As requested since I just found out we didn’t have one here, this thread is for discussing any and all in relation to our Signature dish, the Micro iDSD.
For more info, please check out our product page on the site for it here: micro iDSD Signature by iFi audio | Supercharged desktop and transportable USB DAC and headphone amp
Well, I received my second signature today and it has been working fine so far.
I am having fun with IEMatch in turbo mode on the Dunu Zen. Honestly, eco with no iematch is fine. Noise only shows up in turbo.
The nicest thing about iematch is it gets the volume knob well away from the early channel volume mismatch. Otherwise, on the zen, it doesn’t seem to matter.
What do you think about the Dunu Zen with the Signature?
It’s on the shortlist of my first IEM, but I’m going to be grabbing a Signature or Diablo first and haven’t decided what to get yet. Leaning towards the siggy with the flexibility and options it provides.
The zen. So, if you haven’t read any of my history you probably should to get context about the following comments. I have several posts on here about the Blessing 2 Dusk, Dunu Zen and the he6se that elaborate on this.
The Zen is not a hard headphone to drive compared to all of those others (even the dusk). It doesn’t take much and almost anything can push it well at high volume. Including the apple dongle. That is not to say there aren’t differences, but it’s like the Zen equalizes sources to a great extent. This was not true of any of the other 10ish headphones I have tried.
I literally just did an a/b comparison between the signature and the qudelix 5k not five minutes ago. The difference is largely that the signature sounds slightly smoother. And the power to drive it is effortless in eco mode. What I have found I want is the ability for the headphone you are listening to work well at lower volumes. When that is achieved, you have a great source. The signature does this. So does the qudelix but seems to need a touch higher volume to feel it.
I have now heard the zen on apple dongle, btr5, qudelix 5k, iDSD micro signature and iBasso dx300. I honestly can’t say I have a strong preference. I am not sure this would be true with a more analytical sound like the monarch. But the Zen is just delicious everywhere for me. I couldn’t be happier with it.
So should you try the Zen? Yes. Do you need the signature? No. But if it fits your space, mobility and budget, it’s a safe buy (Unless you use MQA and DSD).
Bad Guy by Billie Eilish just randomly came on and I couldn’t care less which device is powering it.
Thanks for the impressions on the combo. Appreciate the time you put into the write-up, it helps a lot!
Let me know what you do! I am at the beginning of my audio journey and love to hear how others progress.
Will do, thank you! Quite a fantastic start for your first entry into the audio world!
Nice write-up here! I had the Zen for a few weeks and loved running it through all of our stuff, Signature and Diablo ended up being my favorite.
Is the noise on the zen similar between the signature with iematch off and the diablo (which obviously doesn’t have iematch) on eco mode?
From memory, yes. - while having eco mode on the Signature and Diablo are very comparable on a hiss level with the Zen.
The Zen has the added benefit of being a little more power hungry to my ears, which worked in the perspective of hiss, to it’s favor, unlike something akin to the Andromeda.
Yeah, the Zen seems very happy with more power, but doesn’t need it to sound good. The Zen literally tickles my ear drum at high volumes. It’s crazy.
Very impressive to me.
Trying the audeze euclid soon! Probably needs less power than the zen, but I will be interested how the signature sounds with that.
Yep, the Zen sound likes a subwoofer in your eardrum and it definitely does that tickle for me too!
I’m very excited to see how their upcoming EST 112 sounds and how it pairs with our stuff!
Do post up your Euclid impressions as well, another thing I am very intrigued about but have no idea how it would sound since I have zero experience with planar-based IEMs.
Have you heard the LCD-XC or Celestee on the signature? I am considering getting an over-ear closed back. I have some situations where IEMs are not ideal.
Those two seem to be the top-tier closed back options without spending a ton more money.
Saw this here. If you haven’t read my Euclid/Zen comparison, here it is:
FYI, signature is great with the Euclid for me. It is harder to drive than the zen so Qudelix is pushed (but will get there). Signature takes standard mode on the Euclid quite well. Didn’t need IEMatch at all.
Euclid is great, but if you have the Zen, to me it’s redundant and too expensive.
I, unfortunately, haven’t heard the LCD-XC or Celestee. They’re both on the to-try list though.
@TylersEclectic is the only person I can think of who may have heard all three.
@Dynamic I prefer the Celestee, but @Resolve is a fan of the LCD-XC and might give a good counterpoint =)
LCD-XC has better technical performance for sure, possibly the most detailed closed-back. But it needs a touch of EQ, there’s a 5-6khz peak, or somewhere around that that’s worth reducing. Also, XC is MUCH heavier haha. Celestee on the other hand has a more balanced tonality out of the box. If you don’t EQ, I’d probably recommend the Celestee.
I had the X and hated the audeze “house sound”. I was actually planning on trying the XC next, but disliked the X so much I decided to skip the XC. Surprisingly, the weight of the X was great. In fact, I would go so far as to say it may have been the most comfortable headphone I tried at the time.
I don’t EQ. And that is my biggest concern given how much I disliked the X. But I also don’t know if I like that focal sound. Ah well.
My one question: You said in your review that XC slams. Is it competitive with celestee? ( I generally prefer planar sound and DD slam. Dunu Zen is that middle ground for me so far).
Just FYI, the LCD-X was not representative of their ‘house sound’. There are revisions that happen to them over the years and sometimes they don’t work out. The current versions are much better than the older ones.
And yeah LCD-XC slams real hard, but once again if you don’t EQ I’m going to recommend the Celestee.