[technobear]

Stupid question, but will the micro iDSD be able to play high res mp3 files and flac? I will, however, also be looking into DSD some time in the near future. 

Just to add a bit more to this...

DACs do not decode audio file formats.

Player software decodes the audio file format and outputs a bitstream - either PCM or DSD - to the DAC.

DACs receive PCM or DSD bitstreams and convert to analogue audio.

 

[maricius]

I love warm sound signatures, but since I want to be transportable I guess the idac will not work for me as it does not have a battery and so I can not use it on the go

I am open to add an amp to the idsd but is the ican micro suitable for this, and does the ican micro have a battery I guess not ?

now I bought the hugo as I mentioned before and then I bought the denon da-10 and in my last purchase I was disappointed  so not I am in the hunt for a warm lush sound am/dac and I hope idsd will meet those needs, and what I like most is that it has the bass boost which in some song I need more bass

any bad things or negatives I should know ahead before jumping into buying it and using it with my ipod and audeze lcd2rev2

also if I may ask again tunring on the bass on in idsd does it really make a big difference in bass as that is really important for me to know, as I mentioned I am a bass lover and I find most dac/amp lack in bass quantity

I'm assuming this is an iPod Touch running at least iOS7?? If you're not going to utilize the DAC, you're surely not going to get that warm and lush sound. The amp alone is on the leaner side. As a DAC/amp, very enjoyable synergy for me. The micro iCan doesn't have a battery unless you're willing to lug around those giant external batteries that can power it. Tons of powerful bassy amps on the market!! You have the Triad L3, RSA Intruder, maybe the CL Duet, or maybe that giant transportable Bakoon amp.

Good luck!! Maybe some of the more experienced members can chime in?

 

[GradoSound]

 
also if I may ask again tunring on the bass on in idsd does it really make a big difference in bass as that is really important for me to know, as I mentioned I am a bass lover and I find most dac/amp lack in bass quantity

micro iDSD's bass extension is subtle but recognisable and tight; I really like it (as opposed to 3D which sounds weird/disorienting). If you are into really bass heavy music another option could be to pick a player with flexible DSP extensions such as JRiver media player.

 

[BillsonChang007]

The Micro iDSD is a ted warm as a whole but not extremely warm. As a standalone amp with Micro iDSD, it is a ted thin IMO. Power wise, it can drive anything. 4k mW is a lot for a headphone it's all about the synergy as well thought

 

[knorris908]

I have few questions:

1-I would like to ask if the bass when turned on in ifi micro dsd is better than the hugo, as I owned the hugo before and I found the bass a little lacking, so I having an option to extend the bass in ifi sounds good to me, but does have a good effect or is it just placebo effect
A: I don't know personally, but hear that the iDSD offers ~99% of the sound quality while only costing 20% of the HUGO price. (I'm very satisfied with that.)
2- can it drive the lcd2 rev2 with authority
A: I don't know, but it drives my Sennheiser HD-650s beautifully. Just shy of the power and fullness I get from the SCHIIT ASGARD 2, but the iDSD is portable!
3- does it have a warm sound sig as I hate shouty mids especially when I turn on the volume to high
A: I've only compared the iDSD Micro to a FIIO e17 and an iDAC I've auditioned, and it was warmer than both. Bass boost is awesome, and I use it with J-POP songs & top 40.
4- does the bass have a great extension
A: Yes - see above.
5- is the dac in the ifi micro dsd better than the idac in regards to sound signature
A: I didn't get to hear them side-by side, but it was better than I recalled the iDAC being in terms of detail & separation of instruments. Also MUCH better music file support.
6- is there any combination recommended to buy with and add to idsd to improve sound
A: I use the iDSD Micro with my iBASSO DX90. The DSD files are too big for my Apple iPAD and iPhones. I can swap-in 128GB micro SD cards with different music genres on them as often as I like. (Just the Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Pink Floyd, YES, Eagles, & Roger Waters albums take up a whole card.). I have others dedicated to Rock, Classical, Jazz, etc... With that in mind, any player that has the ability to use the external DAC, storage expandability, DSD file support, and a decent interface would do since the sound quality and amp POWER will be provided expertly by the iDSD Micro. (No need to fight over DX90/FIIO X5/AK1xx/Apple/Android/etc... As they will all sound great! Just pick the interface and features you like best. (Battery life is a major one for me, so I picked the DX90 player that has easy battery swapping and bought some extras S3 extended capacity batteries.). I routinely fly from New York/ New Jersey to California and like not having to worry about running out of power, as the high quality DSD files burn more battery power than basic MP3 files do regardless of the player I use.


