DAP discussion thread

Not sure where to put this, but my thoughts are as followed for the Cayin N3 vs my HM 601 [Rockbox'd] and my Behring UCA 202, did all of my listening with a modded ATH ES 10.



Headphone Sound Quality

The HM 601 as the best for me, most natural timbre, excellent weight to the sound, most expansive imaging, great dynamics and macro detail. It glossed over some of the micro detail up top, the neat little background noises, though it did an amazing job with transients! Pretty good given the price, NOT on par with the Geek Out v2+ but for $125 pretty darn good!

The N3 on the Short Delay Filter was second best, brighter, more micro detail and less resolving of transients, amazing dynamics but it lacked impact and weight, often a little thin, but very fast, pulled out textures that the Hm601 often smooths, which some times against the N3 sometimes works with it

UCA 202's headphone out is terrible... very soft, REALLY deep but very cramped

Line Out Quality

The UCA 202 and HM 601 where excellent, the UCA 202 had a deeper wider more precise image overall but was still a little soft where as the 601 kept it's amazing timbre and weight with the sound stage opening up a little more, it lacked a little depth an precision compared to the UCA 202

N3 line out is a big improvement! Not as thin, better transient resolve, and better precision in imaging, but still thin sounding compared to the other 2 and not as expansive as either

Headphone Power Output

UCA 202 is appalling, hm601 isn't as impressive beside the N3, the N3 has 3 gain options and has the most power overall! I was surprised

User Interface

All HAIL ROCKBOX, seriously though I love it, it's faster than the N3 UI and has more options, The N3's button configuration is easy enough to figure out, but I still find my self accidentally hitting back when I want to scroll down, vs the more Caveman layout of the hm601

Function
N3 really surprised me here! The blutooth dac connectivity is a little noisy, but it's a good convenience. For what it's worth the N3 sounds better than the onBoard output of my LG V20... but I liked how many connectivity options the N3 offers, it's a Digital Jack of all Trades! The UCA 202 on the other hand is more of an analog jack of all, and the HM 601 has caveman level functionality... it play music, it not play music, it play music into amp, and that's it...

Battery Life
I charge my HM 601 like once every 2-3 weeks. An I get around 30 hours of playback time! The N3 I charged every 2 days and got maybe 8-9 hours tops...


Ultimately, for now the N3 and HM601 both have my recommendation, more so the Cayin N3 seeing as finding a Rock Boxed hm601 is going to be difficult, I'll hopefully be getting the Fiio X3 iii when it goes on tour and I'll be checking out how it sounds as well compared to the N3.

I have updated that chart with a total, and also I learned that Reddit hate's charts... you guys aren't crazy about it either, oh well

I'm also getting a an iRiver H140!!! Found one on HF in PRISTINE condition, so I'm curious to see how it compares to my HM 601

 

Hello folks,

I just attended a cool show in Beijing for a couple of hours : the 2017 Hi-fi headphones audition and expo. My objective was just to listen to the Dita Dream but I found other cool stuff. Very short impressions :

- Questyle QP2R : didn't have my own tracks so take with a pinch of salt. Great built, good UI. Great sound if you like clean, transparent, bordering on analytical. Feels very powerful. I tried with my VE8 balanced and there was significant hiss, didn't have time to try single ended, but the hiss could be a no go for some on sensitive iems

- AK SP1000: same as QP2R, not my tracks, and the tracks where most crap, so could not form an impression on sound. There does not seem to be a dramatic jump in performance from my WM1Z but it seems less warm. The design and build are absolutely STUNNING. I could buy it just for that. The background is ultra silent, and the UI is great. My only issue is that it is quite wide and less convenient in your hand than WM1Z or LPG

 

I am sensitive to hiss and my SE535 are even more. They even came with a poor man version of IEMatch. I tried SE536 with my new toy Onkyo DP-X1 on Normal gain - no hiss. On High gain and volume all the way up, now when I was paying attention there is b a touch but I had to listen for it. Certainly nothing I would notice during normal listening. Knowing that SE535 are sensitive , I started on Low gain and it is way more than enough power for SE535
I remember that on iBasso DX80 I did not hear any hiss either. Cannot check it right now, DX80 is on it's way to China, but I do not remember any hiss with SE535, at least on low gain.

 

Sony A35

TL;DR : Well built budget DAP with DSD support and LDAC/BT, insane playback time (20+ hours). SQ "remarkably unremarkable" but a step up from the sharp sounding past A series. no giant killa, rather underpowered. Depending on where you live, a used ZX100 could a better solution SQ-wise.

Source: Sony ZX1, Fiio X3, Mission Cyrus PCM 2
Amp: ALO National +
IEMs: ex1000, andro, fitear parterre, f111, Noble X, Pioneer SE CH9T, ex800ST

Tiny, toy like, but well built aluminium unibody with touch screen. Sony UI is responsive and simple, but problems with linking cover art with certain FLAC rips.

With sound enhancements disabled. Sound is clear, relatively full bodied but suppressed frequency extremes. Reminds me of Mojo more than the ZX series. Polite/bland, not as sharp or 2D as the older A series.

Plays well with BA iems, fine with Noble X, hiss free with andros or fitears, doesn't overly darken them or turn them into bass monsters. Underpowered “limp dickness” with big diaphragm'ed DDs including sony's own.

vs ZX1 (with andro, noble x and fitears)
a35 lacks the dimensionality, microdynamics and spatial cues of the ZX1, ZX1 is tonally better balanced, more expressive and musically involving to me.

difference btwn 24/96 vs 16/44.1 of the same recording is more obvious with the ZX1. with A35, you are likely to wonder what the fuss is all about with HR software.

vs x3
similar, but x3 has denser, richer mids, and punchier bass and even less air. x3’s wolfson dac + its analogue output reminds me of naim/linn sound of the 80s, 90s. A35 is more technically proficient but x3 has a more exciting “coloured” sound. a35 has a more mature user experience tho.

