[technobear]

I think some people are getting carried away with tiny differences here. The micro iDSD sounds way beyond 'decent' with any setting.

Also remember that when you engage IEMatch, the signal flows through a different set of components. If you have not yet broken in these components, they will sound rough for a little while until they break in.

 

[iancraig10]

Hi,

Need a bit of help after trying to apply the above.

My normal listening levels are between 55 - 70db (a-weighted) measured with a micw i436 calibrated microphone set between the ear and earphone.


So far I'm a bit unhappy with my purchase

That's a very low volume to be listening at. You must have great control!!!

I would have thought that frequency extremes must also be curtailed so you wouldn't hear proper bass or presence at those kinds of volume.

For you, it might be better to get an amp with less power since the quoted power of the Ifi Micro is very high considering your prefered listening volumes. Especially for sensitive low impedance headphones.

Music must sound as though it's coming from next door. I think that you are listening at a very unusual level but if that suits you, you may well be correct, this amp is not for you given the power that that the Micro offers.

 

[Music Path]

That's a very low volume to be listening at. You must have great control!!!

I would have thought that frequency extremes must also be curtailed so you wouldn't hear proper bass or presence at those kinds of volume.

For you, it might be better to get an amp with less power since the quoted power of the Ifi Micro is very high considering your prefered listening volumes. Especially for sensitive low impedance headphones.

Music must sound as though it's coming from next door. I think that you are listening at a very unusual level but if that suits you, you may well be correct, this amp is not for you given the power that that the Micro offers.

For me its not a surprise that he listens at 55db - 70db.
Myself, i listen at 65 - 75 db mostly, and at 80 - 85 db max. Peak to shake my head.
After that it turns uncofortable, because songs are not recorded at same volume and i know that i'm not carring about my hearing.

I see quite some people in this forum comenting about hearing problems and i start to understand why.

Same as training or get use your ears to listen with less bass or diferent sound signature, goes for volume.
At the end you hear much more.

The idsd is quite versatile, and iem match is very usefull for volume controling.
So i think it will cause no problem even for sensetive hearing users too.

 

[iancraig10]

I've used headphones for over 40 years and not gone deaf yet! (Everything is crossed)

Maybe I treat myself to 90 or 95 db on peaks sometimes, but the average levels he suggests that he listens to seem like long distance listening to me. 55 db is really quite low. I'm not criticising here. I'm impressed with his self-restraint!!

That's why I suspect the amp may actually be a little too powerful for him. No problem with the amp. Just his preference so I would suggest something less powerful because he might not even be getting close to 12 o clock on the vol pot at that kind of volume.

I've had to be bery self disciplined keeping it down at 85 to 90 since for over 30 years, I've played live in a band and they refused to turn down even close to 90!! To save my hearing, I actually used to play with earplugs fitted which I believe at the age of 61 now, has saved my hearing.

http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist2/projects/sixer/loud.pdf

55 = quiet urban daytime. As a peak?

 

[iFi audio]

We hope you like this:
 
 

iDAC2 + ‘Special iFi Music Sampler’ DSD album by Sound Liaison

 
We the very nice Head-Fi people leave kind comments with their entries. So we thought we should return the compliment. Well, here goes.
 
Costing you absolutely ZERO, from the great people at Sound Liasions studios, you will find three specially-selected tracks in three formats; PCM, FLAC and DSD (of course!).
 

 

iFi micro iDAC2 - Special iFi Music Sampler

01. Carmen Gomes Inc. – Thousand Shades of Blue
02. Andre Heuvelman – Oblivion
‘Oblivion’ and ‘Thousand Shades of Blue’ were performed live in the studio, recorded in multi-track PCM 96kHz. The DSD conversion was done via an analog signal chain, using state of the art professional equipment to the Tascam DA-3000 DSD recorder.
 
03. Tony Overwater & Bert van den Brink – Impromptu
‘Impromptu’ was recorded live directly to DSD using the Tascam DA-3000 DSD recorder and simultaneously to PCM with the RME UFX.
 
 
Whether you are an iFi customer or not, you are welcome to download this FREE iDAC2 PCM/DSD album courtesy of Sound Liasion in the Netherlands.
 
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/754820/idac2-launching-with-a-bang-competition-with-mega-goodies-gotta-be-in-it-to-win-it-see-page-4-for-details/300#post_11749432

 

[iancraig10]

And thank you for your support on this forum. It's greatly appreciated.

 

[LoryWiv]

For me its not a surprise that he listens at 55db - 70db.
Myself, i listen at 65 - 75 db mostly, and at 80 - 85 db max. Peak to shake my head.

