FiiO E17 "ALPEN" - First Impression + Final Thought - Page 234

lol.  i still can't believe that guy who cut out velcro and put it on the back of his E17 sold it for like $250 -_-

 

mine included the toslink cables and adapters and the fiio tshirt....hahaha.  such a sell-out...i know -_-

Ditto. Got mine from MiccaStore as well. Had no use for the toslink/t-shirt/etc. any longer, so I included them, too. Have you shipped your E17 yet? It cost me about $7.50 to ship mine (unit/contents in the original box, wrapped inside the t-shirt, placed in a plain manilla envelope) via USPS Parcel Post (I think it was). I threw away those black rubber bands that came with the unit, though, because I failed to realize that they had any potential purpose/use. I hope my buyer doesn't miss them. :p

 

In response to your upgrade question, after taking much advice from users here, I decided to upgrade to the Matrix M-Stage (with LM4562 opamp) and the HRT Music Streamer II+ (cost me about $550 combined) to match my AKG Q701 headphones... guess I could've saved $150 if I had not opted for the "plus" version of the HRT MS2, though.

 

And of course, there are always myriad other upgrade options. This is just my experience.

 

Edited by wilky61 - 5/20/12 at 3:49pm

I think it's been covered much earlier in this thread or perhaps in another thread, but I though I'd post it anyhow.

 

Below is the kludge I've worked up to get digital audio out of my iPad and into my E17.  Luckily, I'm not in the habit of trying to lug this around with me, but it's nice to know I can if I want to.

 

 

1. iPad 1 WiFi 64GB (from Apple)

2. iPad Camera Connection Kit (from Apple)

3. GearHead UH2100 4-port USB 2.0 Hub (from Fry's Electronics) [Any hub should work]

4. Targus APB25US Battery Backup (also from Fry's) [Cheapest one I could find]

5. FiiO E17 DAC/Amp (from B&H Photo)

6. Hosa MHE-100.5 1/8" right angle to 1/4" adapter (from Best Buy) [Optional, reduces stress on E17 output jack]

7. Sennheiser HD598 (from Amazon) [Substitute your own cans]

8. 2x USB A to 1x Mini B Cable (from my own supplies, like this one on Newegg)

 

How To

1) Turn USB charging off on E17

2) Connect items 2 through 8

    (Ensure the power USB connector is in the battery backup and the data USB connector is in the hub)

3) Turn on E17

4) Push button on Targus battery backup

5) Connect items 1 and 2 (Battery has to be feeding E17 before connecting the iPad)

 

What's Happening

The battery backup supplies the E17 with the 5 V, 150 mA it uses (even with USB charging off).

I really thought this would work without the hub, but alas, it does not.  I don't know exactly what the hub is doing in this setup (e.g. ensuring the battery doesn't try to charge the iPad or some other sort of electrical/signal isolation) - regardless, it's required.

This specific battery backup is rated at 3.7 V, 2000 mAh, so by my calculations, it will keep the E17 going to 9+ hours in this setup (make sure to turn USB charging off).

 

-IKE

 

wooow.  was it worth it?  how much was the stuff you needed total?  can you tell a difference?

 

Yes.  iPad CCK $30, USB Hub $8, Battery $40, Cable ~$5.  So, $50-80, depending on what you already have.  I would have bought the camera connection kit anyway.  This was mostly a "can I do it?" project for me.  I usually just take my Shure SE215 in-ear phones around with my iPad in my backpack.

 

Can I tell a difference?

Short answer: Yes.

Medium answer: I'm new to the audiophile scene.  I have little to no experience and I'm new to the terminology.  I notice the difference in the extreme highs (Dream Theater's "6:00" - cymbals are crisper/tighter) and lows (Gorillaz' "Dare" - Opening bass is really deep) and sometimes in the timbre of string instruments (namely when Yo-yo Ma plays Bach's 1st cello suite, it's just stringier and fuller).

