[davidmolliere]

The real cool thing is if you want to use AGC in balanced mode you can, same AGC DAC topology as above, but each DP-X1 ESS SABRE9601K amp is dedicated to left and right signals respectively.
My high interest in this is; is balanced only king (one DAC and one amp/channel), or is AGC in balanced mode better? Or both unique that both are king?
To me AGC in balanced is the best of two worlds, one being high-end, well implemented SE but with better grounding, and the other being dedicated left and right channel amps. No idea if that translates into great SQ.

I can only test SE and AGC SE when I get my unit (I have no balanced headphones as of yet) but those who have their own units and balanced headphones, if you have the time please experiment and post your findings. Thanks!

 
Thanks for the great recap!
 
That last item is quite interresting indeed didn't think you could use AGC in balanced mode I will try when I get it

 

[TheOneInYellow]

Thanks for the great recap!

That last item is quite interresting indeed didn't think you could use AGC in balanced mode I will try when I get it

Aww thanks davidmolliere! No problem dude!

As I said I base my findings on a massive amount of research only, no hands on use till I get my unit.
I just thought to condense all the DP-X1 configurations into one post.

A user here earlier told me AGC is only for balanced use but this contradicts many sources that say AGC is for both SE and balanced.

The only way to be accurate and prove my findings (or, well, prove the myriad of sources about this topic) is for either existing user's of the DP-X1 do a bit of experimenting with their units (especially those who have balanced headphones), or for those who are about to get a unit soon (such aa you and I, but I have no balanced headphones at present).

Btw, we hit 180 pages people MIND BLOWN!

 

[nanaholic]

Aww thanks @davidmolliere! No problem dude!

As I said I base my findings on a massive amount of research only, no hands on use till I get my unit.
I just thought to condense all the DP-X1 configurations into one post.

A user here earlier told me AGC is only for balanced use but this contradicts many sources that say AGC is for both SE and balanced.

The only way to be accurate and prove my findings (or, well, prove the myriad of sources about this topic) is for either existing user's of the DP-X1 do a bit of experimenting with their units (especially those who have balanced headphones), or for those who are about to get a unit soon (such aa you and I, but I have no balanced headphones at present).

Btw, we hit 180 pages people MIND BLOWN!

 
That would probably be me, but let me point out that in your reference post, the powerpoint title clearly says that there are different BALANCE modes for the DP-X1, and then puts ACG underneath it.  I would also reference Onkyo's own product webpage (http://www.jp.onkyo.com/audiovisual/headphone/dpx1/quality.htm) clearly showing ACG under the BALANCE section and including the balance plug in the diagram and then the waveform diagrams detailing how the L+/L-/R+/R- is different.  Even for those who don't speak Japanese I think it should be plenty clear that ACG is a Balance only feature because SE is simply L/R/GND.
 
The problem I see is that for those people who claims ACG works in SE are ALL English speakers/sources, and I'm willing to bet my own DP-X1 that someone at Onkyo responsible for English PR got it wrong.
 
EDIT:  
Found this in the user manual.  It's pretty conclusive.
ACG - バランスタイプのヘットホン接続に対応したモードです。
ACG - Mode that is supported for balanced type headphone connections.

 

[GoodToGo1]

MQA is delayed again but its coming...soon....
 
http://www.whathifi.com/news/tidal-showcases-mqa-streaming-ces-2016-launch-delayed

 

[TheOneInYellow]

That would probably be me, but let me point out that in your reference post, the powerpoint title clearly says that there are different BALANCE modes for the DP-X1, and then puts AGC underneath it.  I would also reference Onkyo's own product webpage (http://www.jp.onkyo.com/audiovisual/headphone/dpx1/quality.htm) clearly showing AGC under the BALANCE section and including the balance plug in the diagram and then the waveform diagrams detailing how the L+/L-/R+/R- is different.  Even for those who don't speak Japanese I think it should be plenty clear that AGC is a Balance only feature because SE is simply L/R/GND.

The problem I see is that for those people who claims AGC works in SE are ALL English speakers/sources, and I'm willing to bet my own DP-X1 that someone at Onkyo responsible for English PR got it wrong.

Though I am not the original poster of the PowerPoint pic I have referenced my findings from English sources.

As I have read AGC should be for both SE and balanced, however if I am wrong then you are correct that there is a severe translation error (documentation or pr wise) that has caused the misunderstanding.

I agree that the Japanese sources state AGC in the same vein as balanced, but there has been no official direct correlation.
I really hope an official spokesperson clears this up:
Is AGC for balanced only or can it be activated for SE and balanced operations?

I obviously hope the latter but I do agree the former is very likely (which causes me to cry inside)...