Ken N.

 

[Ookazi]

If you find yourself having trouble instantly telling what the position of the volume knob is, I recommend putting a small piece of colored tape at the spot where the knob begins to grow wider.
 
Did anyone try to modify their iDSD visually yet? I was thinking about a black enclosure or something like that.

 

[Sound Eq]

thanks you all for your answer, but one person commented that it might have a thin sound signature, now that is something if possible to be explained more as that is something i care for a lot, as I like full rich warm sound signatures, and that is what I found in the hugo when i had that it was a bit thin in sound signature, so i don't want to fall into this issue again with the idsd especially as i am gong to use it with my audeze lcd2rev2 and iPod touch 5 with cck 
 
please answers to the above is appreciated

 

[BillsonChang007]

thanks you all for your answer, but one person commented that it might have a thin sound signature, now that is something if possible to be explained more as that is something i care for a lot, as I like full rich warm sound signatures, and that is what I found in the hugo when i had that it was a bit thin in sound signature, so i don't want to fall into this issue again with the idsd especially as i am gong to use it with my audeze lcd2rev2 and iPod touch 5 with cck 

please answers to the above is appreciated

No. Don't get me wrong. The Micro iDSD is warm if you use it as an amp/DAC which is what you are going for. But as a standalone amplifier only, it may sound thin. Given that you are using CCK, means you will be using both it's amp and DAC, the Micro iDSD should be a good match for your Audeze.

Billson

 

[Poimandres]

My IDSD is still burning in about 48 hours so far. Is 100 the magic number or are there additional changes after that?

How does it pair with the X2? Thinking of picking up a pair or possibly the nad HP50, or akg q701 any thoughts?

 

[vo_obgyn]

 
Hi,
 
This is indeed correct.
 
The micro iDSD "only" plays what it is fed.
 
The Computer is the Host. The micro iDSD is the Client.
 
Hence, the micro iDSD plays what is incoming and the LED depicts as such.
 
If the LED differs from what is expected, then 99.9%, check the PC settings because it is sending and what the user expects it to send are likely not the same.
 
Hope this clarifies.

Yes, this helps. Thanks. 

 

[Sound Eq]

i know i have asked so many question did anyone compare it to centrance m8 
 
could i get a little bit more clarification about the bass boost from reading the thread some mention its not that big impact when turned on, i really hope people here can give me a better idea what to expect with bass on and off and what the impact is

 

[maricius]

My IDSD is still burning in about 48 hours so far. Is 100 the magic number or are there additional changes after that?

How does it pair with the X2? Thinking of picking up a pair or possibly the nad HP50, or akg q701 any thoughts?

Most changes occur up to 100. I've read that dynamics can still improve with up to 400 hours of burn in though I can't say I can hear that well. Anyway, after the 100 hour mark, everything else should be minute and gradual so yes, you can fully enjoy your iDSD without fear of sudden losses of quality after 100 hours. I don't recall anyone getting to pair it with the X2 yet though I'm very curious. Lieven at Headfonia.com should have both so maybe you can try catching some luck over there. I am very curious of that pairing as well. I didn't enjoy the AKG Q701 (though not paired with the iDSD). The NAD sounds great (not heard with the iDSD as well) but I hate its ergonomics and fit… not to mention the aesthetics… Michael Lavorgna at Audiostream mentioned a little something about the NAD/iDSD pairing. Check out his review on the iDSD. (Do get the X2 though hehe)
 
