I just bought a Schiit Magnius a few weeks ago and I wanted to pair it with the Modius, which is on backorder for several weeks to a few months. This device has really got me thinking about my next move.
Same, waiting on the singxer SA-1 review aswell. I think considering he has to work aswell he's taking on to many products to review and he ends up having really long lead times coming from his impressions.
I am considering getting this DAC, currently using the Zen Stack with Edition XS and if you could add a small comparision between these two when you post a full review, that would be very helpful. Thanks.
@@colingordon0986 Thanks for the coment, I already purchased one and yes, the EF400 is better. Bacause of how powerful it is, there's not a lot of usable volume range for IEMs but I knew what to expect, so that's fine.
Hi William. I want to ask you a question about this DAC. I noticed that my EF400 cuts the audio for a very short period of time (about 250/500 ms) every time I start a song or any other audio stream after some seconds of silence (even the sound Windows makes when changing volume from the taskbar gets cut at the beginning). I have this issue with every computer I connected this DAC to, and with both USB ports of the DAC. I wanted to ask you and every other EF400 owner here if you also noticed this issue, or if it is only my unit that has it, and get a replacement. Thank you.
Thanks for your initial impressions. Hoping you would compare the hifiman amp to ifi zen in the background, as I have a zen but want to know if it's worth upgrading to the ef400. Also can you do an indepth comparison with your hifiman headphones with hifiman amp/dac. Would love to know how the Arya - ananda - xs- 400 compare. I appreciate your time and effort.
@@mrgee918 👍. It's still in burn-in phase but it's definitely better the Zen DAC. How much better and in what areas? for that, I'll get back to you in a few days.
So, I've been comparing the Zen DAC against EF400 using Edition XS (Balanced Out of both). Initially the EF400 was a bit disappointing, flat and dry but it's improved a lot after ~50+ hours of burn-in. Now they sound considerably better than Zen DAC (even paired with Zen CAN). The Bass is textured and hits harder than Zen, the Bass almost feels like a blob with no detail/texture on Zen. Mids are more detailed but in a natural in-offensive way with more body, Zen in comparison has lighter note weight and less micro detail. The Treble on Zen even though not offensive like some ESS DACs sounds less accurate, timbre is better on EF400. Stage size and Instruments separation is also much better than Zen but personally I think Imaging could have been better when compared to other DACs in it's price range. Overall, for me there's no competition here, EF400 is the better device.
@@audiofile1178 Thanks so much for the detailed review. It was worth the wait. I find pairing the edition xs with Zen dac not always a good combination especially with overly loud modern recordings. Good to hear you're onto a winning combination. Enjoy. I'll be looking to pair the EF-400 worth the new Ananda stealth later on this year. My edition XS has distortion issues so I'm looking to move on to The new Ananda stealth.
Hey i am having issues with my unit. It does not recognise the lightening to usb c cable. Plus the maximum sampling rate i am getting is 24 to 192 but other reviews suggest it can take 24bit/768kHz. Is it true?
Can anyone confirm if the EF400 works well with the Susvara? There is a review out there that says that it struggles with higher impedance headphones and that it's only good for lower impedance headphones. How does the EF400 do driving 600 ohm headphones? Is the sound quality good?
@@theheadphoneexperience-wil2250 Great, thanks for clarifying that. I guess if you hooked the EF400's DAC up to the Asgard 3 and compared it to the EF400 using its own amp you'd be able to tell the difference in sound between the two amps
If you connect an iPhone by USB it should, i use my iPad to connect to my Sony headphone amp with a usb-c to usb-b cable. You might need the camera connection kit though depending on your phone model.
I have never heard this amp dac but I've demod a hd800s and yes it would be a great pairing because u combine the ultra wide soundstage of the hd800s with the wide sounfstage of this amp, plus the slight bass tilt and massive detail this has (from all I've read and seen in reviews) it would be a amazing pairing for the hd800s. Oh also on top of the fact the treble in this amp isn't piercing or analytical but it's super detailed so it would most likely be a perfect pairing
The Milo without a dac is still 3 times the price of the EF-400. It has been a long time since I heard the Milo, but from what I remember the Milo is a couple of steps above the EF-400. Not really a fair comparison.
Very waiting for the sound quality exam and comparison with other amp\dac like Fiio k9 pro... Thank you!
I'm supposed to be getting a Fiio K9 Pro in sometime soon.
Same here!
I just bought a Schiit Magnius a few weeks ago and I wanted to pair it with the Modius, which is on backorder for several weeks to a few months. This device has really got me thinking about my next move.
I haven't done my full review yet, but so far I would say great amp, great dac, but only ONE digital input (USB) and NO analog inputs.
Still waiting for the full review.
Same, waiting on the singxer SA-1 review aswell. I think considering he has to work aswell he's taking on to many products to review and he ends up having really long lead times coming from his impressions.
Enough good impressions for a purchase from me…just cant hold out anymore lol
I am considering getting this DAC, currently using the Zen Stack with Edition XS and if you could add a small comparision between these two when you post a full review, that would be very helpful. Thanks.
Really no comparison! Ef 400 has 4 W of power! Can pretty much drive most headphones
@@colingordon0986 Thanks for the coment, I already purchased one and yes, the EF400 is better. Bacause of how powerful it is, there's not a lot of usable volume range for IEMs but I knew what to expect, so that's fine.
Are you getting much of a difference in sound quality using it balanced vs single-ended?
