[ngoshawk]

What’s in the box? I wonder?

 

[rafaelo]

I am still on the fence as to request an xCAN for review or not. I would love to pair it up in full balanced mode with the xDSD and iPurifier3 and put it through it's paces and tell you guys how awesome the combination is, but I would probably want to keep it

Since the xCan is already delivered today in my building I will take one for the team and do the proposed testing. It is an ungly job but someone needs to do it...

 

[xLoud]

What’s in the box? I wonder?

Can you please compare iDSD BL(amp section) with xCAN or xDSD + xCAN vs iDSD BL?

 

[Grimbles]

Can you please compare iDSD BL(amp section) with xCAN or xDSD + xCAN vs iDSD BL?

Hey chap. I plan to do a mega shoot out on these - i have a nano bl of my own, micro BL on loan and ifi have agreed to send me an xdsd and xcan at the same time. Suspect my mega comparison review is at least a month away though!

 

[ngoshawk]

Can you please compare iDSD BL(amp section) with xCAN or xDSD + xCAN vs iDSD BL?

iCAN, and iPLAN to compare the three, haha.

 

[kukkurovaca]

Did we ever get confirmation on the output impedance?

 

[Bansaku]

What’s in the box? I wonder?

Love your use of lego! Did you by chance get inspired by me, or do great minds think alike?

 

[ngoshawk]

Love your use of lego! Did you by chance get inspired by me, or do great minds think alike?

Not sure I have seen yours. I made this about 2 years ago if my feeble mind remembers correctly! But of course, great minds do think alike, and we will go with that!

 

[rafaelo]

Listening in Bluetooth apt-x mode with my HD6XX (which xDSD firstly raised from the dead) first time this very moment I have to say that the xCan sounds (semi)-unexpectedly seriously addictively impressively good!!!

First impressions without any direct comparisons are

WOW...

xCan + HD6XX + aptx + balanced cable+ Defected radio = going ballistic dancing all over the house.

The problem is that I do not have any graph or an objective scientific analysis to convince me what I am hearing is true and I am very sad...(But on second thought... No I am not actually...)

Should I guess that the included 2.5mm is balanced so I do not need to order a new one???

 

[a-LeXx]

Well, nice hearing you are enjoying your music.

I heard, there are people enjoying their music with an ipod and some ear buds. As a matter of fact, I might be one of those people occasionally

Does it tell us, there is no need for a better gear or improved specifications? I don't think so...

 

[ngoshawk]

Ran the xCAN for the first time last night (too much going on!...) through an old friend, my Shanling M5 and the CA Atlas. I did not think there could be more bass coming from the Atlas, but the xCAN makes them sound like my old Klipsch Forte speakers. I have that presence of floor speaker in my ears, and I must say I like it.

An odd feature that some may not like is the bass/presence switch on the back. You must have one of them on at all times, which some may not like. I do not mind, and when added to xBass and 3D+, on the front, think old Maxell commercial with the dued in front of the speaker...

Easy to use, especially if you are familiar with the xDSD. And small enough to be portable, but please, please, PLEASE make something other than chrome...my fingerprints are left all over and I'm afraid I may get collared for a crime as a result! lol

Well done, @iFi audio This is a serious little critter!

 

[rafaelo]

Does it tell us, there is no need for a better gear or improved specifications? I don't think so...

I do not disagree with you at all. Ideally xDSD should have that amp section too. I am just amazed how it scales HD6XX so far and also with their performance as a headphone. With my es100 I clearly preferred my 4xx.

I also want one device not many and I am fan of Burr Brown ifi chip.

I am just in the beginning of my testing. But very impressed how it scales the HD6XX so far. I kind expected that from my a brief test I did on Tuesday night. I used my little bear which had v5i dual opamp installed and xDSD as a line out. The sound was amazing far better than es100 with little bear combined together. So I kind had a feeling that for difficult to drive headphones more power would be beneficial. I can not say yet for sure how the DAC compares since the balanced power drives these headphones so good.

But if it has the same DAC with my dragonfly v1.2 really does not show so far. Also not sure how much the purely balanced connection contributes.

But so far, I am trying to forget about the DAC specs and focus on the sound which is ....really impressive.

I need to work today and so far it destroyed my schedule... I can't stop listening...just I can't...

 

[458302]

An odd feature that some may not like is the bass/presence switch on the back. You must have one of them on at all times, which some may not like.

The front right settings button doesn't deactivate xBass/3D+ ?. I thought that button is on/off, and rear slider is mode switch.

 

[ngoshawk]

The front right settings button doesn't deactivate xBass/3D+ ?. I thought that button is on/off, and rear slider is mode switch.

Yes, you can deactivate the xBass/3D+ on the front using the button, but the bass/presence slider on the back has no "off" position, so either one or both are on all the time. Of course I have not read the manual either, so...

 

[a-LeXx]

But so far, I am trying to forget about the DAC specs and focus on the sound which is ....really impressive.

I need to work today and so far it destroyed my schedule... I can't stop listening...just I can't...

Absolutely understand this. Not at all saying xCAN is a low-spec unit. It might be perfect for some tasks. And the old sabre sounds not worse than a new one neither, it still measures very good. It maybe has less features, e. g. no bit-perfect volume control, but it's not needed here...
I also kind of wish we could have something inbetween this guy and an xDSD, with LDAC and without BT issues with iOS devices, that would be just about perfect! I almost bought an xDSD, but heard from other owners pairing issues with iOS has not been solved even with the new FW...