S.M.S.L RAW-MDA 1

SMSL RAW-MDA1

The SMSL RAW-MDA1 represents a cutting-edge desktop DAC/amp, incorporating dual ES9039Q2M DAC chips from ESS for superior audio decoding. It features an independent USB receiver, the XMOS XU-316, which accommodates sampling rates reaching 32bit/768kHz PCM, as well as DSD512 and MQA decoding capabilities. Additionally, an audio clock processing circuit is integrated to minimize jitter. The analog stage is equipped with six premium OPA1612A op-amps and a variety of high-quality audio components, complemented by a proprietary low-noise switching power supply.



Non Audio stuff

The RAW-MDA1 showcases a completely redesigned aesthetic that surpasses the visual appeal of its predecessors. It is equipped with a full-fit color display screen, protected by a tempered glass surface, which occupies two-thirds of the front panel and integrates seamlessly with the multifunction knob.

Constructed from CNC machined aluminum with a sleek black matte finish, the chassis of the SMSL RAW-MDA1 exemplifies high-quality craftsmanship. The inclusion of the color display not only enhances its sophisticated elegance but also improves user accessibility. With dimensions of 189x45x179mm, the RAW-MDA1 is compact, making it suitable for desktop placement, while also being compatible with HiFi racks, complemented by a fully featured remote control.



User interface and operation

The SMSL RAW-MDA1 features a comprehensive array of digital inputs, including two coaxial, two optical, and one USB type-C. It also supports Bluetooth connectivity up to the LDAC standard. For analog outputs, both RCA and XLR options are available. The headphone amplifier provides two output options, 6.35mm and 4.4mm; however, it is important to note that the design is not balanced, with the latter serving merely as an adapter for user convenience.

Operating the device is straightforward, as users can navigate the menus and make adjustments using either the multifunction knob or the remote control, aided by a color display. Options available for selection include input, output, headphone amplifier gain, PCM filter, sound color, screen brightness, and UI style. The menu is well-organized and user-friendly, offering two display modes: universal and graphics. The screen is characterized by vibrant colors and remains easily readable, provided the viewer is not positioned too far from it.

The output lines can be configured as either fixed or variable, allowing the RAW-MDA1 to function as a dedicated DAC or as a preamplifier. Additionally, a standby mode is provided, eliminating the need to press the power button each time you wish to turn off the device.



Accessories

The package includes the remote control, a Bluetooth antenna that attaches to the back, a power cord and a USB type-C cable.

About the headphone amplifier

The single-ended headphone amplifier exhibits significant power capabilities, delivering 2.5W per channel at 16Ω and 1.7W per channel at 32Ω, all while maintaining an almost negligible output impedance. This ample power allows it to effectively drive a wide range of headphones, including those that are more challenging to power. Additionally, the exceptionally low output impedance and minimal background noise render it particularly suitable for use with sensitive earphones. To evaluate the performance of the headphone amplifier, I utilized the Focal Clear Mg, the Hifiman HE1000 Stealth, along with several earphones, including the FiiO FA19.



Audio Stuff

The sonic capabilities of the SMSL RAW-MDA1 exhibit a resemblance to its predecessors that employed the ES9038Q2M DAC chip, albeit with several significant distinctions.

The frequency response is entirely flat, delivering sound that is exceptionally clear and transparent, with impressive extension at both ends of the spectrum. The RAW-MDA1 maintains an achromatic and neutral profile, ensuring that the listener experiences the transducers without any additional coloration. The quiet background facilitates the emergence of intricate details from the recording, while the DAC showcases remarkable resolution and overall clarity.

The bass is characterized by its tactile, rapid, and impactful nature, featuring excellent layering and dynamic strength. The mid-range is articulated with precision and clarity, remaining neutral and balanced without any tonal shifts. This DAC may not be the most colorful or harmonious option available and it does not exhibit the analog or organic qualities some may seek. However, the timbre remains quite natural, avoiding excessive artificiality or digital harshness in the treble. The higher frequencies are lively and energetic, possessing a degree of luminosity without becoming overly bright or sharp.