 

  i know i have asked so many question did anyone compare it to centrance m8 
 
could i get a little bit more clarification about the bass boost from reading the thread some mention its not that big impact when turned on, i really hope people here can give me a better idea what to expect with bass on and off and what the impact is

The bass boost mostly affects the subbass. On tracks with decent amounts of this, the effect is immediately noticeable. With everything else, I strained to hear the differences in volume of reverbs. 

 

[Sound Eq]

 
Most changes occur up to 100. I've read that dynamics can still improve with up to 400 hours of burn in though I can't say I can hear that well. Anyway, after the 100 hour mark, everything else should be minute and gradual so yes, you can fully enjoy your iDSD without fear of sudden losses of quality after 100 hours. I don't recall anyone getting to pair it with the X2 yet though I'm very curious. Lieven at Headfonia.com should have both so maybe you can try catching some luck over there. I am very curious of that pairing as well. I didn't enjoy the AKG Q701 (though not paired with the iDSD). The NAD sounds great (not heard with the iDSD as well) but I hate its ergonomics and fit… not to mention the aesthetics… Michael Lavorgna at Audiostream mentioned a little something about the NAD/iDSD pairing. Check out his review on the iDSD. (Do get the X2 though hehe)
 
 

The bass boost mostly affects the subbass. On tracks with decent amounts of this, the effect is immediately noticeable. With everything else, I strained to hear the differences in volume of reverbs. 

so the bass boost on fiio products like e18 gives a more pronounced effect than what i would get from the idsd bass boost, most synth pop music has the baselines in the 80 to 100 hz so the bass boost would not be that obvious then when turned on

 

[CriticalTodd]

How does it pair with the X2? Thinking of picking up a pair or possibly the nad HP50, or akg q701 any thoughts?

I run with the HP50 and I think the combination sounds great-- and I haven't completed any extended burn-in with the iDSD yet.

 

[knorris908]

  so the bass boost on fiio products like e18 gives a more pronounced effect than what i would get from the idsd bass boost, most synth pop music has the baselines in the 80 to 100 hz so the bass boost would not be that obvious then when turned on

I'll take this one since I have both the FIIO e17 (Apple ver VS Android ver. as well as the iDSD Micro) 
 
On the FIIO I slide the BASS to "4" and the GAIN to 12dB when I am using it as an AMP/DAC from my HTPC to my HD-650s when listening to J-POP, Top 40, Rock, & Some Jazz.  When I listen to Piano pieces like Josei("I See You While Playing The Piano (11.2MHz dsd + mp3)"), Chopin, or Instrumentals like Beethoven or Wagner/Mahler, I leave the Gain at 12dB, and drop the BASS to "2".
 
On the iDSD Micro I flip the 3D to "ON", Flip the BASS BOOST to "ON", and push the POWER selector to "TURBO" for EVERYTHING but Piano and Opera.  Then I drop the BASS BOOST to "OFF" but leave the 3D "ON".
 
For ANY other headphones I listen to, "RS-180", KOSS PORTA PRO (Modded), VMODA Bass-Freqs, UE Super.Fi3, Photive PH-BTX6 (Wired mode OR Bluetooth)
 
e17 - I drop the GAIN to 6dB, and adjust the BASS between "-2", "0"/OFF & "+2" according to what genre I'm listening to.
 
iDSD Micro -  I leave the POWER selector on "ECO" since it has more than enough power to drive any of them to louder than I want with room/power to spare. I leave the BASS Boost "OFF" because they are all bass-heavy phones to begin with.  (Even the Super.Fi3!)  The 3D I tend to leave "ON" no matter what.
 
All of this is when the equalizer is set to "Equalizer-flat"/default.
 
Ken N.