What would be a good portable Dac/Amp to use with my HD6xx and Sony Xperia 1 V cell phone?
I am new to this hobby. I purchased a HD6XX and plan to use it with my Sony Xperia 1 V cell phone, that has a 3.5mm jack. I was wondering if I needed a portable dac/amp or just a portable amp and if so what would one recommend? Any assistance one could provide, would be greatly appreciated. Kind regards, Haz
Mar 7, 2024
The HD58X is a HD660S with a 2mm smaller driver that is supposedly new (is it from a HD569?) and practically untested. It's able to be used with portable devices easier (less sensitivity at 150 ohms), but to be honest you shouldn't be wearing open cans during your commute/out in public anyway because noise leaking in and out would ruin the experience for you and others.
So, both are for home listening. Tried and tested for a bit more or new, easier to drive headphone gamble? Up to you.
I am in the HD58X drop currently but I'm going to switch to the HD6XX and pay more for a known driver and headphone. Sennheiser and Massdrop both get my money anyway so no hassles there.
In terms of popularity, this drop sells like 1-2 headphones an hour sitting at 600+ sold whilst the HD6XX sells like 7-8 per hour and it's sitting on 6000+ sold so yeah.
I've recently picked up a used Gustard X20U (balanced Sabre ES9018) and it has made my gear sound the best it ever has. Compared to the Bifrost, there is noticeably better detail, dynamics, speed, and fluidity with a smoother/warmer sound and better bass extension and presence. Especially apparent when using the Koss ESP950 or modded TH-X00PHs, much less so on the lower end SHP9500. If you have an electrostatic setup you will hear the differences each DAC brings. The used Gustard X20U is a noticeably different level of DAC that only cost me ~$150 more than the brand new Bifrost, and the sound it produces from my modded Gustard H10 amp into an HD6XX made me really appreciate that lovely headphone. It's one of the reasons I'm in on the HD58X drop - few VERY minor tuning things I wished changed on the HD6XX, which the HD58X appears to do.
Basically, I think I've found/confirmed my general preference in chipset for DACs in the Sabre based units I have: the AKM and BrownBurr chipsets of other units I have just aren't the same to me.