sound like it would work well for me.

[kevin gilmore]

I evlauated this exact circuit almost 4 years ago when i was trying to do a portable on a lower voltage

power source. It just can't cut it. Especially for music where there is a lot of in phase mono present.

(like a single female voice) The ground channel works even harder, and since it drive 2 loads at the same

time, it work worse, not better.

[alfie]

Especially for music where there is a lot of in phase mono present.

(like a single female voice) The ground channel works even harder, and since it drive 2 loads at the same

time, it work worse, not better.

Could you please add something about that?It is the first time I read something from you about the active ground (I read you didn't like it) and I am very interested.

[Iron_Dreamer]

I noticed the "lack of power" problem a couple of times when I demoed it. It was only a problem for me with very quiet classical track when using the most inefficient cans I have (DT531). It seems to me that Meier has set the gain too low, as the default gains are 0.6 and 2.5. I can understand having a unity gain setting for low-level listening, IEM's, etc. But why have a high gain setting that's only 2.5? I would have made it at least 5, so that the amp could drive K1000's.

That said, I wonder if people aren't letting this issue cloud their judgment about the sound quality, or if it prevents them from being able to properly evaluate the sound quality. I ran the darn thing through the ringer as best I could, and yet was still only able to detect very minor deviations from the sound of my normal rig. I was especially surprised, considering my bias against monolithic parts, Alps Blue vs. DACT, etc.

I do agree with the comment about the Opera being mid-fi. After hearing what the top-end sources can do, any system without one is now mid-fi in my mind. Of course that means I won't have a hi-fi system for some time...

[Filburt]

It's technically not my loaner; rather, TTVJ loaned it to Granodemostasa, who let me have it for a week. Now it's back to him. I don't know how long he will have it.

If you are going to be here, hit me up, because I am going to have some new stuff coming in.

Alright, I'll contact you when I get back over there

I evlauated this exact circuit almost 4 years ago when i was trying to do a portable on a lower voltage

power source. It just can't cut it. Especially for music where there is a lot of in phase mono present.

(like a single female voice) The ground channel works even harder, and since it drive 2 loads at the same

time, it work worse, not better.

How does it work?

[aerius]

And I laugh at people on Head-Fi who claim that the 3-channel/active ground topology of the Opera can compete with a real balanced circuit. Oh how wrong they are! The GS-X handily handed wiped the floor with the Opera on the HD650s balanced. I especially like this guy's comment: "The only thing I have heard that may be in a higher class is the KGSS/ O2 combo." Statements like this seriously makes me wonder how many good stuff most Head-Fi users have actually heard in their own homes.

I'd say at least 90% of Headfi members who've actually heard the good stuff are either here already or have quit the scene, and most of the rest are either banned from or don't post much on headfi. The answer to your question is therefore "vanishingly small".

Or to put it another way. Amongst Head-case members, I own an average system at best, over on Head-fi I'd easily be in the top percentile. That tells you something about the experience level over there. But this should come as no surprise since the attention over there is directed at the mass market stuff, and not the more esoteric high-end gear. If I were to say "HP-2", most of us here would know exactly what it is, what it sounds like, and so forth because we either own it or have experience with it. Over there, I most people would go "a what?" if they weren't allowed to use google.

[postjack]

If I were to say "HP-2", most of us here would know exactly what it is, what it sounds like, and so forth because we either own it or have experience with it. Over there, I most people would go "a what?" if they weren't allowed to use google.

I agree, the mind-blowing 105 bhp HP-2 Enduro, BMW Motorrad's monster dirt bike, is not for the meek. With a race-ready suspension and a lightweight body (386 lbs dry), this is the enduro bike that makes off-road maniacs rejoice and competitors get out of the way. Twenty-five years of rally racing experience have culminated in this edgy, breathtaking design. Shred away. Or throw street tires on it and have the ultimate super moto bike. Way better then the RS-1, IMO.

[humanflyz]

Peter,

I had a hard time letting go of the lack of power on the Opera's part. It just didn't have enough headroom for me, and consequently the sound felt somewhat lifeless and flat to me, because there is just not enough dynamics for my own tastes. And also, I think the Opera might have had an easier time driving your high-efficiency AT cans than the Hd650s and K701s, both of which are pretty inefficient. I wish I had some easier to drive headphones when I tested the Opera, but what can you do you know?

But what perplexes me is how people on Head-Fi claim that the K701+Opera combo is good; it is anything but. The K701s sound boring enough on their own, and then you add an amp with low power: the result is a pretty boring, lifeless sound.

[aerius]

But what perplexes me is how people on Head-Fi claim that the K701+Opera combo is good; it is anything but. The K701s sound boring enough on their own, and then you add an amp with low power: the result is a pretty boring, lifeless sound.

Experience levels. At one time I thought a Senn 580 with Gilmore Lite was the best shit ever, and it was the best sound I'd heard up until that point. I had a ton of experience with speakers but not much with headphones, so I had no idea what headphones were capable of. The 580 was good, and I didn't know if things could really get any better. Then I heard Biggie's RS-1 rig at my first meet, and I was like "holy fucking shit!!", it literally made my 580's sound like a broken piece of crap. Now I know what good is, and the 580 is no longer good, and so eventually I ended up with something better.

