Speaka USB DAC and Headphone Amp Dongle Review

[Jimster480]

With all the people here talking about the apple dongle.... for $9 I still wouldn't purchase it.
I've had the displeasure of dealing with apple accessories before (like the 30 pin to lightning adapter) and they always just fail in a couple months of usage.

 

[bravomail]

Thx for re-review, Amir! Am I the only one who notice high praises for a device with 75 SINAD? What is wrong with you? I have said DAC and it performs atrociously. I can hear it. It is muddy and harsh. I cannot recommend it to anyone.

 

[Jimster480]

Thx for re-review, Amir! Am I the only one who notice high praises for a device with 75 SINAD? What is wrong with you? I have said DAC and it performs atrociously. I can hear it. It is muddy and harsh. I cannot recommend it to anyone.

He didn't have any high praises for the device. But it beat other devices in its same category which cost more money.

 

[pk500]

Since both are being heaped with equal praise and scorn, which do you think is a better DAC/amp dongle for a PC to powered 2.1 speaker system running Google Play Music at 320 kbps streams, the Xtremepro X1 or the USA version of the Apple headphone dongle?

Please don't say "neither." Those are my choices. The Xtremepro sounds better than the Dragonfly Black and FiiO Q1 Mk II, both of which I have purchased and A/B audio tested. Plus I'm looking for something truly portable, not a deck of cards that can be impractically strapped or Velcroed to the back of my phone like the Q1 Mk II.

Thanks.

 

[bobbooo]

Since both are being heaped with equal praise and scorn, which do you think is a better DAC/amp dongle for a PC to powered 2.1 speaker system running Google Play Music at 320 kbps streams, the Xtremepro X1 or the USA version of the Apple headphone dongle?

Please don't say "neither." Those are my choices. The Xtremepro sounds better than the Dragonfly Black and FiiO Q1 Mk II, both of which I have purchased and A/B audio tested. Plus I'm looking for something truly portable, not a deck of cards that can be impractically strapped or Velcroed to the back of my phone like the Q1 Mk II.

Thanks.

The Apple dongle is cheaper and generally measures better, so I'd just get that.

 

[pk500]

The Apple dongle is cheaper and generally measures better, so I'd just get that.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[pk500]

By the way, I posted these impressions yesterday in the "old" Speaka thread before being alerted to this one.

>>>>>

I have purchased a DragonFly Black and Xtremepro X1-1 (identical to Speaka) in the last week, and I FAR prefer the Xtremepro X1 in A/B audio testing with the identical rig -- a PC with Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 THX satellites and sub, 320 kbps MP3 streaming through Google Play Music. Better tonal control, better separation, far less shrill in the highs, less muddy bass, far better volume control. I was pretty damn disappointed in the DF Black, to be honest.

The Xtremepro X1-1 is better in everything, basically, and it's $65 cheaper. A true find and a real steal.

Still deciding whether I want to stick with the Xtremepro X1-1 or go with the Apple headphone dongle DAC since the above poster mentioned the Xtremepro X1-1 won't work with iOS because it requires too much power, much like the original Dragonfly. Would be nice to have an all-in-one solution for my iPhone and my office laptop audio, and I haven't purchased an Apple Camera Connector USB 3 yet to test on my iPhone.

<<<<<

 

[bravomail]

By the way, I posted these impressions yesterday in the "old" Speaka thread before being alerted to this one.

>>>>>

I have purchased a DragonFly Black and Xtremepro X1-1 (identical to Speaka) in the last week, and I FAR prefer the Xtremepro X1 in A/B audio testing with the identical rig -- a PC with Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 THX satellites and sub, 320 kbps MP3 streaming through Google Play Music. Better tonal control, better separation, far less shrill in the highs, less muddy bass, far better volume control. I was pretty damn disappointed in the DF Black, to be honest.

The Xtremepro X1-1 is better in everything, basically, and it's $65 cheaper. A true find and a real steal.

Still deciding whether I want to stick with the Xtremepro X1-1 or go with the Apple headphone dongle DAC since the above poster mentioned the Xtremepro X1-1 won't work with iOS because it requires too much power, much like the original Dragonfly. Would be nice to have an all-in-one solution for my iPhone and my office laptop audio, and I haven't purchased an Apple Camera Connector USB 3 yet to test on my iPhone.

<<<<<

waht do u have to lose? Apple USB dongle is only $7 on amazon!

 

[pk500]

Damn good point, Bravo. I'm tighter than two coats of paint. But $7? That's three XL cups of black coffee at Tim Hortons.

