[JayNetTech5]

With inexpensive and fewer devices and equipment, so take it with a grain of salt. Not trying to open a can of worms, but, I personally, find that different DACs, whether or not if it's the chip itself or units they go in, tend to sound a specific way, and I can only use terms I can come up with mixed with "audiophile terms" to describe them.

AKM = well-rounded, can be overly smooth in parts of the midrange, almost like there's variable peaks and dips, and while being generally weightier sounding, it can go either way when it wants to, kind of airy, bassier, very dynamic in volume, imaging and staging, literally can go almost entirely mono-sounding, to huge and 3D in different tracks, track sections or sources, captures individual instrument tone very well almost to the point of being cheesy or wonky; instrument solos really bring that out.

ESS = harsher high frequencies, almost like the vocalists in tracks with a lot of commotion are piercing my ears (AKMs do this too but it's a different kind of harsh), more detailed or revealing of very delicate sounds, lesser bass, thinner-sounding, more metallic and gritty, can be more pacey, more percussive texture from not being as smooth as AKM, consistent imaging and staging whether narrow or big, vocals have more emotion, upfront, and feel more immersive or "exciting". Overall, I tend to enjoy ESS Sabre more upon first impression, because there's something more exciting and different about how it makes tracks sound.

AKM tends to sound its best with good direct source material, while ESS tends to be highly enjoyable in multiple sources; AKM can too but is picky. Then there's the variable where some units can sound like they want to be like the other, but not quite, there's still that sense of having their typical sound but with each chip and unit having their own overall sound but stick to the general premise of their brand signature. For instance, the ES100 is dryer and harsher than the HUD100 but still have a general similarity to their signature. AKMs to me sound more refined almost too much at times without lacking too much bass even when bright, and there's a variability with enjoyment, but they tend to not be so immersive or emotionally impressive as ESS Sabre chips, at least in terms of vocals, especially upon first impression, but non-vocal instruments are a different story. Keep in mind, all are very inexpensive devices, especially my headphones, so my judgement may not be justified, and it's not like I've had everything to test out because of budget.



AKM devices I've heard: PlayStation Model SCPH-1001 (1995), 5001, FiiO K3, EarStudio ES100, EarStudio HUD100, FiiO BTR3.

ESS devices I've heard: XtremPro X1, Sabaj Da3, SMSL X4 and Sabaj Da2, DragonFly Black, Monoprice Monolith USB DAC, Hifime Sabre 9018 USB DAC.



My general thought.


AKMs are more balanced, bassier, smoother almost to the point of losing texture, and captures the tone and notes of individual instruments so well that it sometimes sounds so hilariously cheesy and wonky, or off-key, it's hard to explain, but still more impressive over the ESS, maybe because of the slight sharpness in the highest part of the treble. AKMs like to exaggerate certain parts in a tracks, like it's excessively dynamic.

Dullest/boring sounding AKM: FiiO K3 and BTR3

Darkest sounding AKM: FiiO K3 bass-boosted

Brightest sounding AKM: EarStudio ES100



ESS Sabres sound more immersive with strong emotion in the vocals, are very detailed, "euphoric", and generally just enjoyable all-around with a lot of sources, but can be excessively harsh and unrefined in comparison, also sometimes lacking in bass, not as dynamic or flexible in how it produces sound, but this could be a good thing if you like a specific sound.


Dullest/boring sounding ESS: DragonFly Black

Darkest sounding ESS: Hifime Sabre 9018 USB DAC

Brightest sounding ESS: All, except Hifime Sabre 9018 USB DAC and Monoprice Monolith USB DAC





I really want to try more TI/Burr-Brown stuff, I know a lot of people like Wolfson and old iPods, but I cannot get myself to like them, older iPods never sounded great to me, they're so "conventional", soft and dull-sounding, like most other players; I remember my Sandisk Sansa Clip back in '09 sounded amazing.



