[Agenesis]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00654LOCS/ref=oh_o01_s00_i00_details

Fiio E7 rebrand. Save $29 over the regular E7.

 

[TH3 original]

I might get this, but wat audio devices would benefit from it?

I use an apple ipod touch 4g and ue triple fi 10 pro

would this amp make my ue10 sound better

 

[lilraver018]

Unlikely your impedance on your IEM's are at 32 well enough for the ipod touch to drive them well. However you may be able to get better articulation if you were to drive them with an amp. However i cant really comment on that due to i dont use a amp with my iem's, however some people claim that amping low impedance iem's can give more articulation to the treble range.

 

[Rainstar]

will it work in conjunction with an E9? as a DAC/AMP combo

 

[itchyBlood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rainstar

will it work in conjunction with an E9? as a DAC/AMP combo

Yes. The big hole there is for the e7.

 

[LostRib]

What exactly does this do?

 

[DayoftheGreek]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LostRib

What exactly does this do?

It works a lot like a sound card. You plug it in via USB, and you can then tell your computer to output sound to it. This can be a big help if you want one program to output from your speakers and another to output through your headphones. For something like a laptop or a computer with particularly crappy onboard audio, you can get cleaner audio out of it. When used with a portable (ipod, zune, cellphone), it can provide extra power or be a better match (complicated stuff) to fancy headphones that might not work so well with a portable.

Good review free of head-fi's disgusting misinformation and brand bias:
http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/05/fiio-e7-usb-dac-amp.html

 

[ABeta]

Would it benefit to have the DAC/AMP paired with a soundcard like a titanium HD? So, headphone into the amp/dac which then plugs into the soundcard

 

[Chocosuke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ABeta

Would it benefit to have the DAC/AMP paired with a soundcard like a titanium HD? So, headphone into the amp/dac which then plugs into the soundcard

I believe plugging in the E7 will completely bypass your soundcard, as it is a DAC itself. So it acts as a sound card. It goes into the USB slot as well, not your 3.5mm jack.

 

[Tatakai All]

At that price it's a pretty decent buy. I've had mine for a long while now and I do like it but the quality of the jacks wears down considerably and now I can only use one of headphone jacks because the other is completely shot and won't play audio through it.

 

[pez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DayoftheGreek

It works a lot like a sound card. You plug it in via USB, and you can then tell your computer to output sound to it. This can be a big help if you want one program to output from your speakers and another to output through your headphones. For something like a laptop or a computer with particularly crappy onboard audio, you can get cleaner audio out of it. When used with a portable (ipod, zune, cellphone), it can provide extra power or be a better match (complicated stuff) to fancy headphones that might not work so well with a portable.
Good review free of head-fi's disgusting misinformation and brand bias:
http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/05/fiio-e7-usb-dac-amp.html

Why the hard feelings for Head-Fi?
Quote:

Originally Posted by ABeta

Would it benefit to have the DAC/AMP paired with a soundcard like a titanium HD? So, headphone into the amp/dac which then plugs into the soundcard

Your Titanium HD is probably one of the best music-oriented sound cards out there. Unless you need more power, or just don't like the sound signature of the Titanium HD, you're better off just using it alone.

 

[Arkuatic]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pez

Why the hard feelings for Head-Fi?
Your Titanium HD is probably one of the best music-oriented sound cards out there. Unless you need more power, or just don't like the sound signature of the Titanium HD, you're better off just using it alone.

I'm not much of an audiophile but even when visiting head-fi there is definitely bias opinions all around, hard to get an unbiased opinion at headfi.

 

[pez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arkuatic

I'm not much of an audiophile but even when visiting head-fi there is definitely bias opinions all around, hard to get an unbiased opinion at headfi.

I understand that. I used to visit a lot and be very active, but the past couple years now I just go there to see headphone news every once in a while.

 

[DayoftheGreek]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pez

Why the hard feelings for Head-Fi?

(the following is true for amps, dacs, cables, etc. The headphone section is still decent, but should be taken with a grain of salt as always)
Imagine OCN, but nobody here was allowed to post benchmarks because they were a banable offense. Now imagine about half of the computer component companies in the world sponsored OCN and OCN made a lot of money when their sponsors sold product. OCZ could be rebranding old SSD's and sell them for a huge profit because of their "increased reaction time." OCZ fans would, of course, feel this claim because they expect too. No benchmarks remember, so only human interaction can be the judge. Companies could sell gold SATA 10Gbps cables, but with no benchmarks to prove they don't do anything, people would buy and love these cables. Any sane person would speak out against this, right? Wrong, because speaking out against the sponsors gets you banned because of the huge amount of money they make. The opinion of members who have tested a lot of gear is held in super-high regard, so of course they get new test equipment from the sponsors first. Ever seen a piece of sponsors gear get a less-than-great review? Nope. A lot of times this gear even comes from companies that don't have the means to properly test their gear (trust your ears... and the price tag!) and it ends up damaging very expensive headphones. That should be front page news! Nope, not if it is a sponsor, then it gets swept under the rug.

