HiBy Digital M300 Android Digital Audio Player,"The Gen-Z Music Player" - Discussion thread

[MarkCrimeMX]

Amy version of viper4android That can be used with dDC?

 

[Twizzle]

Erroneous post - apologies.

 

[Twizzle]

I've had the Hiby M300 for nearly two weeks now. I had quite specific requirements for what I wanted from a DAP, so here's my feedback on the M300 and how it meets those requirements (or not) - I thought posting it here could be useful for others scouring the web looking for help picking a DAP (as I was a few weeks ago).

My use case is playing the entirety of my iTunes digital music library of around 27,000 tracks and its 825 playlists offline. I won't be using this player for music streaming apps - I simply want a modern equivalent to an iPod Classic, but with enough memory to hold all of my library in its original audio file quality.

Here's my findings, and some tips that might be handy for others:

1. True gapless playback - POSITIVE
   • As others have mentioned, with the M300 running Android, the capabilities of the unit are really defined by the capabilities of the apps it runs. Prior to buying the M300, I tested out the HibyMusic app and Poweramp on my Samsung Galaxy A22 5G. I wasn't keen on the HibyMusic, as it didn't recognise the exported iTunes playlists I copied onto the phone's SD card (more on how to do that later), plus I preferred the user interface of Poweramp. I'm pleased to report gapless works fine once enabled on Poweramp - both on my phone and the M300. The first three tracks on Depeche Mode's 'Black Celebration' are always a great way to test out how good gapless is.
2. High playlist track numbers (min 10,000) - POSITIVE
   • If there is a limit to number of tunes in a Poweramp playlist, I've yet to find it - I have a few of my many playlists imported form iTunes that have several thousand tracks
3. Highly expandable memory (up to 2TB SD or equivalent) - POSITIVE
   • We know the M300 can handle up to a 2 TB Micro SD Card. I'm using a SanDisk 1.5TB Ultra microSDXC. I have experienced very slow file transfer via USB lead and when moving files on the device though - this also occurs when transferring files to the internal memory also. More on that later in the list.
4. High total track numbers (30,000 min) - POSITIVE
   • I have over 27,000 tracks on my M300 (all were copied directly to its 1.5 TB SD card whilst it was inserted in my laptop).
5. No limit to total playlists on device - POSITIVE
   • I currently have 825 playlists in Poweramp on the M300, so assume I can keep adding dozens or hundreds more. A negative about playlists follows later in the list though...
6. Can handle baseline & progressive cover art - POSITIVE
   • The Sony NW-A35 I bought (then sent back) 7 years ago stung me with this issue, so I always double check. If I recall correctly, the NW-A35 could only display baseline, but not progressive album art - very much a schoolboy DAP error. Suffice to say, this basic requirement ain't an issue on the M300, at least not in Poweramp.
7. Replay Gain/Smart Gain (or equivalent) with ability to set by album - POSITIVE
   • I can get album Replay Gain using Poweramp
   • Tip: iTunes is inconsistent with applying Replay Gain/Smart Gain these days, so I scanned my entire digital library's Replay Gain levels using Foobar2000, using 'Scan as album (by tags)'. I also do this to any new tracks or albums I download before putting on the M300 to keep the overall volume levels similar when shuffling.
8. Able to Scrobble to Last fm either over Wi-Fi or via PC - POSITIVE
   • I downloaded the official Last.fm app to the M300, and it works well once you've set it to Scrobble from Poweramp
   • What's great is that you don't need to have the Last.fm app open whilst using Poweramp - it'll automatically Scrobble
   • What's brilliant is that it will Scrobble offline. I.e. if I'm out and about without Wi-fi (which I always will be - if nothing else other than to save battery life), it will Scrobble everything I've played to my Last.fm account the next time the M300 connects to Wi-fi. Exactly what I was after for Scrobbling on the move
9. Syncable with iTunes, MediaMonkey (or equivalent) - NEGATIVE
   • I use iTunes on my Windows 11 laptop to curate my digital library. I've tried others, but I prefer iTunes' UI and usability. Until now, I've simply synced my iPod (Classic, then Nano once the Classic crapped out) with selected playlists and tracks . This has always been simple.
   • The M300 doesn't show as a device in iTunes, which I expected. When I've used Poweramp on my Android phone before, I've imported the whole iTunes library into MusicBee, then synced the phone with MusicBee. This is very time consuming, and I wanted to cut out the MusicBee middle step. Unfortunately, there's not a particularly slick workaround.
   • The workaround I am attempting to use is:
     1. Plug the M300 into my laptop
     2. Drag and drop any new or updated music folders into the M300' SD card's 'Music' folders (in the appropriate artist folder)
     3. Tip: Export all playlists from my iTunes XML file using a custom script in Eric Daugherty's excellent Command line iTunes Export - configured to replace the laptop's track pathways with something appropriate to work on the M300 when the playlist is opened
     4. Drag and drop any exported, updated iTunes playlists into the M300's 'Music/Playlist' folder
     5. Carry out a full rescan in Poweramp to refresh the albums, tracks and playlists
   • This workaround went well with the SD Card inserted in my laptop for the first big drag and drop of all music and playlists, however I've hit a significant problem that will make ongoing updates of new/changed music and playlists a pain to achieve... namely:
10. Able to import/play playlists created on PC - POSITIVE + NEGATIVE
    • The above workaround in point 9 enables me to export iTunes playlists, get them on the M300 and use them with the music dragged and dropped from my laptop's iTunes music library directories. After a full rescan in Poweramp, the playlists appear and work
    • I don't want to have to remove my M300's protective cover, remove the SD card, and put it in my laptop every time I want to add new/update music or playlists
      I formatted the SD card in the M300 (just 'Format', not 'Format as Internal'). It's set to 'File transfer in USB settings (not 'PTP')
    • However, when I plug the Hiby into my Windows 11 laptop via USB C, file transfer is extremely slow. Drag and dropped music is fairly slow, but the M300 really struggles when I drop my m3u playlists into the 'Music/Playlists' folder either on the internal memory or SD card. In most cases, the file transfer fails. I really don't understand why this is, as some playlists are as small as 4kb, or less. Why are they taking so long?
    • I've also tried to download the same Playlist files via my Google Drive over Wi-fi to get them into the M300, then move them to the right folder, but this too is excruciatingly slow. really not sure how I can speed this up.

