[sebek]

EDIT

 

[d-a07]

Sorry that one of the photos isn’t focused very well but this is for anyone who wants to know what’s inside a cobalt.

Cool picture. Crazy what is inside those small DACs.

 

[Nuhapaatti]

Hi everyone!

Is it possible to feed, I say, Topping A30Pro with DFB v1.5? Output is around one voltage but I haven't been to the hobby too long to make sense out of input sensitivity of Topping A30Pro >< output of DFB.

Thank you everyone for your advice!

 

[buke9]

Sure not a problem as it will work . The DFB is only 1.5 v as normal line out is 2v so it will not be as powerful and the output of the amp will not be as much as it will be like turning the computer volume down to 75 % or so with a dac that has 2v output. While your amp is fairly powerful might not be too much of a problem but going to work much harder,

 

[Sajid Amit]

Hi everyone. My first time on this thread. I have recently reviewed the iFi Hip DAC, if it's of interest to anyone. I have a brief comparison to the DF Cobalt here.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/ifi-audio-hip-dac.24211/reviews#review-25877

Please do share feedback if any since I am starting out with reviews!

Reviewing mostly for fun.

 

[Richard Wray]

Is there any news on a dragonfly with a 4.4mm connection?

 

[Lionlian]

for this tiny DAC to be on Stereophile Recommend Class B for many and many more years now, rating for Dragonfly Black must be around 9-10/10

but Cobalt take it to another level and rating is 11/10 (sounds rivalry Chord Mojo)

 

[Slaphead]

Quick question - I've already got a Red, is the upgrade to a Cobalt objectively worth it - it'll primarily be used with Beyer DT1770 and DT1990 headphones.

I'm suspecting not, but I thought I'd ask anyway.

 

[Lionlian]

If you fine with technically 10% better (which can mean 1.5x or 2x for some human ears feeling) then Dragonfly Cobalt would be fine upgrade,

Otherwise if you already love dragonfly red, there is no need for upgrade due to sounds signature is not same (Red is Audiophile/Reference tuning while Cobalt is more natural/Beautiful Euphonic Sound tuning)

 

[Slaphead]

Thanks - I actually prefer a more reference tuning, so I'll save myself a bit of money.

 

[mainguy]

for this tiny DAC to be on Stereophile Recommend Class B for many and many more years now, rating for Dragonfly Black must be around 9-10/10

but Cobalt take it to another level and rating is 11/10 (sounds rivalry Chord Mojo)

No way. I've had both, the cobalt is nowhere near the mojo.

But it's to be expected, tbh, it's a very different product with some serious portable advantages. It's not really competing with the Mojo, and on SQ, it can't.

 

[JohanneMusic]

Hello,

maybe one of you can help me, as I am a bit "desperate": I've had the Dragonfly Red for a few years, which I wanted to upgrade - so I bought the Cobalt, as I've always been very happy with the Red.

I usually use the Dragonflys on my laptop with Windows 10.

I have to admit that I don't really hear a difference between the two Dragonflys on the laptop. There is a nuance here and there, but all in all....

However, things look COMPLETELY different when I use the Dragonflys on my new Samsung Galaxy Tab A7: While the Cobalt plays (almost) the same on the tablet as it does on the laptop (or completely the same) when I listen to music on youtube, the Red sounds SIGNIFICANTLY different/worse on the tablet. The treble is muffled, the bottom end seems bloated, the stage is narrower and flatter, and the singers/instruments are not really "focused".

What is the reason that the Cobalt sounds barely different on the tablet than on the laptop, but the Red plays "gransion" poorly?

Is there anything that can be changed in the settings?

Greetings
Johanne

 

[Bitsir]

Could be

Hello,

maybe one of you can help me, as I am a bit "desperate": I've had the Dragonfly Red for a few years, which I wanted to upgrade - so I bought the Cobalt, as I've always been very happy with the Red.

I usually use the Dragonflys on my laptop with Windows 10.

I have to admit that I don't really hear a difference between the two Dragonflys on the laptop. There is a nuance here and there, but all in all....

