Some advice from the collective required please. I'm listening to more music on the go, I'm generally streaming a lot more than i used to at home and on the go. I've been using Qobuz more and more in the last year. On the go I've relied on my iphone X but always preferred the sound quality of my FIIO X5 mk3 and Sony WM1Z. The Sony we all know wont do anything apart from play locally stored music beautifully. The FIIO, well it promised a lot and simply doesn't deliver. Not sure i could ever trust the brand enough to fork out for an M11 PRO or a M15. Ive spent decent cash on cables with the 4.4 balanced connector becasue i own the Sony. So now i want an DAP that will stream as well as download my Qobuz favourites for local playback Jeez if one of them could stream it form my phones hotspot I'd be amazed but thats beside the point. My search as led me to dismiss the FIIO offerings and consider the Hiby R6 Pro or the IBasso Dx220 with the AMP8 4.4 attachment. Both use a modern version of Android, both can connect to my 5 ghz network at home for streaming and dowloading but how well do they do it and how is the sound quality of each. Any wisdom you can impart would be greatly recieved
Unfortunately, I haven't heard the DX220, but I read a lot of online reviews comparing between the DX220 and R6 pro and used the consensus opinion from those reviews to make my decision. The salient distinctions that come out of these reviews are:
1. Hiby is warmer than the DX220. DX220 is more neutral, with more micro-details. It also has higher end DACs compared to Hiby (9028PRO vs. 9028Q2M).
2. DX220 with amp8 is warmer (and more resolving) than the stock amp, but Hiby is probably the warmest of the three. Amp8 is also known for its resolution and imaging qualities which some reviewers have commented as being better than Hiby. (it would also depend on the headphones used. Using a mellow headphone like HD650 for comparison may make the DX220 appear more resolving and aggressive than R6 pro, which is smooth and musical).
3. I personally don't find any lack of details from Hiby compared to other DACs such as Chord Mojo, and the warm signature synnergizes with headphones like HD800. Hiby also has good soundstage and layering that reveals itself through the HD800.
4. DX220 has a slower processor and several reviews commented that the Hiby's interface is snappier than the DX220.
5. R6 pro includes the Google play store with all its apps, while DX220 doesn't. Apps need to be installed using APK.
6. DX220 screen is larger than Hiby. Hiby screen is adequate for me.
7. A major distinction is price. DX220 due to its flexibility of amp change carries a higher price than Hiby in the second hand market, although the new prices for both DAPs are closer ($800-900). A second hand DX220 on Head-fi goes for about $800-900, while the R6 pro can be had for $400-450. This makes Hiby a better value for money, considering the features and sound quality. DX220 would be attractive to those DAP enthusiasts, who would like to do amp rolling, like tube rolling.