[twister6]

Anyone knows the output impedance and whether it has USB DAC? I'm very curious about the reviews comparing it to Hiby R6 and DX200 as my impression of most AKM implementations is slightly less perceived detail than ESS chips, but I haven't listened to enough DAPs to compare properly. The AKM4452 in the Shanling M1 wasn't implemented that well, but it's interesting here they got the 4495 to perform better than AKM official spec on balanced output.

Yes, there is USB DAC. The sound is crisper than your typical "musical" smooth AK4490, at least Reference setting in the Sound Mode gives you performance closer to what you would expect from ESS DACs, while other ones (original, natural, etc) are smoother and warmer.

I think improvement in SNR, as mentioned by iBasso, is probably a combination of DAC settings/optimization and Amp section design. But, I do have to mention, when I turn the volume down to zero and hit play, there is a little bit of hissing with lower impedance sensitive iems, the background is not perfectly black. Once you raise the volume to a normal listening level, most of this background hissing is not audible. As I mentioned in one of the posts above, I don't have Zeus anymore and don't have SE846. My usual hissing suspect is Andromeda, and it's the only iems out of everything I tested which has a rather high hissing level, just like you would hear it with majority of other DAPs. And just like with other DAPs, iEMatch takes care of Andromeda nicely here

Just for the reference, listening to IT04 with volume down to zero and BAL output, I hear nearly a black background with DX200 w/amp1, a little hissing with DX150 w/amp6, and the same level of mild hissing with DX120,

 

[pholcus1975]

Ok. I think I stay with my Cowon PM2. Zero hiss with hifiman re600s, while it was unacceptable with dx80.

 

[Vanquished]

Hissss? Noooooo!

 

[gemmoglock]

I see, thank you!

Yes, there is USB DAC. The sound is crisper than your typical "musical" smooth AK4490, at least Reference setting in the Sound Mode gives you performance closer to what you would expect from ESS DACs, while other ones (original, natural, etc) are smoother and warmer.

I think improvement in SNR, as mentioned by iBasso, is probably a combination of DAC settings/optimization and Amp section design. But, I do have to mention, when I turn the volume down to zero and hit play, there is a little bit of hissing with lower impedance sensitive iems, the background is not perfectly black. Once you raise the volume to a normal listening level, most of this background hissing is not audible. As I mentioned in one of the posts above, I don't have Zeus anymore and don't have SE846. My usual hissing suspect is Andromeda, and it's the only iems out of everything I tested which has a rather high hissing level, just like you would hear it with majority of other DAPs. And just like with other DAPs, iEMatch takes care of Andromeda nicely here

Just for the reference, listening to IT04 with volume down to zero and BAL output, I hear nearly a black background with DX200 w/amp1, a little hissing with DX150 w/amp6, and the same level of mild hissing with DX120,

Thanks for the details. My 1st gen Earwerkz Supra is similar to Andro hissing with 24ohm/124db specs so looks like I have to demo it to find out

 

[Meelis]

The back of DX120 is looking very shiny, is it glass?

 

[pr0b3r]

The back of DX120 is looking very shiny, is it glass?

Yes, it is.

 

[Layman1]

I'm slowly getting up to speed with my DX120. It sounds remarkably good (and I haven't even tried the reference setting yet!).
Worth commenting on is its comparatively small size and much lower weight compared to either the DX200 or DX150, as well as its excellent ergonomics.
It's now my every day carry for music, fitting easily into my jeans pocket.

Also, as mentioned, the touchscreen and Mango implementation are on a whole new level than anything released thus far.
I've had no lag whatsoever, no glitches, no missing seconds from the start of a song, etc. It's pretty much flawless as far as I can tell so far

I hope to have a review up in the next week or two, although I dare say @twister6 will beat me to it with something far more comprehensive

 

[twister6]

Ok. I think I stay with my Cowon PM2. Zero hiss with hifiman re600s, while it was unacceptable with dx80.

I have next to me RE600 with PM2, DX120, and DX80. RE600 has a DEAD-quiet all black background with all 3 daps, and pair up with DX120 is the most resolving, with the most layered/dynamic sound. PM2 + Re600 sounds rather congested.

 

[pholcus1975]

Ok. I had dx90 that was zero hiss, sent back 3 dx80 and then got iematch to live with dx80.

 

[twister6]

Hissss? Noooooo!

we are not talking about hissing with T51p, and btw, it drives T5p 2nd gen very good! The noise floor level you hear in this case is a function of some very low impedance higher sensitivity in-ear monitors and high output power and high output voltage of DX120 (which is almost double of some other daps in the same category). IEMs like Andromeda, Zeus, SE846 will hiss (at a different level) on majority of daps up to and including SP1000 and WM1Z.

I only brought up this subject because someone asked me about Zeus and SE846 in this thread, and I got a few similar questions in private messages from others who saw high voltage output of BAL spec in DX120. I'm not sugar coating or defending manufacturer, just that you have to be realistic when dealing with higher output power/voltage portable DAPs. And keep in mind, I'm talking about the extreme case of bringing volume down to zero and hitting play while using some very sensitive/low impedance iems. Plus, the sensitivity of my ears is a lot higher, and I'm sure many won't even hear it at the same level. So, no need to panic.

I would consider hisss to be a serious problem when you have a source where majority of iems/headphones have an audible noise floor which distracts from enjoying the music

 

[twister6]

Ok. I had dx90 that was zero hiss, sent back 3 dx80 and then got iematch to live with dx80.

Back when DX80 was released, the first batch had an issue with headphone connector, I had mine replaced as well, all problems went away And yes, iFi realized that many IEMs (including a number of $2k-$3k flagships) have hissing when paired up with various sources, that's why they designed iEMatch, and brilliant product

 

[ValSilva]

IEMs like Andromeda, Zeus, SE846 will hiss (at a different level) on majority of daps up to and including SP1000 and WM1Z.

I agree with Alex. We're talking about a U$ 300 DAP not a U$ 1.000 one. That's very impressive SQ by all people that tried it till now, when you compare with others on same price range.

 

[TheoS53]

Agh, if only the DX120 had Bluetooth as well it would've been a killer value DAP. Still, many people would happily trade Bluetooth for dual card slots, and judging by what's been said so far about the SQ, it looks like it might be a damn good device anyways

 

[maira]

I hope to have a review up in the next week or two, although I dare say @twister6 will beat me to it with something far more comprehensive

Well i think to review a DAP is not a competition. I am mostly interested in a comparison of the SQ and if its on the analytical or musical side.

 

[Layman1]

Well i think to review a DAP is not a competition. I am mostly interested in a comparison of the SQ and if its on the analytical or musical side.

For sure, I was just being humorous
Of course, the more balanced opinions, the better we all are able to get some idea about whether it's likely to be a good fit for our tastes and requirements