[329161]

I prefer iDSD BL over HA-1 from experience. HA1 was okay but there was too little bite both ends, the textures were not vivid enough and the dynamics were not that great. The conditions I heard HA-1 in were not perfect, but iDSD BL sounded considerably more vivid and dynamic when compared head-to-head. 

I also prefer iDSD BL over Mojo in general, I'm not sure why, but it sounds more real-like with ie800 to my ears. 

thanks, very helpful
Would you also say that you prefer the Mojo over the HA1?
I've never heard the BL , but the Ha1 impressed me a lot. I had a brief listen to the Mojo and must admit I was a bit underwhelmed, especially considering it's reputation.

 

[Dobrescu George]

thanks, very helpful

Would you also say that you prefer the Mojo over the HA1?
I've never heard the BL , but the Ha1 impressed me a lot. I had a brief listen to the Mojo and must admit I was a bit underwhelmed, especially considering it's reputation.

 
I also liked HA-1 better than Mojo, especially with the headphones tested (PM-1, HD800S, LCD-X, HD600). I don't know if the unit I've heard had any problems, but I really wasn't impressed with the sound of Mojo. What is worse is how hard it was for me to get it working with anything - it didn't work with Xiaomi Mi Max, didn't really work with X5ii and took 15 minutes of tinkering to get it working with a Mac computer. Maybe the unit was broken, and I will give it another listen when I can, but at this moment, iDSD BL is one of my favorite devices signature wise. 
 
HA-1 was pretty impressive, but it felt like iDSD BL had a more fun signature, hard to say in words, but it feels less analytical and more real-life-like (not necessarily analogue, but realistic), where Ha-1 has a pretty analogue signature and good analytic properties, but doesn't sound like real life exactly 

 

[329161]

Wow, this is hard. About 50/50 people say either idsd bl or Mojo. The +for the Mojo is portability and the +for the idsd is feature set. Is the ifi unit much less portable than the Mojo? I will carry it with a backpack wherever I go. In pictures the Mojo seems to be about exactly half the size.
People seem split about the sq.

 

[Dobrescu George]

Wow, this is hard. About 50/50 people say either idsd bl or Mojo. The +for the Mojo is portability and the +for the idsd is feature set. Is the ifi unit much less portable than the Mojo? I will carry it with a backpack wherever I go. In pictures the Mojo seems to be about exactly half the size.
People seem split about the sq.

 
Some really love Mojo and some really love iDSD BL. 

There are a few who really love both as well 

 
For portability reasons, I considered getting this for transport ~3 $
 
https://www.forit.ro/huse-genti-tablete/modecom/114075-modecom-husa-protectie-freecase-black-pentru-tablete-7-inch-universal/
 
and this for usage of iDSD while stacked ~8$
 
https://www.forit.ro/huse-genti-tablete/prestigio/114212-prestigio-husa-protectie-de-tip-geanta-universala-7-10-inch/
 
I think that iDSD BL is a great device and it is portable. 
 
As for Mojo, it is pretty small, but the stack would still require a side bag as it is not very slim nor too light so the method used for Mojo should also fit BL. in general 

 

[329161]

Thanks for your help Dobrescu George

 

[Dobrescu George]

Thanks for your help Dobrescu George

I hope you manage to find what's best for you!

For the record, I have been using iDSD BL outside my home, and man, do I love its sound even when I'm using it portably!

 

[twiceboss]

Got it today and hmm... i prefer mojo i think.. it sounds tinny and cant be eq or it will distort

 

[Dobrescu George]

Got it today and hmm... i prefer mojo i think.. it sounds tinny and cant be eq or it will distort

Woah

Have you tried playing with the filters and with the mode / iEMatch buttons? Some people complained about the sound before, only to notice that the iEMatch was engaged when it was not called for or that the power was not in its correct setting.

I tested both, and the mids of iDSD BL are more natural to my ears, iDSD disappears from your table, it renders music sweet and naturally (in my experience). It pairs so greatly with ie800, Meze 99 Classics and FiiO F5 that it is hard to imagine someone not liking it.

 

[iFi audio]

Got it today and hmm... i prefer mojo i think.. it sounds tinny and cant be eq or it will distort

It should not sound "tinny". It seems that something somewhere is off. Do you mind opening a ticket via our Support System (http://support.ifi-audio.com) and describing your setup and the settings on the iDSD micro BL?

When using digital domain equalisers to boost any frequency range, it is important to remember that for digital audio "0 dB" is a hard limit.

So if you use a digital domain equalizer to boost for example the bass by 12 dB, then you MUST reduce the overall gain by an equal 12 dB or strong bass signals will come with 12 dB overload which sounds very distorted.

 

[twiceboss]

It should not sound "tinny". It seems that something somewhere is off. Do you mind opening a ticket via our Support System (http://support.ifi-audio.com) and describing your setup and the settings on the iDSD micro BL?

When using digital domain equalisers to boost any frequency range, it is important to remember that for digital audio "0 dB" is a hard limit.

So if you use a digital domain equalizer to boost for example the bass by 12 dB, then you MUST reduce the overall gain by an equal 12 dB or strong bass signals will come with 12 dB overload which sounds very distorted.

thanks for your concern. I just figured it out, it is due the IEmatch. I turned it off and it works good now!

 

[twiceboss]

I tried pair the mojo and iDSD BL, wow it sounds good so far! using a dac/amp of mojo (since mojo's dac cant be bypassed!) and an amp of iDSD BL that has Xbass and 3D features.

A good pair if u just wanna feel difference.

 

[twiceboss]

Does anyone here has experience to upgrade the dac of idsd BL? Making it smoother. Any good pairing dac?

 

[Dobrescu George]

Does anyone here has experience to upgrade the dac of idsd BL? Making it smoother. Any good pairing dac?

You might want to upgrade the AMP with iFi's own Aplifiers which are said to sound even better! The DAC of iDSD BL is up against 4 digit numbers DACs in my view, and really holds its ground, I would happily use iDSD BL as the main DAC of a thousands of Eur home speaker system!

iFi makes amplifiers that sound different from iDSD BL and while I haven't heard any, some people say that they are awesome in every aspect!! Can't wait to hear one myself!!

 

[twiceboss]

You might want to upgrade the AMP with iFi's own Aplifiers which are said to sound even better! The DAC of iDSD BL is up against 4 digit numbers DACs in my view, and really holds its ground, I would happily use iDSD BL as the main DAC of a thousands of Eur home speaker system!

iFi makes amplifiers that sound different from iDSD BL and while I haven't heard any, some people say that they are awesome in every aspect!! Can't wait to hear one myself!!

kindly list some of AMPS which will give better performance??!!! any thing can make it warmer for hd800 please. Appreciated!

 

[twiceboss]

You might want to upgrade the AMP with iFi's own Aplifiers which are said to sound even better! The DAC of iDSD BL is up against 4 digit numbers DACs in my view, and really holds its ground, I would happily use iDSD BL as the main DAC of a thousands of Eur home speaker system!

iFi makes amplifiers that sound different from iDSD BL and while I haven't heard any, some people say that they are awesome in every aspect!! Can't wait to hear one myself!!

oh well, just pulled a trigger for a used iCan SA. I do like a smoother sound for my HD800.