[HesamSb]

Finally someone talks about the ridiculously low Zen power output. Best review so far. Thank you

this guy talking about (asr) amirm review ((photoshop man! (fake scores)) , this vid is first to Bad about zen !!! don't trust this review!! Just go for test the zen !!!!

 

[Jakkal]

Lol you just registered for this.
Please show us other measurements. I'll be happy to see official ones as well.

 

[iFi audio]

I'll need to give it more time to compare them both, as it's still just the early days into owning such a great product...

Edit: I switched back to GTO last evening and it is growing on me. Guess I'm keeping this firmware as default for now...

I’m glad to hear it’s growing on you, everyone has their own preferences. Keep us updated on how you’re getting on

 

[captblaze]

i have encountered a bug of sorts and was looking for confirmation from others.

after pausing a DSD file (.dsf) a short while then resuming i am getting no audio, but the file seems to be playing. if i change to a different format the sound resumes and then returning to DSD plays sound. it only occurs when i pause and then resume. it doesn't happen with the same files playing through a different DAC and the same software player (Roon).

it is present on both 5.30 and 5.3c firmware

Well i guess there isn't much interest in DSD and the Zen DAC, because this is definitely a bug and is persistent and can be replicated. although another firmware would need to be developed and released to squash this.

 

[captblaze]

Well i guess there isn't much interest in DSD and the Zen DAC, because this is definitely a bug and is persistent and can be replicated. although another firmware would need to be developed and released to squash this.

you can now add firmware 5.2b to the list of firmware that has this particular bug, was reluctant to try that one, but it loaded and functions (except for the DSD pause bug)

 

[Lalerfy]

Just bought a basic 4.4mm balanced Pentaconn cable for my HD58x + Zen Dac.
The Balanced output sounds soo good, hard to believe the difference, it sounds like a different dac/amp. Its not just that there's a lot more power, the headphones have come alive.
►Amazon.com/dp/B081PVCV27
►Amazon.co.UK/gp/product/B07MJD9L8M

 

[40760]

4.4mm balanced out is the way to go for the ZEN DAC.

After switching from the SE3.5 to BAL4.4mm cables for my ATH-CM2000Ti, the earbuds came alive where it would normally be lacking from most sources, even when rated at 16ohms.

 

[iFi audio]

The Balanced output sounds soo good, hard to believe the difference, it sounds like a different dac/amp. Its not just that there's a lot more power, the headphones have come alive.

Yes, balanced circuitry isn't only about raw power increase. Sound more alive is a nice way to describe what actually happens, thanks!

 

[iFi audio]

Well i guess there isn't much interest in DSD and the Zen DAC, because this is definitely a bug and is persistent and can be replicated. although another firmware would need to be developed and released to squash this.

I'll ask our tech team about this.

 

[Sean_MR]

A far as I know the bitperfect aspect of the 5.3 iworks with the Zen, it still changes colors like its supposed to anyway. If you use the 5.3c though it absolutely does not work as everything gets converted to MQA as part of its GTO filter.

I think this is a bit of mistake on ifis as well in that aspect I agree with you. The whole logic behind the use of the Burr-Brown chipset is to allow for that bit perfect playback of PCM as well as the DSD being direct rather than converted to PCM first.

I think if your just going to convert to MQA it would be better to use a higher end AKM or Sabre chip as you will get better performance. Perhaps eventually they intend to do just that in the future,

As for the Powermatch setting that is indeed just a gain setting. The harsh sound you are hearing is you hitting distortion. According to Amirs observations the distortion sets in around 1 oclock on high gain. Not tried going that loud myself as of yet, but that is probably accurate.

Hi! I know I’m late but I’ve been skimming the forums a bunch and your post intrigued me. I’m a beginner to audio and have no intention of using DSD (I don’t even know what it is). I’ll just be playing music off of Amazon Music HD or Tidal. Since (I think) both of those just use PCM and not DSD, would you say I’m better off sticking with the base 5.3 firmware?

Would love to hear your or anyone else’s opinion!

 

[iFi audio]

I’m better off sticking with the base 5.3 firmware?

If you don't intend to use our GTO filter described here: https://ifi-audio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/iFi-audio-Tech-Note-GTO-filter-FINAL.pdf

...then yes, you'll be fine with firmware 5.3.

 

[Lalerfy]

Hi! I know I’m late but I’ve been skimming the forums a bunch and your post intrigued me. I’m a beginner to audio and have no intention of using DSD (I don’t even know what it is). I’ll just be playing music off of Amazon Music HD or Tidal. Since (I think) both of those just use PCM and not DSD, would you say I’m better off sticking with the base 5.3 firmware?

Would love to hear your or anyone else’s opinion!

In order of importance
(1) Get a basic Balanced cable (4.4mm-pentaconn) for your headphones.
(2) Roll back the firmware to [5.2b]
(3) Amazon HD is very good.
Example cable for Sennheiser HD6** series►Amazon.com/dp/B081PVCV27

 

[hag6]

I want to use the Zen Dac with Linux Mint. Is the firmware straightforward to set up and what music player works well. Any advice & recommendations gratefully received.

 

[Sean_MR]

In order of importance
(1) Get a basic Balanced cable (4.4mm-pentaconn) for your headphones.
(2) Roll back the firmware to [5.2b]
(3) Amazon HD is very good.
Example cable for Sennheiser HD6** series►Amazon.com/dp/B081PVCV27

So you’re saying that firmware 5.3 is incorrectly labeled on the site, in that it still contains the GTO filter?

 

[captblaze]

So you’re saying that firmware 5.3 is incorrectly labeled on the site, in that it still contains the GTO filter?

5.2b = no MQA, no GTO filter
5.3 = MQA enabled no GTO filter
5.3C = MQA + GTO filter