Latest Thread Images

Cowon Plenue D
Mar 28, 2016 at 12:24 PM Post #2,011 of 4,949

 
 
 
sledgeharvy said:
As you know through experience, everyone has different earphones, that range from 4ohms to 300 ohms (yes, there's higher and lower, job st saying in general.) Furthermore, each earphone is either dark, warm, neutral, bright, or even hot as their sound signature. Those two contributing factors are already a big enough reason/detractor or proponent to like or dislike a specific DAP.
Click to expand...

 
I agree. That's why I keep banging on about Synergy.
 
I'm beginning to feel marginalised in this place more and more each day.
 
I honestly don't know why the search 'for the best' thing still rears it's ugly head. There's no such thing, only what is best for the individual user.
 
The first thing you need to do is to decide what sound you're looking for and what it's primary use will be.
 
Personally, I ignore the reviews on here, they're nothing more than adverts. That's why I come to this thread. If you can't audition, it's the next best thing. The best opinions are always the balanced ones. But it's just an opinion. What you need to do is look for a consensus of balanced opinions. There's far too much hype on here and primarily it will inevitably lead to disappointment by the buyer. Same with the haters, being overtly negative helps noone.
 
The Plenue D is not perfect, I wish people would stop pretending it is. It's a very good portable player with a great EQ that you can use to adapt the sound. It has a great battery life. On the downside, it has no lineout, The screen is not high resolution, no DSD support.
 
I just wish people would stop hyping it to be everything to all people. It's not our job to promote the Plenue D, it's Cowons'.
 
As owners it's our job to give a balanced view of our experience using it. To inform them whether it will meet their needs. Personally I'd hate it if someone bought the Plenue on my advice and it didn't meet their needs.
 
People need to stop changing things for peer approval. Like I said a few pages back to another user who loved the synergy between his X5 and a particular set of Iems, if you like it, stick with it.
 
Personally, I'm more interested in helping people find what they want, rather than trying to sell them the Plenue D. There's far too many variables to recommend the Plenue D as everything to all people.
 
The truth is, for me, I love it as a portable option and I love the way the sound makes me feel when I listen to it. But for critical listening, I'd be looking for an alternative.
 
Just my opinion, nothing more.
 
Mar 28, 2016 at 12:43 PM Post #2,012 of 4,949
taffy2207 said:






I agree. That's why I keep banging on about Synergy.

I'm beginning to feel marginalised in this place more and more each day.

I honestly don't know why the search 'for the best' thing still rears it's ugly head. There's no such thing.

The first thing you need to is decide what sound you're looking for and what it's primary use will be.

Personally, I ignore reviews, they're nothing more than adverts. That's why I come to this thread. If you can't audition, it's the next best thing. The best opinions are always the balanced ones. But it's just an opinion. What you need to is look for a consensus of opinion. There's far too much hype on here and primarily it will inevitably lead to disappointment by the buyer. Same with the haters, being overtly negative helps noone.

The Plenue D is not perfect, I wish people would stop pretending it is. It's a very good portable player with a great EQ that you can use to adapt the sound. It has a great battery life. On the downside, it has no lineout, The screen is not high resolution, no DSD support.

I just wish people would stop hyping it to be everything to all people. It's not our job to promote the Plenue D, it's Cowons.

As owners it's our job to give a balanced view of our experience using it. To inform them whether it will meet their needs. Personally I'd hate it if someone bought the Plenue on my advice and it didn't meet their needs.

People need to stop changing things for peer approval. Like I said a few pages back to another user who loved the synergy between his X5 and a particular set of Iems, if you like it, stick with it.

Personally, I'm more in interested in helping people find what they want, rather than trying to sell them the Plenue D. There's far too many variables to recommend the Plenue D as everything to all people.

The truth is, for me, I love it as a portable option and I love the way the sound makes me feel when I listen to it. But for critical listening, I'd be looking for an alternative.

Just my opinion, nothing more.
Click to expand...
True the PD is not the best, the P1 and M has a better over all sound but I am usually taking the PD with me while my other daps stays in the drawer. The PD to me is better than many of the daps mention but its not the best and thats ok with me. I also dont have the best iems but they do sound great for me.
 
Mar 28, 2016 at 12:53 PM Post #2,014 of 4,949
paulus xii said:
Since I got the Plenue 1, I'm always taking it with me no matter the size, it's impossible to resist to such a realistic, pure sound. Plenue D is fantastic, but will be returned tomorrow :)
Click to expand...
Glad you enjoying the P1 its a great dap.
 
Mar 28, 2016 at 1:18 PM Post #2,016 of 4,949
Mar 28, 2016 at 4:03 PM Post #2,019 of 4,949
sledgeharvy said:
I've owned both the Plenue D and the AK Jr.. In terms of sound, it's subjective. But honesty.. The AK Jr is better. You get way more details and spacious sound. In addition, you get a cleaner better soundscape than the Plenue D.
The Plenue D is a great player don't misunderand me, I just just wanted to make sure people don't go over board in saying it's better than the AK Jr..
I get the fact that the Plenue D has more customization options, to tailor the sound.. But if you do too much, you get a very artificial sound. On the AK Jr, it always sound very natural. I am a detail freak, I love hearing the echo in the reverb of a guitar on Heavy Metal, in general, you can never hear that, especially newer modern Death/Progressive Death Metal, ultras compressed music, so to listen to that genre and still hear the ring in a tom or echo of the room the drums were being played in is a rarity.. One that the Plenue D doesn't offer.
What the Plenue D does excel at, is vibrant visceral bass. That is one area the Ak Jr fails at in a direct comparison. That's not to say the AK Jr is completely lacking bass.. It is thick, but its a natural bass, it's not that sub-woofer in your carnbass that can be produced on the Plenue D which by the way, the Bass response on the Plenue D is pretty much 2nd to none in my book. I haven't used another placer that has that kind of Bass quantity. And in that regards, sure, the Plenue D is better than the AK Jr.. But with most genres, that heavy bass isn't conducive to good sound.
Click to expand...

