Sound – Sources
The portable TOTL sources chosen for the comparisons are the Cayin N8ii, the Luxury & Precision LP6 and the Cayin N7. The comparison is always with the Susvara headphone.
With the Cayin N8ii, I prefer the low gain, CLASS A, and this both in tube as in solid state mode. I really like switching here between tube and ss, as the tonal difference between these with the Susvara is huge. In tube mode you get more extension and spaciousness, while the solid state mode gives you more narrow mids and a more intimate presentation. The N8ii doesn’t deliver the same amount of weight as the AK DAP does, and you get a lighter presentation in bass and mids. The bass isn’t as tight as with the SP3000, but you do get a softer and smoother bass performance. Overall the N8ii and Resolute combo sounds lighter and less focused (less controlled). It however is softer on the ears, and especially in tube mode even more spacious than the SP3000. It basically depends what DAP you like and the transparent Resolute will show you that. The N8ii DAP has a lot more power with the gain modes, though I don’t see how you would need all that with the Resolute in between.
The L&P LP6 still is an exotic TOTL DAPs that you rarely see. Its sound quality is excellent but you need to be able to live with its limited features. The synergy with the Resolute is very good and it basically mixes the best of the SP3000 with the smoother and very musical presentation of the N8ii. Sound-wise the LP6 simply is one of the best performing players on the market and the Resolute translates exactly that. You get exceptional balance, positioning, layering and spaciousness. The resolution and dynamics in this combo are incredible and you get all of it with a musical, natural and addictive timbre. If you need to burn some extra cash, I fully recommend the LP6, Resolute and Susvara combo. It’s a $13.5k USD combo though, and that’s without cables.
You can of course connect the Resolute to any unit with a pre function and a volume control, such as the Niimbus US4+, the EarMen CH-Amp / ST-Amp or the Hugo 2 just to name a few.
Sound – Headphones
For this section we have chosen harder to drive headphones such as the Abyss Diana TC and the good old Hifiman HE-500. As the new HEDD 2 headphone just arrived, we’ll also hook this one up to the Resolute and see how it goes.
The original HE-500 isn’t a headphone I often go back to, even though I should as it still is an incredibly good headphone. The Resolute really makes the HE-500 sing, with good body, excellent tight and punchy bass and lovely clarity. The HE-500 maybe isn’t the best headphone for #-dimensionality and positioning, but with the Resolute it sounds about as good as it can. If the HE-500 produces your kind of sound, you will love it with the Resolute. What really impresses me most here are the PRaT, the clarity, the vocal presentation and bass performance. Great synergy and plenty of power available.
The Diana TC is another headphone that is difficult to get right. When I reviewed it, I mostly enjoyed it with the Envy, LINA and Headonia. For me the challenge with the Diana TC is to get enough body and weight from top to bottom. The volume in this setup needs to go up higher, but the Resolute does manage to put that body in the TC. As I said in my Munich report, the Resolute also performed exceptionally with the AB1266, so there’s no surprise here that the Resolute & TC combo also sounds very good. The sound stage here together with the spaciousness is huge. The TC is one of the most open sounding headphones in my opinion, and the Resolute confirms that. For my personal taste the vocals are a bit too forward, but that’s totally on the TC and not the Resolute.
The original AMT-driven HEDDphone was quite hard to drive and the HEDD 2 seems to be more or less the same. I so far have mostly been using it with the Headonia and CH-AMP, and I have to say I prefer the HEDD 2 on those amps. While you do get good body, spaciousness and an excellent sound stage with the Resolute, I find the vocal presentation and top end just a tad too much for my ears, especially for longer listening sessions. Of course the HEDD 2 is still brand new and it only has a couple of hours on it. A lot more testing and drive-in will have to be done with this one, so don’t take my early comments for granted.
End Words
The HAA Resolute does exactly what it promises to do and it is a perfect unit for high-end customers who already have a TOTL portable setup, but want to use that as well at home to listen to a harder to drive headphone to.
The Resolute is powerful, musical and it effortlessly manages to make all hard to drive headphones sound excellent. I would have loved to see a nice box and also some accessories for the price, but performance wise there isn’t anything to fault.
If you’re in the market for a transportable amplifier with a light footprint, designed to work with a pre-amp (with volume control) or a TOTL DAP, and can live with the basic features, then look no further. In fact, everyone with harder to drive headphones who doesn’t can or want to spend $5K to $10K on a desktop amplifier, should give the HAA Resolute by Thrax a chance. If you’re in Singapore you’re also in luck, as Zeppelin has a unit available to demo!
Pro
- Sound quality: Dynamics, Musicality
- Power
- Compact & Transportable
- Gain setting – Not just for Susvara & Abyss
Con
- Price
- Accessories
- Features
Page 1: HAA, Thrax, Resolute
Page 2: Sound Pt 1
Page 3: Sound Pt 2, Conclusion, Summary
