[HiFiHawaii808]

Congrats on the Odins!

I was also considering the L&P W2 but read about the power issues with iPhones. Currently using the Hidizs S9 on my iPhone with both the Odins & LX since I sold my A&K. Call me crazy but to me this combination sounds better than the A&K which was more expensive than my iPhone 11Pro 256gb and the S9 together! Btw. I am so glad to have the perfect UI of the iPhone back and no more software problems….

Regarding power, even with the LX wich are a more demanding than the Odins, I can’t even go halfway the volume slider with the S9. Muuuch much headroom available. This thing is a beast.

Measurements are also top notch: Hidizs S9 Review

I love my L&P W2. It can sufficiently drive all of my IEMs, Odin, LX even my Z1Rs. It's a fantastic sound. Great clarity and transparency while maintaining a great bass response. With the right lightning connector and some velcro, it's the best sounding, highest price-performance mobile solution I own. It sounds better than my R6 2020 which is why I want to upgrade my DAP.

 

[jwilliamhurst]

I love my L&P W2. It can sufficiently drive all of my IEMs, Odin, LX even my Z1Rs. It's a fantastic sound. Great clarity and transparency while maintaining a great bass response. With the right lightning connector and some velcro, it's the best sounding, highest price-performance mobile solution I own. It sounds better than my R6 2020 which is why I want to upgrade my DAP.

Which lighting cable are you using?

 

[CharlyBrown]

I love my L&P W2. It can sufficiently drive all of my IEMs, Odin, LX even my Z1Rs. It's a fantastic sound. Great clarity and transparency while maintaining a great bass response. With the right lightning connector and some velcro, it's the best sounding, highest price-performance mobile solution I own. It sounds better than my R6 2020 which is why I want to upgrade my DAP.

That’s interesting. Are you using it like suggested - iPhone to full volume and keep W2 under 70%? I guess this is more than loud enough for the Odin and LX, right? Maybe I’ll give it a shot.

Which lighting cable are you using?

I think this is the ddHifi TC28i , I use this as well. It’s a perfect CCK replacement for iPhones with much smaller footprint and angled USB-C port. Really nice!

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

Which lighting cable are you using?

DDHifi lightning adapter and USB-C cable

Best lightning adapter I've tried.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

That’s interesting. Are you using it like suggested - iPhone to full volume and keep W2 under 70%? I guess this is more than loud enough for the Odin and LX, right? Maybe I’ll give it a shot.

Yes. This is exactly how I use it. I am listening to it right now with my Z1R. I have it at 51 of 100 in high gain mode driving my Z1Rs and it is very loud for me. This set up sounds better than my Hiby R6 2020. Some people call it the mid tier DAP killer. My experience is consistent with that view.

 

[snapandslide]

Yes. This is exactly how I use it. I am listening to it right now with my Z1R. I have it at 51 of 100 in high gain mode driving my Z1Rs and it is very loud for me. This set up sounds better than my Hiby R6 2020. Some people call it the mid tier DAP killer. My experience is consistent with that view.

I barely get above 30 with the Z1R and W2 in high gain. I gotta try the adapter you linked - if nothing else, ergonomically it looks so much better

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

I barely get above 30 with the Z1R and W2 in high gain. I gotta try the adapter you linked - if nothing else, ergonomically it looks so much better

That was max level so that I could illustrate how much head room there is with the W2. This little device is truly amazing.

 

[CharlyBrown]

Yes. This is exactly how I use it. I am listening to it right now with my Z1R. I have it at 51 of 100 in high gain mode driving my Z1Rs and it is very loud for me. This set up sounds better than my Hiby R6 2020. Some people call it the mid tier DAP killer. My experience is consistent with that view.

Thank you for you confirmation. I will give the W2 a try. You think it is a good match for the Odins & LX, as well?

After my experience with A&K, I am done with DAPs for quite a while

The iPhone has a perfect UI and it feels so great in the hand. I just like that.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

Thank you for you confirmation. I will give the W2 a try. You think it is a good match for the Odins & LX, as well?

After my experience with A&K, I am done with DAPs for quite a while

The iPhone has a perfect UI and it feels so great in the hand. I just like that.

