FIIO Q15 DAC and Headphone Amplifier Discussion & Impressions Thread
May 2, 2024 at 1:44 AM Post #753 of 761
For some reason the power usage of my q15 has increased drastically even though i haven't changed anything. It was drawing 3-4w in desktop mode and around 1w in idle/power off (which is very high i think), now it draws 6w in desktop mode and 3w in idle/power off mode and it stays hot even when it is not used now. Any idea why did this happen?
The same problem
 
May 2, 2024 at 8:25 AM Post #754 of 761
I've just noticed a hum when I have my Q15 connected to my work PC. It goes away as soon as I touch the Q15, so I assume it's sound kind of grounding issue?
While I would love to touch my Q15 all day long, it does reduce my productivity quite a bit, so any suggestions to how to fix this issue?
New cable?

I should clarify that it happens if either the data or charging cable is connected, I run with both charging and data cables attached, so I keep the Q15 topped up on battery. Removing one of them does not solve the issue, but removing both does.
 
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May 2, 2024 at 12:00 PM Post #755 of 761
I've been using my Q15 for quite a while (USB, iPhone) and have been pleased with it. But I just tried PEQ for the first time since they fixed that in firmware and I've got an issue that I'm not understanding.

So, I need to turn off MQA, which I guess I understand. But enabling a custom preset PEQ makes it very quiet. I even boost the preamp in that preset and it's drastically quieter than with PEQ off.

Anyone else experience this, or, am I missing something?
 
May 2, 2024 at 12:57 PM Post #756 of 761
I've been using my Q15 for quite a while (USB, iPhone) and have been pleased with it. But I just tried PEQ for the first time since they fixed that in firmware and I've got an issue that I'm not understanding.

So, I need to turn off MQA, which I guess I understand. But enabling a custom preset PEQ makes it very quiet. I even boost the preamp in that preset and it's drastically quieter than with PEQ off.

Anyone else experience this, or, am I missing something?
Yes, this problem exists
 
May 2, 2024 at 1:19 PM Post #757 of 761
I've been using my Q15 for quite a while (USB, iPhone) and have been pleased with it. But I just tried PEQ for the first time since they fixed that in firmware and I've got an issue that I'm not understanding.

So, I need to turn off MQA, which I guess I understand. But enabling a custom preset PEQ makes it very quiet. I even boost the preamp in that preset and it's drastically quieter than with PEQ off.

Anyone else experience this, or, am I missing something?
When I first tried this, I had the source connected via USB-C (either an iPhone 15 Pro Max or an iPad Pro 11 M2). Turning MQA off with the source connected messed up the USB-C configuration in the source somehow and volume was as you're experiencing -- drastically lower to the point where it was unusable. And disabling MQA/enabling PEQ enables the volume slider on the source, another confusion.

But, once I sorted that out (basically accepting a "new" USB-C device in my sources and thus having two configs, one with MQA and one without), the volume varies based on the PEQ filter. I believe it's roughly the same with MQA off and PEQ set to bypass (which makes sense), then some of the preset filters are a little quieter but reasonably so, and I believe the JAZZ filter is actually louder.

So, I guess the moral is, make sure your source recognizes the USB-C connection properly when making the switch. I can now switch back and forth without any issues, with USB-C connected or not to the source.
 
May 2, 2024 at 1:37 PM Post #758 of 761
I've just noticed a hum when I have my Q15 connected to my work PC. It goes away as soon as I touch the Q15, so I assume it's sound kind of grounding issue?
While I would love to touch my Q15 all day long, it does reduce my productivity quite a bit, so any suggestions to how to fix this issue?
New cable?

I should clarify that it happens if either the data or charging cable is connected, I run with both charging and data cables attached, so I keep the Q15 topped up on battery. Removing one of them does not solve the issue, but removing both does.
Try if touching the PC solves the issue as well.
Do you have ground in the outlet the PC is powered from?
 
May 2, 2024 at 2:01 PM Post #759 of 761
Try if touching the PC solves the issue as well.
Do you have ground in the outlet the PC is powered from?
Did not test that, but the PC is most likely not grounded. Will give it a try, hopefully that is the problem because it's very easy to fix.
I took the whole setup home today, and connected it to my laptop. The laptop was connected to the charger and I used the same USB cables. No humming. So it is for sure related to the work PC.
 
May 2, 2024 at 7:57 PM Post #760 of 761
When I first tried this, I had the source connected via USB-C (either an iPhone 15 Pro Max or an iPad Pro 11 M2). Turning MQA off with the source connected messed up the USB-C configuration in the source somehow and volume was as you're experiencing -- drastically lower to the point where it was unusable. And disabling MQA/enabling PEQ enables the volume slider on the source, another confusion.

But, once I sorted that out (basically accepting a "new" USB-C device in my sources and thus having two configs, one with MQA and one without), the volume varies based on the PEQ filter. I believe it's roughly the same with MQA off and PEQ set to bypass (which makes sense), then some of the preset filters are a little quieter but reasonably so, and I believe the JAZZ filter is actually louder.

So, I guess the moral is, make sure your source recognizes the USB-C connection properly when making the switch. I can now switch back and forth without any issues, with USB-C connected or not to the source.

Thanks for the info. I didn’t notice the volume slider becoming active, but that did obviously make a difference. Even pushing the volume to 100% doesn’t really fix it.

Ultimately I can’t stand the volume difference and will leave PEQ off and MQA on. Tune with ear tips instead…
 
May 2, 2024 at 7:58 PM Post #761 of 761
Did not test that, but the PC is most likely not grounded. Will give it a try, hopefully that is the problem because it's very easy to fix.
I took the whole setup home today, and connected it to my laptop. The laptop was connected to the charger and I used the same USB cables. No humming. So it is for sure related to the work PC.
I’ve noticed that same issue with my MacBook Pro. By default the wall adapter isn’t grounded and it only buzzes for me when it’s plugged in. Go off the battery alone and the buzzing goes away.
 

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