These represent the most significant differences between the RAW-MDA1 and earlier models. The ES9039Q2M DAC chip offers a smoother and less aggressive sound profile compared to the ES9038Q2M, also demonstrating improved performance in the time domain. It generates less digital artificiality, resulting in a sound that is weightier, slightly warmer, and less dry or sterile.

Ultimately, the SMSL RAW-MDA1 does not possess any distinctive timbral qualities, yet it avoids sounding overly clinical or lifeless, achieving commendable tonal accuracy. Given these attributes, it can be confidently asserted that the RAW-MDA1 serves as a valuable upgrade for previous model owners seeking to maintain sound transparency and neutrality while introducing a degree of smoothness and warmth.

In terms of instrument separation and imaging, the performance is exemplary for its category; however, the soundstage tends to be relatively flat and horizontal.



A true all-in-one solution

The RAW-MDA1 maintains a consistent sound signature and sonic characteristics across all its outputs, with the XLR output offering a slight advantage. This device performs admirably in both DAC and preamp modes, while its headphone amplifier effectively drives a range of loads without introducing any sound coloration. Whether utilized with active monitors, a speaker system, or headphones, the SMSL RAW-MDA1 presents an excellent choice for those in search of an economical all-in-one solution that delivers exceptional neutrality, transparency, and technical excellence.

Conclusion

The SMSL RAW-MDA1 may not introduce revolutionary advancements, yet it sets itself apart from earlier SMSL DAC/amps through its contemporary design and enhanced overall audio performance. It maintains the same level of neutrality and technical excellence, providing class-leading transparency and minimal coloration within its category, but now delivers a smoother, more refined sound that is less artificial compared to its predecessors.

With an array of connectivity options, a compact size, and user-friendly operation, the SMSL RAW-MDA1 serves as an outstanding all-in-one solution for those who prioritize neutrality and fidelity without descending into a sterile monitoring experience. Priced appropriately and affordably, the RAW-MDA1 offers significant value for money and is highly recommended.

The review sample was kindly provided free of charge and I don't use affiliate links. The price of the SMSL RAW-MDA1 is $279.99 and you can buy t from Shenzhen Audio.

Disclaimer: For various Google indexing reasons, parts of this review may have been processed with an automatic paragraph rewriting tool. However it reads exactly the same as the original content that is available in my website.

I really like the SMSL offerings in general. While they do come out with quite a few products throughout the year, they do seem to improve on their designs in the lower cost range with newer components instead of rehashing the same parts in new shells. The higher end ESS ES9038Pro at the end of its production life really impressed me and it seemed that companies were implementing it extremely well. Now we’re in the ES9039 range with their Q2m(Entry), MPro(Mid) and Pro(Flagship) series making the rounds in lots of new devices. I haven’t really had a chance to listen to the new series of ESS DACs so I was excited to check out the new MDA 1 especially when I heard the price it was gonna launch at. The RAW-MDA 1(MDA 1 going forward) uses the ES9039Q2M and has a built-in headphone amp. The RAW-MDA 1 comes in at $279.99

Quick shoutout to @shenzhenaudio for setting me up with a review unit. While I always appreciate stuff being sent in to test and review, It never affects the rating of my review.

The SMSL RAW-MDA 1 can be picked up from Shenzhenaudio’s website below.
https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/s-m-s-l-raw-mda1-es9039q2m-digital-to-analog-convertor-dac

Gear used​

iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPad Pro M4, Macbook Pro M1, Sennhieser HD560S, EAxEA Gaea, Truthear Nova.

