Random DAC/Amp Thread!!

[Ritvik]

I'll let you know as soon as I get the cable. According to doublehelix cables shipping shouldn't take more than 4 days, which is tomorrow. Tracking says it left America on Monday night, so tomorrow would be 4 days. Although Sat or Mon is more likely.

Where do work .......... Raffles/City Hall/ Tanjong Pagar side?

 

[esanthosh]

Yeah, spot on there. I just searched for d2k and amp, and being lazy, pulled up the first post that talked about these 2 together

Confirmation bias I guess

Don't worry! Sometimes, I do that too - searching for that one voice of dissent in an appreciation thread ;-)

Interesting. I'm sorta in the first camp right now, where I think of amps as necessary only with high impedance cans/iems

.

Can you please let me know what sources & amps you're currently using, and what you were using earlier (to understand the upgrade flow).

FWIW, i use Sansa Fuze for portable needs (up from Nokia N82), and on desktop have a Essense STX (up from Onboard -> Xonar DX -> STX). I have heard better SQ than the STX, but the setup involved a pretty expensive

CDP & Amp at an audio showroom

My head-fi profile would tell you most about my gear - past and present.

My current bricks consist of QLS QA350 Mod v2 -> Sys.Concept Cable -> Leckerton UHA-6S with OPA209

And.. iPod Video 5G (no mods) -> Meier Corda 2StepDance (with 9V battery)

Clip+ (and hence, Fuze) is a notch below the current rigs in terms of SQ, but very small in terms of cost, weight and space occupied. However, I like(d) Clip+ better than most other 'non-audiophile' (and should I say, functional) players I've tried.

For Desktop, I like STX over most DACs I have tried in and around $200. Be warned that I have not compared STX and DacMini CX side-by-side. But, I do prefer DacMini CX well over HRT MSII.

 

[Reactive]

PS: I don't understand your line about MX1 being neutral for D2K, but not for 600/650. Do you mean it lacks the driving power for a HD650, because a neutral amp would be a neutral amp irrespective of the headphone.

I was referring to the SQ of the MX1. They are neutral as they don't add any color to the SQ of your headphones. I know that E5 is a very basic amplifier. Its just that the sound right out of my laptop or through my rockboxed Fuse is really low. At even 90% volume I'm struggling to hear enough sound. That is why I am using E5 to boost the sound (with out bass boost). Totally agree with you that the bass boost of E5 muddy up the mids as I've felt the same by using my Brainwavz M4 with them.

Yep, the E5 is a very low end amplifier (albeit it has decent RMAA scores for its price

). But I'm not even clear why he needs the E5. The D2K has very low impedance (25 Ohms), so I'm clueless why he's getting a low volume .

@Reactive, Have you tried it with only a single source so far, or tried it with multiple sources?

http://www.head-fi.o...-amp-comparison

Head-fi consensus seems to be that an amp will not help much. Given its low impedance, I would agree with this sentiment.

However a good DAC/Soundcard can probably improve the audio quality. If you are OK for internal soundcards, you should be considering the Asus Essense ST/STX in addition to the MX1. I had read a review quite some time ago where the STX was reported as marginally better than MX1. However if you need portabality, the MX1 comes up ahead since its an external DAC.

I dont have any desktop. I have just my laptop and Fuse for source thats why STX is not an option for me. I've tried these headphones through multiple sources but the sound is really low. for me sound quality is more important not the portability of DAC/Amp. I can't go for Burson or something more than $200. That is why I found E10, MX1, E17 and iBasso D7 as some of the options I can go for.

 

[Gryph0n]

I was referring to the SQ of the MX1. They are neutral as they don't add any color to the SQ of your headphones. I know that E5 is a very basic amplifier. Its just that the sound right out of my laptop or through my rockboxed Fuse is really low. At even 90% volume I'm struggling to hear enough sound. That is why I am using E5 to boost the sound (with out bass boost). Totally agree with you that the bass boost of E5 muddy up the mids as I've felt the same by using my Brainwavz M4 with them.

I guess no one here can figure out the reason for the low volumes. I sorta remember Faheem had the D2K (or was it D1K ) before he upgraded (to D5K i think). You should also post on head-fi and see whether others have faced this issue.

I dont have any desktop. I have just my laptop and Fuse for source thats why STX is not an option for me. I've tried these headphones through multiple sources but the sound is really low. for me sound quality is more important not the portability of DAC/Amp. I can't go for Burson or something more than $200. That is why I found E10, MX1, E17 and iBasso D7 as some of the options I can go for.

