The Official Fiio E9 Thread with Video Unbox-Review - Page 47

Those two are the same, just depends on what interconnect you use to what equipment.

It's pretty simple really - and rather than this:

perhaps next time try the manual (here's a link - http://www.fiio.com.cn/upfile/File/2011/20110223114207.pdf), then ask after that .

• Front 3.5mm and 6.3mm for headphones
• USB for PC/Laptop - especially with E7
• Line in for sound card or xbox or ipod or whatever other single analogue source you want to plug.
• RCA line-outs for fixed level line out to powered PC speakers
• Pre-out for output to another amp (eg A9) or direct to passive speakers - variable volume controlled by pot.

As far as precedence goes - 

(in) USB connection - then bypassed by plugging the line-in

(out) RCA connections - then bypassed by plugging the headphone-in

I haven't used the pre-out, as I have no need to (I have powered speakers, and no other amp I need to use)

BTW - I know exactly what you're asking for - and it would be a good idea (having a switchable input source) - but that's not what the E9 is about.  Unfortunately if that's what you purchased it for, then next time you might want to research the product a little bit more before buying.  And I'm not trying to be a smart ***** here - either.  The E9 does exactly what it was designed for - single source PC with pluggable option for a DAP - then out to either powered speakers or headphones.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brooko 

perhaps next time try the manual (here's a link - http://www.fiio.com.cn/upfile/File/2011/20110223114207.pdf), then ask after that .

 

The manual should be included with the E9 package too.

If you read the manual, than these should be very clear:

Pre-output - pre-amp output, so you can use E9 as a preamp for a power amp to control volume. (full speaker setup)

Line-out - this is just normal fixed line level output. It will be useful if you want to use line level signal for self-power speaker (i.e. computer speaker)
 

It would be nice to have all kind of switches and I/O on the E9, but that would also defeat the purpose of a small desktop amp that can be used with a PC. Unfortunately, the choices are limited.

SO let us say you are using the line in and the usb to pc via e7 at the same time what happens to the line in 3.5mm signal if you start using the e7 via usb.

Btw I don't own an E9 I am considering getting one, I presume when you fire up via e7 to pc it auto cuts out anything that is plugged in to the line in ? or do you need to remove the 3.5mm plug every time you want to connect the usb cable or vice versa ?..

The 3.5mm line-in overrides the USB/dock.

Yeah the E9 is a very good amp and I think it's underrated. The E7 dac doesn't do it justice at all. Using it with my DACport LX takes it to a new level.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lee730 

Yeah the E9 is a very good amp and I think it's underrated. The E7 dac doesn't do it justice at all. Using it with my DACport LX takes it to a new level.

I have the combo and am starting to find it lacking. Which of the components should be the first to go? i had a feeling the E7 was a bottleneck...

The E7, just use a better Dac/source with the amp and you will enjoy it.

recommendations? i was thinking bifrost or dacmagic. And I would need an rca to 3.5 mm line in cable for the new combo right? annoying that the E9 only has 3.5mm input...

Yep the E7 is definitely the bottleneck to this wonderful amp. Believe it or not the E9 is a very good amp for what you pay and competes with more expensive amps at that. I now pair the E9 with my DACport LX and I love the sound I get. My E7 is up for grabs if anyone wants it ;). It also depends on what you are looking for. How much are you willing to spend on a stand alone DAC? The Music Streamer II is a good deal if you're more on a budget. I managed to get my LX for $300.00 on the introductory sale. Also if you are willing to wait fiio should be releasing some decent DACs in the near future. Now I'm not sure how well they would compare to the latter but it may be worth waiting for. The design already looks very appetizing on the E17.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrHouse 

I have the combo and am starting to find it lacking. Which of the components should be the first to go? i had a feeling the E7 was a bottleneck...

Quote:

Originally Posted by lee730 

Yep the E7 is definitely the bottleneck to this wonderful amp. Believe it or not the E9 is a very good amp for what you pay and competes with more expensive amps at that. I now pair the E9 with my DACport LX and I love the sound I get. My E7 is up for grabs if anyone wants it ;). It also depends on what you are looking for. How much are you willing to spend on a stand alone DAC? The Music Streamer II is a good deal if you're more on a budget. I managed to get my LX for $300.00 on the introductory sale. Also if you are willing to wait fiio should be releasing some decent DACs in the near future. Now I'm not sure how well they would compare to the latter but it may be worth waiting for. The design already looks very appetizing on the E17.
 

 

I was thinking either Bifrost or Dacmagic actually, if only fiio's new offerings were coming out sooner...

Hooorrraay!!! E7/E9 has finally arrived at my doorstep! Will post my initial impressions later today. Hope they make my headphones sound alot better than from my onboard sound card. :-)

in other news, my Fiio E7/E9 arrived yesterday i've been using it since with my Sennheiser HD 598 and Shure SRH 940. I can say there is just maybe a slight improvement from my onboard sound but not a big night and day difference as suggested around the forums. So either:

a) my onboard sound is really good to begin with

b) the Sennheiser HD 598 and Shure SRH 940 dont need/dont benefit much from amping

c) the Fiio E7/E9 isnt just quite as good as I expected it to be

or maybe a little bit of all three.....