I spent too much time and money on that website, only to find out everyone there thinks microwaves can control your mind and painting your cables red increases the bass, but only if the cables cost at least $100. And if you can't hear it, it's because you need to spend at least $1000 on an amp.

http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/07/banned-at-head-fi.html
This is probably one of the best documented examples of head-fi being crazy, but check out the forum links at the bottoms too . You will be able to find tons of bad head-fi stories at each of those forums. Time and time again I've been censored myself, and watched smart posters get banned for calling out blatant misinformation.

 

[Riou]

Head-fi is definitely a website that prefers snake-oil salesmanship. A lot of wild unsubstantiated claims of massive sound improvement with pseudo-science and high priced products.

"Oh this magic transistor, it really opens up the low end bass! Only costs $100 per transistor!"

"Shut up and take my money! Derp."

"Wait how can you be so sure? Try an A/B single-blind/double-blind test. I did not notice a difference so what you are saying is ..."

*Banned*

 

[Velathawen]

Since the sound is pretty weak on my S2, would I benefit from having these? Currently swapping between CSK90-LTD and Shure 315s, both of which have pretty low impedence ratings.

 

[DayoftheGreek]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Velathawen

Since the sound is pretty weak on my S2, would I benefit from having these? Currently swapping between CSK90-LTD and Shure 315s, both of which have pretty low impedence ratings.

A quick google brought up that the S2 has about a 50 ohms output impedance, which is terrible for driving almost anything. That is very high. The E7 has about 0.13 ohms, which is very good! So I can't say anything for certain because I haven't listened myself, but there is as good a chance as ever you will get some audible sound improvement.

 

[un1b4ll]

Wow what an an awesome price. I have the E7 and I love it, everyone that I let listen to it can tell a night and day difference with/without it on my A700s. Highly recommended.

 

[Adversity]

Agenesis is posting the best deals these days, how does he get to them so fast???

I agree on the Head-Fi opinion. It is a good resource for headphones themselves sometimes but, they care way too much about expensive amps, DACs, and other useless stuff. IMO no one needs DACs or Amps above $400.

Some people who have the same headphones as me (Denon D7000) will claim that there are better amps/DACs than the Xonar Essence ST for the headphones, and that a new amp/DAC will really open up their sound. Yet, the Denon D7000 is rated at 32 Ohms and is easily driven by the Essence ST.

 

[Chocosuke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DayoftheGreek

(the following is true for amps, dacs, cables, etc. The headphone section is still decent, but should be taken with a grain of salt as always)
Imagine OCN, but nobody here was allowed to post benchmarks because they were a banable offense. Now imagine about half of the computer component companies in the world sponsored OCN and OCN made a lot of money when their sponsors sold product. OCZ could be rebranding old SSD's and sell them for a huge profit because of their "increased reaction time." OCZ fans would, of course, feel this claim because they expect too. No benchmarks remember, so only human interaction can be the judge. Companies could sell gold SATA 10Gbps cables, but with no benchmarks to prove they don't do anything, people would buy and love these cables. Any sane person would speak out against this, right? Wrong, because speaking out against the sponsors gets you banned because of the huge amount of money they make. The opinion of members who have tested a lot of gear is held in super-high regard, so of course they get new test equipment from the sponsors first. Ever seen a piece of sponsors gear get a less-than-great review? Nope. A lot of times this gear even comes from companies that don't have the means to properly test their gear (trust your ears... and the price tag!) and it ends up damaging very expensive headphones. That should be front page news! Nope, not if it is a sponsor, then it gets swept under the rug.
I spent too much time and money on that website, only to find out everyone there thinks microwaves can control your mind and painting your cables red increases the bass, but only if the cables cost at least $100. And if you can't hear it, it's because you need to spend at least $1000 on an amp.
http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/07/banned-at-head-fi.html
This is probably one of the best documented examples of head-fi being crazy, but check out the forum links at the bottoms too . You will be able to find tons of bad head-fi stories at each of those forums. Time and time again I've been censored myself, and watched smart posters get banned for calling out blatant misinformation.

Besides this site, what other site would you recommend for unbiased headphone/amp reviews/discussion then?