[Aussiejuggalo]

Well my JDS Labs Element is awesome but I've found a small problem,

Windows 10 & Plex, OpenPHT or normal Plex Home Theatre, run 2 or more screens (I have 3) the Element seems to cause Plex to freeze anywhere from 10 - 60 seconds when you alt-tab back into it...

I first thought it was just my main PC being spazzy because I also have Voicemeeter with a Virtual Cable setup to split my audio for game recording (which can cause conflicts) but I tested it with my tablet (running Win10 Pro) and it does the same thing with a second screen :mad: a single screen is fine even alt-tabbing heaps Plex doesn't freeze.

I've spent the last 3 days testing this with a lot of uninstalls, reinstalls and god knows how many restarts, I let Windows automatically install the drivers for the Element, I reinstalled Plex 4 times both OpenPHT and normal, I've uninstalled and reinstalled Voicemeeter and the Virtual Cable, I even went as far as hunting through the registry to delete every entry of my last setup but it's still causing a problem somewhere with Plex.

Now before people rip my head off by saying it's Plex and not the Element, I had the JDS Labs O2 & ODAC on this exact same setup for the last 3 years without a problem but since switching to the Element I've had this happening, I do have a HDMI cable to one of my monitors but I have no drivers installed for it, the only audio devices are Voicemeeter a Virtual Cable and the Element. I'm over on the Plex forums trying to work this out to because obviously this shouldn't be happening.

Has anyone else had this problem or am I just the really super special lucky one ?

Nevermind.

 

[LolCakeLazors]

Just got my Element. Was really surprised when I got a free upgrade to the Audio Line In + Out coupled with $20 off on Black Friday. Thanks for the customer service JDS!

 

[rackinov]

I've got to say the customer support from jds labs is the best I've come across, John Seaber, wherever you are, I want to thank you personally. Always reply within 5 minutes of me sending an email, I don't know how you do it!

 

[leighspped]

Just order an element mainly for the hd700's, but it seems like people are having problems with running desktop speakers? Any workaround or model suggests for something small? The Audioengine a2+ didn't work for volume reason I saw in the thread 

 

[oopeteroo]

How will this compare bottle head cracking for hd650 ?

 

[ogarrio]

Hi
Anyone could tell me your opinion buying it with the XDUOO XD-05?
Thanks!

 

[mauricejohnson]

How will this compare bottle head cracking for hd650 ?

 
I was actually curious of the same thing. Deciding on either a Mangi, or spending some extra cash and going either JDS or Bottlehead

 

[Standardsixty3]

In my opinion, this is one of the best looking desktop combos out there. Anyone have experience on how this sounds through IEM's?

 

[HansPeter]

Just a drive by I made this for my Element:






1/4" to 3.5mm TRRS cable.  Mogami W2697 cable, Neutrik NP3X-B 1/4 jack, Kobiconn 161-6435-EX 3.5mm 4 pole TRRS jack.

I listen on UE18 IEM's with the mic cable.  Clarity is incredible with the Element.

Kinda wish it was an option to have a 3.5mm jack since it would have saved on making a custom cable to adapt it.

I got one made to avoid the Adapter Stuff.

 

[Vekk]

In my opinion, this is one of the best looking desktop combos out there. Anyone have experience on how this sounds through IEM's?

I've used Element with Er4sr , Noble Savanna or earbud like sennheiser mx475 or VE-monk espresso. 
It's all working fine with low-gain mode. My savanna was at around 10-11 o'clock at maximum even when listening to classical tunes with quiet ambient background.

 

[wigglepuff]

whats the actual sound tonality of the element? compared to the fiio e10k and A5 amp how does it differ?

 

[abellaw]

I have had my JDS Element for a couple weeks. I really like the detail and musicality of the amp. I just feel like the vocals are just distant. I was wondering if i am hearing things or if other people feel the same?

 

[strangecargo]

These just arrived today:
 

 
Picked up the separates because I was curious and I also don't have a standalone sample of any AKM implementations (only one I have is built into some active speakers). I haven't spent a ton of time listening because I've been busy populating an HP-1 PCB, but I put it to work immediately, cooking a new pair of TH-X00s. I did notice out of the box that both the DAC and amp are very very quiet. The noise floor on the EL DAC is considerably lower than my PS Audio NuWave DSD, just barely perceptible with the amp turned all the way up in high gain mode.

 

[DivineCurrent]

  These just arrived today:
 

 
Picked up the separates because I was curious and I also don't have a standalone sample of any AKM implementations (only one I have is built into some active speakers). I haven't spent a ton of time listening because I've been busy populating an HP-1 PCB, but I put it to work immediately, cooking a new pair of TH-X00s. I did notice out of the box that both the DAC and amp are very very quiet. The noise floor on the EL DAC is considerably lower than my PS Audio NuWave DSD, just barely perceptible with the amp turned all the way up in high gain mode.

Awesome! Please give more impressions on these, I am considering either EL combo or just the Element. How is the build quality? I tried out an early beta EL DAC a few months ago, was not impressed at all because it was just a cheap box of plastic basically. I'm sure they improved it for the official product though. 

 

[strangecargo]

  Awesome! Please give more impressions on these, I am considering either EL combo or just the Element. How is the build quality? I tried out an early beta EL DAC a few months ago, was not impressed at all because it was just a cheap box of plastic basically. I'm sure they improved it for the official product though. 

I'm going to wait for a 4-pin XLR->1/4" TRS adapter to arrive before I say anything about the sonics so I can listen critically with my Utopias using the cable that I prefer. One thing I noticed (but was expecting) is that the sound cleans up quite a bit if you feed the DAC audio that's been upsampled using a higher-quality algorithm. I use the DSP upsampler built into Roon, but I hear HQPlayer is better at it, though I haven't played with it. Seems to be a pretty common thing with modern sigma delta DAC ICs. The ASIO drivers are a little weird about sample rate changes. Changing rate causes the DAC to drop off the USB bus for a split second, causing Roon to lose track of the device long enough to interrupt playback. I switched to using the WASAPI drivers in exclusive mode, which don't seem to have that issue.
 
The build quality is pretty good. I'm actually having a hard time telling if the outer casing is metal or plastic (I'm leaning towards plastic, just because it's relatively light). The case is clean and refined, with no trace of machining or mold marks. The printed branding is crisp. I wasn't expecting the light on the front of the EL DAC to be a touch-sensitive input selector. If I were being super critical, I would note that the light on the DAC leaks through the seam between the bottom plate and the rest of the housing slightly (you can see this in the pic I posted) and the volume knob of the amp is slightly wonky, but this is only noticeable when you're quickly rotating the knob, which you wouldn't do in normal use. The 1/4" TRS plug was surprisingly cheap feeling on the first insertion, but I've since stopped noticing. I think the spring contacts were kind of stiff out of the box, so it was just harder than expected to insert the plug. It's quite satisfying to adjust the volume and since the knob is so big, you really get awesome fine control.