I have had mine a few days. International Version. A quick synopsis to help others.
Positives:
*The screen is fantastic-no other DAP can compete on this, and it’s not even close.
*GUI is so fast!!!!, moving files, internet access, bluetooth, switching apps is seamless in usage. Very well done. But keep reading though.
*Balanced 4.4mm output power, is just ridiculous. I can't even move past 50 for comfortable, chill listening. Feel like rocking out, jump to 75 and oh my goodness, it’s hard to sit down without moving!
*The sabre implementation is pretty spot on, pretty neutral, but no it’s not a giant killer, imo. It is priced ($$) right around its sound performance, imo. Don’t flame me, but it is very close to the DX4 DSD, with a much better amp. The amp is the best part of this device. If they offered the amp as a single unit, with the 4.4mm input/output and a 3.5mm SE input/output, say the size of the Q5 (without the DAC), that would be AWESOME. If you are coming from an AK chip based device, this device will be "brighter". Just my ears
*Wi-fi strength is much improved on versus the original R6, far less drops. Good job, Hiby.
*bluetooth playback is perfect on my device.
Negatives: EDIT: I switched a few different cables, from four different cable makers and I "think" the noise issues are due to variances in the actual 4.4mm male jack. Of all the 4.4mm cables I have, the only one that does NOT exhibit these weird noises, is the Ibasso cb12s-4.4mm mmcx cable. So props to Ibasso. I don't understand why these cables work fine in my DX200, wm1a, but cause issues with this R6Pro-off the 4.4mm jack. Differences in tolerances on the male end, or contacts inside the R6Pro jack? My 3.5mm jack, with different cans, iems and all sorts of cables does not exhibit the background noise. So this too is a major positive and things are looking up.
The interference concerns are apparent on my device. The noise on mine happens when playing music off the micro SD CARD. I can hear the processor, almost like an older tape hard drive clicking/spinning down. It clicks in rapid succession (oddly in the LEFT channel only) and then it click/pops then stops. Start music again, and it disappears. Odd one, for sure. I also don’t find the background, what I would call “black”. I would probably not use this device on very sensitive iems or cans, if you find hissing problematic. Turn the music up, just a tad, and it is gone.
The device needs a software update asap, as I don't "think" all of this a hardware failure, or QC issues. I had the original R6 (first batch) and never experienced this, nor have I heard this on any other DAP that I have ever owned (quite a few). I do NOT have bluetooth interference, but I can hear data/processor background noise when wifi is connected and streaming.
Tidal does not handle all MQA master files with the correct bitrate, which is a minor thing…again software, still a bummer though. Spotify works fine, I don't have a Qobuz account yet.
Also, I can confirm (a few posts back another customer had this issue) that sometimes, audio output will stop sometimes. For example, if I stream tidal or a podcast, stop playback. Turn off wi-fi. Then try and play a song through the Hiby app or other audio player, audio will be silent. The song will be playing, but no sound. It is as if the processor, or software is unable to release audio operations to the next application quickly. Restart the device and it’s back to normal. Be careful, though. If the audio is stalled, and the track is still playing, once you restart the device, music will start playing, right back where the song was playing. So, if the song was playing at 2:30, once you restart, the device will immediately start playing at 2:30. Crazy right? This is maybe pressing the app management, or the ability of the processor to offload audio to the next app quickly, too much.
Also transferring files through the USB C port, works intermittently. It is better to pull the card, load files and then reinstall. USB DAC does not work at the moment either, but I assume that is a driver issue, and with Chinese new year happening, it may be awhile to get that fixed. It has been awhile, but I remember this being an issue with my older R6, also. I thought this was fixed awhile back, although I have not read the R6 thread, in awhile. I have also noticed that the sd card does not appear upon reinsertion, on every occasion. Sometimes you have to reboot the device to get the sd card to reappear. Yes, I always unmount the card in android before removing it. I have a kingston 500gb, and a Samsung 400gb, both exhibit the same issues, and both work perfect on my other devices. I have NOT formatted the cards inside the R6Pro, so that may the cause of this. Maybe I will wipe my card, and format it, inside the DAP and then refill it, to see if the re-insertion problem disappears. I really don't want to re-load 500gb of data and then have to rescan the media library--but I will do that now.
Neutron passes through the ESS DAC correctly, USB Audio passes audio through the ESS DAC correctly, Pocketcast/Podcast addict do NOT. Poweramp does NOT pass through the ESS DAC (they will need to update the app). The sound through native android audio is noticeable worse, as to be expected.
It takes time to get firmware/software correct. Ibasso is still working on the DX200 after 2 years. Sony is still dropping features for the wm1a, two years later. If Hiby will take time and stick with the device, most of this will be fixed (I hope). Hardware is top notch, especially at this price point. But this is a lot of money for a music player, and the software should NOT be so beta, imo.
