iBasso DX100 Review *

[turokrocks]

 
So after some long waiting I finally received my Ibasso DX100.
Its the first DAP from Ibasso, and I think it has done  a very good one.
I will not review the SQ of the DX100, not until I get it burned for some  time, for now I will talk about the UI .
Its an android gingerbread in its simplest form. The Screen is, well lets say its adequate, but not build for video, reading your emails or surfing, as it made my eyes soar after couple of minutes (as coming from the Galaxy Note with is SAMOLED and the Sony Z).
It has a good, no, brilliant music player, sound wise. But it has many, many bugs and one of the main it hangs/stalls a lot. Where as the Poweramp player behaves completely the opposite. It is fast detects all the ID-tags correctly (which the stock player doesn't and even doesn't show the Album covers) Album art covers are shown in Poweramp, names , titles all are correctly labeled, and it sounded excellent, so If you hate the lag and are frustrated with all the bugs of the main stock music player, you have the Poweramp option, but take note as the kernel of this version of android is limited to 16/44.1, whereas the DX100 player, bypass this limitation to play true 192/24, and what a sound. A Head-fi member (spkrs01) found a way to fix the Album covers for the stock player, but this is only a temp fix, and this and many bugs  or missing features should be addressed by Ibasso, as a DAP made mainly/solely for music should fix these basic bugs.
If you want a media player (a complete package as with a video player, photo viewer, browser.etc...the Sony Z or even the Cowon J3/Ipod is a much better option).
Sorry to tell you , but the DX100 is only a pure , magnificent music player, and that's all. The Sound by time is changing, opening...but this is for later.
Ibasso should release a manual (at least a downloadable version) for its stock player as for how to change the chines written menus, that can not be changed!
Many might face this problem with multiple language settings. First open the keyboard, then keep pressing the Chinese character button in the Left side of the keyboard until a menu pops , 2 options select input method and android keyboard settings, chose the select input method, you will have 2 options, a Chinese written option and the android keyboard, chose the android keyboard..voila. but for my language fonts are still showing the English fonts, although I changed it to the other language .
What is most irritating , as I have seen in the threads, as for me. why the +/- volume rocker stops working when the screen is locked???? Whats the use of this volume key? this is the first android that had this  strange bug, and when you change the volume the volume indicator that pops on the screen, freezes all other touch functions and you have to wait until it disappears..So you see it has lots and lots of bugs, but what makes up for all of this is the SQ, and what an SQ....to be continued

 

[scootermafia]

Chomping at the bit, are we?  
 
You'll just have to wait until Monday...

 

[cardozo]

What is the intent of this post?

 

[Pudu]

I think it means he'll provide the mojitos and cucumber sandwiches while we all stand around in his drawing room absorbing the review.

 

[Somnambulist]

Can someone create a singular "iBasso DX100: Post Your Impressions' thread and a mod merge the others into it? I appreciate people will want to share their experience but it creates less clutter and is much easier to read through one thread rather than hunting down several different ones.

 

[turokrocks]

 

 
I wished instead of the volume there was a </>, it looks so Russian and industrial...
This does not look like this , color wise...

 

[knowhatimean]

The silver & black version reminds me of cheap "mid" or "low" fi audio equipment.(could be the reason they decided not to go with that color scheme). Let's be honest here for a second, this DAP was designed to appeal to the "upscale" audio crowd. The equipment should look understated & not scream "Look at me". It's more about "function" not "form". If you don't care for the looks you can always put some decals or a "skin" of some sort on it(of course you might not like how it looks in a year or 5 down the road) (I don't get fashion-fi I guess, it's completely about the sound for me. No sense in advertizing for thiefs "look at this, little gem")

 

[turokrocks]

Quote:

 

 
I wished instead of the volume there was a </>, it looks so Russian and industrial...
This does not look like this , color wise...

Source :http://bbs.erji.com/read.php?tid=1180324
By "Wagen"
 
 

 

[turokrocks]

 
Quote:

The silver & black version reminds me of cheap "mid" or "low" fi audio equipment.(could be the reason they decided not to go with that color scheme). Let's be honest here for a second, this DAP was designed to appeal to the "upscale" audio crowd. The equipment should look understated & not scream "Look at me". It's more about "function" not "form". If you don't care for the looks you can always put some decals or a "skin" of some sort on it(of course you might not like how it looks in a year or 5 down the road) (I don't get fashion-fi I guess, it's completely about the sound for me. No sense in advertizing for thiefs "look at this, little gem")

You have a point there, but the way they advertised (Photos) it is false and different to what we are seeing...this is what I meant.
 

 

[sabatar]

Does this feature graphic EQ? Looks sturdy. Is it better sounding the Colorfly's wooden one?

 

[shigzeo]

I've been surprised by the Colorfly, and the Hifiman, basically as I had only experience with one other 'audiophile' player before (apart from the famous Kenwood and a slew of MD and DAC that don't count because they are from large companies that just don't understand audiophiles at all 

), but the Colorfly has the Hifiman signature, dark, thick, but is freer of hiss than the Hifiman is. The background is so clean, I would almost swear it was made by a non-audiophile company. 
 
Whether that sound works for every situation (the darkness, that is) and your phones is one thing. 
 
The impression I get from iBasso (and I own or have owned a number of their amps), is that they work on actual, accurate sound models rather than audiophile sound models, meaning: the DX100 I expect, should have a linear output, very unlike Hifiman or CK, which obviously roll off the high end to sound 'lush' and dark, and intoxicating or something. Not that those are bad qualities, especially in the audiophile world, but they are unnatural, disingenuous inflections of the original recording. Now, iBasso could roll like their colleagues, but who knows. I have high hopes.
 
Quote:

Does this feature graphic EQ? Looks sturdy. Is it better sounding the Colorfly's wooden one?