[lee730]

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Cant say I am please with AK100 when it comes to complex music, sometimes during those complex bit it all just comes out as one high pitch sibilant noise, doesn't matter if it is the ck100pro or the ES10. 

I agree this was one of my biggest issues with the unit. It didn't handle complex genres for me very well. Not enough space in-between the instruments leading to congestion. Using an amp did help in this regard but it wasn't a complete fix. There were still issues with the sound in the end.

 

[lee730]

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This was one of my biggest gripes of my stock Ak100 and happy to report that the AK120 fixed it for me.

But I probably need a better custom to block out the high birch noise that came with my AK120... ><"...

 
What do you mean by that? I though the AK120 would be dead silent?

 

[kkcc]

What do you mean by that? I though the AK120 would be dead silent?

High "bitch" noise - noise made by a certain female of the homo sapien species that happen to be cohabiting with me that is easily agitated by all HF items

 

[lee730]

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High "bitch" noise - noise made by a certain female of the homo sapien species that happen to be cohabiting with me that is easily agitated by all HF items

lol you better hope she don't have access to your account. She may pull a "Lorena Bobbit" on you ....
 
If you need more isolation I suggest an IEM with more bass presence. Maybe even silicon based. The SE5 has my eyes next. The 8As actually do really well in nosier environments due to the extra bass. I actually had fun cleaning house today. I generally dread this lol. Even gave the cat a bath .

 

[kkcc]

I agree this was one of my biggest issues with the unit. It didn't handle complex genres for me very well. Not enough space in-between the instruments leading to congestion. Using an amp did help in this regard but it wasn't a complete fix. There were still issues with the sound in the end.

To me it wasn't so much the separation or layering but the fact it didn't scale well with the complexity of the music and resulting in shrill and thin sound while it should be powerful and thick. I related that to mainly a lack of dynamic range which is further aggravated by the high output impedance making it thin, flat, and may sound congested (but actually the details are still all there only they became so flat it's difficult to pick out and sounded all wrong).


Listen to it when you get a chance. You should appreciate the improvement. How much that's worth though would be different to each of us

 

[lee730]

Well kkcc I had the RWA AK100 and found the treble to be on the harsh side and bass to be a bit bloated. But at the same time I did find the unit to be lacking in dynamics and I'm sure that contributed to me thinking the sound is congested. I heard the sound as more intimate opposed to very spacious like the DX100. I can't really say I heard the sound as very thin but not thick like the DX100 that's for sure. The DX100 for me didn't have a whole lot of air to its sound but was still very spacious and a meaty sound. The Studio on the other hand really defines airy.

 

[miceblue]

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Just chiming in here. I definitely won't be getting an AK120, nor 100, but I'm just curious to see what people think of these super expensive DAPs. I quickly browsed through the TF10 thread and people seem to like how it sounds straight out of a Sansa Clip_. Looking at those measurements, that frequency response looks quite scary, and even more so considering you're shelling out a whopping $1300 for the AK120... :/

I am another sansa clip+ fan, i will not ever deny that the stock AK 100 is not suitable for all genera of music, it does acoustic based music and musics with few instrument which are not bass emphasised nicely but the rest it tend to struggle.

And ofcourse dont forget those are MSRP. 

Oh hey there audionewbi.
Yeah I like the Clip Zip with Rockbox. I don't know how it differs from "audiophile" players like the AK1_0 or HiFiMAN's higher-end players. I tried an HM-601 as was underwhelmed by its sound performance despite the nice texture it had in the bass and midrange.

 

[lin0003]

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Oh hey there audionewbi.
Yeah I like the Clip Zip with Rockbox. I don't know how it differs from "audiophile" players like the AK1_0 or HiFiMAN's higher-end players. I tried an HM-601 as was underwhelmed by its sound performance despite the nice texture it had in the bass and midrange.

Headphones/IEMs are always the most important upgrade. 

 

[lee730]

Quote:

Oh hey there audionewbi.
Yeah I like the Clip Zip with Rockbox. I don't know how it differs from "audiophile" players like the AK1_0 or HiFiMAN's higher-end players. I tried an HM-601 as was underwhelmed by its sound performance despite the nice texture it had in the bass and midrange.

 
The Hifiman 601 was a nice sounding player. It's a laidback sound though and not everyone's cup of tea. I personally preferred its sound to ipods and cowons. But in the end I preferred a more neutral/detailed player over the euphoric sound. The 601 reminds me of listening to a hifi stereo from behind a blanket .
 
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Headphones/IEMs are always the most important upgrade. 

I agree and then the source is right after.

 

[nelamvr6]

This is very interesting.  I'll be really curious to hear how this DAP behaves with various IEMs.  I'm thinking that 3 ohms output impedance is a lot better than the AK100 had, but still a bit on the high side.

 

[Jazzyfi]

Aha, thanks for the info .

Jazzyfi: You may not be aware, but since Sprks01 is a Member of the Trade that sells amps, he isn't allowed to comment on any products that compete in any way with ones he makes. While he is aware of it, many members are probably not aware of our rules. 

 

[bmichels]

Vinnie from RedWineAudio (RWA) has some very interesting ideas as "Super-MODs" for the AK100 & AK120, including changing the DAC Chip WM8740 for the much better WM8741 ! 

 
He is explaining this and posted a poll HERE to understand what we would like him to do exactly.  

 

[GSARider]

Why not just build something from scratch or use a cheaper player to mod, as it seems to be a lot of expense buying a $1500 player and then replacing the DAC's an looking at external amps, etc?

 

[miceblue]

I just realised that I could probably find a Stax Lambda rig with $1300. D:

 

[Mimouille]

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Why not just build something from scratch or use a cheaper player to mod, as it seems to be a lot of expense buying a $1500 player and then replacing the DAC's an looking at external amps, etc?

That.