[Gooby]

Also, on the iBasso DX100 device there is "phone", line out, optical, coaxial, gain, micro usb, and a big gold plated hole for a plug or something. Which would i use to connect to an amp like the RSA SR-71B or an Alo Audio RX MK3-B, and what does each of those "things" do? 
 
Another thing, when I am looking for cable I will probably be looking or copper, but what spec/type of copper cable should i be looking for. I have seen things like SXC AVG 22 Copper, and other people saying 99% Pure Copper cable what would be the best option for highest quality.
 
And does anyone know of anyone who makes some really nice high quality cable? I know of ALO, Moon, amd Toxic but I don't know who makes the best. I do not care if they make the cable i am looking for, i just want to know if they make high quality cable because i will just request for a custom cable job. 

 

[lee730]

Quote:

Thanks for the answers, really opened my eyes. So from the looks of it the iBasso DX100 is the best DAP at this time and i guess i will be buying it soon. But how do you put music onto it? Might sound stupid but I am really familiar with the iTunes thing and don't have any idea on how to put music on the damn thing. Also, what are the best audio files to put on this thing? I have heard about lossless(?) and FLAC(?) and Wav(?) what are the differences? 

Just drag and drop if you want. You can also sync playlists via mediamonkey which is quite easy once you got the hang of it. You can also save a back-up of your playlists on the side just in case anything happens to your PC and you are ready to go again with just a few short minutes of reloading the program. If you are going to do a direct connect then just use the line out. If you intend on using the DX100 as a transport then you use the Coaxil or optical.

 

[samsquanch]

"Need"?  If you're using that word then pack up and leave now while you still have your whits about you, before it's too late...

 

[Astrozombie]

Quote:

"Need"?  If you're using that word then pack up and leave now while you still have your whits about you, before it's too late...

I just saw how much that thing cost, is this guy about to plunk down that much on a portable player (something that can be stolen)? And then even more on an amp later down the line? Now he's asking about fancy cables too? All this to power what? $100 pair of headphones? Don't the headphones have to be about as much as your setup or even more to get the benefits? When all is said i done i wonder how a simple Sansa Clip (maybe toss in a Fiio E6) would do with just a good pair of $2-400 cans compared to the opposite.
I might, might check out a used ipod for the LOD, but i'm anti-apple so i've resisted up to this point. There are quite a bit of people out there that say it doesn't make that much of a difference between a phone out and line out, at least in a portable setup where you don't have the ideal conditions to be analyzing what you're listening to...

 

[Gooby]

The setup and pair of Headphones DON'T have to cost the same. Some people might have a 2000 amp for a pair of $1000 LCD 2's or something. And who said I was going to buy $100 headphones? With all of that I will get basically desktop quality audio on-the-go and that is all I want.
 
So lets just say $850 now for a DAP, and maybe $700 for a pair of headphones. With that setup I will be good for a LONG time and the sound quality will be "desktop quality" and I can take it wherever i want. 
 
Also, I am not just going to let it sit out in public where it is exposed and very likely to be stolen. There are people who have larger and even more expensive portable rigs and they seem just fine.
 
So lets just say $850 now for a DAP, and maybe $700 for a pair of headphones. With that setup I will be satisfied for a couple years and the sound quality produced will be similar to "desktop quality sound" AND I can take it wherever I want.
Money Well Spent 

 

[estreeter]

Gooby, for someone asking some fairly basic questions, you seem to have all the answers.  

 
I dont agree with some of the sentiments expressed earlier, but its not as simple as '$1000 + $1000 equals guaranteed sonic bliss', sadly. Please cut the rest of us some slack as we adapt to your apparent omnipotence.   

 

[Gooby]

I felt as if he was attacking me so I tried to explain an example of another situation i guess. I know it's not that simple but he shouldn't be saying "is this guy about to plunk down that much on a portable player (something that can be stolen)?"
 
A Sansa Clip and a Fiio E6 can also be stolen (probably easier for it to be stolen since it is smaller and you wouldn't notice as soon).
 
