Review: Xin SuperDual

[vranswer]

Practically yank the USPS Priority Mail box out of the mailman's hand. I open the package..yep, about the size of a matchbox. My mind is reeling about the possibilities and new decisions to be made - will it make my Ety 4s longer listenable? Should I stick it in my pocket, or will I need frequent access to the very small volume control?

After I plug it in to charge I decide to drop by Wally World to see if there's a small enough micro cell phone belt clip holster which would work.....yes, there it is - a Body Glove model for $8 - perfect!

LATER: I'm connecting it now. Hmmm. Popping in two right angle mini adaptors on the supplied Radio Shack mini to mini cable now, since I'll be using my minIpod's headphone jack (have a Pocketdock on order). There. MinIpod to Xin SuperDual to Ety ER4s. Switch is "on" for imped (P to S) and Bass Boost "on".

YET a LITTLE LATER: My minIpod and SD are one/two on my left hip so small that they're nearly unnoticeable by co-workers. What I'm hearing is all the sweet characteristics of the Etys augmented with signal exactly where they need it. How do I describe it?...it's like the difference between black & white line-art (i.e. Lindrone's avatar) and a full-color photograph. That which I love about the Ety's, the wonderful crisp upper end definition is still there, perhaps even a bit purer. But now suddenly vocals have moved a little closer to the middle (a la Shure). Bass has more vital authority, and is it possible I detect some real punch? Yes, but the low end still retains its clean character. Most importantly, this tiny wonder simply makes the Etys more musical - increasing my potential listening time to indefinite. This will be a very tough combination to beat. The other important consideration for me was the size factor, and the SD is a slam dunk here. Awesome power for such an unobtrusive little box!

THE NEXT DAY: Now I'm listening to Ipod->SD->Shure E5s. Also sounds great, but I have to turn off Bass Boost and imped switches so I don't blow my brains out. It just doesn't seem to have the same eye-popping "wow" effect with the Shures. In fact, besides some subtleties I don't really hear that much difference at all between SD and no SD here. I guess the E5s sensitivity just makes them easy to drive out of standard DAP amps. Will try again from the line out when my Pocketdock arrives to see if that makes a difference. One note: The SD certainly does help my little Muvo NX overcome its shy nature, boosting the output from that volume-challenged player.

TODAY: Waiting for my Shure E3s to arrive by mail today (no, I'm still keeping the E5s but just want the E3s for back yard sweat jobs, etc.). Will test with and without the SD and post addendum to this review. For those, however, with Ety 4s my sincere opinion is run - don't walk - to your computer and log on to xintechs.com and order one of these today (especially since it may take a while for them to produce and ship it to you)...absolutely worth every penny!!

 

[joni]

Using the Pocket Dock will improve things further....I like mine with my Etys too

 

[penbat]

It has been said before that SDs give better results on Etys than E5s but they still benefit E5s quite a lot. I think you should withhold judgement until you use line-out.

 

[Jester]

Quote:

Originally Posted by penbat It has been said before that SDs give better results on Etys than E5s but they still benefit E5s quite a lot. I think you should withhold judgement until you use line-out.

Hmmm....now I am going to have to breakout my Etys and do a showdown with my Shure E5c!

And who ever mentioned the Pocket Dock, thanks! I have been using the Sik cable and have always wanted something just like this.

 

[Xoton]

You guys are all running the Ety 4P right? Allowing the SD to do the S conversion for you...right?

I was wondering if there was any difference between running a 4S directly out of the SD (or a 4P with the S cable) versus the a straight 4P with the Superdual doing the conversion.

In other words is the Imp Switch equal to the cable?

If it's just the same, having not yet got the cable for my P's, that alone makes the SD a killer buy for me!

 

[Dixie Flatline]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xoton I was wondering if there was any difference between running a 4S directly out of the SD (or a 4P with the S cable) versus the a straight 4P with the Superdual doing the conversion. In other words is the Imp Switch equal to the cable? If it's just the same, having not yet got the cable for my P's, that alone makes the SD a killer buy for me!

