iBasso D10. .UPDATES 1st page, with Current Opamp Choices by HiFlight . . . images page 1, 12, 13, 14, 15, 21, 71

Quote:

armaegis said:

I wonder if the squeak is some sort of capacitance discharge.
 
So I still have three unidentified chips... two seemed to be paired together in the box, so I assume they're a pair of buffers? If I had to guess, they might be the LHM6643 since it appears I have the other ones from the opamp kit.
 
If they're not, do I risk permanent damage if I give them a try?

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The pops and other artifacts that you hear when turning the amp on and off are normal, and will vary somewhat with different combinations of opamps.  The sound is due to the power supply caps charging up and discharging.  Once the opamp has a stable supply voltage, you should hear nothing.  Sometimes you will hear a scratching sound as the volume knob is rotated (without an input signal).  This is usually due to a bit of DC offset voltage, but, again, this is normal and will vary depending on choice of opamp. 
 
You can safely use any opamp in the buffer sockets, but just make sure that they are both the same, otherwise you will likely hear a different SQ in the left and right channels. 
 
You might consider using the dummy opamps that have just a very tiny SMD resistor soldered on the adapters in the buffer sockets.  Many find that this will yield a more natural and lifelike sound while extending battery life. 
 
The LMH6643 buffers will be a warmer, more mellow sound.  
 
IMO, the AD8616 is preferable to the AD8656, whether in buffer sockets or in LR sockets.  The highs are smoother and there is little, if any, sibilance. 
 
A good combination that has superb battery life is an AD8616 in the LR socket and 2 dummies in the buffer socket.  SQ ranks right up there close to the latest Topkit.  ( TLE2141 Class A module + EL8201 buffers).
 
Ron

Quote:

hiflight said:

 
The LMH6643 buffers will be a warmer, more mellow sound.  
 
IMO, the AD8616 is preferable to the AD8656, whether in buffer sockets or in LR sockets.  The highs are smoother and there is little, if any, sibilance. 
 
A good combination that has superb battery life is an AD8616 in the LR socket and 2 dummies in the buffer socket.  SQ ranks right up there close to the latest Topkit.  ( TLE2141 Class A module + EL8201 buffers).
 
Ron

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Some day I'll have to try the combos above, but I have been so happy with the TLE2141 class A + EL8201 because they come very close to the P-51 sound signature that it wasn't worth trying anything else now.  
 
The D4 hit's a P-51 sound signature dead-on with it's top kit, and I could NOT reliably tell which I was listening to in comparisons.  But the D10 with topkit has just a slight bit of treble roll off or very slightly less airiness vs the P-51 or the opamp rolled D-4 with top kit.  It comes extremely close though.

edit...

I just posted a new poll of sorts regarding the H1x0, wondering how many people use it with spdif.  See it here: 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/497818/poll-who-uses-an-iriver-h1x0-with-digital-out
 
I'm posting the link here under the assumption that many (if not most) of you who own an iBasso D10 (or D1, like myself) use or have used an H1x0 player with your DAC.  I would like to get a better count of people who do.
 
I started looking into all of this since I couldn't find a good, definitive answer about whether or not Rockbox on the H1x0 was outputting higher resolution files at their full bit depth and sample rate.  After looking at the code, I can confirm that Rockbox outputs EVERYTHING at 16/44.  It's bit exact for redbook, but everything else gets resampled.  I'm a little disappointed by this, knowing that the iBasso DACs can handle hi-res, but at least now I know that it's a better idea to use 16/44 exclusively on the player, if it can be helped.  Hopefully I'll be able to find the time to tinker a bit and see if the H1x0 can handle outputting higher resolutions via spdif.  We shall see...

Wow, Do I love this amp. I knew nothing about dac, amps etc. about 2 weeks ago. I bought a set of Shure 840 headphones about 3 months ago and just used them on my Itouch. The shure 750djs came on sale and I bought them and gave the 840s to my son. I saw a dc10 for sale on kijiji for $150.00 cdn that had been on sale for a couple months. I offered him $80.00, which he accepted and I picked it up the next day. (he lives 5 minutes from me). No pouch, opamps, allan key, or warranty card. He said he used it about two hours. It has no issues at all and sounds great, even though its not even close to being burned in(neither are my 750s).
Now I have to get an itouch lod which will cost at least half of what the amp cost!!(oh well).
 
I just want to thank all the posters on this forum for all the informative posts. I have learned a  lot in the last week just reading.
 
Now Im going to have to try and score an iriver from kijiji. I remember years ago looking at the irivers at futureshop and thinking "what an ugly unit" . If only I would have known then what I have learned now.
 
Thanks again,
aqsw

I use the iRivers everyday. I was very excited with the D1 came out because there would finally be an all in one unit that was truly portable. Then the D10 made its appearance, was smaller and offered some improvements and away it went. Great fun and sounds. 

