Apple dongle uses a Cirrus Logic dac. Cirrus Logic dacs are as widely used in dongles as ESS dacs. A2049 Apple must be the best price-to-performance dongle out there.
USB-C to 3.5mm adapters (DAC) - Let's find the best
superuser1
Headphoneus Supremus
I am kind of envious of people who don't hear a difference in source gear. I wish i could have just got an apple dongle and be done with it. It's tiny as well as power efficient. Sadly, i do hear a difference and therefore the need to probe more into the rabbit hole. I'm not saying hearing a difference is better than not hearing it.
Waiting on more impressions on the DC Elite but the power draw is insane!
Waiting on more impressions on the DC Elite but the power draw is insane!
dumpsterfire
100+ Head-Fier
Yes, that power draw effectively makes it a use at home kind of dongle, at which point I don’t see the point of a dongle. I guess that’s what happens when you put a desktop DAC in a tiny form factor.
Curious to hear how the DC06 Pro is when that one comes out, hopefully that’s more power efficient.
superuser1
Headphoneus Supremus
You have a very valid argument there. I certainly hope the DC06 Pro will be power efficient.
I like the Apple dongle better than the Hidizs S9 Pro. The Shanling Q1 also sounds better...
I'm amused that it's 4.5 stars on Dongle Madness.
superuser1
Headphoneus Supremus
Okay, I feel like I can offer a few thoughts now.
I left the DC-Elite running overnight. In the morning it was warmish but not hot by any means. Seems it won't get too warm during normal use.
I've been comparing the Elite, Yuki, Chronos and HB1 during the day. Single-ended only; I don't have anything wired for balanced at the moment.
Soundstage
The Elite certainly has the biggest stage of any of the dongles I have at hand. It does a really good job of centering you in the midst of this space where instruments play all around you. In the center stage it seems as if you're one or two rows back, separated a bit, with the instruments and singers further away from you - similar to how the Violectric amps sound if anyone's familiar with those. The instruments at the periphery seem more immediately in line with you - as if you're in the center of a semi-circle and the band is occupying points around it - the instruments at the center are further out in front and deeper, while the instruments at the edges are coming more directly left and right at the same front-to-back 'depth' as you.
In with this sense of space there's very good separation of instruments. Little details like reverb, especially, echo around the space in quite an impressive manner. Particularly bass reverb since the bass is so well defined.
Tonality
I feel like saying the Elite is slightly V- or at least U-shaped. The bass is very deep and robust. Really the bass control and nuance is pretty crazy for a dongle. Interestingly, although 'bass punch' is often something I think of as hitting deep - or at least in the mid-bass - here the punch seems to come from quite a bit higher in the mix, like in the higher bass or even lower mids. But I say U-shaped as it's not just that the bass is robust, as the treble is more emphasized than other dongles I have at hand. It's never harsh or too much, very well done treble to be sure, but it's certainly different from the others I have here. The mids, in comparison, aren't muffled or diminished, but just seem further back - which may help contribute to the sense of space.
Thoughts
Does this necessarily mean the Elite is 'better'? I have some trouble with that term as what one person likes might not be what another is after, and often there's trade-offs.
I do actually feel that the other dongles I have here come across with a slightly more natural timbre - that extra treble in the Elite seems to shift the emphasis in the timbre and tonality slightly. I do wonder if the treble will change in character with more burn in.
Although the Elite is certainly more technically impressive so far, that also doesn't necessarily mean I enjoy music from it more. The Elite has this very authoritative control over everything going on - which can be a real treat to get lost in at times, but also a detriment at others as it feels like the rest of the dongles here 'let their hair down' a little better, so to speak, when the music gets crazy
I agree with the comments above that the power draw is a big limitation. It does make me wonder whether dongles make sense with the increasing expense and power draw of some recent models. It brings into question the use case: if you were just going to use it at a desk, you could use a desktop amp, or if you wanted something to take with you, you could head down the DAP route. For just a fraction more you could get the Aune S9c (desktop) new here in China, or a WM1A second hand or relatively recent A&K model like the SA700 or Kann Alpha.
Perhaps the best point of comparison price-wise would be the L&P W4, but unfortunately I've never heard that so can't offer any insight there. Out of the dongles and DACs I have at hand the Elite sounds most comparable to the HB1 in soundstage, dynamics and sense of power, and maybe just a bit behind the Mojopoly.
