Click to view our Accessibility Statement or contact us with accessibility-related questions
Showing 1 of 25 conversations about:
KC-130
155
Nov 22, 2019
bookmark_border
It's always seemed peculiar to me for devices to offer XLR balanced preamp outs and only SE headphone outs. Not knocking the M500 for doing so. I've owned amps at 10x the price which do the same, still peculiar. However, the lack of specs for the preamp outs on the M500 makes it questionable for use as anything other than a HP amp.
Nov 22, 2019
Fayne
2575
Nov 22, 2019
bookmark_border
KC-130Yeah, this is not a headphone amp even though it has the port. I like to call it a monitor out. They'd need a more op-ampery if they were going to push it as a real amp. I know they use a pair of OPA1612 for the XLR output. The headphone out is definitely a single OPA1612, half the opamp doing left, half doing right. They'd need to bare minimum add another OPA1612, and more likely need to add two if they wanted a balanced out. I'm assuming that they don't share the opamps between the output stages, but I could be completely mistaken. Either way, the XLR line outs on this unit are beastly, getting up into the 6Vrms range. The volume knob does control the preamp-out, and fairly smoothly. Additionally os-level device volume control works properly (at least under linux). Remote control is able to soft power the unit and do all the major control functions, including mute. And yes, it sounds great. Tested against the LCX, CTH, 789, ESP/95x, ZDT Jr, LOXJIE P20, and LittleDot1+. The M500 makes me seriously regret buying a bunch of other DACs, it is handily the best bang for buck in the price range.
Nov 22, 2019
kenwstr
121
Nov 29, 2019
bookmark_border
KC-130It's not peculiar at all. SE connections are good for up to 10-15 feet or so, perhaps a little more depending on RF and EM interference in the specific environment. That's plenty long enough for headphones especially as headphone leads are not likely to parallel or be in close proximity to interference sources, WiFi, power, speaker or digital cables. While good practice is that interconnects cross all other cables at right angles are never run parallel in close proximity, this is often not the case. Due to space issues, interconnects are often jumbled close together sometimes right up against interference sources. The whole point of balanced cabling is to use phase cancellation to nullify interference that has breached the cable shield and infected the signal cores. It would be most exceptional for this to be an issue in headphone cables. However, dynamic headphones by their nature are easily wired to accept balanced connection if a device can supply the signal and some are. This should be balanced with the fact that every electronic step includes a signal detriment and inverting signal to supply such a connection is another step. The question is whether there is a problem more significant than the detriment incurred by that extra inversion step. Sure the inversion detriment is very small but so is interference in SE headphone cables (generally). Generally, audio engineers seem to consider balanced headphone cables and unnecessary ineffectual bling. There are differing opinions on just about everything in audio and whether something makes an audible difference depends greatly on the specific situation. You are unlikely to hear a small yet real improvement while ever there is a larger issue in the signal path. For this reason, the only way to know for sure something improves your system is to try it. That doesn't mean someone else will get the same result though as their environment and system are different from yours. So while pro audio engineers tend to regard this as a waste of time and money, I'm willing leave that open, but I get why most manufacturers don't support balanced headphones too.
(Edited)
Nov 29, 2019
Eors
14
Jan 16, 2020
bookmark_border
FayneHi Fayne, I see you have a lot of experience with many of the devices :) my questions would be if you can offer any better affordable, preferably ES9038PRO based DAC for my THX AAA 789 / HD6xx combo, than this one ? And if so, what would it be ? Thanks !!!
(Edited)
Jan 16, 2020
Fayne
2575
Jan 16, 2020
bookmark_border
EorsI don’t know of any ES9038Pro based DAC that are cheaper than the M500. Especially so when looking for a DAC with that chipset and balanced line level XLR3 out. Sadly the M500 is about the best bang for buck when looking for a fully featured balanced ESS based DAC.
Jan 16, 2020
Eors
14
Jan 17, 2020
bookmark_border
FayneThanks a lot for the quick reply! Well, I was also considering the Topping DX7s and the DX7 Pro devices. Not sure however if 7s is having the PRO version of the DAC. If we take out the exact DAC from the requirements, is there anything else you would feel comfortable to recommend ?
Jan 17, 2020
Fayne
2575
Jan 17, 2020
bookmark_border
EorsIf you're looking for cheap, I'd suggest keeping an eye out for the Massdrop x Grace SDAC Balanced. It currently isn't in stock, but it is a nice little high resolution balanced DAC with the signature AKM sound at a very reasonable price. Another cheapish balanced unit to check out is the ES9038Q2M packing SMSL SU-8. I find my DX7s a touch fatiguing, but that may just be me, so YMMV there. I've read good things about the DX7 Pro, but haven't had hands on with one. The biggest issue I have with both of them is all of the extra and likely not used features. There is no point in paying the premium for a headphone-amp, HDMI IIS, or AES. The vast majority of people don't use and likely won't use them, especially so on the head-amp if people are pairing the DAC with an external amp. The DX7s uses the ES9038Q2M and the DX7 Pro the ES9038PRO. Neither my DX7s and SDAC-B get very much if any use now that I've got the M500. I stream TIDAL for the content I don't own, and have been rather pleased with the MQA encoded tracks (I'm ignoring the evil of the DRM/Licensing, don't hate me). If you don't care about balanced, grab a Topping D10, SMSL M100, or MassDrop x Grace Standard DAC. They're all great little DACs, and extremely competitively priced at under $100 USD. Caveat about the SDAC is that it is hard limited to 24bit/96kHz, but it is compatible with just about everything that supports basic USB audio. The 789 does benefit from balanced input, but isn't terrible with single-ended (unlike some others out there... I'm looking at you Massdrop LCX and Loxjie P20).
(Edited)
Jan 17, 2020
Eors
14
Jan 19, 2020
bookmark_border
FayneThanks again for your detailed and professional response !!! I own a Topping D10 at the moment and yes, I do appreciate the quality it produces. Likely I will wait for the next M500 opportunity and if no other devices shows up till that time, I will upgrade my D10 to an M500 most probably.
Jan 19, 2020
View Full Discussion
Related Products