Red is better than Black in basically every way, clearer, more dynamic, better detail, CLEAN bass. Pair Red up with an awesome warm leaning amp and bass impacts and extension is absolutely beautiful, better than the sloppy bass from the Black. Only thing Black is better at is when used in PA system (like this which is what I use the black with) to keep the speakers more laid back sounding (because more rolled off in highs) so you can have the music be pleasant at listening volume.
This blanket statement/opinion/personal experience as welcome and informative as it may be could pose some problems for those owning sensitive low impedance headphones whose sound signature and/or low end volume control could actually be adversely effected by to much power/gain from the DFR.
I believe the Dragon Flys as any other amp need to be tested with a particular headphone to see if they work well together and offer a pleasing sound to an individual's ears and listening preferences.
Sloppy, thin, punchy... never experienced that with the DFB especially in regards to the bass. I think it may be highly dependent on headphone, source, and music genre.
I had wrongly thought I was experiencing some bass roll off from the Black when in fact it was source related (Foobar 2K) and quite noticeable when corrected.
Also keep in mind, I actually use these portables for desktop use, even if it looks ghetto af. lol
I was looking into the E10k, but based on what I've read, it doesn't seem like something I'd like sound-wise, and I'm already starting to dislike the sound of my FiiO K1, which has similar specs. However, I need to get my hands on the DF Red some day.
This blanket statement/opinion/personal experience as welcome and informative as it may be could pose some problems for those owning sensitive low impedance headphones whose sound signature and/or low end volume control could actually be adversely effected by to much power/gain from the DFR.
I believe the Dragon Flys as any other amp need to be tested with a particular headphone to see if they work well together and offer a pleasing sound to an individual's ears and listening preferences.
True, depends on the headphones paired with it...I love the DFR with warm leaning headphones. My favorite combo is modded TH-X00PH, with DFR and modded Gustard H10 amp. Has everything; clarity, detail, precision, bass extension, bass impact, lush mids with clear vocals, and energetic highs that stay below fatiguing. Works equally well with acoustic and electronic music.
I like a warm, smooth, clean, and highly detailed signature. From what I've read about the DF Red so far, it seems to capitalize on the Black in most or all of those areas. What makes me skeptical though is the price, especially after seeing the higher end DAC model ESS9018 being implemented in cheaper products and seeing people enjoying those, I wonder what makes this worth the $200?
I like a warm, smooth, clean, and highly detailed signature. From what I've read about the DF Red so far, it seems to capitalize on the Black in most or all of those areas. What makes me skeptical though is the price, especially after seeing the higher end DAC model ESS9018 being implemented in cheaper products and seeing people enjoying those, I wonder what makes this worth the $200?
The DFR sounds excellent and the DAC and digital volume amplifier are very well implemented, and compatible with Windows, Android, OSX and IOS sources. It is worth its price, far more powerful (voltage) than the Black. You know that in bulk prices the Dacs are worth only a few dollars, like maybe 3 or 4$? The DAC doesn’t make the final product sound worse or better. It’s how well it’s implemented with the op amp, the input USB clock implementation, etc. Which specific competitive units are you talking about? Are they iOS and Android compatible without a power hub (most are not), Are they as compact, as great sounding? Are they as reliable? May they also be used in DAC mode with quality that approaches standalone desktop DACs ? I’m not an engineer, but a user of the DFR for close to a year and I can tell you it is worth its whole 200$ price, both as a portable dac/amp and as in DAC mode inputing a desktop headphone amp. It’s that good.
The DFR sounds excellent and the DAC and digital volume amplifier are very well implemented, and compatible with Windows, Android, OSX and IOS sources. It is worth its price, far more powerful (voltage) than the Black. You know that in bulk prices the Dacs are worth only a few dollars, like maybe 3 or 4$? The DAC doesn’t make the final product sound worse or better. It’s how well it’s implemented with the op amp, the input USB clock implementation, etc. Which specific competitive units are you talking about? Are they iOS and Android compatible without a power hub (most are not), Are they as compact, as great sounding? Are they as reliable? May they also be used in DAC mode with quality that approaches standalone desktop DACs ? I’m not an engineer, but a user of the DFR for close to a year and I can tell you it is worth its whole 200$ price, both as a portable dac/amp and as in DAC mode inputing a desktop headphone amp. It’s that good.
I never use it with my Amperior or Momentum, there is no use, it beats the purpose, the DAC and amp in my Apple products are high quality, amd these headphone are quite capable to be driven directly by my Apple MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and iPhone. I use the DFR mostly with my higher impedance headphones (HD600, HD6xx) and sometimes with my HD25-1 II (70 ohms) and the result is very good. It’s all I can say... If I was an Android or Windows kind of guy then I would probably use the DFR with all my low impedance headphones...
I like a warm, smooth, clean, and highly detailed signature. From what I've read about the DF Red so far, it seems to capitalize on the Black in most or all of those areas. What makes me skeptical though is the price, especially after seeing the higher end DAC model ESS9018 being implemented in cheaper products and seeing people enjoying those, I wonder what makes this worth the $200?
It's a DAC/amp the size of a normal USB thumbdrive which works on most any Windows, Android, Mac, and iOS device and is clearer and more dynamic sounding than a Schiit Bifrost 4490 DAC (but doesn't quite have the same detail level or bass level). Feed it into a powerful, high current warm leaning amp (like the Gustard H10) with detailed, warm leaning cans and wow...much better sounding than Schiit Bifrost. Instantly upgrade your vehicle audio system as well when used in vehicle with phone or tablet, more so than the DFB because of the cleaner more detailed sound. Can find some good deals on the DFR in the classifieds here, but I would gladly pay full price for DFR over the DFB at any price.
Has anyone here managed to make DFR plus apple cck2 work with ipod touch 6th gen? I am currently using this with my iPhone SE without any problems. I am just wondering if it will be the same with iPod touch 6th gen. Btw im on iOs10.3.3
I never use it with my Amperior or Momentum, there is no use, it beats the purpose, the DAC and amp in my Apple products are high quality, amd these headphone are quite capable to be driven directly by my Apple MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and iPhone. I use the DFR mostly with my higher impedance headphones (HD600, HD6xx) and sometimes with my HD25-1 II (70 ohms) and the result is very good. It’s all I can say... If I was an Android or Windows kind of guy then I would probably use the DFR with all my low impedance headphones...
I never truly enjoyed the sound quality of any iPod that I've used, same goes for most of my computers. The best sound I've heard from a portable device was probably the original Sandisk Sansa Clip; that was nice to have until the USB port broke...
I like a warm, smooth, clean, and highly detailed signature. From what I've read about the DF Red so far, it seems to capitalize on the Black in most or all of those areas. What makes me skeptical though is the price, especially after seeing the higher end DAC model ESS9018 being implemented in cheaper products and seeing people enjoying those, I wonder what makes this worth the $200?
The red is very detailed. The implementation of that 9010 smacks the black around, easily. BUT, it's not a very warm presentation. I've actually had better experience by combining the RED with a relatively warm portable amp. Soundstage widens, overall becomes more musical, with still very good detail. The combination has tempered my desire for a mojo, at 3/4 the price. DFR+JDS Labs C5
The red is very detailed. The implementation of that 9010 smacks the black around, easily. BUT, it's not a very warm presentation. I've actually had better experience by combining the RED with a relatively warm portable amp. Soundstage widens, overall becomes more musical, with still very good detail. The combination has tempered my desire for a mojo, at 3/4 the price. DFR+JDS Labs C5
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