[guido]

what is the easiest way to convert .dff to .dsf ?

 

[Sakadagami]

Hi there, this is my first post here as a owner of a DX50. First of all I want to thank you all what you share here; as newbie I'm learning a lot and it makes me have good times.
Very happy with the device. I have to say that the release policy of Ibasso is making I enjoy more than maybe with another "perfect" product that doesn't evolve. Funny to see here the impression we have after every release.
I'm thinking to get a k545. Do you know if it pairs nicely with the DX50?.
Ah, and sorry for my English.

 

[fightwithdogma]

  Hi there, this is my first post here as a owner of a DX50. First of all I want to thank you all what you share here; as newbie I'm learning a lot and it makes me have good times.
Very happy with the device. I have to say that the release policy of Ibasso is making I enjoy more than maybe with another "perfect" product that doesn't evolve. Funny to see here the impression we have after every release.
I'm thinking to get a k545. Do you know if it pairs nicely with the DX50?.
Ah, and sorry for my English.

I currently use the DX50 with a K551 and I have to say this is a surprsingly beast combo. Sound is crisp clear and full, soundstage is awesome for a closed HP, bass punches and is not heavy at all, more like dry (that can be an issue for some people). Also, some people had problems with the trebles on it. At the time I had to choose between a Sennheiser momentum and the old k551, I didn't hesitate.
 
According to the reviews on here, the k545 is correcting the bass issues that the k550/551 has, while keeping the same sound quality and signature.
So definitely give it a try, it theorically may be better.

 

[guido]

  what is the easiest way to convert .dff to .dsf ?

ok, got it...Audiogate for Mac 

 

[headwhacker]

I was just doing some serious listening on 1.2.8 and did some AB testing between the DX50's HO and the LO/UHA-6SMKII.
 
At the same volume level in DX50 (210) and matching the HO and amp volume using the SPL Meter (iPhone app) at around 77 dB, I can say it is really difficult to hear any difference (in terms of SQ, soundstage, instrument separation and depth). You will need tracks with a lot of instruments playing to even hear the smallest of difference. The bass might be a little bit tighter with the LO/amp but on casual listening you will not notice any difference.
 
On a proper blind testing I don't think anyone can tell a difference. I'm now 100% convinced 1.2.8 truly is the best FW to date.
 
However, there is still an advantage using the LO/amp( in this case with UHA-6S). If I turn the volume level in DX50 all the way up to 255 and then attenuate the volume knob on the amp so that the output volume is still around 77 dB the difference gets a little bit more obvious. On this setup the bass is much more tighter, slam more forceful, the mids a bit cleaner and more details being resolved in the highs it seem. Also the instrument separation is more obvious and each instrument can be heard clearly and does not interfere or mask another. Overall, the sound is a bit better.
 
Of course, if you want the pristine pocketable DAP setup, DX50 + 1.2.8 is tough to beat and an amp is not needed unless you want to use a full size headphone that requires more power than the internal amp of DX50 can provide.

 

[serafko]

  Hi there, this is my first post here as a owner of a DX50. First of all I want to thank you all what you share here; as newbie I'm learning a lot and it makes me have good times.
Very happy with the device. I have to say that the release policy of Ibasso is making I enjoy more than maybe with another "perfect" product that doesn't evolve. Funny to see here the impression we have after every release.
I'm thinking to get a k545. Do you know if it pairs nicely with the DX50?.
Ah, and sorry for my English.

Hi, i have both, K550 and K545. I use K545 with DX50 and K550 with laptop eq-ing a few db at about 8khz. I alo have NAD HP50, but like K545 a little more.

 

[musicheaven]

I thought you went back to using DX50 HO only and retired the LO/amp with 1.2.8.

I did but how am going to explain my amp purchase now

 

[ratinox]

ratinox,

What about the numerous other reasons for adding an 'technically unnecessary' amp like: "more detail", "deeper bass", "better highs", "better soundstage", etc, etc ?  