So my D10s arrived yesterday (no thanks to Canada Post that delivered them to the school next door...if not for their secretary, I'd still be waiting). My initial impressions are that I am very impressed. Using USB and my IEMs (primarily SE535s/W3s) this thing sounds a little on the warm side and not too unlike my (now sold) RSA Hornet (which is a good thing).
 
Using my iPod Classic LOD to D10 is also  a really good way to go. I am going to try it via optical using my SACD player and some of my full sized cans (though I don't expect much with the T1s and HD800s, but do have hopes for my D7000s and RS1i's).
 
The build quality is simply outstanding. I do also have the opamp rolling kit and plan on changing things up next week. Any recommendations?
 

My current favourite combination*: opamp AD 8616, buffers LMH 6643. As soon as I turned it on and started the first song, I had another one of those rare "wow" moments. The upper highs and lows are tamed a bit, the midrange and vocals are beautifully sweet and clear. Almost no distortion when I turned the amp to max, and very little pop/fuzz when I turn it on and off. I would describe the overall sound as rich and mellow.
 
For a harder hitting sound, I like: opamp dual AD743, buffer AD 8656. Very punchy, with emphasized lows and highs. Seems to suck up battery power though.
 
*with headphones Shure SRH840, which admitted could use the boost to the midrange
 
 

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Editing my notes all into one post so it's easier for me to reference...
 
Buffer notes while using 2:1 opamp AD743:
general impression of 743 as opamp: bright, pronounced high end, very nice mids especially female vocals, a bit hissy
 
I find the AD8616 to be smoother sounding especially at lower volumes, though with a tiny bit of hiss and it feels like they lose control when I turn it up. Nice mids, though the highs threaten to overwhelm at times. Bass is well defined but a little on the thin side. Awesome space and separation. Battery life ~14 hours. Moderate pop at power up.
 
The AD8656 handles the big volumes better, but is a bit more brutish sounding. Very punchy with strong bass and highs. Battery life ~14 hours. Big pop at power up, fuzz at down.
 
With the dummies, sound utterly falls apart at high volumes. Midrange especially gets all flubby and sounds like it's clipping. Low volumes is fine. Sharper more pronounced highs (not sure if I like that yet), but staging sounds a bit shallower than the 8616 or 8656. Battery life ~20 hours. Almost no pops during power up or down.
 
LMH6643 is indeed more mellow as Hiflight mentioned. Stark contrast to the dummies, and I find myself immediately liking these very much. High volumes hold together very well, but not as well as the 8656. Very slight pop and hiss during power up/down.
 
 
 
Buffers w/opamp AD 8616
general impression of 8616 as opamp - great for midrange: vocals, acoustics, jazz, etc; not as good for bass heavy genres, overall sound signature seems more dependent on buffers compared to other opamps
 
LMH6643:
super smooth, tamed upper highs and lows, beautiful midrange, very good separation, no distortion at high volumes. Formerly my favourite combo before I got the EL 8201 buffers
 
AD8532:
very similar to the LMH6643 sound, not quite as smooth but has a bit more power, lose a bit of separation, a tiny bit scratchy at mid volumes and up, perfectly fine at low-mid volumes, really interesting "waterfall" sound when the opamp discharges during powerdown
 
dummies:
lighter/airier feel compared to LMH6643, separation is lower, lose a bit of the mid richness, gains high end sparkle, loses a bit of control at high volumes (but not nearly as bad as the AD743/dummies combo), very long battery life
 
AD8656:
restores some of the bass and highs that the AD8616 lacks, very up front presentation, upper end is clean and sharp (finger snaps, hi hats, string plucks), mild distortion when cranked all the way up (more noticeable in the highs)
 
EL8201:
nice and laid back, good bass extension to ~30Hz, midrange comes forward, slight dip in the lower highs, highs slightly pronounced (hi hats), seems to be a quieter combination. 
 
 
 
Buffers with opamp AD8565
(general impression of AD8656 as opamp - emphasized lows and highs, somewhat narrower stage but very "in your face" sound, loads of power but finicky about how it's handled, slight graininess at higher volumes (but you're near earbleed levels at that point anyways))
 
AD8616:
pretty similar to the reverse config (opamp AD8616, buffers AD8656), highs are much more pronounced and shimmer nicely, lows seem a bit thinner, still has distortion which starts a tiny bit earlier but is less egregious
 
LMH6643:
very nice balance of highs and lows, really love the sound... but it can't handle power and sound gets grainy and warbly when you turn it up 60%
 
dummies:
nice rumble in the bass, rather sharp highs, midrange is ok but nothing outstanding, still distorts at high volumes, and even at medium high volumes vocals sometimes sound a bit off, but instruments and electronic sounds are good
 
I don't have enough AD8656 chips to use as both opamp and buffers, but from some reading here it sounds like they handle the power quite well and don't distort/hiss.
 
