[alex5908]

that's why

I've changed my post and added the comparison at https://www.head-fi.org/threads/usb...ts-find-the-best.908839/page-51#post-15380763

 

[alex5908]

The best cable I know of (and own personally) is this one

How much did pay for it?
I've sent a request to them but don't know when they respond.

 

[staticV3]

How much did pay for it?
I've sent a request to them but don't know when they respond.

10,90€ plus shipping

 

[mobbaddict]

Anybody uses these small dongles to power full-size planars? Not all of them are very difficult to drive, i would assume 200 mw for 16 ohm should be enough in some cases (I have the Quad which is rated 100 mw).

 

[staticV3]

Anybody uses these small dongles to power full-size planars? Not all of them are very difficult to drive, i would assume 200 mw for 16 ohm should be enough in some cases (I have the Quad which is rated 100 mw).

Do you mean the QUAD ERA-1? Because that one is rated at 94dB/mW, not "100mw" (what?).

 

[mobbaddict]

Do you mean the QUAD ERA-1? Because that one is rated at 94dB/mW, not "100mw" (what?).

I mean the rated input power, see here:
http://www.quad-hifi.co.uk/era1/

 

[staticV3]

I mean the rated input power, see here:
http://www.quad-hifi.co.uk/era1/

Got it. The rated input power is the maximum the headphone can take without breaking. In your case, 100mW would result in 114dB of loudness which would result in severe hearing loss.
I think that even something like the Meizu dongle should serve you well, but if you want to be on the safe side, get the 9038S/D.

 

[mobbaddict]

Got it. The rated input power is the maximum the headphone can take without breaking. In your case, 100mW would result in 114dB of loudness which would result in severe hearing loss.
I think that even something like the Meizu dongle should serve you well, but if you want to be on the safe side, get the 9038S/D.

Thanks! The Quad can certainly take more power, most people drive it with desktop amps which deliver 1 full watt of power. But the 9038 should drive them nicely indeed... If someone has experience with planars on this thread, I'd be curious to have their opinion.

 

[alex5908]

The Tempotec V1-A battery lasted for exactly 4 hours paired with the 9038S. I guess it will last for about 7 hours with Ztella.

 

[telly]

I found the apple dongle is very nice.

 

[al2813]

I have been travelling the past months with my Topping NX4 as DAC/Amp and have been looking recently for a more portable solution. Last Friday I was able to try the M11 which convinced me that a DAP is not the way to go. It is another device to carry, it costs 500 euros, and to boot the UI is painfully slow. So now looking at dongles. Am looking now mainly at the Ztella as it is iPhone compatible. Is there another option to look at?

 

[Dobrescu George]

How about iBasso DC01?

 

[backdrifter]

Recently I acquired the Meizu HiFi DAC Pro. I'll offer my thoughts about it when used with the BLON BL-03, the TRN BA5, and the Shure SRH1840. I'll compare it to the Radsone Earstudio ES100, the E1DA 9038S, and the Galaxy S9 headphone jack. I bought it for $40 from AE. These are quick impressions.

TLDR: The Meizu pairs very well with the BLONs.

First, I noticed an interesting quirk. Sometimes this device doesn't play well with Neutron using my S9. Only when using direct USB access in Neutron and with some devices, the output is nothing but horrible white noise. Playback is normal with direct USB access not used. This is the case with the SRH1840 and the VE Bonus IE. Oddly, it happens with the BLON, too, but only when I use a silver-plated copper cable. This does not occur with my other players that use their own direct USB outputs that bypass the system sound processing (Hiby, USB Audio Player Pro).

In general, hardware-based volume steps are large on the Meizu. This problem is most serious with UAPP in bit perfect mode.

TRN BA5
S9>Meizu>9038S>ES100.
I only use the 9038S in normal mode because I like it the most. Some minor hiss is passed to the BA5 through the 9038S. Resolution is good but not as good as the Meizu. Meizu seems to provide the most natural sound, with additional midrange detail. Some high-pitched noise comes through the S9's jack but resolution is best of all. The overall sound is a bit too bright. I don't hear hiss from the ES100 but the overall sound is the dullest of the four in both SE and balanced modes, although balanced mode sounds better. BA5 sounds really good out of the Meizu and the S9, with the S9 being more resolving and the Meizu sounding a bit more balanced (i.e. not bright).

