[mosshorn]

  This is so strange. I have 64bit+3.0 Desktop that I use with my AK Jr. I wonder why everyone else's Mac and PCs don't work with the Jr... I've been using them fine...

 
My Thinkpad X220 is running Antergos Linux (Arch) and it's not seeing the JR as a DAP either. I haven't tested this on 1.03 though. Perhaps it depends on the SSD?
 
 
 
As for the impedance debate, it goes like this. In multi-BA IEMs, the output impedance will sculpt the sound of them. This in some cases can be a good thing, but not so good in others. Dynamics typically aren't affected as they rarely have crossovers in IEMs. As a high end DAP manufacturer, AK knows fully well that their products will be used with CIEMs, of which the vast majority contain multi BA crossovers. This can be shown by their partnering with Jerry Harvey Audio, whose products all have a low impedance (thus becoming more subject to output impedance affecting the intended sound). The AK100 sounding better than the JR is subjective, but high output impedance having an affect on crossover based BA IEMs is purely fact. 

 

[kimvictor]

   
My Thinkpad X220 is running Antergos Linux (Arch) and it's not seeing the JR as a DAP either. I haven't tested this on 1.03 though. Perhaps it depends on the SSD?
 
 
 
As for the impedance debate, it goes like this. In multi-BA IEMs, the output impedance will sculpt the sound of them. This in some cases can be a good thing, but not so good in others. Dynamics typically aren't affected as they rarely have crossovers in IEMs. As a high end DAP manufacturer, AK knows fully well that their products will be used with CIEMs, of which the vast majority contain multi BA crossovers. This can be shown by their partnering with Jerry Harvey Audio, whose products all have a low impedance (thus becoming more subject to output impedance affecting the intended sound). The AK100 sounding better than the JR is subjective, but high output impedance having an affect on crossover based BA IEMs is purely fact. 

Hmm maybe I had it plugged in to the 2.0 port. I have 4 3.0 ports and 4 2.0 ports. I may have plugged it into a 3.0 port.
 
But my mac only has 3.0 ports, and have absolutely no issue using the Jr as a DAC. I wonder why?

 

[mosshorn]

  Hmm maybe I had it plugged in to the 2.0 port. I have 4 3.0 ports and 4 2.0 ports. I may have plugged it into a 3.0 port.
 
But my mac only has 3.0 ports, and have absolutely no issue using the Jr as a DAC. I wonder why?

 
I don't think it's a 3.0 issue. I'm plugging into 2.0 slots and not getting jack. 

 

[MarkTwain]

Taken from AK website instruction manual:
 
"The 64Bit operating system does not support USB DAC functions through the USB 3.0 port. Please use the USB 2.0 port. If the USB is has been used extensively or the PC begins operating slowly, the played sound may be interrupted. There may be issues with audio-to-video synchronization during video playback depending on the sound quality and operating environment."
 

 

[zeckwsr]

same here, i tried on two windows 8 64bit machines in the  office on both usb3 and usb2 ports each but none of them worked! (and I of course switched the sound output to the dac...)
 
 
will try on my win10 and mac at home tonight. hope it will work there at least!
 
edit: this was done on firmware v1.03

 

[kimvictor]

Ok. Just tested 3.0 port on my desktop. It does read it as a DAC that can do 24/96, but the sound doesn't play. So it doesn't work. Shame. I don't want to reach for the back of the desktop for older ports...

 

[MarkTwain]

Ah... mystery solved. Thought my laptop had some problems....
 
No biggies for me. Don't really need the USB Dac. Enjoying the smooth and amazing sound from the AK Jr.

 

[cj3209]

  It does. A simple RMAA search would have shown you that iPhone has entry level DAP sound quality, which isn't that far off from mid-upper level DAP's SQ.

That is very interesting.  Thx for the RMAA search  - I had no idea.

 

[Mark-sf]

I have a 64bit Mac Mini with a powered USB 3.0 hub and it works fine connected that way as a USB DAC. I even have an SSD HD in it so that thesis still a mystery from my perspective. I will try using a powered hub  with my MBA in the next few days to see if that is a factor.

 

[zeckwsr]

ok my 2012 retina macbook pro with usb3 ports works perfectly with ease but my win10 usb2 ports don't work. has anyone actually contacted A&K about this? anyone knows if it's fixable by a firmware?

 

[Mark-sf]

  ok my 2012 retina macbook pro with usb3 ports works perfectly with ease but my win10 usb2 ports don't work. has anyone actually contacted A&K about this? anyone knows if it's fixable by a firmware?

I sent an email to A&K support yesterday. Will report what they return with.

 

[headwhacker]

   
 
As for the impedance debate, it goes like this. In multi-BA IEMs, the output impedance will sculpt the sound of them. This in some cases can be a good thing, but not so good in others. Dynamics typically aren't affected as they rarely have crossovers in IEMs. As a high end DAP manufacturer, AK knows fully well that their products will be used with CIEMs, of which the vast majority contain multi BA crossovers. This can be shown by their partnering with Jerry Harvey Audio, whose products all have a low impedance (thus becoming more subject to output impedance affecting the intended sound). The AK100 sounding better than the JR is subjective, but high output impedance having an affect on crossover based BA IEMs is purely fact. 

