Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Headphone Amps (full-size) › E11 vs E9 for Denons?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

E11 vs E9 for Denons?

post #1 of 10
6/19/12 at 10:55am
Thread Starter 

Hi to all headfiers!

 

I recently use Fiio E9 to successfully amp my D7000 but have read some threads about the preference of low output impedance headamps for Denons. Can anyone advise me whether it's worth to try Fiio E11 (which meets this criterion better than E9), or not?

 

Thanks in advance!

Reply

Gear mentioned in this thread:

post #2 of 10
6/20/12 at 1:08am
Thread Starter 

Anyone? smily_headphones1.gif

Reply
post #3 of 10
6/20/12 at 7:59am

The Fiio E9's has a impedance of 10-Ohm.

It's preferred to have headphones that have an Ohm rating that is 8 to 10 times (or more) the Ohm rating of the output jack.

As the Denon AH-D7000 are 25-Ohm, a headphone jack that's impedance is 2.5-Ohms or less is preferred.

and the Fiio E11's impedance (I believe) is 0.5-Ohm.

All my headphones sound good with the E11.

Reply
post #4 of 10
6/20/12 at 8:09am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by PurpleAngel View Post

The Fiio E9's has a impedance of 10-Ohm.

It's preferred to have headphones that have an Ohm rating that is 8 to 10 times (or more) the Ohm rating of the output jack.

As the Denon AH-D7000 are 25-Ohm, a headphone jack that's impedance is 2.5-Ohms or less is preferred.

and the Fiio E11's impedance (I believe) is 0.5-Ohm.

All my headphones sound good with the E11.

 

What you say is true, I know about that... :-) But the point is whether the E11 will sound really better than E9 with Denons, or not. A lot of people say that Fiio E9 works pretty well with D7000 (some even that the amp works better with 25ohm Denon than with a lot of other headphones, that the "synergy" just works here). But I haven't been successful to find out if the suitability of E11 (or other low output impedance amps) really makes something different.

 

Another thing is, that E11 is portable and E9 desktop so maybe E11 is not primarily made for "bigger" headphones for home listening... What do you think about that, do you consider E11 being good enough to use it as a main amp even with D7000?


Edited by MHOE - 6/20/12 at 8:11am
Reply
post #5 of 10
6/20/12 at 11:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MHOE View Post

What you say is true, I know about that... :-) But the point is whether the E11 will sound really better than E9 with Denons, or not. A lot of people say that Fiio E9 works pretty well with D7000 (some even that the amp works better with 25ohm Denon than with a lot of other headphones, that the "synergy" just works here). But I haven't been successful to find out if the suitability of E11 (or other low output impedance amps) really makes something different.

 

Another thing is, that E11 is portable and E9 desktop so maybe E11 is not primarily made for "bigger" headphones for home listening... What do you think about that, do you consider E11 being good enough to use it as a main amp even with D7000?

As I do not own a E9 or a 25-Ohm Denon headphone, I really can't say on how well they work together, so others who have tried that combo have a more valid opinion then mine.

Fiio may just have done a really good job of designing the E9

I've used my Fiio E11 with my DT770 250-Ohm and DT990 250-Ohm.

So the Fiio E11 is not lacking in ability to drive headphones.

For $13, on eBay, you can get two spare batteries (BK-5B) and a battery recharger for use with the E11.

I think it's more down to price and use, the E9 costs more, but do not have to deal with recharging.

E11 cheaper and more portable.


Edited by PurpleAngel - 6/20/12 at 11:34am
Reply
post #6 of 10
6/20/12 at 11:38am
Thread Starter 

I see... I think the only way is just to buy and try. Will do that most probably :-)

Reply
post #7 of 10
6/21/12 at 7:18am

I used to own and E9 and used it to drive my Denon D2000.  I am not sure if it was an impedance mismatch, or just the sound of the amp, but when I switched to an amp that had a low output impedance (a Meier Corda Arietta) it sounded much clearer than the E9.  I still don't know if this was because of amp design or an impedance mismatch.  Also, I am afraid that I have never heard the E11.

Reply
post #8 of 10
6/21/12 at 7:30am

You don't need the E9's excess power output to drive the D2000.  The D2000 is a very sensitive headphone.

Reply
post #9 of 10
6/22/12 at 2:05pm
Thread Starter 

So I finally received Fiio E11 :-) As far as I can tell it is a clear upgrade in a question of both bass and overall accuracy... Quite cleaner and maybe a bit more balanced. But E9 was doing really well, I don't see anything wrong about its performance - nothing TOTALLY worse or scandal... Rather cosmetical changes to the better side with E11 (even with good cable, soundcard and headphones).

 

I finally consider the impedance match working (yes, the music now sounds even more musical, it is hearable from the first second). But I am really not going to spend 1000+ dollars on some "hyper-audiophilistic superamp" that can FOR SURE transform your music into something HIGHER! beyersmile.png

 

 

EDIT: E9 sounds more powerful, you can feel it even with D7000 as an enjoyable aspect, it's A BIT more dynamic... But E11 gives more bass detail and overal clearance to the sound, reveals some hidden details. To sum up, it is not possible to estimate a CLEAR winner - it just depends... Both amps sound really well :-)


Edited by MHOE - 6/22/12 at 2:39pm
Reply
post #10 of 10
6/23/12 at 12:28pm
Thread Starter 

Today I tuned the IsonePro plugin's setting to better match E11's characteristics (differences to E9) and wow! - the separation, clarity of each instrument and bass richness is totally outstanding... I am really surprised - for that money E11 does wonders, absolutely! The only thing that E11 has a bit worse is higher level of flatness in the sound - but it is possible to reduce it successfully with IsonePro or other useful plugin...

Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Headphone Amps (full-size)

Gear mentioned in this thread:

Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Headphone Amps (full-size) › E11 vs E9 for Denons?