FiiO E9 Desktop Headphone Amplifier and Dock for E7 USB DAC

I bought this to use with my Denon AH-D5000. This is my first headphone Amp so I was not sure what to expect but was expecting a major upgrade from bare-bone iPod sound. When I tried it for the first time, i did not notice a big enough difference. My source is a classic 60GB iPod with mostly 160Kbps MP3s (connected using Fiio L1 dock connector); yeah i know not the best quality but that's what i bought it for. The only thing i noticed is that it provides more volume than is possible with the iPod alone. That was expected as it is afterall an amplifier. I kept listening to it and keep comparing to D5000 plugged directly into the iPod and going through this on the same source. Finally I noticed that the soundstage is cleaner, wider and the sound has more "presence" and remains clean without becoming boomy (i normally use the classic EQ setting on ipod but with this i switch between Classic, Accoustic, and Off depending on the song.) In the end I would say that the Denons are beautiful headphones that did NOT require an external amp (very easy to drive) but if you have one, you will notice subtle improvement - just don't expect a difference of day and night. This Amp seems reasonably priced and i wanted a desktop unit, did not need tht DAC so this was pretty much the only choice. As another reviewer has said, if you spend considerable time listening via headphones, and you got some large, good quality ones, then this will make a difference. Also note if you have a decent home theater or stereo receiver at home (like my Harman Kardon AVR325), try plugging your headphones into your receiver - you might not even need it. But if you don't have one or need it for a second room (or in my case for my office) then yes its worth it. I also noticed that i can live with 160Kbps or higher quality MP3s though 256Kbps ones definitely sounds cleaner.

I first purchased this amplifier to go along with my E7 portable Amp/DAC (also by FiiO - it 'docks' into this amp to provide a DAC). I'd just purchased a pair of Sennheiser HD 650s, and they benefit greatly from amplification. The E7/E9 combo works quite well for mid-level headphones like the Sennheiser HD 650, but to really get the most out of this amplifier, you need to pair it with a better DAC. FiiO is coming out with the E11 soon, and although I'm not sure if it pairs with this amp, it would be foolish of FiiO not to build it into the E11. Headphones in the 'Mid-Fi' range frequently REQUIRE amplification to sound their best, and the HD 650 is no different. Unamped out out of my iMac, they sound alright, but the sound is thin, and the bass lacks presence - the mid-range is also recessed. With the E7/E9 combo, the sound fills out a great deal more - but the mids are still recessed. I had thought it was a weakness of the HD 650s or of the amplifier itself ($130 for an amplifier is an AMAZING deal - so I'd expected some trade-offs). In preparation for an upgraded amp and better headphones, I purchased the HRT Music Streamer II+ (also from Amazon). I paired it with the E9 using a relatively cheap RCA to Mini-jack cable. Wow! The HRT MSII+ really corrects any weaknesses in the sound from the E7/E9 combo and shows me that the thin mids were more a weakness of the E7 DAC and not the E9 amplifier itself. There is still some sibilance at the upper ranges, but that could be due to any number of weaknesses in the chain (low bitrate mp3s exhibit it the most, poor production makes it worse - a lot of modern pop-music is mastered very 'bright' or treble-happy in order to overcome the limits of bad stereo products). Keep in mind that the HRT MS II+ is a $350 product - so it should be no surprise it beats the lowly $99 E7. I wholeheartedly recommend this amp! It's a steal, and it can grow with the rest of your chain until you're ready to try tube amps, Solid-State/Tube hybrids, or just flat out need more power (for some demanding dynamic headphones or 'planar magnetic' headphones). For the price, it's a must-buy.

Cet ampli qui est compatible E7/E17, et que j'ai commencé par tester avec un Sennheiser HD598 (qui n'est pas un casque adapté pour cet ampli et qui donne une réponse différente selon la prise jack sur laquelle on branche le casque) avant de le brancher définitivement sur un Sennheiser HD650. L'explication est assez étonnante et j'ai fini par trouver la réponse en lisant le test publié dans nwavguy.blogspot. Ce test qui analyse les caractéristiques techniques de cet appareil montre une impédance de sortie de 10 Ohms si on utilise la prise jack 1/4" et 43 Ohms si on utilise la prise jack 3,5mm. Et comme l'impédance du casque, comme de l'ampli, varie avec la fréquence, le rendu varie selon la prise jack utilisée, ce qui explique pourquoi le casque Sennheiser HD598 (dont l'impédance moyenne est de 50 Ohms) n'est pas adapté pour cet ampli, surtout si on le branche sur la petite prise jack. D'ailleurs, le fabricant l'a bien compris et a supprimé la petite prise jack dans la version suivante E9K. Une fois que vous avez compris qu'il faut oublier la petite prise jack et qu'il faut choisir un casque à haute impédance (supérieure à 150 Ohms), vous êtes dans le cas d'une utilisation normale de cet ampli dont le taux de distorsion est très très bas (autour de 0,005%). Avec le Sennheiser HD650 casque ouvert hifi et un E17 (ALPEN) USB DAC Ampli casque [192k/24bit (SPDIF) ], ce type d'ampli est capable de sortir un niveau de signal montant jusqu'à 20V (crète/crète selon le test cité), sans distorsion. C'est à dire qu'il sera capable de sortir les pointes de puissance que le E17 n'est pas capable de faire seul. D'autre part, il supprime le problème d'autonomie de batterie du E17 à qui il sert d'alimentation tout en utilisant le DAC. Ceux qui voudront en savoir plus iront lire ce test (en anglais) du E9 agrémenté de nombreux résultats de mesure.

Venden producto UK con adaptador de corriente de UK en vez del Español. NO se puede usar el aparato si no se tiene conversor de clavijas. No se informa de esto en ningún punto del producto.

L'ho acquistato insieme al DAC FiiO E7, abbinato a delle Sennheiser HD 598. Con una cifra tutto sommato modesta credo sia difficile ottenere risultati migliori. Tanta potenza e dettaglio