Review and Measurements of New JDS Labs Atom Headphone Amp

[mahirzukic2]

I too am planning to put the Khadas Tone Board in a case, and bind it with the JDS Atom probably with a bolt and nut.
Just go with this combo, and you will be set for life, until you maybe try to look for a balanced DAC and AMP combo, but Khadas is planning on making a balanced DAC in 2019, and there is a cheap LOXJIE P20 balanced AMP (albeit a tube amp, not a solid state amp) already.
As someone previously said, this is a good time to be alive as far as the cheap high quality sound is concerned.

 

[maxxevv]

My question is simple: What DAC do you recommend that I hook up to the Atom? I listen to music from my desktop PC and only use my Sennheiser HD 660 S. I'd prefer if I can keep my budget for the DAC between $200 and $400.

If you like to go with convenience, with balanced output options ( for future uses such as connecting to powered speakers that utilize XLR inputs), the latest version of th SMSL SU-8 would be a very good candidate. Its just under US$200/- when Massdrop has it.

 

[Bliman]

Khadas Tone Board is the perfect match. 100$ DAC that beats a 1000$ DACs out there.
Just as you might in a few days (weeks), many have also ordered the Khadas Tone Board + JDS Atom as a perfect 200 - 250$ combo.
In order to beat that combination you might need to spend more than 1.5 - 2k$, and even then the improvement might not be noticeable.

EDIT: I my self have ordered the above combo after reading the reviews by Amir on this forum. In a very short time they have become the standard like the JDS odac+o2 used to be.

I always see the Khadas tone board and Topping d10 and SMSL Su8 for the atom amp.
But I thought the Khadas tone board has worse measurements then for example the RME's ADI-2 DAC.
Is there something out there that has a good reliability and good in reputation(no Topping for me) and has as good measurement as the Khadas tone board but doesn't has this ESS hump? And less then 300€-400€.

 

[jackenhack]

Side note, I am located in Scandinavia so I need a DAC with an EU plug. And if I purchase a product from within the EU, the manufacturer has to provide 2 years warranty by EU law, so I am not too keen on buying something directly from China.

I bought mine from France, https://www.audiophonics.fr/en/diy-...s-u208-spdif-32bit-768khz-dsd256-p-13062.html
No problem with added customs + taxes and if there's a problem, they are closer than China.

 

[graz_lag]

Thanks for the suggestion guys. The Khadas Tone Board looks nice, but I am not sure I quite understand the concept. It's a DIY DAC without a case? I was hoping there was a DAC in similar appearance as the Atom, so that they matched together

Side note, I am located in Scandinavia so I need a DAC with an EU plug. And if I purchase a product from within the EU, the manufacturer has to provide 2 years warranty by EU law, so I am not too keen on buying something directly from China.

If you are looking for the best Khadas Tone Board DAC integration in a super-nice case, look at the DAC1 by @March Audio, which is available now in Europe from @Purité Audio at 300 EUR or so ...
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...-has-arrived-at-purité-audio.6396/post-142214

 

[Bliman]

If you are looking for the best Khadas Tone Board DAC integration in a super-nice case, look at the DAC1 by @March Audio, which is available now in Europe from @Purité Audio at 300 EUR or so ...
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/march-has-arrived-at-purité-audio.6396/post-142214

Do you mean here https://www.puriteaudio.co.uk/electronics ?

 

[graz_lag]

Do you mean here https://www.puriteaudio.co.uk/electronics ?

Yes Sir ... @Purité Audio is a member around here, that is the reason for which I pasted the above link ...

 

[Bliman]

Yes Sir ... @Purité Audio is a member around here, that is the reason for which I pasted the above link ...

Ok thank you. Did he say the price here or do you found it at the website? Because I didn't find the dac there.

 

[jasonq997]

Hi! What a wonderful review! I have watched Z reviews on Youtube a lot but I have no idea how damaged his hearing is, and he never provides any measurements (and he talks a lot), so this is much more helpful. I purchased a pair of Sennheiser HD 660 S two weeks ago and I use them with my onboard soundcard. It's bad. I am going to purchase the Atom based on this review, but I'm very new to the hifi world and despite having researched for about several weeks now I make slow progress.

My question is simple: What DAC do you recommend that I hook up to the Atom? I listen to music from my desktop PC and only use my Sennheiser HD 660 S. I'd prefer if I can keep my budget for the DAC between $200 and $400.

