ScofieldKid
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ear studio es100, then use bluetooth instead?!? Then you could just leave the es100 in the car...
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Dense Audio Adapt Reference Headphone Adapter Review
- Thread starter amirm
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Yes, it can work with your setup. Car amps usually have high input impedance, so it shouldn't be a problem.
I suggest using it set at the max phone volume.
Asylum Seeker
Senior Member
The Fiio is $129, has volume control, BT functionality, a microphone for taking calls, and a battery (which can power the device or be bypassed altogether). Subject to measured performance, this and the even less expensive Shanling UP4 and UP2 are the ones to beat.
OP
- Thread Starter
- #25
It requires balanced cable for headphones and has too much power consumption for portable devices. Otherwise it is very good.
How does fiio stack up as a usb dac from pc with 3.5 out? Not interested in bluetooth performance.
Hello everyone,
I'm new here. I actually spent weeks wondering why no one reviewed the samsung dongle when it's actually pretty decent and then i ran into this amazing place and have been going through sooo many of your reviews and discussions. It's truly fantastic.
I'm a former LG v30 user, recently switched to a note 10 and i was pleasantly surprised with the performance on the dongle, though I dont use high end headphones (sony wh1000xM2 in wired mode)
I'm planning on getting the er4 xr really soon and was thinking of getting these (dense adapt reference) to go with them. I keep reading conflicting reviews on if you need an external amp for the er4xr. Some say a phone is fine, some say you need an amp. I will be using my phone/laptop as my source w/ Tidal HiFi/Masters. Uapp on the phone.
I was hoping someone with the etys could help me out.
I have considered the hidizs, sonata and meizu. I'm just not a huge fan of their design and potential interference/noise issue with the CS chips on the hidizs and sonata.
I'm new here. I actually spent weeks wondering why no one reviewed the samsung dongle when it's actually pretty decent and then i ran into this amazing place and have been going through sooo many of your reviews and discussions. It's truly fantastic.
I'm a former LG v30 user, recently switched to a note 10 and i was pleasantly surprised with the performance on the dongle, though I dont use high end headphones (sony wh1000xM2 in wired mode)
I'm planning on getting the er4 xr really soon and was thinking of getting these (dense adapt reference) to go with them. I keep reading conflicting reviews on if you need an external amp for the er4xr. Some say a phone is fine, some say you need an amp. I will be using my phone/laptop as my source w/ Tidal HiFi/Masters. Uapp on the phone.
I was hoping someone with the etys could help me out.
I have considered the hidizs, sonata and meizu. I'm just not a huge fan of their design and potential interference/noise issue with the CS chips on the hidizs and sonata.
ZolaIII
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Those are 45 Ohm's and 98 dB LPS so will be happy with both Meizu Pro or Sonata HD Pro (Hidizs S8) while Hidizs/Sonata are actually less prone in picking up EMI than Meizu. In the end you can also consider TempoTec Sonata iDSD (ES9018KM2 + SABRE9601), all do it doesn't perform such great but its less prone in picking up EMI (battery powered with separate USB input lines) and you can even apply additional shielding to it (I did). You won't find measurements for it hire & all do this aren't all that good, they are good enough:
http://www.soomal.com/doc/10100007002.03.htm
(use Google translate).
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I'll add to that , the Meizu etc that suffer from EMI, depends greatly on the quality and type of your mobile network. In the UK, when on full strength 4G I have zero EMI. Only when signal drops down to 3G/ weak do I get the (very frequent) EMI buzzes and clicks. Best example is walking into the supermarket, all good. Get to rear of store, buzzes and clicks, look at phone and it has dropped to "E" network ( I think 3G).
ZolaIII
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Well yes UK is actually notorious regarding GSM network coverage (have a best man in Scotland...). When a pore thing (phone) gets into pore network coverage it starts scanning other potential network's with stronger signal to switch to by doing that it sends omni directional RF signals & of course EMI skyrockets. Unfortunately there are zero products on market that adres this extreme condition very good probably the best one is Sonata iDSD Plus thanks to Steel - glass enclosure sandwich body but still not quite enough. I applied a 2~3 mm graphite layer over IC's to the Sonata iDSD (non pro) now when it switches the network you hear only a white noise in the background.
Edit: Of course you can't do that with small dongle alike one's.
This is now $109 with the $20 discount for subscribing to the newsletter. Seems like a pretty unbeatable deal. Only thing I'd love is bit depth/sample rate indicator.
Bought It and waiting shipment.
Will compare It against the Lotoo Paw S1.
Btw I still have to figure if/how to use It without a proper amp since in my scenario with UAPP from the smartphone, I normally bypass the SW volume control (S1 has hardware control).
