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Thinking of replacing my E30/L30 combo

therobin

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I currently have a E30/L30 stack on my desk. However, I am been thinking of selling it and buying a DX3 Pro+ instead since I only listen to IEMs now and no longer have a need for the separate units.

I wanted to know if there are any other small form factor DAC/amp combos I should consider? Is there anythig else that performs similar to the DX3 Pro+ at a similar price point?
 

DeepFried

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its not really what you're looking for so perhaps put it in the 'honorable mentions' category, but I love my little Fiio K3.


It doesn't have enough power for most audiophile headphones but I use it for IEMs and have never heard the noise floor, so the lackluster SINAD doesn't bother me. So what does sell this device for IEMs? its tiny, I have it command stripped under the front edge of my desk, perfect placement, it has a superb volume control, it also has a 2.5mm balanced out as well as the 3.5mm, and it can act as a digital bridge with toslink and coax outs, both of which work simultaneously, so you can daisy chain other devices like a BT transmitter or another DAC.

Its USB powered which is a double edge sword, its convenient where it works well but you need a USB port with enough power (USB 3 perhaps) plus it needs to be pretty clean, the K3 doesn't do a good job of filtering any noise coming through the shielding, though that has only caused me a problem with a 2 pin laptop.
 

ngs428

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I currently have a E30/L30 stack on my desk. However, I am been thinking of selling it and buying a DX3 Pro+ instead since I only listen to IEMs now and no longer have a need for the separate units.

I wanted to know if there are any other small form factor DAC/amp combos I should consider? Is there anythig else that performs similar to the DX3 Pro+ at a similar price point?
I don’t think there is much else in the class of the DX3 Pro+. It is a good choice for many use cases.

Isn’t the L30\E30 better than that unit for IEMs? Higher signal to noise ratio in the amp and you can use the -9db gain. Maybe I am wrong, haven’t reviewed the DX3 Pro+ very closely. I have the L30/E30.
 

Bleib

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I don’t think there is much else in the class of the DX3 Pro+. It is a good choice for many use cases.

Isn’t the L30\E30 better than that unit for IEMs? Higher signal to noise ratio in the amp and you can use the -9db gain. Maybe I am wrong, haven’t reviewed the DX3 Pro+ very closely. I have the L30/E30.
L30 measures better yes, but might have a problem with channel imbalance as it uses analogue volume control but as you say -9dB might help with that.
 
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