For me the E9 is the only reason why I'm happy with the purchase....at first I tried the E7 by itself and the sound was pretty much the same with my onboard sound card if not maybe worse, both on my netbook and my HP notebook. I even tried it with my iPod shuffle and it completely muddied the sound, although maybe that would be because I was using it with the headphone jack and not a line out jack since the iPod Shuffle doesnt have one. However with the E7/E9 combo used with my computers, I guess what I notice is that on songs with alot of bass, the bass no longer overshadows the other frequencies since I tend to use a u-shaped curve in my equalizers. I'd be listening to a song that sounded fine and as soon as a bassy part kicked in such as maybe the chorus the mids and vocals would be recessed, but the E7/E9 solves that problem. Also, many people said that the E7/E9 greatly increases sound clarity and sound crispness, but I'm not so sure about that at least for me.

Well at least, using these has made me like my HD 598 again over my SRH 940! Using both of these headphones with the amp really highlights the lack of bass impact on the SRH 940 which makes alot of my music not as fun to listen to since there is alot of pop and hip-hop in my library. And I can always upgrade to a better DAC, since I suspect that may be what is bottlenecking the sound in this case....HRT Streamer II+, I have you in my crosshairs!!! :-D

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkAndroid 

in other news, my Fiio E7/E9 arrived yesterday i've been using it since with my Sennheiser HD 598 and Shure SRH 940. I can say there is just maybe a slight improvement from my onboard sound but not a big night and day difference as suggested around the forums. So either:

 

a) my onboard sound is really good to begin with

b) the Sennheiser HD 598 and Shure SRH 940 dont need/dont benefit much from amping

c) the Fiio E7/E9 isnt just quite as good as I expected it to be

or maybe a little bit of all three.....

 

For me the E9 is the only reason why I'm happy with the purchase....at first I tried the E7 by itself and the sound was pretty much the same with my onboard sound card if not maybe worse, both on my netbook and my HP notebook. I even tried it with my iPod shuffle and it completely muddied the sound, although maybe that would be because I was using it with the headphone jack and not a line out jack since the iPod Shuffle doesnt have one. However with the E7/E9 combo used with my computers, I guess what I notice is that on songs with alot of bass, the bass no longer overshadows the other frequencies since I tend to use a u-shaped curve in my equalizers. I'd be listening to a song that sounded fine and as soon as a bassy part kicked in such as maybe the chorus the mids and vocals would be recessed, but the E7/E9 solves that problem. Also, many people said that the E7/E9 greatly increases sound clarity and sound crispness, but I'm not so sure about that at least for me.

Well at least, using these has made me like my HD 598 again over my SRH 940! Using both of these headphones with the amp really highlights the lack of bass impact on the SRH 940 which makes alot of my music not as fun to listen to since there is alot of pop and hip-hop in my library. And I can always upgrade to a better DAC, since I suspect that may be what is bottlenecking the sound in this case....HRT Streamer II+, I have you in my crosshairs!!! :-D

I'm sure the device wouldn't be working otherwise, but are you switching your default output device to "USB Audio DAC" when you use the E7/E9? I have headphones that both require almost no amping (Audio Technica, Grado) and a lot of amping (Beyerdynamic) and on all computers/headphones there is a significant improvement in sound.

Do you have just regular stock manufacturer onboard sound, or improved multimedia sound like Creative?

Also make sure your settings are optimized for using the DAC:

http://www.usbdacs.com/Windows/Windows.html

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riku540 

 

I'm sure the device wouldn't be working otherwise, but are you switching your default output device to "USB Audio DAC" when you use the E7/E9? I have headphones that both require almost no amping (Audio Technica, Grado) and a lot of amping (Beyerdynamic) and on all computers/headphones there is a significant improvement in sound.

 

Do you have just regular stock manufacturer onboard sound, or improved multimedia sound like Creative?

 

Also make sure your settings are optimized for using the DAC:

http://www.usbdacs.com/Windows/Windows.html

Yeah its on default, otherwise like you said you wont get any sound from the E7/E9. And I have a regular stock manufacturer onboard sound, its a HP dv-7 and I can imagine the sound chip is probably integrated in the motherboard or something and not possible to replace. Which is why I thought I would hear a big difference in the sound.

But going onto the website you posted, I see there is something they call WASAPI, which is supposed to give application complete control of the sound card and allow them to bypass any Windows OS processing. But I thought there was an option for this under Speakers Properties? "Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device" and "Give exclusive mode applications priority". Or is this something different? Well anyway I use iTunes and Foobar2000 and went into the settings of each application and changed the sound output to WASAPI. Dont know if theres any difference, except that in Foobar2k, changing it from DirectSound to WASAPI causes the program to lag about a second anytime you want to play a new track, or pause. Anyway, I'll leave it on WASAPI and take solace in the fact that I've done everything possible to get the best possible sound output from this DAC/amp.

Thanks for your insight Riku.

p.s. There is also a "dither" option on the output settings page of Foobar2000....they say " it adds noise to the audio therefore resulting in better sound quality"....if that makes any sense.  And it should be used with 16 bit sound.....16 bit sound is the highest E7/E9 combo can handle right?