[mahfouz]

I was wondering if this cable can power a pair of 150ohm headphones sufficiently? Or do I need to add an amp to it?

 

[IryxBRO]

I was wondering if this cable can power a pair of 150ohm headphones sufficiently? Or do I need to add an amp to it?

I doubt that. It is fine for anything up to 75ohms, but would probably be not sufficient for something more heavy

 

[themindfreak]

Damn this tiny dac/amp is really damn impressive. At least alot better than the LG V20 quad dac in Pure music D mode. Mode A and the V20 sound about the same in terms of absolute detail retrieval and seperation. Well done hidiz really well done (Main points are musical and neutral warmth)

 

[Mellowship]

I doubt that. It is fine for anything up to 75ohms, but would probably be not sufficient for something more heavy

Yes, a dedicated, self-powered amplifier should be a better solution. But this DAC is surprising. Just yesterday I tested a 80 Ohm IEM with it, and although I had to power the Hidizs a few notches up, it was perfectly capable of squeezing the best of those SoundMagic.
The highest impedance headphones I have around is 60 Ohm and they are a walk on the park for the Hidizs.
Maybe the best approach is to compare the Hidizs specifications against some amplifier/source capable of running a given headphone and then try to jump into conclusions:
Output power: 2x60mW @ 32Ω
Output current: 50mA

I would say that for its size, the output values are amazing. But, for instances, the FiiO X3 II, which is capable of pushing up to 150 Ohm headphones, as recommended by FiiO, gets around 200mW @ 32Ω and around 80mA maximum before clipping, at low gain setting, and 100 mA at high gain. These values are not as far from the Hidizs as they seem, but can contribute to throw some light on its capabilities. I believe the Hidizs could drive the 150 Ohm headphone to a satisfactory listening amplitude close to the maximum volume, but with some flaws regarding micro and macrodynamics such as transient response and possibly some sub-audible distortion on the edges of the frequency spectrum. Some quieter recordings would demand higher volumes which the Hidizs could not produce. Ex. the 1980's and 1990's CD pressings of Neil Young's "Harvest".

 

[kenloveme]

Damn this tiny dac/amp is really damn impressive. At least alot better than the LG V20 quad dac in Pure music D mode. Mode A and the V20 sound about the same in terms of absolute detail retrieval and seperation. Well done hidiz really well done (Main points are musical and neutral warmth)

Aside from the tracking stuff, sorry haha, sometimes our system can experience some issues! But we are super glad to hear that you enjoy your Sonata cable with your music!

 

[peter123]

I was wondering if this cable can power a pair of 150ohm headphones sufficiently? Or do I need to add an amp to it?

Depending on the sensitivity of your headphones it can. With UAPP as player it can easily drive the HD58X (150ohm) and sounds very good doing so.

With Spotify as player I have to put the volume close to maximum but it still works OK.

 

[minuvera]

I used the sonata cable hd on a samsung s9 plus with B&W P7 headphones.
My first impressions, the volume increase is impressive with respect to the original volume limit.You can literally blow your head
but it is essential to pay for usb audio player pro, therefore with spotify it does not work
The maximum benefit of the dac is USBAUDIOPLAYERPRO+TIDAL HIFI

I just ordered two of these little devices. I bought one on AliExpress for about $30. Then I saw Hidizs had a coupon code on Facebook to allow you to order through Amazon for $7.50. So, just pulled the trigger before trying the first one I ordered.

Well, they both got here today. I have to say for the price they are quite good. Especially at such a compact form factor, which is the primary reason I ordered them. I updated the firmware to Version D. I am using them with USB Audio Player Plus and Tidal. I also have it set to Bit Perfect Mode. When going under the option to adjust hardware volume, it makes some pretty significant pops in my iems or even starts playing out of one iem very loudly if I'm playing music when changing the hardware volume. When I pause the music and make the volume adjustment, doesn't seem to be an issue. I am using a Samsung Note 8. Just curious if anyone else has experienced this issue.

 

[minuvera]

I just received my Sonata II DACs to use with my Note 8. I have been using straight out of the Note 8 for convenience or with the Audioquest Dragonfly Red primarily with a pair of Etymotics ER3XRs to use in the office or when running errands. The Dragonfly is a great solution, but not as compact as I would like with my phone. It sometimes has issues with connectivity via the OTG cable I've been using. I've seen Hidizs advertising on Facebook for a while and seen generally good things about their equipment. So, I bought a few pairs of ChiFi IEMs the other week (Swing ie800, Tin Audio T2 and KZ ZST). While doing that, I went ahead and bought the Sonata out of curiosity for trying Hidizs and that the shear form factor of this device met my needs perfectly. A week after ordering from AliExpress, Hidizs had a coupon on Facebook to purchase the Sonata DAC through Amazon for $7.50. Went ahead and bought a second one at this price.

