[SKilleT]

Hello,
 
I recently returned the XB-90EX, which had an amazing bass but so so sound quality, and then purchased the XBA-40 from amazon.
 
However, now I got them and they sound good but not what I expected for a $235 headphones.
 
I think it is because of my phone, Galaxy Note 1 N7000, so I was wondering of what kind of AMP I should pair it with ?
 
I plugged it into my brother's IPhone 5 and the sound is just like 10x better. So I wanted it to sound like the Iphone 5 or at least close to it.
 
What I did is I went to Amazon and purchased the Fiio E11.
 
Did I make the right choice ? Will I notice any difference ? What setting I should use the Fioo E11 on ?
 
Thank you.

 

[SKilleT]

Please help ? I can still cancel the order; that is why I am needing the help ASAP.
 
Thank you.

 

[H20Fidelity]

E11 is a decent amp, but there's a lot more to the different sound you're hearing between the two sources, such as their output power, output impedance and DAC each one use. Your XBA-40 are 8ohms and require a source with very low output impedance . E11 does have low output impedance, but you don't need that much power. You'd also be double amping from the Galaxy Note headphone out which is a completely different story. I would recommend canceling and look at the little Sansa Clip+ or Zip players which get high praise here and also cheaper than E11.

 

[SKilleT]

The problem is that I am using Spotify as my source of music. I have 0 mp3 music. all my music is through Spotify which can not be used on MP3 devices....
 
So my question now is: Will adding the Fiio E11 be a bad choice and make the sound bad ?

 

[H20Fidelity]

Well at 8ohms you really don't need that much power, you can try amping them and see the results, it may possibly clean up the signal but I can't promise it'll be an improvement. I know of another amp which you might want to look at, but it cost a little more than E11, a majority of people who came from E11 upgraded to C&C BH, I've used BH on XBA3 with good results. You can check it out in the link below.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/644363/c-c-bh-portable-headphone-amp-80-hours-from-a-single-charge-buyer-review
 

 

[SKilleT]

LOL I went to cancel my order from Amazon and it told me that I can't cancel it
 
I will return it, sell my phone, and buy Sony Xperia Z.
 
Will the Sony Xperia Z have a better sound you think than the Galaxy Note 1 ?
 
Thanks.

 

[Migou67]

I use a Sony F807 and a Galaxy Note2 (Wolfson) with my XBA-4, without sound treatment the F807 sound much better than the Note2, where the sound is too bright and definitely lack bass. But using a free DSP software like Noozxoide on the Note2 to increase the bass and the soundstage, the result is not to bad at all and surprisingly good to my ears

 

[SKilleT]

Well, I just got the Fioo e11 and there is HUGE improvement. The bass is awesome now and it's brighter. I don't know if I am using the correct setting on the Fioo e11 but I chose to put gain on Hi and EQ on 1.
 
When I put the gain on Lo then it would be dark. But if on Hi it is slightly brighter. And the EQ on 1 bring the BASS to life.
 
Thank you all.

 

[NAIRB]

Hi, I own an xba 40, fiio e11 and an xperia z1... but the sound quality inst so good... so what is the best amp/dac for the xba 40?? Is the sony pha 1 good to drive these in-ears??

 

[DrGenerico]

I know this is an ancient post but I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents. The E11 does not come close to unlocking the bass potential of the XBA 40. I use a Fiio X1 as a source and had an E11 that has since been replaced with an E12 and oddly neither of these compared to the E07k when it came to bass. The E12 is great for cans, but when it comes to powering IEMs there is a lot of EMI that the E07k doesn't have, also the bass can be set to ridiculous levels and the XBA's will handle it (with some eq manipulation). These are the best IEMs I've ever heard for electronic music. The separation of the instruments is so clear, however the sound signature is very dark. The eq I usually set up for sub bass ends up being very V-shaped. When I want to listen to music that isn't electronic or hip hop I usually switch to a pair of dynamic driver IEMs and flatten out the eq on the X1 and the E07k.