HiBy R2 - HiBy's entry-level HiFi digital audio player

[Joe Bloggs]

Yes, I've seen those toggles and tried them. I still get the player moving alphabetically through all of the tracks; they don't appear to do anything.

Also, are others experiencing regular bluetooth drop outs? I've connected my R2 to two different sets of bluetooth iems and in both cases even when the player is in my coat pocket it disconnects and reconnects with an irritating consistency. The problem isn't the earphones as both pairs maintain a perfect connection with a much cheaper DAP I purchased from Amazon.

Hi, regarding the first issue, are you browsing and selecting the music in Album view? That's the one that would work for you.

 

[Deviltooth]

Hi, regarding the first issue, are you browsing and selecting the music in Album view? That's the one that would work for you.

If I go to the album view and tap the vertical ellipsis menu I can select album and from that point the album will play sequentially. It's not an intuitive or logical process; the Hiby R2 user interface is poor. Sadly that's nothing compared to the real problem. The player's bluetooth connection constantly disconnects. Sometimes so often the music sounds like it's stuttering. This happens when the player is only a foot or two away from multiple pairs of bluetooth IEMs and speakers (though it does somewhat better with my Sony SRS-XB43).

 

[bjd1]

If I go to the album view and tap the vertical ellipsis menu I can select album and from that point the album will play sequentially. It's not an intuitive or logical process; the Hiby R2 user interface is poor. Sadly that's nothing compared to the real problem. The player's bluetooth connection constantly disconnects. Sometimes so often the music sounds like it's stuttering. This happens when the player is only a foot or two away from multiple pairs of bluetooth IEMs and speakers (though it does somewhat better with my Sony SRS-XB43).

@Deviltooth I use RHA TrueConnect 2 earphones and a Vifa speaker with the R2 from time to time, and have not had any problems at all. It does glitch a little bit when I walk down the hall, which doesn't happen when the RHAs are connected to the MacBook on that same desk. I mentioned my Dad on this forum earlier today; he was an electrical engineer specializing in antenna design. He used to say "Bluetooth just sucks! Always has. Flawed design from the very beginning".

 

[bjd1]

If I go to the album view and tap the vertical ellipsis menu I can select album and from that point the album will play sequentially. It's not an intuitive or logical process; the Hiby R2 user interface is poor. Sadly that's nothing compared to the real problem. The player's bluetooth connection constantly disconnects. Sometimes so often the music sounds like it's stuttering. This happens when the player is only a foot or two away from multiple pairs of bluetooth IEMs and speakers (though it does somewhat better with my Sony SRS-XB43).

@Deviltooth I hate to post two "it works for me" messages in a row, but I tried playing an album with the "Play through album" toggle enabled. It worked as I expected it to: after the last song of an album, it starts playing the first song of the next album in the (alphabetical) album list. I myself don't care for this behavior, and keep that toggle off. I was raised on physical media - first LPs and then CDs. When the album's over, you have to get up and choose what's next. Woudn't it be great if the player had a "Simulate LP" toggle? In the middle of the album, it would stop and prompt you to "turn the disk over".

I'm a little puzzled by your reference to a vertical ellipsis menu. On my R2, there's a ">" symbol on the right side of each album, indicating that a tap will open up the next screen listing the songs on that album. Tapping on the first song in that list starts that song playing, and it continues to play the songs after that. Seems logical to me, and that's how all players I've ever used work. The order is determined by the FLAC metadata. I know that because my ACMEE MF01 ignores the metadata, and you have to have the tracks numbered to make them play in the proper album order.

 

[Deviltooth]

I use RHA TrueConnect 2 earphones and a Vifa speaker with the R2 from time to time, and have not had any problems at all. It does glitch a little bit when I walk down the hall, which doesn't happen when the RHAs are connected to the MacBook on that same desk. I mentioned my Dad on this forum earlier today; he was an electrical engineer specializing in antenna design. He used to say "Bluetooth just sucks! Always has. Flawed design from the very beginning".

I'll agree with your dad, bluetooth has been a poor wireless system since day one. That's why I've kept my bluetooth audio investments modest. Hence the R2, the Status BT Transfer, JBL Tune 115 and Sony SRS-XB43 are my current dips into the pool to determine if bluetooth audio is ready for prime time. I'll admit it's definitely getting better and I do like having a speaker I can place beside the bathtub. Each year I toss a few bucks towards bluetooth audio waiting for the day it's worth investing in better kit. So far wired is still far ahead of the game (if you care about audio quality).

