It will be a good match for your 535 and er4s,the bass boost is very nicely controlled,with good detail and not overdone.It has good synergy with dx90 also especially for headfones.It adds a little warmth to the combo and a musical tonality overall depending on your dx90 fw.
That's exactly what DX90 needs imo, particularly with some brighter or more revealing IEM, a touch of smoothness blended in. As much I love the iBasso it can be borderline harsh sometimes, or aggressive, specifically around the mid-range. My main focus will be with the Grado 325e though.
My SE535 are sold, (along with several pieces of gear recently). The madness needs to end. End I tell you.
P.s. I have a Fiio E12(v1) and a C&C BH amp. My desktop rig currently is Win7 laptop --> foobar2000 --> hifimediy sabre u2 dac --> E12 --> various headphones/iems. I find the E12 to work wonderfully for my open headphones (such as X1 or K240 sextetts), but the slight restricted soundstage of the E12 doesn't work as well for my closed headphones and iems, so I sometimes swap it out for the C&C BH amp. The thinking is that the C5 would be used in place of the E12 when appropriate (maybe always?). I wouldn't be using the C5 portably (too big, and I like the sq out of the ihifi 770 dap as it is).
P.s. I have a Fiio E12(v1) and a C&C BH amp. My desktop rig currently is Win7 laptop --> foobar2000 --> hifimediy sabre u2 dac --> E12 --> various headphones/iems. I find the E12 to work wonderfully for my open headphones (such as X1 or K240 sextetts), but the slight restricted soundstage of the E12 doesn't work as well for my closed headphones and iems, so I sometimes swap it out for the C&C BH amp. The thinking is that the C5 would be used in place of the E12 when appropriate (maybe always?). I wouldn't be using the C5 portably (too big, and I like the sq out of the ihifi 770 dap as it is).
P.s. I have a Fiio E12(v1) and a C&C BH amp. My desktop rig currently is Win7 laptop --> foobar2000 --> hifimediy sabre u2 dac --> E12 --> various headphones/iems. I find the E12 to work wonderfully for my open headphones (such as X1 or K240 sextetts), but the slight restricted soundstage of the E12 doesn't work as well for my closed headphones and iems, so I sometimes swap it out for the C&C BH amp. The thinking is that the C5 would be used in place of the E12 when appropriate (maybe always?). I wouldn't be using the C5 portably (too big, and I like the sq out of the ihifi 770 dap as it is).
Yep, that's a pretty good deal imo (I've paid more)
As mentioned before imo it's an upgrade over C&C BH2 (which I had) and E12 (which I still have). It's always on my X5 and that's a perfect match. I use it with iems and headphones as well...I will sell my E12 one of these days, but the C5 is here to stay!
Recent got the E12A for my iems and I have to say I actually find the C5 to be more versatile in use and sound. The E12A is more neutral in presentation and with most of my earphones it sounds fantastic but headphone wise the C5 is as engaging as I have ever heard it and has the edge over the E12A for my headphones. The C5 jives better with more neutral signature iems and full sized cans.
The E12A with more colored earphones sound stupendous but with neutral ones sounds a bit clinical. So synergy is key with these amps. Overall however the C5 is more versatile being able to sound nice with my iems and has the power to drive just about any full sized can.
I would say if a person just uses mostly iems the E12A is a great option, but for guys that have both headphones and iems, it is the C5 that actually has the edge here.
I have a feeling that is exactly what the C5 will do for you. It does just this for my MSR7. C5 sound superb using the DX90 line out by the way.
Oh and just a heads up. The C5 does benefit from a break in period. They sound great out of the box but will sound much better the more you use them over some time of use. I would say roughly 2 weeks worth of use and charge.
This was confirmed by me when I got my replacement C5 which was new out of the box vs my initial C5 on the OP. 200 hour plus used C5 vs the open box C5 there was definitely a difference.
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I'm running X5+C5 with Grado PS500 (with bass boost on) sometimes...sounds terrific imo! Never heard the SR325e though...
I've had C&C BH2 (sold) and still have E12 (I'll probably sell it soon to try the E12A), but definitely prefer the Cayin C5. Especially with iems E12 has way to much hiss imo...
picked up a slightly used minty C5 locally over the weekend & combo'd with a Hidizs dap over LO, its a very good sounding on-the-go rig when matched with a pair of ultrasone signature pro's. i thought the sig pro's sounding very nice just with the hidizs dap but the C5 took it to up to another level (or 2).
just about everything improved. the sig pro's are closed cans but one can hardly call it that when paired with the above hidizs > C5 combo. also tried it with a Grado PS500, TH900, AKG 712, HD600, T1 & i can vouch for C5 having enough juice to drive them all to any listenable volume but none had the synergistic magic that i heard with the C5 > Sig Pro.
I've almost bought a 2nd hands GSV some months ago, but didn't in the end. I know this is not very helpful information for you, but maybe you can post this question also in a GSV thread (when it exists). Maybe somebody over there has (tried) the Cayin C5.
And maybe somebody comes around over here later on with an anwer. I'm also curious about a comparison between those 2 amps...
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