Portable DAC question/advice. So y/all know by now that I settled on getting the RAD-0 headphones. They sound great with my desktop setup, and even OK coming out of my Dragonfly Cobalt and iPhone. Clearly better if I use Camera Adapter 3 so that I plug in for a bit of power.
My current (no pun intended) portable setup includes the DFC and some headphones. I still have the iFi xDSD, which is still quite portable and provides a lot more power.
SO THE QUESTION, Pros and cons of a different DAC/AMP than the DFC. Is it worth it to get an iFi Go Bar? Would a Quedelix 5K be a downgrade? DFC is single ended, maybe it makes sense to pick up the balanced cables and a balanced portable DAC/AMP. Or maybe not. I guess if I went for the Go Bar, I could unload sell the DFC to someone for about $175… Watcha all say?
Your headphones have 29 ohms impedance. They may want lots of juice. My 13 ohm Dan Clark headphones just chuckle at mobile setups. They don’t come alive dynamically until the Lyr 3 / RebelAmp class.
The more current the merrier, so balanced can’t hurt. However, I expect that your batteries will be sucked dry pretty fast.
Yeah, that’s kind of my thought process too. And why there was a difference between Adapter 2 (not powered) and 3 with power. It gets loud enough with the DFC/adapter 2 but certainly sounds strained. The Lyr3 makes it chortle with joy, as the Father does in Jabberwocky.
And that’s why I mention the xDSD which has a decent onboard battery. Not trying to draw from the lightning/USB
I got my Atom Dac+ yesterday . After hooking it up to my SP200 , I got to play with it a little today, & almost immediately, I noticed a couple things . Clarity is better on the Atom than my sound card (Asus Xonar D2X) . My sound card pushes more volume , but doesn’t sound quite as good . For example, I have my HE4-XX at 10:00 on the volume , with my sound card, about 11:30(ish) , on the Atom . The 32 bit setting on the Atom seemed a bit, I guess hollow is a good word . I scaled back to 24 bit 192 khz , sounded best to me . Haven’t tried my 6XX yet, or my DT990 600’s , I may save that for my Darkvoice . My K7XX’s , they sounded kind of bad . Maybe it was me . I may switch to a different media player (AIMP) , as what was using (Spider Player) didn’t sound quite as good .
I am actually working on a review of the Go Bar now, which I hope to have finished in the not too distant future.
I can say that the Go Bar is great but… with Hifiman planars at least (I’m not going to list them but I have quite a few on hand) I do feel that it lacks a little. It also drains the battery of my phone quite a bit when using it with planars. With the HD6XX and DT1990, as dynamic drivers with a fairly high impedance, it does do better than with the planars but it still doesn’t wow me.
Don’t get me wrong, I think it is the best sounding pocketable device I have heard, but personally I find that the Gryphon (which I don’t consider pocketable) is much more up to the task.
I know that your headphones are completely different, so apples to oranges etc. but I thought I would share a brief bit of experience so far.
How portable do you need it to be? I have a ifi go blu (which is tiny) and also an ifi gryphon (which is not tiny).
I don’t think the RAD-0 is current hungry, but can try mine out on both devices when I have some time, probably tomorrow.
If you’re using an iPhone as a source, both ifi devices work well with Bluetooth. The Gryphon also comes with a lightning cable if you wanted to have a physical connection.
Thanks for the ideas. I have the original xDSD, which is reasonably powerful, but only has BT 4.x, not 5.x like the Gryphon. I would use it with a wired connection if I do use it. It’s a bit smaller than the Gryphon, uses the same box as the xCAN. I never found the BT4 to be really hi-fi.
I HAVE the Dragonfly Cobalt, (and the Dragonfly Black also) and the great thing about that is that it IS very portable. The downfall as with all USB driven devices that take power from USB or a lightning port is that they are limited by the specs of the port.
The apple camera adapter 2 is a very compact dongle. It is super portable and I can run a wired connection inside my Scott-e-Vest shirts to headphones. I think the GoBlue and the GoBar and the Qudelix would all be similar. The xDSD is a bit bigger than a pack of playing cards, and it takes a real USB wired connector so you’d go from phone to camera adapter to USB wire to xDSD (which has a good battery) to headphones. That gets a little cumbersome.