I recommend one of the Topping units. D10 or D30. The Khadas Tone Board is good, but it is a DIY project.

 

[graz_lag]

Ok thank you. Did he say the price here or do you found it at the website? Because I didn't find the dac there.

I saw the price as indicated by Keith in his post, see here (same link as above) :
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...-has-arrived-at-purité-audio.6396/post-142214

 

[Bliman]

I saw the price as indicated by Keith in his post, see here (same link as above) :
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/march-has-arrived-at-purité-audio.6396/post-142214

Thank you

 

[March Audio]

Ok thank you. Did he say the price here or do you found it at the website? Because I didn't find the dac there.

Hi

Take a look here

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...has-arrived-at-purité-audio.6396/#post-142513

3 year warranty, anodised case milled from solid aluminium

Any questions please ask

Nothing diy about it

Regards

Alan

 

[graz_lag]

I recommend one of the Topping units. D10 or D30. The Khadas Tone Board is good, but it is a DIY project.

DIY ? What do you mean ?
It is instead a finished bare card, there is nothing you need to assemble or solder on the card.
It may or may not require a case, depending the looking/protection one wants to give to it.

 

[Bliman]

Hi

Take a look here

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...has-arrived-at-purité-audio.6396/#post-142513

3 year warranty, anodised case milled from solid aluminium

Any questions please ask

Regards

Alan

Ok first sorry because I don't have much technical knowledge.
Is it correct that this is basically a Khadas Tone board but with a case around it, like I read here somewhere?
From your knowledge how concerned are you about the ESS hump in the measurements?
Is the price more then SMSL or Topping because the build quality and the service is better or because you don't can go so low because it is not from China?
Sorry if these are stupid questions.

 

[jasonq997]

DIY ? What do you mean ?
It is instead a finished bare card, there is nothing you need to assemble or solder on the card.
It may or may not require a case, depending the looking/protection one wants to give to it.

I guess my suggestion is that practically speaking there are suitable products that to the end user are likely just as good sonically (even if the measurements aren't quite as good) that don't require the extra effort or the use of a bare card.

 

[graz_lag]

I guess my suggestion is that practically speaking there are suitable products that to the end user are likely just as good sonically (even if the measurements aren't quite as good) that don't require the extra effort or the use of a bare card.

Sure, but my feeling is that Khadas has got a stronger momentum over Topping, maybe thanks to the better measurements, maybe because it appeals the DIY community as well as you said, maybe because it represents the best integration of that particular ESS Chip available today.
Just my feeling but I take a Khadas Tone Board vs. a Topping D10/D30 everyday.

 

[MrC]

Seeing that this is the JDS Atom thread that has sort of been diverted to the Khadas Tone Board... Does anyone know of an enclosure that is roughly the same size as the Atom enclosure that I could mount the KTB inside?

I know the case is a little big for the Khadas but I would mount an A/B switch and two outputs on the back to feed two amps.

I have spent a few hours on Amazon and AliExpress but nothing seems to be close enough.

 

[March Audio]

Ok first sorry because I don't have much technical knowledge.
Is it correct that this is basically a Khadas Tone board but with a case around it, like I read here somewhere?
From your knowledge how concerned are you about the ESS hump in the measurements?
Is the price more then SMSL or Topping because the build quality and the service is better or because you don't can go so low because it is not from China?
Sorry if these are stupid questions.

Hi

Perfectly reasonable questions.

The dac1 does use a modified toneboard. I had an OEM supply agreement with Khadas prior to the board becoming known as a good DIY option. In fact its due to me making Amir aware of it that he subsequently went on to review it. Basically I had been researching options for manufacturing my own dac, including designing my own board, as there were so many disappointing and expensive performers out there, as demonstrated by Amir's testing here on ASR.

I was leaning to design my own board as I couldn't find anything that performed to my satisfaction when I discovered Khadas. My testing discovered this board was extracting pretty much all there is to get out of this particular ess chip. So from there on it made no sense to invest time in my own board design.

Whilst I am not happy about the Ess hump, it really doesn't seem to be having any subjective impact. I don't know of any "sensible" or controlled subjective observations that find the chips sound in any way objectionable. I performed blind tests of my DAC1 V Chord Mojo with a bunch of audiophiles. My DAC1 overall was preferred.