Overall, I love this handy little player as a way of keeping my full-quality, complete digital music collection with me wherever I go. It meets all of my DAP needs, and I can accept that the M300 won't be able to sync directly with my iTunes. I really just a faster way of getting music and playlists on the device via USB lead (or Wi-fi) to get the very best use out of this great player, and make it perfect for my needs

@Joe Bloggs - I'd really appreciate your feedback on the slow file management and transfer negative user experience detailed in point 10 above.

• Is this a known issue?
• Is this something that will be address in a future update?
• Any tips on how I can speed up my file transfer without taking my SD card out everytime I want to add stuff to the M300?
• Can you log a feature request to speed up USB and internal file transfer on the M300?

Hope others have found this review useful.

Thanks

Andy

 

[XTF1]

I've had the Hiby M300 for nearly two weeks now. I had quite specific requirements for what I wanted from a DAP, so here's my feedback on the M300 and how it meets those requirements (or not) - I thought posting it here could be useful for others scouring the web looking for help picking a DAP (as I was a few weeks ago).

Not a critique by any mean, but most of your feedback is actually about Android 13, the various App you used, and how well they work (or not…) in your workflow… rather than the M300 itself.

What you found & experienced is probably applicable to any (modern) Android DAP.

As for the slow USB file transfer, it is a recurring topic on any Android device. Possible contributors: the cable (despite being USB-C, some cables are USB 2.0), the file transfer protocol (MTP…), SD card compatibility/formatting issues (not being able to use the full speed capabilities), and… an M300 HW/SW issue…

 

[Joe Bloggs]

I've had the Hiby M300 for nearly two weeks now. I had quite specific requirements for what I wanted from a DAP, so here's my feedback on the M300 and how it meets those requirements (or not) - I thought posting it here could be useful for others scouring the web looking for help picking a DAP (as I was a few weeks ago).

My use case is playing the entirety of my iTunes digital music library of around 27,000 tracks and its 825 playlists offline. I won't be using this player for music streaming apps - I simply want a modern equivalent to an iPod Classic, but with enough memory to hold all of my library in its original audio file quality.

