Hi everyone,
Haven’t had as much time for the past few days to listen to music with iems at home after work, as work kept me mostly busy on the go and back to back with deliveries and orders this week (and most of my listening time was spent w/ Airpods pro 2nd gen and iPhone 14 pro max, for streaming music on Tidal on the go at work).
However, earlier this past Tuesday (9/27), I made some time to listen and get a feel for the sound and presentation of iBasso DX170 (paired with Campfire Audio Supermoon ciem w/ Plus Sound 8-wire spc cable in 4.4 balanced), and went through different tracks from classical and jazz to classic rock and vocals on Tidal. With about three hours of listening done, along with a bit of noticeable sheen picked up from listening to some classical and vocal tracks (on Tidal, w/ DX170 in high gain, 4.4 & Supermoon ciem), I’ll go in further details on more of my thoughts and impressions of the DX170 (and pairing with Supermoon ciem) in another post. But, what I can say in short is the DX170 is a well performing ‘all-rounder’ delivering above its price point with its compact pocketable size and lightweight ergonomic form factor, giving decent amount of rich textured and impactful low end, pleasantly detailed midrange while retaining and presenting enough clarity in detail (albeit slightly lean bodied, but with some added warmth in weight of note & feel in tone of sound) and subtly smooth & natural-like tonality of vocals and instruments (especially piano and percussion instruments), and subtly smoothened but well-defined treble (sounds adequately fine with most contemporary jazz songs and solo piano & flute tracks that go into higher registers).
iBasso DX170 (in black trim, Tuesday, 9/27).
Campfire Audio Supermoon ciem (audiophile-fit) w/ Plus Sound 8-wire spc cable in 4.4 & iBasso DX170 (in 4.4, high gain).
More notably though, imaging isn’t a particular strong standout, yet there is enough amount of space and air among and around placement of subjects, vocals and instruments, to get a sense and feel for where things are positioned and moving about in most tracks, and also faring more than decent in separation, control and speed in some of the more complex/busy passages of songs (involving multiple instruments or vocalists performing as a group/ensemble at moderate to fast tempo).
Soundstage is fairly spacious and reaches wider and further towards the sides than it extends low or high in lower/vertical reach. Presence of subjects, instruments and vocals remain discernibly present and hold together its surface detail & form fairly well most of the way through from panning and positioning left to right, towards center, low to high, and slightly off towards the back side, creating a slight spherical effect in stage.
My only criticism (but mostly minor), however, is the fairly low amount of headroom (when listened on high gain) with some distortion filling in from the edges giving a slight compressed kind of feel and congested sound when the volume is increased any further from mid-40 and up, as this is noticeable for most older recorded tracks that need to be played and listened to at higher than normal volume levels. On a more minor note, I’ve found starting up Tidal app (and Mango player) and its response time in starting and pausing playback of tracks on Tidal to lag a little with a slight delay. Although this isn’t something I’d be overly annoyed with (as I do plan to transfer and upsample more tracks from CDs through JRiver Media to the DX170, and do most of my music listening with offline upsampled CD tracks), it’s something that I find to be an inconvenience when going through and listening to new songs & albums on-the-go and having to deal with hardware/software slowdowns, and then end up going back to listening to the same playlist of upsampled CD tracks.
Aside from its minor downsides, I feel much of what the DX170 offers in solidly versatile performance and natural-like focused presentation of dynamic sound in a solid, compact & lightweight design (w/ a fairly responsive user interface) greatly outweighs its shortcomings, as well as its cost of upkeep & maintenance over time from its more inexpensive price point, as the DX170 offers a tasteful side of flagship-like sound reminiscent of the quality of sound (in musicality and performance) found in higher end iBasso daps (such as DX300 and its predecessor DX220) with a pleasant balance of subtly smooth musicality with impressive dynamics & engaging presentation (for its price point) and natural-like detailed sound.
Moving on forward to Thursday (9/29, National Coffee Day), while I got off a little earlier from work and headed my way back home, another thought occurred to me in how I could get the most out of my DX170 and A12t (my 2nd ciem is still in build progress) for work use. This was mainly due to finding out from 64 Audio just recently that the A12t is best suited to be used with a cable that has 0.75 2-pin connectors, and that 0.78 2-pin connectors would stretch and wear out the sockets and let in moisture and particles, which would later end up in having the sockets to be repaired and/or replaced on a more frequent basis. With this in mind, I just couldn’t settle for a third-party cable of a lesser quality & price point with 0.75 2-pin connectors and in 4.4 balanced.
As I made my usual stop by a coffee shop before going back home, I took my mind off audio gear for a moment, to relax and get a cup of coffee and pastry at a place in Pasadena I’ve been meaning to go and try. When I ordered ahead from the app (by phone) and got there, at first sight of the front entrance, there was a beautifully warm array of flowers, adorned in roses of red alongside some roses in white and violet, gently grouped and perched atop green foliage plants above the entrance and neatly cuddled alongside the opened door giving a pleasantly warm inviting feel for the senses.
Coffee and Plants (Pasadena, California, 9/29).
Once inside, I was calmly greeted by one of the owners when I asked about a pick-up order I placed over the phone a moment ago. Shortly after I picked up my order and turned towards my right to make my way out, I noticed a dazzling display of fern, ivy and green foliage from a variety of plants cradled around roses and carnations in a subtly poetic way, along with several other flowers of the lesser shown variety such as daisies, camellia, gardenia, and lilac. Alongside the inner area of the upper center displayed the words ‘Coffee and Plants,’ in soft white neon lighting, for a fun & casual approach in a narrative-centered tone.
Coffee and Plants (inside by entrance of cafe, Pasadena, California, 9/29).
Cold brew coffee (take-out, from Coffee and Plants, Pasadena, California, 9/29).
Fragrant caressing notes of mellow berry and floral flavors giving off a sensually smooth blend of deep rounded fruity-caramel sweetness with a hint of pungent spice ending in a subtly soft musky aromatic finish.
Blueberry pie (take-out @ Coffee and Plants, Pasadena, California, 9/29).
Although not a standout in flavor and texture, the pie was overall decent in the different flavors it gave with enough tartness and moistly rich roundness of subtly sweet with a bit of sour bite, while keeping the flavor profiles fairly balanced with a hint of herbal spice and buttery flavors from the crust.
When I got home, I had the urge to go back and re-read the recent e-mail I got from 64 Audio, and in the last two sentences, they mentioned a cable brand/company I was familiar with that can make the cable with 0.75mm 2-pin connectors and in 4.4 balanced.
The next morning (9/30), after a fairly brief search on the cable that met my preferences and use case (for listening on the go at work), I came across a cable that I felt best met my needs for mostly daily listening and use in the outer elements while moving orders and stocking merchandise around and about from work to warehouse and back (at work six days a week).
Without a slight doubt in this decision, I went ahead in completing the checkout of my order. With no regrets, I’m happy to say that a Plus Sound Verse sleeved 4-wire silver plated copper cable (w/ 0.75mm 2-pin connectors and in 4.4 balanced) will be made and on its way within the next 2-3 weeks. I really look forward to seeing how this cable is going to pair and perform with my A12t (currently in build progress), and how it will hold up in a dynamic work environment, as well as with the outer elements on the go and around & at work over time. =)
Plus Sound Verse 4-wire sleeved spc cable in 4.4 balanced, w/ 0.75mm 2-pin connectors (ordered from Plus Sound, 9/30).
-Daniel.
