[thevanquished]

I just received my m20 a few days ago and i really love the build and audio quality.
 
I do have a few complaints about the UI and software though. I really hope that there will be continued software updates and support from AR.
 
Some problems i found:
- The AR app crashes occasionally while playing (cant pin point what exactly causes it though)
- Various songs are cut off prematurely (may be due to issues with the gapless playback)
 
Some suggestions to the software/UI
- Please list albums instead of all songs when artist is selected. It should prefereably be listed as such: All Songs, Album 1, Album 2, etc.
- To fully utilize the large screen available, an option to show the tagged lyrics would be awesome
- Always show the current song playing at the top when switching to the "now playing" tab
- Have an option to not reorder the "now playing" list even when shuffle is turned on
- Add player controls (play/pause, forward, backward, etc) on the lock screen since there are no physical buttons on the M20 for playback controls
 
I would also like to know if other external players are capable of making full use of the hardware on the M20.
 
A player which AR could learn from is the gonemad player. It caters for a lot of settings to personalize it to your own needs. I have since downloaded it on my M20 and have been using it for a few hours. I have not been using it long enough to make a comparison to the stock AR player so it would be great if anyone can confirm that it is indeed making full use of the hardware in M20 or not.

 

[dnun8086]

  I just received my m20 a few days ago and i really love the build and audio quality.
 
I do have a few complaints about the UI and software though. I really hope that there will be continued software updates and support from AR.
 
Some problems i found:
- The AR app crashes occasionally while playing (cant pin point what exactly causes it though)
- Various songs are cut off prematurely (may be due to issues with the gapless playback)
 
Some suggestions to the software/UI
- Please list albums instead of all songs when artist is selected. It should prefereably be listed as such: All Songs, Album 1, Album 2, etc.
- To fully utilize the large screen available, an option to show the tagged lyrics would be awesome
- Always show the current song playing at the top when switching to the "now playing" tab
- Have an option to not reorder the "now playing" list even when shuffle is turned on
- Add player controls (play/pause, forward, backward, etc) on the lock screen since there are no physical buttons on the M20 for playback controls
 
I would also like to know if other external players are capable of making full use of the hardware on the M20.
 
A player which AR could learn from is the gonemad player. It caters for a lot of settings to personalize it to your own needs. I have since downloaded it on my M20 and have been using it for a few hours. I have not been using it long enough to make a comparison to the stock AR player so it would be great if anyone can confirm that it is indeed making full use of the hardware in M20 or not.

Great to hear some of the positives, I agree with some of the suggestions myself I'm sure AR-Voice will be able to pass this on .
 
I can try download the App on my M2 and post some impressions but not got much time at the moment but looking forward to hearing your impressions.

 

[lzlbreak]

Hi guys, I am looking for a new DAP to replace my 2yo AK120 which has a really laggy UI. AR M20 really seems to be a killer. Is there anyone happen to hear both AR M20 and AK120 before, and willing to give a simple comparison in sound signiture/quality?
 
I have never hear a AR player before, thus unsure what I should be expecting. It seems AR suits me according to various reviews as I listens to lots of rocks and OST. I would only be using the DAP for CIEM (UE18 & JH5), as I have a complete desktop setup for home use.
 
In addition, I am just curious, would AR M20 be configured to act as a computer USB DAC and connect to amp then speakers? It would be great if it does, as I at times play sample music from computer, but I currently do not have a decent DAC as I am using turntable primarily. Thanks in advance!

 

[thevanquished]

Great to hear some of the positives, I agree with some of the suggestions myself I'm sure AR-Voice will be able to pass this on .

I can try download the App on my M2 and post some impressions but not got much time at the moment but looking forward to hearing your impressions.

After spending more time with the m20 and comparing playback with the ar player and gonemad, I feel that gonemad does not seem to be able to make full use of the hardware on the m20. I could hear a slight buzzing sound when using the gonemad player no matter what settings I try, however upon switching to the ar player app and playing the identical song, the buzz seems to be gone.

Few more issues/suggestions:
- When i am playing music from my playlist, whenever i press the "now playing" button to see the song queue, the player shows my list of playlist instead. The player only shows the song queue after i go back to the "now playing" screen and click on the button again.
- Please add a setting to lock the volume controls button when the screen is locked. I have accidentally pressed on the volume controls while holding the player in my hands or putting it in my pocket way too many times.

 

[thevanquished]

  Hi guys, I am looking for a new DAP to replace my 2yo AK120 which has a really laggy UI. AR M20 really seems to be a killer. Is there anyone happen to hear both AR M20 and AK120 before, and willing to give a simple comparison in sound signiture/quality?
 
I have never hear a AR player before, thus unsure what I should be expecting. It seems AR suits me according to various reviews as I listens to lots of rocks and OST. I would only be using the DAP for CIEM (UE18 & JH5), as I have a complete desktop setup for home use.
 
In addition, I am just curious, would AR M20 be configured to act as a computer USB DAC and connect to amp then speakers? It would be great if it does, as I at times play sample music from computer, but I currently do not have a decent DAC as I am using turntable primarily. Thanks in advance!

 
Currently, there is no USB DAC feature available for the AR-M20. 

 

[AR-Voice]

  I just received my m20 a few days ago and i really love the build and audio quality.
 
I do have a few complaints about the UI and software though. I really hope that there will be continued software updates and support from AR.
 