My understanding -- and I'm an E3c owner, not an Etyhead

, so don't take my word as gospel for this -- is that all the adapter cable does is introduce a 75-ohm resistor into the signal path to the 'phones. And that's what Xin's 4P-4S switch is supposed to do as well. For that matter, Xin also sells (on fixup.net, not xintechs.com) a mini adapter which does the same thing as the cable: http://www.fixup.net/tips/ety/ety.htm

 

[Sugano-san]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xoton In other words is the Imp Switch equal to the cable?

I tried both, the SD (i) with the Imp switch "on" driving 4Ps, and (ii) with the Imp switch "off" driving 4Ps plus adapter cable. If there is any sound difference, it's too small for me to notice. I am using the 4Ps without the adapter cable now (imp switch "on") because it's less hassle. Sound is great, but only with bass switch "on" as well.

 

[Xoton]

Nothing like killing 2 birds with one stone! A tiny little stone at that! The only question left for me (before I start looking through my pants pockets for stray dollars) is there anything out there that better matches with the Ety's?

It sounds like the SD is made for the Ety4, even with its 1980's look!!

I'm also wondering if and when I ever get the Senn 650's if they can be run sufficiently out of the SuperD. That would be killing 3 birds and quite possibley a different thread.

 

[Bolt San]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xoton Nothing like killing 2 birds with one stone! A tiny little stone at that! The only question left for me (before I start looking through my pants pockets for stray dollars) is there anything out there that better matches with the Ety's? It sounds like the SD is made for the Ety4, even with its 1980's look!! I'm also wondering if and when I ever get the Senn 650's if they can be run sufficiently out of the SuperD. That would be killing 3 birds and quite possibley a different thread.

I had a super mini and it drove the AKG 240ms, which have twice the impedence, and the mini has half the voltage.
So I think it'll be fine.

 

[episiarch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xoton is there anything out there that better matches with the Ety's?

So far, my portable PIMETA drives my Etys better than my SuperDual. The SuperDual's great, and is a big step up from my old SuperMini, but I find the sound gets a bit incoherent and clashy on passages that are complex and loud, while the PIMETA remains clean throughout. The SuperDual's a lot smaller and a lot more feature-rich, though.

(Note: the SuperDual's burned in about 60 hours' worth right now. cmascatello says it wants 150 or so in order to sound its best.)

 

[devwild]

Might as well point out here, I made a couple early comments on the SD with the iPod and HD595 here.

A whole different ballbark from the ety's, I know, but a little relavent to the 650 inquiry. I have to say, the more I listen, the more I like the "cleanliness" improvement over the iPod output alone. I don't have any high impedence headphones to really test it with, but I have no doubt the SD can drive the 650s.

When I first openned this up, I tried the SD with my HD280Pros (more out of laziness - not wanting to climb behind my computer - than anything else

). While the bass boost on the SD is way overkill on the 595, I have little doubt I will use with my 280's, which I use on train/bus rides and other noisy environments. What little bass the 280 has out of the iPod (not so much of a problem on other sources *shrug*), vanishes when things get really noisy, so the bass boost should be perfect for enjoying music at comfortable volumes.

I'll check back in the forum and post my impressions after I've had a week breakin + a few days for good measure.

dev*

 

[vranswer]

Well, I had trouble driving my Senn HD 410 SLs (noted above), but the SD clearly is designed for synergy with the Ety 4s. The imped switch is always on for my usage (even with Shures) because I like the sound better. Doing that also requires switching on the bass boost as well (even for the E5s) and that makes the sound really sweet.

 

[haycheng]

I am listen to SD with E-4s out of D-777 right now. It is a very good amp. However, it still requires more burn in and I am listening unfamiliar music right now. I will give a better impression once I have more time on it.

 

[rextrade]

How much bass "kick" will the bass boost give to the my etys? Would like to sell the my e5's, but I do like the louder bass on some electronic and rock music (but overall I prefer the ety's clarity)? It would be nice to get a couple hundred $$ to finance my amp purchase.

 

[joni]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rextrade How much bass "kick" will the bass boost give to the my etys? Would like to sell the my e5's, but I do like the louder bass on some electronic and rock music (but overall I prefer the ety's clarity)? It would be nice to get a couple hundred $$ to finance my amp purchase.

....Put it this way, I no longer think about investing in Ultimate Ears, E5's, Sensaphonic etc etc...I am very happy with the SuperDual and Etys