I think I might look into the iFi Zen DAC next, I heard a lot of good things about it, but a portion of people have said some bad things about it.

 

[Ronion]

Loved my Sansa Clip FWIW.

 

[JayNetTech5]

The original Sansa Clip had such great audio, unfortunately, there was a flaw where the usb circuitry died after a short period of time.

 

[jayteeare]

I was hoping to read more replies on the subject. ESS and AKM are the two most popular DAC chips, used on the the majority of flagship DAP's. The SP2000 from Astell & Kern seems to unanimously be hailed as the best DAP in the market today with the now out of production AK4499EQ. ESS Sabre DAC's have their own following as well, but when it comes to Flagships, the new Shanling M9, Fiio M15, and the aforementioned A&K SP2000 all sport the AKM dual chips.

About a year ago when i jumped into the audiophile rabbit hole, the first time I'd ever heard of a DAC was during my ipod collector days. The most hardcore of audio enthusiasts would always praise the iPod Classic 5.5 Enhanced version to be the best of all ipods, sporting the now defunct Wolfson DAC.

At the end of the day, you can only really tell the subtle yet subjective difference of the DAC's with the highest quality audio files, and the best set of headphone/IEMS. I personally use my two defacto IEMS: the classic Shure SE846 and Sennheiser 800s.

Wolfson DAC: Compared to the other ipods without the Wolfson DAC (they used the Cirrus DAC later on, who eventually bought out Wolfson) sounds professional; listening to music on any other "normie" audio player with lesser no name DACS, you can hear alot of inconsistencies, unreliable referencing, and sometimes an emphasis on music that is more prone to sound "metallic", like old low compression MP3's of two decades ago. The Wolfson DAC is cleaner, and more "musical", which immediately stands out.

ESS Sabre: Last year I bought a Astell & Kern Kann Alpha, and was expecting amazing things. It touted it's own built in amp and huge output power, and was hoping that my music would sound sublime and on a whole different level with my Shure846. I was disappointed, almost immediately. Though it sounded perfectly "fine" there wasnt much in the way of holographic 3d sonics. Seemed like the ESS was a perfectly suitable DAC for listening to music as a casual, non enthusiast, "wouldn't even notice" type person. It didnt sound worth the $1000 price tag, and I returned it after using a couple of months.

AKM AK4499EQ: I decided to try the Fiio M15, and went with it vs the SP2000 because it was a third of the price for the exact same AKM4499EQ chips. So far, AKM has the best sounding DAC ive heard of the flagships. Like the first person said, it sounds so detailed and over the top, almost exaggerated in a sense, and with all the holographic 3D audio experience I could have imagined. You literally to smile (or large grin I should say) when listening to a song youve heard 1000's of times for the first time on this DAP.

I know its subjective, and contradictory to the extent most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a blind test. I cant say its a placebo effect, as the AKM chips really do make a difference, especially with my Shure 846. Keep in mind many hardcore audiophiles would argue that the DAC chip is more dependent on how its configured inside the device that really makes any relevant difference. I would this imagine this to be true, as it would be the only logical reason to explain why so many say the SP2000 blows the Fiio M15 out of the water at triple the price and with exactly the same DAC chips; I hope to one day be able to do a side by side test and hear for myself.

 

[Brain Damage]

Have you any experience with dacs with Cirrus Logic chips? How do they compare lined up with ESS Sabre dacs and AKM dacs?

 

[Mhog55]

Have you any experience with dacs with Cirrus Logic chips? How do they compare lined up with ESS Sabre dacs and AKM dacs?

Less resolving, lesser detailed/instrument separation, somewhat thick, warm, and dark. This makes them sound bad, but they actually aren't. I've previously owned the Opus#1s, and still have my Hiby R5.
I prefer AKM in general. ESS is typically too harsh and bright for my tastes. Dac chips are only a portion of the end result. Implementation, tuning, other components are at play as well.

