[osanilevich]

i hope that the stellia works out for you. i think that it's a terrific headphone. i also hope that you can enjoy it without feeling the need to throw money at it for incremental "performance improvements".

Thank you for the well wishes lol. I was about to return it but the sheer difference in sound when I used the cobalt/desktop convinced me to keep it. Difference was more than incremental (even the bass was satisfactory) it's just a matter of getting those same results in a mobile setting

 

[up late]

Thank you for the well wishes lol. I was about to return it but the sheer difference in sound when I used the cobalt/desktop convinced me to keep it. Difference was more than incremental (even the bass was satisfactory) it's just a matter of getting those same results in a mobile setting

with a sensitivity of 106db SPL / 1mw @ 1khz, i would think that most portable daps should have ample power to drive your stellia. and if you still need moar bass, there is always the eq option as you've already mentioned. good luck with it.

 

[Ilomaenkimi]

I think we have personal preferences here. Stellias has lots of uncontrolled (even little boomy) bass when it's driven nonsuitable and weak amp. Even too much. Imo.
When you drive Stellias with good and powerfull amp, bass is very tight and punchy. Stellia needs control. Lots of it.
To me it sounds weird that someone thinks Stellias doesn't have enough bass. But the personal preferences varies.

 

[up late]

the stellia does not require a powerful amp but it may benefit from one with a low impedance output

 

[osanilevich]

So after trying it out with both the micro idsd bl and the cobalt, I feel like I should comment on my findings just in case anyone else searches up a similar issue. In terms of what I was looking for, the idsd left me a very happy customer, it makes rap, edm/electronic and rock tracks way more exciting and gives you a bass you can actually feel rather than just hear. The 3d sound is kinda gimmicky but really works on certain tracks. That said, I am glad I have the cobalt since it performs better on "softer" songs and does vocals really well (its also maybe a quarter of the size). It gives most songs a more balanced sound for when you don't absolutely crave bass (which is a lot of the time) and just wanna listen to some music instead of having a party in your ears. The idsd has somewhat on par vocals but only if you set the amp power to normal instead of eco in which case it's only improved because you hear it better however it reduces the battery life on the idsd. It also still isn't as totally balanced as the cobalt. Haven't tried the idsd on a desktop yet, only iPhone (the cobalt was amazing with a desktop) but overall I am pleased with the results. There may be better options out there but none except for maybe the mojo or maybe a fiio I missed will be as cheap and while it may be a pain to lug around and switch between the two, you really can cover the entire musical spectrum with these two