Views 49,336 HIFIMAN Mini Shangri-La is a 2300 USD Electrostatic headphone system, composed of the Mini Shangri-La Headphones which cost 1100 USD, and the Electrostatic Amplifier which costs 1500 USD, with the system having a better price combined than if you bought each individually. Today we are going to review …
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Topping A50 III Headphone Amplifier – Refinement And Power Minified
Views 34,567 Topping A50 III is a $199 USD Headphone Amplifier, recommended for purchase along with the Topping D50 III Dac which we have reviewed recently, and the headphone amplifier counterpart to that DAC. Today we will review the A50 III and compare it with other headphone amplifiers, including JDS …
iBasso D16 Taipan 1 Bit FPGA DAC AMP with 128 DACs – The Ultimate Listening Experience Of Cascaded 16 Sets of 8E PWM-DACs
Views 46,262 iBasso D16 is a $1499 USD Digital to Analog Converter and Super Class A Headphone Amplifier, designed as a portable unit, with what I consider to be the most unique DAC tech we have seen this year. I am talking about 1Bit DACs, with 16 sets of cascaded …
Astral Acoustics Eclipse IEM Cable – Light From Across The Universe
Views 29,648 Astral Acoustics Eclipse is a $950 USD HiFi IEM Cable with all connectors and terminations included, and today we will review the Eclipse, pairing it with multiple IEMs in the process. Given the price point, we will also compare Astral Acoustics Eclipse with multiple IEM cables, including Astral …
Soundz Blade V2 Universal Greek HIFI IEMs – Dazzling Music Abound
Views 34,689 Soundz Blade V2 is a 750 EURO / $812 USD pair of high-end IEMs designed with a switch to either make the sound bright and neutral, perfect for monitoring, or add body, bass impact and more weight to music, turning it to a more enjoyable listening experience. Today …
ECdesigns PowerDAC-SX Stereo HIFI Integrated DAC – Ultimate Levels Of Power And Control
Views 45,519 ECdesigns PowerDAC-SX is a 3450 EURO / $3700 USD DAC which can directly drive speakers, and balanced headphones without using any amplifiers. It comes with a remote, and it is one of the most interesting and unique stereo sound reproduction solutions in the whole world. Today we will …
Elipson W35 Xi Bluetooth Speaker – Absolute Sphere Connected Sound
Views 34,694 Elipson W35 Xi is a 699 Euro / $750 USD High-End Flagship Bluetooth Speaker designed as a sphere, coming to take the wireless market by surprise, and in this review we will study the design, placement, usage, and how it sounds like. Given the price point, it competes …
Questyle NHB12 Apple MFi Certified IEMs – Galvanized Steel Sound
Views 26,463 Questyle NHB12 is a $399 USD pair of IEMS with Apple MFi Certified Lighting connector / DAC / Adapter which we will review today, and compare to other similarly priced IEMs, including Letshuoer S15 (329 USD), ThieAudio Hype 4 (399 USD), and Yanyin Canon II (379 USD). …
SMSL DO200 PRO Hifi PRE / DAC – 12 DACs From Aoshida With Professional Tuning
Views 31,847 SMSL DO200 PRO is a $399 USD DAC or Digital To Analog Converter sold by Aoshida Audio, with PRE Function, and 12 DAC chips inside working together to bring you a whole new type of sound and tuning for the price point it carries. Today we will review …
Burson PlayMate 2 DAC / AMP – Incredible Efficiency And Precision
Views 34,837 Burson Playmate 2 is a $544 USD DAC / Headphone Amplifier, with a huge driving power for headphones, and a full metallic chassis, but also with modular OP-AMPs for you to tune and sound and enjoy it in your own favorite flavor. Today we will review the PlayMate …
Shanling H2 DAC/AMP – Warmer and Smoother Flask
Views 32,807 Shanling H2 is a $169 USD DAC/AMP with a warm and smooth sound, following the same flask design that we’ve seen with other DAC/AMPs, to which we will compare the H2, including Shanling h5 (369 USD), iFi Hip-DAC2 (190 USD), and Questyle M15 (250 USD). Introduction Shanling …
Pylon Diamond 30 mkII Stereo HIFI Floorstanding Tower Speakers – Pure Audiophile Euphoria
Views 86,830 Pylon Diamond 30 mkII is a $ 3000 USD pair of high-end Speakers designed in Poland by Pylon Audio, and they come to redefine what we can expect from a relatively affordable price point for speakers. As a floorstanding tower speaker, it is the modernised version of the …
HIFIMAN Goldenwave Serenade – Himalaya PRO R2R DAC AMP
