[SpiderNhan]

Will you elaborate further? What headphones do you use and what's your source? The Red is the first Dragonfly I've ever used so your comparisons will be interesting.

 

[god-bluff]

Will these new generation Dragonflys work properly with Android ie without having to resort to USBAPP ?
 
Can they be used in conjunction with, for instance Spotify and internet radio or the phones's native apps, in my case Sony Music (pka Walkman);  with full control over the volume ?

 

[SpiderNhan]

Whether or not it'll work with all apps is phone dependant. I only have 2 devices I can test with, Samsung Galaxy S6 Active, stock 5.1.1, and Samsung Galaxy Note, Candy ROM 5.1.1.

The S6 will play with all apps, but I experienced a glitch once where the sound became garbled and distorted requiring a reboot to fix. The Note only works via UAPP or Onkyo HF Player.

 

[dacari]

Received my red today, enjoying it!! Great balance between transparency, accuracy but at the same time musicality without any sign of coldness.

 

[JesseA]

As someone who wasn't impressed by the 1.2, I'd love some comparisons between the Red and that one.

Also interested in someone that has some insight on this

 

[willyvlyminck]

I agree, but for those exclusively listening to their iTunes on their iPhones/Pods, the Relisten app will do at only 25% of the price. I was happy with the results of my Bandcamp collection.Answer to Dacari

 

[raydenray]

Also interested in someone that has some insight on this

 
I’ve been using Dragonfly 1.2 for a year now (never used the 1.0), 95% of time on my cell phone,
so it was a no brainer I had to get the new one with less power consumption. And on top of that,
they claimed a superior sound.
 
So I got the red on April 28th. My first impressions in all honesty was deception. I think I was expecting
something much better than 1.2. We all know, 1.2 is a great DAC for its price and portability, so I think my
expectation where too high.
 
I’ve been giving this new DAC some time for to get used to. After 2 days of listening, I can say I’m glad I
bought this product. It offers better instrument separations, clarity and dynamics over 1.2. The difference
is not like day and night, it is subtle, but there is one.
 
Maybe I need to burn in the DAC for a few days? I don’t know ;p
 
I’m using it with Samsung Note 5, UAPP and FLAC songs and Westones W60 IEM.
 
On the UAPP app, the output volume is lower. When in 1.2 I had could range between 30 and 45% of volume,
I have to go now to 65-70% for same volume. But it is ok with me, since 100% volume even with DG Red and
my ears explode.
 
Even though my Note 5 has a Wolfson DAC, the dragonflys with UAPP give much better sound and feels more alive.
 
Sorry for my English, it is not my first language

 

[SpiderNhan]

 
I’ve been using Dragonfly 1.2 for a year now (never used the 1.0), 95% of time on my cell phone,
so it was a no brainer I had to get the new one with less power consumption. And on top of that,
they claimed a superior sound.
 
So I got the red on April 28th. My first impressions in all honesty was deception. I think I was expecting
something much better than 1.2. We all know, 1.2 is a great DAC for its price and portability, so I think my
expectation where too high.
 
I’ve been giving this new DAC some time for to get used to. After 2 days of listening, I can say I’m glad I
bought this product. It offers better instrument separations, clarity and dynamics over 1.2. The difference
is not like day and night, it is subtle, but there is one.
 
Maybe I need to burn in the DAC for a few days? I don’t know ;p
 
I’m using it with Samsung Note 5, UAPP and FLAC songs and Westones W60 IEM.
 
On the UAPP app, the output volume is lower. When in 1.2 I had could range between 30 and 45% of volume,
I have to go now to 65-70% for same volume. But it is ok with me, since 100% volume even with DG Red and
my ears explode.
 
Even though my Note 5 has a Wolfson DAC, the dragonflys with UAPP give much better sound and feels more alive.
 
Sorry for my English, it is not my first language

 

Perhaps the lower volume is because of the lower power consumption? Do you notice a difference in battery drain between the 1.2 and the Red?

UAPP's volume control is very precise if you play with the "Hardware Volume" and EQ gain slider in conjunction with the software volume controls. My Red drives both my 8 ohm Dunu DN-200J and my 62 ohm AKG Q701 without a hitch, but I definitely have to play with the Hardware Volume when switching between the two.

Concerning volume issues with Android, I'll give a quick run down of my experiences so far.

Android system through USB OTG is limited to 15 volume steps regardless of app used. This applies to Google Play Music, YouTube, MX Player, etc. I find that the volume output is quite low, even with the 8 ohm Dunus, and I must use volume step 13 out of 15 to get listenable levels. Strangely, the volume difference between steps 14 and 15 is significant! It's like going up 4 or 5 volume steps at once. Perhaps max Android volume = Line Out?

UAPP, as I've mentioned, offers the most amount of volume control although the software volume is limited to 20 steps. However, the amount of volume allotted to the 20 steps is adjustable to varying degrees when combined with the Hardware Volume and EQ gain sliders. I haven't calculated how many levels are available in Hardware Volume, but the slider moves in small increments and I have yet to go past 60% to attain optimal listening levels with my gear. I don't have any 300 ohm headphones to test, but with how loud it drives my Q701s I imagine it won't be a problem.