Hi William. I want to ask you a question about this DAC. I noticed that my EF400 cuts the audio for a very short period of time (about 250/500 ms) every time I start a song or any other audio stream after some seconds of silence (even the sound Windows makes when changing volume from the taskbar gets cut at the beginning). I have this issue with every computer I connected this DAC to, and with both USB ports of the DAC. I wanted to ask you and every other EF400 owner here if you also noticed this issue, or if it is only my unit that has it, and get a replacement. Thank you.
I haven't experienced that problem.
Great review. Can you tell me if this would work with an hdmi to usb c cable? That way I can also connect my TV to it and listen to my he6se v2.
I honestly don't know if an HDMI to USB adaptor would work?
Thanks for your initial impressions. Hoping you would compare the hifiman amp to ifi zen in the background, as I have a zen but want to know if it's worth upgrading to the ef400. Also can you do an indepth comparison with your hifiman headphones with hifiman amp/dac. Would love to know how the Arya - ananda - xs- 400 compare. I appreciate your time and effort.
Hi, I got my EF400 3 days ago, if you can wait a few days, I can compare it against Zen DAC with Edition XS.
@@audiofile1178 Excellent. I look forward to your comparison. Cheers.
@@mrgee918 👍. It's still in burn-in phase but it's definitely better the Zen DAC. How much better and in what areas? for that, I'll get back to you in a few days.
So, I've been comparing the Zen DAC against EF400 using Edition XS (Balanced Out of both). Initially the EF400 was a bit disappointing, flat and dry but it's improved a lot after ~50+ hours of burn-in. Now they sound considerably better than Zen DAC (even paired with Zen CAN). The Bass is textured and hits harder than Zen, the Bass almost feels like a blob with no detail/texture on Zen. Mids are more detailed but in a natural in-offensive way with more body, Zen in comparison has lighter note weight and less micro detail. The Treble on Zen even though not offensive like some ESS DACs sounds less accurate, timbre is better on EF400. Stage size and Instruments separation is also much better than Zen but personally I think Imaging could have been better when compared to other DACs in it's price range.
Overall, for me there's no competition here, EF400 is the better device.
@@audiofile1178 Thanks so much for the detailed review. It was worth the wait. I find pairing the edition xs with Zen dac not always a good combination especially with overly loud modern recordings. Good to hear you're onto a winning combination. Enjoy. I'll be looking to pair the EF-400 worth the new Ananda stealth later on this year. My edition XS has distortion issues so I'm looking to move on to The new Ananda stealth.
Hey i am having issues with my unit. It does not recognise the lightening to usb c cable. Plus the maximum sampling rate i am getting is 24 to 192 but other reviews suggest it can take 24bit/768kHz. Is it true?
Can anyone confirm if the EF400 works well with the Susvara? There is a review out there that says that it struggles with higher impedance headphones and that it's only good for lower impedance headphones. How does the EF400 do driving 600 ohm headphones? Is the sound quality good?
It’s powerfull enough to makes susvara loud for listening a music but not enough for enjoying a music.
Is the amp section itself warm like a Schiit Asgard 3, or is all of the warm coming from the R2R DAC section?
There is no way to test the amp on it's own with no analog inputs.
@@theheadphoneexperience-wil2250 Really? Other reviewers have been commenting on the DAC section alone, somehow bypassing the amp...
@@cussyrichards6121 You can test the dac alone using the rear outputs into another amp. There is no way to test the amp alone without analog inputs.
@@theheadphoneexperience-wil2250 Great, thanks for clarifying that. I guess if you hooked the EF400's DAC up to the Asgard 3 and compared it to the EF400 using its own amp you'd be able to tell the difference in sound between the two amps
Can you use iPhone with this
If you connect an iPhone by USB it should, i use my iPad to connect to my Sony headphone amp with a usb-c to usb-b cable. You might need the camera connection kit though depending on your phone model.
Yes. Has usb-c to usb-c and usb. Use an OTG lightning to usb-c. You can get those from Fiio, Shanling, Apos, Lotoo.
Hi, does this pair well with the hd 800s?
Someone else will have to answer that. I do not have an HD800s.
I have never heard this amp dac but I've demod a hd800s and yes it would be a great pairing because u combine the ultra wide soundstage of the hd800s with the wide sounfstage of this amp, plus the slight bass tilt and massive detail this has (from all I've read and seen in reviews) it would be a amazing pairing for the hd800s. Oh also on top of the fact the treble in this amp isn't piercing or analytical but it's super detailed so it would most likely be a perfect pairing
@@soraflame66 thanks for the insight.
I actually managed to test it before I bought it few days ago, and it sounded great. Can't wait for it to arrive
How would this compare to a Milo + whatever DAC?
The Milo without a dac is still 3 times the price of the EF-400. It has been a long time since I heard the Milo, but from what I remember the Milo is a couple of steps above the EF-400. Not really a fair comparison.
@@theheadphoneexperience-wil2250 do you know of any DACs that pair well with the Milo?
@@TeknoOrganicVirus Depends on what you budget is?
@@theheadphoneexperience-wil2250 up to $1,500
@@TeknoOrganicVirus What dac are you using now?
HELLO FRIEND, I BUY THIS AMPLIFIER, BUT AS IT IS CONFIGURED FOR A LAPTOP, SINCE THE MANUAL DOES NOT SAY ANYTHING ABOUT IT.
Just use usb connection