Time for a new headphone amp.

gava

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Having recently acquired a set of Audeze LCD-XC headphones I am now looking to upgrade my headphone amp and I'm kinda stuck.

A few years ago I got the Fiio K5 Pro as an interim solution, and it's been working great and generally performing so well that I have felt it to be one of the very last things I wanted to upgrade. That time has now come however.

Budget: £200-£??? I don't want to spend extra for no reason.

Must have features:
  • Enough power - I don't have any very hard to drive headphones. >1W okay, but no harm in having lots.
  • Good measurements
  • General user satisfaction and good reviews and reputation

Nice to have:
  • Remove any need any EQ software on my laptop. Mainly just want a bit of a bass boost.
    • Full EQ would be great.
    • Bass-boost switch would be fine.
  • Good looks
  • Extra features e.g. BT, true balanced circuitry, etc.

Current List in order of how I'm feeling:
  1. Fiio K7 - £200 + (£100 for balanced cable)- gets very good reviews, balanced, THX, crazy good price.
  2. Hifiman EF400 - £500 - simply tons of power and an R2R DAC, no features.
  3. JDSlabs Element 3 - £500 - looks great, measures well, some nice features, but is it really worth the extra over the K7?
  4. iFi Micro iDSD Signature - £750 - bass boost and xbass, portable, but much more expensive.
  5. RME ADI-2 FS £1100 - obviously the right thing to buy, end game, universally acclaimed, full EQ but I'm struggling with the price.
  6. Sabaj A20D £420 - perfect measurements, dead neutral but could I really hear a difference over K7?
  7. Topping DX5 £500 - measurement king, dead neutral but could I really hear a difference over K7?
  8. Fiio K9 Pro £700 - universally loved by reviewers, excellent features, but pushing the budget.
  9. iFi Zen DAC v2 £200 - has bass boost, would be ideal except that its output power is ludicrously low, less than 1/5 of any of the others on this list. :(

Your thoughts appreciated.
 
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I can only recommend what I've been using for the last five years with my Oppo PM1s and that the Lehmann Linear. Don't know if they have anything to suit you but it does a fine job of driving the planars and my new open back Denon AH-D9200.

 
It looks like you're looking at DAC/Amp combo's

The JDS Labs is an excellent bit of kit, I have had the Element I and II and III and they are clean and powerful as well as good looking. But not what I would personally pick for the Audeze's you have.

If you don't mind separates though, on a subjective level I prefer my Singxer SA-1 - you just need a simple DAC (preferably balanced) to go with it (Topping is worth a look at for a low cost but excellent sounding DAC).
 
It looks like you're looking at DAC/Amp combo's

The JDS Labs is an excellent bit of kit, I have had the Element I and II and III and they are clean and powerful as well as good looking. But not what I would personally pick for the Audeze's you have.

If you don't mind separates though, on a subjective level I prefer my Singxer SA-1 - you just need a simple DAC (preferably balanced) to go with it (Topping is worth a look at for a low cost but excellent sounding DAC).
Thanks for the advice - why do you think the Element 3 is not the right choice for the LCD-XC?

I would prefer a combo unit - don't want to many boxes, like to keep my desktop tidy.
 
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Go for the RME if you can stretch to it. It really is a superb bit of kit and is well supported by RME with frequent software updates.

Plenty of power, great EQ, filters etc. plus an adjustable crossfeed setting (which I really like and would struggle to live without now).

You can get one for a lot less than £1,100 if you shop around.

HB
 
Thank you for getting us on the list! If you have doubts about the output power, you can always check our online calculator :)
 
Thanks for the advice - why do you think the Element 3 is not the right choice for the LCD-XC?

I would prefer a combo unit - don't want to many boxes, like to keep my desktop tidy.

It's a bit flat sounding, not in a bad way, but it just wouldn't be my first choice for such headphones.

It works wonders with a lot of headphones though.
 
Thank you for getting us on the list! If you have doubts about the output power, you can always check our online calculator :)

@iFi audio

I'm struggling to find the right iFi product to be honest. What I would love is the features of the iFi Micro iDSD Signature - but without the battery in a simple desktop box. What is the lifespan of the unit - what about battery replacement after 3-4 years?

I want at least 1W of power, unfortunately the Zen Dac V2 - which is fine otherwise is very low powered at 230/330 mW @32O it would probably be okay with the LCD-XC, but would struggle with my other headphones.
 
