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what's the benefits of having both the Fiio E7 and E9?

post #1 of 14
1/7/11 at 7:17pm
Thread Starter 

don't they do the same thing? except that the E9 has line out and more power?

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post #2 of 14
1/7/11 at 7:54pm

From what I understand, the E7 is a portable DAC/amp to be used by itself and the E9 is basically a desktop amp with line in connection but can dock the E7 so that you could utilize the DAC in the E7 while using the more powerful amp in the E9.

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post #3 of 14
1/7/11 at 9:02pm
Thread Starter 

so the E9 itself is not a DAC?

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post #4 of 14
1/7/11 at 9:17pm

No. It functions just as an amp.
 

Quote:
Originally Posted by minwyn View Post

so the E9 itself is not a DAC?

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post #5 of 14
1/7/11 at 10:23pm
Thread Starter 

i would only need the E9 if i want to power headphones that are >200ohms, is that correct?

 

i guess what i'm trying to figure out is to get just the E7 or E7+E9, i'll be using it mostly with my Mac desktop, Windows laptop, and iPhone, and all my headphones are under 200ohms

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post #6 of 14
1/7/11 at 11:42pm

It's not just the impedance, some headphones that have only 50 ohms as impendance are extremely power-hungry. If you tell people what headphones you have, perhaps someone with the same headphone(s) can contribute and let you know whehter they need a desktop amp to sound good.

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post #7 of 14
1/8/11 at 12:18am
The E9 is amp only. Unless you have a line out on your devices, hooking up the E9 to a headphone jack is doing your sound quality more harm than good. The E7 (or another DAC) is essential if you don't have a decent soundcard with a line out. The E7 just happens to pair well with the E9 for obvious reasons.
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post #8 of 14
1/8/11 at 12:30am

There is also an optional dock for ipod that can replace the E7 dock. 

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post #9 of 14
1/8/11 at 3:58am
Thread Starter 

thanks guys, i have a grado sr80i, audio technica ath-m50, sony mdr-v6, and ue triple fi 10

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post #10 of 14
1/8/11 at 4:16am

Not sure on the triple fi, but to my (very limited) knowledge none of the headphones you have NEED an amp to sound good, but they will benefit from one.

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post #11 of 14
1/27/11 at 6:54pm

Not sure about the others, but the Sony's work if you just put the cord in your hand and hum loudly. They're easy.evil_smiley.gif

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post #12 of 14
1/27/11 at 11:37pm

@ minwyn:

 

i'd go with the fiio e7 or nubert icon udac2 (slightly better i suppose), or wait for the e17 later this year..

 

as dscythe mentioned, none of these phones/iem need a powerful amp. so a dac/mini-amp like e7 would fit best for a computer/iphone-setup imo...and there are the ibasso's, too...

 

btw, if you buy new n better n bigger headphones you still could upgrade your amp section (e.g. w/ e9  (only with e7) or else)

 

good luck!

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post #13 of 14
1/28/11 at 8:27pm

I also have TripleFi 10's which are 32ohms but have tested up to 64.5 ohms

Tomorrow I should receive a pair of Denon AH-D2000 headphones which are 25ohms

 

Been looking at the E7 and E9 combo but wish there was something just as good or better that has:

More inputs

Pre-out (this is optional)

One unit

Very good DAC

OP amp rollable (though not sure if I would utilize it)

Good battery life like the E7

Enough power if I decide to get some high ohm headphones

As portable as the E7

Not too crazy of a price

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post #14 of 14
1/29/11 at 8:45pm

I've recently picked up a HD 595, E7 and L3. Would getting the E9 be a viable buy for me?

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