To have a finer adjustment and above all to use all the dynamics present at the source level, I set the phone volume to maximum and then adjust the dongle volume as desired, but I think that no one is stopping you from doing the opposite. In your specific case though I would look for something like the Questyle M12 which doesn't have a volume adjustment at all and you're good to go.
I'm very sorry I'm not being clear on this but what I want to know is whether or not the iOS volume control works with this device in addition to the volume knob. I want to be able to control the volume from my phone under certain circumstances without reaching for the W4's knob . For example, my Lotoo PAW S2 cannot be controlled from my phone, only from the dongle.
I'm very sorry I'm not being clear on this but what I want to know is whether or not the iOS volume control works with this device in addition to the volume knob. I want to be able to control the volume from my phone under certain circumstances without reaching for the W4's knob . For example, my Lotoo PAW S2 cannot be controlled from my phone, only from the dongle.
Hi, with a budget of about 100€ what dongle do you recommend to use with a sennheiser hd600? I can buy a shanling ua4 or hiby fc4 ( both second hand)for about the same price, about 70€
Hi, with a budget of about 100€ what dongle do you recommend to use with a sennheiser hd600? I can buy a shanling ua4 or hiby fc4 ( both second hand)for about the same price, about 70€
I have a HD600 (I don’t use it much…) but don’t have these 2 dongles. Based on the spec, either the UA4 or the FC4 should be fine. Contrarily to what is sometime reported, the HD600 is not that difficult to drive as long as your dongle has enough voltage (power is not the issue here) to handle the high impedance (~300-500 Ohm).
A balanced cable would give you an additional margin.
I saw on the HD600 thread that BT may be a consideration and that you’re not necessarily chasing the “absolute best audiophile experience”. Why don’t you get a Qudelix 5K or Fiio BTR15 instead? They can be used as dongle, and the 5K (I have a couple of those) will give you a whole set of additional features to explore with your HD600…
I have the shanling up4 22 but I think that it is more useful for iem or low impedance headphones. Btr15 seems to be among the better bt DAC in its price range, a bit over my budget
Let's start by saying something a little strange that I don't know how to explain... the HC4 of all the dongles is certainly the one with the widest current swings I've ever seen... on the PulWtop it goes from a minimum absorption of 0.2 watt up to the maximum that exceeds 1 watt. I don't know what it means, but I imagine that when connected to a normal USB port (which provides a maximum of 0.5) it cannot do this and therefore thinks that its performance is much lower than when connected to the PulWtop which instead allows these peaks of demand for it current. Someone more knowledgeable than me could perhaps explain what this means on a practical level when a dongle has such high current variations. Thank you.
My expert friend came to my aid and explained to me that it most likely derives from the fact that the A&K AKHC4 is equipped with class B amplification and that it is therefore normal.
My expert friend came to my aid and explained to me that it most likely derives from the fact that the A&K AKHC4 is equipped with class B amplification and that it is therefore normal.
The Astell & Kern dongle presents itself in a very clean way, two buttons for the volume (software) and a selector for the maximum sampling (DAR) which at least for now does not add anything unmissable to the sound... on the contrary. Quite large and solid, it makes a good impression, but let's find out the most important thing... how it sounds. At first it sounded a little strange when it was turned on... it sounded like a mix of various dongles that I own and listen to very often. The sound seemed to consist of very noticeable features found in some of my best dongles. Let's start with the bass... they seem to be those of the M15 in terms of power (really very deep as well as very powerful) and in terms of tone and speed close to those of the RU7... so everything is ok. The mids resemble in every way the splendid mids of the PAW S2... the sound is dense but not heavy, the tonality is very refined and the study of the Astell & Kern engineers in creating a thickness in the notes can be heard in a very distinguishable way which however does not affect its smoothness and naturalness. The highs closely resemble those of the W4, very extended, crystal clear, never offensive but very rich in truly convincing details. However, all of this seemed a bit disjointed... not organic and at times artificial, but after a bit of running in (most likely also my brain) it all became incredibly cohesive and integrated. What I had read about Astell & Kern daps (especially for those with a few years behind them) is absolutely not reflected in this dongle. The very technical sound, bordering on sterility, with little musicality and many technicalities is not at all the sound of this dongle which on the contrary makes musicality and body clearly its main characteristics. Not having listened to other Astell & Kern I can't know if the engineers have changed their priorities in terms of sound, but if they have done so they have chosen exactly the right path. The bass makes the scene very engaging but never overlaps with the other frequencies, the mids give softness and the right amount of warmth and the highs are a magnet for details. A truly excellent dongle, which will surely make those who purchase it happy especially considering that among the top dongles it is perhaps the cheapest one as well as being one of the ones that sounds best. The only weak point is in the amplification which is not at the level of everything else... it will certainly make all your IEMs sound (even the not easy IER-Z1R) but certainly if helped by external amplification it will become completely another thing, I'm not saying it's a bad amplification but it doesn't allow the dongle to shine as it deserves and should. Listened to the RA2BFE it reaches very high levels of performance, doing full justice to the work of the A&K technicians who truly endowed it with a spectacular sound. The comparison with the iBasso DC-Elite can easily be made and not like other dongles where it is absolutely impossible as well as useless. The AKHC4 has a much more prominent bass than the Elite and with comparable extension and quality but the real difference is in the mids and highs. The Astell & Kern has fuller mids with heavier notes, while the Elite moves towards a lighter, thinner, more agile representation and therefore faster and attentive to details and nuances (not that these are lacking in the HC4). The highs, on the other hand, are more evident on the A&K with a comparable recovery of details and an extension of the same level. The difference here is in the greater integration of the highs within the sound spectrum by the Elite which is much less on the HC4. The HC4's soundstage is slightly smaller in width than the Elite, but it is greater in depth, translating the discussion to video level it is as if with the Elite you are watching a film on a 16:9 screen while with the HC4 the screen has a ratio of 4:3. The amplification is certainly to the advantage of the Elite, as is the richness of the sound stage and the synergy compared to the various IEMs is certainly more extensive due to its better balance. Having said this, I consider the Elite superior, but I wouldn't be surprised if out of a group of ten blindfolded listeners at least three (with the right IEMs and their favorite music) might prefer the HC4. This dongle from Astell & Kern is truly a beautiful discovery, unfairly overlooked and not reviewed except by sites that sell it (so reviews so to speak), it certainly deserves a place alongside the best dongles around and very often much more expensive than it and being like a cocktail of their best sonic characteristics mixed by the expert hands of A&K engineers. Well done Astell & Kern!!!
My expert friend came to my aid and explained to me that it most likely derives from the fact that the A&K AKHC4 is equipped with class B amplification and that it is therefore normal.
Guys, that battery brick and unpowered hub such as the aceele
Cannot possibly be doing anything. If you don't believe me, try this:
Start listening to a track exactly the way you would... then simply unplug the battery - nothing happens.
All the power AND the signal is coming from the phone as it would if the battery pack is not there.
doesn't matter what order you plug things in or which port you plug it in on the hub. try all the combinations till your heart is content
We just wanted it to be an improvement in sound.
If someone can prove to me that the battery of the phone and the brick are summed together and it gives a larger current swing for those really really hungry dongles that the phone can't supply by itself then I suppose there could be some benefit there.
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)) Adjust by window vol slider, yet it is hardware vol control. Wild