@iFi audio

I'm struggling to find the right iFi product to be honest. What I would love is the features of the iFi Micro iDSD Signature - but without the battery in a simple desktop box. What is the lifespan of the unit - what about battery replacement after 3-4 years?

I want at least 1W of power, unfortunately the Zen Dac V2 - which is fine otherwise is very low powered at 230/330 mW @32O it would probably be okay with the LCD-XC, but would struggle with my other headphones.
I have the Zen CAN, and I really like it.

You could pair the CAN with a Zen DAC v2 to give the power levels you are after, but obviously that’s a two-box solution.

I haven’t heard a Zen DAC in action (my Zen CAN currently is fed by a Pi HAT, although I have used it with other sources with universal satisfaction), so I cannot speak to overall result of the Zen pairing.
 
I got my RME for 800ish as was an open box. Never used though so prob a returned impulse buy.
 
Remove any need any EQ software on my laptop. Mainly just want a bit of a bass boost.
  • Full EQ would be great.
  • Bass-boost switch would be fine.

As above, iFi Audio are probably the best for basic tone controls combined with a relative budget pricing and UK availability

Stepping up into full EQ and DSP there is the RME headphone DAC/Amp range mentioned, which seems out of budget

Speaking of out of budget, mentioned for completeness only, see the Corda County and Corda Soul: https://www.meier-audio.com/amplifiers.html

Stepping away from all in one devices, if a stack is acceptable, then Schiit Audio are realistically the best bet for adding (relatively) reasonably priced EQ and being easy to use. The UK distributor actually has stock at time of writing



Portable headphone users should look at the Qudelix 5k with built in 20 band EQ:


P.S. your local professional music retailer will sell hardware EQ for mixing/mastering engineers but their connectivity options and dimensions might not be with hifi users in mind. That is another route
 
@iFi audio

I'm struggling to find the right iFi product to be honest. What I would love is the features of the iFi Micro iDSD Signature - but without the battery in a simple desktop box. What is the lifespan of the unit - what about battery replacement after 3-4 years?

I want at least 1W of power, unfortunately the Zen Dac V2 - which is fine otherwise is very low powered at 230/330 mW @32O it would probably be okay with the LCD-XC, but would struggle with my other headphones.
The micro iDSD signature comes with a built in battery. The device comes with versatile sonic tailoring which means you can use a feature called Eco’ to dial down the power to suite high-sensitivity in-ear monitors and/or to extend battery life. The battery is expected to last around 4-5 years and the lifespan depends on how the device is cared for. However, we haven't had any complaints about the micro iDSD, so it is worth every penny. What exactly interests you? Is it just the lifespan and battery life of the device that is of concern?
 
Thanks for all the comments and suggestions.

In the end I decided to order the Fiio K7 and an Oidio balanced cable, should be with me by the weekend hopefully.

Reviews all say it's extraordinary value, easily competing with DAC/AMP combos 3x its price, and with the balanced output will give a full 2W.

It also means I can use my Fiio BTR7 balanced output if I take them on holiday or something. The LCD-XC are too big for casual use outside the home, but it has sufficient output to drive them to a reasonable level. I will be interested to see if the BTR7 has enough oomph (technical term) to power them properly.

However I have just been on holiday and took my Focal Bathys with me and they performed marvellously, so honestly I probably won't be moving the LCD-XCs from my desk very much.

As for EQ/Bass boost - one day perhaps I will get myself the RME or one of the good Schiit stacks, but for now I am happy enough using Equalizer APO on my laptop, which really is just set & forget and I can use bass boost on the BTR7 which has PEQ.
 
Thanks for all the comments and suggestions.

In the end I decided to order the Fiio K7 and an Oidio balanced cable, should be with me by the weekend hopefully.

Reviews all say it's extraordinary value, easily competing with DAC/AMP combos 3x its price, and with the balanced output will give a full 2W.

It also means I can use my Fiio BTR7 balanced output if I take them on holiday or something. The LCD-XC are too big for casual use outside the home, but it has sufficient output to drive them to a reasonable level. I will be interested to see if the BTR7 has enough oomph (technical term) to power them properly.

However I have just been on holiday and took my Focal Bathys with me and they performed marvellously, so honestly I probably won't be moving the LCD-XCs from my desk very much.