Also, where did he get that I was only going to get a pair of $100 headphones? It's like he is telling me that it is a waste because I will not have enough money for headphones or something. 

 

[NZtechfreak]

For the sort of money you're talking about there you could have a rig like mine with a cheaper set of headphones, would imagine you'd be very happy. Bonus is being able to use the Pico with your PC/netbook/laptop etc etc, as well as future devices that support it. 

 

[Gooby]

Well I am interested in knowing your rig. Could you post/show us your rig?

 

[NZtechfreak]

Quote:

Well I am interested in knowing your rig. Could you post/show us your rig?

 
US variant Galaxy S3 --> USB audio --> HeadAmp Pico USB DAC/amp --> Beyerdynamic T5p
 

 

[rock&rollfrenchfries]

if you want audiophile quality the FIRST thing you should know is not to pay your hard earned money on 256 and 320 kbps itunes.
 
you should not be ready to spend thousands of dollars on equipment if you have not yet discovered lossless media.
 
delete all that crap and go and buy the actual cd. understand that you cannot upconvert your itunes. (well you can but you'll simply be taking an mp3 and making it bigger while ruining the sound even further... think about it)...  to get lossless you have to rip from an original copy cd into lossless format like flac or alac. or if its a burned cd it had better be burned from the full image of the original. must be a 1/1 copy. not an mp3 burned cd (think about it)... the two most popular lossless options are FLAC and apple does have Apple Lossless Audio Codec (ALAC) which works with ipods but i dont think itunes has the option to buy anything in ALAC unfortunately
 
of course you could google whatever you want in FLAC. or other certain search engines if you know what i mean. but then you're trusting the person who uploaded it to have done it right. you could be downloading mp3s upconverted to flac from some total moron. or maybe they used volume leveling or increased gain or something stupid. the only way to be sure is to do it yourself with a fresh clean store bought cd.
 
thats part of the reason itunes are considerably cheaper than the cd... because it's compressed and of lesser quality. it would be inexcusable to try and sell mp3/regular mp4 downloads for the same price. it's not about the case or the cd or the album art so much. who really cares about that stuff... no the reason for the difference in price between downloads and cd is the audio quality.
 
to put up ALAC downloads itunes would need a lot more server space. a flac or alac file is usually 2-3 times the size of a 320 mp3. flac and alac generally have similar compression rates (whichever one you choose will take up about the same amount of space, somgs are usually roughly the same size). though on my players which play both i have found FLAC to be faster loading and noticeably easier on the battery than ALAC. wheras when i select an ALAC file it might take 3 or 4 seconds before it starts playing.
 
the first and cheapest thing one should do on their way to higher quality audio enjoyment is aquire some properly ripped lossless music. THEN decide if you're happy with your equipment or not.
 
some artists such as nine inch nails and bassnectar, many others are beginning to offer lossless download options from their official sites.

 

[lee730]

You have a point Rock but he can also save those files for his mainstream players to save space and for portability. Pretty much FLAC or lossless is pointless on those devices because they aren't revealing enough to warrant the wasted space. But when you move up the chain and the device and equipment has the ability to really take you into the recording, by all means always use lossless if possible.
 

 

[rock&rollfrenchfries]

yea i suppose dont DELETE all your tunes. but understand that you cant make lossless out of any of your old 256 and 320 stuff. and you cant truly test your equipment without lossless.

 

[estreeter]

Having previously engaged in lengthy debates with others in Sound Science re 256K AAC and 320K VBR vs lossless files, I don't want to revisit that minefield. Suffice it to say that I rip all my CDs to WAV - for conversion to FLAC or ALAC - but am quite happy with my 256K AAC downloads for tracks where I am not willing to buy the album The OP shouldn't have to delete any 256K downloads to appease some lofty 'audiophile' ideals. Life is too short, IMO - get the music you love, and enjoy the **** out of it. 

 

[Gooby]

TBH I have really no idea on what any of that means. I guess Lossless is the best Audio File or whatever around, and should be taken from CDs. But how exactly do I do that? What is WAV and why do you need to convert it to FLAC or ALAC? What is 256K AAC, 320K VBR and what is a lossless file?