Interestingly the Elite interacts oddly with my iPhone volume control. On something like the HB1 (and some others I've owned), the onboard volume slider is disabled, and control is just through the dongle. Elite is kind of the same but the slider isn't disabled on-screen - it's still there and you can still adjust it, but it does nothing (unless you put it completely down to mute, in which case there's no volume). Anywhere above mute on the volume slider makes no difference to the output volume, only the Elite's dial and button volume control.
I left the DC-Elite running overnight. In the morning it was warmish but not hot by any means. Seems it won't get too warm during normal use.
I've been comparing the Elite, Yuki, Chronos and HB1 during the day. Single-ended only; I don't have anything wired for balanced at the moment.
Soundstage
The Elite certainly has the biggest stage of any of the dongles I have at hand. It does a really good job of centering you in the midst of this space where instruments play all around you. In the center stage it seems as if you're one or two rows back, separated a bit, with the instruments and singers further away from you - similar to how the Violectric amps sound if anyone's familiar with those. The instruments at the periphery seem more immediately in line with you - as if you're in the center of a semi-circle and the band is occupying points around it - the instruments at the center are further out in front and deeper, while the instruments at the edges are coming more directly left and right at the same front-to-back 'depth' as you.
In with this sense of space there's very good separation of instruments. Little details like reverb, especially, echo around the space in quite an impressive manner. Particularly bass reverb since the bass is so well defined.
Tonality
I feel like saying the Elite is slightly V- or at least U-shaped. The bass is very deep and robust. Really the bass control and nuance is pretty crazy for a dongle. Interestingly, although 'bass punch' is often something I think of as hitting deep - or at least in the mid-bass - here the punch seems to come from quite a bit higher in the mix, like in the higher bass or even lower mids. But I say U-shaped as it's not just that the bass is robust, as the treble is more emphasized than other dongles I have at hand. It's never harsh or too much, very well done treble to be sure, but it's certainly different from the others I have here. The mids, in comparison, aren't muffled or diminished, but just seem further back - which may help contribute to the sense of space.
Thoughts
Does this necessarily mean the Elite is 'better'? I have some trouble with that term as what one person likes might not be what another is after, and often there's trade-offs.
I do actually feel that the other dongles I have here come across with a slightly more natural timbre - that extra treble in the Elite seems to shift the emphasis in the timbre and tonality slightly. I do wonder if the treble will change in character with more burn in.
Although the Elite is certainly more technically impressive so far, that also doesn't necessarily mean I enjoy music from it more. The Elite has this very authoritative control over everything going on - which can be a real treat to get lost in at times, but also a detriment at others as it feels like the rest of the dongles here 'let their hair down' a little better, so to speak, when the music gets crazy
I agree with the comments above that the power draw is a big limitation. It does make me wonder whether dongles make sense with the increasing expense and power draw of some recent models. It brings into question the use case: if you were just going to use it at a desk, you could use a desktop amp, or if you wanted something to take with you, you could head down the DAP route. For just a fraction more you could get the Aune S9c (desktop) new here in China, or a WM1A second hand or relatively recent A&K model like the SA700 or Kann Alpha.
Perhaps the best point of comparison price-wise would be the L&P W4, but unfortunately I've never heard that so can't offer any insight there. Out of the dongles and DACs I have at hand the Elite sounds most comparable to the HB1 in soundstage, dynamics and sense of power, and maybe just a bit behind the Mojopoly.
Interestingly the Elite interacts oddly with my iPhone volume control. On something like the HB1 (and some others I've owned), the onboard volume slider is disabled, and control is just through the dongle. Elite is kind of the same but the slider isn't disabled on-screen - it's still there and you can still adjust it, but it does nothing (unless you put it completely down to mute, in which case there's no volume). Anywhere above mute on the volume slider makes no difference to the output volume, only the Elite's dial and button volume control.
Thanks for your impression, could you compare it to the OG Mojo that you have too? Btw, is it correct that the Elite still does not store the configuration itself like their brothers DC04/DC03 pro?Okay, I feel like I can offer a few thoughts now.
I left the DC-Elite running overnight. In the morning it was warmish but not hot by any means. Seems it won't get too warm during normal use.
I've been comparing the Elite, Yuki, Chronos and HB1 during the day. Single-ended only; I don't have anything wired for balanced at the moment.
