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Am I missing something? Fiio E10k
Mar 9, 2017 at 4:56 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 17
jasonwdonnelly

jasonwdonnelly

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Every set of head/earphones I put on this thing sounds worse than by themselves... and I'm running the gamut. 
 
SoundMagic HP150
SuperLux HD 668B
VE Zen 2
Noble Encores
 
Somehow, this thing makes them all sound like cheap headphones. Is it the amp? Or the cables? Or... am I missing something? 
 
For all of them I have to turn the computer volume up to FULL blast for any significance... 
 
Help! 
 
Mar 9, 2017 at 11:09 PM Post #2 of 17
jasonwdonnelly said:
 
For all of them I have to turn the computer volume up to FULL blast for any significance... 
Click to expand...

 
Your OS volume should be at 100% and you're supposed to control the volume using the E10K's volume knob.
 
 
jasonwdonnelly said:
  Every set of head/earphones I put on this thing sounds worse than by themselves... and I'm running the gamut. 
 
SoundMagic HP150
SuperLux HD 668B
VE Zen 2
Noble Encores
 
Somehow, this thing makes them all sound like cheap headphones. Is it the amp? Or the cables? Or... am I missing something? 
Click to expand...

 
Well, technically, all but the Nobles are "cheap." Not that they're bad, it's just that...well, even if something punches above its price, it's just a better value per dollar, not that it's as good much less better than what costs more.
 
As for the the E10K making them sound "worse," what exactly did you mean by "by themselves"? Obviously that's not absolute, ie, they have to be hooked up to something, so what exactly is it that they're hooked up to?

And what do you mean "sound like cheap headphones"? 
 
If for example you have them hooked up to a regular laptop or a run of the mill motherboard then the output impedance is too high, you get the bass boosted or reduced (though still imprecise), and getting more bass or less but more precise bass out of the E10K can sound "cheap" to you just because it doesn't have the same effect as it has a low output impedance. That or your motherboard barely supplies the power that the E10K needs to run its amp circuit normally since some crap motherboards have equally crappy power delivery when enough USB ports have something hooked up to them, which better, newer motherboards avoid by either being capable of supplying the max power for USB specifcations to all ports simultaneously or have dedicated "DAC output USB" ports that will always have full power (or you do have the latter kind, but you hooked up the mouse and keyboard or an external drive to those instead of the E10K).
 
Conversely, if you have a motherboard like an Asus Maximus series or Gigabyte Gaming series, then it has a decent audio section, possibly even better than the E10K. And then there's that bit where you are using Windows volume instead of the E10K's potentiometer.
 
Mar 13, 2017 at 10:51 AM Post #3 of 17
protegemaniac said:
   
Your OS volume should be at 100% and you're supposed to control the volume using the E10K's volume knob.
 
 
 
Well, technically, all but the Nobles are "cheap." Not that they're bad, it's just that...well, even if something punches above its price, it's just a better value per dollar, not that it's as good much less better than what costs more.
 
As for the the E10K making them sound "worse," what exactly did you mean by "by themselves"? Obviously that's not absolute, ie, they have to be hooked up to something, so what exactly is it that they're hooked up to?

And what do you mean "sound like cheap headphones"? 
 
If for example you have them hooked up to a regular laptop or a run of the mill motherboard then the output impedance is too high, you get the bass boosted or reduced (though still imprecise), and getting more bass or less but more precise bass out of the E10K can sound "cheap" to you just because it doesn't have the same effect as it has a low output impedance. That or your motherboard barely supplies the power that the E10K needs to run its amp circuit normally since some crap motherboards have equally crappy power delivery when enough USB ports have something hooked up to them, which better, newer motherboards avoid by either being capable of supplying the max power for USB specifcations to all ports simultaneously or have dedicated "DAC output USB" ports that will always have full power (or you do have the latter kind, but you hooked up the mouse and keyboard or an external drive to those instead of the E10K).
 
Conversely, if you have a motherboard like an Asus Maximus series or Gigabyte Gaming series, then it has a decent audio section, possibly even better than the E10K. And then there's that bit where you are using Windows volume instead of the E10K's potentiometer.
Click to expand...

I hooked them up to my macbook air, power plugged into the outlet (not the laptop). Yes, they bring more bass, but they muffle everything else, especially vocals across the board. And this is across the board for everything I have... my psb m4u 2, soundmagic, noble encore, everything. 
 
Nothing sounds good out of this thing. :-/ 
 
Any other ideas? 
 
Thanks! 
 
Mar 13, 2017 at 11:08 AM Post #4 of 17
jasonwdonnelly said:
  I hooked them up to my macbook air, power plugged into the outlet (not the laptop).
Click to expand...

