Good morning
I would like to share some thoughts on the SR15, since they may help someone that was undecided like me.
I will not comment on the WiFi, apps and other amenities since I don’t use them.
My player until yesterday was the Pioneer XDP30. Great player, double SD card Sabre ES9018C2M DACs and a pair of ES9601 amplifiers chips, Bluetooth, balanced output, good battery. It substituted a Fiio X1 II that never satisfied me.
I was quite happy with the Pioneer especially because it always worked flawlessly. Very fast in scanning the library, perfect gapless, good Bluetooth connection. However, you know, we always want to know if there is something more in terms of sound. Therefore, after evaluating some used AK70 MKII I decided to wait for the right opportunity to get the SR15.
I got it on Amazon warehouse for 400 £ and just after using it a bit yesterday, I couldn’t be happier.
Yes, it looks and feels premium, much more premium than the Pioneer. That is not the point of the comparison, but you know it’s a cool feeling. Screen resolution, materials, buttons, jack ports, everything is better.
General system speed is the same if not a bit worse, but the SR15 UI has Apple's buttery smooth feeling. The pioneer is quicker in turning on and scanning the library (much quicker in scanning the library). Anyway, by throwing my 128gb Sandisk straight from the Pioneer to the SR15 everything was recognized without problems.
Comparing the functionalities. I finally found something that I was looking for from ages in a DAP: the ability to add songs to the queue. It was a function that I had 10 years ago on my Creative Zen Sleek, and I never understood why it was absent on the X1, the Pioneer and many other players. Another super nice addition is the search function and the ability to play by genre. For some mysterious reasons in the Pioneer you cannot play all the songs of a given genre, it forces you to select an artist after the genre selection. Continuing, I heard about people complaining about the SR15 EQ. I found it spectacular, even superior to the Pioneer, with a wonderful fine-tune control across all the frequencies. I honestly do not use it much, but it is nice to have it. Something missing compared to the XDP is the possibility of quickly adjusting the bass level, but again I never used this function. Another thing present in the SR15 is the L/R channel adjustment, absent in the Pioneer. Finally, the Pioneer was becoming sometimes really warm only with the Bluetooth on. The SR15 is generally always warmer, especially when scanning the library, but nothing too extreme.
Coming to the sound, I started using the B&W P9, did a lot of A/B and I could hear a difference. It is subtle but it is there. In general, the sound is more engaging. The bass is more present but in a good way, punchier and more controlled. The busy metal tracks I'm used to listening to are now clearer in the midrange frequencies. To explain it in a different way, it is the same feeling I experienced when adding a good headphone amplifier to full-sized cans. Coming to the soundstage, I would say it is equal comparing the two DAPs, maybe slightly narrower in the SR15. However, instrument separation is better. I wish there was even more soundstage, instrument separation and air when moving from the XDP30, but it was not the case. Maybe with the SE100, who knows…
Anyway, it sounds better. It is difficult to explain since is the general feeling I had. Everything sounds more moving. The violins, the voice of the singer… Maybe it is due to increased micro details, I don’t know.
With the balanced output (tested with the Sure 846), these differences are even more evident. There was a drumroll in a track that I never noticed before, that simply put a big smile on my face. I know you can understand the feeling. Listening again to the same track with the XDP30, I was now able to notice this drumroll, but it was far more submerged by the other instruments.
Finally, I was also shocked to hear similar differences with the Bluetooth. I don’t know how and if this is possible since I always thought that in that case, the DAC used is the one in the headphone. But again, A/B, the difference was there. The BT range is equal if not slightly better than the XDP30 that is already fairly good.
Concluding, if you don’t have/want to invest 400 or more in a DAP and you find the XDP30 for 200 £ (like I did in the past) just grab it. It sounds good and it is a nice, fast and reliable player. However, since we want always something more, if you can, invest in the SR15. It’s a nice step up in terms of sounds and features, especially for 400 £.
Tonight I’ll try the line out with the A20, but I’m sure I’ll not be disappointed
I'm just wonder where the people complain, because i didn't see it. So I thought it'll be good topost a message on this page.
Anyway there is no problem at all i think, user comments and video reviews etc. shows me screen resolution is nice. What you think? I'm curious bout your opinion too