The camera adapter 3 is about an .25” x 1” x 1.5 inch and has a lightning port for charging, so you can either charge your phone while connected, or as is more often the case, provide a bit of extra juice to your DAC. It makes a difference to the DFC.
But I’m not crazy about the form factor.
Just mulling this over. The advantage of the GoBar is that it has balanced output. But I don’t know how harsh it is on phone battery, or if I’d want to use the Adapter 3 with it (iPhone 12, lightning port). Far less of an issue if I wanted to run it off my iPad Pro with USB-3…
I don’t know what it is about running into current limits, but the sound of the RAD-0 is astonishingly better on the desktop Lyr3. So the portable solution may well be xDSD or xDSD Gryphon sized.
I just really like the ultra-portable. Which is Audeze LCDi3 and cipher cable sized.
Yes, I head that it does. Until recently, Apple kept a tight hold on the USB to Lightning space. Lightning was not really fully compatible with USB, and the only game in town was Apple’s. They called it a “camera adapter” or a “camera kit” and was used to do transfers from cameras, but what it actually did was to make the lightning port much more like a USB port, able to take multiple devices.
In the last couple of years ago, they appear to be letting that choke point go, and have certified many 3rd party “camera adapter compatible” USB to Lightning solutions. I think the GoBar has one onboard.
The ifi lightning cable works well for music. I’m assuming the GoBar cable is the same as the Gryphon.
I tried an Anker lightning cable, which works fine for charging my phone and iPad, and also for connecting my phone to my car stereo, but I wasn’t able to get the Gryphon to connect to my phone using the Anker.
has a lot to offer in terms of sound, but with performance-hungry headphones, I have seen an error message on the iPhone from time to time that the energy consumption was too high.
I actually believe that the GoBar from ifi is indeed a good solution, since the energy output values given sound quite promising.
which is outstanding as a mobile solution for dynamic drivers, is rather unsatisfactory in combination with planar drivers, at least for my ears, because it sounds too bloomy for me and lacks dynamics and purity with these types of headphones .
Thanks, @Lothar_Wolf I always enjoy your picture book responses. I’ve pulled the xDSD out of hiding and am applying a charge. Not an iDSD for certain, but it does have more single-ended power than anything else I have.
I too was impressed with the GoBar numbers, but don’t know how it will draw that power from what Arnold Schwarzenegger would call a “puny” phone battery. I am considering doing some home mods to a solar-powered hard hat, disabling the fan and using it to power a DAC"
There has to be a way to pack reasonable power into a small package.
LATER EDIT: Have been listening to the RAD-0 with my old xDSD. While not up to the desktop mating of Bifrost2 and Lyr3 by any means, it is way better than the DFC. I’ve started listening to some things I use as yardsticks and it’s been pleasant.
I have decided to add this song to my evaluate headphones list. It’s the version of Oye Cómo Va from Tito Puente’s “Anthology” and is exceedingly well done. Oye Cómo Va by Tito Puente, Celia Cruz
The only closed headphone that I’ve tried in that price range is the Focal Elegia. (BTW, any links I provide are just to show you what I’m talking about, I’m not suggesting that’s the best price or that you should buy from Richer Sounds). The Elegia isn’t made any more, so you can normally pick it up for a good price. It was well respected by this forum (see this thread). I actually preferred (and bought) the Focal Celestee over the Elegia, because the Elegia didn’t have enough bass for my preferences, whereas the Celestee is a bit more well-rounded, but out of your price range. I may like more bass than you, so it may not be an issue for you. And the combination of the Elegia’s tuning and a very clear sound probably sounds great for TV and classical.
The AKG K371 that @NickZ is also well respected (see this thread) and much cheaper than many other recommended headphones.
Another closed back headphone within your budget is the Shure SRH1540 (see this thread). A friend has a pair of these and likes them a lot, but cautions that they have a lot of bass, so they are at the opposite end of the spectrum than the Elegia.
I haven’t heard the AKG or Shure, just giving you links to do your own research.