 
Guilty as charged! Tho not with a PD, but other Cowon's. I managed some super fun sound signatures that really got the ears and blood pumping, but it wasn't very 'realistic'. I think that's why I'm favouring my AP100 over other DAPs currently, as it's less artificial sounding, and the EQ is hardware based I like what I hear.
 
 
 
hypersonic said:
  Did you try the D without EQ on?
I understood a fact that eq is a must on this player. 
Without it, I would even describe it's sound BAD. Just like what you said, mushy, lack of details.
If you don't like tweaking it too much, just put it in "BBE" and leave it there.
That's what I do. I am never a eq guy. 
Click to expand...

hypersonic said:
  The point I was trying to make is the D only shows it true performance with EQ on.
So to compare it with other players fairly, people should at least turn the eq on (even without any extra tweak).
I do not believe it's the most amazing sounding thing ever. In fact, I just compared the D with my humble desktop setup on the same headphone, it doesn't stand a chance. 
It certainly could be not as good as some other portable players. 
I still admire it as a very very good portable music device though. That battery is insane! 
Click to expand...

 
Yeh I found this the same with other Cowons. Left in Normal they sound the same as a 'Sansa Clip' which to my ears and memory now bring up feelings of 'dull, lifeless and muddy' (whether that's true or not is another matter). The thing about the Cowon's however is they have the widest range of sounds signatures possible that I have ever heard (in DAP). I listened for about a year before stumbling upon some new settings to play with that made my previous settings sound 'dull and lifeless', which was a shock as at the time I thought they sounded great!
 
paulus xii said:
   
Because the D uses a 192/24 Wolfson DAC. Seriously, the D plays in a different league.
Click to expand...

 
I guess that may explain why some hear a 'worthy' difference and other's don't, depends on headphone used and whether they derive any additional benefit with the Wolfson DAC.
Personally I'm not at all sold on the 192/24 bit stuff, ABX testing has showed me it's pointless, tho some 'Hi Res' albums or SACD do sound different it's not due to the bit rate but recording (5.1 etc).
 
 
sledgeharvy said:
I never want to argue in this site. Everyone has their own opinion, earphones, and personal tastes as to what is "Perfect" for them. What works for me, won't work for you, you equipment, and personal tastes.

I personally loved it, it really made a good impression on me. For me, my music, my earphones, my personal tastes, it works. I feel like it's priced accordingly. Now, ask me about the AK120, 240, 380, That's a whole other topic. Those are priced very high, possibly justified in their eyes and the people who own those products. I just can't justify spending that much when I feel very good about products like the Shanling M2, Plenue D, and iBasso DX80.. They have great sound, and do it at a relatively affordable price range.
Click to expand...

 
Very true. Speaking of the M2 I see you rate it above the PD etc, I too am curious about this device. I wonder if u can answer these 3 quick questions (without derailing thread);
 
1) Does it allow for song rating or bookmarking a 'favourite'?
2) Does it allow for Lyrics to be displayed?
3) Does it have EQ, if so how easily/quickly can u toggle different EQ presets?
 
Cheers,
 
Bruce
 
Mar 28, 2016 at 4:36 PM Post #2,020 of 4,949
twistedsith said:
I was just about to pull the trigger on either an x3ii or x5ii but then saw this. I'm using the Sony MDR100 aap headphones, would anyone recommend this over the other two I mentioned?
Click to expand...

Honestly, it depends what you're looking for.
 
The main pro's for me with the D are it's great battery life, form factor, lack of hiss, great tight and deep bass and it's overall neutrality. The cons, no line out, no DSD support, the screens not high resolution, tagging issues (for some) and scolling (great for me but some people say it's laggy).
 
I preferred it over the X3ii, the x3ii sounded too closed in, not bad just not as good to my ears. but the D has great synergy with my phones, for me. So, it's just my opinion & preference.
 
As a portable option it's great but it does lack in features compared to the Fiio's. It's like pitting a portable specialist (the PD) against 2 good all rounders (the Fiio's) IMHO.
 
Honestly, you'd probably be happy with any of the 3. It comes down to what your priorities are in a DAP.
 
Probably not much help but just my thoughts.
tongue_smile.gif
 
 
Mar 28, 2016 at 4:48 PM Post #2,021 of 4,949
taffy2207 said:
Honestly, it depends what you're looking for.

The main pro's for me with the D are it's great battery life, form factor, lack of hiss, great tight and deep bass and it's overall neutrality. The cons, no line out, no DSD support, the screens not high resolution, tagging issues (for some) and scolling (great for me but some people say it's laggy).

I preferred it over the X3ii, the x3ii sounded too closed in, not bad just not as good to my ears. but the D has great synergy with my phones, for me. But it's just my opinion & preference.

As a portable option it's great but it does lack in features compared to the Fiio's. It's like pitting a portable specialist (the PD) against 2 good all rounders (the Fiio's) IMHO.

Honestly, you'd probably be happy with any of the 3. It comes down to what your priorities are in a DAP.

Probably not much help but just my thoughts. :tongue_smile:  
Click to expand...


No that's actually a great help! Thanks for the reply - you've given me some things to consider :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 5 (members: 0, guests: 5)
Back
Top