SMSL SU-8 + Loxjie P20 or the Xduuo TA-10?

Equipment / Electronics / Gear / Accessories Headphone Amps
1

As the title says, which would be better the SMSL SU-8 + Loxjie P20 or the Xduuo TA-10?

Considering i have balanced headphones and no DAC.

Thanks for any help!!

2

I’m going to say TA-10 because it’s going to have a better amp then the P20 imo

3

Although if you bumped your budget to around the 500 area, you could get the monolith thx desktop or sabaj d5 for a killer setup

Edit: or the topping dx7s

5

The THX is not easy to get. I’m in Europe and i assume your talking about the 789. Although the Sabaj is tempting it is a bit more money wise. Not sure i’m ready for that right now. But with the Sabaj you loose the tubes…would you pick it over a tube solution?

6

The ta-10 is a hybrid tube amp, so tbh the tube isn’t going to make that big of a difference. I would pick it over the ta-10, but the ta-10 is a more then competent solution. I personally am just not a big tube guy

I was talking about this regarding the thx. It’s an AIO solution. But don’t know the availability in Europe

Monolith 124459

7

I must confess I’m drooling over the sabaj right now…and easily obtainable here in Europe…dammm…

8

It is a super solid unit. Great power and features for an all in one

9

The ta10 actually puts out more power though. But I think the d5 is more transparent and has a better dac with more features

10

SU-8 + P20 is my current setup and I have no complaints. No issues driving the headphones I own. Unfortunately I’ve never tried the TA-10 so I don’t have much insight beyond that : /

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2 Likes
11

Hey brux! I can see you have the HE4XXs, which I own for about a week now and I’m running running with a Xonar U7. No complaints whatsoever in terms of power - I never listen to more than 50% for more than 30 min. It definitely is an upgrade (10%) compared to the onboard audio on my ROG mobo. The sound is dynamic, bright and detailed, but the soundstage seems a bit narrow and all the vocals/guitars seems to be playing behind me, instead of in front of me. The sub bass is quite vague, even EQ’ed. So I wonder now, if it’s the headphones or the source, which is causing this. I saw some reviews and your setup (or the TA-10) seemed quite the appetizing purchase.
TL DR:
Could you please put a few words about the soundstage/imaging on the HE4XXs when running your balanced dac/amp combo?