The DAC1 does perform better than most if not all dacs based around the same chip, as you can see confirmed by Amir's testing. It has a better quality of enclosure than most with excellent fit and finish. I do perform extended quality control with a technical tests on each unit and 24 hours soak to minimise the chance of infant mortality. Plus of course accessible English speaking support is available. Yes it is very difficult for a small manufacturer to compete with higher volume Chinese products and I am not going to try to. I'm offering a range of products that technically and aesthetically compliment each other with proven measured technical and therefore subjective performance.

Hope that helps

Cheers

Alan

 

[Bliman]

Hi

Perfectly reasonable questions.

The dac1 does use a modified toneboard. I had an OEM supply agreement with Khadas prior to the board becoming known as a good DIY option. In fact its due to me making Amir aware of it that he subsequently went on to review it. Basically I had been researching options for manufacturing my own dac, including designing my own board, as there were so many disappointing and expensive performers out there, as demonstrated by Amir's testing here on ASR.

I was leaning to design my own board as I couldn't find anything that performed to my satisfaction when I discovered Khadas. My testing I dictated this board was extracting pretty much all there is to get out of this particular ess chip. So from there on it made no sense to invest time in my own board design.

Whilst I am not happy about the. Ess hump, it really doesn't seem to be having any subjective impact. I don't know of any "sensible" or controlled subjective observations that find the chips sound in any way objectionable. I performed blind tests of my DAC1 V a Chord Mojo with a bunch of audiophiles. My DAC1 overall was preferred.

The DAC1 does perform better than most if not all dacs based around the same chip, as you can see confirmed by Amir's testing. It has a better quality of enclosure than most with excellent fit and finish. I do perform extended quality control with a technical tests on each unit and 24 hours soak to minimise the chance of infant mortality. Plus of course accessible English speaking support is available. Yes it is very difficult for a small manufacturer to compete with higher volume Chinese products and I am not going to try to. I'm offering a range of products that technically and aesthetically compliment each other with proven measured technical and therefore subjective performance.

Hope that helps

Cheers

Alan

Thank you very much for the reply.
I have a Grace Design m902 in my main system.
I have now ordered an optical cable to test it with my computer to see if I need an amplifier and dac for my headphone and this computer (I have a Beyerdynamic DT 250 250 Ohm).
It is an older amplifier/dac and it was pretty early to come out with usb support. But it performs badly with it. So I am also a little worried because with the March audio I can only connect it with the usb port to the computer
Just so I know how serious are you with this? With that I mean, if I buy it is there a possibility that the warranty would be worthless if you decided to stop inside of three years?
Maybe this isn't the right thread but what is the timeframe for your headphone amplifier and what is your target for pricerange?
Sorry for these questions.

 

[Mimizone]

Received mine yesterday. I started a listening session and couldn't stop... 3hours later I was still debating going to bed or adding one more track...

So that little guy is squeezed on top of a SMSL SU-8.
It's so light that I had to use double-sided tape so it doesn't move when I plug/unplugged the headphones.

So far I used the 3.5mm input cause that's the cable I had from my portable DAC before, a (too) nice braided SKW Y-splitter cable.
I plugged an Audeze LCD-XC to it.
Most of the time I use low gain and the knob at about 11 o'clock. Works for almost everything.
But for classical music, I bump to noon or 1:30. I also tried high gain.
High gain can be scary noisy on some tracks though...

The Audeze don't saturate and can sing like crazy if you don't mind having bleeding ears quickly.
The sound has no distorsion, or at least nothing I can notice (after bleeding...).
It clearly is well above my portable Oppo HA-2 SE.
The bass is well held, the mids are clear, the highs are clean.
I also feel the soundstage is wider than my other amps (the Oppo and the ZDT Jr on the picture).
Finally it has amazing separation and imaging.

Overall I just believe I now truly hear what the LCD-XC are capable of basically. The ATOM is just a wire that amplifies .

Now I am debating getting a THX AAA 789 or not.... I really wanted to try balanced output of the SMSL. But I don't see why I would need it.
Maybe to get rib of some hum at max volume on the ATOM? (but that may be my cables/setup more that the amp...)

Just wanted to share that $99 is all it takes to be pretty satisfied.
I'll still use the ZDT Jr. tubes for Jazz and those moments when I don't need sharp/clean sound.