Another question - just a fun question for discussion that's been on my mind for a while - thought maybe some of you would have thoughts. For those of you familiar with the old ADS speakers (710/810/400, etc), what would you say are headphone 'equivalents' to this sound. Whatever you call it -...

Love the sound of the Ayre Codex DAC as a DAC. I know I researched this, but can't remember what I found - would it track with you guys that an amp section like that on the Codex would maybe not be capable enough to bring out the best of either of these 'phones (Focal Clear or LCD-X). I am not...

You can get external hard drives that work with iPhone for pretty cheap, but I'm not sure whether or not they could be used to expand Tidal offline storage or not. Has anyone tried or accomplished this? Thanks

I feel sort of weird just sticking them in the package, but don't think I should throw them out and not return them either.

Short simple question for those who have heard both.

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So I have the Final e3000s - sound fantastic, but haven’t gotten that much use and they are distorting, crackling, etc. $30 so whatever, but it doesn’t make me want to invest in $500 buds from them. Which brand do you think has the best standard of build quality, from low end to high models?

Somehow I missed that these exist. Have been messing around with a NW-ZX2 for a long while now trying to get the Qobuz app to function normally on it, and it's a fruitless pursuit. Would just as soon pair a Sony portable DAC/amp (PHA-3, PHA-2, PHA-1A) with the iPhone and be done with it. Do...

I love the sound of the Sony NW-ZX2, but it's past its prime. I am just curious if anyone who is familiar with this DAP is aware of a portable-sized iPhone DAC/dongle whose sound (which is all I care about) compares favorably to the sound of that DAP. Thanks to any who respond.

I read that there is a DAC chip in the lightning adapter itself, meaning I am assuming that the signal coming out of the port on an iPhone itself is digital, not analog. Can anyone confirm this? I am just trying to think through some things and this question is relevant. Thanks

Person keeps relisting them alternately as 10s and Xs https://www.ebay.com/itm/153912227730

Probably not something I'm going to attempt to have done anyway, but the concept of re-shelling seemed confusing to me when I assumed all CIEMs were solid body. Now I understand that many are hollow. In the case of solid body ones (where the acrylic/resin completely surrounds the drivers), it...

The two I know of are: https://crinacle.com/rankings/iems/ http://www.aboutaudio.org/at-a-glance-iem-shoot-out/ Are there others that rank/rate a high number of IEMs? Might be useful to have em all in one place. If you know of one, post the link and I can put them all in the main post. I’m...

Seen a lot of reference to this. Dynamic driver?

Trying to save myself a bit of trouble after attempting to buy a pair of Shure SE535s - I have given up after buying *five* separate pairs of counterfeits (including a new pair from Amazon and a used pair from B&H photo). Now looking at Etymotics and just curious if this problem exists for that...

Sorry, as I’m sure this is well covered territory, but I have been going in circles trying to figure out the answer by reading old threads, with no luck. The question: Does the Astell & Kern AK100ii (not the Mark II, which I think is different) support offline streaming for Qobuz? Also if...

Sort of a shot in the dark that someone's in a position to compare these two options, but wondering if anybody has any opinion on this at all. I am thinking I will spend like $200 on an amp. Used with Model 17 8 Ohm speakers. I am thinking about: -Emotiva BasX A-100 -Adcom GFA-535 with a...

Very new to assembling component chains. Do I need an additional preamp? Original sound source is MacBook Pro. Speakers are Cambridge Soundworks Model 17 (8 Ohms).

Just 1's and 0's? Assuming everything works, playing same quality of files, uninterrupted WiFi, the sound should be identical, right? I am aware people are having some issues with the new iOS updates, but that aside, it should be the same if everything is working?

I am a little lost in the world of amps & preamps. I am looking to go out of my MacBook Pro into a Musical Fidelity V90-DAC, then add _________________ (some kind of amp/pre-amp whatever you call it apparatus) to power Cambridge Soundworks Model 17 (8 Ohm) speakers. Could anyone throw out a unit...

I was looking at a DAC like the Resonessence Herus which has a built-in headphone amp. I'm not using it for headphones, but rather to go between a MacBook Pro and a receiver. Should I avoid this one? Also is a tiny DAC like this a good pick if I am not concerned at all about portability? What I...

I have a great Nakamichi A/V unit (AV 8) I got on the cheap - I have been able to get very good sound going from my MacBook Pro via Toslink from the headphone jack, for a direct signal. I had been looking into DACs like the V90-DAC to give another big boost, though. But I had always been...

I am looking at some DACs at the moment - I know there are some that support MQA, but not sure if this is even necessary or not, since the source i'll be playing it out of MacBook Pro does. Anyone know how this works? Will signal be degraded by not having a MQA-capable DAC?

So currently my best-sounding setup (sounds amazing) is a Marantz CD5001 into a Nakamichi AV-8 with some entry-level Cambridge Soundworks speakers. This sounds fantastic. Using Deezer HiFi streaming service, I plug my 2012 MacBook Pro into the Aux input on the Nakamichi, and it does not come...

Does anyone know what the differences are here? Am putting together a balanced cable for Pono/HD600. I don't know what any of these terms mean!