I've got the R2 playing albums now but it's bluetooth implementation barely functions. Maybe I got a lemon and and the antenna in mine is defective; I don't know. I think it's a disappointing DAP in a variety of ways but the dysfunctional bluetooth functionality (the reason I bought it) is the final nail in the coffin. I wish I'd bought another Fiio or Ibasso instead.

 

[megapowa]

I'll agree with your dad, bluetooth has been a poor wireless system since day one. That's why I've kept my bluetooth audio investments modest. Hence the R2, the Status BT Transfer, JBL Tune 115 and Sony SRS-XB43 are my current dips into the pool to determine if bluetooth audio is ready for prime time. I'll admit it's definitely getting better and I do like having a speaker I can place beside the bathtub. Each year I toss a few bucks towards bluetooth audio waiting for the day it's worth investing in better kit. So far wired is still far ahead of the game (if you care about audio quality).

I've got the R2 playing albums now but it's bluetooth implementation barely functions. Maybe I got a lemon and and the antenna in mine is defective; I don't know. I think it's a disappointing DAP in a variety of ways but the dysfunctional bluetooth functionality (the reason I bought it) is the final nail in the coffin. I wish I'd bought another Fiio or Ibasso instead.

Well mine is on the way...

 

[457139]

This player sounds gd. It passes the Oriolus Mk II test, which is not easy to do

 

[Deviltooth]

This player sounds gd. It passes the Oriolus Mk II test, which is not easy to do

I understand how the hype machine works in the home audio world. What I'll say in return is the R2 is poorly made with a lack of attention to detail in both the UI and physical construction. e.g. The buttons rattle in their housing and the cases don't fit properly. In the instance of my individual device Bluetooth is effectively broken. Excuses can be made but all the justifications in the world don't make up for poor design and quality control.

 

[Joe Bloggs]

I understand how the hype machine works in the home audio world. What I'll say in return is the R2 is poorly made with a lack of attention to detail in both the UI and physical construction. e.g. The buttons rattle in their housing and the cases don't fit properly. In the instance of my individual device Bluetooth is effectively broken. Excuses can be made but all the justifications in the world don't make up for poor design and quality control.

Have you contacted service@hiby.com regarding a replacement?

 

[ayres]

I understand how the hype machine works in the home audio world. What I'll say in return is the R2 is poorly made with a lack of attention to detail in both the UI and physical construction. e.g. The buttons rattle in their housing and the cases don't fit properly. In the instance of my individual device Bluetooth is effectively broken. Excuses can be made but all the justifications in the world don't make up for poor design and quality control.

The rattling buttons are why I returned mine. Crazy, right? I can't recall any Fiio offerings having such a noisy design flaw. I probably would have kept it, otherwise. I liked the size and would be willing to overlook other things because I'm a basic user. Oh, long title names don't scroll. That should be fixed in an update. I'd opt for the Fiio M5, but it doesn't play aac bluetooth, and the R2 does.

 

[youngmanoldboy]

anyone experiencing freezing issue with R2? it happened randomly, the screen just froze and need a restart. firmware already updated to latest version. Factory reset and delete playlist data doesn't seem to solve the problem.

 

[FreeWheelinAudioLuv2]

Dang...seems like many of you are having issues i'm simply not having. mine works really good and with very few glitches.

 

[Deviltooth]

Have you contacted service@hiby.com regarding a replacement?

I purchased my R2 from Linsoul. To return it I'd have to take a 35% 'restocking' hit. Also It took them much longer than the three days they claim on their site to send it out in the first place. Worse, when I thought about returning it I did some more reading about the company and it seems the process can be problematic in a great many ways. It's my fault for not doing my due diligence in the first place. I won't use them again.

 

[Shakmal]

Dang...seems like many of you are having issues i'm simply not having. mine works really good and with very few glitches.

Mine is working great too...so ..far..connected to Fiio Q5s TC...

 

[Joe Bloggs]

I purchased my R2 from Linsoul. To return it I'd have to take a 35% 'restocking' hit. Also It took them much longer than the three days they claim on their site to send it out in the first place. Worse, when I thought about returning it I did some more reading about the company and it seems the process can be problematic in a great many ways. It's my fault for not doing my due diligence in the first place. I won't use them again.

not to return the player for refund, but to send it in for repair / replacement?