 

[Neil91]

I would this imagine this to be true, as it would be the only logical reason to explain why so many say the SP2000 blows the Fiio M15 out of the water at triple the price and with exactly the same DAC chips; I hope to one day be able to do a side by side test and hear for myself.

I would say the SP2000 struggles to contest with the M15 but thats just me. Think we have more people on the side where SP2000 was a complete disappointment and made even more so with its price tag.

 

[jayteeare]

I would say the SP2000 struggles to contest with the M15 but thats just me. Think we have more people on the side where SP2000 was a complete disappointment and made even more so with its price tag.

Interesting take, as I've ready dozens of Fiio M15 vs Sp2000 articles. I have not read a single one saying the M15 is superior. Mind you, I own the Fiio M15 and I love it, and wish to one day also get to hear the SP2000 take on the AKM chip configuration/tuning. One memorable review I read, said something to the effect that even though bot DAP's have the same exact chips, that the SP2000 completely outshines the M15 to the point its a no contest; he made a comment about the SP2000 being way more tremendous, in every aspect from soundstage, imaging, and that the silent parts of the song are as black silent as the universe lol.

With a $3500 price tag, I cant ever see myself justifying buying one, but as a music enthusiast the curiosity I cant deny.

The fellow above asked about the Cirrus DAC. These replaced the Wolfson DAC (Cirrus purchased the Wolfson company) on the later ipods classics, and from if you even read on this forum, people were massively disappointed. The would describe the Cirrus DACs as being perfectly suitable to everyday music listeners who arent as "into it" as your average audiophile, and they wouldnt even imagine how great audio can sound with not only the right DAP/DAC, but the right set of cans. I would place them below the ESS Sabre in third place, with AKM taking the throne at #1.

One thing is for sure though. The M15, SP2000, Shaning M9 are some of the most expensive flagships and all use the AKM's. The only reason ESS Sabre DACs are even in the same (and I know I will get heat for this but I welcome a discussion) is because they consume WAY less power, and are easier to drive because of it. No doubt its a perfectly fine DAC, but its innovation isnt so much in sound, but just the fact that it works more efficiently internally with the battery power.

I hate to say it, but Astell and Kern coming out with the SP2000T is a slap in the face with its ESS Sabre DAC; (that price tag it touts is the most undeserving in recent memory) I realize the AKM chips are very scarce and rare now, but then how did Shanling M9 manage to get so many that they were able create an entire product line even after the fire to the factory, in 2022?

 

[Lappy27]

P5Interesting take, as I've ready dozens of Fiio M15 vs Sp2000 articles. I have not read a single one saying the M15 is superior. Mind you, I own the Fiio M15 and I love it, and wish to one day also get to hear the SP2000 take on the AKM chip configuration/tuning. One memorable review I read, said something to the effect that even though bot DAP's have the same exact chips, that the SP2000 completely outshines the M15 to the point its a no contest; he made a comment about the SP2000 being way more tremendous, in every aspect from soundstage, imaging, and that the silent parts of the song are as black silent as the universe lol.

With a $3500 price tag, I cant ever see myself justifying buying one, but as a music enthusiast the curiosity I cant deny.

The fellow above asked about the Cirrus DAC. These replaced the Wolfson DAC (Cirrus purchased the Wolfson company) on the later ipods classics, and from if you even read on this forum, people were massively disappointed. The would describe the Cirrus DACs as being perfectly suitable to everyday music listeners who arent as "into it" as your average audiophile, and they wouldnt even imagine how great audio can sound with not only the right DAP/DAC, but the right set of cans. I would place them below the ESS Sabre in third place, with AKM taking the throne at #1.

One thing is for sure though. The M15, SP2000, Shaning M9 are some of the most expensive flagships and all use the AKM's. The only reason ESS Sabre DACs are even in the same (and I know I will get heat for this but I welcome a discussion) is because they consume WAY less power, and are easier to drive because of it. No doubt its a perfectly fine DAC, but its innovation isnt so much in sound, but just the fact that it works more efficiently internally with the battery power.

