[cqtek]

Here is my humble opinion about the Aune X8 XVIII Magic DAC.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/aune-x8-18th-anniversary-edition.26142/reviews#review-30504

 

[Ghoostknight]

Was this the unit you purchased?

US $22.21 14%OFF | Nvarcher 12V Super Capacitor Power Filter DC2.1 Input and Output For Audio Video Equipment

i also bought the 12V version first, this DOESNT WORK! the bank trys to recharge endlessly with a 9V input, you have to specially ask the vendor to send the 9V version, even if its listed nowhere, im sure there are better supercapactiors option (making your own for example, there is a thread in the diy section for it) but i think this one is good cheap option to try what supercapactiors can potentially do

the 9V and 12V version have the right barrel jack, the same one as the X8

You could probably use both the linear supply and a supercap bank. Perhaps I'm wrong on that though.

no, you are right tho im unsure if this really necessary, i still use the meanwell power supply that came with the X8

Would I like the X7s 2021? Is it worth it? Will we see a new unit soon? I want a dynamic headphone amp that rocks, even though it will mostly serve as a preamp.

i actually have that too, i bought it used for 140€ (yes the 2021 version) huge bargain for the price imo and it was a huge update compared to the Fiio E10k tc i used before
this actually made me enjoy headphones on a somewhat similar level to speakers (i used DT880 250ohm with it and also with the Fiio e10k), so definitely worth considering imo but i havent compared it to other good headphones amps
i was just surprised/baffled how everyone recommended the Fiio E10k on the internet paired with DT880 after listening to the X7s

 

[Ghoostknight]

Which reconstruction filter you guys use with the X8 ? imo it makes a audible difference
i tried around and settled in the end on the brickwall filter (C&D lit) but i was happy with B first too, tho with B there is coming more high frequency "crap" coming trough which im unsure if it should be there in the first place

 

[Ghoostknight]

Here is my humble opinion about the Aune X8 XVIII Magic DAC.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/aune-x8-18th-anniversary-edition.26142/reviews#review-30504

i gave it a read and noticed you wrote that the filter resets after powering up the dac again, this is not the case with my unit, it saves the filter you set last, just so you know

 

[Baten]

Which reconstruction filter you guys use with the X8 ? imo it makes a audible difference

Always Linear|Slow, for me.

 

[Ghoostknight]

Please feel free to PM me and elaborate on your cap mod to the opamp and the why behind the mod...

for reference:
https://www.bursonaudio.com/burson-ss-opamp-101-part-1-mkp-cap-tweak/

you can solder the capactior onto a dip8 socket so they are easly exchangeable, just plug the dipadapter with the capacitor in and on top the opamp (or with the Burson V6 you use the extension, then the capacitor adapter, then the opamp)

i use a Nichicon KZ 47uF, which sounds the most flat out of the capacitors i have tried (elna silmic II, nichicon ES, nichicon FG, nichicon KZ and 1 or 2 others)

what i still need to try is a combination of the Nichicon KZ power coupling capacitor + a 0,1uF MKP bypass capacitor, this is still on my list

i also used 10uF before but the 47uF sounds 1. smoother (it "amplifys" the benefits that the 10uF already give) and 2. there is more subbass ( i actually think with the 10uF is LESS subbass, where the 47uF is more flat ) i read that these kind of capacitors can act as a highpass where bigger values negate this issue, tho many say in the opamp thread that 10uF is already fine, but i still heared a difference with speakers, i think with headphones the subbass issue is nonexistend since frequencys under 40hz are pretty inaudible with headphones

this capacitor mod is worth trying imo it gives you similar benefits of switching the opamp altogether and this benefit i heared with all opamps i tried with and without capacitor added

BTW: the real benefit of the V6 Vivid is really audible with older songs (specially pre 80s i would say), did you guys notice that too? i never enjoyed them really that much with my second favourite (cheap) OP1656, i think the V6 has some kind of analogue sounds which makes true analogue recordings better transferable (tho this is just a guess)

 

[cqtek]

i gave it a read and noticed you wrote that the filter resets after powering up the dac again, this is not the case with my unit, it saves the filter you set last, just so you know

Hello.

I have just come back from a short holiday and have recorded a short video to show that the filter is not saved. You can see how I leave it on the filter in position D and turn the DAC off with the switch. When turned back on, the filter goes back to the A position.


https://hiendportable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Aune-X8-XVIII-Magic-DAC-On-Off.mp4

 

[Baten]

That would be quite annoying for me. And quite silly this actually worked in the non Viii anniversary edition.

