Design philosophy of a revolution in the field of planar headphones

CENTAURI is Spirit Torino's first planar headphones that have seen a major design effort to offer something different than what has already been seen on the planar headphones market.

To date, the development of planar headphones focuses on the ever-increasing driver which, inevitably, plays a role as a supporting frame.

The dimensions of the membrane, together with the intrinsic deformability of the structure that supports the rows of magnets, leads to a low dynamic efficiency of the headphone system, which tends to deform under the strong stresses of the membrane which, by its nature, is not very light and has a certain inertia.

This results in a sound in which high-energy dynamic contrasts are mitigated in the mid-low range, losing the sense of rhythm.

The other big problem related to the size of the driver is that there is no space left to insert the pressure compensation holes between the acoustic chambers of the headphones, forcing to fall back on simplified designs that provide a sealed ear chamber which creates an imbalance in the membrane movement.

This design feature also triggers a major problem relating to our ears: once the headphones are placed with a pad in a sealed chamber, the eardrum undergoes pressure and modifies the high frequency response, triggering the typical cave effect.

Spirit Torino has introduced a new composite material called Texalwood, which involves casting epoxy resin in a panel of poplar plywood and two sheets of Texalium (glass fiber loaded with aluminum).

This new support is organized to house the VPS Pad ventilation system and the pressure compensation holes, allowing the membrane to move with a symmetrical resistance in both movement directions.

An evolved Pad for an important headphone

It is important to understand that the pad represents 50% of headphone designs and cannot simply be adapted from one design to another.

Centauri are large headphones and provide for the insertion of the proprietary Ventilation Pad System through an outward expansion trumpet, instead of the usual ventilation outs.

Centauri's Pad, realized In Alcantara and leather, it is large, leaving room for large ears and creating a listening room capable of generating an imposing sound stage.

The Centauri pad attachment system is another novelty for Spirit and provides for quick release via magnets arranged on the frame.

In this way you will be able to carry out replacement and ordinary maintenance with extreme ease.

A Multilayer Wood system frame in walnut and Texawood driver rack to optimize dynamics

To maximize the dynamic performance of the planar headphones, which represents the real Achilles heel compared to traditional dynamic systems, due to the limited range of motion of the planar membrane, we have also exploited the concept of inertial frame which further optimizes the system dynamic efficiency index.

To trigger the inertial frame concept it is necessary to reach a minimum mass of the static parts of the headphones frame, in order to offer the appropriate inertia when it is subjected to the thrusts determined by the accelerations of the planar driver membrane.

This inertial mass was achieved by exploiting the Multilayer Wood system technique introduced in Mistral, that provides for a laminated wood structure, which in this project has provided for the selection of a compact and rigid walnut wood.

An evolved Pad for an important headphone

It is important to understand that the pad represents 50% of a headphone design and cannot simply be adapted from one design to another.

Centauri is a large headset and provides for the insertion of the proprietary Ventilation Pad System through an outward expansion trumpet instead of the usual ventilation outs.
The Pad of Centauri, made of Alcantara and leather is large, leaving room for large ears and creates a listening room capable of generating an imposing soundstage

The centauri pad attachment system is another novelty for Spirit and provides for quick release via magnets arranged on the frame. In this way you will be able to carry out replacement and ordinary maintenance with extreme ease. 

Centauri offers exceptional comfort thanks to its revolutionary stainless steel headband that can be shaped to obtain the desired pressure on the ears and the exhaust band that adapts to your head

They developed the Centauri pads in close cooperation with Dekoni, the leading manufacturer of ear pads for headphones. Shape, inclination, surface treatment… nothing has been left to chance. 

But the choice of materials is the real highlight of this project.

Very fine leather for the side surfaces, identical to that used for the headband.

Alcantara for the part that rests on the ear. Alcantara, in addition to being a Made in Italy product of excellence, guarantees an exceptional performance package: you will notice this by wearing the headphones for several hours.

For enthusiasts, the choice of cabling represents a complex choice.

Centauri offer the possibility to choose between two different cabling technologies depending on the listening objective.

If listening quality is your priority, then the Professional fixed cable is the right choice.

The Professional cable features a four-strand braid of very high cross-section Ofc class 5 coaxial cable which will allow you to avoid two soldering points and a contact point of the connector, guaranteeing optimal current transport for professional-level listening quality.

If versatility of use is your priority, then we advise you to opt for the Spirit by Portento detachable cable which, with its double section structure, guarantees you optimal performance, even with portable devices.

 

Open headphones? Semi-closed or closed cap? Spirit helps you choose the one that best suits your needs.

Open headphones offer maximum naturalness and openness of sound but do not insulate from external noise and disperse the sound towards the outside.

Semi-closed headphones are open headphones with shields to partially limit the transmission of sound to and from the outside. the sound remains very airy and natural and you can listen without disturbing those around you.

Closed-back headphones create sound isolation from the outside world, have great low-frequency extension but are less natural and lose that airiness that makes you forget you're wearing a headset