After that it turns uncofortable, because songs are not recorded at same volume and i know that i'm not carring about my hearing.

I see quite some people in this forum comenting about hearing problems and i start to understand why.

Same as training or get use your ears to listen with less bass or diferent sound signature, goes for volume.
At the end you hear much more.

Very interesting comment, hm22music. I have been experimenting with lower volumes as well (I'll be 60 next b'day and really value hearing acuity) and am pleasantly surprised that I have acclamated and generally enjoy it. At times I feel my ability to hear detail and nuance is enhanced by the decrease in dB, perhaps because I am concentrating harder. It is a less visceral experience which at times I miss, however.
 
Question: Does anyone know if the upcoming 1964Ears/Adel IEM's (touted as incorporating technology that allows higher perceived loudness at lower listening volumes, therefore less risk of hearing damage) are liklely to be a real advance? There is some interesting marketing on their web and kickstarter pages but I am still skeptical. If they could really deliver the musical goods whilst preserving and protecting hearing....ah, nirvana may exist.
 
BTW: Sorry if this is too far off topic. Please redirect me to another thread if needed.

 

[Music Path]

  Very interesting comment, hm22music. I have been experimenting with lower volumes as well (I'll be 60 next b'day and really value hearing acuity) and am pleasantly surprised that I have acclamated and generally enjoy it. At times I feel my ability to hear detail and nuance is enhanced by the decrease in dB, perhaps because I am concentrating harder. It is a less visceral experience which at times I miss, however.
 
Question: Does anyone know if the upcoming 1964Ears/Adel IEM's (touted as incorporating technology that allows higher perceived loudness at lower listening volumes, therefore less risk of hearing damage) are liklely to be a real advance? There is some interesting marketing on their web and kickstarter pages but I am still skeptical. If they could really deliver the musical goods whilst preserving and protecting hearing....ah, nirvana may exist.
 
BTW: Sorry if this is too far off topic. Please redirect me to another thread if needed.

I think that is the goal of high fidelity. Hear more with less.
I notice already that i m listening things with equivalent 40% direct pc soundcard volume then 50%, when i didnt had any dacs, senn 650 etc...
Was pleasantly surprised. 

 

[jexby]

First, a big thank you to Avatar Acoustics (GA, USA) and iFi (UK) for the demo time of 
iCan + iTube + iPower
hooked up to my existing iFi micro iDSD.   (kept iDSD in Direct Mode)
Alas, the gear has been returned to the show room floor for future lucky listener demos.
 
Second,
this isn’t a huge comprehensive review or report, as there have been a LOT of good reviews/videos of micro iDSD and iCan elsewhere.
despite not being a basshead I appreciated the time it took for the recent micro iDSD+iCan video review.
 
Third,
onward to the trio.
 
1. micro iDSD.  use this every day, with iPhone 5S running Onkyo HD player.
usually at night listening with IEMs. have zero quibbles with the amp when using IEMs, and appreciate that the 3D can sometime help provide (track dependent)  soundstage alteration and treble to some darker IEMs.  Xbass, gotta be honest- my musical style doesn’t hit this feature much, am hard pressed to consistently noice when this switch is engaged.
 
only about 10% of the time have I connected HD800 or HE-560s, flipped amp to Normal mode and listened to full sized headphones.  normally to move around the house or back yard listening sessions.
As others have mentioned the amp is good, yet by it’s lonesome probably doesn’t approach the depth, quality or decisiveness of a full time/desktop rig.
come to think of it, isn’t it somewhat unfair to expect such?
 
Enter:
2.  micro iCan
now this is the full Class A amp most would say is Step 1 to improvement, can’t say it disappoints.
amp has control over the low end and soundstage gets wider.
iCan is also very powerful, even with the HE-560s was NOT cranking this volume knob to 12noon.  luckily the gain is customizable with the switches on the bottom.
Despite Class A power, this unit never got hot to the touch, only warm.  likely due to the long and narrow aluminum heat sink chassis?
now here the 3D and Xbass switches here really DO have noticeable levels of enhancement/change, and that is super welcome as folks likely would “tune" HD800 or HE-560 differently, and flip switches to match such.  the micro iDSD + iCan combination is a sweet small-desktop pairing to be sure, one could even switch between IEMs out of the iDSD to full headphones out of iCan for two person listening sessions.
 
time to add in:
3. micro iTube
cool.  tube buffer to add some analog musicality back into all this digital source n circuitry!
not sure if iTube was originally designed for phono or speakers instead of headphones, but it makes no diff IMO.
not ooey gooey slow n syrupy tube ness. add a touch of warmth without losing detail, a taller/deeper sound stage presenting some “in-room” feeling, vocals seemed a bit more natural and hover in the air.
The added functionality Pre-Amp mode with turning of the volume knob, when used in conjunction with iCan’s knob to deliver more fine grained selection of volume, a benefit for folks preferring low-volume listening.
 