Looks and Feel​

The MDA 1 has a nice metal shell that uses the same matte finish as their other models. It has a slight bead blasted feel to the finish and looks good to my eyes. The unit has some weight to it which is nice as it helps keep the unit stationary when unplugging headphones. This is also the first SMSL unit I’ve used in a while that has 4 feet instead of 3! They include a pack of feet with their 3 feet offerings so I thought it was a weird initial choice but I’m happy to see 4 feet here. This also helps with keeping the unit planted and from moving or wobbling around when you grab it to unplug something. On the front they have nice and tight spacing between the quarter inch jack and 4.4mm Pentaconn jack. A glass screen which has good contrast which means it doesn’t look as washed out as their older UI designs. The volume knob is a good size and while it has light resistance, it moves volume increments in .5 DB which helps avoid going too loud on volume increases. I would prefer a slightly more resistant volume knob or a relay based one but this is fine for the price. On the rear we get an array of inputs and outputs but I’ll get to that in its own section in a moment. The rear of the unit does have a power switch should you wish to shut it down instead of leaving it in standby mode. Overall, I like the design and feel of the MDA 1.

Input and Output Connections​

The MDA 1 has an interesting layout for inputs. It has 2 COAX inputs, 2 optical inputs, Bluetooth and a single USB-C input. I don’t ever need more than one optical input but I can see the use for multiple audio sources or even some older video game consoles. I still have a lot of nice cables for USB-B so seeing more units move to USB-C on normal sized devices is a bummer for me personally. Tech is moving along and USB-C is slowly taking over. The USB-C connection can be used in a USB 1.0 mode which means it works with video games consoles like the Nintendo Switch which is a handy feature. By default it is selected to use USB 2.0 in the menu.


When it comes to the outputs, we get a standard set of RCA and XLR outputs. The MDA 1 does allow for a fixed or variable volume on the outputs which is nice for those who either want to power a speaker amp/headphone amp in fixed mode or some powered monitors in variable volume mode.

Accessories and unboxing​

The MDA1 comes in a cardboard box with a sleeve showing off some of the specs of the MDA 1. This looks like standard SMSL packaging and inside the MDA 1 sits in a foam cutout and next to that, we get a USB-C cable, remote, the bluetooth antenna and a power cable. All typical accessories. I would like to see RCA, COAX or some optical cables included but given the price, they would need to include some cheap cables so I would rather see no cables vs garbage tier cables included. Overall, I’m happy with what they include with the MDA 1.

Sound(overall)​

These final impressions come from the RAW-MDA 1 connected to my Macbook Pro using Audirvana Studio. These impressions will be what the MDA 1 sounded like with all the IEMs/Headphones I used. Things like headphone pairings or different separate headphone amp pairings will produce different results and impressions vs what my ears hear on my specific gear.

The MDA 1 has a more neutral tuning but it has a slightly dynamic sound signature to it. To me, this means it sounds neutral but the bass the treble have a little energy to them vs a full on neutral sounding DAC/amp. The bass produces a decent thump when called for and overall has a mostly full sound down low. Mids sound fairly neutral and flat but I do hear a little bit of extra speed to the end tones of instruments. Vocals also sound flat but I do hear good detail coming from the vocals. Female vocals never sound sibilant and hold details well. Upper mids have a good balance and lack the old school “sabre glare” that tends to affect the older low-midrange ESS dacs. This usually produced a metallic sound in the upper mids and well into the rest of the treble which can be distracting to some. The upper mids do still bring in good details given this is an entry level DAC. The treble doesn’t sound bright and has enough sharpness to sound detailed. Resolution overall is above average for a sub $300 DAC/amp all in one. I really liked the sound signature they managed to eek out of the ES9039Q2M which is a mobile DAC design.

Filters and fun features​

We get a nice chunk of PCM Filters that are a mix of linear and Minimum fast/slow/hybrid filters. I left it on the stock “Linsear Fast ROFF” as I normally can’t hear a difference with PCM filters. I believe this is their “apodizing filter” I tend to pick on all the DACs I test(for consistency).

The Sound Color filters do have the tiniest affect to the sound and that ranges from standard, rich, tube and crystal. Those do add slight alterations to sound and from what I understood in the past, these were hardware side filters so it should be a more analog filter vs a software EQ preset.

Imaging/Soundstage​

The soundstage and imaging tend to be headphone specific(at least to me) but DAC/amps can add a little extra on occasion. I would say the MDA 1 has a very average sounding width and depth stage wise. This is in comparison to something like my desktop stack I use for all my IEM/Heaphone reviews. Imaging sounded accurate on all the IEMs I know have top notch imaging. The MDA 1 won’t give off a big sense of space or sound like some substantially expensive setups but that’s not the point of the MDA 1 and handles presentation very well for its price.

