[RugbyPlayer]

So its a really slow week at work, and im sitting here with the sparse audio gear that i have, doing a/b testing and am really struggling with picking up differences.
 
What im using:
Sources:
Ibasso DX90
Samsung S7 edge (Snapdragon)
Work Laptop (some dell idk what audio chip it has)
 
Headphones:
Maddogs
 
2 Songs:
Carrie Underwood - Temporary Home
Christina Aguilera - hurt
 
I chose these 2 songs because they are 2 very good vocal recordings with some good instrumental work behind them as well.
 
Between all the sources, to me, by a minor margin, i think my DX90 sounds the best, but its hard for me to really articulate/interpret how and or why, or even what the differences are. However between every single source (even the s7) the differences are so insanely minor that its hard to really justify (to me) spending any more money in this area.
 
Are my headphones perhaps not good enough to really show me the differences in my gear?
 
Should there be a noticeable difference with these headphones and the DX90 and the D6? Both have pretty similiar specs so i wouldn't think they would be huge

 

[Wiljen]

I'm in the same boat with you.  If the source track is the same and the headphone is the same the differences from one dac to the next can be near impossible to discern.   Amps can be easier to tell apart if they are tubes but with all of your sources being solid state amps, I would think any difference there might be very hard to find too.   Probably the easiest way to tell them apart is take the headphones off, set them on the desk and crank the devices as high as they will go.   You'll find the differences become more apparent as you stress the components.  Chances are the Dx90 will have way more top end before it starts either clipping or distorting than the other two as it has a purpose built amp for headphones.  Amps in phones and PCs are usually more of an after thought (with a few exceptions).   With the maddogs being a planar magnetic, you might also find out that none of those sources really have enough umphh to get the best out of them.   You might want to try something like a Fiio E10 or the Schitt Magni or Vali and see if they suddenly have more going on.

 

[serman005]

I would think the Mad Dogs should be plenty resolving to bring out meaningful differences between source gear/amps/DACs that are themselves meaningfully distinct from one another. I guess what I am saying is that it may not be your headphones that are failing to reveal these amp/DAC/source differences, it may instead be that the actual sonic differences themselves (between these components) are relatively minor.

 

[RugbyPlayer]

If what the two of you are saying is true, what would i need to upgrade to? Im afraid of blindly buying stuff (i dont live anywhere where i can feasibly try anything out)
 
That being said...i would *hope* the DX90 would be higher quality than the s7 phone but...

 

[Wiljen]

  If what the two of you are saying is true, what would i need to upgrade to? Im afraid of blindly buying stuff (i dont live anywhere where i can feasibly try anything out)
 
That being said...i would *hope* the DX90 would be higher quality than the s7 phone but...

 
Aune T1 Mk2 (and be sure it is an Mk2 as the Mk1 was not nearly as good).   I recently got a chance to play with one of these and think for <$200 they are a steal.   The Dac is solid and works well when paired with the Magni for Amp, the amp on the T1mk2 is solid and has a nice warm tone.  As a kicker with a little tube rolling you can get a range of different sound signatures out of the T1 and with it being a single tube design you can tube roll without having to get into the expense of match pairs or even pairs at all.
 
I'm sure a million other suggestions will roll in, but I think with everything you've tried being solid state and the desire to hear the differences a tube or hybrid design makes a lot of sense as I think you can begin to tune it to your liking.

 

[GoodEnoughGear]

I think this is one of those things where the level of difference on an overall scale are small, but you are able with attention and practice to 'zoom in' on an aspect of the presentation in the long shallow climb of diminishing returns.
 
I would spend some time doing exactly what you're doing, AB'ing between sources, but listening hard to elements such at soundstage, specific aspects of sounds like cymbals, vocals etc.. It really helps having an application like JRiver that can output to two devices simultaneously and use a switchbox to flip between the sources.
 
What I have found is that something that seems like a small detail in concerted listening makes its presence felt as an overall impression when listening for enjoyment. Once you've established a sonic difference AB'ing back and forth, listen for a longer period without 'peering' into the music and see if it leaves a meaningful impression on you.
 
To me, I only notice the differences when critically listening, in a quiet room on my own. On a plane or train or at work it may as well be my phone I'm listening to...but in the most important time when I do get to escape the family and just listen, then I appreciate that detail. That happens 1% of the time .
 
Each of us has to decide:
 
- How much difference we can really hear
- How much time we can spend appreciating that difference
- How much we are prepared to spend for that difference
 
I am coming around to the opinion that my phone is pretty damn good for most listening I do where there is any background noise and other distractions, so I am focusing on my critical listening station at home rather than portable gear. Something like the LG V10 is ample to play high quality music through any headphone until you get over the $1k mark (generalization), and also act as a decent line-in to any hi-fi for general or social listening. You can cram well over 1000 albums in high-quality MP3 onto a 128GB card. No amps, no DACs or any other crap to cart around. And that will sound just as good in the real world as anything.
 
When you can tell the world to buzz off and leave you alone for an hour is where you need anything more. Even if you CAN A/B it, can you do that in the real circumstances you're in when most listening happens? I doubt it.
 
And that's from a guy who has a GOV2 and a Mojo both and can't tell a difference between that and my phone at work because the frigging AC is too loud and I can't spend the time to really listen.