Here's my findings, and some tips that might be handy for others:

1. True gapless playback - POSITIVE
   • As others have mentioned, with the M300 running Android, the capabilities of the unit are really defined by the capabilities of the apps it runs. Prior to buying the M300, I tested out the HibyMusic app and Poweramp on my Samsung Galaxy A22 5G. I wasn't keen on the HibyMusic, as it didn't recognise the exported iTunes playlists I copied onto the phone's SD card (more on how to do that later), plus I preferred the user interface of Poweramp. I'm pleased to report gapless works fine once enabled on Poweramp - both on my phone and the M300. The first three tracks on Depeche Mode's 'Black Celebration' are always a great way to test out how good gapless is.
2. High playlist track numbers (min 10,000) - POSITIVE
   • If there is a limit to number of tunes in a Poweramp playlist, I've yet to find it - I have a few of my many playlists imported form iTunes that have several thousand tracks
3. Highly expandable memory (up to 2TB SD or equivalent) - POSITIVE
   • We know the M300 can handle up to a 2 TB Micro SD Card. I'm using a SanDisk 1.5TB Ultra microSDXC. I have experienced very slow file transfer via USB lead and when moving files on the device though - this also occurs when transferring files to the internal memory also. More on that later in the list.
4. High total track numbers (30,000 min) - POSITIVE
   • I have over 27,000 tracks on my M300 (all were copied directly to its 1.5 TB SD card whilst it was inserted in my laptop).
5. No limit to total playlists on device - POSITIVE
   • I currently have 825 playlists in Poweramp on the M300, so assume I can keep adding dozens or hundreds more. A negative about playlists follows later in the list though...
6. Can handle baseline & progressive cover art - POSITIVE
   • The Sony NW-A35 I bought (then sent back) 7 years ago stung me with this issue, so I always double check. If I recall correctly, the NW-A35 could only display baseline, but not progressive album art - very much a schoolboy DAP error. Suffice to say, this basic requirement ain't an issue on the M300, at least not in Poweramp.
7. Replay Gain/Smart Gain (or equivalent) with ability to set by album - POSITIVE
   • I can get album Replay Gain using Poweramp
   • Tip: iTunes is inconsistent with applying Replay Gain/Smart Gain these days, so I scanned my entire digital library's Replay Gain levels using Foobar2000, using 'Scan as album (by tags)'. I also do this to any new tracks or albums I download before putting on the M300 to keep the overall volume levels similar when shuffling.
8. Able to Scrobble to Last fm either over Wi-Fi or via PC - POSITIVE
   • I downloaded the official Last.fm app to the M300, and it works well once you've set it to Scrobble from Poweramp
   • What's great is that you don't need to have the Last.fm app open whilst using Poweramp - it'll automatically Scrobble
   • What's brilliant is that it will Scrobble offline. I.e. if I'm out and about without Wi-fi (which I always will be - if nothing else other than to save battery life), it will Scrobble everything I've played to my Last.fm account the next time the M300 connects to Wi-fi. Exactly what I was after for Scrobbling on the move
9. Syncable with iTunes, MediaMonkey (or equivalent) - NEGATIVE
   • I use iTunes on my Windows 11 laptop to curate my digital library. I've tried others, but I prefer iTunes' UI and usability. Until now, I've simply synced my iPod (Classic, then Nano once the Classic crapped out) with selected playlists and tracks . This has always been simple.
   • The M300 doesn't show as a device in iTunes, which I expected. When I've used Poweramp on my Android phone before, I've imported the whole iTunes library into MusicBee, then synced the phone with MusicBee. This is very time consuming, and I wanted to cut out the MusicBee middle step. Unfortunately, there's not a particularly slick workaround.
   • The workaround I am attempting to use is:
     1. Plug the M300 into my laptop
     2. Drag and drop any new or updated music folders into the M300' SD card's 'Music' folders (in the appropriate artist folder)
     3. Tip: Export all playlists from my iTunes XML file using a custom script in Eric Daugherty's excellent Command line iTunes Export - configured to replace the laptop's track pathways with something appropriate to work on the M300 when the playlist is opened
     4. Drag and drop any exported, updated iTunes playlists into the M300's 'Music/Playlist' folder
     5. Carry out a full rescan in Poweramp to refresh the albums, tracks and playlists
   • This workaround went well with the SD Card inserted in my laptop for the first big drag and drop of all music and playlists, however I've hit a significant problem that will make ongoing updates of new/changed music and playlists a pain to achieve... namely:
10. Able to import/play playlists created on PC - POSITIVE + NEGATIVE
    • The above workaround in point 9 enables me to export iTunes playlists, get them on the M300 and use them with the music dragged and dropped from my laptop's iTunes music library directories. After a full rescan in Poweramp, the playlists appear and work
    • I don't want to have to remove my M300's protective cover, remove the SD card, and put it in my laptop every time I want to add new/update music or playlists
      I formatted the SD card in the M300 (just 'Format', not 'Format as Internal'). It's set to 'File transfer in USB settings (not 'PTP')
    • However, when I plug the Hiby into my Windows 11 laptop via USB C, file transfer is extremely slow. Drag and dropped music is fairly slow, but the M300 really struggles when I drop my m3u playlists into the 'Music/Playlists' folder either on the internal memory or SD card. In most cases, the file transfer fails. I really don't understand why this is, as some playlists are as small as 4kb, or less. Why are they taking so long?
    • I've also tried to download the same Playlist files via my Google Drive over Wi-fi to get them into the M300, then move them to the right folder, but this too is excruciatingly slow. really not sure how I can speed this up.