 

[Scrufboy]

Hello.

I have just come back from a short holiday and have recorded a short video to show that the filter is not saved. You can see how I leave it on the filter in position D and turn the DAC off with the switch. When turned back on, the filter goes back to the A position.


https://hiendportable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Aune-X8-XVIII-Magic-DAC-On-Off.mp4

Yesterday I turned off & unplugged my unit to put in the XP2 once it arrived...

I had to rearrange things, run the cable behind a shelf, remove the deco... Polish the copper, oil the rhino... Took about 10 minutes.

Plugged it all back in... Filter was saved.

 

[Scrufboy]

the 9V and 12V version have the right barrel jack

My unit came today... I had to modify mine with some closed cell foam to stop the board from rattling. Pretty neat. Works great! How is your experience with so far with the super capacitor?

 

[Ghoostknight]

My unit came today... I had to modify mine with some closed cell foam to stop the board from rattling. Pretty neat. Works great! How is your experience with so far with the super capacitor?

yes the rattling seems to be "normal"
i would need to retest the difference to give a detailed answer (its now around half a year ago) but i remember that the sound had a bit more "clarity" to it with the supercapacitor, i can just say for sure that it was overall a improvement, tell us what you think, im specially curious if you can compare it to a linear power supply (or/and in combination with one)
also make sure to give it a few hours to burn in

those also worked flawlessly for me so far without problems/hickups beside the 12V version not charging up all the way with 9V input
one mod i maybe do later is actually exchanging the supercapacitors inside of the unit, preferably to higher capacitance ones, while this device is a good (cheap) starting point to try/test supercapacitors it doesnt has the biggest capacitance out of the box

 

[Scrufboy]

My apologies... I kind of forgot you moved on to that Sony gear.

So for the integrity of the thread, I will say... The supplied Meanwell SMPS is decent and it does a fine job. The Aune XP2 does take it up a notch a bit. I believe the shielding in the enclosure has a lot to do with it.

Sometimes linear supplies can produce a lot of EMI that a DAC can pick up. Especially with the short, short cables Aune supplies. I think a nice silver plated star Quad JSSG360 DC cable with a 1m to 1.5m length might be helpful. Allowing you to keep the XP2 further away. Just in case we are defeating the purpose of the XP2 by having it too close to the X8 XVIII.

Introducing the new supply and the cap bank - for me it's tough to say... I have made so many little tweaks here and there over time to the system as a whole that were getting near the end really. So close in fact, that the little things I do now are subtle but still somewhat noticeable. But I am definitely approaching the land of negligible.

So, as you know, I got the linear supply last week and these things tend to make our noise floor drop and we get some real black blacks. At least this is the goal.

My cheap little bedside power house is kind of the stuff of legend now(not here per se) and adding these two new items definitely could be appreciated.

A lower noise floor can have a profound effect on the amount of bass you hear. Not more of any one thing, but details come forward. Like the pluck and ripple of an upright bass and the string wobble and buzz. Low fluttery horns. Tightly tuned low end Tom Tom's. Breathy low vocals like Adele or D. Krall. Dubstep synths.

The most changes I feel.are taking place in the mids where all the mud can be. So many overlapping frequencies that some speakers and cans can't keep up the transients and decays like they should.

I wish I had the new Mofi Sourcepoint 10 speakers or some more capable audiophile headphones.
The KEF LS50 Meta's and SVS SB-1000 pro are handline things well. But for me, a 5 inch driver can only do so much. Tomorrow I'll be putting on the DT-1990's and giving a listen. Gotta keep things HEAD-FI

The highs... This is a tough nut to crack. As we age and we lose our upper freq's, sometimes noise in our gear in this range helps because of carrier frequencies. I have super tweeters that can do 10khz to 40khz and even though you can't hear those upper numbers... You can detect them when mixed with an array of carrier frequencies. Things become airy... But we don't want the wrong type of sibilance. So while I enjoy analytical gear and clean sound, the benefit of this particular linear supply helps with clearing the empty space. The tink of the cymbals. Stick cracks on the sides of drums. Wild synth crescendos.

Now when I added the super capacitor bank... This was just more. It seems that everything that the SparkosLabs SS3602 Dual Discrete Op Amp did, the natural smooth sound that was somewhat lost with the Burson V6 Vivid is now somewhat back... Again.. Tough to say... To quantify with words. And I truly would need some REAL A/B tests... But things sound the best they can I think now. Unless I snap up. A Burson Soloist

But where the biggest difference is I think is that I notice that with very low source volumes. When a lot of amps, systems as a whole... Gear as inexpensive as mine technically is... You can actually lose details and have balance issues the lower the volume is. Firstly, So Glad that none of my gear does that... .

