[illram]

Asked this in the E3 thread in the portables subforum, looks like this thread might be a better place though:

When hooked up via bluetooth to my Nexus 5X, when I have the E3 volume at max, and phone volume at a comfortable level, there is a very noticeable hiss when playing my music on Google Play (not in general, only when a song starts) . It goes away if I do the reverse: turn the phone volume all the way up and turn the E3 volume down until I get a comfortable listening level. Is this normal?
I hear no hiss when using the included 3.5mm cable (i.e. when just using the e3 as an amp.) I don't have a USB C converter cable to try the OTG cord with it to test if it also happens that way.

2nd question: although SBX Studio has a surround option, Windows only sees this device as stereo speakers. How does it virtualize surround without virtualizing 5.1 or 7.1 to windows? This is dependent on individual games having their own 5.1 setting, right?

 

[Caramon77]

Usually via BT you should hear no hiss at all. Do you have any weird eq set in GPlay?

The e3 has no native surround capability. It may virtualize it with two speakers, but i never tried.

 

[illram]

Never messed with EQ in Gplay.

I was surprised when I saw the surround slider in the SBX Studio program. I did not know the E3 had that feature, it's not really a big part of the marketing, so I guess whether it works well or not doesn't matter as I was not expecting it. Sort of an interesting surprise that I wanted to explore some more. I have an X7 already in another room that I use for gaming.

 

[Shoewreck]

Received my unit yesterday. A true fun to listen to. It's a little awkward to wear attached to a shirt, but manageable. It seems to sound a bit cleaner and more forward via bluetooth. Volume is enough to be painful on any headphone I own, it outplays Tracker Pre maxxed up (and I never use Tracker Pre maxxed up). Sonic signature is a bit different: it provides enough detail, just doesn't bring so much attention to it (compared to Tracker Pre). I believe it's better suited for general listening.
And, of course, it's a huge upgrade to standard iPhone 5C headphone out. Ability to use any headphone with whole headset functionality is also great.

 

[Shoewreck]

Further listening revealed that Bluetooth sounds slightly inferior. There's definitely a lossy compression getting in the way. Lossy may sound good sometimes (as it did initially to me), but it oversimplifies and is not true to the music.
I still see no alternative to the E3 at what it is: a lightweight portable wireless DAC with mic capability.
It's serving as my workplace compact desktop DAC as well.