Anyone have any experience with the Hifiman EF400? I’m obsessing over Amp and DAC research and just curious what anyone’s impressions of it are. Currently have IFI Zen DAC V2 - Focal Clear OG and HD6XX. I know I don’t need the power currently, but thinking about potential upgrades that may future proof me (I know that once in this hobby, there’s never an end to upgrading though…). I’m not unhappy with the Zen DAC (and I’m not buying Susvara’s anytime soon), but I just have an itch to upgrade. Feel free to talk me out of it too if I should just stand pat or look at a different option!
Well imo you should base that decision towards the flagship hp you would want in the future, rather than hanging around source gear in the mid-fi realm (not that there’s anything wrong with that). I would save my pennies for a more substantial upgrade that could both benefit the hps you have now (the clear and 6xx both scale nicely) and the hps you would want in the future (assuming they match synergystically that is).
You could take baby steps if you want or you could jump right in to the hi-end. I prefer the latter but that’s just me.
This is also useful to know. You don’t want source gear that can potentially limit your hp options if you’re not sure what you want yet. For example, getting a hi-end amp that is generally very good with dynamics but not so much with planars, then deciding it’s all about demanding planars in the end. It’s a good idea to sort those things out first so you don’t regret it in the future.
This is solid advice - keep your eyes on the prize but be nimble enough to take advantage of any opportunities that come up along the way. Buy once, Crye once as some of my friends used to say.
I’m currently fighting off GAS and FOMO (get behind me ZMF Hot Cup Summer!) by systematically evaluating my own musical and sound signature preferences.^ To quote Harry Calahan, “A good man always knows his limitations.”
The steps I’m taking are as follows:
Building a playlist of test tracks that capture the diversity of the music I listen to, and using this playlist to try out the various pieces of equipment (DACs, amps, headphones, and IEMs) I currently own. There’s a good thread on this topic.
Logging how all of the equipment performs according to that playlist. The easiest person you can fool is yourself so you’ll need a way to keep yourself honest.
Identifying whether or not the equipment I own is good enough. If it isn’t asking why and am I willing to make the effort/spend the money to obtain better equipment.
Not forgetting what it is that I’m seeking to do, which is to have the best music-listening experience possible given a compromise between price, sound, physical comfort, reliability, customer service, labor relations, and environmental costs.
Regards,
Vic
^ Keep in mind that just because an item is reviewed highly doesn’t mean you should buy it, especially if the reviewer has a separate set of values than you (the same goes if it is rated poorly). Also question the motivation behind the review - is ego, money or material benefits, reputation, and/or community reputation involved, and if so, how much will that shape the review? Are they being controversial just to be controversial? Is their criticism warranted, or is their reasoning unsound because the argument is based upon a set of unexamined, incorrect assumptions and why are they going forth with it? Bluntly - What’s in it for them?
Talk you out of it? Ha, ha, ha, HA, HA, HA!!! We are all codependent enablers!
My path was to explore different types of amp technology. There are many options, and some may or may not be to your taste. My favorite solid state amps are Class A, while tube amps open a world of goodness, pointless changes, weirdness, and excessive spending.
To my ears Class A amps are smoother, fuller, more integrated, and easier on the ears than other solid state amps. (On that note, my clean but non-Class A THX AAA 789 has been boxed up for a long time…)
I like tube amps with high impedance dynamic drivers (e.g., Sennheiser HD 6XX, HD 600, and HD 800 S), as they create a really enticing, expansive, and pleasant form of harmonic distortion. I spend the majority of my time with tube amp → high impedance dynamic driver headphones these days. That may change at some point.
Regarding price and learning priorities, I take a forked approach: (1) Visit local audio stores and demo stuff to the extent possible. It’s free, and has helped me avoid several $$$$$$$$$ trendy-but-meh products. If you don’t have local stores where you live, visit an audio show in L.A., Chicago, D.C., N.Y.C., etc. (2) I creep my way up the price ladder, but routinely compare new purchases to cheaper equipment. To that end, I maintain a starter setup comprised of a ZenDAC V1 and Loxjie P20 tube-hybrid amp. I also test equipment with a standardized playlist.
Do not buy based on measurements. Try with your own ears, and listen long enough for the system to settle in.