I haven't listened to the W2 with Odin in a while, but I recall the pairing to work really well. I haven't tried it yet with LX. I'll do a listen and let you know.

ergonomically, this is the best dongle solution to use with the iPHone that I've tried and I've tried a lot of them. If you velcro the W2 to the iPhone, it is very stable especially with the DDhifi lightning adapter which is very solid. Don't need to worry about it falling out. Should improve long term durability, but I will see about that.

 

[snapandslide]

I haven't listened to the W2 with Odin in a while, but I recall the pairing to work really well. I haven't tried it yet with LX. I'll do a listen and let you know.

ergonomically, this is the best dongle solution to use with the iPHone that I've tried and I've tried a lot of them. If you velcro the W2 to the iPhone, it is very stable especially with the DDhifi lightning adapter which is very solid. Don't need to worry about it falling out. Should improve long term durability, but I will see about that.

I was listening to the Odin/W2 earlier. They can be a little bright on certain tracks, but overall I like the pairing. It's a nice counterbalance to my WM1A with custom FW.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

I was listening to the Odin/W2 earlier. They can be a little bright on certain tracks, but overall I like the pairing. It's a nice counterbalance to my WM1A with custom FW.

I can see that as the W2 is open and transparent and that can lead to brightness in treble. For me, the Z1Rs are brighter than the Odin and LX, so that isn't a problem for me. I am listening to the LX with the W2 now. It sounds really good. The one potential issue is that it may sound bass light to bass heads. The bigger stage and transparent sound can exacerbate what some say is "loose bass." I have been pairing my Custom LX with my Hiby R6 2020 and it does a really good job of controlling the bass of the LX. It has a slightly smaller stage and weaker treble response, but the gain in controlling the subbass more than makes up for it. I would say that the pairing of W2 + LX works, but I prefer pairing it with my Hiby R6 2020 for the reasons stated.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

Thank you for you confirmation. I will give the W2 a try. You think it is a good match for the Odins & LX, as well?

After my experience with A&K, I am done with DAPs for quite a while

The iPhone has a perfect UI and it feels so great in the hand. I just like that.

Oh yes. I am now listening to the Odin with the W2 and this pairing really works well. As soon as I turned on a song it reminded me of everything I love about the Odin. Balanced signature with bass and subbass when it's needed, resolution and extension both ways forever. Clarity and transparency. This is how music is supposed to sound.

 

[Progisus]

That's good to know, I have a few cables coming , I look up the specs if none is pure silver will probably get a cheaper one and see what happens.

PW No. 10 works well on my LX and is very reasonable. Build quality is top notch and there is no microphonics and not stiff.

 

[HiFiHawaii808]

PW No. 10 works well on my LX and is very reasonable. Build quality is top notch and there is no microphonics and not stiff.

Agree. I have both a PW No 5 and 10. They pop up in the classifieds quite a bit. Great quality cables that look great.

 

[gLer]

Eh it’s a bit of both imo.

Erlkonig on DX220 Max balanced = hiss free
Erlkonig on hiby r8 balanced = almost unlistenable for me

both are insanely powerful sources, so where does the blame lie? The sensitivity of the erlkonig or the amp section of the r8?

Yeah it's a bit of both. I've never heard hiss on the R8 which probably means I use IEMs that just don't hiss, but then others have heard hiss with these and other IEMs, so there's no question the R8 amp, balanced, with turbo active, is not dead silent. And that I don't have bat ears. At the same time thr likes of Andromeda hiss on just about any DAP and portable amp, bar a few like the M8 that seem to prioritise noise floor in their amp section. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter if a) you're not that sensitive to hiss or b) can't hear it either way. If I could hear hiss when playing music with the R8, I'd sell it for something better.

What do y’all store your IEMs in? I have this pouch for my LXs and am going to buy another one for my Odins unless there’s something better.

The CA pouch is literally the best product CA makes IME.

So the bass really calms down with burn in on
LX? Lol
I think it has to. The M8 is not a great pairing so far. M15 is a bit better IMO.

Switched to high gain and is much better than turbo.

Bass gets tighter and more defined with time. Needs a good 100 hours or so. Source also helps. Pair it with a warm, full source and you'll get added warmth and fullness. A more neutral, detailed source is best IME, and the synergy between the LX and a Cardas cable is otherworldly.