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DAC/AMP specs with no hiss

Hanierlen

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Hi , I wanted to know what are the specs I need to check when looking for dac/amps or just Amps that have no hiss with iems. I'm new at all this audio hobby and I only have the Fiio ka1 and when I plug it into my cellphone with my Ikko OH10 and S12, both don't have any hiss at all. However, when I use the ka1 in my laptop, there is a noticeable kind of static hiss when using my S12 and the OH10 has a beep sound in the left side and it bothers me when there's no music playing or when watching videos. This is a problem too because I listen to music at low levesl. I wanted to buy the Qudelix 5k for bt and all of its functionalities, but I'm tempted to get a desktop dac/amp or dac and amp combination because I want to buy a pair of headphones like Hifiman he400, sundara or Senheiser 560 or 6xx in the future, so a gear that works for both iems and headphones would be great. The new Fiio ka7 looks good with both unbalanced and balanced outputs, but I don´t want to get it if it will give me the same problem as the ka1. Any recommendations on what dac/amps I should get are appreciated or maybe just get the Qudelix 5k. My budget is around 200 dollars. Thanks.
 

Dunring

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Ones I've had recently I like is the Sound blaster X1 which has some power despite it's size. The JDS Atom amp+ DAC+ is a sure thing, amazing stack with quiet noise floor if you have a USB port that's quiet to plug into. Can't go wrong with either for the price point of each.
 

Jimbob54

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If you're looking at measurements on here or elsewhere, look at the 50mv chart. Basically tells you how high the hiss (noise) is at low output levels (as you would use for sensitive low power iem).
 
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Hanierlen

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If you're looking at measurements on here or elsewhere, look at the 50mv chart. Basically tells you how high the hiss (noise) is at low output levels (as you would use for sensitive low power iem).
I found these graphs. So, the ones on the left are the best right? Because in one graph the dx3 pro plus is on the left and ahead of the Qudelix, but I've read some post that say that the dx3 is not suitable for iems at all, while the qudelix doesn't suffer from any hiss. That's confusing me a bit.
most quiet headphone amplifier review.png
most quiet headphone amp review.png

Ones I've had recently I like is the Sound blaster X1 which has some power despite it's size. The JDS Atom amp+ DAC+ is a sure thing, amazing stack with quiet noise floor if you have a USB port that's quiet to plug into. Can't go wrong with either for the price point of each.
How is your experience with the Atom? I've read some good things about it, but wasn't that interested in it. It has a good price and I can even get some Hifiman 400se with them instead of just one dac/amp with my budget. Is it powerful enough?
 

Doodski

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I found these graphs. So, the ones on the left are the best right? Because in one graph the dx3 pro plus is on the left and ahead of the Qudelix, but I've read some post that say that the dx3 is not suitable for iems at all, while the qudelix doesn't suffer from any hiss. That's confusing me a bit.
View attachment 239998View attachment 239999

How is your experience with the Atom? I've read some good things about it, but wasn't that interested in it. It has a good price and I can even get some Hifiman 400se with them instead of just one dac/amp with my budget. Is it powerful enough?
If you want more power for the $100 price range the Schiit Heresy has much more power output (2x) than the JDS Labs ATOM AMP+
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