DAP discussion thread

How much was that with import taxes?

 

~450 dollars in total (VAT 24% + 1% customs fee here in Finland) so around ~365 euros. May be a bit more depending on if you charge your card directly in euros or dollars and their card specific exchange rates.

Still >220 euros cheaper than Amazon.de though and the internal memory amount is of no concern to me as I'll be using a high capacity microSD card anyway. Not to mention you get the version without a volume cap/high gain mode is available etc.

 

I got mine from Amazon.co.uk back in the day for about that price. Stil this is the EU version with volume cap, which I rockboxed...still that's a mighty fine price!
I should get some balanced cables for my Stagedivers: Any thoughts from where here in EU? Forza?

 

Nice - I remember reading somewhere that Amazon.co.uk and perhaps .de had a great pre order/initial shipment price. It's a shame they didn't keep it, otherwise I would have bought mine from there too.

Unfortunately I have no idea when it comes to third party cables in Europe... Let me know if you find a good place though. I also need a 4.4 mm pentaconn balanced cable for my Clears.

 

Saw measurement results on a Chinese forum saying output impedance is 1.6 ohms, not stated whether it’s balanced or SE though.
link: http://www.erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=2086500

I’m also very curious about output impedance of Sony DAPs but haven’t found any yet.

 

I'm in the UK and bought a 2.5mm Fiio balanced cable for £30 and Penon Audio adapter for $10 to use with NW-ZX300 and Andromeda's and I am pleased with the results.

 

Does anyone know if bluetooth tethering a 4g connection to a dap (such as fiio x5 iii), instead of streaming audio, will bypass bluetooth audio codecs?

 

I am confused, are you asking about using Bluetooth to take the internet connectivity from a phone and share it to the DAP? And then using wired headphones from the DAP? I ask because the DAP you suggest (x5iii) is internet capable already, so the step seems unnecessary.

To the general concept of your question, no, data transfer over Bluetooth does not use audio codecs. But using Bluetooth to tether a data signal from your phone is going to gobble battery and probably cut out periodically. On a DAP like the x5iii you would be better off making your phone a WiFi hotspot and letting the DAP connect to it via WiFi.

 

Yes I am.

I tried it yesterday and it actually works quite well. My phone is often USB tethered to my PC via FoxFi, which also allows unlimited Bluetooth tether simeltaneously, allowing me to go from my PC with Fiio as usb dac, to Fiio Bluetooth tethering very easily
I did it for a few hours yesterday and experienced no cutout.

The wifi on school campuses is not strong enough for Fiios weak wifi receiver, which will in general alcut out more than Bluetooth from my phone

 

I really enjoyed the Fiio X5 3rd gen for it's smooth, yet detailed sound. No treble nasties.

Is there something like that with really low output impedance in the $200 or under bracket? I really don't need the bells and whistles the X5 came with.

This will be paired with the MD Plus.

 

I didn't like the FiiO X7 much at all. This unit uses the 9018 Sabre chip - I should have known better. Never heard a 9018 device that I have really liked. The X7Mk2 uses the 9028PRO chip and promises to have a much more pleasant sound signature (never heard it - after the X7 I am done with FiiO).

Currently using an iBasso DX200 and couldn't be happier with it. I don't use android mode and use it as a basic player. Lots of amp modules to choose from (like the X7) however the sound signature is so much more pleasant to my ears. DX200 uses the 9028PRO chip.

 

Cayin N3 I think is about 0.5. Shanling's all have like 5 ohm OI.

RIP Sansa Clip

 

I'm still trying to decide on a DAP for my P1s. Looking to purchase something this spring.

N3 and Shanling M2s are my leading contenders, but that OI difference is pretty extreme. I'm thinking the P1 @ 50 ohms wouldn't suffer any strange issues with the high impedance of the Shanling, but it sucks not being able to test them out beforehand.

 

I was looking at the M2S as well until I found out about the high OI. That won't mesh well with the MD Plus I'm going to be using.

 

The Shanling M3s is a bit more expensive, but it's rated at 0.3Ω, which should pair fairly well with MD Plus. Seems like the extra $$ is for the balanced 2.5mm, a feature that seems to be creeping into the ~$250 segment.

 

I owned the previous generation Shanling M2 and the more recent Cayin N3. I think that the Cayin N3 is actually pretty good for a little player. I was not crazy about the the control scheme but it worked well enough. You can snag an openbox model from MusicTeck for $125.

 

Had Shanling M3 for a while. It was one quirky DAP to use, rather cheaply made. But it sounded nice for the price.

 

The new generation is like ten steps up in build quality and UI.

 

No treble nasties? I found the MD Plus does not get on well with that. It's rather fatiguing out of my DX90.