DAP discussion thread

Discussion in 'IEMs and Portable Gear' started by zerodeefex, Oct 8, 2015.

  1. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    Hi Bina, what is the DAC being used in the M8, given the AKM factory fire? Is it still the AK4499EQ?
     
  2. Bina

    Bina MOT - Shanling

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    This one is put together by some Japanese fan on Twitter.

    Yes, all current M8 are still using AK4499EQ. If we would change such crucial component, we would be sure to make big announcement and at least change the name of the device to make it clear.

    But as you might be aware, we were already forced to switch DACs on M6 and M6 Pro. So time for M8 will also come sooner or later...
     
  3. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    @Bina getting the Shanling M3X. I still have concerns of no Android updates beyond 7.1, but it's a budget DAP that should do the trick of just playing one to three apps that I care about.
     
  4. Claud

    Claud Living the ORFAS dream

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    Hi Bina. Thank you for participating in our forum. I have recently bought a new M8 and it is still breaking in. I have heard that there is a "premium" setting if you are using the Shanling Music Player app. I want to know where it is on my M8. IWhat does it do to the sound?
     
  5. Bina

    Bina MOT - Shanling

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    Not sure who told you it's "premium" setting :D

    It's simplified Prime mode, where all other apps are killed and you have access just to Shanling Music app. It's mainly for the crowd that's not comfortable running around Android and want just a simple music player. No impact on sound (if you don't have some apps that are screwing up with the output)/.

    You can switch to it in quick access /drop down menu. You can find some other tips/tricks on here: https://en.shanling.com/article-AndroidSetup.html
     
  6. Claud

    Claud Living the ORFAS dream

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    Sorry, I meant Prime mode. I do not have any use for the M8 other than a hi res music player. I have a HiBy R6 2020 for portable Tidal with 16X unfolding MQA.
    I would love to see and identify the "Prime" button so I can use it. The instructions you gave me are great. Thank You. But I can not access the Prime button if I do not know what it looks like.
    My M8 now has about 200 hours of break in and sounds great. I am still going for at least 300 hours.
     
  7. Bina

    Bina MOT - Shanling

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    Pull down quick access menu and click on the "Android Mode" button.
     
  8. xenomorph

    xenomorph New

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    Hi all
    So between the Hiby R6 2020 and the Shanling M6 21 which would be better for 10 OHM IEMs on single ended output? I have the CA Dorado 2020s and they need some juice to sound the best. Currently got AK SR15 but at lower ohms it does not have a high output.
    If there is another DAP that could be good at under $700 that would work better then those let me know too :)
     
  9. Claud

    Claud Living the ORFAS dream

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    Go for the HiBy R6 2020. Its on sale at MusicTeck this weekend. It sounds good and has no issues in regular use. I have one and a Shanling M8. The M8 is the best sounding DAP, but has issues if you want to use Tidal. R6 has no issues streaming music from Tidal etc.
     
  10. xenomorph

    xenomorph New

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    Yeah the 1040 mW at 16 OHMS on Hiby is good. But it is more expensive then m6 21 even on sale price haha
    Plus better battery on the M6 21.
    Anyone know how much power difference there is between them for 10ohm IEMs?
     
  11. Claud

    Claud Living the ORFAS dream

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    As in most things, you get what you pay for.
     
  12. xenomorph

    xenomorph New

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    true lol
     
  13. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    what kind of Tidal problems does the M8 have?
     
  14. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    Shanling M8 acquired, battery power cycled 2x and some hours of burn in. So far, impressions are very positive with minor usability caveats. Pairing with Andromeda 2020 is awesome, high-Z phones decent. Power to drive ZMF Blackwood to listenable levels and not much beyond that in Turbo Gain. Single ended only so far, 4.4mm balanced cable for Andros (Double Helix copper litz) arrives tomorrow. I need to make a 4.4-XLR adapter for full size headphones in the near future, and a decent 3.5mm-RCA cable for DAC only (no I actually don't have a good one of these on hand, only Monoprice versions with oxidized ground sleeves on the RCAs).

