[Greg121986]

Quote:

How does the NFB-12 compare to Creative X-Fi? Right now I have X-Fi music and I would like to know how big improvement the NFB is.

 
I have a Creative Xtreme Music and I am using it with my Sennheiser 595s right now. I previously had a Maverick D1 and the difference between the two is night and day. The D1 was so much better. I have also used an Audio GD FUN and the sound was also much better. I am now waiting on the NFB12 to arrive but it won't ship until late February for me.

 

[Slaughter]

I have an X-Fi as well, so I will post my thoughts when I get it.

 

[Leanier]

Well in my case the problem is slightly different because I have custom made amp that is quite good (based on TPA6120A2, OPA2134, LM317 and LM337 - http://holdegron.dlf.interia.pl/graphic/little2.jpg) plugged into X-fi Music , and the difference between having my HD555 plugged into X-Fi alone and X-Fi + amp is very big.

 

[BuFFys]

Quote:

Well in my case the problem is slightly different because I have custom made amp that is quite good (based on TPA6120A2, OPA2134, LM317 and LM337 - http://holdegron.dlf.interia.pl/graphic/little2.jpg) plugged into X-fi Music , and the difference between having my HD555 plugged into X-Fi alone and X-Fi + amp is very big.

Well I haven’t done the comparison as my NFB-12 and Ultrasones are still at my workplace. But only buying the NFB-12 as a DAC compared to a XF-I when using you amp, i think the sound difference will be minimal and not worth 200USD...
That’s my opinion!

 

[arcinthesky]

Anyone here with the Pico Dac who is also buying the NFB-12? I would like to see a comparison between the two in terms of their performances as a DAC.
Since the Pico Dac is $50-100 more than the NFB-12 and doesn't have an amp, I was wondering how it stacks up.

 

[Leanier]

Quote:

Quote:

Well in my case the problem is slightly different because I have custom made amp that is quite good (based on TPA6120A2, OPA2134, LM317 and LM337 - http://holdegron.dlf.interia.pl/graphic/little2.jpg) plugged into X-fi Music , and the difference between having my HD555 plugged into X-Fi alone and X-Fi + amp is very big.

Well I haven’t done the comparison as my NFB-12 and Ultrasones are still at my workplace. But only buying the NFB-12 as a DAC compared to a XF-I when using you amp, i think the sound difference will be minimal and not worth 200USD...
That’s my opinion!

 
And that is what I'm mostly afraid of. Not that the NFB-12 will sound bad but that the improvement will be minimal or non. For about 200$ I can buy either HD598 or m50 that I think will definitely be an improvement of my HD555.

 

[BuFFys]

Quote:

 
And that is what I'm mostly afraid of. Not that the NFB-12 will sound bad but that the improvement will be minimal or non. For about 200$ I can buy either HD598 or m50 that I think will definitely be an improvement of my HD555.

If I where you i would go for bather headphones the NFB-12, maybe even wait and save up for even better headphones?

 

[mikop]

I would also think that saving up for a higher grade phone will probably be a better idea.  Sound (from any source) between say my D5000 /SR 225 is a huge improvement over M50/HD555.  Personally, I won't have even bother with any dac/amp for my HD555 and start saving for "mid-fi" right away.
 

 

[Leanier]

Are you thinking about HD650 level headphones or even higher? Right away I can spend about 400-500$ to improve my SQ as much as I can.

 

[Jor-El]

Quote:

So now i have had my unit for a couple hours, here is a picture of it:

 

Drool.
This would be my first dac/amp ever in my foray into the world of headphones!
I can't bloody wait.

 

[vrln]

Nice choice then! You picked probably (judging by the specs and their other models) the best bargain so far in DAC/HP amp hifi

 

[jsnyc]

Quote:

I have a Creative Xtreme Music and I am using it with my Sennheiser 595s right now. I previously had a Maverick D1 and the difference between the two is night and day. The D1 was so much better. I have also used an Audio GD FUN and the sound was also much better. I am now waiting on the NFB12 to arrive but it won't ship until late February for me.

so which was better, the FUN or the Maverick?
 

 

[FeiJai]

I wonder how this compares to the Fiio E9 headphone amp.

 

[Greg121986]

I really cannot say because my D1 was defective. I ended up returning it to the Ebay seller. When the D1 was working properly it did sound great. The FUN also sounded great. I think the FUN is great, but it was a bit too expensive. It belongs to my roommate and he paid around $400-500 to buy all of the optional components available. It currently has the Moon opamp in it which we both like. But, my limit was $200 and I think for my money the NFB 12 is where it's at. Now I just have to wait another 4 or 5 weeks for it to ship.
 
Quote:

Quote:

I have a Creative Xtreme Music and I am using it with my Sennheiser 595s right now. I previously had a Maverick D1 and the difference between the two is night and day. The D1 was so much better. I have also used an Audio GD FUN and the sound was also much better. I am now waiting on the NFB12 to arrive but it won't ship until late February for me.

so which was better, the FUN or the Maverick?
 

 

[BuFFys]

Quote:

Are you thinking about HD650 level headphones or even higher? Right away I can spend about 400-500$ to improve my SQ as much as I can.

Yes, I would recommend the 400-500USD headphones, there are many great chooses like HD650 D2000/D5000 or my favorites Ultrasone pro 900 (370USD shipped from eBay) Et al.
I think most of them will sound good with your current setup. And you can always later upgrade, if you want. Just go out and listen!