[Licht]

No, 500 mW is absolutely normal for modern DAPs.

But not for Sony and A&K. (Maybe crazy expensive and huge DMP-Z1 and Kann Cube, but they are transportable rather than portable.)
Excuse me for my ignorance, but could you please let me know what else DAP have 500mW@32ohms?
I just wanted to know.

 

[jarnopp]

But not for Sony and A&K. (Maybe crazy expensive and huge DMP-Z1 and Kann Cube, but they are transportable rather than portable.)
Excuse me for my ignorance, but could you please let me know what else DAP have 500mW@32ohms?
I just wanted to know.

It’s not exactly a DAP, and not the cheapest but also not crazy $, but Chord Mojo is about 600mW into A2C and sounds fantastic.

 

[1000ROUNDZ]

Just my two cents on my experience with DAP and portable sources. I was using my A2C with my Hiby R5 via 4.4mm a lot. Powerful enough to drive the A2C; I was listening at around 60-70 volume out of 100. Great combo for listening at school while working in the reading rooms. FYI this is the R5's power output:

• Balanced power up to 1040mW+1040mW@16Ω and 564mW+564mW@32Ω

I preferred the sound of my Mojo when I was stationary at my laptop for longer hours, especially when I felt being more critical to the sound. I was listening at blue volume levels (right after green).

Those two have been great at driving the A2C. In contrast, the Fiio M11 was just not good to my taste. Didn't like the flat sound from the DAP, and that's been true when paired with all my headphones (Meze 99 & Campfire Atlas).

Now being confined at home, I've been listening to my A2C via my new SMSL SP200 (THX 888) amp instead. The A2C definitely gets driven better with the 6W output and it's my preferred combo with the A2C; the sound is clean and "strong". I listen at 11 o'clock at low gain.

The SP200 is definitely my favorite pairing with the A2C. However, the Hiby R5 & Mojo are both great for portable purposes, especially at school, hotels, and airport lounges.

 

[qsk78]

Excuse me for my ignorance, but could you please let me know what else DAP have 500mW@32ohms?

Well, most Chinese DAPS should...like Lotoo Paw Gold/6000/Touch, DX200/220 with changeable amps,

 

[Licht]

Well, most Chinese DAPS should...like Lotoo Paw Gold/6000/Touch, DX200/220 with changeable amps,

Thanks.
I googled which DAP has 500mW@32ohms.

To say short roughly, balanced output in following models have 500mW@32ohms or above.
(some of them are not specified and guess from measurement graph, etc. though.)

Fiio M11 or above,​

iBasso, Amp1/3/4/8,​

Cayin N8/N6II (not E01)​

Lotoo PAW Gold, Gold Touch, (not PAW6000)​

Cowon Plenue L, Plenue 2 MK2,​

Hiby R5, R6 Pro (not R6),​

A&K Kann, Kann Cube, SP2000 (not SP1000 or below)​

So most higher tier DAPs except of Sony and A&K has 500mW@32ohms in balanced output.
I didn't know that. Thank you for pointing it out. @qsk78
Sony and A&K are popular in Japan, but they are very weak in power!
I won't say 500mW@32ohms is something meaningful watts for driving Aeon Flow 2, but just for reference.
However, what you need is power and headroom @13ohms for Aeon Flow 2.
Some amps get significantly weak at lower impedance load.
And if it matches well with Aeon Flow is different thing.

I only have Ether 2, but Mojo doesn't feel lacking driving Ether 2.
And balanced A&K SA700, which is significantly weak @32ohms, gets loud but sounds meh with Ether2.

Spoiler: What I looked up:

DAPs <500mW@32ohms (doesn't have 500mW output @32ohms):

Sony (except of DMP-Z1)​

iBasso Amp5, Amp7, Amp9​

Lotoo PAW6000​

Shanling​

Hiby R6 (non Pro version)​

Cayin N6II/E01​

Fiio M9 or bellow​

A&K (except of SP2000, Kann / Kann Cube. Not specced@32ohm but by measured graph from review site.)​

*many A&K has 4Vrms in balanced output without load, but it drops significantly in standard impedance for IEMs.​

DAPs >500mW@32ohms:

Sony DMP-Z1 (balanced)​

Cayin N8/N6ii(balanced only)​

Lotoo PAW Gold / PAW Gold Touch​

Fiio M11 or above (balanced only)​

Hiby R5, R6 Pro (balanced only, and not for R6 even in balanced)​

​

Not specified but probably >500mW@32ohm: (you need 4Vrms@32ohm. Max Vrms @“No load” doesn’t mean it has that voltage @32ohm.)​

Cowon Plenue L / Plenue 2 MK2 4.0Vrms (no impedance specified, however, measurement at review site shows OK)​

A&K Kann, Kann Cube, SP2000 (from measurement graph by review site. Balanced only for SP2000)​

iBasso Amp1, Amp3, Amp4, Amp8: 6Vrms​

​

 

[cpurdy]

Thanks.
I googled which DAP has 500mW@32ohms.

To say short roughly, balanced output in following models have 500mW@32ohms or above.
(some of them are not specified and guess from measurement graph, etc. though.)

