XDUoo XD05PRO

[varunkumar]

I’m curious! How does the XD05 Pro perform with the Grand Maestro, especially on the higher power modes? Does it really enhance the detail and control?

I just received my XD05 pro today. Tried with sparkos today for few minutes it was good. Bass will blow your mind in the turbo mode. It does certainly enhance the detail and control. Amp rolling is a must.

I will try to test the GM with different combinations over the coming few days with the following equipment XD05 pro, dc-elite(dac high level), cma 18( amp and high level dac), Aroma a100tb(burson v5i).

 

[STUkh]

I asked them yesterday and they said "NO".

Today they responded:
- "Hello, the wm8741 dac card is equipped with an upgrade card."

Have no idea what in their minds, but looks flasher card will be with DAC module.

Also according to upgrade instruction it is USB - UART TTL CH340 adapter and use 3.3V.
If you don't have card you can get this adapter, connect or solder 4 wires and flash it with the same software.

 

[smegel]

Today they responded:
- "Hello, the wm8741 dac card is equipped with an upgrade card."

Have no idea what in their minds, but looks flasher card will be with DAC module.

Also according to upgrade instruction it is USB - UART TTL CH340 adapter and use 3.3V.
If you don't have card you can get this adapter, connect or solder 4 wires and flash it with the same software.

Did you ask them in English?
It could be that the person who first responded didn't understand the question.

You should have gotten the card... if not contact them and they will send it... at least that's what others have said.

 

[LoneFurrow]

I've been having a bit of back & forth with Wei at xDuoo support regarding the WM8741 upgrade adapter. I mentioned the R2R DAC module and Wei suggested it should be launched relatively soon - "I think the R2R DAC card will be launched in June." Mind you, I don't know which "June" that could be, but hopefully June 2025. Ish. Maybe.

 

[Doug2507]

I've been having a bit of back & forth with Wei at xDuoo support regarding the WM8741 upgrade adapter. I mentioned the R2R DAC module and Wei suggested it should be launched relatively soon - "I think the R2R DAC card will be launched in June." Mind you, I don't know which "June" that could be, but hopefully June 2025. Ish. Maybe.

Does it come with a flash card...

 

[basisunus]

I received the upgrade card from Shenzhenaudio.com nearly 2 weeks from receiving the WM8741 DAC card. The installation and firmware update process was relatively smooth, taking about 15 min. After installing the upgrade card, a driver is needed for the serial port. I tried to run the driver downloaded from their website, but there seems to be a decompression error and the installation failed. Actually, Windows can find and install the driver correctly. So, I didn't use the included driver. Another potential issue is that I put the sticker back on after the firmware upgrade and installed the WM8741 DAC card for a test. I realized that if the firmware upgrade had failed, I would have to remove the sticker again to make another attempt. Maybe that's why there are two stickers included. I guess this process will need to be repeated for the R2R DAC card when it's released.
I'm testing WM8741 DAC card. I realized that it doesn't support any DSD format, and PCM support is up to 192 KHz. The problem is that the source thinks XD05 Pro can play DSD, and XD05 Pro can even display the correct format and sample rate. However, anything DSD or above 192K will have no audio output. The first file I played after installing the WM8741 was a DSD file. I thought it malfunctioned and reinstalled it. Then, I played a CD and it worked.

 

[Doug2507]

Odd, the DAC supports DSD so guessing it's a FW issue...?

 

[STUkh]

I received the upgrade card from Shenzhenaudio.com nearly 2 weeks from receiving the WM8741 DAC card. The installation and firmware update process was relatively smooth, taking about 15 min. After installing the upgrade card, a driver is needed for the serial port. I tried to run the driver downloaded from their website, but there seems to be a decompression error and the installation failed. Actually, Windows can find and install the driver correctly. So, I didn't use the included driver. Another potential issue is that I put the sticker back on after the firmware upgrade and installed the WM8741 DAC card for a test. I realized that if the firmware upgrade had failed, I would have to remove the sticker again to make another attempt. Maybe that's why there are two stickers included. I guess this process will need to be repeated for the R2R DAC card when it's released.
I'm testing WM8741 DAC card. I realized that it doesn't support any DSD format, and PCM support is up to 192 KHz. The problem is that the source thinks XD05 Pro can play DSD, and XD05 Pro can even display the correct format and sample rate. However, anything DSD or above 192K will have no audio output. The first file I played after installing the WM8741 was a DSD file. I thought it malfunctioned and reinstalled it. Then, I played a CD and it worked.

According to datasheet for WM8741 it should perform internal DSDtoPCM conversion. Looks like it just does not setup properly on xduoo side.

 

[basisunus]

The real bummer is that it doesn't communicate correctly with the source about the decoding capabilities when the WM8741 card is installed. So, an unsupported format continues to play without sound. Some players allow setting the output frequency to a fixed value, while others just fix the frequency to 44.1K once DSD is disabled.

 

[Ben86]

How about the sound signature and quality? How does this WM8741 sound compared to AKM and ROHM dac modules?

 

[smegel]

The real bummer is that it doesn't communicate correctly with the source about the decoding capabilities when the WM8741 card is installed. So, an unsupported format continues to play without sound. Some players allow setting the output frequency to a fixed value, while others just fix the frequency to 44.1K once DSD is disabled.

If you've got a Mac you could probably use the midi application to see the highest level supported.

 

[LoneFurrow]

How about the sound signature and quality? How does this WM8741 sounds compared to AKM and ROHM dac modules?

I received my WM8741 adapter board earlier today so have now updated the firmware and been trying the WM8741 DAC module intermittently for the last few hours. It was a bit of pain to upgrade, but that's mainly because I'm a Mac user so had to raid my PC graveyard for a working Windows laptop. The upgrade went smoothly the first time though, and I'm very impressed on initial listening.

Tonally, it's richer than the ROHM module. Bass carries a little more body and weight, and mids seem a little warmer. Female vocals sound slightly full but not unnaturally so, and I prefer that to leaner vocal presentations anyway. Treble is smooth but all the details are present; it doesn't seem to exhibit much in the way of top-end harshness, so should be easy to listen to for long sessions.

Stage width is really good, with micro-details popping at the edge of the stage with the right IEM. The extra bass weight gives an greater sense of depth compared to the ROHM module, I think. I haven't compared the WM8741 to the AKM module yet, and likely won't for more than about 30 seconds. I've never liked the AKM and can't see it putting up a fight against the WM8741.

I tried upsampling to DSD64 from Audirvana on my Mac. Although the XD05 Pro registered the incoming signal as expected, there's no output. I switched to the ROHM module and tried the same settings, which worked fine. According to the xDuoo website, it only supports up to 192kHz via USB, SPDIF and Toslink, so maybe they weren't expecting anyone to try DSD. I've been having a side-bar discussion with Wei at xDuoo support so will send a message to check.

 

[doors97426]

has anyone after upgrading , listen to the other dac cards did it change the way they sounded

 

[AuxNuke]

I've enjoyed and gotten to know this device fairly well over the last 4 months. AMA!
Setup:
- DAC Modules: ESS, AKM, Rohm, Wolfson
- Op-amps: OPA 1612, LME 49720, Burson V5iD, Sparkos SS3602

Other gear in sig.

 

[doors97426]

How does sll the Dac's sound after upgrading for the WM8741