An amplifier's purpose is to amplify power. If you're looking for an amplifier to do anything other that this then you're throwing good money after bad. All of these other things are just ways to rationalize spending money that would be better spent elsewhere such as components that sound good to you in the first place.

 

[ratinox]

A rose by any other name is still a rose. The idea behind the design of an amp is that it should in theory take the load for the earphones that are available on the market without having to whistle is way trough. Granted it's hard to make an amp that is able to provide a relatively large range of input loads but with today's technology it should be able to do so. Therefore I would classify this as a design limitation.

There is no amplifier design that can drive everything equally well. It's simply not possible. A perfect amplifier would require ideal components, unlimited power and unlimited heat dissipation. These things don't exist in reality. It is for this reason that every amplifier is designed to operate within a set of power and load constraints. If you use a speaker driver that is outside of a given audio amplifier's constraints then you will get substandard results. This is not a flaw in either the amplifier or the driver. The error is the mismatch.

And if it is not solvable, itwill make me gravitate towards another player if I can't take the idea of a stack or to plug an amp onto it and still enjoy the player as long as it has a clean line out.

Likewise, there is no such thing as a clean line out. Every analog electrical signal carries some noise from internal components and external interference. Whether or not you can hear this noise depends on... well, I've already described the science behind that.

 

[musicheaven]

Oh I thought an amplifier's job was to amplify input signals?
There are some users who are interested in hooking up the amp from the DAC outputs because they believe that there are better amps out there than the source vendor.

 

[jamato8]

An amplifier's purpose is to amplify power. If you're looking for an amplifier to do anything other that this then you're throwing good money after bad. All of these other things are just ways to rationalize spending money that would be better spent elsewhere such as components that sound good to you in the first place.

That may be an amplifiers purpose but as we know, not all are created equal. If you can take a line out to a better external, then you may well achieve better detail, if there is more detail that the less than perfect internal amp is transmitting and the same for external amps. There are many variables and while in absolute terms, an amplifier is as its name implies but in reality it is many other things with an often improved sound in frequency range, bass control, etc. etc. and etc. 

 

[musicheaven]

There is no amplifier design that can drive everything equally well. It's simply not possible. A perfect amplifier would require ideal components, unlimited power and unlimited heat dissipation. These things don't exist in reality. It is for this reason that every amplifier is designed to operate within a set of power and load constraints. If you use a speaker driver that is outside of a given audio amplifier's constraints then you will get substandard results. This is not a flaw in either the amplifier or the driver. The error is the mismatch.
Likewise, there is no such thing as a clean line out. Every analog electrical signal carries some noise from internal components and external interference. Whether or not you can hear this noise depends on... well, I've already described the science behind that.

You must have a lot of time in your hands googling all that information you throw in these threads. Thanks for your input but no thanks I'll run with what I have.

 

[ratinox]

Oh I thought an amplifier's job was to amplify input signals?
There are some users who are interested in hooking up the amp from the DAC outputs because they believe that there are better amps out there than the source vendor.

Just to make a point: all op-amps sound the same. They really do. The differences we hear come from the implementations of different amplifier designs: power, gain, attenuation, noise filtering and so forth. For example, wiring the Liquid Gold's op-amp into a cMoy design will make it sound different from the LG. So yes, I agree that there are better amplifier designs than the one in DX50. There are also worse designs out there.

But that's the point. headwhacker suggests you should pick the best headphones that you can afford and then match the player to them. I suggest picking the player you want and then find headphones that sound good with it. Either way, maybe DX50 isn't good match for a given set of headphones. That's not DX50's fault. It's not really the headphones' fault, either. The fault is the poor match.

 

[ratinox]

You must have a lot of time in your hands googling all that information you throw in these threads. Thanks for your input but no thanks I'll run with what I have.

Lots of time with a Radio Shack 150-in-1 electronics kit and a year as a double-E major. I still remember making my first crystal radio with that kit.
I have used Google and Wikipedia to check myself before posting but the basics are still in my head.

 

[penchant]

Double post, delete