[mojo]

I upgraded to Windows 10 recently and my old soundcard, an Onkyo, stopped working. No drivers. On-board sound seems to be broken. I decided to get a Nobsound ES9018 / ES9023 PD01 off eBay. It's okay but sounds a bit "thin" compared to my old set up. I don't know what the issue is exactly, maybe recessed mids? A bit of EQ hasn't helped.

I have a HEADFIVE amp and a few different pairs of headphones. Sennheiser 495, Fischer FA-011, some ATs I need to get out of the drawer, nothing too fancy. I was happy with the sound from the Onkyo.

I could fit another PCIe/PCI card, but I thought a USB DAC would be good because I might go laptop only in future. I'd take either a straight up DAC, or one with a headphone amp built in as long as it has line out as well.

Any recommendations? Sub 100 would be ideal but I can go higher if it's really worth it.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Schiit Modi +.

 

[dunring]

I have a Sound blaster X1 in the other computer and it's really nice. It goes up to 2.4v when it detects over 150ohm so it can power most things really well. Just not great for low ohm planars since you can't manually set the output.

 

[m-i-c-k-e-y]

For USB, have a look at Khadas Tone series.
For PCIe, at EVGA NU Audio series.

Have a look at USB dongles for even cheaper alternatives (ie. Hidiz, Earmen etc).

 

[Deleeh]

Hello,
I've tried a few Hidisz and they are mediocre rather bad.
The Kahdas sounds good, the Topping E 30 Dac would probably be a bit of what you are looking for, also the Schiit Modi is worthwhile has a bit of a house sound.
And maybe a bit thick all over,the E30 would be a bit thinner in that respect but also warm and neutral.
Ify Hip Dac 2 if you also want to be mobile or their Zen Air series with the Ify Can Air it is a good combo also from the price absolutely solid and worthwhile.
However, it has to be said that their headphones are nothing earth-shattering.
It would also be worthwhile to start there.
It all depends on what you're aiming for, though.
And in which direction it should go and maybe you already have some sound preferences where you say that would be important to you.

With a Meze 99 or 101 something, you are going in a completely different direction to what you currently have, but the rest of the chain should be right to get a solid result.

 

[mojo]

Thank you everyone, some interesting suggestions there. Two for the Modi. I see the current model is the Modi+, I guess the same recommendations go for that too or is it not as good?

One thing that seems good about the Modi+ is that it is powered from USB. I'd rather not bother with a plug in power adapter. The main downside is that it's such a rip-off in the UK. 157 GBP when it's only $125 US.

About Topping. What about the D10s? It seems to do what I need, and is cheaper than the E30. Components seem similar but not identical.

 

[Deleeh]

Hello
The D10s is again an ESS chip, the E30 has an Akm chip which is warmer and a bit thicker in sound.
It is also less peaky in the highs, which would be more comfortable with your headphones.
Since you don't have really good headphones, these headphones tend to be a bit peaked at the top and can cause listening fatigue and also damage your hearing over time.
This tends to happen with Ess chips, which are somewhat analytically tuned.
Even though the E9836 is supposed to be a bit more rounded.
I would rather err on the side of caution until you eventually buy a nice pair of headphones that are more audio oriented.
You will realise that this is much more tolerable for your hearing and you will enjoy it more.

That's a bit of a rookie mistake you make in the beginning and people get disappointed with what they bought because the rest is not right.

You won't go wrong with this one:
https://ifi-audio.com/products/zen-air-dac/

You run it directly via Usb with power, and should be just as sufficient for your first needs. And you should find it in England.

For the rest, if you allow it, this one might make sense for now:
https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Audiophi...d5-89f5-15af48d25591&pd_rd_i=B06XKJ2GK4&psc=1

There are of course other headphones.have now only times roughly a budget for 300€ set up which is quite solid and with the Ifi zen Dac is good to drive without having any losses.

 

[mojo]

Thanks Deleeh. I actually did have a pretty high end set-up at one point, AT-W5000s and various other cans. I just found I kept coming back to the lower end stuff.

How about the TOPPING DX1 Mini? It has both a headphone amplifier and line out, so I can try the headphone amp and if it's no good just use my own. Maybe get rid of one item off my desk. The DAC is an AK4493S, and it seems to have good reviews. The AK4493S appears to be a new version of the AK4493 found in the E30, although the press-release says "totally redesigned" so who knows if it sounds similar or not...

The Zen looks interesting. Only thing, and I know it's silly, the headphone socket is on the wrong side for my set-up. I see they use a US DAC. Historically I've tended to prefer the sound of Japanese gear, which is one more vote for an AKM based device.

 

[mojo]

I went for the Topping DX1 Mini in the end. Arrived today, initial impressions are good. I compared its headphone output to my HEADFIVE and I'd say it's very nice. A little bit more relaxed perhaps, but only very slightly. The DAC part compares well to my old Onkyo card, and doesn't feel obviously weak in any area compared to the cheap DAC I was using in the mean time.

I need a bit more time to test it out completely. There is no way to turn it off, and I think the overall range of volume offered by the knob isn't as good as the HEADFIVE. One issue I have is that I listen to music with Foobar and ReplayGain, so it tends to be quieter than say YouTube videos. A bit of fiddling with the Windows volume control helps, but the range on the HEADFIVE seems to be easier to work with than on the DX1 Mini. With the gain switch set to low, the max volume is just about enough for most of the music I listen to, and with it on high I ended up somewhere a little below 50%.

My only other immediate criticism is that the volume knob has no grip. It's not hard to turn, but you feel like you are losing your grip on it so pinch it a bit harder than is really needed. A bit of texture would really help.

Sound-wise so far it's excellent, and very convenient because it is USB powered.

 

[mojo]

Small update after having it for a month. Still very happy. Manages to tame my Fischer FA-011s highs, and everything else I've thrown at it.