iFi audio xDSD- The Official Thread
Jul 13, 2019 at 8:21 AM Post #1,696 of 2,505
Jul 13, 2019 at 2:53 PM Post #1,698 of 2,505
I'd try to exchange for a different unit, might be defective.
Thanks! I am sure the battery died. It has been 2 days and it won't hold a charge. QC is questionable for a $400 device.
 
Jul 13, 2019 at 5:26 PM Post #1,699 of 2,505
Impatiently waiting for my iFi iDSD Micro BL to arrive. As potential step up from my xDSD Curious to see which one drives my Aeon Flow Closed better … Watch the classifieds for the result :wink:
 
Jul 13, 2019 at 6:33 PM Post #1,700 of 2,505
Impatiently waiting for my iFi iDSD Micro BL to arrive. As potential step up from my xDSD Curious to see which one drives my Aeon Flow Closed better … Watch the classifieds for the result :wink:
I have both, they sound very similar. If you want "step up", you should go for expensive tube amps, otherwise it is just preference differences: One is larger for home, maybe 2% better sonically and the other is smaller for portability.
 
Jul 13, 2019 at 11:43 PM Post #1,701 of 2,505
Hi @iFi audio

Regarding:

"If you actually have the xDSD permanently attached to USB Power it will enter "Desktop" mode after the first time the battery is charged fully and the unit is turned off. In desktop mode the battery is charged to ~ 70% and kept in maintenance mode.

This state is maintained until the unit enters batterypower mode (unplugged or turned on on battery)."


Can xDSD stay in 'desktop' mode if it's powered from a USB 3.0 (900mA) port, using a USB Type A-to-microUSB cable?

Is USB 3.0 900mA port enough to keep xDSD in 'desktop' mode?
 
Last edited:
Jul 14, 2019 at 5:48 AM Post #1,702 of 2,505
I have both, they sound very similar. If you want "step up", you should go for expensive tube amps, otherwise it is just preference differences: One is larger for home, maybe 2% better sonically and the other is smaller for portability.

I am aware of the minor difference .. The Micro however seems to have more power in terms of driving difficult headphones. The Aeon Flow Closed are somewhat of an odd beast in that sense. On paper they should be easy to drive .. Opinions vary however between easy and difficult to drive. Straight into a Smartphone definitely does not bring the Aeon to life, let alone full blossom .. And I somehow cannot shake the impression that the xDSD, while definitely capable of driving them, has to somewhat stand on its toes for them .. Hence my anticipation .. Really curious to see (and experience) whether the Micro excerts a tighter control over them ….

And in terms of portability, the Aeon Flows while relatively light are not portable cans. They really are meant for home listening. So I have no issue with the reduced portability factor of the Micro.
 
Last edited:
Jul 14, 2019 at 2:57 PM Post #1,703 of 2,505
I just purchased xDSD and is experiencing very weird symptom that it will pause for a 0.1 second like the buffer is trying to catch up with the data consumed and then it will resume. It makes it almost impossible to listen to music. I tried extra safe mode, it still stutters. I am on the newest firmware 5.3c. Did anyone experience this behavior? Any solution?

Problem 2: I have been charging it for whole day and the battery indicator is still red(very dim). When disconnected from power source, it won't turn on. I never have a device with so many problems. I am thinking of returning it now.

Please shoot us a message here: http://support.ifi-audio.com/index.php

..and we'll do our best to help you out from there! Thanks!
 
iFi audio Stay updated on iFi audio at their sponsor profile on Head-Fi.
 
https://www.facebook.com/iFiAudio/ https://twitter.com/ifiaudio https://www.instagram.com/ifiaudio/ https://ifi-audio.com/ https://www.youtube.com/@iFiaudiochannel comms@ifi-audio.com
Jul 14, 2019 at 4:06 PM Post #1,705 of 2,505
Jul 15, 2019 at 3:07 PM Post #1,707 of 2,505
Is USB 3.0 900mA port enough to keep xDSD in 'desktop' mode?

Even USB2.0 within specs will do. But you might wanna read a bit more about desktop mode:
Any plan to release a Case / Sleeve for the xDSD that doesn't affect the BT Signal ?

Nothing to announce on our end in this subject.

Thank you, I returned it.

Thanks for giving it a try nonetheless!
 
Last edited:
iFi audio Stay updated on iFi audio at their sponsor profile on Head-Fi.
 
https://www.facebook.com/iFiAudio/ https://twitter.com/ifiaudio https://www.instagram.com/ifiaudio/ https://ifi-audio.com/ https://www.youtube.com/@iFiaudiochannel comms@ifi-audio.com
Jul 15, 2019 at 5:38 PM Post #1,708 of 2,505
Now my angry is reaching 90%. I just received a replacement unit from Amazon and the new unit does not charge at all!! I can listen to it with the remaining battery capacity but I cannot charge it with any of my power banks, power adapters... What is going on? Do I need a special USB C power adapter from iFi in order to charge it? What is it? This is extremely frustrating and unnecessarily difficult in order to charge a device! I thought USB C is to ease the way of charging devices but none of my adapters work. Do I have to return it again? HELP!! I cannot even use Macbook's USB C port to charge it! Micro USB convert to USB C does not work neither. All permutations of cables and adapters! This is driving me crazy!
 
Last edited:
Jul 15, 2019 at 7:51 PM Post #1,709 of 2,505
Hi,

was wondering if anybody else is using the xDSD with the built-in USB Type-C connector vs. the Micro-USB one already along with USB Type-C charging? I already opened a ticket on the iFi support page yesterday. According to their local (German) contact person, this is a 2nd generation xDSD with an USB Type-C connector vs. the 1st generation with Micro-USB for charging. Unfortunately, I have no success in charging the xDSD using different USB Type-C (PD) power supplies, power banks and cables. The only charging which works, is through the DragonTail USB-A to USB-C cable, but that defeats from my point of view the purpose of using a standardized USB Type-C connector. At least I want to minimize the number of cables and power supplies/banks when traveling. I assume that the xDSD 2nd Gen. has implemented USB Type-C, so without PD for power delivery. However, my understanding is that any USB Type-C PD device (power supplies e.g. from Apple or Anker or various power banks) would be backwards compatible with USB Type-C, so providing 5V with either 1.5A or 3A. Yet, when I try to do so, my xDSD doesn't charge at all. I did try already to run down the battery of the unit as it may only charge once it is empty/below a certain threshold, but that didn't work out either. Even when it turned off, it didn't charge via a Type-C (PD) power supply/cable afterwards, but only through the DragonTail USB-A to USB-C cable.

Anybody having success charging a 2nd Gen. xDSD via some standard USB Type-C (PD) power supplies (Apple, Anker, RavPower, ...) along with Type-C cables?

Cheers,
Thorsten
I have exactly the same problem with the new device. The old one charges but not holding charge as it gets warm and the led lights up during charging. This is a very difficult device in charging alone.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top