Connectivity (not tested)
i'll leave wireless to @gixxerwimp and local users appear to pair it successfully as a digital transport with mojo and other usb dacs.

Overall, A35 is good enough for pleasant, hiss free listening with BA iems and efficient HPs, it gets out of the way but lacks the musical/sonic insight of better sources. The build/UE/battery life are less archaic than similarity priced KoFi/chiFi daps.

 

Agree, the A35 is a nice little unit (a bit too small even), good bang for buck. I'm not particularly fussy about sources, but did notice it's a touch warmer than what I'm used to.

I bought it specifically to use via Bluetooth/LDAC with the MUC-M2BT1. BT range is good enough to walk around a large living room and the audio quality with 16/44.1 is effectively lossless for me. Problem is there is no onboard BT media volume control and it outputs full signal to the BT receiver (Android phones have SW volume for BT media out). More here in @zerodeefex' wireless is a thing now thread. Volume buttons control the BT receiver.

It (and other Sony devices I think) don't like progressive jpgs. So you have to use mp3tag or something similar to replace any album art that doesn't display (you can just extract, resave in MSPaint or other photo editor, then re-embed). Sony's Media Go is supposed to be able to handle this, but I'm a control freak and prefer manage my music library manually. This is a really good review that explains all functionality (and quirks) in great detail.

 

The Sony A15 series also does not display progressive jpegs. Most of my album art is pretty large (1500px)and did not seem to be a problem once they where saved in the correct format. The A35 would have been on my purchase list, but decided to go for the FiioX5III instead. I will miss the battery life and pain free firmware, although I do get more power and streaming. Still nice to hear that they have warmed up the A35. The A15 was almost a little thin sound at times.

 

Do a lot of these android DAPs also allow you to download podcast players? I need a budget solution for on-the-go listening.

Just got a new Pixel, but the bluetooth is not so hot and my car doesn't have an aux jack.

 

Assume these O previews only work on devices running "stock android" (if such a thing exists) and there's no chance I can try it with my Galaxy A8.

Thinking about getting a Z3+ for LDAC support. Sorry OT, not really DAP talk.

 

Just skip the Snapdragon 810 generation (Z3+/Z5). The X Compact has a significantly lower chance of drastic heating.

Might pick up a Sony or the new Pixel to replace my OP3 soonish myself.

Curious if anyone tried the Shanling M2S? Seems like a M1 plus.

 

From what I read, it's mainly due to graphics processing (eg. shooting 4K video) and not as bad with the Marshmallow update. I basically plan to use it as a DAP, possibly streaming WiFi from my NAS, so heat shouldn't be an issue? Just looking for the cheapest LDAC device that supports SW volume control to BT. I can get a used one here for a little over $100.

 

Ah, that's cool. Still have issues with storage and the poor headphone power, though.

Hence the DAP quest.

 

This is a somewhat odd question for owners of the Sony ZX2. Can somebody tell me how thick the rubber spacer is that's included with the ZX2? I have a used ZX2 on the way, and I'm going to stack it with the Headamp Pico Power, but the seller no longer had the spacer. I'm hoping that I can use some 3M Dual Lock to both level the player and adhere it to the amp.

If you think that there's another thread better suited for this question, let me know. This seemed like the most obvious place.

 

I've had the iBasso DX200 for a few days now and I'm torn on it. I'm using Dita Dreams with it (but also have ie800) and can mainly compare to Mojo.

The iBasso sounds pretty good but... Has more hints of digitus than Mojo does to my ears. Mojo is also bassier which I tend to like.

I'm really annoyed in a lot of ways because I want a dap aio solution but the the easy choice the WM1A doesn't have Tidal support or Android at all... But the Android ones have Tidal compression anyway? I can't even tell if its volume distortion of the dac that sounds so off... I think I still hear treble glare from the sabre though it's just subconsciously more tiring than the chord. Going to bring Mojo to work tomorrow instead to see how tired my ears get.

It literally looks like a Hugo 2 may be my best bet for a worthy dac/amp for this thing which kind of annoys me because it seems over priced and is a terrible pocket solution...

Anyway the Dita Dreams kickass if any one likes DD iems. My expectations were quite high and they crushed them. The bass texture is incredible.

 

I found the DX200 too sterile sounding to my ears...didn't do anything for me. I enjoy the Mojo / LPG / WM1Z more.

 

Still need it? I can dig up the retail box and check it if you want

 

Thanks for asking. I have the player now and was able to come up with a solution, so you don't need to dig up the retail box. I appreciate the offer.

 

Hi guys, just reading through this and need some help in picking out a portable music solution. Preferrably a DAP, but I'll take a DAC/Amp that'll work with my phone as well (Nexus 6p/LGG6). Budget=$300. Sound is my main concern, along with needing 192khz playback. i don't care about bluetooth at all, or using the DAP as a DAC, I already have a DAC for use with my PC, so DAP is just DAP.

MY headphones are MrSpeakers Aeon.

 

I suggest looking for a used geek out v2+; they have been selling cheap over the last several months, are capable of high power / high voltage (especially if you go balanced), and work well with android. I can't say whether it will have ultimate synergy with the aeon, but it should at least have the chops to drive the aeon reasonably well. I am hesitant to recommend any stand-alone DAP for a full sized ortho. Most DAPs, even the better (read: more expensive ones) are designed around driving IEMs or other small / efficient headphones. There are thousand-dollar-plus bricks that don't have that limitation, but it doesn't sound like you are in that market.