Hidizs S9 Review (Headphone Adapter)

[Rottmannash]

I don't know which firmware is currently provided stock on 9038D, you may have to install a C version no standby firmware or the "tweak9038" app firmware if you're planing to use it, if think it's the only way to get the DAC mode, and remember to untick standby and mute in the app for desktop use. E1DA has a pretty active dicord channel, you'll find and can ask there any information you need.

Cool. Thanks! I'll check that out.

 

[0RF30]

How do you adjust volume with this (or other dongles that don't have volume control) if you play bit perfect DSD with ASIO as the player volume control doesn't work with DSD?

Foobar SACD plugin, selecting DSD : ASIO : Comtrue Audio Device output : you have volume control through windows volume slider. Same using DSD : ASIO : foo_dsd_asio output.

 

[lordhumungous]

I'm actually surprised that people miss the volume control. I have the S8 and i could never get the right volume with the buttons on the S8.

It seems better with just using my iphone buttons to dial in the right volume for you.

 

[Tortie]

Looks like a cool device. Still got my LG phone so I'll keep hidizs in mind when I retire it.

 

[Jet Black]

Looks like a cool device. Still got my LG phone so I'll keep hidizs in mind when I retire it.

also try ibasso dc03. I like it better than the hidizs

 

[Palfim]

Great test scores , but comparing to e1da 9038s the wattage at lower ohm loads is only about half ?
Amiir tested 210 mW on a 50 ohm load , so for low impedance headphones e1da should be stronger?
Even Hidisz rates the s9 125 mW max.
Only on high ohm headphones , the better voltage comes into play ?
My main headphone has 25 ohm (Ananda) , so e1da balanced should still be the best choice, right?
My note 8 battery is kind of weak too, and the e1da dongle doesn't drain it much faster.

So stay with 9038S , or switch to S9 ? Money is not an isue, only portability and quality.

 

[Rottmannash]

Great test scores , but comparing to e1da 9038s the wattage at lower ohm loads is only about half ?
Amiir tested 210 mW on a 50 ohm load , so for low impedance headphones e1da should be stronger?
Even Hidisz rates the s9 125 mW max.
Only on high ohm headphones , the better voltage comes into play ?
My main headphone has 25 ohm (Ananda) , so e1da balanced should still be the best choice, right?
My note 8 battery is kind of weak too, and the e1da dongle doesn't drain it much faster.

So stay with 9038S , or switch to S9 ? Money is not an isue, only portability and quality.

Great test scores , but comparing to e1da 9038s the wattage at lower ohm loads is only about half ?
Amiir tested 210 mW on a 50 ohm load , so for low impedance headphones e1da should be stronger?
Even Hidisz rates the s9 125 mW max.
Only on high ohm headphones , the better voltage comes into play ?
My main headphone has 25 ohm (Ananda) , so e1da balanced should still be the best choice, right?
My note 8 battery is kind of weak too, and the e1da dongle doesn't drain it much faster.

So stay with 9038S , or switch to S9 ? Money is not an isue, only portability and quality.

Can I borrow some money then?

 

[grauskala]

Would this technically be able to drive the 600 ohm AKG K240DF? I don't listen at high volumes...

 

[Veri]

Would this technically be able to drive the 600 ohm AKG K240DF? I don't listen at high volumes...

Will you be listening balanced? In any case Amir has satisfactory results with both his testing headphones so it should actually drive the AKG to okay volume especially if you don't tend to listen loud.

 

[grauskala]

Will you be listening balanced? In any case Amir has satisfactory results with both his testing headphones so it should actually drive the AKG to okay volume especially if you don't tend to listen loud.

Thank you. I'd have to modify it to balanced. How much of a difference would it make? (sorry, newbie here)

 

[Veri]

Thank you. I'd have to modify it to balanced. How much of a difference would it make? (sorry, newbie here)

Just a bunch more power which your K240DF could use. Amir tested his Ether CX over 2.5mm and they were driven flawlessly. The Sennheiser HD650 did well over 3.5mm, but they are not that difficult to drive. So using your 600ohms over 3.5mm might result in rather low volume. Balanced modding them could definitely help!

If you really listen low volume, 3.5mm will suffice though. I can listen to my 600ohm beyerdynamics on an iPod classic just fine, not exactly a reference set-up but there is acceptable volume just to make it work (lol). I just wouldn't call it the last stop of audio

 

[ScofieldKid]

I am talking about S9. This is the S9 thread. I am getting random freezes every few seconds on both drivers.

Yeah, I'm seeing a bit of stutter when I do display-close/off on an Android vers9 Samsung phone. Using Mplayer, but have seen it with VLC also. Playing FLAC 16-bit 44.1Khz. It seems to go away after a bit, but it is repeatable. Keep the display on, no problem. Click to close the display and you get stuttering for a while. [ no issue on a mac desktop, no issue on a windows 10 desktop... ]

 

[Rottmannash]

Amir is famous.

