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Xonar Essence STX / Little Dot MKIII / HD650's - Page 2

post #16 of 36
2/16/10 at 1:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
I've been using the Asus Xonar Essence STX with my HD650's for a while, and picked up the Little Dot MKIII last night.

Not really able to give any impressions yet, as I've been struggling a bit so far.
Using the line out's on my Xonar to power the Little Dot isn't working too well, I'm having to use close 100 volume on the Little Dot to get sufficient listening volume.
Switched to using the HP out on the Xonar to feed the Little Dot now, that seems to work alot better, sufficient volume already at 50 volume now.

Also there is a TON of background noise originating from my Little Dot - I'll try using higher grade cables, as I'm using el cheapo unshielded ones now.
If the Little dot accepts normal line level inputs then you should be fine going from the STX line out to the Little Dot. Just turn up the master volume on the STX. This is for line out... Driving a head amp from another head amp is not such a good idea.
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post #17 of 36
2/16/10 at 1:38pm
That is the strange part about STX, the headphone out sounds better with an external amp than the line out. this was also confirmed by xbitlab review.

However, i have concluded that the headphone out of STX is simply outstanding if used with correct impedance matching a headphone, especially in its 300-600ohms setting... there is no reason to use an external amp with STX.
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post #18 of 36
2/16/10 at 3:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
I've been using the Asus Xonar Essence STX with my HD650's for a while, and picked up the Little Dot MKIII last night.

Not really able to give any impressions yet, as I've been struggling a bit so far.
Using the line out's on my Xonar to power the Little Dot isn't working too well, I'm having to use close 100 volume on the Little Dot to get sufficient listening volume.
Switched to using the HP out on the Xonar to feed the Little Dot now, that seems to work alot better, sufficient volume already at 50 volume now.

Also there is a TON of background noise originating from my Little Dot - I'll try using higher grade cables, as I'm using el cheapo unshielded ones now.
Read the manual and set the gain switches accordingly...

*actually its the headphone impedance(gain) switches...Default is high sensitivity, obviously not suited for HD 650.
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post #19 of 36
2/16/10 at 4:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by wali View Post
That is the strange part about STX, the headphone out sounds better with an external amp than the line out. this was also confirmed by xbitlab review.

However, i have concluded that the headphone out of STX is simply outstanding if used with correct impedance matching a headphone, especially in its 300-600ohms setting... there is no reason to use an external amp with STX.
I wouldn't say that. The line outs measure much better then the headphone out.
Some might like the warmer tone that is generated from driving an amplifer using another amplifier but you would really just be raising the distortion etc.
However, if you like the sound of it, go with that.
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post #20 of 36
2/16/10 at 5:11pm
Back to using the line out on the STX now, and I've doublechecked and tested the gain dipswitches on the Little Dot, they're set correctly to a gain of 10 - any other settings drastically lowers the volume.

This time around the volume is sufficient at around volume 50 on the Little Dot, while being maxed out on the STX - not too keen on the sound though, it sounds more strained and tiresome compared to being driven by the STX's HP output.
This is a new amp though, I'll let it burn in for a while, see if it loosens up a bit.
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post #21 of 36
2/17/10 at 12:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
I've been using the Asus Xonar Essence STX with my HD650's for a while, and picked up the Little Dot MKIII last night.

Not really able to give any impressions yet, as I've been struggling a bit so far.
Using the line out's on my Xonar to power the Little Dot isn't working too well, I'm having to use close 100 volume on the Little Dot to get sufficient listening volume.
Switched to using the HP out on the Xonar to feed the Little Dot now, that seems to work alot better, sufficient volume already at 50 volume now.

Also there is a TON of background noise originating from my Little Dot - I'll try using higher grade cables, as I'm using el cheapo unshielded ones now.

as far as the background noise, mine had a ton too and this was with some halfway decent cables. after some research i discovered that the LD has a ground loop problem which causes most of the noise. i plugged it into a 3 prong to 2 prong cheat plug and bam, background noise is gone.
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post #22 of 36
2/17/10 at 2:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
Back to using the line out on the STX now, and I've doublechecked and tested the gain dipswitches on the Little Dot, they're set correctly to a gain of 10 - any other settings drastically lowers the volume.

This time around the volume is sufficient at around volume 50 on the Little Dot, while being maxed out on the STX - not too keen on the sound though, it sounds more strained and tiresome compared to being driven by the STX's HP output.
This is a new amp though, I'll let it burn in for a while, see if it loosens up a bit.
Try not to come up with your own reasons why a device is not working optimally.

This is from xbitlab review of stx (probably the most thorough and honest review of STX on the web. the sterophile review in comparison was completely misleading, since it did not reflect user experience).

TPA6120A2 (STX headphone amp):





http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mul...nce-stx_3.html

Quote:
Judging by the specifications, this is the highest-quality serially produced single-die amplifier for headphones. Better characteristics can only be achieved by means of composite circuits with discrete components. On the downside of the high-speed nature of this opamp is that an isolating resistor must be employed, which leads to worse damping and increased low-frequency distortions with low-resistance headphones.
As you can see the higher you increase the gain the lower distortion this amp has, making it perfect for high impedance headphones like HD650... I can attest to this personally because the difference for my HD580 was so huge that i pulled my card from selling it in the last moment.

Most DIY and standalone amps are either poorly designed, inconsistent or they color the sound to make them sound "good", because people consider colored sound as good. they should know this much that with a simple equalizer they can replicate the sound of any fancy amp out there.