Long answer: Maybe I'll make my first attempt at a review/comparison between digital out and LO later.  I had some difficulties comparing because the LO is quieter than digital from the iPad, and I don't want to control the volume through the iPad (digital out allows this, LO= vol disabled on iPad).  I had to set the E17 5 steps higher on AUX input to get equivalent loudness.

Edited by IKE60 - 5/21/12 at 8:02am

thank you :)  bravo :D

Hi,

 

Primarily use my FiiO E17 to drive the HiFiMan EF2A at work (via the L7 Line out add on) where I use a set of Beyerdynamic DT1350's.

Question is...

 

Has anyone used the FiiO E17 as a "serious" external DAC device?

 

Reason why I ask, is that I was thinking of connecting the SPDIF output of my Squeezebox II into it and then using it to drive my current Hi-Fi set-up (Leema Pulse amplifier, Celestion SL6S speakers on Custom Design speaker stands) and I was wondering if anybody had done any comparison tests against Hi-Fi DACs like the ones from Rega, Cambridge Audio,etc

Be interested to know if anyone has done any comparison listening tests and how the E17 comes out, if it is poor against "puka" DACs then I guess I will have to go down the HiFi DAC route and purchase one, but if it holds it's head up there with them then I need not bother.

 

Many thanks

 

Sys

 

Is there a way for me to check if my model is built with the new sockets?

 

Thanks!

Ike,

 

thank you very much for sharing this. I had also concluded much earlier in this thread that the USB hub was required. Yesterday I went out to buy a collection of usb plugs, mini-plugs and cable shrink wrap to create a very similar bespoke version. I will take them back and just order a Y-cable now.

 

It occurs to me that for use in a hotel I don't need the external battery pack. I can just plug the Y-cable in to my iPad charger.  Result !!!

 

Only possible complication is that the USB cable does need to be good quality. I had always rubbished the idea that USB cables can sound different. Then last week I mistakenly used a cheapo USB between DAC and iPAD. I couldn't work out why the sound from the E17 had such a ragged top end, then I realised what I had done.

 

Ian
 

I'm currently using the E17 with my Beyerdynamic DT990 Pro 250ohms, however I can hardly notice a difference in SQ than I did without the amp, especially on my phone. Kind of dissapointed. I know that there's not much more I can do with my phone, but will I benefit from getting an E9 to dock the E17 for desktop use?

 

correct me if I'm wrong, but an amp doesn't really improve sound quality nor is it supposed to.  It's supposed to give you more power to drive your headphones--you might get some changes in the balance of the headphones, but I don't think anyone is gonna hear any actual improvement in quality)...that is up to your source, interconnects, and DAC.      If you set up your computer to use the E17 as a DAC with the highest sound settings, I'm guessing you're gonna see the most quality improvement there. 

 

E9 will add even more power...but again won't make your sound quality better.  I use 12dB gain and it makes me enjoy my music more b/c of the more full and engaging/alive sound it gives to my music.  As long as there is no distortion or audible added noise, then I think that's optimal

 

I think it depend what you want from an amp, 

 

1, Usually, an amp is to help you get the 100% sound quality from your setup, or you can think, if you buy a very good headphone, it does not means you will get 100% sound quality from it unless it is 100% drove. 

 

2, Another situation is, some amp can change the sound , it is not designed to " improve " the sound quality , for example, a tube amp will make the sound become warm and slowly .

 

Just my opinion.

I agree.  it helps you get the full potential of your setup.  but doesn't necessarily mean improve sound QUALITY.

 

thanks

Interconnects and DAC are going to have a smaller impact on sound quality than an amp.
Interconnects are not going to do much, because I don't see why they would. (cables tend to have a rather flat frequency response in consumer applications).
DAC's are so technologically advanced that most decent ones are essentially completely linear to the ear. I.e. the distortion/noise/frequency response are linear enough not to cause audible changes in sound.

Amps can cause a difference, as it tends to be more difficult to create a high specced amp than it is to get a DAC. But, if the engineer wants to go the SS route, and aims for transparency, then it shouldn't be at all difficult to create something that doesn't audibly affect the sound apart from applying gain.

If by 'source' you mean the recording it self and any DSP's applied to it, then yes, you are correct.