 

[Head_Unit]

What's the point of these mediocre full-sized USB dongles? Have you been able to compare the results vs a 3.5mm output from a middle of the road laptop?

Well, they don't ALL seem mediocre in an absolute context. and some computers (older iMacs!!!) audio outputs are noisy. The inexpensive outboard DAC can clean that up, and maybe you don't want to carry around something large or have something larger sitting on your desk with a power cord snaking off somewhere.

A downside is so far I have not found anything with more than 2V output (besides the current-drive Apogee Groove which is a different animal). If anyone finds one-or if I've missed one in Amir's charts-let me know please.

 

[LLL]

Just an update at 6 months of owning two of these (one at office, one at bedside) with almost daily use at the office. No reliability issue. It certainly isn't my MyDAC + Tom Christiansen HPA-1 (damn, the HPA-1 is mind-blowingly good), but it is definitely way more valuable than its sticker price of $32.

 

[newton]

A couple years later, and I am still enjoying my locally-purchased XtremPro X1. I jam it in my laptop whenever I feel like busting out a vintage headphone that likes a little extra power

My favourite pairing (ugh) would be with my middish-70s' run HD414X in white. 2000 Ohm, (dodgy 70s' marketing claims) 102 dB @ 1mW!

 

[danadam]

Heh, now it introduces itself as Dragonfly

In the past it was "UDA-01 96KHz USB DAC". I suspect it is caused by some change in pulseaudio and it is querying different fields now:

# lsusb -v -s 6:4
Bus 006 Device 004: ID 21b4:0081 AudioQuest DragonFly
Device Descriptor:
  ...
  idVendor           0x21b4 AudioQuest
  idProduct          0x0081 DragonFly
  bcdDevice            1.20
  iManufacturer           1 Gmaxtech AudIo.
  iProduct                2 UDA-01 96KHz USB DAC
  iSerial                 3 (C) 2016 GMAXTECH-- Audio, ltd.

 

[Jimster480]

Heh, now it introduces itself as Dragonfly

View attachment 93208

In the past it was "UDA-01 96KHz USB DAC". I suspect it is caused by some change in pulseaudio and it is querying different fields now:

# lsusb -v -s 6:4
Bus 006 Device 004: ID 21b4:0081 AudioQuest DragonFly
Device Descriptor:
  ...
  idVendor           0x21b4 AudioQuest
  idProduct          0x0081 DragonFly
  bcdDevice            1.20
  iManufacturer           1 Gmaxtech AudIo.
  iProduct                2 UDA-01 96KHz USB DAC
  iSerial                 3 (C) 2016 GMAXTECH-- Audio, ltd.

So its just a Dragonfly in a different chassis or is this just a bug?

 

[danadam]

So its just a Dragonfly in a different chassis or is this just a bug?

It's a copy. It uses usb vendor id 0x21b4, which is assigned to AudioQuest (and which apparently is not cheap to obtain). There was some discussion about it in the previous thread.

 

[Jimster480]

It's a copy. It uses usb vendor id 0x21b4, which is assigned to AudioQuest (and which apparently is not cheap to obtain). There was some discussion about it in the previous thread.

Ah okay, you can just write whatever you want to that field of a USB device though... Nothing prevents you from using any number you want.

 

[jacobacci]

For around a week I have an XtremePro X1. I bought it because it measures well and it should be a distinct improvement over the output of my MacBook air (M1). Disappointingly the XtremePro X1 sounds significantly worse using various headphones (Sennheiser PX100 II, Etymotic ER4XR, Focal Utopia). In comparison it sounds harsh / grainy, while the MacBook Air 3.5mm output sounds much clearer yet smoother. It sounds like the XtremePro X1 covers up details as if it distorts audibly. Looking at the measurements distortions of the X1 should be well below hearing threshold.
Was my expectation too high or am I likely to have a defective sample. Curious to hear your experiences.

 

[pk500]

The XtremePro made everything sound better compared to a DragonFly Black when I used it with my Lenovo ThinkPad laptop. But the XtremePro uses an ESS Sabre chip, which is among the brightest of the DAC chips. So, if you seek a warm sound, you're better off going with an iFi product, which uses a much warmer Burr-Brown DAC chip.

 

[jacobacci]

I thought all DAC chips sound the same?

 

[pk500]

I thought all DAC chips sound the same?

Not true. Listen to a DAC with an ESS Sabre chip and one with a Burr-Brown chip on the same cans and tell me they sound the same. They don't. I've A/B tested a DAC with an ESS Sabre and a hip-dac with a Burr-Brown, and the difference is recognizable.