Well, they both arrived today. I immediately updated the firmware to the D Type. Tried it with my Note 8 phone streaming Tidal Master quality via USB Audio Player Plus. Needless to say, I was impressed with this device after listening to it for a bit. It definitely has a clean and punchy bass response. The shear headroom on a device this size and price is astounding. The treble is definitely a bit forward and very detailed. For the low price, it definitely provides better performance than the audio output from my Note 8. But I don't think I enjoy the sound quite as much as the Dragonfly DAC. But I didn't honestly expect this device to be quite as good as the Dragonfly as it is a fraction of the cost. In the end I bought this for the convenience of using it. It definitely ticks off those boxes well while providing better audio quality than my phone.

However, with that aside, I do feel it brings forward a lot of detail, but I feel that the vocals are somewhat recessed and missing some of the vocal micro details. Listening to Cher, I just find myself missing some of the micro details in her voice from her vibrato. Is it a deal breaker? No..... but I feel as if the treble is just a bit too forward for my taste in an attempt to convey detail, but the mids don't quite do it for me. I'll definitely be using this daily as these are small issues at this price point and convenience. This is me being critical and comparing it with a $200 DAC. At the end of the day, I do feel satisfied with the quality of the product I received for the price.

 

[Akmola Lola]

just discovered this yesterday.. but wondering what DAC that it used, ive only know ESS Sabre and AK...

 

[minuvera]

just discovered this yesterday.. but wondering what DAC that it used, ive only know ESS Sabre and AK...

Read the thread. I thought it was referenced in here with cut sheets referenced to the chip. But I could be wrong and have seen that elsewhere. But I cant remember either. But honestly, regardless of what it uses, it performs quite well for its price point. It wont perform like the best $100-200 dacs out there. But it will perform better than almost every phone dac. So it is a perfect and cheap solution for someone without a headphone jack on their phone or wants a compact solution that is portable with their phone. If you aren't either, you may find a better solution elsewhere. But still very good for less than $40.

 

[Chessblitzer2017]

So like...uhh....this things candle doesn't stay lit up against the ~100 dollar dac/amps correct? Is a yes or no answer.

 

[Dobrescu George]

So like...uhh....this things candle doesn't stay lit up against the ~100 dollar dac/amps correct? Is a yes or no answer.

depends what you're comparing it with

It can do a lot for its 30 USD price point, I think it may be above DFR for example, at least in terms of how well it handles distortion at very high volumes, with certain IEMs, like E5000. Not my conclusion only, some friends were taking part in the test, since i didn't have a DFR for myself.

 

[themindfreak]

So like...uhh....this things candle doesn't stay lit up against the ~100 dollar dac/amps correct? Is a yes or no answer.

Hmm for me i'd dare to say it can compete with a fiio q1 mk2. Well to begin with i was never impressed with the q1 mk2 anyways.
Although both q1 and V20 in quad mode definitely has more driving power than the hidiz

 

[mohsin9221]

Hmm for me i'd dare to say it can compete with a fiio q1 mk2. Well to begin with i was never impressed with the q1 mk2 anyways.
Although both q1 and V20 in quad mode definitely has more driving power than the hidiz

I was planning to buy q1 mk2 but on the other hand i want a very portable solution too which i can put in my pocket easily. My original Q1 died a few days ago and I`m left with K1 which is good dac/amp (very clean mids) but on my hd598 it feels like something is missing (the power/punch/volume) and i cant seem to get any sound out of galaxy s8 with it, can you tell me why you weren't impressed with q1 mk2? I`m not into much for dsd support but sound quality is still important for me.

just discovered this yesterday.. but wondering what DAC that it used, ive only know ESS Sabre and AK...

Its CS42L42 from Cirrus Logic looking its by its data sheet
https://statics.cirrus.com/pubs/proDatasheet/CS42L42_F3.pdf

(Power output 2 x 35 mW into 30ohm) thats no where near 2x60mW as tempotec claims.

looks like its another device with same specs
http://www.musiland.com.cn/index.php?m=Product&a=show&id=16
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/musiland-mu1-usb-type-c-to-3-5mm-dac-amp-adaptor.23101/

 

[themindfreak]

I haven't listened to the q1 mk2 in a long time so i cant comment much. But i can say for sure that the hidiz is very musical and bring life in the songs. It doesnt make music sound neutral or boring. But if you are going to use it with your hd598 i would not recommend it, it takes 5/8 or 3/4 of volume to drive my sony xba z5. Fiio q1 mk2 is more of an option if you are looking for power and consistency.

Edit: I realized you have fiio k1. I used to own the K1 as well. I prefer hidiz over the K1 in sound quality alone. Power? K1 wins