Views 65,425 HIFIMAN Goldenwave Serenade is a $999 USD DAC and Headphone Amplifier, with a Himalaya PRO R2R DAC inside, with a new FPGA algorithm and 0.01% precision resistors, and with a THD rate of -6 dB, 0.0012%. Today we will review it and compare it to Dethonray Listening M1 …
Final Audio ZE8000 MK2 Bluetooth TWS IEMs – Definition of 8K Sound
Views 34,163 Final Audio ZE8000 Mk2 is a $399 USD pair of IEMs or In-Ear Monitors with what is considered 8K Sound, strong battery life, and with a superb design. Today we will review the ZE8000 MK2 and compare them to other similarly priced Bluetooth IEMs that we recently reviewed, …
Hiby R4 Hifi Android DAP – Class A AMP, 4-Way DAC
Views 44,584 Hiby R4 is a $249 USD high-quality DAP or Digital Audio Player, with a 4-Way DAC configuration, Class A Headphone Amplifier, and with a beautiful, industrial and ergonomic design. Today we will test it in-depth and compare the R4 to other similarly priced DAPs, including Hiby Digital M300 …
Aune Yuki DAC / AMP – Beautiful Looking But Serious Sounding Dongle
Views 38,644 Aune Yuki is a $179 USD Dongle DAC AMP with a dual DAC inside, and with a 4 x 4 Transistors design. Today we will be reviewing the Yuki and comparing it to other dongles and similarly priced sources including Hiby R3 II (179 USD), Audioengine D1 (169 …
iBasso DX260 DAP – Epic Octa DAC Music Player
Views 54,688 iBasso DX260 is a $949 USD DAP / Digital Audio Player, with a an Octa DAC configuration, balanced headphone output, Qualcomm 660 SoC, Hi-Res Playback, FIR interpolation filter, and a dynamic range up to 134 dB. Today we will review it, every aspect of its usage, and compare …
HIDIZS MS3 Hybrid IEMs – The Traditional Chifi Experience
Views 27,672 HIDIZS MS3 is a $109 USD pair of IEMs / In-Ear Monitors with a hybrid driver design, which today we will review and compare to other entry-level IEMs, including KZ Knowledge Zenith Joyodio VZ10 (79 USD), Tangzu Fudu Verse 1 (89 USD), ddHIFI Janus3 (129 USD) and 7Hz …
JDS Labs Atom AMP 2 – All-Metal Headphone Amplifier With Octo-Buffers
Views 36,469 JDS Labs Atom AMP 2 is a $129 USD Headphone Amplifier which is an update to the ultra-popular JDS Labs Atom AMP+ and Atom AMP Hevi, this time coming with just 30 USD of increase in the price, but with a 4.4mm headphone output (intorduced at the request …
FIR Audio e12 Electron Series Universal IEM – Strength Of A King
Views 55,733 FiR Audio e12 from the Electron Series is a $1799 USD IEM or In-Ear Monitor designed with a plethora of unique technologies by FIR Audio, including the SwapX 2-Pin, Tactile Bass, and Atom Venting. Today we will dive in the world of its sound, and review the e12, …
JDS Labs Atom DAC 2 – Crystal Clear Sound
Views 39,140 JDS Labs Atom DAC 2 is a $129 USD high-quality entry-level DAC for all sound systems with no volume control, but with optical and USB Type-C inputs, UAC 2 and UAC 1 fallback, and with a beautiful design, now with a metallic case and which comes with its …
FiiO Q15 Portable DAC AMP – Sweet Sounding Dynamics Master
Views 44,804 FiiO Q15 is a $399 USD portable DAC or Digital To Analog Converter, and Headphone Amplifier, with two headphone outputs, a smartphone mode, and with a huge driving power, but low noise for IEMs. Today we will review it and compare the new high-performance FiiO unit to other …
Shanling UA4 DAC AMP – Smart Dongle United
Views 37,208 Shanling UA4 is a $99 USD DAC/AMP with a new ESS ES9069Q DAC, Strong Output Power, DSD512 and Hi-Res PCM support, up to 32 Bit and 768kHz, and with both a Balanced Headphone Output and a single ended one. Today we will be reviewing it, the sound it …
BQEYZ Winter IEMs – Gracefully Skating Musical Notes
Views 39,464 BQEYZ Winter is a $239 USD pair of IEMs or in-ear monitors, with a beautiful shell that resembles an ice skate rink, detachable cables, bone conduction drivers, and with multiple cable options. Today we will review them and share more about their sound, but also compare the BQEYZ …
Keces S300+ Stereo HIFI Power Amplifier – Speaker Utopia Sound Master
Views 78,468 Keces S300+ is a $3499 USD high-end flagship Stereo HIFI Power Amplifier, with both Balanced and Unbalanced inputs, High and Low Bias modes, and with a power consumption of up to 1000W, able to use Loop Triggers, designed to drive the beefiest, most picky of speakers out there. …