[Nosoupforyou]

Head-Fi'ers,

On the internets, there are tales of q-Jays being burnt out by the E3. I'm looking to purchase the E5 but now I'm trembling in my tube socks.

Does anyone have this pairing? Can anyone comment on the sound difference?... or were your q-Jays were destroyed in a blaze of fire and sin?

Thanks!

 

[ClieOS]

The case of burnt IEM (q-JAYS, but it can be any headphone) with FiiO E3 is first reported at Jaben.net. Though I don't have the detail, I do strongly suspect the reason is because the user had connected the E3 with a line-out when testing his q-JAYS (or in worst case, the headphone-out on his source has a DC offset - not probable but possible).

Line-out usually has a big DC offset If the amp connected doesn't have an input DC filter, the DC offset will be multiplied by what even gain the amp has. The high voltage is what I suspect to kill the transducer. It is important not to use an amp that doesn't has a input DC filter with a line-out (or any output) with DC offset, or you will risk burning out your headphone (ANY headphone). Since IEM with balanced armature transducers (like q-JAYS) are more sensitive to voltage, it is why they are more likely to be destroyed in situation above.

The good new is, unlike E3, E5 does have input DC filter (just tested it myself). So the chance that E5 will burn out q-JAYS is really minimum. In fact, I have been using E5 with q-JAYS for several times now (usually one hours every time), and I am happy to tell you my q-JAYS is still working perfectly fine. If you are not sure whether your source line-out has DC offset, I'll suggest you keep to headphone-out for now, just to be on the safe side.

 

[Nosoupforyou]

Thanks so much for that informative response! Good to know that my q-Jays won't explode in my ears.

Can you comment on the sound improvement, please? I'm not expecting miracles, but I am hoping that the rather enthusiastic treble of the q-Jays might be tamed a little bit, and the bass boosted somewhat. Are my hopes misplaced?

 

[qusp]

sorry, but all ipods at least, and most DAPS that I know of have output caps, negating the need for input caps on your amp unless you modify the line out.

 

[Nosoupforyou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by qusp /img/forum/go_quote.gif sorry, but all ipods at least, and most DAPS that I know of have output caps, negating the need for input caps on your amp unless you modify the line out.

What does that mean, for sound quality improvements at least? I am ignorant.

 

[ClieOS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by qusp /img/forum/go_quote.gif sorry, but all ipods at least, and most DAPS that I know of have output caps, negating the need for input caps on your amp unless you modify the line out.

You are right, most DAP do have output caps, but not all. For example, Sansa Fuze's line-out doesn't have caps on line-out, so there is a ~1.4V DC offset. I believe Sandisk leaves the implementation up to the accessories' manufacturers. If you tap into the line-out with an E3, than the voltage will be (almost) double. Of course, the problem is minimum for Fuze users since only DIY'er know how to get the line-out signal via LOD, but it is a hidden danger nonetheless

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nosoupforyou /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks so much for that informative response! Good to know that my q-Jays won't explode in my ears. Can you comment on the sound improvement, please? I'm not expecting miracles, but I am hoping that the rather enthusiastic treble of the q-Jays might be tamed a little bit, and the bass boosted somewhat. Are my hopes misplaced?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nosoupforyou /img/forum/go_quote.gif What does that mean, for sound quality improvements at least? I am ignorant.

How much E5 will help really depends on the player you are using. But for the least, q-JAYS will benefit from the extra power since it is relatively difficult to drive due to the low sensitivity and slightly high impedance.