[rutter]

The first hit was bad. This occurred between 50 and 100 hours. Am I the only one?

 

[Acacia71]

Guys, can anyone tell us why this new flagship DAP does not have the flagship ES9038 DAC chip?

Also surely one DAC chip would suffice for a portable device, so is it done for marketing purposes?

I have the ES9038 DAC chip in my cheap but excellent portable DAC/Amp (which also has Bluetooth HD and which also sounds remarkable).

Will the hype train ever end?!

Which DAP is that?

 

[gc335]

Guys, can anyone tell us why this new flagship DAP does not have the flagship ES9038 DAC chip?

Also surely one DAC chip would suffice for a portable device, so is it done for marketing purposes?

I have the ES9038 DAC chip in my cheap but excellent portable DAC/Amp (which also has Bluetooth HD and which also sounds remarkable).

Will the hype train ever end?!

Which version of the 9038? I think there are three. The DX220 uses the PRO chip which is 8 channel. The 9038PRO is VERY power hungry as far as I know. You'd sacrifice battery life or need a massive battery (Kann Cube) to make it practical.

 

[CobraMan]

I've heard what the HD800S does with every recording. It's not that I want that, but I have enough experience with headphones and iems to know the range of things that are possible with recordings I have access to. Earlier during burn-in there was an encouraging phase, something that just needed to be built on. Not really a wide sound but a dimensional one, full [bodied] and generally forward/direct too. I.e. a substantial sound that you could get engaged and sort of enveloped in. Definition, clarity, and vibrancy come on top. The immediate problem is to me it sounds like things have regressed. At some point past 100 hours the sound mellowed. No improvement in clarity, definition, vibrancy, and separation occurred. Imaging as well as dimensional sound seems to have regressed. The sound is no longer big and bold. To use one word, it's blah or meh. Not words I want associated with $3,000 combined. What really puzzles me is that I heard better before on this device.

In light of prices I don't think any of us are taking anything unreasonable out on the gear. Quite to the contrary. Same applies to realistic expectations. Knock a digit off, have some leeway with the remaining three, then we can talk about realistic expectations. At >=$1000 the only reasonable thing is to have high expectations. I'm 150 hours in, will continue to burn and break in.

Just out of curiosity - have you tried using the custom EQ or PEQ settings to adjust and tweak the sound? I know that there are some folks out there that steadfastly hold to the tenet of "ye shall not EQ" but it is a powerful capability that in my ears is absolutely mandatory to get the sound I like.

Just a thought...

Cheers,
Tim

 

[rutter]

Tried the 10-band one. Going back and forth between using and not using it seemed to show an unintended effect. Can try again.

 

[Light - Man]

It is HaaFee HA8 Portable HIFI Headphone Amplifier With ES9038Q2M DAC with Bluetooth 5.0. It also has the brand name SaoMai so it likely dual branded but I have never bothered to check which name is original. It has good battery life and I have had it for several months.

So the Pro version chip in the DX220 has 8 channels but it only uses one channel because it uses 2 DAC chips side by side? If so it sounds a bit odd to me in a portable device.

 

[rutter]

The new A&K Kann uses two dac chips as well, the pro version of the 9038, whereas the flagship dap will apparently have four.

 

[CobraMan]

Tried the 10-band one. Going back and forth between using and not using it seemed to show an unintended effect. Can try again.

Here are the settings I use for the 10 band: 33 +7, 63 +6, 100 +4, 330 +2, 630 +1, 1k +2, 3.3k +4, 6.3k +6, 10k +7, 16k +6

My music preferences are primarily heavy metal, hard rock, and classic rock.

Hope this helps - give it a try and see if you like the sound. Worst case - change it from those settings or go back to flat.

Cheers,
Tim

 

[scootermafia]

Single 9038pro DAPs have not been widely beating DX220. The only dual 9038pro DAP is the enormous Kann Cube. The new A&K SP2000 has dual AKM 4399 chips which are very high power consumption, which cut 1/3 of the SP1000's battery life, but still impressive they managed to do it. DX200/220 is the only portable with dual, 8 channel 9028 pro.

 

[rutter]

Here are the settings I use for the 10 band: 33 +7, 63 +6, 100 +4, 330 +2, 630 +1, 1k +2, 3.3k +4, 6.3k +6, 10k +7, 16k +6

You do not mess around! Wow.

 

[CobraMan]

You do not mess around! Wow.

Absolutely!




Cheers,
Tim

 

[jmills8]

It is HaaFee HA8 Portable HIFI Headphone Amplifier With ES9038Q2M DAC with Bluetooth 5.0. It also has the brand name SaoMai so it likely dual branded but I have never bothered to check which name is original. It has good battery life and I have had it for several months.

So the Pro version chip in the DX220 has 8 channels but it only uses one channel because it uses 2 DAC chips side by side? If so it sounds a bit odd to me in a portable device.

Cost like $200 usd ?

 

[Light - Man]

Cost like $200 usd ?

I got mine for about £65 on Amazon UK. It must have been a special or something. I wanted to buy a backup and they were no longer available there, so I checked at the time and they were $170 in China.

I have had immense pleasure out of something so cheap and versatile. It uses the mobile version of the 9038 chip and drives most full size portable head gear very well.

Have you tried the DX220 yet and what else are you looking at?

 

[CobraMan]

Cost like $200 usd ?

Looks like you can buy the 9038PRO for $70 - $100 and the 9028PRO is about $60. Both are available on eBay if anyone is curious.

Cheers,
Tim

 

[Researcher]

So the Pro version chip in the DX220 has 8 channels but it only uses one channel because it uses 2 DAC chips side by side? If so it sounds a bit odd to me in a portable device.

As expected from a well-designed implementation of a pair of dacs to the board, while one chip deals with left side, the other focuses on right side. One 9028pro has 8 channels;therefore, the both must be benefiting from 16 channels. You have claimed the dx220 can use 4 channels at most. Is there anyone here presenting official diagram of engineering design like sabre’s official website suggests ( just google sabre es9028pro). If DX220 uses only 4 channels, this sucks!