Views 24,632 Hiby Seeds II are priced at 130 USD, and they will be compared with 1Custom Junior, Audiosense AQ3, and iBasso IT01S. We will also explore pairings with Hiby R3 PRO, and HIDIZS AP80PRO. Introduction Hiby is a house name for DAPs and software, but it is a …
Entry-Level products are those friendly with your pockets, and the kind of products you want to have at the beginning of your audio journey. Here, each dollar brings huge improvements, and the higher you climb on the price ladder early on, the better your overall performance is.
You can find my reviews on entry-level products below, and also the best entry-level products here: https://amzn.to/3faO37O
1. Entry Level
Tempotec V1A Variations – Full Featured DAPy
Views 28,442 V1A Variations has a complicated name, but a simple function. It is a DAP or Digital Audio Player, and it has a ton of features, comes straight out of China, and it is priced at 110 USD at the moment of writing this full written review. This means …
Shanling MW200 Bluetooth Neckband – Adapted For Music
Views 60,884 Today they finally convinced me to review a neckband in writing, so we’ll start with a Shanling. The price for the MW200 is 120 USD, and it is maid to be paired with IEMs based on the MMCX connector. This means that I’ll be pairing it with Final …
Desktop Bluetooth Focus – FiiO BTA30 Bluetooth Receiver
Views 37,036 FiiO BTA30 is the offspring of their successful BTR5 and BTR3K Bluetooth receivers. It also has all the bluetooth codecs, and is priced pretty pocket-friendly at 90 USD at the moment. It comes with SBC, aptX, aptX LL, aptX HD, and LDAC, and it will get compared to …
Isolate Me From Noise – iFi iDefender Plus
Views 28,939 iFi iDefender Plus is a Power Tweak or rather a USB Filter designed to remove buzz, hum and other noise caused by a bad grounding and grounding loops in your listening chain. It ain’t perfect for sure, and for some systems it won’t do anything, so today we’ll …
Thicker Than Magma – Urbanista New York ANC BT Headphones
Views 58,458 Urbanista New York is a full-feature headphone with a pocket-friendly price of 180 USD. They will get compared to FiiO EH3 NC, Grado SR80e, and 1More Triple Driver Headphones. Since they are a Bluetooth Headphone with ANC, they don’t get a pairing, they will sound a bit better …
Love Me Now – HIDIZS AP80 PRO Ultra Portable Music Player
Views 30,581 HIDIZS AP80 PRO is an ultraportable DAP priced at 170 USD, and mainly designed for IEMs, but capable of also driving some easier headphones. It will get compared to Shanling M2s, FiiO M3PRO, and Hiby R3 PRO. It will also get paired with FiiO FA9, iBasso AM05, and …
Warm, Forward & Blue – iFi Hip DAC / AMP
Views 56,479 iFi Hip DAC is a very pocket-friendly DAC/AMP from the UK-based producer iFi, and it comes with a full feature set, including a beautiful design, and is priced at 150 USD, making it one of the most affordable DAC/AMPs out there. It will be compared to Earmen TR-AMP, …
Class A In A Nutshell – Centrance DACport HD
Views 44,308 CEntrance DACport HD is a class-A portable DAC/AMP for smartphones, priced at 180 USD, making it one of the more expensive DAC/AMPs out there. It will be compared to Earstudio HUD100, FiiO BTR5, Periodic Audio Nickel AMP. It will also get paired with FiiO FA9, HIFIMAN Deva, MAS …
Resolution Ain’t Everything – RHA True Connect TWS IEMs Review
Views 20,104 The price of the RHA True Connect dropped to 70 USD from 170 they were launched at, making them a pretty good deal now. With a ton of competitors, like Master & Dynamic MW07GO, HIFIMAN TWS600, and 1More Stylish TWS IEMs, they have to fight for their place …
Entirely Connected – Pro-Ject Bluetooth Box E Receiver / DAC Review
Views 76,731 Bluetooth Box E is a Bluetooth receiver like BTR5 from FiiO, but this one’s for desktop. It has a really good build quality, and a pocket-friendly price of about 80 USD, the only part that everyone’s hesitant about being the actual sonic performance. We’ll compare it to BTR5, …
Calculators, Music & Feelings – FiiO M3Pro Entry-Level DAP
Views 44,486 M3PRO is not exactly a linear upgrade from the original FiiO M3K, that I reviewed quite a while ago. Given its pocket-friendly price point of 80 USD, it does replace the original M3K, and it will get compared to M3K, FiiO BTR5, and Earmen TR-AMP. The pairings list …
Receive Signal – Send to Chifi – FiiO BTR3K aptX Bluetooth DAC-AMP
