In this case 5K is not suitable for you - it doesn't run from an internal battery while it is connected to a phone, and always uses phone's power.
The Qudelix-5K thread
- Thread starter peter123
- Start date
The battery suckage is minimal, even higher end dongles like the Cayin Ru6 or Ru7 suck around 0.6W or 120milliAmps at 5V, listening volume barely makes it move up or down.
No need to worry about it.
While I have never tried it myself since I usually only use my Qudelix 5K via Bluetooth (LDAC on the 5K works great) when out and about, there is an option in the app to turn off charging as long as the Qudelix 5K's internal battery is at least 20% charged. See attached screenshot from the app.
My iFi audio Gryphon also can be run off internal battery but it is not nearly as portable as the 5K. Obviously very different devices with different features.
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DragonPhalanx
New Head-Fier
I'm currently running my AT-r70x off of my Qudelix 5k and loving it. Mind you I'm a novice here so I might be more easily pleased than others. I was wondering what would be some headphones where the Q5K would definitely fall short, just out of curiosity.
ext23
100+ Head-Fier
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I'm not sure I understand your question but I'm pretty sure the BTR15 doesn't use your phone's battery, only its internal battery. Or it's a toggle. I'm actually considering buying one in the current sale, they're about $80.
Depends on what you mean by "fall short." Do you mean headphones that can't be driven by the 5k?
DragonPhalanx
New Head-Fier
Either that they can't be driven, or that they would take enough of a performance hit as to not be worth it.
For the first, the 5K has you covered with all but the most demanding sets. For the second, its shortcomings aren't huge. Compared to other similar devices, it can sound a little thin and aggressive up top. And it does sound pretty awful if I use it in my desktop setup. But in isolation as a mobile device, you'd probably never notice a thing.
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DragonPhalanx
New Head-Fier
When you are talking about your desktop setup is it because of the different headphones or because of the lack of background noise compared to mobile, or both?
It’s a cleaner signal (less noise and distortion), so any funkiness coming from the 5K is audible.
zilax002
100+ Head-Fier
Any HE-6 variant.
The Susvara.
Stuff like the Tungsten.
I personally don't think the 5K sounds very good for most over-ear headphones, even when it technically should be able to drive them just fine.
I can't swear that impression would hold up to double blind testing, but anytime I use the 5K for headphones I end up thinking "hmmmm, this doesn't sound as good as I thought it did."
Then the next time I use the same headphone at my desktop setup I go "ohhhhh, much better."
It might just be sighted bias but :/ there it is.
A lot of stuff that should sound good on paper just ain't that good on the 5K.
Not much of a believer in DACs making much of a difference, but this may be an exception (ASR's data might back it up too).
My personal opinion - just about anything above the $200-$250 mark. Don't get me wrong, I love the Q5k, and it’s practically a daily driver for me. There are a ton of great headphones for under $250, and many of them benefit from EQ. But as soon as you bump up to $300-$400 (Blessing2, HD6X0, Mangird Tea, etc.), you start to trade clarity and detail for the sake of convenience and EQ. Above $500? It just doesn't make a whole lot of sense to drive a pair of high-end planars or IEMs off a $100 dongle. For instance, my Andromeda 2020 sound way better on the Cayin RU6 than the Q5K.
DragonPhalanx
New Head-Fier
Thanks guys! I'll keep your advise in mind when I updgrade to the next step in terms of headphone.
Bought a 5K this month and like it so far. Thanks for all the information in this thread.
What I would like to know: Has anyone actually done frequency response measurements of their headphones or IEMs and used the dual independent EQ to match left and right side?
I found posts mentioning the possibility of doing so, but no reports of the results or more detailed How-To’s. Sorry if my search just wasn’t good enough.
What I would like to know is:
What I would like to know: Has anyone actually done frequency response measurements of their headphones or IEMs and used the dual independent EQ to match left and right side?
I found posts mentioning the possibility of doing so, but no reports of the results or more detailed How-To’s. Sorry if my search just wasn’t good enough.
What I would like to know is:
- If anyone has experience and the time to explain, what hardware/software tools and workflow were used? Any recommendations?
- What were the improvements, if any?
- Staging? Separation? Others?
- Was it more effective for lower tier headphones/IEMs with likely larger differences or also/even more for higher tier ones?
- Anything else to be aware of, like, does independent EQ lead to differences in phase and does choice of filter have an effect on this?
No, but I wouldn't do EQ this way for headphones or IEMs. Only for speakers. If you do independent L/R EQ, you would create potential phase issues. One of the big benefits of doing EQ with headphones/IEMs is that there's no need for linear phase EQ... as long as you EQ both channels together.
To build my EQ profiles, I use a combination of REW, squig.link, autoEQ (on github), and oratory1990's EQ database.
Depends on the headphone, IEM, amp, listening volume, personal preferences, EQ skills, etc.
Lower/higher price doesn't matter. Has more to do with the distortion profile and phase response of the headphone/IEM you're EQing.
As long as you EQ both sides together, there's generally no need to worry about phase when EQing headphones/IEMs.
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