for my ears:  it’s the trio that sounded best together!
sure iCan steps up the amp, but if moving toward an iCan upgrade (on a desk) one should also plan for an iTube purchase one day as well IMHO.
 
this iFi trio provides a ton of options for gain, 3D/Xbass effects and volume control, almost to the point of confusion?  at times wasn’t sure if I should flip the 3D on the iTube, instead of iCan, etc.
Hey- no harm in playing around right? nothing will blow up.
tons of listening combinations to compare, that’s for sure.  plus the power to drive almost every headphone under the sun minus HE-6 or Abyss.
super versatile combination of gear to put it mildly.
 
people looking for the complete “small desk set up” with iCan in hand:
save some cash for iTube also if you are in this iFi world.
iTube puts the gentle “finishing touches” of analog into already fine audio delivery.
 
This iFi trio sparks the curiosity about the upcoming iFi Pro series for sure!
cheers.

 

[Music Path]

Thanks for this review. I was awaiting it. 

 

 

[Music Path]

Well now im indecided too get itube or HD600 to complement HD650+idsd, both will be subtle differences in sound. 

 

 

[newtophones07]

I'm torn, I need a new setup to play around with and want to try the ifi gear, but I need a phono preamp. So the retro stereo 50 seems perfect.

I want to know if the "best" performance will better sourced as individual units, dsd micro, iphono, itube, iusb and ican?


I don't need the speakers that come with the retro 50, so it's only $1500 with the 2x25w amp, whereas sourced separately it comes to $1750 shipped.

Are the retro 50 internals the same as the separate parts,no compromises?

 

[rickyleelee]

I'm torn, I need a new setup to play around with and want to try the ifi gear, but I need a phono preamp. So the retro stereo 50 seems perfect.

I want to know if the "best" performance will better sourced as individual units, dsd micro, iphono, itube, iusb and ican?


I don't need the speakers that come with the retro 50, so it's only $1500 with the 2x25w amp, whereas sourced separately it comes to $1750 shipped.

Are the retro 50 internals the same as the separate parts,no compromises?

I have both - not exactly the same but in terms of DA and headamp, then the Stereo 50 is a giant slayer. If you try one, try the Stereo 50 because it is so damm impressive. Possible the phono stage is not as good as the iphono itself but if it is half as good, it will already blow away any $1k phono stage. it is insane the Stereo 50. i noticed audio research is onoto iFi and have brought their version which costs a little more. So the Stereto 50 must be doing something good in the market. Try Crutchfield. My in laws said they got a great service from them when they bought Stereo 50！

 

[john57]

 i noticed audio research is onoto iFi and have brought their version which costs a little more.

I do not think it is out yet at $17k to $19k the last I have heard about it for the GSi75.

 

[roamling]

  Last week, we received this from a very reputable customer (who shall remain annoymous) and thought interesting questions were raised. And so here is the Q&A for some of you who may find useful:
 
 
 
Hardware:
 
> I read your explanaition about amping the hd650 on head.fi. And it worked well with Eco 3o clock and IEM match off.
> Since i should use it on 3o clock to get the minimum distortion. What about <50 ohm HPs? (Fidelio X2 and Senn Momentum)
 
As a rule, the power mode for the iDSD micro which places the volume control at around 12 o'Clock to 3 o'Clock with a given headphone offers:

# Maximum Class A power, before switching to Class B
# Lowest measured distortion
# Lowest noise

If it not possible to get the correct loudness using Eco and iEMatch will keep the noise levels under control and generally distortion levels will remain low.

Some customers seem to prefer the sound of the iDSD micro with more distortion added. Due to the nature of the Power-amplifier, if not operated at clipping, the distortion will be very "Tube like" so by (for example) selecting Turbo Mode and using iEMatch they create a lot of tube-like distortion, similar to (say) a very mild setting on a guitar distortion pedal.

Generally we do not recommend to combine iEMatch and turbo, as it could damage the resistors in the iEMatch network, though so far we have not encountered such a case.

In the end the choice between a crystal clear, very low distortion Class A solid state sound or a more tube-like more distorted but subjectively warmer sound is up to the user.
 

 
In fact I have to say that using the headphone amp section in ECO mode has improved the listening experience with my HD650. I was reluctant to go over 12 o'clock for some silly reason but listening now at at around 2pm-3pm with high DR recordings and at around 12 pm with more compressed recording is actually great