One heck of a bargain for $900 on last year’s Black Friday sale.
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Ooooh! That’s one of the HPs I’ve really wanted to try. How is it?
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Wow, congrats, I bet you will really like them. They look great too, especially on that stand! $900 is a screaming deal for those, that’s awesome. 
I have the RAD-0 and it is one of my favorite headphones. The MPL-0 review link I found on Rosson’s site is interesting, and has a useful comparison between it and the RAD-0 as well as some others (including Hifiman Arya, since I see several Hifiman headphones lurking in your photo 
).
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In terms of sound and aesthetics, these are really good headphones, but unfortunately they are so uncomfortable on my XXL skull that I could only listen to music for 10-20 minutes at most.
The Emphy II for example is already set almost at the bottom of the rods, the RAD-0 acts like a vice on my head.
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That is unfortunate, their ergonomics can definitely be problematic… They just barely work for me, I wish the cups had a bit more extension (greater slider length), and I had to add Casey’s suspension strap. Which alleviated hotspots up top, but further limited de facto extension.
If there’s ever a RAD-0/II I hope he addresses some of the comfort issues, including clamp force! (And I thought I had a big head… 
)
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Have you and @Lothar_Wolf tried adding @rustyrat’s add-in strap for the RAD-0? It really improves the comfort and distributes the weight considerably. Doesn’t change clamping force, but there are usual solutions for that.
Yes I do have one of the straps, and it makes a big difference.
I think for Lothar between the clamp force and lack of extension, they don’t work for him. 
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One word - Plasma Welder
After CanJam, I kinda did a thing…
Props to the headphones-dot-com team for getting this to me in 24 hours despite the fact that they were all at CanJam. Tbh, I sorta expected I’d have to wait a few days, but nope - they were on top of it. 
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LOL! Yeah, I deserve that. But, to be fair, I did acknowledge later that I might “someday” add an estat, ribbon, etc. Instead I decided to try Susvara first and see if that fills the last gap in my arsenal. I just decided to try it REALLY SOON. 
LOL
I know it is common in this hobby to assume the never-ending chase of that high of “the new” is the point, but tbh that’s really not me. I want to find that point where I have everything I could possibly want in this arena and then sit back, content with what I’ve built, and move on to “the next thing” (i.e. not hifi). I am getting ever closer.
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Congrats! I can’t wait to hear your impressions of the Susvara vs the Caldera.
What amp are you going to use with it?
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Holo Bliss. And yeah, I’m looking forward to doing a deep comparison. I have a feeling the tl;dr is that Caldera is warmer & more dynamic while Susvara does that wide open e-stat-y thing that only Susvara can do. But we shall see…
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Highly resolving with a slightly warm and relaxed tonality. I would have dubbed it a super HD650 if it weren’t for a small dip in the upper midrange. MPL-0 is still one of my favorite headphones for timbre for most music. My other favorite headphones are HD650, Auteur, HE6* and Clear. Macro dynamics are great, but not quite potent as HE6* and Clear.
*HE6 has RAD-0/MPL-0 pads and HE500 grilles installed and the rear damping removed.
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$900 was a great price.
How is the comfort of the MPL-0?
Many of us own a RAD-0 bought a suspension strap from @rustyrat that is easy to install without damaging the headphone, and I can now wear it for hours without pain.
I wonder if the MPL-0 would also benefit, since it appears to use the same band as the RAD-0, although I read somewhere that it was lighter, so it may not press down on the head as much.
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The headband causes a painful hotspot on top of my head, but as you can see in one of my photos, the padding/cushion isn’t in the center, so the weight distribution is off. I received headband a replacement only recently and I haven’t installed it yet.
I did buy a leather strap from a seller on Etsy, but it didn’t improve the comfort much. I still feel a hotspot somewhat.
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Congrats Chris!
As a fan of the Hifiman/planar sound, I’ve been on the fence for a long time about the Utopia. I really don’t care for the Clear at all so I’ve been hesitant that I’d feel the same with Utopia. Feel I have to get one at some point and see.
Definitely looking forward to your take coming from the other direction!
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It’s interesting where we all fall in the like/dislike spectrum with a piece of gear, or brand generally.
I’d be curious as to which Clear you had, OG or Mg. Nonetheless, I would be inclined to say you probably won’t like the Utopia. It’s like the Clear, only more so. 
Perhaps not very helpful, but true. It takes the qualities of the Clear and hones/refines them to another level of speed, resolution, transparency, and slam. Among other things… You will hear things in recordings you know well that you’ve never heard before.
It does not tolerate bad recordings, or gear for that matter. I have the Clear OG and Utopia 2020, so I speak from experience with both.
On the other hand, I’m not a fan of Hifiman overall. I haven’t cared for the ones I’ve owned or heard, Sundara, Ananda, or Susvara. But I haven’t been able to properly evaluate the Susvara, and don’t have an amp that would do it justice now. So take with a grain of salt, ymmv, and all that. 
Like you, I’ll be curious what Chris (and @andris for that matter) thinks.
If you ever get a Susvara we’ll have to trade Utopia/Susvara to try each out for a little bit! (We live just far enough apart it’s unlikely though)
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For me, the Utopia was magic right off the bat, just straight out of an OG Mojo. It’s very revealing, yes, but if you’re giving it a solid recording on a solid chain, and you don’t love it, it’s probably not for you - and that’s fine! Everyone who doesn’t like the Utopia has the right to be utterly wrong
But seriously, don’t try to force yourself to like something that doesn’t speak to you, as it probably won’t work.
@chrisnyc75 and I have a good amount of overlap (Utopia + Stellaris, for example), but we also diverge quite a bit on some things. I’m guessing, if you are a big fan of the HifiMan sound, your tastes may align more with his. I have generally not been too tempted by other headphones and have opted to spend more on chain optimization for the Utopia than variety. Either approach totally reasonable, of course.
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Agreed on the different strokes for different folks for what we tend to like. I found I gravitate towards open sounding with wider stage. Hence the 800s and Susvara ( I do own them already) are my 2 current favorites that I have.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying the Clear (I have OG) are bad. I get the appeal and they do sound good but for me I feel like they are yelling at me unless I really turn them down. Maybe it’s just the way I like to listen. Which is usually to relax and put my feet up and fairly low volume. So I like detail but I gravitate toward open/relaxed/ wider sound I guess.
On the other hand I also like having options for different moods, genres, etc. So I can see having a Utopia too when I want a more in your face, visceral presentation.
I’m curious if someone who leans towards the Utopia as a daily driver would find the Susvara a bit boring?
Edit:
Could have something to do with loudness/noise sensitivity too. Seems I’m increasingly becoming sensitive to noise. Loud restaurants, etc stress me out… my wife tends to turn the tv pretty loud sometimes and I’ve found it grates on me and makes me tense even before I realize it. Getting old I guess… lol
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