HiBy R6 2020 User Impressions

[gLer]

HiBy quietly announced a brand new R6 yesterday (28 October, 2020), with a Chinese-only presentation of what looks to be a new, updated R6 Pro-series DAP (despite the name reverting to R6).

Launch date is pegged as November 2020, with an estimated launch price of $799.

Main differences from the R6/R6 Pro:

- New R-series styling (similar to R8)
- Japanese Alps Pentomiter
- Dual ESS Sabre ES9038Q2M DACs
- 16x MQA support
- 32-bit 768kHz PCM/DSD512 support
- Snapdragon 660 SoC with 4GB RAM (same as R8)
- 64G RAM storage (same as R8 Alu)
- Android 9 with Google Play Store
- 1080P 433ppi retina screen
- Bluetooth 5
- Dual-band WiFi with new powerful antenna
- Dedicated 3.5mm and 4.4mm line out
- Dual power supplies for digital and amplification stages
- Available in black or silver

Slides from the official presentation below.

 

[Wes S]

Thanks for posting this! I am in the market for an upgrade from my DX160 and this just got added to the research list. Seems like this one could definitely be a winner.

 

[gLer]

I wasn't looking to upgrade myself, very happy with my R6 Pro, and next step was (and possibly still is) going to be the R8...but then HiBy pulled this one from nowhere, so I'll wait and see what it's all about.

 

[davidcotton]

Nice. Only thing about it I don't like is the volume wheel. Still prefer buttons to wheels.

 

[gLer]

Nice. Only thing about it I don't like is the volume wheel. Still prefer buttons to wheels.

Would be nice if they included volume buttons along with the wheel. I do like the buttons on the R6 Pro, I have to admit. But this seems to be the way all DAPs are going. As long as the wheel is smooth and functional, I'm fine with it.

 

[davidcotton]

Also surprised they didn't call it the r5pro as that seems to be where it's headed design wise at least.

 

[gLer]

Also surprised they didn't call it the r5pro as that seems to be where it's headed design wise at least.

Probably because this is a few steps up from the R5. They could have called it the R7, unless that's still coming, although I'm not sure what they would add to an R7 that still leaves the R8 competitive. The R8 looks like a final step up from this version of the R6.

 

[LYuen]

The design and spec are really promising. Instead of an evolution of R6 pro, it's more like a little brother to the R8.
I like its reduction in size and weight and hope it can keep the same audio quality.

However, comparing with R6 Pro, the I/V converters have been changed from Muses8920s to OPA1612s, which is more alike to the R6.
Hard to tell if the components are of the same or different grade, or can it be compensated by the new DAC.
We need some reviews comparing its SQ with R6 Pro.

Very keen on this one and perhaps it will be the Christmas present for myself

 

[gLer]

The design and spec are really promising. Instead of an evolution of R6 pro, it's more like a little brother to the R8.
I like its reduction in size and weight and hope it can keep the same audio quality.

However, comparing with R6 Pro, the I/V converters have been changed from Muses8920s to OPA1612s, which is more alike to the R6.
Hard to tell if the components are of the same or different grade, or can it be compensated by the new DAC.
We need some reviews comparing its SQ with R6 Pro.

Very keen on this one and perhaps it will be the Christmas present for myself

From what I can tell from the specs it has the same power output as the R6 Pro but a much lower noise floor. Let's wait and see what the sound is all about - both technically and tonally - because feature-wise it's almost right up there with the R8.

 

[Deferenz]

I’m in the market for a new Dap and I had the R8 in mind. The specs on this new R6 do look good though and I’m also interested in how it compares with the R8. For a price difference of $1,100 though there surely has to be some difference? But then, saying that, look at the Lotoo S1. The sq on that is incredible for a device that costs just $160, so who knows? However, from a business perspective you would think that the R8 should be the flagship with the better spec, because if the new R6 is basically as good then there would be no point in anyone paying out the extra cash.

I’m looking forward to more details on this.

 

[jsmiller58]

The design and spec are really promising. Instead of an evolution of R6 pro, it's more like a little brother to the R8.
I like its reduction in size and weight and hope it can keep the same audio quality.

However, comparing with R6 Pro, the I/V converters have been changed from Muses8920s to OPA1612s, which is more alike to the R6.
Hard to tell if the components are of the same or different grade, or can it be compensated by the new DAC.
We need some reviews comparing its SQ with R6 Pro.

Very keen on this one and perhaps it will be the Christmas present for myself

I hope there isn’t the same high output impedance issues from the R6...

 

[gLer]

I hope there isn’t the same high output impedance issues from the R6...

That would be a dealbreaker. I'm sure they've learned their lesson with the original R6, can't see them making the same mistake twice.

 

[gLer]

I’m in the market for a new Dap and I had the R8 in mind. The specs on this new R6 do look good though and I’m also interested in how it compares with the R8. For a price difference of $1,100 though there surely has to be some difference? But then, saying that, look at the Lotoo S1. The sq on that is incredible for a device that costs just $160, so who knows? However, from a business perspective you would think that the R8 should be the flagship with the better spec, because if the new R6 is basically as good then there would be no point in anyone paying out the extra cash.

I’m looking forward to more details on this.

You would think not, but life isn't always linear, or logical. Most people will find the sound of the S1 'good enough' especially for IEMs and not even consider the extra $2500 they'd need to spend on a LPGT or even the extra $1000 for a PAW6000. That might well be the case again here, but it will come down to the sound quality, noise floor and tonality. I can't imagine anyone designs a DAP and purposefully holds it back from sounding as good as it can, but I can see them tweaking the tuning to differentiate their tiers, like IEM and headphone makers make similar priced gear with slightly different tuning for different preferences.

 

[IryxBRO]

Yep, also released the news in my blog and created the comparison table. Here is the link

 

[gLer]

Yep, also released the news in my blog and created the comparison table. Here is the link

Nice summary on your blog. Are you sure the noise level on 4.4 balanced HO is 4.9uvrms? I see 3.6uvrms in the chart above, which is quite a bit lower than the R6 Pro (5uvrms) and less than half the R8 (8.4uvrms).