I haven't heard any of these myself, so take my advise with a grain of salt.

The MX-1 has acquitted itself well in reviews, with a neutral signature.

http://www.headfonia.com/audinst-hud-mx1-dac/

I believe some reviews on head-fi have noted the E10 as slightly coloured. I don't have any idea about E17 & the D7. I have no idea about local support/warranty for Audinst & iBasso, but I guess PristineNote would be able to provide some local support for the Fiio if you buy from them.

If I had to put my money down, I would go for the MX-1. It's decent as DAC and has a headphone amp which is also neutral.

 

[nikodas2]

Thank you Gryph0n and esanthosh for your inputs. I have already started upgrading my files to LAME and I have noticed some improvement in the sound quality of the files.

As for your other suggestions I think the first thing I should do is get a dedicated mp3 player. Any suggestions here? Price range would be 3 - 5k

Next would be a pair of good IEM's because I am quite happy with my Sony headphones for desktop use (for now.. will upgrade to better and more expensive ones sometime next year cause I can't justify spending so much right now). Any suggestions for good IEM's? Price range would be from 1.5 to 3k I think.

I would appreciate any inputs from you two and others in this forum. Thanks again!

 

[bennysachdev]

I'll let you know as soon as I get the cable. According to doublehelix cables shipping shouldn't take more than 4 days, which is tomorrow. Tracking says it left America on Monday night, so tomorrow would be 4 days. Although Sat or Mon is more likely.

Where do work .......... Raffles/City Hall/ Tanjong Pagar side?

I'm around suntec city. anyday is fine with me.

D2k improves in authority when used with an amp as compared to straight from your laptop/pmp -> d2k. The difference when going from my laptop or mp3 player to my xonar stx is night and day. which is why Reactive, your finding the volume really low. And using the E5 with the D2k is like using a maruti 800 engine to drive a Audi Q5 even though the D2k is not that power hungry, factors like the size of the drivers also matter other than the usual impedance and sensitivity. I suggest you get something like a desktop rig rather than a portable rig to enjoy the D2k to the fullest.

 

[Reactive]

D2k improves in authority when used with an amp as compared to straight from your laptop/pmp -> d2k. The difference when going from my laptop or mp3 player to my xonar stx is night and day. which is why Reactive, your finding the volume really low. And using the E5 with the D2k is like using a maruti 800 engine to drive a Audi Q5 even though the D2k is not that power hungry, factors like the size of the drivers also matter other than the usual impedance and sensitivity. I suggest you get something like a desktop rig rather than a portable rig to enjoy the D2k to the fullest.

I think you are right Benny. Apart from giving a boost to the volume, E5 is absolutely useless. There is a lot of sibilance and sound is a bit muddy also. A desktop is not viable option for me right now as I'm not sure about my stay in current location. However I'm thinking about buying MX1 for now (seeing all the recommendations and praises its getting) and upgrading to a desktop rig later.

 

[Gryph0n]

I have already started upgrading my files to LAME and I have noticed some improvement in the sound quality of the files.

LAME is a good MP3 encoder (reputedly one of the best pyschoacoustic models for encoding), but end of day, MP3 is still lossy codec. For desktop hearing, I'd recommend to encode to FLACs. For portable usage, I think 256 KBPS MP3 (CBR) is good, although VBR V0 profile might be better with not much increase in filesize.

As for your other suggestions I think the first thing I should do is get a dedicated mp3 player. Any suggestions here? Price range would be 3 - 5k

Next would be a pair of good IEM's because I am quite happy with my Sony headphones for desktop use (for now.. will upgrade to better and more expensive ones sometime next year cause I can't justify spending so much right now). Any suggestions for good IEM's? Price range would be from 1.5 to 3k I think.

I would appreciate any inputs from you two and others in this forum. Thanks again!

To be sure, a decent portable MP3 player will always beat the mobile phone for SQ, but you should also give weight in whether you'll be able to hear this improved quality in your environment. My experience is that when listening to MP3 player on the road, the sounds from the traffic will usually mask whatever improvements the player brings. To me, the advantage of a dedicated player is it's battery life.

IMO, an upgrade to your IEMs might have more noticable effect than upgrading to a dedicated player, since I think the EP-630 has horrible SQ. I believe the SoundMagic PL-21 & PL-30 should be in your budget.

