[Pascal3366]

Hey guys I know that this thread is intended for discussing 3.5mm usb c dongle dacs, but I received my ISN H40 today with a 4.4mm balanced cable and now I am searching for a suitable dac.

On my Ifi Zen dac they don't sound really good and I need something portable.

So I need a usb c dongle dac with a 4.4mm balanced output that has mqa support.

The soundstage also sounds very intimate to me. According to reviews these should have a rather big sound stage.

Because the H40 have a V shape sound signature the mids sound muffled on my Zen dac. They lack clarity and resolution for me as well as treble extension.

Bass is decent tho.

Can someone recommend me a suitable dongle dac with 4.4mm balanced and mqa support that would help these iems?

 

[nc8000]

Hey guys I know that this thread is intended for discussing 3.5mm usb c dongle dacs, but I received my ISN H40 today with a 4.4mm balanced cable and now I am searching for a suitable dac.

On my Ifi Zen dac they don't sound really good and I need something portable.

So I need a usb c dongle dac with a 4.4mm balanced output that has mqa support.

The soundstage also sounds very intimate to me. According to reviews these should have a rather big sound stage.

Because the H40 have a V shape sound signature the mids sound muffled on my Zen dac. They lack clarity and resolution for me as well as treble extension.

Bass is decent tho.

Can someone recommend me a suitable dongle dac with 4.4mm balanced and mqa support that would help these iems?

I have not heard of one with both 4.4 and mqa. My Zorloo Ztella has mqa but 3.5 and my iBasso DC04 has 4.4 but not mqa

 

[Pascal3366]

I have not heard of one with both 4.4 and mqa. My Zorloo Ztella has mqa but 3.5 and my iBasso DC04 has 4.4 but not mqa

The Lotoo Paw S1 for example has a 4.4mm output and mqa support after a firmware upgrade, but I don't know if it is suitable for these IEMs.

The S1 seems to have a few eq presets that could really help these iems.

 

[Tutov007]

Hello,

Anyone here owning the SoundMagic A30 ?
It seems nice because it supports phonecall and it doesn't need usb audio player pro or any other app.

Is it a good dac (coupled with kz zax) ?

 

[Ichos]

Hello,

Anyone here owning the SoundMagic A30 ?
It seems nice because it supports phonecall and it doesn't need usb audio player pro or any other app.

Is it a good dac (coupled with kz zax) ?

Hi , own it.
Kindly browse my review

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/soundmagic-a30-portable-headphone-amplifier-dac.24909/review/25157/

It is excellent sounding , you can use the included buttons if you like but it doesn't support phone calls.

 

[Tutov007]

Hi , own it.
Kindly browse my review

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/soundmagic-a30-portable-headphone-amplifier-dac.24909/review/25157/

It is excellent sounding , you can use the included buttons if you like but it doesn't support phone calls.

I've read it, good review thanks you.
So I can use google play music without the need of any app to get the best quality ?

You said it is compatible with all the sound applications, like I can use the volume control of my smartphone and also the a30's or only the a30's control ?

Sorry for all the questions it's my first dac and I'm interested by the "plug and play" compared to ibasso and others.

 

[Ichos]

I've read it, good review thanks you.
So I can use google play music without the need of any app to get the best quality ?

You said it is compatible with all the sound applications, like I can use the volume control of my smartphone and also the a30's or only the a30's control ?

Sorry for all the questions it's my first dac and I'm interested by the "plug and play" compared to ibasso and others.

Thank you.

Yes you can use any application you want as it takes control of the sound system wide.

It is possible to adjust the volume either with the physical buttons or the phone simultaneously , it is the same thing.

 

[HiFyAK2020]

I have not heard of one with both 4.4 and mqa. My Zorloo Ztella has mqa but 3.5 and my iBasso DC04 has 4.4 but not mqa

and Luxury and Precision has 4.4 balanced but no mqa. I don't really miss MQA and am happy with FLAC - but that is a personal viewpoint

 

[Ichos]

I the past few days I am greatly enjoying the ddhifi tc44b.
Great sound but no MQA.

Review pending...

 

[jv0guano]

Most of the dongles with the CS43198 (and other brand chips) - especially the entry level - don't feature any kind of special implementation.
It is just the chip and a cable , plug and play.
That is why they sound indentical.
More expensive options might offer some kind of power filtering (i.e EarMen Eagle - not CS chip) or jitter reduction algorithms (i.e Hud M100 - not CS chip).

Thanks, I assume this reply was to my post about recommendations for a sub 30 USD USB-C dongle for my Samsung S20.
If most of these dongles with that CS43198 chip are identical, how come reviews such as this one states that the Apple dongle is far superior than the Google one?
Surely there is more than a chip discriminating between a good and a bad piece of electrical component?

 

[Ichos]

Thanks, I assume this reply was to my post about recommendations for a sub 30 USD USB-C dongle for my Samsung S20.
If most of these dongles with that CS43198 chip are identical, how come reviews such as this one states that the Apple dongle is far superior than the Google one?
Surely there is more than a chip discriminating between a good and a bad piece of electrical component?

Well I don't remember but i may have not replied to you because the dongles I am talking about are more than $30.

Anyway I don't know and I don't care about ASR.
I listen with my ears and not measurements.

This new chips are plug and play so it is very difficult to mess up with it.
You can make it better buy adding some power filtration or jitter reduction algorithms etc.

But all this entry level CS dongles don't have such things.

I don't have first hand experience with the Apple dongle nor the Google one so I cannot provide my opinion.

I have tested three entry level CS based dongles and they sound great and more or less the same.
They are also quite powerful.

There are just a few differences here and there not worthy to mention so someone may buy the best looking one.

There are also some quirks with phone pairings must be firmware implementation.
For example with the iBasso dongles I have friends reporting issues with Samsung phones wether the SoundMAGIC A30 works perfectly.

 

[RainingWebley]

Does anybody have a list of the best dongles that can be bought right now? (around 50 dollars)

 

[Pascal3366]

Update: today I purchased the Audirect Hilidac Beam 2S

It supports Mqa rendering as well as 4.4mm balanced output and the sound profile seems to be neutral which is ideal for my ISN H40 I think.

 

[Pascal3366]

Have anyone try the Hilidac Audirect Beam 2S ESS9281C PRO Chip 4.4mm ?

I ordered that one last night

 

[darmanastartes]

The Hiby FC3 is a compact digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and amplifier combination unit. While not as powerful as some of the other USB-C dongles I have reviewed recently, the Hiby FC3 offers much better power efficiency than these higher output options. With the Meizu HiFi Pro hard to find these days, I am happy to recommend the Hiby FC3 in its place if you need more output than the Apple dongle is capable of on stock Android.

My full review, with power measurements and additional images, is available on my blog:

https://medium.com/bedrock-reviews/hiby-fc3-review-42761b6da958