BLON BL-03
Meizu>S9>9038S>ES100
The reason I'm going to the trouble of writing this is to let you know that the BLONs sound amazing from the Meizu. Before I got the Meizu, I preferred the BA5 over the BLON. But the Meizu brings out a lot of richness and detail. The BLONs are still a bit too bassy for my taste, but in the rest of the range, they sound very articulate and natural. The BA5 are great but they sound a little artificial and thin in the high frequencies, and they do not have an edge in resolution compared to the BLONs when I use the Meizu DAC.

SRH1840
9038S>ES100>Meizu>S9
With the Meizu and using Hiby with exclusive USB access, max volume is inadequate. System sound provides enough volume. With UAPP bit perfect the volume steps are way too large. And as stated above, Neutron just kills me with white noise. Therefore, it is necessary to use system audio with the Meizu. 9038S sounds way better than the others. This is a bright-sounding headphone, but the presentation is more balanced from the 9038S, and there seems to be significantly more detail, too. I'm not surprised that the 9038S sounds best with a full-size headphone. ES100 tames the brightness a bit whereas Meizu doesn't, although the Meizu is more resolving. The S9 is worst in both respects.

Generaly, the Meizu seems to pass less static and noise from the phone than the 9038S. The static can be mostly addressed with the 9038S by using the OTG splitter cable and a power bank. The ES100 has a nice silent background in every configuration.

Thanks for reading this!

 

[staticV3]

Recently I acquired the Meizu HiFi DAC Pro. I'll offer my thoughts about it when used with the BLON BL-03, the TRN BA5, and the Shure SRH1840. I'll compare it to the Radsone Earstudio ES100, the E1DA 9038S, and the Galaxy S9 headphone jack. I bought it for $40 from AE. These are quick impressions.

TLDR: The Meizu pairs very well with the BLONs.

First, I noticed an interesting quirk. Sometimes this device doesn't play well with Neutron using my S9. Only when using direct USB access in Neutron and with some devices, the output is nothing but horrible white noise. Playback is normal with direct USB access not used. This is the case with the SRH1840 and the VE Bonus IE. Oddly, it happens with the BLON, too, but only when I use a silver-plated copper cable. This does not occur with my other players that use their own direct USB outputs that bypass the system sound processing (Hiby, USB Audio Player Pro).

In general, hardware-based volume steps are large on the Meizu. This problem is most serious with UAPP in bit perfect mode.

TRN BA5
S9>Meizu>9038S>ES100.
I only use the 9038S in normal mode because I like it the most. Some minor hiss is passed to the BA5 through the 9038S. Resolution is good but not as good as the Meizu. Meizu seems to provide the most natural sound, with additional midrange detail. Some high-pitched noise comes through the S9's jack but resolution is best of all. The overall sound is a bit too bright. I don't hear hiss from the ES100 but the overall sound is the dullest of the four in both SE and balanced modes, although balanced mode sounds better. BA5 sounds really good out of the Meizu and the S9, with the S9 being more resolving and the Meizu sounding a bit more balanced (i.e. not bright).

BLON BL-03
Meizu>S9>9038S>ES100
The reason I'm going to the trouble of writing this is to let you know that the BLONs sound amazing from the Meizu. Before I got the Meizu, I preferred the BA5 over the BLON. But the Meizu brings out a lot of richness and detail. The BLONs are still a bit too bassy for my taste, but in the rest of the range, they sound very articulate and natural. The BA5 are great but they sound a little artificial and thin in the high frequencies, and they do not have an edge in resolution compared to the BLONs when I use the Meizu DAC.

SRH1840
9038S>ES100>Meizu>S9
With the Meizu and using Hiby with exclusive USB access, max volume is inadequate. System sound provides enough volume. With UAPP bit perfect the volume steps are way too large. And as stated above, Neutron just kills me with white noise. Therefore, it is necessary to use system audio with the Meizu. 9038S sounds way better than the others. This is a bright-sounding headphone, but the presentation is more balanced from the 9038S, and there seems to be significantly more detail, too. I'm not surprised that the 9038S sounds best with a full-size headphone. ES100 tames the brightness a bit whereas Meizu doesn't, although the Meizu is more resolving. The S9 is worst in both respects.

Generaly, the Meizu seems to pass less static and noise from the phone than the 9038S. The static can be mostly addressed with the 9038S by using the OTG splitter cable and a power bank. The ES100 has a nice silent background in every configuration.

Thanks for reading this!

You can increase the amount of volume steps in UAPP to 100. Should be plenty enough. (The Meizu dongle does have 100 steps of HW volume)

 

[backdrifter]

You can increase the amount of volume steps in UAPP to 100. Should be plenty enough. (The Meizu dongle does have 100 steps of HW volume)

Great tip! Thanks a lot!