Views 52,894 BTR3k is the more affordable Receiver mady by FiiO, priced at 60 USD, and it will be paired with Fischer AMPs FA-4E XB, IMR R2 Aten, and Dita Fidelity. For the comparisons, it will be compared extensively throughout this review with BTR5, and also with iBasso DC01, FiiO …
Love Your Pocket – Jade Audio EA3 IEMs Review
Views 57,538 Jade EA3 is made by a sub-base company of FiiO named Jade Audio, and they are priced at 40 USD. They will get compared with FiiO F9 PRO, Shozy Hibiki, and with REVONEXT QT3. Given their price point, they will mostly be paired with less expensive sources, or …
Half Done, Half Won – Earstudio HUD100 DAC/AMP Review
Views 29,137 When you need something tiny, something that’s practical, you know that there will be some sacrifices. HUD 100 is smaller than BTR5, it has a nimble body, and it is priced at 140 USD, and for that price, HUD100 has two headphone outputs, one in low gain and …
King Of Affodable Power – FiiO K5 PRO Desktop DAC/AMP Review
Views 89,024 FiiO K5 PRO gives a nice boost to your desktop setup, by having a Desktop-Class DAC, a Heavy Duty Headphone Amplifier, and a friendly price point of just 150 USD. This makes it very easy to recommend for pairing with a large selection of Headphones, including Ultrasone Signature …
Midy Greaty Soundy – Audiosense AQ3 IEMs Review
Views 70,988 AQ3 is an IEM priced at 190 USD, which I reviewed in video already, and which will get compared to many IEMs, including Dunu Falcon-C (220 USD), Periodic Audio Ti (150 USD), and FiiO FA7 (250 USD). The pairings list will include some gems like FiiO M3PRO, iBasso …
FiiO EH3 NC Bluetooth Headphones – Commercially Cool
Views 36,244 FiiO EH3 NC are an entry-level noise cancelling pair of Bluetooth Headphones, priced at 170 USD, being competitors to headphones also in the entry-level area, like AIWA ARC-1, Brainwavz HM100, and ESS 422H. I will skip the pairings part of this review, and will explain a bit in …
DTS:Virtual X Made for Movies And Music – Yamaha YAS-207 Soundbar + Subwoofer System Review
Views 30,772 Yamaha YAS-207 is an entry-level budget soundbar that comes with a wireless subwoofer, and is priced at about 350 USD at the moment of making this review. The best price for it in Romania can be found at HIFI Expert, and the system will get compared to Edifier …
4-Way Chifi IEM Fight – BLON BL-05, YinYoo V2, Revonext QT3, Revonext QT2 IEMs Review
Views 86,853 Today’s review will focus on the entry-level chifi, and it features BLON BL-05, priced at about 50 USD, depending on the configuration, which will be compared to KZ AS10, Final Audio E3000, and paired with HIDIZS AP80, YinYoo V2 priced at 40 USD, which will be compared to …
Scientifically Awesome – Topping E30 DAC Review
Views 48,230 Topping is a large and growing company from China, and their Topping E30 is priced at only 130 USD at the moment of making this review. This makes it a direct competitor, and it will be compared to Burson Play, Pro-Ject Pre Box S2, Cyrus Soundkey. Since it …
On-Ear EDM Party – Mas Audio Science X5h Headphones And XX Bluetooth Cable
Views 26,758 MAS X5h is a headphone from a company named MAS Audio Science. The headphones are priced at 300 USD, which makes them a direct competitor to HIFIMAN Sundara, Verum One, Meze 99 Classics, and The OVC Vacuum Tube Headphones. In terms of pairings, I have chosen HIDIZS AP80, …
Rock On – Grado SR80e On-Ear Headphones Review
Views 75,795 Grado SR80e is one of the finest headphones for those who enjoy a colorful, dynamic midrange, and a really sparkly treble, but don’t require a lot of bass. They are priced at 100 USD, and they will be compared with Brainwavz HM100, 1More Triple Driver, and AIWA ARC-1. …
Light Spring Audio – HIFIMAN TWS 600
Views 24,623 HIFIMAN TWS600 is the latest earphone from HIFIMAN, and it is the bluetooth version of their well-known RE-600 series, having been launched at 200 USD, but now being found at 70-80 USD in most stores. In this review, I will be comparing them with Lypertek Tevi, 1More Stylish …
Pick Me Up – iBasso DC01 Type-C USB DAC / AMP
Views 50,311 This review will focus on iBasso DC01, a tiny USB Type-C DAC/AMP, made for Android Smartphones, but which is ended in a 2.5mm Balanced Jack. I will compare it with HIDIZS Sonata HD DAC, Cyrus Soundkey, FiiO BTR5, and the Audirect Beam. For a good balance of price …