    To answer my question above, the M8 will start to play the MQA file, stop for a few seconds, then resume. It's very distracting, although I don't really hear what makes MQA special in the first place so I'm primarily sticking with my own library.
     
    Last edited: Jun 30, 2021
  15. Claud

    Claud Living the ORFAS dream

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    Burn in has been said to be 350 hours. I just charged it and played it using one of my IEMs about 300 hours, checking sound briefly about every two to three days.
    Congrats !! you now have a DAP that will make all of your IEMs sound as good as they will get.
     
  16. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    Holy crap, 350 hr? I am far short of that, but I will say it sounded significantly better after each battery drain/fill cycle--and of course, I drained the battery by playing music. I have the thing hooked up to my Crack now (power off but still presenting a load), in line out mode...also plugged into the PC USB port for power. Playing 192kHz files.

    Curious, which filter are you using? I have settled on "short delay slow roll-off filter", after testing them all pretty thoroughly I found that was the one that gave me the most natural staging/placement, smooth treble, and fit my bass performance tastes best (sounds like it's coming from in front of me with the rest of the band, rather than banging directly on my skull). Low dispersion shot delay was a close second.
     
  17. will_f

    will_f Friend

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    Opinions on the FIIO M11 Pro:

    So I bought a FIIO M11Pro about 6 months ago after traveling with my ZMFs and deciding They needed a better amp than my iPhone. On paper the FIIOs look like thy would do a decent job and they fit my price target. I also bought a pair of FIIO FD3 items at the same time to use when biking.

    Sadly, the M11Pro does not excel with my ZMFs. While the clarity and detail are excellent, the amp just doesn’t bring them to life, even in high gain and balanced out. While better than my iPhone, I wasn’t impressed enough to feel it was a good pairing. It does do a great job with the FIIO IEMs though. It’s pretty obvious this DAP is meant for IEMs.

    Soundstage is small but imaging is excellent and very stable.

    The DAP itself suffers from an outdated android OS, but other than that works well.
     
    Last edited: Jul 5, 2021
  18. ohshitgorillas

    ohshitgorillas Friend

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    The M8 is fantastic so far, I am running some aggressive burn-in tracks (mostly pink noise and sine sweeps) on repeat and it should be done soon. I will say I'm surprised at how different the Andromeda 2020 sound in balanced vs single-ended. I actually prefer the single-ended mode to balanced, which I'm guessing has to do with impedance matching (it's not like they need the extra power, and the better battery life while traveling is a big bonus as well).

    Kinda bummed now that I spent cash on a nice balanced copper litz cable (Double Helix) only to discover that single-ended sounds better with the Andromeda... I have considered re-terminating the cable with 3.5mm Eidolic connector I also ordered from them, so I could use the 4.4mm to make an XLR adapter. I'm also thinking now that silver instead of copper might be the way to go, as long as it's not too aggressive... maybe Lavricables silver litz, or a copper/silver blend. Decisions, decisions...
     
  19. wormcycle

    wormcycle Friend

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    As much as I like Kann Cube, it is not real DAP but seriously good portable DAC/amp, I do not think I will buy any Astell & kern product again because my overall user experience with A&K just sucks.
    And that on the top of the obvious price gauging that is evident if you try to buy any accessories. They tried to charge $250 for a balanced line out cable for Kann Cube, Moon audio did it for $100, their cases that cost hundreds are not any better than $40 bugs you can buy on Amazon.
    No, the real reason is that they seem to be releasing three DAPs with ever more idiotic names every months, completely abandoning framework upgrades to existing products. The obvious example is Roon endpoint that is available, but not on Kann Cube, and not on Kann. Their clientele seems to be people who spend 3k on new DAC every year. I am not one of them, even if I could afford it.
     
  20. Claud

    Claud Living the ORFAS dream

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    Try a Shanling DAP. More musical.
     

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