ddHiFi M120B Type-C DAC IEM Cable – Music Travels Along Curved Lines
ddHiFi M120B is a $89 USD upgrade cable for IEMs which has a Type-C connector, having the DAC embedded in the cable, with nothing else required for you to drive headphones besides the cable. Today we will review the M120 B, how it sounds like, and what my experience has been like using the M 120 B with multiple IEMs.
Introduction
ddHifi designed the new M120B to be a one-device-fits-all solution, so this is a cable that has the DAC, AMP and everything in between inside, you just get one connector that gets into your phone, and one connector for your earphones, to bring back the glamor of the good old days when phones came with audio jacks. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. A huge thanks to ddHiFi for providing us with the sample for this review.
PROs – Excellent resolution, sharp and defined sound with good instrument separation, more than enough driving power for most IEMs, and low background noise. It is more convenient than most dongle DAC solutions, and the driving part is in the Y-Split, which never gets hot or even warm. Button for playback control, and a microphone make it a very good choice for anyone who’s on a budget but was a good solution to use their IEMS with a phone.
Cons – Sharp and transparent sound is not forgiving of bad quality sources.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3NWZMIp
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDqYGh7
Build Quality/Aesthetics
ddHiFi M120B Or Mobile 120 cm Balanced is a cable designed for the casual user, anyone who needs a reliable and high quality cable solution to listen to music while on-the-go. As most smartphones have eliminated the 3.5mm audio jack and now we need dongles, adapters and other fancy stuff, ddHiFi decided to make a simpler solution, so M120B has all the components needed in the cable itself, including the decoding DAC, in-line controls, and a microphone.
And they weren’t jocking with the M120B, this is a cable that has support for high-resolution formats, including up to 384 kHz over the Type-C variant, and with a very low power consumption.
The lighting version has support for decoding rates up to 48 kHz, and the while the Type-C version can work lossless, the Lightning version converts the output for Apple Music, QQ Music, NetEase Cloud Music and other apps for iPhone when the music file is 96 kHz or 192 kHz.
To make the cable lighter and more comfortable to use, M120B has the remote control / microphone and the decoding circuit placed at the Y split position instead of inside the Type-C Jack. The Type-C jack connects to the Y Splitter DAC AMP via two separate silver-plated wires, and there are no shared loop ground wires for the signal. Inside the Y Split is a hidden MEMS microphone that can be used for taking phone calls casually. The round button in the middle controls phone calls and music playback.
M120B is also nicknamed “Mini Ocean”, as the base cable is derived from the shielded and upgraded BC125A Air Ocean cable, with the main core made of high Purity OCC, and a small amount of silver plating. You can grab M120B with both 2-Pin connectors, but also with MMCx connectors, and ddHiFi promises compatibility with Sennheiser IE900 for the balanced version, but as my pair is currently broken and in the Sennheiser Service, I can only test the 2-Pin variant.
As there is no ear hook or guide, and M120B is really soft, you can wear it both straight-down and over-the-ear, allowing for a more traditional style than the typical audiophile cable does. The usage of M120B is very good, it works well with both Android and my Windows PC, no drivers needed. Having no ear guides means that the handling noise is canceled ever more effectively than with most cables, but most cables with an ear guide will provide an ideal insertion depth, while with M120b you have to find it yourself with a bit of eyeballing and trial-and-error. There is no USB DAC delay, and you can use M120B for watching movies, playing games and enjoying real-time content.
