What's the most powerful battery powered amp/DAC combo available right now? iFi iDSD?
Jul 28, 2017 at 1:34 PM Post #2 of 11
The Ifi iDSD Micro or black label is going to be hard to best. Either of those is capable of over 1 Watt into anything under 100Ohm. The next step down is probably the XDuoo XD-05 which is a bit more potent than the nano but well behind the iDSD micro.
 
Aug 5, 2017 at 3:24 PM Post #3 of 11
One more question:

The iFi DSD supposedly has a total power output of 4W @ 16 ohms. The Schiit Magni 2 Uber apparently has a power output of 2.1W @ 16 ohms per channel. Does this mean they have roughly equivalent output assuming both measurements are measured in RMS?
 
Aug 5, 2017 at 4:59 PM Post #4 of 11
No, it would mean that the iFi DSD is roughly double the output of the Magni 2U. if the iFi was rated as 4watt at 16 and the Magni at 2watts at 50 then you'd have similar power outputs as watts tends to drop at a rate faster than impedence rises.
 
Aug 5, 2017 at 6:32 PM Post #5 of 11
So the rating of the iFi DSD is also per channel? My understanding is that the Magni 2U's rating per channel meant that it put 2W into the left and the right channel each, making 4W total, and that the rating of the iFi DSD was 4W total, meaning 2W per channel, just like the Magni 2U.
 
Aug 5, 2017 at 6:33 PM Post #6 of 11
I believe that is correct but it might be worth shooting iFi an email to confirm.
 
Aug 6, 2017 at 12:56 AM Post #7 of 11
IFI imicro idsd black label / non black label is the most powerful portable Dac/Amp. 4w total @ 16 ohms. It will drive almost anything to ear bleeding levels. I have the IFI imicro idsd (silver) and ordered the black label - they have same power output. It is rather large and thick. More like transportable than portable. It will not fit inside your pockets, unless you like to wear pants with 10 inch deep and 5 inch wide pockets with some cooling vents.
 
Aug 6, 2017 at 5:04 AM Post #8 of 11
Those headphones have 108db/1mw sensitivity at 16 Ohms. They need next to zero power to get seriously loud. A 4W amp (assuming it could output that amount of power at the impedance of the headphones) would destroy the headphones at full output.

Code:
Listening Loudness      Voltage Needed  Current Needed    Power Needed 
Safe         85 dB SPL  0.01 Vrms        0.63 mA           0.01 mW
Moderate    100 dB SPL  0.05 Vrms        3.13 mA           0.16 mW
Fairly Loud 110 dB SPL  0.16 Vrms          10 mA            1.6 mW
Very Loud   115 dB SPL  0.28 Vrms        17.5 mA            4.9 mW
Painful     120 dB SPL   0.5 Vrms       31.25 mA          15.63 mW
 
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Aug 6, 2017 at 1:49 PM Post #9 of 11
Yeah, but here's the deal - if you check my signature you'll see that I have them subtractive EQ'd down about -18 to -24dB so that I can turn them into seriously powerful sub-bass cans, so their sensitivity in turn is drastically reduced, to the tune of requiring somewhere between 64 and 256x the amount of power to get to the same volume.
 
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Aug 7, 2017 at 7:20 AM Post #10 of 11
That means you need gain, not power. :)

I think something with a high-voltage maximum output should do you, eg: A Mojo. The best thing to do would be to work out the calculations for the maximum voltage you need output and see what has voltage output specs listed.
 
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May 26, 2020 at 3:10 PM Post #11 of 11
The Ifi iDSD Micro or black label is going to be hard to best. Either of those is capable of over 1 Watt into anything under 100Ohm. The next step down is probably the XDuoo XD-05 which is a bit more potent than the nano but well behind the iDSD micro.
I just got a micro dsd black label. This plus lcd-2f is my end game. This thing (both the dsd black label and the lcd-2f is...... best thing Ive heard, ever. Even better than most high end speakers (aside from actual physical impact)
 

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