[SillyHoney]

I'm having an iPhone 3GS and Gamma-2. I had Gamma-1 Lite before. My house mate has a Macbook Pro 2009 which I can listen to extensively and I have a Sony Vaio FW.

I rank their DAC in the following order:

Sony Vaio FW (really sucks!!!) - iPhone 3GS (sucks!!!) - Macbook Pro (very nice for non-dedicated audiophile DAC) - Gamma-1 Lite (around Macbook Pro level I think) - Gamma-2 (AMAZING!)

That's for background. What I'm trying to say here is that I find iPhone 3GS (which is considered among the best DAPs) is really bad. I did not know that before I have the Gamma. However after listening to the Gamma for about 2 weeks honestly I can't go back to my iPhone regardless of headphones I use ranging from CK7, AD700 to STAX. The iPhone sounds so laid-back, muddy and weak. All my headphones lose clarity, transparency and separation on my iPhone. They also suffer a great amount loss of frequency response on very low and upper high to high. In other words, all my headphones (even $5 Sony earbud) are different beasts on Gamna-2.

To be honest that's not what I expected since before having the Gamma I always thought iPhone can do the job based on my listening and reading Head-Fi. I'm confused now actually.

So what are your thought?

 

[moonboy403]

Here's my ranking of the DACs I've used:

Accuphase DP57 > Peachtree Audio Nova > Electrocompaniet ECD1 > Paradisea 3+ > The rest I owned

I would rank my 3rd Gen iTouch near the bottom of my food chain but I still think it sounds very good. I wouldn't mind living with just the iTouch.

 

[Ypoknons]

SillyHoney - when testing the DACs, how did you isolate them from the internal amp? I'm assuming you used an LOD?

 

[eucariote]

Yes, I too think my ipod (seriously) sucks.

Here's my impression from another post-

I did some critical listening of John Coltrane's remastered Blue Train with Shure SE530 iems out my uDac, ipod 3g nano and Sony Z690 laptop and was floored by the differences. The Udac had such noticeable improvements in detail and soundstage over the other two sources that I no longer use my ipod for music and would never consider using my $2000 'multimedia' computer headphone jack.

 

[kboe]

I would rank my sources as follows,

Eastern Electric MiniMax CD Player > Headroom Micro DAC > iPod LOD.

They all sound good, but the headroom was better and the MiniMax the Best.

 

[SillyHoney]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ypoknons /img/forum/go_quote.gif SillyHoney - when testing the DACs, how did you isolate them from the internal amp? I'm assuming you used an LOD?

Unfortunately I don't have LOD and I also have a thought the reason for bad sounding might come from internal amp than DAC.

If internal amp sucks it makes more sense for me since there are lots of people claim iPod has great DAC. But at the same time, CK7 and AD700 don't require amp so I don't know to what extend that bad amp can affect the performance on easy to drive headphones.

 

[Ypoknons]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SillyHoney /img/forum/go_quote.gif Unfortunately I don't have LOD and I also have a thought the reason for bad sounding might come from internal amp than DAC. If internal amp sucks it makes more sense for me since there are lots of people claim iPod has great DAC. But at the same time, CK7 and AD700 don't require amp so I don't know to what extend that bad amp can affect the performance on easy to drive headphones.

Well, there's no such thing as 'no amp' unless you like silence

In my experience there's always a bit to be had going from mp3 player to a portable amp, even with IEMs and especially with efficient headphones, it's just not worth the bother for me to plunk down a chunk of cash and carry the thing around with me. When I move around, I don't want too much clutter. Nevertheless I think the effects of an iPod internal amp should be isolated, yes.

 

[nikongod]

Joking:
The DAC in the Ipod/Iphone is the best dac ever.

 

[techenvy]

the itouch head out sounds better than u might think, and in some cases as good as some portable mini amps, but there are many more powerful portables that will better it. i think some people overlook how descent the head out on the itouch really is'
i tested the 3rd gen i touch head out again, i remember the 2nd gen sounding much better unamped. furthermore i slightly preffered the 2nd gen screen as well.. go figure.

 

[paaj]

I really like the sound out of my iTouch (though it is probably more because of the ESW10 connected

). Comparing the iTouch to a dedicated DAC however, it has a lot less dynamics and sounds dull and lifeless. That is compared to the VDA2 on the Stax set, and a M192 on the speaker system.

It's good to do such comparison once in a while to remind you that the money is well spent

.

 

[cooperpwc]

This thread is completely misleading. This is not a review of DACs. It is a review of headphone outs (i.e. integrated DAC-amp solutions).

And IMHO the 3GS headphone out is remarkably good when used with quality IEMs. Many on here agree. The OP is entitled to his opinion but as presented: wrong topic, wrong forum.

 

[sepinho]

I bought an old Ipod nano 3g from a colleague recently and was surprised how much muddier it sounded compared to my really-low-budget Nationite N1. The N1 has a Sigmatek chip, which is supposed to be pretty good. No idea what the nano is using.

I guess for Ipods, you have to take into consideration what generation you're using. 4g and up are using Wolfsons afaik, which are supposed to be one of best consumer-grade audio chip. What generation is the Iphone 3GS? I've never owned one, so I have no idea. But I would love to get a Wolfson-generation Ipod Touch to try it out.

 

[paaj]

Don't know about SillyHoney, but my comparisons have been with the iTouch plugged into a proper amp, so basically only the source changed. I don't have a LOD, which I admit does make some difference (I had one for my iPod + Hornet but sold those and it didn't fit on the iTouch) but I think I can safely say it is much less good than the VDA2 or M192 I use here.
'Sucks' is a too big word, it's good for what it is but it does lack life and power compared to dedicated DAC's.

 

[sree]

I thought that my iPod/ iPhone out sucked too. Then I got a line out/ dock And ran it through an amp and the sound improved lots. But I have heard better players out there with good headphone out. It is not as bad compared to many others.