Some problems i found:
- The AR app crashes occasionally while playing (cant pin point what exactly causes it though)
- Various songs are cut off prematurely (may be due to issues with the gapless playback)
 
Some suggestions to the software/UI
- Please list albums instead of all songs when artist is selected. It should prefereably be listed as such: All Songs, Album 1, Album 2, etc.
- To fully utilize the large screen available, an option to show the tagged lyrics would be awesome
- Always show the current song playing at the top when switching to the "now playing" tab
- Have an option to not reorder the "now playing" list even when shuffle is turned on
- Add player controls (play/pause, forward, backward, etc) on the lock screen since there are no physical buttons on the M20 for playback controls
 
I would also like to know if other external players are capable of making full use of the hardware on the M20.
 
A player which AR could learn from is the gonemad player. It caters for a lot of settings to personalize it to your own needs. I have since downloaded it on my M20 and have been using it for a few hours. I have not been using it long enough to make a comparison to the stock AR player so it would be great if anyone can confirm that it is indeed making full use of the hardware in M20 or not.

Thanks everyone who has chipped in on this
 
Glad you love the sound, everything else is subsidiary to that. We use our manufacturing budget on what matters! The sound!
 
We have a long term firmware upgrade plan for all AR players, do not worry.
 
1. App crashes, will pass on to designer. I don't get them on my sample
2. Cut tracks should be fixed in next firmware update due soon
3. We plan a comprehensive GUI update towards end year which will sort many of these things. I am asking for lock-screen controls too (-:
4. Only the AR player has the architecture that bypasses Android. Other players will not sound as good, but let us know your findings
5. You cannot use the M20 or M2 as an external DAC
 
Thanks for joining the AR community

 

[AR-Voice]

Cheers RobertQuote:

  Hi guys, I am looking for a new DAP to replace my 2yo AK120 which has a really laggy UI. AR M20 really seems to be a killer. Is there anyone happen to hear both AR M20 and AK120 before, and willing to give a simple comparison in sound signiture/quality?
 
I have never hear a AR player before, thus unsure what I should be expecting. It seems AR suits me according to various reviews as I listens to lots of rocks and OST. I would only be using the DAP for CIEM (UE18 & JH5), as I have a complete desktop setup for home use.
 
In addition, I am just curious, would AR M20 be configured to act as a computer USB DAC and connect to amp then speakers? It would be great if it does, as I at times play sample music from computer, but I currently do not have a decent DAC as I am using turntable primarily. Thanks in advance!

Greetings.
AR Plays Music not Digits as one user said.
The GUI is fast & slick although not perfect. We are constantly improving the interface 
The M20 is a perfect match to good IEMs
There is no USB DAC functionality on M2 or M20
Do let us know your impressions when you try one
Cheers

 

[AR-Voice]

  Anyone know how do the IE800 pair with the AR-M20?  
Thanks

Hi surfratt. I use IE800s myself,  (used to work with Sennheiser) they are a perfect pairing. Also great with Focal Sphear and Etymotic ER6 Custom Mould.

 

[thevanquished]

 
Thanks everyone who has chipped in on this
 
Glad you love the sound, everything else is subsidiary to that. We use our manufacturing budget on what matters! The sound!
 
We have a long term firmware upgrade plan for all AR players, do not worry.
 
1. App crashes, will pass on to designer. I don't get them on my sample
2. Cut tracks should be fixed in next firmware update due soon
3. We plan a comprehensive GUI update towards end year which will sort many of these things. I am asking for lock-screen controls too (-:
4. Only the AR player has the architecture that bypasses Android. Other players will not sound as good, but let us know your findings
5. You cannot use the M20 or M2 as an external DAC
 
Thanks for joining the AR community

 
Yes, i believe that all of us here would agree that sound quality is the priority. However with that said, we cant just throw user experience out of the window.
 
There are many audiophile grade DAPs out there right now and alot of them sound pretty decent if not good. However with most of them, what is missing is the usability and user experience which adds to the whole package. Especially with such a large and beautiful screen present in the AR-M20 and M2, I believe that there is a lot of potential for them to be the players that we all dream of: Awesome sound quality with an awesome user experience to match. 
 
I am definitely looking forward to the next GUI update. *Fingers crossed*

 

[lzlbreak]

 
Greetings.
AR Plays Music not Digits as one user said.
The GUI is fast & slick although not perfect. We are constantly improving the interface 
The M20 is a perfect match to good IEMs
There is no USB DAC functionality on M2 or M20
Do let us know your impressions when you try one
Cheers

Sweet, just placed my order. However I did not receive confirmation email mentioned in the confirmation webpage after payment, strange, fingers cross everything comes around as expected.

 

[AR-Voice]

  Sweet, just placed my order. However I did not receive confirmation email mentioned in the confirmation webpage after payment, strange, fingers cross everything comes around as expected.

Is that the USA site? Let me know of any problems

 

[bavinck]

Is that the USA site? Let me know of any problems

Just ordered from USA site, no email confirmation for me either.

 

[surfratt]

They were/are having web issues.  I ordered and couldn't get the 20% OFF. Then when my order finally went through, I got an email saying they had to cancel my order and refund me due to errors on their end.  I ended up ordering on the phone.

 

[bavinck]

They were/are having web issues.  I ordered and couldn't get the 20% OFF. Then when my order finally went through, I got an email saying they had to cancel my order and refund me due to errors on their end.  I ended up ordering on the phone.

They don't have PayPal as an option either, which should always be an option. Always rather use PayPal.

 

[lzlbreak]

 
Is that the USA site? Let me know of any problems

Yeah USA website. They got back to me in the morning after I sent in an enquiry email, saying the DAP should be sent out soon. But that's it, I still receive no confirmation email, no delivery information, no tracking number.