A headphone amp should drive a headphone with lowest distortion possible without coloring the sound in anyway. This is what the STX headphone amp does very well especially with high impedance headphones.
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post #23 of 36
2/17/10 at 3:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by wali View Post
Try not to come up with your own reasons why a device is not working optimally.
Would you care to elaborate on this?

Nowhere in my 2 posts have I suggested any reason as to why my Little Dot MKIII/Asus Xonar Essence STX/HD 650 experience is sub-optimal for me.
I've merely explained what I percieve to be the symptoms.
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post #24 of 36
2/17/10 at 4:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
Would you care to elaborate on this?
don't bother feeding trolls

ground loops are a major PITA w/ computer audio..
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post #25 of 36
2/17/10 at 5:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
Would you care to elaborate on this?

Nowhere in my 2 posts have I suggested any reason as to why my Little Dot MKIII/Asus Xonar Essence STX/HD 650 experience is sub-optimal for me.
I've merely explained what I percieve to be the symptoms.
i think i was referring to your comment about "loosen up" and "burn in" in regards to your amp which frankly speaking is not only voodoo talk but really no reasons at all.

The STX hp out is far superior and ideal with your HD650 based on facts and figures outlined by third party reviews and user experience in this case my own experience.

good luck



@leeperry, for you to call anyone a troll is the most ironic post i have ever read in this technically inclined section of the forum, but then again you're a special case and you're excused.
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post #26 of 36
2/27/10 at 11:51am
After lengthy comparison between using the STX to feed the Little Dot MKIII, and merely using the STX alone, I've come to the conclusion that the Little Dot worsens my listening experience considerably.
I shall be getting rid of it.
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post #27 of 36
2/27/10 at 1:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by wali View Post
Most DIY and standalone amps are either poorly designed, inconsistent or they color the sound to make them sound "good", because people consider colored sound as good, because it sounds different.
Heh heh heh. Did you read that in a review somewhere?

The LD is a nice amp for the money. It has significant distortion compared to something like an M3 or Mini3. Go take a look at the oscilloscope test pix on the specifications page for a Mini3, M3 or Beta22:

AMB Laboratories DIY Audio Site

I was a pragmatic devotee to computer sound card audio until I heard the difference. For $70 worth of parts you can build a Gamma1 USB DAC that will shred any $200 sound card. Hell, MisterX sells them for under $100 ready to use. You have no excuse to limit yourself anymore

USB bypasses the sound card and ground loop and "cable" issues altogether.
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post #28 of 36
2/27/10 at 3:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by CodeToad View Post
Heh heh heh. Did you read that in a review somewhere?

The LD is a nice amp for the money. It has significant distortion compared to something like an M3 or Mini3. Go take a look at the oscilloscope test pix on the specifications page for a Mini3, M3 or Beta22:

AMB Laboratories DIY Audio Site

I was a pragmatic devotee to computer sound card audio until I heard the difference. For $70 worth of parts you can build a Gamma1 USB DAC that will shred any $200 sound card. Hell, MisterX sells them for under $100 ready to use. You have no excuse to limit yourself anymore

USB bypasses the sound card and ground loop and "cable" issues altogether.
Why are you laughing as he has an excellent point. Many DAC, amps and other units are designed to put out a "colored" signal. a sonic profile the builder enjoys. This information is nothing new

What about the DAC that you just mentioned that "shreds" $200 soundcards?
Have you ever looked at the components on that unit?
IIRC, The Gamma 1 uses a Wolfson WM8501 with About 100dB SNR(A weighted)
and -88dB THD.... It can also use another DAC but has similar specs.

Hmmm, not very impressive for specifications and no where near the specs of any $200 soundcard more to the specs of a 5 year old soundcard or an onboard. This unit is also using the PCM2707 USB chip which IIRC, limits you to 16/48Khz?

Now you can like this units and the way that it sounds but suggesting it "shreds" any $200 soundcard shows you really haven't tested too many $200 soundcards.

The specs on this units would seriously disagree and while not the only thing, they cannot be discounted entirely.

Are you sure you know who is limited here?
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post #29 of 36
2/27/10 at 3:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonka View Post
After lengthy comparison between using the STX to feed the Little Dot MKIII, and merely using the STX alone, I've come to the conclusion that the Little Dot worsens my listening experience considerably.
I shall be getting rid of it.
Many units will have a certain signature to them. Some will find it quite appealing and suggest it is awesome while others not so much.
In the end your ears and enjoyment are the main thing so tweak, change and modify until you are happy.
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post #30 of 36
2/27/10 at 3:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ROBSCIX View Post
Are you sure you know who is limited here?
There is something funky about digital circuits and power supplies and EMI. There are many threads covering this.

To insinuate that DIY amps are "colored" on purpose is just plain silly. AFAIK there is considerable work and talent that goes into the designs to produce a flat frequency response. I'm sure the same can be said of the sound cards.

As we both know, the opamps are switchable in both because these can affect the sound.

There are some aspects of circuit design that affect the sound more than others. In digital circuits like DAC's power is extremely important. I've heard it with my own ears, the difference between usb power, wallwart and dedicated power supplies. The Gamma1 all caged up in its little metal box seems to be resistant to EMI. I wonder if the sound card in the computer environment is able to do this well enough?

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f6/cur...xplain-474868/

Irregardless of specs, power is the issue. Wasn't was there a thread on building an external power supply for the STX?
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