In any case, on the off chance that the English sources are correct, can you see if the AGC option is selectable when using SE, and if so give impressions on SQ compared to standard SE, balanced, and AGC balanced?
Thank you!

 

[davidmolliere]

Btw, we hit 180 pages people MIND BLOWN!

 
No yet up to the crazy 580 pages of the Mojo thread but the DP-X1 definitely stirs a lot of interest from the community, which is a good indicator usually of a hot product

 

[iichigoz]

It's here! Got to really commend pricejapan, Kaneda. They packaged it really well. Thickest air bubble wrap Ive seen. Cheers!

 

[nanaholic]

In any case, on the off chance that the English sources are correct, can you see if the AGC option is selectable when using SE, and if so give impressions on SQ compared to standard SE, balanced, and AGC balanced?
Thank you!

 
ACG is definitely toggleable when using the SE.  Turning it on causes a pause in the music, but turning it off nothing happens.  
 
Normal balance and ACG balance the difference is really obvious, if not just because the volume changes quite drastically!
 
Either way I'm not going to comment because SQ becomes a subjective argument, more ever my own view is already heavily tainted because I researched and translated all the material regarding the theory of ACG and I know that Onkyo's stance (in Japanese at least) is that ACG is a balance only feature.  So unless I can do a fully controlled ABX test my opinion won't matter and would be unfair to other readers looking at the DAP.  

 

[badwisdom]

Ok i caved in and ordered yesterday from PriceJapan with expedited shipping. Now to find a balanced cable

 

[nanaholic]

Re-posting my findings from the user manual just in case people missed my edit:
 

 
ACG - バランスタイプのヘットホン接続に対応したモードです。
ACG - Mode that is supported for balanced type headphone connections.

 

[TheOneInYellow]

No yet up to the crazy 580 pages of the Mojo thread but the DP-X1 definitely stirs a lot of interest from the community, which is a good indicator usually of a hot product

Still pretty impressive, and shows how the community is responding to new, more feature rich DAP's at more affordable prices ^^

MQA is delayed again but its coming...soon....

http://www.whathifi.com/news/tidal-showcases-mqa-streaming-ces-2016-launch-delayed

That's a bummer but most of my music is neither higher than Redbook 16 bit/44.1 kHz CD quality, DSD/DXD, or MQA. I'll shall wait and see how good MQA is if more of my music is available in such a format.

It's here! Got to really commend pricejapan, Kaneda. They packaged it really well. Thickest air bubble wrap Ive seen. Cheers!

THAT'S AWESOME! Unboxing pics, and have fun with your new toy!

ACG is definitely toggleable when using the SE.  Turning it on causes a pause in the music, but turning it off nothing happens.  

Normal balance and ACG balance the difference is really obvious, if not just because the volume changes quite drastically!

Either way I'm not going to comment because SQ becomes a subjective argument, more ever my own view is already heavily tainted because I researched and translated all the material regarding the theory of ACG and I know that Onkyo's stance (in Japanese at least) is that ACG is a balance only feature.  So unless I can do a fully controlled ABX test my opinion won't matter and would be unfair to other readers looking at the DAP.  

Well based on your translations, official documentation and findings, I say that yes, AGC for SE is either not usable, does anything, or is redundant. Everything else I've written about AGC still stands when talking about balanced mode.

As for SQ, all audio reviews, previeww, and impressions are subjective. We reader's enjoy reading such material to garner data points, and if we know of the writer itself then we can apply their texts to their own biases. I myself love reading reviews about one audio product from various reviewers I enjoy as I am familiar with each persons internal bias and inflection.
Although I haven't read much of your previous impressions, and I understand your point of not talking about SQ, I would still be very humbled if you decided to post your opinions.
We the community do understand that it will be subjective, but it's viewpoints like these that help our community grow.

Either way, you have helped a lot anyway and I at least appreciate it, especially when you've noted that AGC balanced and normal balanced has a difference.

Thank you nanaholic ^^

 

[Whitigir]

So this is using the Same DAC as X7, but 2x of them and balanced out ? Hmm, will there be a tour here in the states ?

 

[Zenifyx]

So this is using the Same DAC as X7, but 2x of them and balanced out ? Hmm, will there be a tour here in the states ?

 
No.
This uses 2x ES9018K2M, while the X7 uses the ES9018 chip (which is a 8-channel DAC chip)

 

[Peridot]

So this is using the Same DAC as X7, 

 
No. Same manufacturer, but different device.

 

[LL4mat]

I ordered today from PriceJapan with fast shipping. Now I have to find a balanced cable for my SE846.
Nice Service from Kaneda:

Because DPA-PUX1 (the case) is not released yet ( Jan 22 release ?),  we will ship Onkyo DP-X1 + DPA-GL033 within 72 hours.
After DPA-PUX1 is released, we will ship DPA-PUX1 seperately.