 

[ScofieldKid]

Uh, yeah. He has the video on the first post. ;-/ ... But anyway, just noticed there is an ASIO driver for Windows download, in case anybody needs that... I'll probably leave mine on the Windows 10 box, so that's where I'll be trying stuff. (Happy to test Samsung/Android stuff if they come up with any ideas...)

 

[Dacman82]

This is a review and detailed measurements of the Hidizs S9 USB-C DAC and headphone amplifier. It was kindly purchased new by a member and drop shipped to me. The S9 costs US $112 on Amazon including Prime shipping. There is a 5% discount there as of this writing.

The S9 comes a in stout thumbnail sizes package:

View attachment 117364

There are no controls on it unlike S8. A multicolor LED indicates the sample rate of the music being played. It is quite bright.

The predecessor to S9, the S8 had up down volume control which I miss here.

You now have a choice of balanced and unbalanced outputs:
View attachment 117365

No USB-C cable came with it which was surprising as they almost always include such.

In use, the S9 got a bit warm indicating it is rather power hungry.

Hidizs S9 Measurements
Let's start with our usual dashboard of 1 kHz tone, testing both outputs (2.5mm balanced and 3.5mm unbalanced):
View attachment 117366

View attachment 117367

Hidizs delivers once again with desktop class performance. Distortion is well below threshold of audibility and we have 4 volts output which should produce lots of power for high impedance headphones.

View attachment 117368

Signal to noise ratio is excellent for a dongle and even desktop class:

View attachment 117369

Not so much at 50 millivolt though so you may get some hiss with very sensitive IEMs.

Jitter shows the typical interference we see in these types of devices but levels are quite low:
View attachment 117370

Multitone performance is desktop class:
View attachment 117371

Due to the way these DACs announce themselves to Windows, I can't use my analyzer to run sweeps properly. So no IMD vs level test. I will show power sweeps but note that the noise floor shown (sloping down part of the curve) is wrong and artificially elevated. Just look at the graphs for maximum power and distortion:
View attachment 117373

View attachment 117374

This is a powerful dongle:
View attachment 117375

View attachment 117376

Power is everything in this class product and the S9 delivers so strongly.

Hidizs S9 Listening Tests
I started testing with my Sennheiser HD-650 high impedance headphone using unbalanced output. There was enough power to generate good volume. Everything was right with the sound with great fidelity, detail, and overall performance.

I then switched to my tough to drive, Ether CX 25 ohm using balanced connection and the S9 drove it as it it was a desktop class amplifier! I had to actually turned down the volume for comfortable listening. The sound was a delight with excellent bass, detail, etc. It was so good I did not want to stop and take pictures of S9 to publish this review!

Conclusions
The Hidizs S8 was a ground breaking adapter delivering stunning good performance. The S9 takes that performance and adds balanced output to deliver even more power at the same cost as the S8. The result is a tiny device that delivers desktop class performance. You pay more than $9 that throw-away dongles cost but in exchange you get a serious player which delivers great fidelity in wide range of headphones.

It is my pleasure to highly recommend the Hidizs S9.

Edit: video review available now:

------------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

Appreciate any donations using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/

Hi. Have reviewed If Hip dac? I wonder is it as good as this.

 

[Veri]

Hi. Have reviewed If Hip dac? I wonder is it as good as this.

No. But it isn't, the iFi uses much older technology, more noise and worse DAC performance..

 

[Rottmannash]

Uh, yeah. He has the video on the first post. ;-/ ... But anyway, just noticed there is an ASIO driver for Windows download, in case anybody needs that... I'll probably leave mine on the Windows 10 box, so that's where I'll be trying stuff. (Happy to test Samsung/Android stuff if they come up with any ideas...)

This is a screenshot when one goes to the Hidiz site and clicks on the S9. The video is linked on the Hidiz site. They are using him as a trusted reviewer to sell more S9's.

 

[Steve81]

So I got one of these delivered over the weekend, but had some difficulties with my Win 10 laptop. Plugged into its USB-C port, it would play about 33% of the time, with the rest being a low popping noise. Was resigning myself to send it back when I tried the USB A adapter on a USB 3 port. Lo and behold, it works. Spent a bit of time doing driver updates and all that jazz, but never could get the USB C working. Now just waiting for a new pair of Sennheiser HD560S’s to complete that rig.

 

[ScofieldKid]

Yeah, I do wonder if you use the OTG cables, if that produces a bit of confusion to an OS. I would advise people to try their own cables if they find that the Hidizs OTG cables give them any problems...

 

[grauskala]

So I got one of these delivered over the weekend, but had some difficulties with my Win 10 laptop. Plugged into its USB-C port, it would play about 33% of the time, with the rest being a low popping noise. Was resigning myself to send it back when I tried the USB A adapter on a USB 3 port. Lo and behold, it works. Spent a bit of time doing driver updates and all that jazz, but never could get the USB C working. Now just waiting for a new pair of Sennheiser HD560S’s to complete that rig.

The USB-C cables that come with the S9 are supposedly one-directional. Have you tried plugging them in the other way?