The problem is this. I want to hear the best so I know how my stuff stacks up, and whether or not it's worth it to move up. If something blows away my gear, I'm happy, because now I know I can get better sound. Most Head-fi guys aren't like that, they just want to pimp whatever they own as "the greatest", their egos are too fragile and tied up with their gear to acknowledge that there's better stuff out there than what they own. So they go into denial and circle-jerking.

[Iron_Dreamer]

But what perplexes me is how people on Head-Fi claim that the K701+Opera combo is good; it is anything but. The K701s sound boring enough on their own, and then you add an amp with low power: the result is a pretty boring, lifeless sound.

I'm with you there, I really don't get the fuss about the K701 in general. Hell, I think the K601 sounds more engaging.

Granted, the most serious comparisons I did with the Opera, I did with my W5000, as it is my only balanced headphone. However, in the time I listened with my high-impedance Beyers, I did occationally notice the lack of headroom, but so long as the sound was loud enough, it did not sound lacking in dynamics. I can see how in a meet setting with even less efficient headphones the low gain could become a real nuisance.

[aerius]

I'm with you there, I really don't get the fuss about the K701 in general.

Holy shit, Iron_Dreamer and I actually agree on something. This is a monumental day.

[Iron_Dreamer]

LOL, I never knew you had a beef with me (although with whom don't you?)

[kevin gilmore]

Could you please add something about that?It is the first time I read something from you about the active ground (I read you didn't like it) and I am very interested.

The ground channel as used in the aria is very different from the ground channel used in all of the other 3 channel versions.

It actually has -(L+R) as the signal as opposed to a buffered ground. Very different kind of thing. Think of it as an attempt

to boost output voltage from a lower voltage power supply. A bridge amp of sorts.

Of course if you do balanced all the way you don't need an active ground channel. Some believe that the ground channel

shunts power to the other power supply rail instead of poluting ground. My opinion is that the 3rd channel just decreases

the damping factor and really offers no other benefits. So 4 channels is the way to go. I've never seen a set of real headphones

that cannot be wired for balanced. (iem's don't count)

[granodemostasa]

Scratch that one from the bedroom rig candidate list I guess. Sheese, I didn't think I'd have this hard a time finding a SS amp for a second rig. Thanks for the comments. As the 650/600 and 701 are my preferred cans, the Opera doesn't sound like it would work well for me.

You don't get it... it's precisely because of the sound that the Meier delivers that it is such a great amp for putting you to sleep!

And you... Humanflyz.... shame on you! The problem is that you make statements in an authoritative tone about stuff that you can't possibly be authoritative about. readers should be careful to listen to people who shoot their mouths off without regards to those whom they might hurt. There is no way you can be sure about your impressions... you listened to it in Berkeley, a town famous for poor power delivery, and you didn't put Virtual Dynamics power cords and nordost Valhalla interconnects on it, so there is obviously no way that you got most out of the amp. And worst, people like you hurt the bottom line the manufactures we love and share our dreams with

J/K!

okay now that I've had my fun, let me be real. The dynamics problems of the Opera are not just evident in large orchestra stuff, but in every presentation the amp puts out. I'm not even sure if i could describe it as "dynamics;" what it is, is a flattening of the tones and notes going to the headphone. the vivacity of the music is outright destroyed by the Meier. This is the amp's greatest problem. I could deal with the fact that it's a little warm, that it doesn't have great treble extension, that it's slower, not as clear and the soundstage isn't as great as the SE GSX, but this is the killer for me. While the amp is way too nice to make any real "mistakes" (like smearing, tone issues, tin-can sound, or distortion), it is also too nice to make music sound truly great.

I remember the Los Angeles meet, where every time I would go back to my H5 and listen... and think "wow, my music sounds soo dead"... this amp takes me right back to that place. It's not just mid-fi, it's very mid-fi.

In any case, my impressions my change by the time i'm done with it... it is starting to slowly grow on me.

[aerius]

LOL, I never knew you had a beef with me (although with whom don't you?)

Heh, no beef, it's just that our tastes & preferences are so different that I can't recall the last time (if there was one) that we agreed on anything.

[Nanoha]

I'll go ahead and say that the K701 is mediocre. Average. (Utterly overrated.) Haha, that seems like the only contribution I can make to this thread.

[deepak]

I have to say your Berkeley quote about having a bed side rig = no sex was hilarious (and probably true, but my gf doesn't live with me ).

But I would argue that aside from a lazy boy (or other such super comfy chair) the bed is a sw8 place to listen to music.

[granodemostasa]

I put up a review about it... but on re-read of it i think i may be being too mean to the amp for little things that i miss when switching from the ZD (but those little things do add up!) Well... too late to change it now....It's not as miserable as i may make it seem at times. it's just very "rounded" and wanting to soften things over....

and the more i listen to it, the more i think "does this thing have a reflective character?"

[Iron_Dreamer]

As I said in the HF thread, I think your issue of roundedness might be due to using the high output impedance jack, which really isn't the best idea for either HD650's or (especially not) K701's.

I really think it has to have something to do with that, because you and I tend to hear things pretty similarly, and I'm not much a fan of a rounded sound.