[NewEve]

Hey, no problem. Are you asking about 'Smoothness' in relation to the sound? Or the UI?

For sound I'd say the SR25 is smoother than both outputs of the SE200 but I think this may be due to the loss of detail retrieval when going between the two players. The level of detail retrieval present in both outputs of the SE200 is of a noticeably higher level than that of the SR25 (To be expected for the price difference). I think it is this added detail retrieval that grabs your attention more so and which effects the perceived 'smoothness' of the SE200. Saying that, the ESS side of the SE200 is noticeably smoother than that of the AKM side and has more of a focus on the mids. I listen to the ESS side when I want to listen passively. The AKM side is very dynamic with more of a 'V' shaped tuning and a higher level of detail retrieval.

Thanks!
The smoothness was re: the UI but you nonetheless answered the question I had, thank you very much!

 

[Whitigir]

Ah...such hobby is subjective

 

[Tristy]

Ah...such hobby is subjective

What are your subjective thoughts?

 

[Whitigir]

What are your subjective thoughts?

Well, I never listened to it, so I can’t say about it sound performances. However, technically, I do think that Sizes matter .

 

[NaittsirK]

@Tristy As you seem to be one of rare few who seem to own se200, would you be interested in writing up a review here or smth alike?
If you can't(or won't) talk from experience with other DAP competition, it would be great to then hear the difference between the two dac mods?
As someone who is really interested in this DAP this would be really meaningful

Thank you

 

[Tristy]

@Tristy As you seem to be one of rare few who seem to own se200, would you be interested in writing up a review here or smth alike?
If you can't(or won't) talk from experience with other DAP competition, it would be great to then hear the difference between the two dac mods?
As someone who is really interested in this DAP this would be really meaningful

Thank you

Hey NattsirK,
Tbh with you, I don’t really feel qualified enough to be writing up a review of the SE200 given my limited experience with DACs and DAPs in general. If I were to write one I feel that it would be purely superficial. However, if there is something specific that you want to know based off of my current and previous inventory then I’d be happy to give my impressions / comparisons... baring in mind aural memory limitations but I’d be sure to make this known in any comparisons.

 

[DrSheep]

This isn't really a review, but more of my own option. The dual DAC design of the SE200 should appeal more to folks that like to experiment, rather than any give DAC chip camp. For background I generally like the very slightly warm sound of AKM over ESS, but I am totally ok with the sounds of all three major DAC chips (AKM, ESS, and Cirrus Logic). If you are one of those folks that ABSOULTLY hate the sound of one of the DAC used in the SE200, then there really is no point of getting it, unless of course you think of the SE200 as a baby SP2000 and don't want a SP1000 or SP1000m.

Going back to the DACs within the SE200, and I would say the ESS gives more speed, colder, and more analytical, which is kind of expected. I tested this with my Noble K10, JH Audio Layla, Alpha Dog, and Ether CX with no filters or eq. Compare to my older AK240, the SE200 is a definite improvement but not by a huge amount, and I suspect SR15/25 users will agree, that the sound improvement alone isn't really worth upgrading to the SE200, consider the cost. The SE200 strong point is that you only need one DAP to create a more balanced sound. If your IEMs / headphones lean warm or cold, then you can pick between AKM or ESS for a better balance. Case in point is that I use the ESS side to tone down the overly warm sound of my Alpha Dog, but keep the Ether CX on the AKM side.

One thing that I absolutely HATED about the SE200 is the volume knob, which its back side was blocked by that super difficult to CNC metal curve. This is the worse for the current AK line up, so take this as a warning and not get the SE200, if you are someone that like to fine tune volume a lot.

 

[Tristy]

This isn't really a review, but more of my own option. The dual DAC design of the SE200 should appeal more to folks that like to experiment, rather than any give DAC chip camp. For background I generally like the very slightly warm sound of AKM over ESS, but I am totally ok with the sounds of all three major DAC chips (AKM, ESS, and Cirrus Logic). If you are one of those folks that ABSOULTLY hate the sound of one of the DAC used in the SE200, then there really is no point of getting it, unless of course you think of the SE200 as a baby SP2000 and don't want a SP1000 or SP1000m.

Going back to the DACs within the SE200, and I would say the ESS gives more speed, colder, and more analytical, which is kind of expected. I tested this with my Noble K10, JH Audio Layla, Alpha Dog, and Ether CX with no filters or eq. Compare to my older AK240, the SE200 is a definite improvement but not by a huge amount, and I suspect SR15/25 users will agree, that the sound improvement alone isn't really worth upgrading to the SE200, consider the cost. The SE200 strong point is that you only need one DAP to create a more balanced sound. If your IEMs / headphones lean warm or cold, then you can pick between AKM or ESS for a better balance. Case in point is that I use the ESS side to tone down the overly warm sound of my Alpha Dog, but keep the Ether CX on the AKM side.

One thing that I absolutely HATED about the SE200 is the volume knob, which its back side was blocked by that super difficult to CNC metal curve. This is the worse for the current AK line up, so take this as a warning and not get the SE200, if you are someone that like to fine tune volume a lot.

Completely in contrast to what I hear but always fun to hear someone else’s opinion.

 

[Avian]

The Ess side, for me, is more laid back, with an intimate signature.
The speed and the "chilly" sound is on the AKM side.