[ledpro]

hello, i'm new in the head-fi community and  i have 2 questions:
 
#1 i would like your opinions between the following 2 dac-amp, 
 
obviously the first is the Matrix mini-i Pro
and the second one is the Audio-GD compass 2 (with the ES9018)
 
for my Sennheiser hd 600 
 
#2 does it worth it to give the extra many for a better dac-amp, for example the Audio-GD NFB-28 

 

[White Lotus]

  hello, i'm new in the head-fi community and  i have 2 questions:
 
#1 i would like your opinions between the following 2 dac-amp, 
 
obviously the first is the Matrix mini-i Pro
and the second one is the Audio-GD compass 2 (with the ES9018)
 
for my Sennheiser hd 600 
 
#2 does it worth it to give the extra many for a better dac-amp, for example the Audio-GD NFB-28 

 
Welcome to Head-fi, mate! 
 
I'm sorry I can't tell you about the pairing with the Compass 2.
 
However, I have the HD-600, with the Mini-i PRO (DSD), and I find the pairing perfect. I have stopped my search for a solid-state amplifier, and won't be requiring an upgrade.
 
It's very helpful to have the DAC and a decent AMP in one box.
 
The output impedance of the Mini-i PRO is around 8ohms from memory - which is no problem for the 300ohm Sennheisers. 
 
Has anyone else tried these pairings before?

 

[Maxvla]

"By the way, the delay on my review was that I received a Mini-I Pro that might have a faulty USB connection. I had trouble connecting the device and it wouldn't play high rate PCM (352.8 and 384) without stuttering. I asked others here as well as the USA distributor who also asked Matrix in China to try to replicate my problem and nobody could. I feel confident this is an isolated incident."


I have the exact same problem, was your unit faulty?

Sorry for delay. I couldn't answer because someone disabled my account.

It was faulty, though the Pro has been out of stock for a while, so I actually still have my original unit. I should be getting a replacement soon. Hopefully you bought it through an official distributor, so he/she can help you with the problem. Where are you located?

 

[ledpro]

White Lotus because of your first notation and Maxvla review i gave a closer look to the matrix mini-i pro for a good combination with the hd600...
However the Audio-gd Compass 2 it also seems to have a good synergy and for that i ask for a comparison between the mini-i pro and compass 2
 
thank you

 

[BrainFood]

Seriously thinking about this, especially since the Yulong D200 is said to cost a bit more than expected at around $700 (and without remote)- although that price is not confimed yet.
 
Not sure about this comment from Maxlva's review though:
 
Quote:

The main problem I have with the Pro is that it has some harshness in the treble. When mixed with it's aggressive tendencies, it can be a bit much, however I found a solution via resampling.he few reviews so far aren't completely

 
.
And, FWIW

, from the Headfonia review :
 

 There is a slight softness to the sound that prevents the definition of the instruments being quite as sharp as they are on the LX. Then there is the bass. With the bigger mids and brighter treble, the bass on the Mini-I Pro seems like it is tucked behind the midrange at times. It certainly isn't bass anemic, but it just doesn't quite have the presence I would like.

 

Looking forward to more impressions of SQ of the DAC section though

.

 

[Fir33]

  "By the way, the delay on my review was that I received a Mini-I Pro that might have a faulty USB connection. I had trouble connecting the device and it wouldn't play high rate PCM (352.8 and 384) without stuttering. I asked others here as well as the USA distributor who also asked Matrix in China to try to replicate my problem and nobody could. I feel confident this is an isolated incident."
 
 
I have the exact same problem, was your unit faulty?

Sorry in advance for my english
I had sluttering for 352.8 and 384 DXD files
Installed Foobar
Did this  http://www.msbtech.com/updates/dsd.php 
Took DXD files from here http://www.2l.no/hires/
It works properly for now

 

[TonyRoma]

Sorry for delay. I couldn't answer because someone disabled my account.

It was faulty, though the Pro has been out of stock for a while, so I actually still have my original unit. I should be getting a replacement soon. Hopefully you bought it through an official distributor, so he/she can help you with the problem. Where are you located?

Hi thanks,
 
 I have been in contact many times with the seller who seems to think its my mac thats at fault, the problem is that i get it through coax from a cd player as well, they are an official seller of this unit and hopefully will exchange because as it stands the dac is unusable

 

[Maxvla]

Interesting. Is yours doing this at lower rates? Mine only did it at 352.8 and 384, but you wouldn't be able to get that from a coax connection.

 

[TonyRoma]

Interesting. Is yours doing this at lower rates? Mine only did it at 352.8 and 384, but you wouldn't be able to get that from a coax connection.

Yes its on 44.1 from the cd and the sound sort of pulses loud then soft, very strange

 

[Maxvla]

Sounds defective like mine is. I tried mine on both of my windows computers using both Foobar and JRiver Media Center and it happened the same way.

 

[RocketDragon]

By the way, about this "faulty unit" thing.
I've recently tried to play some music in AIMP player with 384kHz setting, and scary schiit happened.
So, i pressed "play" button and after 10-20 seconds volume just suddenly BURSTED up to unbearable level, like 2х or 3х from my common. Luckily, i've managed to mute everything in windows mixer in couple of seconds.
Honestly, i don't want to repeat this experience. Be careful, guys. I dunno, what exactly caused this, was it hardware problem, buggy drivers or this particular software player.

 

[Maxvla]

This is the issue we are describing.

 

[floydfan33]

  Yes its on 44.1 from the cd and the sound sort of pulses loud then soft, very strange

Count me as having had this happen as well with a DSD ISO file in JRiver 19 using the Mini I ASIO driver. Happened once but has not reoccured.

 

[RocketDragon]

This is the issue we are describing.

An isolated incident, huh? More like a typical occasion.

 

[White Lotus]

I use mine daily, and I'm yet to see the issue.