QLS QA361 impression thread

[Dobrescu George]

Hey All! Just had an awesome morning on my back porch, sitting in the sun nursing a sore throat and bad congestion. Decided to try to drive my Meze Empyreans with Nordost Heimdall 2 headphone cable, with my 361--it drove the cr*p out of them! It sounded quite good too. No clipping or compression, but did not try super-loud levels. I really enjoyed it immensely. It was set on low gain, high current, btw.

Also did some internal damping inside the 361 with Marigo damping dots. They take too long to install to get a quick A-B, and I am not going to remove them and try again! They added some clarity, control, and a natural ease to the sound-I swear I am not crazy. I'm thinking about attempting the same on other players, once I get more of the dots....

And so it continues.

Seems I keep QA361 on High current and high voltage for almost all headphones and IEMs, most stuff seems to sound better that way

What dots? I don't know what that's all about?

 

[fzman]

They are damping materials that have been on the market for quite some time. Here's a link with some information. http://marigoaudio.com/tuning-dots/ I have used them to good effect on a number of components. I was very happy with the results on the 361

 

[noknok23]

How is the build quality of this device? Does the headphone jack and usb port can endure some stress? Does the battery age well? Is it user serviceable?

 

[Dobrescu George]

How is the build quality of this device? Does the headphone jack and usb port can endure some stress? Does the battery age well? Is it user serviceable?

I am not sure if it is user serviceable, but after one month and a half, there's literally no sign of usage on my unit.

And it is one of the two DAPs I really abuse because I love its sound, and like it for portability

The jacks and USB port are both well made and feel trustworthy, metallic build quality.

 

[subguy812]

The QLS QA361 is a serious DAP. Amazing what a reference DAP this truly is. The power to drive is incredible for a portable device.

 

[denis1976]

Drives the 400i at 38/100 volume at balanced high gain and current... The power is amazing

 

[Dobrescu George]

Drives the 400i at 38/100 volume at balanced high gain and current... The power is amazing

Yep, this is one of the pairings I love it in the most!

 

[fzman]

I have been going back and forth between this and the Dethonray Prelude, and am loving both of them. I wonder how much of their excellence is design/parts selection, and how much is the 'Rain Man' limited functionality.... Any thoughts?

 

[subguy812]

I am trying to get a Prelude. There appears to be many similarities. I love the QA361. It is a true reference DAP with super fast UI, what little UI there is. The sound quality is sublime whether you're using it single-ended output or balanced.

 

[audionewbi]

I've been playing around with plugging external power bank while having the charging switch off.
I think the rumours that external linear PSU FURTHER enhancing the sound is true.
I hear changes but so far negative. I'll keep experimenting.

The significant benefits so far is unit runs much cooler using external power banks.

 

[Whitigir]

I've been playing around with plugging external power bank while having the charging switch off.
I think the rumours that external linear PSU FURTHER enhancing the sound is true.
I hear changes but so far negative. I'll keep experimenting.

The significant benefits so far is unit runs much cooler using external power banks.

What power supply are you trying to plug in ?

 

[audionewbi]

What power supply are you trying to plug in ?

I'm just using a simple Sony external power bank. Idea of having linear PSU for a portable DAP is a little silly for me, as it defeats the purpose. I'm told Anker powercore+ are much better, but who knows.

 

[Whitigir]

I'm just using a simple Sony external power bank. Idea of having linear PSU for a portable DAP is a little silly for me, as it defeats the purpose. I'm told Anker powercore+ are much better, but who knows.

Theoretically speaking, the only thing that is closer or better than a direct battery placement would be Linear ultra low noises PSU....depends on the designs and components being used. Anyways, you can find those Linear PSU on eBay for cheap. I don’t doubt your experiments with the device turned negatives according to what you have been using

 

[seeteeyou]

I saw that @audionewbi was asking for a better power supply unit here

http://www.qlshifi.com/bbs/dispbbs.asp?boardid=5&Id=6895&authorid=11054

Maybe not the most portable option but here it is

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/...reaming/page/368/?tab=comments#comment-862766

A123 Systems 18650 batteries

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/12-x-A1...ePO4-Li-ion-batteries-with-cases/252966671757
https://www.batteryspace.com/A123-S...PO4-18650-Rechargeable-Cell-3.2V-1100mAh.aspx
https://www.buya123products.com/goodsdetail.php?i=2

The board itself is quite expensive on eBay

https://www.ebay.com/itm/LT3045-fou...ower-supply-5V-2A-Upgrade-LT3042/132990922535
https://www.ebay.com/itm/LT3045-fou...ower-supply-5V-2A-Upgrade-LT3042/254275619802
https://www.ebay.com/itm/LT3045-fou...ower-supply-5V-2A-Upgrade-LT3042/273135946356

The original seller on TaoBao is here

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=565126246341

---

Transportable options that are fairly pricey

https://www.ciunas.biz/product-page/iso-ps
https://www.ciunas.biz/product-page/iso-ps-ultracapacitor-power-supply
http://www.tirnahifi.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4652
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/supercapacitor-power-supply-tour.223681/
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/tour-of-supercapacitor-powered-audio-devices.223682/

---

The entire thread is more like a whole can of worms for desktop rigs, though best of the best LPSU options were mentioned recently

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/...reaming/page/577/?tab=comments#comment-967889

This is what they're talking about

https://www.kempelektroniksshop.nl/farad-super3-power-supply.html
https://www.faradpowersupplies.com

 

[Whitigir]

I saw that @audionewbi was asking for a better power supply unit here

http://www.qlshifi.com/bbs/dispbbs.asp?boardid=5&Id=6895&authorid=11054

Maybe not the most portable option but here it is

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/...reaming/page/368/?tab=comments#comment-862766

A123 Systems 18650 batteries

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/12-x-A1...ePO4-Li-ion-batteries-with-cases/252966671757
https://www.batteryspace.com/A123-S...PO4-18650-Rechargeable-Cell-3.2V-1100mAh.aspx
https://www.buya123products.com/goodsdetail.php?i=2

The board itself is quite expensive on eBay

https://www.ebay.com/itm/LT3045-fou...ower-supply-5V-2A-Upgrade-LT3042/132990922535
https://www.ebay.com/itm/LT3045-fou...ower-supply-5V-2A-Upgrade-LT3042/254275619802
https://www.ebay.com/itm/LT3045-fou...ower-supply-5V-2A-Upgrade-LT3042/273135946356

The original seller on TaoBao is here

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=565126246341

---

Transportable options that are fairly pricey

https://www.ciunas.biz/product-page/iso-ps
https://www.ciunas.biz/product-page/iso-ps-ultracapacitor-power-supply
http://www.tirnahifi.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4652
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/supercapacitor-power-supply-tour.223681/
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/tour-of-supercapacitor-powered-audio-devices.223682/

---

The entire thread is more like a whole can of worms for desktop rigs, though best of the best LPSU options were mentioned recently

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/...reaming/page/577/?tab=comments#comment-967889

This is what they're talking about

https://www.kempelektroniksshop.nl/farad-super3-power-supply.html
https://www.faradpowersupplies.com

Nice find, allow me to grab your post and link it toward the DMP folks. It has a huge improvements with LPSU