I'm impressed with all the detail being in play during near field at such low volumes. I will be able to listen a bit more intently tomorrow and I'll be sure to use the headphones.

The only thing left for the Aune now is the custom power cables. I need angled plugs on one end and straight plugs on the other to properly incorporate the gear.

So to @Ghoostknight , A hearty thanks for turning me on to the bank. The mod was an easy fix with a wedge of closed cell foam. However, I am a tinkerer and I will look into better caps. I did take it apart when it arrived to address the rattle. I will probably just use the best caps I can get at the same values though. This little thing is a winner.

Perhaps a new thread on these supercapacitors units is warranted. Keeping this place free for the Aune X8 XVIII crowd to have some clear guidance without too much fluff.

 

[Ghoostknight]

So to @Ghoostknight , A hearty thanks for turning me on to the bank. The mod was an easy fix with a wedge of closed cell foam. However, I am a tinkerer and I will look into better caps. I did take it apart when it arrived to address the rattle. I will probably just use the best caps I can get at the same values though. This little thing is a winner.

no problem for the price i also think its awesome, even if there might be better (more expensive) stuff out there

if you choose better caps two important things to look out for is A. more capacitance and B. lower ESR (and with larger capacitance comes usually lower ESR), i will probably just look out for the largest caps that still fit in the device
also in theory the shortest cable possible between dac and supercapacitor bank is kinda important (also, lower total ESR between devices), maybe i will also remove the output socket and solder a short dc cable directly to the pcb which also should lead to lower ESR

from what i understood so far about supercapacitors is that one important property seems to be that you are able to have low esr between supercapacitor/output and "higher" ESR between input/supercapacitor which kinda "decouples" (basicly a power buffer with lower ESR) the powersupply in front of the supercapacitor (also noise of the power supply should be rejected more by this in theory)

there are also pure supercapacitor power supplys out there or in conjunction with batterys (look at the stuff from ian canada for example) which all trys to give the cleanest power and a pure supercapacitor is in theory superior to all other linear/switching power supplys on its own, but it also "improves" existing power supplys

from what i read, there are not many commercial supercapacitors out there or they are expensive btw, supercapacitors might be the way to go regarding power supplys

Also: take a look at this thread https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sup...ucts-and-possibly-other-manufacturers.966163/ , in theory its easy to modify any power supply with only supercapacitors (tho it comes with a few quicks like you have to precharge the supercapacitors)

 

[Scrufboy]

no problem for the price i also think its awesome, even if there might be better (more expensive) stuff out there

if you choose better caps two important things to look out for is A. more capacitance and B. lower ESR (and with larger capacitance comes usually lower ESR), i will probably just look out for the largest caps that still fit in the device
also in theory the shortest cable possible between dac and supercapacitor bank is kinda important (also, lower total ESR between devices), maybe i will also remove the output socket and solder a short dc cable directly to the pcb which also should lead to lower ESR

from what i understood so far about supercapacitors is that one important property seems to be that you are able to have low esr between supercapacitor/output and "higher" ESR between input/supercapacitor which kinda "decouples" (basicly a power buffer with lower ESR) the powersupply in front of the supercapacitor (also noise of the power supply should be rejected more by this in theory)

there are also pure supercapacitor power supplys out there or in conjunction with batterys (look at the stuff from ian canada for example) which all trys to give the cleanest power and a pure supercapacitor is in theory superior to all other linear/switching power supplys on its own, but it also "improves" existing power supplys

from what i read, there are not many commercial supercapacitors out there or they are expensive btw, supercapacitors might be the way to go regarding power supplys

Also: take a look at this thread https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sup...ucts-and-possibly-other-manufacturers.966163/ , in theory its easy to modify any power supply with only supercapacitors (tho it comes with a few quicks like you have to precharge the supercapacitors)

https://www.oneyac.net/product/30625541.html

This is the capacitor inside the unit. There are 4 in mine. Have a suggestion for a better one?

 

[Scrufboy]

Some more changes. Two layers of copper and aluminum RF/EMI tape on all sides. Some more support via rigid, closed cell foam and then some vinyl wrap I had from an old speaker project.

Might ask the folks at NVArcher to make this with the 35f caps.

I do love the sound of the Aune X8 XVIII DAC with these upgrades.