Sound Quality
Pairings – To test the M120B I have connected it in the most bootleg, weird way to my computer, using a the USB cable that came with KeyChron Q6 MAX connected to the type-c adapter of the PC, then it goes into the Type-C to USB A Mother connector provided by KeyChron. Then, a ddHiFi TC01 A connects to that USB Type-A plug, and then M120B goes into the Type-C Output of the TC01A. Really and improvised, but works flawlessly, which I love about ddHiFi, KeyChron and computer stuff in general, you can really adapt things for your needs. My Windows PC detects the DAC inside as DD TC35B. The IEMs I have paired with the M120B are YanYin Carmen, Xenns Mangird Tea PRO, BQEYZ Winter, Soundz Flame, Soundz Avant, Simgot EM10, Hiby x Faudio Project Ace, and HarmonicDyne Devil. I cannot hear any background noise or hissing, regardless of the volume, but the volume control is limited in windows, and you can give M120B up to about 40% until things get too loud with most IEMs. This is different from Android, where you have a more granular control and at 100%, the volume is more where you’d expect it to be with IEMs, at 120 dB for most IEMs. Most dongle DAC AMPs with no internal volume control will exhibit this behavior and get too loud too fast, saturating the max volume a bit too quickly. There is a quiet clicking noise when changing songs, and when changing data rate / bit depth.
Overall Signature – M120B is a very transparent sounding dongle cable DAC AMP, having a sharp, detailed tuning without much coloration, except for a fairly full and punchy sub bass, and a bright, edgy and airy treble. This kind of tuning and signature is perfect for metal, rock and EDM, pop music.
Bass – Starting with the low-end, we have a deep and clean bass, exceptional clarity and impact, and a bit of extra meat for the enthusiasts. Basically, M120B will add a bit of sub bass punch to all IEMs, giving them a fuller, warmer sound. There’s no added bass bleed, just bass impact and quantity up to 80 Hz. Bass speed is natural and edges on being slow, creating a satisfying and clean decay.
Midrange – M120B gives all music a sharp, slightly edgy and crisp midrange, with a good resolution, and separated midrange. There’s a tendency for both male and female voices to sound a bit sharper and thinner than their default, which creates the feeling of sharpness and enhances it, I would recommend the M120B more for bassy and warm sounding IEMs, than for those which are already sharp and bright. This kind of presentation gives vibrancy and emotion to female voices, but makes male voices less deep and thinner.
Treble – With a sharp and extended treble, M120B has a really sparkly and airy sound, excellent resolution up top, and a good amount of detail / precision. Treble speed is on the faster side of things, giving music a high resolution and clarity. There’s a tendency for most music to sound quite bright if the song allows it, M120B is not forgiving and not very smooth in the top end.
Volume Control – Volume control is different on Windows machines and Android, and this seems to be the same for all dongles. Windows saturates the volume too quickly, not allowing dongles and DACs to be 100% at 100%, and instead forcing them to get too loud too quickly. This being said, M120B sounds good at both quiet and loud volumes, but the signature changes heavily with volume. At low volumes, the sound is sharper, brighter and harsher, a bit fatiguing and thin. It gets warmer, smoother and fuller at loud volumes, creating the feeling of volume and bass better, all music having more body and substance once you get loud.
Dynamics / PRaT / Textures – Depending on the volume, M120B generally has a crisp, sharp and clear texture that allows details to be presented sharply, with good clarity. I like what it does for rock, metal, EDM, K-Pop and K-rock, but I heavily prefer ACG music with female lead voices, as metal and rock with a male lead can sound harsh and fatiguing really fast.
Soundstage – M120B can create a natural soundstage, it does not expat the width too much nor does it create the biggest image, but it sounds natural and never too narrow, keeping things playing nicely around your head and giving music enough instrument separation to feel high resolution and crisp.
Value and Conclusion
ddHiFi M120B has a really low price, but offers a strong performance. While most dongle DAC/AMPs will initially seem more convenient to the casual user, I feel like M120B has a better place in the heart of customer who does not want any weak links or complicated setups, you can simply plug in and enjoy most IEMs without worrying about driving power, or signature, M120B is very transparent and crisp, and will sound much better than the vast majority of similarly priced dongles.
At the end of the day, dd HiFi M120B is an excellent way to enjoy IEMs and Earphones, rendering a sharp, clear and highly detailed sound with good bass impact and clarity.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3NWZMIp
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDqYGh7
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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