Soundstage
The Elite certainly has the biggest stage of any of the dongles I have at hand. It does a really good job of centering you in the midst of this space where instruments play all around you. In the center stage it seems as if you're one or two rows back, separated a bit, with the instruments and singers further away from you - similar to how the Violectric amps sound if anyone's familiar with those. The instruments at the periphery seem more immediately in line with you - as if you're in the center of a semi-circle and the band is occupying points around it - the instruments at the center are further out in front and deeper, while the instruments at the edges are coming more directly left and right at the same front-to-back 'depth' as you.
In with this sense of space there's very good separation of instruments. Little details like reverb, especially, echo around the space in quite an impressive manner. Particularly bass reverb since the bass is so well defined.
Tonality
I feel like saying the Elite is slightly V- or at least U-shaped. The bass is very deep and robust. Really the bass control and nuance is pretty crazy for a dongle. Interestingly, although 'bass punch' is often something I think of as hitting deep - or at least in the mid-bass - here the punch seems to come from quite a bit higher in the mix, like in the higher bass or even lower mids. But I say U-shaped as it's not just that the bass is robust, as the treble is more emphasized than other dongles I have at hand. It's never harsh or too much, very well done treble to be sure, but it's certainly different from the others I have here. The mids, in comparison, aren't muffled or diminished, but just seem further back - which may help contribute to the sense of space.
Thoughts
Does this necessarily mean the Elite is 'better'? I have some trouble with that term as what one person likes might not be what another is after, and often there's trade-offs.
I do actually feel that the other dongles I have here come across with a slightly more natural timbre - that extra treble in the Elite seems to shift the emphasis in the timbre and tonality slightly. I do wonder if the treble will change in character with more burn in.
Although the Elite is certainly more technically impressive so far, that also doesn't necessarily mean I enjoy music from it more. The Elite has this very authoritative control over everything going on - which can be a real treat to get lost in at times, but also a detriment at others as it feels like the rest of the dongles here 'let their hair down' a little better, so to speak, when the music gets crazy
I agree with the comments above that the power draw is a big limitation. It does make me wonder whether dongles make sense with the increasing expense and power draw of some recent models. It brings into question the use case: if you were just going to use it at a desk, you could use a desktop amp, or if you wanted something to take with you, you could head down the DAP route. For just a fraction more you could get the Aune S9c (desktop) new here in China, or a WM1A second hand or relatively recent A&K model like the SA700 or Kann Alpha.
Perhaps the best point of comparison price-wise would be the L&P W4, but unfortunately I've never heard that so can't offer any insight there. Out of the dongles and DACs I have at hand the Elite sounds most comparable to the HB1 in soundstage, dynamics and sense of power, and maybe just a bit behind the Mojopoly.
Interestingly the Elite interacts oddly with my iPhone volume control. On something like the HB1 (and some others I've owned), the onboard volume slider is disabled, and control is just through the dongle. Elite is kind of the same but the slider isn't disabled on-screen - it's still there and you can still adjust it, but it does nothing (unless you put it completely down to mute, in which case there's no volume). Anywhere above mute on the volume slider makes no difference to the output volume, only the Elite's dial and button volume control.
The Elite keeps the same volume, probably since it’s analogue with the R2R volume control. I’m not sure if it’s possible to change other settings like the digital filters.
I feel like the Mojo is a bit ahead on resolving ability overall. The Elite might pick apart and separate instruments better in some cases, and is wider in soundstage, but the Mojo still sounds like a small step up to my ears in terms of overall performance. Keep in mind this is with Poly; in my experience Poly via WiFi sounds better than Mojo alone and then there’s another small step up in soundstage and detail going to Poly playing via SD card. I don’t know why, probably something to do with interference and signal degradation. I haven’t listened to Mojo alone for a long time.
superuser1
Headphoneus Supremus
Also does it have an app like the DC04Pro?
I don’t see one listed on their website, and there isn’t any mention of an app in the online sales pages on Taobao or JD (the major platforms here in China).
Nice, thanks for the heads up. I’ll have to install it on my wife’s Android phone, or finally make the upgrade to Windows 11, which I’ve been putting off
It uses the same application as the DC04Pro since they are both iBasso products.
JWolf
1000+ Head-Fier
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I'm looking at similar USB-C DAC cables to use with my iPhone 15 Pro Max. The simple cables. SO the DAC will make a difference as the cables are similar.
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