The Solitaire T headphones

From the first day the Solitaire T was developed with a single goal in mind: to blur the distinctions between audiophile, working and travel headphones by making the values and convictions which are the hallmark of every T+A product accessible in almost every situation in life.
Their transducer system is a completely new development, capable of reproducing the most subtle nuances in audiophile quality in active and passive mode alike, while the passive insulation on its own is sufficient to push the outside world into the background. When combined with active background noise suppression, which can be switched on as required, unwanted sounds disappear completely behind the music.

Noise cancelation & portability

To ensure that the Solitaire T is truly versatile in use, we have taken great pains in the suppression of background noise, which is outstanding in both active and passive modes: the headphones’ passive sound insulation alone effectively blocks out a great deal of unwanted mid-range and treble noise, while an extremely accurately calibrated active suppression system effectively eliminates the bass noise which cannot be damped by passive means. To ensure that all this potential is available on journeys, we insisted on the same uncompromising standards for the wireless connections as for the wired inputs: Bluetooth to Standard 5.1 class 2 with Codecs such as aptX HD and AAC deliver the convenience of fully wireless systems with a sound quality approaching the level of wired connections to high-quality components, and even exceeding the sound quality of wired connections to inferior equipment.

Design & Materials

Like all T+A equipment the Solitaire T adheres to the tradition of our design language. This has evolved over a period of forty years, and its strength is its consistent simplicity. The carefully placed chamfers on headband and cups allow the Solitaire T to integrate effortlessly into the inimitable family of Solitaire headphones, while its new cup shape and two colours make their own entirely new contribution to the continuing development of the T+A design language. All the aluminium components are machined from solid material, and are pearl-blasted before being anodised. The ear caps are attached by means of precision-made, close-tolerance hard metal couplings, which allow both of them to rotate through 90° and fold inwards. In their case or worn round the neck, the Solitaire T ‘phones become an incredibly compact travel companion. Ear and head pads are made of the very finest anti-allergenic synthetic leather, ensuring that the Solitaire T remains comfortable at all times – even during very long flights.

Operation

We believe that headphones are among our most personal products, and for this reason we gave very high priority to the operation of the Solitaire T. The headphones are immediately simple and intuitive to use, emphasised by multi-sensory feedback. No matter whether you use button or switch – machined from solid – or the inter-active touchpad, or switch to the environment by invoking a supplementary transparency field: all the important inputs are confirmed by feedback messages, spoken by T+A’s distinctive voice. With the Solitaire T you see, feel and hear what you are doing.

Wired inputs

The Solitaire T is the most versatile product T+A has ever developed: it is both a closed audiophile headphone as well as a lightweight, portable unit. And that is why it boasts two wired inputs, which are either digital and analogue – for the purist – or combine the advantages of both worlds: the Solitaire T can be operated fully digitally via its USB C socket without any form of data compression. In purely passive mode the Solitaire T transfers signals fully symmetrically to the transducer via Pentaconn, 3.5mm or 6.3mm connectors directly. Our concept, which we name Active Analog, is based on the analogue inputs and maximises their potential by allowing them access to the volume control and active background noise suppression. All leads take the form of OFC cable with low structural sound, terminating in gold-plated contacts.