Sorry to jump in a somewhat dead thread. I did order one, I got it direct from Dense. The Adapt Reference on sale and with the new member code it was $99.99. My main gripe is the heating. You cannot put this device in a pocket or you may burn yourself. I had it hookup up to the USB-C port on my laptop and my headphone bag ended up covering the Dense, must have been for an hour and the device overheated and turned off for a moment. It was almost too hot to hold at that point. It does seem to have more output power than the Schiit Fulla 2 I was using before and it plays nice with Windows and Android. If you can overlook the heating it's a nice buy for $99.
I purchased the Dense DAC based on these reviews. For the most part I am happy with the purchase, especially when compared the the Cobalt Dragonfly, but that's another discussion.
Pros:
Small and lightweight
Durable build quality
Excellent sound once it's configured. Don't forget to change the windows sound settings.
Cons:
It requires a cable for attaching to PC, phone, etc
It will get hot. Not hot enough to burn, but it would make a great hand warmer in the winter.
It's not always recognized by Windows 10, requires disconnecting and reconnecting several times to be recognized. Yes, this is my biggest complaint.
Pros:
Small and lightweight
Durable build quality
Excellent sound once it's configured. Don't forget to change the windows sound settings.
Cons:
It requires a cable for attaching to PC, phone, etc
It will get hot. Not hot enough to burn, but it would make a great hand warmer in the winter.
It's not always recognized by Windows 10, requires disconnecting and reconnecting several times to be recognized. Yes, this is my biggest complaint.
timelessound
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Hi Ronin,
I love this little device too.
Unfortunately I have the same issue that I need to connect/ reconnect several times (startup pc/ every different movie I look). Has someone found a workaround for this?
I used to connect/ disconnect the device manually to from the PC.
Now I have found that I can do it from my screen. See attach'.
I switch to LG (PCscreen) and then directly back to the Dense DAC and the sound works back again
Attachments
Last edited:
timelessound
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Thanks you Amirm for the great review - Any DAC that is better in your list with the same formfactor?This is a review and detailed measurements of the Dense Audio Adapt Reference DAC and Headphone amplifier in a "dongle" configuration. It was kindly sent to me by the company to review last fall and I am only getting to test it now.
The Adapt dongle is a little box with USB-C connection at one end and 3.5mm adapter at the other end:
It is a metal (aluminum?) case and super light and small as you can tell from the picture.
It is plug-and-play with Windows and that is how I tested it.
DAC Audio Measurements
As usual, we start with our dashboard view to see how the device produces a pure 1 kHz tone into high impedance (as if it were a desktop DAC):
View attachment 53291
Happy to see full 2 volt output which makes it comparable to a desktop DAC and bodes well for output power into high impedance headphones. SINAD if nearly 110 dB is clearly desktop class and places the Dense Adapt into our highest tier of all DACs tested regardless of class and price:
View attachment 53292
Noise level is also quite low for a dongle:
View attachment 53293
32-tone signal resembling "music" also shows very low levels of distortion:
View attachment 53294
Jitter test shows some unwanted signals but they are well below threshold of hearing:
View attachment 53295
Linearity is perfect and better than some desktop DACs:
View attachment 53296
IMD shows that classic "hump" due to use of ESS DAC chip but it is not extreme:
View attachment 53297
Power Output Measurements
The most important measurement for any portable headphone amplifier is amount of power. These little devices usually lower power due to footprint and cost issues and that seriously hurts performance. You lose bass response and with some headphones you won't even be able to get enough volume for best dynamics. Let's start with 300 ohm load where this usually manifests:
View attachment 53298
That's decent amount of power with excellent, low level of distortion with zero clipping (i.e. you can enjoy the music to max volume with no distortion).
33 Ohm load is a bit harder on the device:
View attachment 53299
Still, power is readily available as we see in these summary charts:
View attachment 53300
Output impedance is very low making it a non-issue for any headphone:
View attachment 53301
Headphone Listening Tests
Performance with both Sennheiser HD-650 and Hifiman HE400i was very good. Plenty of bass and volume. With superb content, you get superb fidelity with these combinations.
I expected serious problems with my very inefficient, Ether CX headphones at just 25 ohms but that did not occur. Except for some extreme tracks where at max volume I could hear some distortion, the combination was quite usable. This is not so with vast majority of dongles and even desktop products.
Conclusions
The Dense Adapt Reference is part of a class of premium dongles which cost a lot but also provide excellent performance in the form of essential transparency with enough power for even difficult headphones. They are desktop headphone amp and DAC that are as small and lighter than a car remote key. With no battery to fuss with, they are a great way to take high fidelity with you on the road for both computer and phone/tablet use.
The Dense Adapt Reference is well designed and engineered. I am happy to put it on my recommended list.
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As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
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