 
 
Buffers with opamp LMH6643
 
dummies:
airier, slightly veiled and relaxed sound, lower power compared to 8656 or 8616 as opamps, slight "concert hall" feel (reverb) adds to spaciousness, mids (vocals) are very forward, midhighs are crisp but feel a bit dry and start to roll off slightly, low volume imbalance (to the right)
 
AD8616:
slightly more pronounced "concert hall" effect, more energy, not as relaxed, clarity in mids and highs improved a bit with some added shimmer, no roll off in the highs though still a bit dry, bass feels about the same, not as smooth as the reverse combo of opamp 8616 with 6643 buffers but more detailed overall
 
 
Buffers with opamp AD4841-2
 
AD8616:
whoa bright sound (noticeably moreso than any others so far), emphasized and very detailed highs, mid highs tiny bit grainy, fatiguing to my ears, feel like it would be good for studio work though
 
 
 
Buffers with 2:1 opamp TLE2141
 
EL8201:
a touch of airiness (and maybe reverb?), more on the upper end
richer texture
but a *tiny* bit of graininess with some headphones
lots of power and holds it together without clipping or distorting
bit of a spike on a sub bass response
bit of a tube like sound
 
LHM6643:
brighter than with EL8201
encoding graininess sounds really bad
strong highs and lows
doesn't hold the power quite as well as EL8201
 
AD8656:
complex passages with mixed highs and lows sound kinda weird, veiled
 
AD8616
nice mids, a bit more forward, but slight graininess at the peaks
 
 
 
 
 
Buffers with opamp AD8599
 
EL8201:
louder than TLE2141, but slightly distorted at max
bright sound
midhighs (female vocal range) have a tiny bit of graininess and sibilance
 
LHM6643:
still bright
faint background hiss? don't hear this with any other combination
bass start to distort badly at medium-high volumes
 
 
 
Buffers with opamp OPA2227p
generally a more relaxed sound
 
EL8201:
immediately engaging yet laid back sound
a touch of resonance which gives a great sense of live staging
strong bass extension down to 16Hz
lots of power, very loud
my current favourite
 
LHM6643:
airier, more expansive staging (music feels like it comes from above)
a barely noticeable hint of sibilance
sub bass seems to roll off a little sooner than EL8201
a little harsher on encoding graininess
 
AD8616:
mids more forward
very nice on vocal and acoustic
good power
but it doesn't have the right impact for rock
bass extension not as good as EL8201
 
 
Buffers with opamp LT1358

 
LHM6643:
crisp and articulate
bass a bit thin
instrumentals come across better than vocals
 
EL8201:
a bit more relaxed
fuller bass compared to LMH6643
 
 
Buffers with opamp RC4560

this is a cheap opamp, very low voltage requirements making it popular for some cmoys
general sound: good midbass, mids slightly recessed
 
RC4560:
not compatible, very bad static at anything above very low listening levels
 
EL8201:
slightly cloudy feeling, nothing special
 
AD8656:
brings back some of the mids, though still a bit congested, bit of sibilance

Hi D10 Veterans,
 
Which AD8616 to get? I've come across AD8616, AD8616-AR, AD8616-ARM and AD8616-ARZ.
 
Cheers...

Quote:

vkvedam said:

Hi D10 Veterans,
 
Which AD8616 to get? I've come across AD8616, AD8616-AR, AD8616-ARM and AD8616-ARZ.
 
Cheers...

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It doesn't matter...they all sound exactly the same! 
Ron
 

 

The AD8616 does not comes in DIL (Dual in Line package). So I doubt you could buy that, most likely an oversight by the seller's website or omission of sub fix.
 
AD8616-AR an AD8616-ARZ are SOIC you need a Brown-Dog adaptor or you need to solder it in a Turn Pin 8 IC Socket holders
Most likely you get this
 
AD8616-ARM is an MSOP package (extremely small), avoid this, Unless you are looking to test/challenge your soldering skill.
 
 
 
Quote:

vkvedam said:

Hi D10 Veterans,
 
Which AD8616 to get? I've come across AD8616, AD8616-AR, AD8616-ARM and AD8616-ARZ.
 
Cheers...

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Thanks for the replies Ron and madwolf.

I like the AD8616 more than the AD8656. The 8616, to my ear, is more refined and throws a larger and more transparent soundstage. 

For buffers, I find myself preferring the 8656 over the 8616 for movies and rock. The 8656 feels like it delivers a more "in your face" kind of sound. I really like the 8616 as opamp however.

Yes the 8656 can make a good buffer. I agree that the 8656 is more in your face but I normally don't like this, preferring a bit of distance. It is all good. Nice to have choices though.