But why buy a high OI source when you don't know exactly how much it's going to impact/change the FR of your iems? If you are looking to alter the FR curve use an EQ so you know exactly what you are getting. No matter how you put it whether it makes it sound good or not, high OI on a DAP is a flawed design.
 
I look at AK/JH partnership more of a marketing decision. I have not seen JH promoted any of their iems with an AK100. I only seen the partnership took an aggressive push starting with AK240.

 

[mosshorn]

  But why buy a high OI source when you don't know exactly how much it's going to impact/change the FR of your iems? If you are looking to alter the FR curve use an EQ so you know exactly what you are getting. No matter how you put it whether it makes it sound good or not, high OI on a DAP is a flawed design.
 
I look at AK/JH partnership more of a marketing decision. I have not seen JH promoted any of their iems with an AK100. I only seen the partnership took an aggressive push starting with AK240.

I completely agree with you. If you're building a DAP in this day and time, the community demands a relatively hiss-free, low Q player. Plain and simple. 

 

[Happytalk]

I've had the AK Jr now for about 10 days and would like to add my experiences both pro and con. To cut to the chase it is a keeper though not without flaws. To begin with I have used it with Westone W40, Phonak PFE232, and ER4S IEMs and Sennheiser HD700s.  My principal comparison was between the DX90 w/ Lurker0 and iPhone 6 w/HA-2.  

To begin with, it is extremely well made and appears to be quite durable though I have not drop-tested it intentionally or unintentionally.:wink_face:  I love the form factor as it is very pocketable, much more so than my DX90 or the IPhone combo. I also enjoy the UI as compared to the DX90. While Lurker's firmware make the screen readable, it is really too small vertically for touch use. I like that I can easily access the controls from my shirt pocket without removing it. The DX90 is too big and heavy to carry that way for me. I have upgraded to fw1.03 and with 5000 songs on a combination of onboard and 128G card find the speed faster than my DX90 but slower than the iPhone. I like the righthand fast nav feature that I  wish the DX90 had.

One tip I discovered if running on OS X is to ensure the internal and card drives are excluded from Spotlight as it will double the number of files on your device if connected as storage by adding a hidden 4K file of the format "._". Besides taking up space they can impact scan performance. If this has occurred open a terminal and navigate to your music dir. Then enter "rm -rf */*._*" and "rm -rf */*/._*" without quotes assuming you are using artist/album storage convention.

What I do not like regarding the firmware is its sensitivity to music files. As previously reported, it can fail to complete and scan or loop if it finds a file it doesn't like and won't let you know which one. I have also discovered to my dismay that it will not display files with embedded png formatted covers  . In this case MP3Tag is your friend and has worked in all cases for me  using JPGs even though I had to launch Windows. TidyMyMusic and Yate on Mac were not nearly as reliable for reasons I have not yet determined. Of course the DX90 is also picky about displaying art but is more tolerant when it finds a file it can't display.

To round out the negatives, I have yet to successfully get it to make a sound on my mid-2013 Macbook Air as a USB DAC even though it is recognized as such. I have tried various cables down to 4" and still no go. Would like to hear if anyone has been successful.  Works fine on my Mac Mini. Both are running Yosemite.

On the plus side, while some have reported lockups, it has been rock solid for me thus far. I like the switchable line out and digital volume though I would like the ability to have a selectable taper as it does not appear to implement a loudness contour and thus can be arduous to make large changes. Battery life has be fine for my usage pattern as it has never failed to last throughout an entire day.

Onto the sound, I like a clean neutral sound with extended but not emphasized extremes. I have enjoyed the DX90 especially with the Phonaks. However, found it didn't have the toe-tapping flow with my WD40s which are significantly more efficient. I do believe the DX90 drives my HD700s with more control that the AK but both can generate sufficient volume for my tastes. Where the AK excels for me is in combination with the WD40s on well recorded/minimally processed music as it becomes an immersive experience. I literally feel the music below my head and around me. Listening to 24/96 AIX recordings that I have has sound simply "right" with excellent low level resolution. Excellent examples include albums by Atrium Musicae de Madrid, Laurence Juber, Stephane Wrembel, Jesse Cook, Sharon Isbin, Ejii Que & Miinn Orch, and Katie Melua to name a few.

As far as scaling up, I find with my HD700's it does sound better when running through the HA-2 which as a hell of an amp for its size. Its line out is excellent. While I briefly considered foregoing the DAP for the iPhone/HA-2 combo, I find that for portable use I don't like giving over my phone entirely to music and like the flexibility of the combinations. Now if I could get the MBA to work with the AK (the HA-2 does) that might change.

Hope everyone finds this useful. 

What is your comparison of the ak vs dx90 with your er4s?

 

[headwhacker]

  Oh... cool, so according to measurements, just throw the SE535 to the garbage.

 
Right AK100 is perfect everything else is garbage.