210% that of the vast majority of “gamer” class “high-end” motherboard DAC outputs.
The CPU has nothing to do with power allocation to a PC’s USB ports.
The port controllers are either hardware limited to the USB standard (500mA @ 5V), or they ignore the standard and use a driver level setting, that’s managed by the USB chipset. The CPU has no effect.
Some driver/controller setups disable the port entirely if the device connected to it attempts to draw more than 500mA (e.g. most MacBook models). The 5V output remains fixed (or droops, potentially significantly, under load).
Some out-of-spec setups allow more current over USB (voltage stays at 5V unless you’re looking at USB 3/C or you’d also be looking at dead USB devices), be that 1A or in some cases as much as 2.1A. This won’t change the available power from a DAC or other USB device unless it, too, is out of spec, however, as if they require more than 500mA peak, they’re going to fail to operate with most USB ports.
If you are going to have only one Dragonfly, the Dragonfly Cobalt is the one to have. I have the Black with a Jitterbug, and the Jitterbug circuitry is included in the Cobalt, perhaps to help justify its price. The Red is probably the best deal.
I find the Dragonflies are bulletproof when it comes to dealing with MQA. They just work. Their downfall is that the amp section is just not that powerful. But it’s enough for all but your more thirsty headphones. My standard travel kit is the DFC and my Grado RS1e headphones.
The Dragonflies also max out at 96KBPS, so if that’s not acceptable to you, look elsewhere. I think that @Torq has suggested a used Meridian Explorer 2 as a good alternative. It has a real line-out (Dragonfly does not) and also handles MQA. Sadly discontinued.
@MuzeMuff, I can concur with what @pennstac has stated. The DFC is a great little dac that performs. It’s clean, punchy, and pretty faithful to the recording.
As long as your headphones are relatively efficient, it should deliver. For reference, it’s an excellent match for the Focal Clear, and I usually have mine paired with Koss Porta Pros.
Hi. I’m hoping someone can provide some guidance. I recently purchased a Dragonfly Red to use both with my MacBook and my iPhone when I’m on the go. I have a Tidal subscription (Master). Do I understand exclusive mode to mean that it completely bypasses my volume on my MacBook? I can barely notch up the volume whatsoever on Tidal, and that’s my only control. I also blasted my ears at full volume somehow when tinkering with settings to try to resolve this. I wasn’t paying attention and didn’t take my Shure 535’s out of my ears. I’m afraid of permanent damage now, so I’ll just have to wait it out. It was 1 or 2 seconds or deafening volume. I’m happy with the improvement in sounds with the Dragonfly, but the potential for hearing damage and the limited volume control is worrisome. I’ll likely have to download a volume limiter for the Mac, but am I setting this up properly? Do those of you using Tidal only have control of the volume via Tidal? Is it a lack of compatibility with the Shure 535’s being very low impedance? Thanks for any help. I’m thinking about returning the Dragonfly as my ears continue to ring tonight. Not fun.
I did thanks. When I use Tidal via the web, it seems to work fine. It’s only with the computer app that only the Tidal app volume works. My ears are ringing very strongly today and naturally I’m scared out of my mind. It sucks that I’ve tried to be so careful over the years and then I do this.
I just bought a Dragonfly Red and am connecting it to my iPhone with the CCK. I am getting full lossless through the Dragonfly on Qobuz and Tidal but am hitting a 24/48 wall with Apple Music. I have all settings on the phone set for High Resolution Lossless but I top put at 24/48 even when playing 24/96 files or higher (I know DFR’s limit is 24/96). Any ideas?
Yep, true, but I am playing tracks that I know from other DACs I have are 24/96 but they’re topping out at 24/48. In fact, the AM app tells me there is high resolution lossless available for the song. Yet it doesn’t hit that resolution.
I’m getting the Lightning to USB 3 adapter tomorrow, which Audioquest says is preferable. Maybe that’ll make the difference?
The 3 is better - I have both, and only use the 2 when I need the smallest footprint. The 2 has given me some dropouts with my DFC, but not with my old DFB. I don’t have the red, but it draws the same power as the Cobalt. At the time I’d tried the 2, it was with Tidal, and Apple Music wasn’t into hi-res.
Just picked up the 3 and still have the same problem. AM is not giving me anything but 24/48 despite all settings set for high resolution lossless. All other services work perfectly. Stumped!
UPDATE - fine print says that when you change settings, previously downloaded music will continue to play at the downloaded resolution. Just tried streaming a new high resolution lossless song and all good!
There’s a software update for the Dragonfly Red, from 1.07 to 1.08.
Maybe it’s there from sometime, I haven’t checked it in the last months.
If you haven’t updated it yet check it.