If you really do want a MP3 player, have a look at Sansa Clip & Fuze+ range for your budget range (3k to 5k). Sansa's have a pretty neutral signature (althought this can be changed by equalization). I think however that PristineNote is out of stock for the Sansa's right now, so you'll have to either scour the Market/Classifieds or order it from abroad if you want it immediately.

 

[Ritvik]

I'm around suntec city. anyday is fine with me.

4/5 stops away from work, not bad at all. We should work something out soon. The cable just got here

..............I'm sure the HD600's will sound great. If I wasn't buying customs again I'd be itching for the SR71-B already.

 

[siddharth.beam]

hi

I am the newbie in audio tech

i just recently purchased Asus xonar essence st + Sennheiser HD650

it was not up-to my expectation i think i was missing something

& also read lot about burn-in for Hd 650 is that really mean or is just a hoax

so any suggestion to get something muchhh more better from my sennheiser HD650

 

[strategy]

4/5 stops away from work, not bad at all. We should work something out soon. The cable just got here

..............I'm sure the HD600's will sound great. If I wasn't buying customs again I'd be itching for the SR71-B already.

keep me posted , i want to know how the protector does with senn HPs.

 

[Gryph0n]

Have

hi

I am the newbie in audio tech

i just recently purchased Asus xonar essence st + Sennheiser HD650

it was not up-to my expectation i think i was missing something

& also read lot about burn-in for Hd 650 is that really mean or is just a hoax

so any suggestion to get something muchhh more better from my sennheiser HD650

1.>The ST would have LineOut & HeadphoneOut as output plugs at the rear. Ensure you're using the HeadphoneOut at the rear panel.

2.>The Xonar Control Panel will allow you to use different gain settings for the HeadphoneOut. Ensure that you're using the correct gain to match the impedance of the HD650.

On the other hand, if you've already done this, and aren't satisfied with SQ, then I guess you should be looking for a dedicated Amp.

The HD650 have a reputation for being difficult for drive. I'd suggest doing some research on head-fi, headfonia.com etc.

Do mention your budget, and people would be able to provide suggestions.

 

[siddharth.beam]

Have

1.>The ST would have LineOut & HeadphoneOut as output plugs at the rear. Ensure you're using the HeadphoneOut at the rear panel.

2.>The Xonar Control Panel will allow you to use different gain settings for the HeadphoneOut. Ensure that you're using the correct gain to match the impedance of the HD650.

On the other hand, if you've already done this, and aren't satisfied with SQ, then I guess you should be looking for a dedicated Amp.

The HD650 have a reputation for being difficult for drive. I'd suggest doing some research on head-fi, headfonia.com etc.

Do mention your budget, and people would be able to provide suggestions.

budget for Amp can go from 20,000 to 40,000 but if their is any VFM product which can beat SQ of asus xonar essence st .

yeah i have already done all the above mention setting Its good but not what i was expecting.

 

[Oyster]

Jds Labs O2 + yamaha hp-50a quick impression using nokia x5 line out and running on battery:

The bass is tight as hell and imparts slight thickness to the source.

The midrange is just super. Definitely the best part of O2. Background is sooo black and clean.

Altough cannot be said Dark but the treble is slightly thicker than the source and is not very resolving ....in fact a little scratchy. But at least its not brittle or piercing as many amps tend to have.

Soundstage is slightly improved over the source but imaging is really good as the dark background makes every note distinct and well positioned.

Overall a massive upgrade over the substandard HP out of Xonar STX.

Just wish treble had better resolution and were a bit more airy.

I'll change my source to STX line out and check if that makes any difference....but later

 

[Gryph0n]

Its good but not what i was expecting.

Perhaps some more details around what you think is lacking would be more helpful to people to put forward some suggestions.

I'm sorta wondering if this is less an issue of amplification and more of an issue with the sound signature of the HD650.

I've seen the HD650 being described as 'dark' and 'relaxed' sounding. I'm guessing you're looking for a more detailed/forward sound signature. While a forward/bright coloured amp might somewhat bandage that issue, it will not entirely go away since the signature is an inherent part of the product.

 

[titana]

Amps do change sound signature of headphones. Most of it is due to difference in output impedance.

An amp with a high output impedance would usually increase the mid-bass & soften up the highs.Vice-versa, for an amp with ultra low O.I.

So, while an OTL tube amp may make the Beyer DT880 sing. the same amp would make the HD650 sound muddy & veiled.