 
Ummm...how? A split pigtail USB cable? The E10K relies on USB power, not a wall wart or any AC input power supply.
 
Or do you mean you have the Macbook Air plugged in when using the E10K with it?
 
jasonwdonnelly said:
  Yes, they bring more bass, but they muffle everything else, especially vocals across the board. And this is across the board for everything I have... my psb m4u 2, soundmagic, noble encore, everything. 
 
Nothing sounds good out of this thing. :-/ 
 
Any other ideas? 
Click to expand...

 
Is the bass boost switch on the OFF position?

 
Mar 13, 2017 at 11:16 AM Post #5 of 17
protegemaniac said:
   
Ummm...how? A split pigtail USB cable? The E10K relies on USB power, not a wall wart or any AC input power supply.
 
Or do you mean you have the Macbook Air plugged in when using the E10K with it?
 
 
Is the bass boost switch on the OFF position?
Click to expand...

I've done both. Plugged in directly to the computer and plugged into an adapter directly into the wall. 
 
I've flipped all the switches, all the ways... bass as well as gain. 
 
Mar 13, 2017 at 6:02 PM Post #7 of 17
The question to be asked why did you buy it? Did you think $80 would improve things that much ? Apple has decent audio in most of their stuff. Not trying to beat you up just curious.
 
Mar 13, 2017 at 6:09 PM Post #8 of 17
buke9 said:
The question to be asked why did you buy it? Did you think $80 would improve things that much ? Apple has decent audio in most of their stuff. Not trying to beat you up just curious.
Click to expand...

Because I read on THIS site that it was amazing (http://www.head-fi.org/products/fiio-e10k-usb-dac-and-headphone-amplifier). Not trying to beat you up, just wanna be clear. 
 
Mar 13, 2017 at 6:29 PM Post #9 of 17
The E10K is a budget oriented DAC/amp combo. It is designed for people who just need something with a little more juice to power their headphones. Get yourself a Schiit stack if you want to truly improve the sound quality of your headphones. Schiit at least offers a 15 day return window if you are unsatisfied or want to upgrade to a different product.
 
Mar 13, 2017 at 7:04 PM Post #10 of 17
Mar 13, 2017 at 11:09 PM Post #11 of 17
jasonwdonnelly said:
  Because I read on THIS site that it was amazing (http://www.head-fi.org/products/fiio-e10k-usb-dac-and-headphone-amplifier). Not trying to beat you up, just wanna be clear. 
Click to expand...

 
Did you read what they were using prior to the E10K? Because chances are most of them are using crap motherboards that work nothing the Asus Maximus, Gigabyte Gaming x, or MSI Gaming series boards. Or Windows laptops that just have crappy audio sections.
 
Also, I just remembered, entry level Fiio gear of any range does have a tendency to have bass boost or treble roll off even without the bass boost switch activated. The X1 and E7 were like that (the latter a lot more so). The E9/E09K didn't, and likely the K5 doesn't either, but chances are the E10 does, and I wasn't particularly a fan of that one (nor the E7) when I tried it as I preferred the sound of the Ibasso D-Zero.
 
Mar 21, 2017 at 11:29 AM Post #13 of 17
jasonwdonnelly said:
  Alright, I sold the e10K and pulled the trigger on the Fulla2! Will get it today and report back on if it was just the unit or what. Also, grabbed a pair of HD700's on ebay, so... PRAYING that they sound glorious with this beast. <3 
Click to expand...

 
Considering that the Fulla 2 is another budget DAC/amp combo, I wouldn't expect a major difference in sound from the E10k, but it should be somewhat of an improvement. It really just boils down to personal preferences. I'd pair the HD700s with a higher end DAC/amp, but the Fulla 2 should have plenty of juice to power them with lots of room to spare. The Fulla 2's AKM AK4490 DAC chip and built in AMP are definitely no slouches. I hope the Fulla 2 works out for you. 
 
Mar 21, 2017 at 11:33 AM Post #14 of 17
Heh, wow I just noticed this thread - I posted almost the exact same comment as this above in the forum, except about a JDS Labs C5D versus a Scarlett 2i2. The C5D, which I expected to blow me away, sounded totally muffled compared to the "budget" 2i2 audio interface.
 
I'm really starting to think I just have no idea what neutral actually sounds like.
 
Mar 21, 2017 at 12:59 PM Post #15 of 17
The Fulla 2 is EVERYTHING that I want. Just got it, listened to SoundMagic HP150, Venture Electronics Zen 2.0, and Sennheiser HD700. 
 
I don't know what the deal with the e10k was, but it's NOTHING compared to the Fulla 2. 
 
Thanks for everyone's help. And, go get a Fulla 2. I can't recommend it enough!!! 
 
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