[twister6]

 

  What is a burn in cable you guys are talking about?  Sorry, I'm a total iBasso-noob, at least for now

The burn in cable takes the place of headphones so you can continue to have the DX80 on repeat sending a signal through the system and in to a load. This allows for the capacitors to form and for everything else to stabilize and the player to sound its best without using headphones producing sound. There are two resistors in the burn in cable for the right and left channel. It is a convenience if you choose to use it.

 
Brilliant!  A loaded cable for a burn in at any volume level, very clever Paul! With so many DAPs I have tested, this is the first one.  I think I'm gonna like this soup

 

[HiFiChris]

 
 
Not long ago Paul asked me if I was willing to review and test the DX80 and its future FW versions, and as you can see above, I did not refuse. 

 
After nobody was home yesterday when the mailman arrived, iBasso's new DAP reached me just today and I picked it up that evening. Haven't listened yet, but spent some time taking pictures, checking out the GUI and taking some paper notes.
The UI is very well made (but unlike others, I also think that the DX90's/DX50's GUI is very well and intuitively made) and reminds me of a mixture of iOS, Android and BlackBerry OS10.
 
There are still a few things where I'd like to see some improvement, but for the very first FW, it looks quite good. So far for now.
 
Btw, it's a new unboxing experience as well:

 
 

 

[rookie2009]

It's still not possible to order it directly (which I chose with my DX50 & DX90) at the iBasso site => will it also be available over there soon?

The end of this week or early next week Paul tells me,hth.

 

[Photoman]

Not long ago Paul asked me if I was willing to review and test the DX80 and its future FW versions, and as you can see above, I did not refuse. 

After nobody was home yesterday when the mailman arrived, iBasso's new DAP reached me just today and I picked it up that evening. Haven't listened yet, but spent some time taking pictures, checking out the GUI and taking some paper notes.

The UI is very well made (but unlike others, I also think that the DX90's/DX50's GUI is very well and intuitively made) and reminds me of a mixture of iOS, Android and BlackBerry OS10.

There are still a few things where I'd like to see some improvement, but for the very first FW, it looks quite good. So far for now.

Btw, it's a new unboxing experience as well:


 


 

can you que a song to Now playing screen?

 

[HiFiChris]

@Photoman
 
If you mean by "queue " that you can add a song to a playlist from the Now Playing screen, then the answer is "yes".

 

[Photoman]

@Photoman


If you mean by "queue " that you can add a song to a playlist from the Now Playing screen, then the answer is "yes".

[/quote
Kinda the opposite. If a song is playing and you want to add a few songs to now playing to play next. Add to que

 

[proedros]

after 5 hours of play , i think dx80 is definitely an improvement , sonic-wise at least, from the dx90

the sound is less restrained and more energetic
the bass is very nice and fills the sound spectrum very nicely
 
i always thought that dx90 was too lean (and i like a lean sound , mind you) but dx80  seems to have taken the good points of the dx90 (clarity being one) and then improve on the points than could be improved ( fuller sound , tighter bass that hits without sounding boomy/bloated)

i  will be putting more thoughts on the following days , but judging by its price , i can say easily that this seems as an upgrade over the dx90 which was a great bang-for-buck DAP

the dual sd - card is also another huge plus...

i like this player (and i also have a ZX2 sitting next to me as i type these lines)

 

[Jeff Y]

I was hoping for a bigger soundstage as the DX50/90 did not have the biggest soundstages compared to most recent DAPs. Nevertheless, all the positive feedback sounds good.

 

[EagleWings]

  i like this player (and i also have a ZX2 sitting next to me as i type these lines)

 
How does it compare against the ZX2?

 

[Caruryn]

If the soundstage is about on par with dx90 then it cannot compare with the more open 3dimensional soundstage of ZX2 which also does not have the lean/thin treble of dx90.Clarity/details i leave to those who review the unit 

.

 

[jamato8]

To me the DX80 has a larger soundstage when compared to the DX90. It is one of the largest soundstages I have heard. And yet, it images well, which is important to me. I don't like large soundstage that are diffuse. There is good layering and musicality. I always enjoyed the DX50 for its musical quality and to me, the DX80 increases that musicality, as very good detail and imaging and has a grounded quality acoustical presentation. By acoustical, I mean that it isn't just large but also give you a feeling of where things are within the space of what you are hearing. 
 
I am also getting around 11 or 12 hours of run time or just a little longer with lossless files. 

 

[HiFlight]

To me the DX80 has a larger soundstage when compared to the DX90. It is one of the largest soundstages I have heard. And yet, it images well, which is important to me. I don't like large soundstage that are diffuse. There is good layering and musicality. I always enjoyed the DX50 for its musical quality and to me, the DX80 increases that musicality, as very good detail and imaging and has a grounded quality acoustical presentation. By acoustical, I mean that it isn't just large but also give you a feeling of where things are within the space of what you are hearing. 

Well said, John! I do think that the DX80 conveys a sense of realism that quickly makes one forget that it is a recording being played. I do think that there are a lot of psychoacoustic factors in play here that are a result of the use of components that work very harmoniously together. The accuracy of the imaging and soundstaging really contribute to the sense of realism I'm sure.
I find that this is a player that still sounds very good at low listening levels. I certainly agree that it is a very "musical"-sounding player.

I have never been a big fan of the ES9018 DAC chip, so maybe that is why the DX80 sounds so good to me.

Aside from the previously mentioned defaulting to high gain on restart, I also discovered that if one is using the random play mode, when restarting and selecting play, the title shown in the display is not what is actually playing.

Unless I have overlooked it, I have not yet found a lock to prevent inadvertent inputs when stowed in a pocket.

 

[Caruryn]

Ι think it's natural that the dx80 would/should have a bigger soundstage than dx90 as a logical successor should at that pricepoint in order to compete with this years daps.The soundstage of dx90 while good at its pricepoint was noticeably narrower in width  and more congested when you compared to pricier daps despite its saving graces,detail and wonderful treble.If the dx80 improves the few shortcomings of the dx90 soundstage width,bass control and the slight almost imperceptible sabre  glare at that price point they will have a winner.

 

[HiFlight]

When you listen to songs in random mode and you hit the back button, does it go to another random song, or the last song you heard?

If you hold the back button, it will scroll to the beginning of the now-playing song. If you tap the back button it will select another random song. Also, a different title shows than what is actually playing.

 

[Watagump]

I know its early, any battery life reports yet?