Personal grips with the RAW-MDA 1?​

I didn’t have any particular issues with MDA 1. I already complained about the MDA 1 not having a USB-B input and USB-C only. That is a personal complaint though as I don’t want to give up my old Audioquest USB cables that I got years ago.

Not a real complaint but I did notice that you have to manually choose the output between headphone out and the line outs. Most Combo units allow for a “all outputs active” option so you can swap from headphones to a speaker amp without changing settings. This is only an issue if you constantly swap between headphones and a speaker amp but it also protects from accidentally murdering headphones should you forget they’re plugged in when changing to max volume for another output device like with some other DAC/amps.

The only weird thing I ran into was some clicking I could hear through my IEMs/headphones when starting up a song in Audirvana and Tidal on my Macbook. I didn’t hear this when I initially plugged it into my Windows PC for a day of testing. My Macbook is running a public beta of MacOS Sequoia so this might be an artifact from a non stable OS release and less of an issue with the MDA 1. I will test again once I have a stable MacOS release and update but I’ve put the MDA 1 into rotation at my work cube and it works fine with my iPad various DAPs.

RAW-MDA 1 Power Output​

The MDA 1 pushes out a nice 1.7W of power into a 32 Ohm load which is enough to get most headphones to a super loud volume. Given that the headphone amp market is in an advanced state when it comes to high power headphone amps, the MDA 1 doesn’t suffer as much with bass performance of higher impedance headphones. At least not on my Sennheiser HD560S which I keep around to test power output from headphone amps. Will this produce the best sound for someone's high impedance $1000+ full size headphones? Probably not and something more advanced will produce better sound but this will produce very respectable audio performance results to the ear which is the point of something in this price point. This is where something like upgrading to an external headphone amp later on is nice with the outputs on the MDA 1.

IEM pairing opinions​

Truthear Nova​

The Nova is an awesome V shaped IEM in the sub $200 range and I wanted to see how the MDA 1 handled it. The bass is still nice and strong without any added bloat. The mids sound pretty neutral with a hint of sharpness. The Vocals sound nice and natural, the upper mids are well controlled with no sibilance and finally, the treble has a slight sharpness with good detail to the sound. The Nova sounds amazing and this is a great example of a good pairing that doesn’t break the bank for the Nova. The 1.7W produced by the MDA 1 is a little overkill but it sounds great paired to the Nova.

Effect Audio Gaea​

I like using the Gaea since it doesn’t like brighter source gear and can get overly sibilant and bright on that type of gear. This wasn’t an issue here. Bass sounded nice and tight with a little extra slam as it was called for on tracks. The mids are nice and sharp and sound detailed enough. Vocals have the slightest hint of over sharpness but this sounds normal for the Gaea. The upper mids are naturally slightly sibilant but I don’t hear any unwanted added sibilance from the MDA 1. The treble is fast and sharp enough. Overall detail and resolution sound above average for an entry level DAC/amp Combo. Staging was also about average with no noticeable improvements or detractions.

Overall thoughts​

The MDA 1 has a good implementation of the ES9039Q2M which provides a dynamic sound that mixes well with lots of IEMs I paired to the MDA 1. Because it has a more neutral sound signature, it’s now taken up work as my desktop DAC/amp in my cube at work. I do lots of initial impressions for IEMs at my desk and it’s nice to give my dongles a break and have something a little more permanent. Overall, I really like the RAW-MDA 1 and it gets a recommendation! It’s a good entry level “all in one” option that should fit well into most tight spaces without any real compromises. It also has great value for the beginner audiophile who wants to dip their toes into the deep water. It allows for some scaling as someone upgrades their gear down the road as well. Buy a new headphone amp or tube amp and you can use the MDA 1 as a desktop DAC only. Great job to the team at SMSL. I always look forward to what goodies they come out with. Thanks for reading!