I hate to say it, but Astell and Kern coming out with the SP2000T is a slap in the face with its ESS Sabre DAC; (that price tag it touts is the most undeserving in recent memory) I realize the AKM chips are very scarce and rare now, but then how did Shanling M9 manage to get so many that they were able create an entire product line even after the fire to the factory, in 2022?

If you ever have the chance, try to listen to the iBasso DX300MAX. Dual AKM4499 with separated batteries for digital and analog. I'm blown away by it's performance with my Focal Utopia. It's better than my old full scale headphone system that costed over 8000.00$. No joke.

But the size and weight are not for everybody.

I do also prefer AKM sound signature over ESS (I had the 220MAX with dual ESS9028PRO previous to the 300MAX. But the 220 do sounded very very good too).

In my speakers 2.1 system, the dacs inside my Michi P5 are dual AKM4490 (older model but known to be great and adopted in lots of high end dac). Before that, I had a Bryston BDA-3 with also dual AKM4490.

P.S. Most of people who compared the 300MAX to the SP2000 gave the edge to the MAX. At least in the MAX thread.

 

[jayteeare]

Aside from maybe 1 or other threads on the entire internet (who’s results have dwindled ridiculously due to Google search) I could only locate very few with this particular discussion about AKM vs ESS vs Cirrus/Wolfson. Perhaps there are others in this forum, but when you search “AKM VS ESS DACS” this is one of the first results to show up.

Since thousands of people will eventually land here, I hope anyone/everyone reading this can contribute thier own take on the matter.

I’d love to hear from someone who is an engineer of these devices and really spell out what makes a DAC have its unique signature (many even speculate there is no such thing) and how/why is the best way for engineers to design the internals in order to maximize they efficacy of the sound. Like we said earlier, why are daps like the SP2000 and the Fiio M15 considered “different in sound” with the same exact chips? A side by side comparison of the internal layout, pros and cons about certain configurations, and all the geek stuff we’d like to know.

 

[jayteeare]

I’d also like to add the subjective experience as it relates to most people failing a double blind test when it comes to both dacs. I find it incredible that even the most experienced head fi’ers fail at this.

Really makes you wonder about the placebo effect in action.

And in reality the only way I can describe why I think the AKM is the best with the right cans is because again, you can’t help but smile at the over the top ridiculousness of how awesome and “different” a song you’ve heard millions of times can sound.

 

[Brain Damage]

I think I am preferring the sound of R2R having just purchased the Cayin RU6. More analogue sounding - consistent across all frequencies.

 

[Kelly Whetzel]

I’ve also heard many DAC chips and tend to prefer ones I’m familiar with. Burr Brown, AKM, Wolfson, mainly. ESS makes great chips too. I’m enjoying an 80s BB R2R 16bit DAC, since ladder DACs seem to be all the rave, again.

I do enjoy today’s DACs also. Big blow to audiophile DACs. The AKM fire set everything back. I wouldn’t expect companies ability to offer new finished AKM products until 2023. EVERY manufacturer using them had to change their chips to mostly ESS. Used AKM equipped DACs currently list for hundreds more than it’s competition and have always had a reputation for being in higher end model equipment. The AK4499EQ chip supposedly has great sound. It’s AKM’s fist current chip. It was made to be used in $2k DACs dual mono.

 

[harry501501]

Very interesting to read. Must admit, from my more budget source history, I totally agree. My optical out from smart TV is to an AK DAC... Helps with a smoother more laid back listen and the thicker sound and deeper bass makes movies and TV more fun.

I do prefer ESS DACs in my on the go DAPs as I like a more detailed, airy sound. More neutral due the IEMs I tend to use. Music listening with AK DACs is fine, but can be a 'meatier' listen and over bodied.

 

[chesebert]

Op’s observations are not relevant outside the dacs sampled. The IC is but one of many parts of a dac.