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[VIDEO]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SWwe2X5kfA&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/VIDEO]
Hey Currawong, I noticed on your profile that you've got an iPad...can the Dragonfly be used with an iPad through a camera kit? Thanks!
As far as I know this will not pull the raw data from iDevices - all it would do is act like an LOD amp from the iPad, not a DAC.
After about an hour of listening to the Dragonfly with my Grado RS60i headphones, and being quite impressed with the naturalness and high level of sound quality of the Dragonfly, I installed it on my Macbook based music server system running PureMusic and iTunes. Bear in mind that I'm presently using an incredibly inexpensive, generic stereo miniplug to RCA cable...probably not even Monoprice quality. And, it's got about 1 hour of burn-in time on it. Right out of the box, the Dragonfly impresses, it's a natural-sounding DAC with a smooth and musical midrange. Playing "Ella and Louis" in 24/96 from an HD Tracks download, Ella's voice sounds gorgeous, sweet and melodious; Louis Armstrong's voice has that lovely textural throatiness that we all remember him for. The Dragonfly doesn't have the drive-you-out of the room brightness and aggressiveness that the Bifrost had when first unboxed. It's smoother than that, and it will be very interesting to see if it burns in in the way the Bifrost did very beautifully. Presently the highest highs are just a skosh on the bright side, hopefully these will smooth out a bit with some hours on the clock. Overall, the presentation is very musical, but a bit drier and not as liquid and mellifluous as the Bifrost or Wadia 121. The imaging is excellent, but soundstage is more forward (you're at row 6 than row 12) than on the Bifrost or Wadia. The bass, however is truly outstanding. The Dragonfly, though, really loves rock 'n roll....this DAC has a punchy, dynamic sound that really reminds me of my Rega P5 turntable; a real kickin'-out-the jamsquality to it that's gets your feet moving and your blood flowing. |
"I bought one from ElusiveDisc during their recent 10%-off sale and it just arrived today. Testing it out at work where it's replacing a HeadRoom Bithead, with the Senn HD419 headphones on some 16/44 files.
I gotta admit, I was preparing for something not much better than the Bithead. There's only so much that can be done with USB-direct power.
But this tiny thing packs a serious punch! I was immediately surprised by its low, solid bass and overall force to the sound."
I completely agree, this DAC has a punchy, dynamic quality to it and very impressive bass performance. It kicks out the jams on rock 'n roll, I've noticed.
Hey Currawong, I noticed on your profile that you've got an iPad...can the Dragonfly be used with an iPad through a camera kit? Thanks!
Quote:I couldn't resist and bought one. Initial impressions out of my MacBook Pro with my Symphones Magnums are positive but I can hear its limitations compared to my main system obviously. The interesting test I reckon will be how much of an improvement over my MacBook Pro's headphone out it will be. I'm sure it is way better than the sound from many Windows laptops.
What headphones have you tried? I am waiting for mine to arrive.
But this tiny thing packs a serious punch! I was immediately surprised by its low, solid bass and overall force to the sound. Where the Bithead sounds semi-murky, the Dragonfly is substantially clearer too.
Draws too much current unfortunately, so no. It would have to go through a USB hub.
Symphones Magnums and AT ESW10JPNs.
I'm also pretty impressed with how well it does with my headphones. I didn't feel my L3 improved on it.
I did do some more comparisons: Definitely an improvement over my 2011 MacBook Pro's headphone out. It seems to be somewhere behind my Foxtex HP-P1 as a DAC and my DX100 as both a DAC and an amp. Using it out of my Vaunix lab-grade USB hub it jumps up in capability as a DAC, putting it somewhere in capability close to those portable units, which is interesting, even if the combo is a bit unrealistic.
Yes, it does use the ESS Sabre 9023 DAC.