Fiio M11 or above,​

iBasso, Amp1/3/4/8,​

Cayin N8/N6II (not E01)​

Lotoo PAW Gold, Gold Touch, (not PAW6000)​

Cowon Plenue L, Plenue 2 MK2,​

Hiby R5, R6 Pro (not R6),​

A&K Kann, Kann Cube, SP2000 (not SP1000 or below)​

So most higher tier DAPs except of Sony and A&K has 500mW@32ohms in balanced output.

500mw into 32ohms is a lot of juice. My DAP does 150mw (balanced), which I thought was a lot (and is way more than I have ever used!)

Do be careful with your ears ... the way that your hearing works is quite prone to permanent damage if you listen to things too loudly. (I often listen at level 7 out of 100 on whatever random scale my DAP uses, because I still want to be able to hear when my body gets older than I am.)

 

[Licht]

500mw into 32ohms is a lot of juice. My DAP does 150mw (balanced), which I thought was a lot (and is way more than I have ever used!)

Do be careful with your ears ... the way that your hearing works is quite prone to permanent damage if you listen to things too loudly. (I often listen at level 7 out of 100 on whatever random scale my DAP uses, because I still want to be able to hear when my body gets older than I am.)

Thanks.
I think it is about headroom.
My very weak power Astell & Kern SA700 makes Ether2 loud in volume without maxing out the volume nob, but sounds dull.
(SA700 has max 4Vrms with no load, but probably 30mW at 16 ohms, read from measurement graph on review site)

 

[cpurdy]

Thanks.
I think it is about headroom.
My very weak power Astell & Kern SA700 makes Ether2 loud in volume without maxing out the volume nob, but sounds dull.
(SA700 has max 4Vrms with no load, but probably 30mW at 16 ohms, read from measurement graph on review site)

Yeah, I totally get that, and I think that I (anecdotally) agree. I run all of my balanced headphones in my office off of a serious tube amp (Wu WA5-LE, I think) and it really sings, even at low volumes. The portable amps tend not to have that same oomph, but I'm not sure if it's intrinsic to the lower wattage design, or just a side-effect of a thousand different optimizations to save power. (I'm not an electrical engineer.)

 

[mrspeakers]

Yeah, I totally get that, and I think that I (anecdotally) agree. I run all of my balanced headphones in my office off of a serious tube amp (Wu WA5-LE, I think) and it really sings, even at low volumes. The portable amps tend not to have that same oomph, but I'm not sure if it's intrinsic to the lower wattage design, or just a side-effect of a thousand different optimizations to save power. (I'm not an electrical engineer.)

what tube set On your Woo?

 

[cpurdy]

what tube set On your Woo?

The amp has a pair of the PSVane 300B and a pair of the 6SN7. I'm 90% sure these are the original stock tubes (the site lists "6SN7 driver x 2, 300B power x 2, 5U4G rectifier x 2").

The ETHER C sounds great on this amp.

 

[Spie1904]

As I said, it won't play "loud." I recommend it for the audio quality, and most of our customers would find the volume adequate, but not all to be sure. The other limitation is it doesn't support WiFi, which is a real pity. The Hugo 2 is definitely a better device but of course it's totally not a pocket-friendly solution.

So all in all, most people looking for something for A2 would probably be more in the iBasso DX220 range anyhow, and yes, the Mojo also rocks if you don't need a 1-box solution.

Is the AK sp1000m sufficient to power the AC2 Closed?

 

[mrspeakers]

The amp has a pair of the PSVane 300B and a pair of the 6SN7. I'm 90% sure these are the original stock tubes (the site lists "6SN7 driver x 2, 300B power x 2, 5U4G rectifier x 2").

The ETHER C sounds great on this amp.

I haven't heard the PSVanes... Which model? The stock Chinese tubes that came with mine were literally disposable bad, but that was many years ago and I expect the default tubes are changed. The 596 rectifiers are a big upgrade.

 

[mrspeakers]

Is the AK sp1000m sufficient to power the AC2 Closed?

There is no way for me to tell, I've not tried the unit and have no experience. They quote 4.2V balanced and 2.1V single ended with "no load." If they could hold that voltage with a 12 ohm load there'd be more power than you could ever use, but that is an entirely useless spec as load can vary from 8 to 600 ohms with ear gear and if the amp has weak current output they may not ever be able to reach those voltages. An owner would have to answer that subjectively.

 

[Spie1904]

There is no way for me to tell, I've not tried the unit and have no experience. They quote 4.2V balanced and 2.1V single ended with "no load." If they could hold that voltage with a 12 ohm load there'd be more power than you could ever use, but that is an entirely useless spec as load can vary from 8 to 600 ohms with ear gear and if the amp has weak current output they may not ever be able to reach those voltages. An owner would have to answer that subjectively.

I see, thanks Dan! I will have to check then! They look so interesting though! As a person who has issues with IEM’s quite often (fit, allergy with stuff in my ear canal), these look like potential great options! Especially if I can turn them into a headset as well for my conference calls at work!

 

[mrspeakers]

I see, thanks Dan! I will have to check then! They look so interesting though! As a person who has issues with IEM’s quite often (fit, allergy with stuff in my ear canal), these look like potential great options! Especially if I can turn them into a headset as well for my conference calls at work!

Yeah, I wear CIEMs on airplanes, though who knows when that'll happen again, and other than that they're just not for me in general.