Best DAP 300 under for SQ

[floydfanx6]

I’m on a quest for a dap. Sq is number one then functionality.A few I'm considering: hiby rb3 pro, r5. Shanling m2x , sony nw 45, xduoo x20 .Would really love to hear some input from people who have a few sub 300 daps these or others and which they would pick .

 

[PaganDL]

Hi @floydfanx6,

Since SQ is your priority, I suggest looking into Cowon Plenue D, really hard to beat this as a no frills DAP, especially if you play with JetEffects, which is more DSP than EQ.
I have used this DAP & its revision, PD2 more than any other DAP I own for a really long time & my main go to.
Also hard to beat 100 hours battery life but most of all the sound quality is exceptional...provided your recording quality is excellent, format doesn't matter.

So unless you need BT, WIFI & streaming, just stick with the PD.

Feel free to ask more when you need.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[floydfanx6]

Will it play dsd, iso files how is the equalizer . I’m strongly considering going for the hiby r3 everyone seems to love it. What about the cowon
Plenue d2. Has balanced cable and blue tooth . Is it equal or better in sound quality ?

 

[floydfanx6]

.

 

[floydfanx6]

Would love if other people could chime in for 300ish or under

 

[buke9]

Just can’t say have the R3 , R6 pro , Echobox Explorer and QP1R.

 

[Mhog55]

Just depends on what you want and need from your dap. If straight wired only good sound quality is all you're after, I rec the Opus #1s and the Cowon Plenue D2. 300 dollars is kinda at that weird range, where you won't notice a whole lot of difference. 4 to 5 hundred gets you into that mid tier, and there are several good daps there.

 

[PaganDL]

Will it play dsd, iso files how is the equalizer . I’m strongly considering going for the hiby r3 everyone seems to love it. What about the cowon
Plenue d2. Has balanced cable and blue tooth . Is it equal or better in sound quality ?

@floydfanx6,

Can't comment on R3 except to say by all reports it doesn't have the greatest noise floor & hell of a sensitive to hiss but if you read the spec sheet for Plenue D2, it will fit play DSD though personally I don't believe in that particular format for various reasons...
You be hard pressed to find a DAP which plays ISO as that's more a video format than audio format.
As stated, Cowon's JetEffects is more DSP than EQ & the only sound mod tool I use aside from actual hardware EQ.
PD2 has no BT & you're not going to hear any difference SQ wise from either Single or Balanced Out though on both PDs, the 3.5 mm supports 3.5 Balanced.
Personally & subjectively, I did mention this, I use PD a lot more than PD 2, mainly due to battery life & SQ.

Hope this makes more sense.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[floydfanx6]

I’m getting close between the plenue D, D2 and hiby R3. sq and eq adjusting is a big thing for me so I am leaning toward the plenue D, giving up wifi and balanced input. The one thing I’m concerned with is I’m reading the plenue D can only accept 128gb sd cards. This is just too little for me I typically use the 245. Has their been a firmware upgrade, can it take the large micro
Sd cards?
Is the plenue d2 the same as the plenue d in SQ

 

[Mhog55]

Does the D2 still only except FAT32? Any update to use EX FAT?

 

[stenog]

I’m on a quest for a dap. Sq is number one then functionality.A few I'm considering: hiby rb3 pro, r5. Shanling m2x , sony nw 45, xduoo x20 .Would really love to hear some input from people who have a few sub 300 daps these or others and which they would pick .

You should seriously consider an LG smartphone. LG G7 should be around 300 euro and it's at least on par, if not better, than the one you have listed. On top of that you get an ok smartphone that are much faster than any dap.

Hiby R5 pro is also a possibility albeit more expensive.