[MrBenvolent]

Apologies if this has been covered in the thread, but I haven't read all 88 pages yet and a search turned up nothing...
 

• How does the Black compare to the DacPort Slim? I have the latter but find the sound a touch clinical with my Sonorous VIs/MacBook Pro and they have a very noticeable noise-floor/hiss which is annoying...I was hoping that the Black would be both warmer and quieter?
• I presume the Black would have more than enough power to drive my Bose QC25s well from my iPhone 6s? I find these quite challenging to drive!
• Considering the above criteria, does the Red suit even more even when considering the extra cost?

 
 
Cheers!

 

[brent75]

1. Dragonflies are very musical, not clinical.

2. Yes

3. Would only get Red if you intend on using it with more than a Bose ANC.

 

[MrBenvolent]

1. Dragonflies are very musical, not clinical.

2. Yes

3. Would only get Red if you intend on using it with more than a Bose ANC.

 
Thanks!
 
Would be used for the Bose on flights, Shure SE530 when walking and FAD Sonorous VIs at home in preference to my DacPort Classic and/or Slim.
 
By that measure you would recommend the Red then!? Noise floor does bother me and I wonder if the extra power in the Red would cause the same issues as the Slim on my 'phones with BA drivers...

 

[fjrabon]

hi thanks for the speedy, friendly reply!

My source is IOS - iPhone 6S+ and iPad.
On my Mac, I use ALO the Island/Jitterbug w/my GS1000i (very euphonic/great combo! Potent tone and detail!).

My concern is that over the iPhone at low volume levels, will the difference between DFB and DFR be easily
discernable, and will is be worth spending $170 CND more for the Red?

....do they both work well at low volume, or is the higher powered Red more difficult to use at low volumes?

At the same time, many bought the black and some upgraded to the Red, it may be worth getting the Red just
to keep cognitive dissonance away!

The red is actually easier to use at lower volume levels because it has more precise volume control steps.

 

[brent75]

   
Thanks!
 
Would be used for the Bose on flights, Shure SE530 when walking and FAD Sonorous VIs at home in preference to my DacPort Classic and/or Slim.
 
By that measure you would recommend the Red then!? Noise floor does bother me and I wonder if the extra power in the Red would cause the same issues as the Slim on my 'phones with BA drivers...

On 2nd thought, you might like Red better. Bose tends to accentuate the bass, so the separation qualities of Red are a good match.
 
I use Red with an ANC headphone - the AKG N60 NC and it's a great combo.
 
You can look at my signature to see all the pairings I've tried Red with. Zero hiss, even with my Westone W30s.

 

[estreeter]

All I can contribute is that the DFB should have more than enough gain to drive any pair of Grados _ I really think you will be happier with the Red based on earlier comments in this thread. I would be inclined to opt for an amp with an external volume control given your requirements

 

[nirudhap]

  UAPP allows you to adjust the internal hardware volume and then do some software based adjustment as well. Controlling the internal volume of the DFB not only allows you to put out much more power it also seems to improve sound quality. It is possible to change the internal hardware volume to any level you want between 0 & 64 but only on a rooted phone and this then gives you hardware volume control in any app not just UAPP. However it is my understanding that UAPP bypasses the Android Kernel and send the data straight out to the external DAC whereas native Apps will still send the data out to the DAC via the Kernel which may also impact on sound quality.

Hi @west0ne ,
 
Could you tell me how to control the hardware volume of the DragonFly (red) in Android on a rooted device? At the moment I am on a stock ROM but would consider rooting as on my Note 5 the volume seems to be at zero unless I use UAPP. On a few rare occasions if I run UAPP before plugging in the DF it reports that the device has no hardware volume control. At this point other apps can play via the DF and be heard though at a very low volume.
 
In both cases the ROM shows the audio path as the USB DragongFly.
 
Thanks!

 

[west0ne]

Hi @west0ne
 ,

Could you tell me how to control the hardware volume of the DragonFly (red) in Android on a rooted device? At the moment I am on a stock ROM but would consider rooting as on my Note 5 the volume seems to be at zero unless I use UAPP. On a few rare occasions if I run UAPP before plugging in the DF it reports that the device has no hardware volume control. At this point other apps can play via the DF and be heard though at a very low volume.

In both cases the ROM shows the audio path as the USB DragongFly.

Thanks!

I only have the DFB and no access to the DF Red. With the DFB and a rooted phone you need to install Alsamixer and a terminal emulator from the Play store. You can then use the Alsa controls through command line to adjust the internal hardware volume. I'm sure there must be a user out there who has a rooted phone and the DFR who could give it a go. If you check back on my previous posts I have listed the commands I used with the DFB.

Also note that this doesn't work on all devices. I have a Samsung tablet that recognises the DFB but won't play audio and reports an error when trying to use Alsa so it could be device related. I think Android and USB audio is hit and miss.

 

[nirudhap]

Thanks @west0ne . It is definitely hit and miss. I tried a nexus 5 (without UAPP) and it does play audio but just has no volume control and again the volume was too low to be useful.

 

[Pastapipo]

 
Dragonfly Black vs Zorloo ZuperDAC
Fight!

 

[yacobx]

if i intend to only use the dragonfly for streaming music on the go with my iphone, should i stick with the black version? 

 

[pkcpga]

if i intend to only use the dragonfly for streaming music on the go with my iphone, should i stick with the black version? 

For an iPhone and if your using sensitive IEM's or headphones I'd stick with the red, the black has poor volume control at lower levels.

 

[tommo21]

For an iPhone and if your using sensitive IEM's or headphones I'd stick with the red, the black has poor volume control at lower levels.

That's not my experience using the DFB with sensitive IEM's on the Ipod Touch 6. It handles them just fine at low volume levels. DFB would do just fine for streaming music on the go with IEM's. I also tried the red and returned it because  I felt they almost were too powerful for my IEM's. They both have their strenghts, but in the end I preferred the black for my use. 

 

[zolom]

I use the DFB with my S7E and SE846 iems. Sound is superb, mostly warm with a good soundstage. I did try the DFR (same settings) and found it too bright (more emphasizd on the highs). Being a bass head, I prefer the DFB.

 

[pkcpga]

That's not my experience using the DFB with sensitive IEM's on the Ipod Touch 6. It handles them just fine at low volume levels. DFB would do just fine for streaming music on the go with IEM's. I also tried the red and returned it because  I felt they almost were too powerful for my IEM's. They both have their strenghts, but in the end I preferred the black for my use. 

I found the red too bright also but with the black I found I could never get the volume right each click up was random sometimes adjusting way too high other times doing nothing. With the red it was even adjusting on volume but too bright for me so I returned both and went with the mojo. But that's just my personal experience.