However, things look COMPLETELY different when I use the Dragonflys on my new Samsung Galaxy Tab A7: While the Cobalt plays (almost) the same on the tablet as it does on the laptop (or completely the same) when I listen to music on youtube, the Red sounds SIGNIFICANTLY different/worse on the tablet. The treble is muffled, the bottom end seems bloated, the stage is narrower and flatter, and the singers/instruments are not really "focused".

What is the reason that the Cobalt sounds barely different on the tablet than on the laptop, but the Red plays "gransion" poorly?

Is there anything that can be changed in the settings?

Greetings
Johanne

Could be the Cobalt has better power handling or power efficiency, converting less energy into heat and more into sound. That's pure speculation on my part though. I highly recommend the xDuoo Link2Bal (my fave after trying lots of expensive dongles). It's half the price of the Cobalt.

 

[rhadorn]

Hello,

maybe one of you can help me, as I am a bit "desperate": I've had the Dragonfly Red for a few years, which I wanted to upgrade - so I bought the Cobalt, as I've always been very happy with the Red.

I usually use the Dragonflys on my laptop with Windows 10.

I have to admit that I don't really hear a difference between the two Dragonflys on the laptop. There is a nuance here and there, but all in all....

However, things look COMPLETELY different when I use the Dragonflys on my new Samsung Galaxy Tab A7: While the Cobalt plays (almost) the same on the tablet as it does on the laptop (or completely the same) when I listen to music on youtube, the Red sounds SIGNIFICANTLY different/worse on the tablet. The treble is muffled, the bottom end seems bloated, the stage is narrower and flatter, and the singers/instruments are not really "focused".

What is the reason that the Cobalt sounds barely different on the tablet than on the laptop, but the Red plays "gransion" poorly?

Is there anything that can be changed in the settings?

Greetings
Johanne

I have read reviews stating that if you have the red, there is no need to upgrade, the difference being tiny. This is also my experience.

Anyway, to compare the two, you should prabably use a jitterbug with the red (https://www.audioquest.com/streaming-computer-audio/usb-data-power-noise-filter/jitterbug-fmj). This device filters the digital noise polluting the digital stream - the difference with and witouht is audible. Audioquest states they have integrated some of the filter into the cobalt. This may explain the difference between red and cobalt on the tablet. Maybe the USB out of your laptop is not so bad as they usually are, which reduces the difference between red and cobalt.

It seems you are satisfied with the cobalt on the tablet as on the laptop. I don't see any reason to buy another dongle.

Anyway, to make comparisons, I would use some well defined source, like a CD-quality or a 96/24 flac file, depending on what is available to you. Higher resolution would not be treated ba the dragonflies.

 

[megabigeye]

Hello,

maybe one of you can help me, as I am a bit "desperate": I've had the Dragonfly Red for a few years, which I wanted to upgrade - so I bought the Cobalt, as I've always been very happy with the Red.

I usually use the Dragonflys on my laptop with Windows 10.

I have to admit that I don't really hear a difference between the two Dragonflys on the laptop. There is a nuance here and there, but all in all....

However, things look COMPLETELY different when I use the Dragonflys on my new Samsung Galaxy Tab A7: While the Cobalt plays (almost) the same on the tablet as it does on the laptop (or completely the same) when I listen to music on youtube, the Red sounds SIGNIFICANTLY different/worse on the tablet. The treble is muffled, the bottom end seems bloated, the stage is narrower and flatter, and the singers/instruments are not really "focused".

What is the reason that the Cobalt sounds barely different on the tablet than on the laptop, but the Red plays "gransion" poorly?

Is there anything that can be changed in the settings?

Greetings
Johanne

Well, I haven't used either Android or the DFR in a few years, so I can't test anything myself...

To clarify, the only problem is with the Red, and it's only while using the Galaxy Tab A7, and only while using YouTube? What about YouTube on your laptop, does that also sound wrong? Or on your phone?
Sounds like it's probably a software problem. Are you using the YT app, or streaming through a browser? If you're using the app, maybe try using a browser instead (or vice versa) to see if anything changes.
Maybe it's some setting that can be changed?
My guess is that Android uses some codec for YouTube that the DFR isn't fully compatible with.

Sorry I can't be more of a help, but these are the questions I'd try to answer if it were happening to me.