Loaner: iFi iDSD Black Label

Discussion in 'Closed Loaners' started by ChaChaRealSmooth, Aug 25, 2019.

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  1. Joshvar

    Joshvar Almost "Made"

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    Shipping to @rtaylor76 today. More impressions need editing, will go in the other thread. Thanks for your patience.
     
  2. Joshvar

    Joshvar Almost "Made"

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    One small thing I forgot to mention: the IEMatch nub came off and I replaced it with one of the two (kindly) included ones because I couldn't find it. Today, it turned up (4 days after shipping). I will hold on to it but can happily send it on to iFi if that's deemed necessary, otherwise if anyone in Austin needs an iFi nub (not sure if it fits any other devices) I'll give it to ya.
     
  3. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    Should be fine without it. Pretty sure they're included for situations like yours.
     
  4. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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    It arrived today and after messing with it, the IEM match nub came off in handling. Luckily I was able to find it in my thick dark carpet. (I thought it was gone forever...seriously)

    I put the nub back in the box until the end of the evaluation. I will probably only test that feature once.
     
  5. TheIceman93

    TheIceman93 El pato-zorro

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    What is the issue with the buttons? I just bought one of these. Are the buttons loose and fall off easily?
     
  6. Senorx12562

    Senorx12562 Case of the mondays

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    Definitely not the first time I have heard of this problem. I think @Lyander had a similar issue.
     
  7. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    Oh yay an opportunity to rant.

    They might get lost easily, but iFi are sweet and sent me a baggie full of buttons in the event that I lose buttons again, gratis. They were really nice considering I bought the Micro iDSD used (cuz... money).

    What really grinds my gibblets about the buttons is how they seem to stop registering properly, probably because of contact failures or whatever the term for that is— I'd have IEMatch set to High Sensitivity for my old TH-X00s but then I might move around with my headphones plugged into the unit; this would nudge the button slightly and cause IEMatch to disengage, blasting my ears until I can rip the headphones off.

    Recently the Preamp/Direct toggle's also begun exhibiting this problem, so when I use RCA out to an amplifier I have to nudge the switch left and right to get channel balance centered; thought my one ear was going bad or something, but verified with EARS measurements that things were awry. Heck, I'm not even sure it's centered now but it's good enough that I don't notice anything's too badly skewed either way.

    I admit I'm a bit of an iFi fanboy because while their units are lesser-value if not used as an AIO solution, they sound pretty damn satisfying overall and fit my transportable work/school/home use case (obviously less travel nowadays, but you get the point). I will, however, take every chance I can get to piss on this design choice :))

    Sent the unit in for repairs via local distributor some time ago, but the problem manifested again after a few months. This is the main reason I'm considering a Zen DAC— might be audibly worse and has a MUCH less subtle bass boost function, but it's much more affordable and might tide me over until I can get a Bifrost 2 in maybe a few years, no worries about fiddly buttons and switches. Right now I have both bottom buttons taken off and stuffed in a bottle I keep on my desk so i don't have to worry about channel imbalances, or at least channel balance worsening any more.

    EDIT: LOL! I was composing the above rant as you tagged me, @Senorx12562!
     
    Last edited: Apr 15, 2020
  8. TheIceman93

    TheIceman93 El pato-zorro

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    Hmm, that's unfortunate. I baby my stuff so maybe it will be ok. Is the issue only with the bottom buttons? I'm a 1 headphone guy for the foreseeable future so my settings, once dialed in, won't be changing.

    Maybe I can roll up little balls of electrical tape to put in the switch gap to lock in the button setting and then cover the button itself with clear packing tape to prevent the button from falling off. How far do the buttons protrude past the chassis?


     
  9. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    True, I carried my iDSD around a lot before recently in a non-rigid case so perhaps you won't go through the same! I was a lot more stationary after initial repairs though, so no guarantees.

    Yes it's only the bottom buttons exhibiting problems. They protrude maybe a mm out? They don't touch desk surface when laying the unit down because of the faceplate protrusions/legs, or if they do it's just barely.

    Do note that it's not just movement along the switch that causes problems, lateral wiggles on the same setting could disengage! That's what's giving me problems
     
    Last edited: Apr 15, 2020
  10. TheIceman93

    TheIceman93 El pato-zorro

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    If you pop the buttons off completely, do the settings still change from wiggling? Sounds like the switches on your copy are really bad.

    If the button isn't moving, it's hard to imagine how the settings are changing.

    I guess I could also strategically place the clear rubber feet over the switch opening to lock the settings in place.

    [​IMG]
     
  11. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    Oh nah, settings stable as soon as I take the buttons off, haha. I dunno, maybe it's the weight of the rubberish buttons pulling either way?

    I think @OldDude04 and @gixxerwimp had similar experiences too.
     
  12. TheIceman93

    TheIceman93 El pato-zorro

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    Ok, that's good news. I'll just pop the buttons off then cover the opening with clear packing tape. Can you tell the setting with the button off?
     
  13. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    Yup, you can see the plastic nub that the rubber buttons attach to.

    Also, just realised that this is a loaner thread and that the main Micro iDSD thread might be a better spot for this discussion, haha.
     
  14. TheIceman93

    TheIceman93 El pato-zorro

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    Ooops, I forgot this wasn't the main thread as well. My bad.
     
  15. Azimuth

    Azimuth FKA rtaylor76, Friend

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  16. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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  17. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    @ChaChaRealSmooth review is completed. I'll wait for further instructions at this time.
     
  18. iFi audio

    iFi audio MOT iFi Audio

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    Thanks for nice words! Several buttons shipped is a small price to pay for making someone happy. I'm not sure in 100%, but I don't think that we charged anyone for these ever. On the subject of buttons, we made them removable on purpose. Lost piece of removable rubber can be easily handled. Broken switches are more difficult :)
     
  19. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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