[martin vegas]

Both the dacmagic xs and he dragonfly aren't that good really..the dacmagic xs has the best sound of the two..getting the micro streamer instead!

 

[martin vegas]

Ending up getting the arcam r dac wireless version..it works with my iphone with free app and with the free wireless dongle works from my pc over wifi..i have it plugged into my xbox in the bedroom(pc's downstairs) with my sennheiser headset and it goes through my Cambridge audio amp and wharfedale speakers for watching youtube catch up tv..it's much better than the other two dongles(dacmagic xs and dragonfly) by a long margin..not harsh sounding and the sound stage is much bigger with separation of instruments and you can hear things that you couldn't here before..peoples voices when they are talking on youtube are much more natural sounding..it's just a much better sound altogether..glad I got it now..this one definitely won't be going back!

 

[whuffor]

I picked up a DacMagic XS earlier today and after a 5 hour listening session my early impression is largely positive.
 
It definitely improves the sound from whatever computer I attach it to. The soundstage improves, one hear details that wasn't apparent before, slightly more oomph in the bass. Unfortunately the highs get a bit harsh too.
 
I've tried it with Bose MIE2 IEM's, AKG K545 and Sennheiser HD650.
 
It works fine with MIE2 and K545. I hear some harshness in the treble especially at loud levels which detracts a bit from the overall experience, but still quite enjoyable. The bass gets a small boost on the K545 without sounding bloated.
 
When I connected the HD650 I was surprised that it can drive it to mid levels without much effort. I used it at about 90% volume most of the time and this combination was the best. The harsh treble was gone and and I really enjoyed this combination. I played some 24bit/96kHz tracks and it sounded really good. Couldn't believe that one can get this sound from such a tiny gadget.
 
This thing is really small and noticeably improves the sound from the computer, and the price is very competitive This is a keeper for me.
 
Would be fun to compare it to the dragonfly which was what I had originally planned to get.

 

[HungryPanda]

I'm Using the Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS on my laptops and the sound is brilliant on my AKG 545's. Once I had downloaded the 1.6.7 usb2 audio software it outputs 24Bit no problem. I bought it because I have a Dacmagic 100 plugged into my Rokasan Kandy K2 amplifier and that sounds amazing when I plug in a laptop or my iBasso DX50 via coaxial output.

 

[m8te]

I'm thinking about buying one of these, seen some rather positive reviews. One thing I was wondering, does it make any difference having ear/head phones with inline remotes? I've read that sometime it can make the sound rather strange having that extra prong on the jack. 

 

[m8te]

I picked one up from Richersounds on my lunch. The guy in the store said it should work fine, but I can take it back within 7 days if I find it doesn't.

 

[sammy123]

So, how does this fare against odac, udac-3  or other similar priced dacs? I was originally going to go with fiio E10, its actually much cheaper but Dacmagic is available at my local store and i like the size of that thing. Its going to amp and replace my desktop and laptop soundcard. HD 650 and dt770 pro 80ohm headphones.

 

[martin vegas]

  So, how does this fare against odac, udac-3  or other similar priced dacs? I was originally going to go with fiio E10, its actually much cheaper but Dacmagic is available at my local store and i like the size of that thing. Its going to amp and replace my desktop and laptop soundcard. HD 650 and dt770 pro 80ohm headphones.

It sounds more like a dac than the dragonfly..should be good with your headphones..if you get it from richer sounds give them a ring, you can demo it first..just take your headphones with you!

 

[fabifri]

I have the DacMagic XS now for approximately two weeks in operation, and i'm statisfied so far. Except for the bad performance while driving my two Westone IEM (Westone 4R + UM2). There is too less treble and detail. Also some of the stage of the Westone 4R is lost, while using the DacMagic XS. It also has a ridiculous high amplification gain, driving big headphones at very loud levels. With the Westone 4R i cannot even use 10 out of 53 volume levels, before blowing my ears out of the head. Even with low volume levels there is a lot of clipping-like distortion on the Westone 4R. On the iPhone 5S (which uses Cirrus Class-D amplifiers, so far...) they sound FANTASTIC, with the same songs...
 
I was frustrated, and wrote them a ticket to the customer service. They told me yesterday, that they have to check it with the development department and give me some feedback then. Here is the quote of my mail:

Title: Inferior sound quality when driving low-impedance loads such as IEM

Text: I have recently bought a brand new DacMagic SX. I am very happy with it so far - i like the handling, and of course the sound quality, as from every Cambrdge Audio product.
I also own the bigger brother "DacMagic Plus", and therefore something bothers me, regarding the smaller XS. It's the driving capability of In-Ear-Monitors(mostly from Westone - an American brand, IEM) which is so different to the DacMagic Plus.
While at the DacMagic Plus In-Ear-Monitors sounds absolutely fantastic, with the XS used, they suddenly sound like if you put over a blanket. There are no details and no stage anymore, and the Westone 4 are really good Quad-Driver Monitor, even with a small sound stage. Even the iPhone 5S or iPad Mini drives them better with their onboard opamps. (class d, so far...)
But on the other hand, listening with my "beyerdynamic DT880" or "AKG K701" is a complete joy with the XS, with at least the same quality as with the "DacMagic Plus". So it came to my mind, that it might has someting to do with the impedance, and so i studied the datasheets. The XS allows a minimum of 12 ohms, the Westone 4R has 30 ohms and - only for information - the DT880 has 250 ohms. While the datasheets of the "ESS"-Products are hard to find online, i read something about using a buffer opamp after the DAC, because the DAC cannot drive such kind of loads. But it makes no sense to me, because you are using the ES9023, which has an onchip 2V-driver stage. So actually i am not aware of whether Cambridge Audio's design uses a buffer or not. I mean, the Gain of the XS is completely OK, if not a little bit too high, even with driving a 250ohms load. But when it comes to using a 31ohms load, i can't even safely go up to 10 of the 53 volume steps without blowing my ears away.
So this is my feedback on that specific thing. I am sure, that this is a hardware issue, and not so easily solved by now, but maybe you want to include for example a switchable gain (like at the iBasso-Products) or just design the next revision with less amplification gain. Most of the people "on the go" uses earbuds, IEM or portable cans. So i think there is (virtually) no need for the possibility driving 600ohm-loads at high volume levels, as probably no one carry a 600ohm-version of a bulky HD650 with them on the go.
I am glad to hear your feedback on this. Kind regards from Austria,
Fabian

 

I hope to get some more detailed information about their electronic design, how they use the ESS ES9023-Chip in the DacMagic XS. Maybe they are also seeking for some feedback, for improvements on a second generation. 
 
regards
Fabian

 

[m8te]

I've been using the DacMagic SX for the last few days and I'm really happy with it. Works fine will all my ear/headphones with and without inline controls. For £99 I think it's a bargain.

 

[fabifri]

As i got a message about my post, that i should not complain, when buying such a cheap device. i d not expect it - but anyway - i have to add, that this is not about money. For me it's about engineering, quality and fun. HiFi is basicly (as for me) not how expensive some devices are, and others not...expensive does not implicate good, and cheap does not implicate bad...
 
Meanwhile i managed to get a Lightning-to-USB-Camera-Adapter from Apple. It's a cable at approx. 30€ - which is far more in $...

As is also ordered an C5D from LDS Labs, therefore i'll need it anyway. The CA DacMagix XS also supports USB Class 1.0 - which should be supported by iOS7. But iOS shows a screen, that the XS consumes too much energy. (message is in German...) I'm not wondering about it - Cambridge Audio does not say, that it's compatible with iOS-Devices - and the XS also gets really warm when in use, due to the XMOS-Processor doing the USB implementation, i guess. (XMOS is capable of USB 1.0 and 2.0 switchable and supporting high-samplerate. However it's not energysaving at all...)
 
But it was worth a try...

 
kind regards
Fabian

 

[martin vegas]

  As i got a message about my post, that i should not complain, when buying such a cheap device. i d not expect it - but anyway - i have to add, that this is not about money. For me it's about engineering, quality and fun. HiFi is basicly (as for me) not how expensive some devices are, and others not...expensive does not implicate good, and cheap does not implicate bad...
 
Meanwhile i managed to get a Lightning-to-USB-Camera-Adapter from Apple. It's a cable at approx. 30€ - which is far more in $...

As is also ordered an C5D from LDS Labs, therefore i'll need it anyway. The CA DacMagix XS also supports USB Class 1.0 - which should be supported by iOS7. But iOS shows a screen, that the XS consumes too much energy. (message is in German...) I'm not wondering about it - Cambridge Audio does not say, that it's compatible with iOS-Devices - and the XS also gets really warm when in use, due to the XMOS-Processor doing the USB implementation, i guess. (XMOS is capable of USB 1.0 and 2.0 switchable and supporting high-samplerate. However it's not energysaving at all...)
 
But it was worth a try...

 
kind regards
Fabian

All I was saying Fabian is the more you pay for a dac the better they are..it wasn't meant as a complaint!

 

[hangm4n]

I'm not sure about you Fabian, but in the packaging of my Dacmagic XS there was a note saying that the device will get warm, this is part of the normal operation of the device.

 

[fabifri]

  I'm not sure about you Fabian, but in the packaging of my Dacmagic XS there was a note saying that the device will get warm, this is part of the normal operation of the device.

 
Yes, i have read that too. So i assumed allready that it _maybe_ does not work with iDevices. But i gave it a try by myself, just to be sure about that, and shared the results here.

 

[fluse]

could someone who owns this maybe weight this?
100gr sounds a lot for such a small device, read about that the dragonfly only weights like 20?