As for EQ/Bass boost - one day perhaps I will get myself the RME or one of the good Schiit stacks, but for now I am happy enough using Equalizer APO on my laptop, which really is just set & forget and I can use bass boost on the BTR7 which has PEQ.
Happy to help. EQ stands for equalization and is used to cut or boost frequencies in sound spectrum. Did you use ready presets or did you came up with your own?
 
With Equalizer APO I have tried the presets, but think they are over-fiddley in the adjustments they make. I think the headphones sound fine as they are, but can use a bass-boost so I have just added a shelf at the low end and they sound great to me now. Most of the presets were for the pre-2021 edition.

The 2021 edition of the LCD-XC are pretty close to Harman anyway, unlike the previous version. Nor in fact am I slavishly devoted to Harman targets.

The K7 arrived early and sounds pretty great. In A-B testing it seems to be a little cleaner with lower noise floor (which is presumably the THX amps). To be honest though as they both have AKM DAC chips and moderately powerful amplifiers the differences are small enough that although detectable if I wasn't A-B testing on recordings I knew well I would not be at all confident I could detect in a blind test. It's a very small margin.

Now I just have to wait for my balanced cable to arrive which will take 10-20 days! :)

This is a headphone setup that will keep me happy for quite a while I think. At Canjam last year I listened to lots of headphones (including lots of much more expensive flagship ones) and I liked the LCD-XC the most of all the ones I heard.

My HiFi system sounds way better than any headphone I have heard anyway, so headphones are to isolate me from the noise of the world and enjoy some music when I can't play my - (checks clock) like 4am when I feel like something loud. :)

Edit: Bah now you have me playing with the presets. Actually one of the presets with a bit of extra bass sounds pretty good too. So now I have 2. :p

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What software is that? The RME allows you to load target curves apparently (I did read the manual honest.....😝)
 

 
With Equalizer APO I have tried the presets, but think they are over-fiddley in the adjustments they make. I think the headphones sound fine as they are, but can use a bass-boost so I have just added a shelf at the low end and they sound great to me now. Most of the presets were for the pre-2021 edition.

The 2021 edition of the LCD-XC are pretty close to Harman anyway, unlike the previous version. Nor in fact am I slavishly devoted to Harman targets.

The K7 arrived early and sounds pretty great. In A-B testing it seems to be a little cleaner with lower noise floor (which is presumably the THX amps). To be honest though as they both have AKM DAC chips and moderately powerful amplifiers the differences are small enough that although detectable if I wasn't A-B testing on recordings I knew well I would not be at all confident I could detect in a blind test. It's a very small margin.

Now I just have to wait for my balanced cable to arrive which will take 10-20 days! :)

This is a headphone setup that will keep me happy for quite a while I think. At Canjam last year I listened to lots of headphones (including lots of much more expensive flagship ones) and I liked the LCD-XC the most of all the ones I heard.

My HiFi system sounds way better than any headphone I have heard anyway, so headphones are to isolate me from the noise of the world and enjoy some music when I can't play my - (checks clock) like 4am when I feel like something loud. :)

Edit: Bah now you have me playing with the presets. Actually one of the presets with a bit of extra bass sounds pretty good too. So now I have 2. :p

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You have a very good approach to EQing. Many people overdo it, which can cause problems, as you are probably aware. A lot of people recommend playing with earpads too, have you tried that? I'm thinking about trying something with my HE6SE. I think they can use some extra oompf in the bass.
 
I've just started using Equaliser APO with the Peace add on, a weird thing happened. The settings werent affecting my sound until I installed Peace, once Peace was on my machine I applied the settings profile I used and it worked immediately.

I found a good list of suggested EQ profiles for different headphones over at AudioScienceReview, there is one thread that has several listed. I would link but not sure if we are allowed to but it would definitely be worth looking there.
 
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You have a very good approach to EQing. Many people overdo it, which can cause problems, as you are probably aware. A lot of people recommend playing with earpads too, have you tried that? I'm thinking about trying something with my HE6SE. I think they can use some extra oompf in the bass.

I love the pads on the LCD-XC, so no intention of rolling at this point. :) If I get bored one day perhaps :)
 
Do they still make natural leather pads?

They are available on the website, I think the default ones that ship in the box are fake leather. They feel fine though.
 
They are available on the website, I think the default ones that ship in the box are fake leather. They feel fine though.
I had LCD-2F back in the day, and I think they had lamb leather pads. I was curious if that changed.
 

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