Overall, I love this handy little player as a way of keeping my full-quality, complete digital music collection with me wherever I go. It meets all of my DAP needs, and I can accept that the M300 won't be able to sync directly with my iTunes. I really just a faster way of getting music and playlists on the device via USB lead (or Wi-fi) to get the very best use out of this great player, and make it perfect for my needs

@Joe Bloggs - I'd really appreciate your feedback on the slow file management and transfer negative user experience detailed in point 10 above.

• Is this a known issue?
• Is this something that will be address in a future update?
• Any tips on how I can speed up my file transfer without taking my SD card out everytime I want to add stuff to the M300?
• Can you log a feature request to speed up USB and internal file transfer on the M300?

Hope others have found this review useful.

Thanks

Andy

I wonder if this might help with iTunes sync: https://www.jrtstudio.com/iSyncr-iTunes-for-Android

 

[Twizzle]

I wonder if this might help with iTunes sync: https://www.jrtstudio.com/iSyncr-iTunes-for-Android

Thanks Joe. I tried this a couple of times over the years, but it didn't work. I can't recall the issue now - possible it was too slow, or had issues with my iTunes library and files being stored on a Synology Diskstation, rather than directly on the laptop.

 

[Twizzle]

Not a critique by any mean, but most of your feedback is actually about Android 13, the various App you used, and how well they work (or not…) in your workflow… rather than the M300 itself.

What you found & experienced is probably applicable to any (modern) Android DAP.

As for the slow USB file transfer, it is a recurring topic on any Android device. Possible contributors: the cable (despite being USB-C, some cables are USB 2.0), the file transfer protocol (MTP…), SD card compatibility/formatting issues (not being able to use the full speed capabilities), and… an M300 HW/SW issue…

Thanks for the reply. My review was intentionally about usability. There's tons of reviews and unboxing videos focusing on how it looks, how it sounds and its audio components. My intention was to put some feedback in one place that I would have found really useful when researching what DAP I wanted. I'm not an audiophile, so basically wanted something that could do all the things my old iPod Classic could do, but with much more memory - hence the 10 requirements in my post. Gapless, Last.fm Scrobbling, playlists and those other requirements were the most important to me.

I find it hard to believe any Android device can have such slow transfer times for what are essentially text files of just a few kb with an m3u extension - whether uploading via USB cable (I use the one that came with the M300), or moving them round on the device. Very strange indeed, and not a problem my Samsung has. I'm still trying to find a workable way of transferring new/updated playlists to the device easily without removing the SD card. I've even found some of the few I've managed to get across via cable or downloading have appeared blank in Poweramp after a full rescan - all very odd.

Still have a few ideas to try out over the next few days/weeks when I get the time, but really just want to plug the USB lead in, then drag and drop. Can't understand why it's so painful.

All suggestions gratefully received!

Hoping this will be addressed somehow in a future Hiby upgrade - fingers crossed @Joe Bloggs !

Thanks

 

[Saraugie]

Anyone else playing Tidal offline on the M300?

