Should be if Hifiman's sensitivity numbers are accurate. I think they are overly optimistic (to be nice) about that sometimes. lol
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Hifiman Edition XS
- Thread starter mr.at
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Should be if Hifiman's sensitivity numbers are accurate. I think they are overly optimistic (to be nice) about that sometimes. lol
dreamscene
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Thanks mate. Yea, using the calculator (I am a newbie), just verifying the results. Like I said, I have the Topping DX3Pro+ for the main desktop use, just trying to see if this elcheapo $65 Ibasso DC05 dongle dac amp would be sufficient for portable use and not have compromises with enough headroom to go loud and drive the Edition XS well.
dreamscene
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Ah I see. Well, I guess only way to know is wait for the headphone to arrive and do an A / B test between the desktop Topping DX3Pro+ and the portable Ibasso DC05 dac amp.
dreamscene
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Thanks. Audio guru's here are so polite and helpful to new comers like me asking for help.
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I think it was mentioned before , but those calculations go out of the window if you start to use any EQ which requires a negative pre-amp on the signal that goes to the DAC. But, as you concluded, wait for the dongle and see how you get on with it.
Thankfully EDXS doesn't need much EQ, if at all.
Still I would say 500mW min. is required.
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Where do you get 500mw from?
dreamscene
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Calculator say's 59 mW. Even if you double that for EQ, etc as people mentioned here, that's only 120 mW at 110db. Or is the headphone calculator app out of whack?
You can probably run it to decently loud listening volumes but you wont get good control over the headphone.
Do you own the HP already? I can run them loud enough directly plugged into my mac but it doesn't sound good.
What do you need a portable device for with this headphone? I mean you really can't listen to this hp on the go anyways. just curious on what your use case is.
They probably need around 1W 18ohm to really perform. I'm running them from a zen stack and get pretty good control but im sure they will benefit from even more power. They need current and the zen is current deficient design as i understand it.
As i understand it the zen can delivers around 680mw at 18ohm.
As i understand it the zen can delivers around 680mw at 18ohm.
I have the EDXS.
I have connected it to Mojo classic (clips at 700mW), Hugo2 (just a little more power) and direct to two phones, a Huawei and an LG G6.
The phones were hopeless!
Mojo and Hugo2 can drive them, but at the upper part of their power, leaving enough headroom to guard against clipping and compression.
Bear in mind I use no EQ and no -ve preamp.
Which brings me to Mojo2!
It has 4 band tone controls, and +18dB digital headroom.
If one can get away with that, no software EQ nor preamp settings would be needed.
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I have the EDXS.
I have connected it to Mojo classic (clips at 700mW), Hugo2 (just a little more power) and direct to two phones, a Huawei and an LG G6.
The phones were hopeless!
Mojo and Hugo2 can drive them, but at the upper part of their power, leaving enough headroom to guard against clipping and compression.
Bear in mind I use no EQ and no -ve preamp.
Which brings me to Mojo2!
It has 4 band tone controls, and +18dB digital headroom.
If one can get away with that, no software EQ nor preamp settings would be needed.
So 500mW is a guess based on where you have the volume set on the Mojo?
Yes. Not exactly the volume settings, but where it starts to compress.
Works much better than a calculator.
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Not really as you have no idea what the scale / dial on the Mojo is based on. Its all a bit Spinal Tap.
I edited my answer, to say, it is not the volume setting, as that changes from track to track.
I can push the Mojo into clipping (at loud levels) , and get a little more on Hugo2 , that tells me the EDXS can handle more power.
Others have reported they even get better results from 1+ watt.
So let's say I am imagining it, and a 100mW amp can drive EDXS to 110db effortlessly, would that be more scientific to you?
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The question wasnt what power can the EDXS handle. The question was would the iBasso dongle drive them sufficiently for 110dB . No need to imagine anything- if the sensitivity/ efficiency and impedance numbers are right.
Hows about we let the poster try the iBasso and decide if they need to jump to a £500 Mojo if that doesnt work rather than jumping in with both feet and made up excessive power requirements?
Lots of assumptions, proof of the pudding is .....
Great idea!
There is no jumping anything, just about anyone who has Actual experience in using and driving EDXS, has reported it needs higher power.
Some even gone as far as few watts! I say few hundred mW to a watt - BTW I checked the numbers, Mojo clips at about 400mW and Hugo2 at 700mW.(roughly at 16R)
BTW, I wasn't pushing for Mojo. OP asked a specific question" would mojo be able to drive them".
Mojo is discontinued, a mint one on eBay fetches around £200 mark, in its haydays it was £400, the new Mojo2 is £450.
By all means use a Chinese DAC, if it has clean enough juice.
It is good to remember that EDXS is a very transparent, revealing pair of headphones, feed it crap, and it will sound crap! It demands quality output from the DAC/amp, what ever brand or make.
So while I'm waiting for my balanced Copper cable for my EDXS, I tried fooling around a little with different settings etc. just for the fun of it.
Well now I've stumpled across something which is somewhat a mystery to me:
Why does my zen stack sound a lot more open and spacious with the EDXS when I plug it from the SE output on the dac to the 3.5 input on the Can instead of using the RCA connectors?
It seems to loose som weight and body to the timbre but becoming a lot more open and airy with a bigger soundstage.
I need to listen more to see if I prefer this, but most of all I don't really get it
Can someone explain this?
Well now I've stumpled across something which is somewhat a mystery to me:
Why does my zen stack sound a lot more open and spacious with the EDXS when I plug it from the SE output on the dac to the 3.5 input on the Can instead of using the RCA connectors?
It seems to loose som weight and body to the timbre but becoming a lot more open and airy with a bigger soundstage.
I need to listen more to see if I prefer this, but most of all I don't really get it
Can someone explain this?
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Do you mean you were driving the headphones out of RCA outputs??
If yes to above question, then answer is easy!
RCA is meant for high impedance amp inputs, not a 16 Ohm headphone.
LOL no.
I am using the rca interconnector between dac and amp.
When I use a 3.5mm jack to 3.5mm jack from the zen dacs output to the 3.5mm input on the can I get this pretty significant change to the sound
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