Poweramp alpha build 703 allows the user to adjust the amount of volume steps in software. The levels are 30, 50, 76 and 100. It works incredibly well but, on my phone at least, only works when Poweramp is open in the foreground. When the screen is off the volume steps will default to Android's 15. A neat feature with the alpha 703 build is variable output options including a hi-res option for phones that support it. I don't want to delve too deeply into the options here as they are a bit complicated, but sound quality on the alpha build is better than the official release and even its DAC output sounds better. Volume is still a problem though. Using the Poweramp EQ I have to drag the preamp up to full and put volume up to 75%+ for listenable levels with the 32 ohm V-MODA M-100. Sound is just as good as UAPP, but the volume control isn't there.

So, for the time being, UAPP is still the best option for Dragonfly.

Edit: I just noticed that UAPP's 20 volume steps will default to 15 on my Galaxy S6 Active if it's not in the foreground just like Poweramp alpha. It does not do this on my Galaxy Note running Candy ROM. I guess it's a stock Samsung thing.

 

[dacari]

 

 


Poweramp alpha build 703 allows the user to adjust the amount of volume steps in software. The levels are 30, 50, 76 and 100. It works incredibly well but, on my phone at least, only works when Poweramp is open in the foreground. When the screen is off the volume steps will default to Android's 15. A neat feature with the alpha 703 build is variable output options including a hi-res option for phones that support it. I don't want to delve too deeply into the options here as they are a bit complicated, but sound quality on the alpha build is better than the official release and even its DAC output sounds better. Volume is still a problem though. Using the Poweramp EQ I have to drag the preamp up to full and put volume up to 75%+ for listenable levels with the 32 ohm V-MODA M-100. Sound is just as good as UAPP, but the volume control isn't there.
 

 
That's weird since the volume seems well integrated in Android system when Poweramp is open in the foreground, as you said. With my V10 and Moto G 2015, both work perfectly with the screen off.
 
Concerning to the poor results opinions, in my case having owned a Mojo, the Red is far beyond its price. Maybe people have too high expectations, even so, for me I won't be disappointed. This kind of airy but with body sound reminds me the JDS C5D.

 

[canali]

I agree, but for those exclusively listening to their iTunes on their iPhones/Pods, the Relisten app will do at only 25% of the price. I was happy with the results of my Bandcamp collection.Answer to Dacari

drag relisten is not available in canada
 
guess i'll have to seek out another app for my nexus 5 and dragonfly
(using spotify and itunes)
 
poweramp?
 
anything else someone can recommend please?

 

[SpiderNhan]

Copied from my post in this thread.
 
Dunu DN-2000J and Mee Audio A151p 2nd Gen. sound great with the Red.
 
Here are some quick impressions using my Galaxy S6 Active>DN-2000J with and without Red.
 
Without
-No detectable hiss or noise.
-No EMI.
-A bit less resolution up top
-Harsher highs. Sssibilance.
-More mid-bass presence.
-Less energy.
-More 2-dimensional sound stage.
 
With
-Slight hum when music is silent, but only noticeable if you're listening for it.
-No EMI. 

-Crystal clear and sparkly treble.
-No harshness and sibilance is ELIMINATED(confirmed this by listening to a couple NPR podcasts).
-Less mid-bass and bass presence overall. It still goes pretty deep, but less oomph.
-Very energetic, almost aggressive signature.
-Wider sound stage with more depth.
 
Galaxy S6 Active

 
Galaxy S6 Active + Dragonfly Red

 

[Hubert481]

Is there any comparement-review between
1.0
1.2
Red

???
Thank you!

 

[Xstream]

I've got the Dragonfly Black and Red as a trial. So far i've just played around with the Black & Red on my Macbook Pro. I will later try it out connected to my Samsung Galaxy S7 as well. 
First impression isn't that positive. Actually it sounds worse then directly to my Macbook Pro. 
Maybe it needs more run-in time to judge it better, so i will let it run in for a while. 
 
A few things i've noticed so far with the BLACK:
- The sound is more full, more bassy, but also more muddy an not as detailed as the MBP. It sounds more as a equalizer setting than a big DAC improvement.
- The background noise the MBP gives a bit is gone, so that's positive. 
 
With the RED:
- The placement of sound is different. More up forward and "live like" i guess. Sound is weirdly more focused on the right, not the center. 
- Sound is more neutral and less bassy, but not better then the MBP which has more clarity and balance. Although here the background noise is gone too, so that's good. 
 
Using it with IEM's Phonak Audeo PFE-232's. So with more power hungry headphones it may have a bigger and better impact.
 
Both still feel quite out of balance and not an improvement. It may need just more run-in time. And i'm sure it will give a bigger impact on a smartphone of course. So more later. 

 

[Hubert481]

I dont know, if this was already posted - Proper Warm-Up for Ideal Listening and Measurement Evaluations
http://www.audioquest.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Phase-Noise-Jitter-Report-0317-14.pdf


Do you have the newest firmware on the stick?

 

[Xstream]

Do you have the newest firmware on the stick?

Haven't found any firmware on the AudioQuest website.