Muse HiFi M1 Smart Portable DAC/AMP

Yesterday, I posted my review for the Muse HiFi M1 portable USB DAC/AMP, today, I am bringing you a deep insight on its sibling, the M1 Smart. M1 Smart is IMO a different version to the M1 with an extra USB Type-C female socket for charging. It supports high-resolution 32-Bit/384kHz PCM signal decoding. M1 Smart also houses a small RGB LED. As for headphone output, we have the standard 3.5mm headphone jack. Let’s begin with the review.

Short Disclaimer:-

Same as the Muse HiFi M1, I received the M1 Smart from HiFiGo as a part of a review tour in my country. All the impressions and comments in this blog are entirely my own based on my own experience with the set. You can check some information on HiFiGo from the link below.
https://hifigo.com/products/muse-hifi-m1-smart

Design & Build Quality:-

M1 Smart is a bigger version of the M1. It has a long-form factor with a black glass top and silver metallic chassis. The M1 Smart is a little on the heavier side but still manageable. It has a fixed Type-C connector cable with a nylon braided sleeve on the connector cable. M1 Smart has a Type-C charging port and a 3.5mm headphone output jack. The glass top on the front has a small O-ring LED that glows up when the DAC is connected to a source. Build quality is quite solid and robust, everything from the connector cable to the DAC’s chassis has a solid built structure.

Driving Power:-

Muse HiFi M1 Smart is again an entry-level USB DAC same as the M1. It provides enough power to drive most IEMs on the go although it won’t suffice for headphones. I personally tried it with Kinera IDUN Golden, Softears RSV, LETSHUOER Z12 Gold Edition, Sennheiser HD560S, etc. It’s good enough for driving IEMs straight out of a smartphone like Redmi Note 10 Pro in my case.

Sound Impressions:-

M1 Smart sounds pretty clean and warm. It has a smooth, noise-free output with all the IEMs that I tested it with. In my experience, the M1 Smart sounds quite identical to the M1 with a warmish tone. It provides enough power to most IEMs to deliver a tight bass response, clean and accurate midrange, and smooth treble performance. Treble extensions are decent but could be better. The soundstage is again decent with the M1 Smart. I don’t find it to be lacking in terms of sound performance, everything sounded pretty decent and smooth. Although I won’t recommend it for use with IEMs that require more power or headphones.

Charging While Using It For Sound:-

The main attraction of the M1 Smart is the ability to charge the connected source while using it for music. It performs well, Although with sensitive IEMs you might notice a little bit of hiss introduced while charging. But quite a good feature to have at our disposal.

Things that can be improved:-

>It could use more output power for better drivability.

>Sound is clean and smooth but lacks dynamics in the long run.

>A little on the heavier side.

>No DSD support.

M1 Smart vs M1:-

>Sound wise both are quite identical.

>M1 Smart is heavier.

>M1 Smart provides charging support while listening to music.

>M1 is a lot more compact.

Final Words:-

M1 Smart is more about convenience and ease rather than sound. Please don’t get me wrong here, M1 Smart sounds clean with no issues as such but the main attraction with the M1 Smart would be the ability to charge while using the device for music. Enjoy good music and charge at the same time!!

Admin please delete. Wrongly posted for MUSE HiFi M1 (this page is for M1 Smart)

Disclaimer : The unit was sent by Hifigo as a part of a review tour but all thoughts and opinions are my own. You can purchase it here.

Build Quality & Usability
The build quality of the dongle is solid, it is all metal and is hefty. But unfortunately the form factor has a connecting cable and is thus bulky and long, and not that suitable for portable use. The big size of the dongle itself doesn't help improve things further. This device is more desktop oriented and definitely not a pocketable solution. The M1 Smart worked flawlessly with Android and Windows in my usage. The unit is very power efficient and draws very less power, and neither does it heat up much. It only heats up noticeably when charging is used. It has an LED indicator which turns blue when earphones (only) are connected and red when earphones and charging both are connected. It supports OMTP and CTIA protocols and in line mics as well.





Performance
The sound quality of the M1 Smart is mediocre and lacks drive even compared to its smaller sibling M1. It is on the weaker side and only recommended to be used with very efficient earphones. The M1 variant seems to have more juice and control over the sound than M1 Smart at the same volume. It performs slightly better than a regular phone with bad headphone output and at 39 USD it is a decent product. Do note that one mustn't use power hungry planar earphones or hard to drive headphones in general with this as it will not be able to drive it.



Conclusion
The M1 Smart has mediocre performance and the market for small form factor type c dongles is saturated and some of them have even better laid out design for less protrusion during usage. The M1 Smart is a mediocre performer and only serves its purpose if you need the passthrough charging. It is clearly designed with convenience as first priority and not sound quality.