[nickbentley]

How would it do on the Monster Turbine Pro Copper

 

[Mad Max]

Should be good.

 

[audiomonkeyuk]

I just bought one of these - new to IEM and especially headphone amps/DAC's - waiting to receive it and try with UE SuperFi 5 Pro (also not got yet!) and hopefully UE TripleFi 10's (hoping to buy soon!!) - after trying the IEM's first.
 
Into HIFI and like neutral/flat sound.  Hoping from reading some of these posts etc these matches may be OK?
 
Will be used with iPod 80GB Classic and the icon mobile connected by Line Out from iPod
 
Hope i can post some results soon once I finally got the stuff in my grasps!!

 

[xnor]

Yes, I'd say it's worthless in terms of hi-fi.
 

 
 
And the usb performance is a joke.
 
=> Try and measure before you buy and ignore the hype.

 

[wind016]

The Nuforce Mobile is a great investment. I've used it for 3 years already. There is a slight congestion around 4k frequency that can be adjusted. It works well for iems and other portable headphones. It doesn't get affected too much by cell phones. It is also very quiet and is a great solution to stop the annoying computer hissing.
 

 

[roker]

The DAC is nice sounding, definitely an improvement over the computer's inbuilt soundboard.  I prefer it over the uDac (1st ver).
 
13 hours is a good battery life.  Seriously, that'll get anyone through a few days and who listens to music for 13 hours straight anyway?
 
It's versatile, meaning I can use it for my videogame systems, computers, and if I wanted to, my iPhone.  In fact, I like that I can use it through USB on my computer, and have it use the mic capabilities of my NE-7M for video chatting.  Not many (if any?) portable DAC/Amps have that ability.
 
I will say that the sound out of my iPhone is merely OK, nothing great or groundbreaking.  It sounds better through my computer because of the better DAC through USB, then again, my D2000s sound like crap without an amp on the iPhone.  The inbuilt amp isn't powerful enough.  I think it all comes down to headphones you use.
 
I can properly use my D2000s everywhere now without having to lug around my Little Dot I+ to power them sufficiently.  I can use them at my computer when I don't feel like firing up my desktop setup.  I can plug my Xbox 360's audio output into it when I want some privacy in the morning (likewise on my Dreamcast and TV).  
 
I think everyone's experience will vary depending on what they want to use it for and for what headphones they want to use it for.  But for my needs, it's a great fit.

 

[audiomonkeyuk]

Glad to hear there ARE some positive results from this amp/dac.  Worried at first (as a newbie to IEM"S and especially Amps for them) as reading some of these posts AFTER I had just purchased one online - Before that I had read good stuff!!
 
With more experience with HiFi - I know all too well that little changes in system can make big difference - so I duuno why I worried at first!!  Guess coz this stuff is new to me.
 
As it will be my first amp along with the UE's (SF5 Pro & TF10's- hopefully receiving soon) are my firsts of IEM's, I'm looking forward to what I will hear.  These are mainly for when I am away from home with work (which is several times a month - and sometimes the majority of the month) so will be used with an iPod and Advent 4213 Netbook (mainly the iPod) - when out and about or late night in hotel room when speakers are too loud!! (Just mod. some portable USB Trust speakers with replacing majority of cabinet with 12mm MDF - better sound all round!!- got some pics i was gonna post on here - somewhere if can find right/suitable place to post).
 
Anyway - hopefully will find this thread title busted........ 

 

[roker]

Quote:

Glad to hear there ARE some positive results from this amp/dac.  Worried at first (as a newbie to IEM"S and especially Amps for them) as reading some of these posts AFTER I had just purchased one online - Before that I had read good stuff!!
 
With more experience with HiFi - I know all too well that little changes in system can make big difference - so I duuno why I worried at first!!  Guess coz this stuff is new to me.
 
As it will be my first amp along with the UE's (SF5 Pro & TF10's- hopefully receiving soon) are my firsts of IEM's, I'm looking forward to what I will hear.  These are mainly for when I am away from home with work (which is several times a month - and sometimes the majority of the month) so will be used with an iPod and Advent 4213 Netbook (mainly the iPod) - when out and about or late night in hotel room when speakers are too loud!! (Just mod. some portable USB Trust speakers with replacing majority of cabinet with 12mm MDF - better sound all round!!- got some pics i was gonna post on here - somewhere if can find right/suitable place to post).
 
Anyway - hopefully will find this thread title busted........ 

post your impressions when you get them.

 

[audiomonkeyuk]

will do roker......

 

[CEE TEE]

I just got mine..we'll see!!

 

[Jjlamz]

I've been using my nufoce icon mobile for about 3-4 weeks now and have found it a good product for my need, but to be honest not the best match with my K701's.  As most have stated the icon mobile is a bit light on bass and as such not a good match the the already bass light k701's.  The "mobile" should work much better with iem's or smaller portable headphones.  (the amp is marketed as a portable amp anyways). I have found that used only as an amp, it doesn't make much difference with the k701, but when used with a line out dock from my iphone, i noticed a huge improvement in sound quality.  I also use the Usb DAC from my macbook pro and am enjoying it. 
 
If you are using an ipod/iphone make sure to get a LOD (line out dock) to get the most out of it.
Don't use it with full size phone's (obviously) I only have my k701's at the moment so nothing else to try with.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

I find it helps my iPod Video with impdance that is way above AND below 32ohms. It made little difference with my SR225 (except of course when also using hte DAC with my laptop), but it reigned in the flabby and painful bass on my JLabs J3* and tried the HD600 just for the heck of it, and it cleaned up the sound.** I still say keep it, you never know when you might have to use portable headphones that need more current than the Touch. I almost sold mine too, was using a Zen 16gb at the time and the Mobile was only great for the K66. Then I got an iPod Video for $30 plus I bought a new battery for it, and this cleans up the sound a lot.
 
 
*when over 60% volume straight out the iPod)
**Straight out of hte iPod, HD600 only does vocal-centric audiophile recordings. Everything else has almost no dynamics and sound is grainy at high volumes.
 
Quote:

do you mean that if I use a headpone with higher impedance I could find a more obvious difference?

 

[CEE TEE]

Not returning mine, it is small + affordable + helps the work PC out with Amp/DAC + tames the IE8 bass. Two people at work (my unofficial focus group) saw a positive difference with their PK3's. I really believe that you have to temper expectations with amps hitting you over the head with "wow." Maybe a step to a desktop amp will be able to do that for me, but so far it seems pretty subtle to me (with limited experience) and it is going to take more experience and training for me to appreciate the differences between amps as much as between phones and sources. But...there do seem to be differences.

 

[roker]

Quote:

Not returning mine, it is small + affordable + helps the work PC out with Amp/DAC + tames the IE8 bass. Two people at work (my unofficial focus group) saw a positive difference with their PK3's. I really believe that you have to temper expectations with amps hitting you over the head with "wow." Maybe a step to a desktop amp will be able to do that for me, but so far it seems pretty subtle to me (with limited experience) and it is going to take more experience and training for me to appreciate the differences between amps as much as between phones and sources. But...there do seem to be differences.

good observations and I can't agree with you more.
 
I think people need to listen to a few amp to get a feel for the Icon Mobile.  

 

[xnor]

The thing is that such devices should actually improve performance, sound quality.
 
But most onboard soundcards, DAPs ... perform better than the Icon Mobile, hence the OP found it to be worthless.
 
"tames the IE8 bass" this just confirms the bass roll-off or inability to drive the headphones properly.
 
 
PS: The usb performance is "poor", with noise levels being "very poor" (RMAA):