Then there is also the issue that how do you know what the HD650's actual sound signature is unless you hear it with a "transparent" source and amp ?

 

[bennysachdev]

hi

I am the newbie in audio tech

i just recently purchased Asus xonar essence st + Sennheiser HD650

it was not up-to my expectation i think i was missing something

& also read lot about burn-in for Hd 650 is that really mean or is just a hoax

so any suggestion to get something muchhh more better from my sennheiser HD650

Make sure you change the gain to 300-600 ohms / high gain mode from the Asus Essence control panel. That should provide more authority. If you were expecting something different from the sound signature, then you prolly bought the wrong headphone. If your expecting more detailing then ensure your using 320kbps mp3 or even better, FLAC files. Make sure you have the setting to HF(High Fidelity) mode so that it turns off all extra EQ and effects that would come in the way to give you a unadulterated sound.

The HD650 are known for smooth vocals and a warm presentation. They're not bright sounding and they don't have the bass quantity like the Denon D5k. They are not aggressive sounding. Quite the opposite infact.

You need to be a bit more specific as to what your expecting. If you want more boom, you gotta tell us that. If you want more treble, then say that....there are 100's of amps in the market that suit a specific desire of sound signature. Stating your requirement would narrow your own search down to specifics.

Just wish treble had better resolution and were a bit more airy.

@Oyster: time to throw that E5 in some corner of your drawer and forget about it. The only portable amp i've heard that gives that airy treble is the RSA protector. I'm sure there are others, but from the ones i've heard, the fiio e5, e17, ttvj, rsa hornet and the p51 mustang, the protector does it the best. Tbh, the price to performance does not justify it compared to a desktop rig. I personally don't feel comfortable walking around with headphones to work and iems don't really benefit much with an amp. Just gets colored a bit Some iems do benefit a lot from coloration in which case people feel its worth it, like my ck10 used to sound much better with the protector since the protector added more bass and took away the harshness from the treble which made it sound more wholesome. So I sold off the CK10 and the Protector......lol

I'd rather say if your looking for a good amp, take a look at the Burson HA-160.

 

[strategy]

yeah no its no fun using a portable amp in a desktop rig. save money buy a desktop amp.

Burson is a great amp to consider, but if you are short on cash, you can also consider the matrix mstage (amp) or Audinst HUD-MX1 ( DAC+amp ), and other cheaper ( but good ) options.

 

[siddharth.beam]

Make sure you change the gain to 300-600 ohms / high gain mode from the Asus Essence control panel. That should provide more authority. If you were expecting something different from the sound signature, then you prolly bought the wrong headphone. If your expecting more detailing then ensure your using 320kbps mp3 or even better, FLAC files. Make sure you have the setting to HF(High Fidelity) mode so that it turns off all extra EQ and effects that would come in the way to give you a unadulterated sound.

The HD650 are known for smooth vocals and a warm presentation. They're not bright sounding and they don't have the bass quantity like the Denon D5k. They are not aggressive sounding. Quite the opposite infact.

You need to be a bit more specific as to what your expecting. If you want more boom, you gotta tell us that. If you want more treble, then say that....there are 100's of amps in the market that suit a specific desire of sound signature. Stating your requirement would narrow your own search down to specifics.

The sound which i get after setting all setting is thick. I want something decent which make it sound less thick i want which make it extract more detail like instrumental guitar much better separation .vocal is good the way it is. bass should go more deep & tight little bit more treble & much more bigger sound stage.



@bennysachdev how ur asus xonar essence stx compared to fiio E17 i have fiio E11 but its for portable use .Dose it sound better compared to asus xonar Stx/st .

 

[Oyster]

O2 can drive the Hp-50a quite easily. I was initially thinking of Schitt Asgard but then i really wanted a transportable amp. I didn't have the power adapter for O2 so was running on battery.

a_recording from headfi has both O2 & asgard . He said asgard has a fuzzier sound than O2. The M-Stage has even further unrefined sound compared to Asgard.

Now that i do not have much experience with amps (the only expensive ones i've heard are Titana's beta22 & EHHA) & after having owned really poor amps like E5/ Udac2 & the below average xonar stx, i didn't want to take chances & was looking for amps with a dark stance.

O2 had a slightly better treble when paired with touch 3g's HP out , but then again with everything maxed ( 6x gain, full volume on O2 & touch 3g) the sound was just out of control.

May be that i need better source but then i've never been blown away by anything i've heard uptill now.