I don’t know if this is a M300 issue or Tidal when playing files offline. I timed it: from turning on and opening Tidal it takes between 7-8.5 minutes for the 1st song to play. After that, it’s generally normal time between songs.

7 minutes to load a song? Cannot be correct. Is the player loading ? Does it take 7 minutes for Tidal to recognize offline playback? I have a 1 TB card in which I don't think is causing it.

 

[mneitzel]

Is anyone running the Neil young archive app, it takes forever to load on my R5 saber. M300 better?

 

[SteC82]

Is there any volume limiting on this device?

 

[Twizzle]

Thanks for the reply. My review was intentionally about usability. There's tons of reviews and unboxing videos focusing on how it looks, how it sounds and its audio components. My intention was to put some feedback in one place that I would have found really useful when researching what DAP I wanted. I'm not an audiophile, so basically wanted something that could do all the things my old iPod Classic could do, but with much more memory - hence the 10 requirements in my post. Gapless, Last.fm Scrobbling, playlists and those other requirements were the most important to me.

I find it hard to believe any Android device can have such slow transfer times for what are essentially text files of just a few kb with an m3u extension - whether uploading via USB cable (I use the one that came with the M300), or moving them round on the device. Very strange indeed, and not a problem my Samsung has. I'm still trying to find a workable way of transferring new/updated playlists to the device easily without removing the SD card. I've even found some of the few I've managed to get across via cable or downloading have appeared blank in Poweramp after a full rescan - all very odd.

Still have a few ideas to try out over the next few days/weeks when I get the time, but really just want to plug the USB lead in, then drag and drop. Can't understand why it's so painful.

All suggestions gratefully received!

Hoping this will be addressed somehow in a future Hiby upgrade - fingers crossed @Joe Bloggs !

Thanks

Still having a hell of a time easily getting m3u playlist files from my laptop to the M300 - regardless of whether by USB cable, or downloading from Google Drive over Wi-fi. These are tiny files, but it's like Android, or MTP, just has a blind spot for .m3u extensions. I can download or drag/drop music folders and files relatively quickly, it's just these darn m3u files.

Think I'm just going to have to resort to taking out the SD card everytime I want to update/refresh playlists.

Has anyone found a case yet that has a hole to allow access to the SD card cover? My case covers it up, and it's a tight fit every time I want to take it on and off?

Thanks

 

[Saraugie]

Anyone else playing Tidal offline on the M300?

I don’t know if this is a M300 issue or Tidal when playing files offline. I timed it: from turning on and opening Tidal it takes between 7-8.5 minutes for the 1st song to play. After that, it’s generally normal time between songs.

7 minutes to load a song? Cannot be correct. Is the player loading ? Does it take 7 minutes for Tidal to recognize offline playback? I have a 1 TB card in which I don't think is causing it.

Anyone using Tidal offline? Joe Bloggs any thoughts on what's causing the 7 minute delay? Player or Tidal or both causing the long wait time to load offline?

Post 777 and 7 is my lucky number!

 

[XTF1]

Anyone using Tidal offline? Joe Bloggs any thoughts on what's causing the 7 minute delay? Player or Tidal or both causing the long wait time to load offline?

Post 777 and 7 is my lucky number!

I don't use Tidal, but I have read from similar complaints that the Tidal app checks all the offline files at first, to determine if a newer version of each track is available for download. That would easily explain the 7mn if your list of offline tracks is significant...
Unlike an Android phone, the M300 is not always connected and may not be able to perform that check in the background.

 

[Saraugie]

I don't use Tidal, but I have read from similar complaints that the Tidal app checks all the offline files at first, to determine if a newer version of each track is available for download. That would easily explain the 7mn if your list of offline tracks is significant...
Unlike an Android phone, the M300 is not always connected and may not be able to perform that check in the background.

So it is looking for updates for (2.2k songs) while not being connected to the Internet. I wonder if the M300 is also checking for an Internet connection and the 2 together make an invisible "spinning wheel of death." ??

 

[XTF1]

So it is looking for updates for (2.2k songs) while not being connected to the Internet. I wonder if the M300 is also checking for an Internet connection and the 2 together make an invisible "spinning wheel of death." ??

Possible! Certainly more tests needed to confirm or dismiss the theory…