Hey guys, I've just purchase the DX80 a week ago so I'd like to share my experience, views, thoughts with you guys. I'll be pointing out only the important stuff and hope in covering most of it in simple forms so that you don't have to go through the 90 pages in search for answers till your eyeballs rolls out.
*Do note that I'll be comparing it with the DX90.
• Size & Weight
- Noticeably heavier, and longer. Results: More sturdy & sleek.
• Battery
- Much better battery, observed up to 12 hours of usage at around
volume 100, and scrolling through songs ever once in a while.
- While on the other hand my DX90 only last about 6 hours, that's 2
times the improvement. What's better, it's draining on a bigger,
brighter and clearer screen, with a quicker response to touch.(Not
on the same level as the DX90)
• SD Card Slot
- Not one, but two. TWOOOO. Supporting up to 2TB.. Well I
don't think there's a 2TB SDcard in the market right now but you can at
least thank iBasso for planning out your future. You don't even get
that with the Ak100II(1 Internal and 1 slot) So consider yourself
lucky people.
• Design & GUI Interface
- Slimmer, more modern design. (Unlike my blocky DX90)
- I know not everyone, but personal I do care how my overall setup
looks. So it's a plus for me that the DX80 have clear, bright and
much better album art which looks great, along with the outlook
design and beautiful interface.
- I believe It's something that I would get comments on how premium
of a device it is, with a modern look/design and updated beautiful
clean interface that I can enjoy looking at. Which I think I wouldn't get
with my DX90. (Not with that blocky feel and olden looking
interface)
- That just goes to show how much iBasso intend to sharpen it's
product line-up. Bringing a premium, affordable and good sounding
device to us audio consumers. (I don't have to say, you guys know
it's not an easy thing to do.) I wouldn't even want to start
talking about the process.
• Sound
- To my ears, it's definitely an improvement over the DX90. There's
more rhythm to the music, better transparency, smoother bass and
larger sound-stage which makes my listening experience with the DX80
a more pleasant one, side by side in comparison with the DX90.
(Currently on a total 40 hours of burn-in)
- I can just use it with my Logitech speaker as a DAC to burn-in.
After it reaches 100%, I can just go to sleep, leaving it playing
with the iBasso burn-in cable and waking up 12 hours or earlier to
pair it with my speaker again. How convenient is that?
• Right...the hiss.. (Back to this again, oh wells)
- I think that generally, what most people experienced is the
background noise coming from the recording from the tracks itself.
- Well, so how can you confirm this? Easy.
Play a track with your speaker, listen with your ears right next to
it. If you pay attention, you'll notice the same "sssss" sound.
It's just ever slightly more noticeable as you're listen with IEM
because of the fact that IEM have a better isolation, which allow
you to perceive the "sssss" sound better.
- If you still in doubt, go listen to some quiet Adele songs or
something, and turn up the volume.
• So how do you fix this problem? Well, there's a few ways.
1) Ignore the presence, yup. (As stupid as it sounds, it works)
- When you focus on something, you tend to get better at it as you
move on. That's simple psychology just as anything else. If you try
to do it, you'll succeed and get better in it and let me tell you,
you ain't wanna be good in being sensitive to the "sssssss" sound.
- Basically just enjoy your music people.
2) Listen at lower volumes. (For me, it's around 95 or lower)
3) Get a earphone that's easier to drive. One that requires lesser
volume to reach the same amount of loudness.
- Some IEM plays louder at the same volume, and some just requires
more volume to drive and that explains why the "ssss" is louder for
some. (Lesser volume, lesser perceived "sssss")
• Thumping sound (When pressing play/next)
- Honestly, I didn't notice it until someone mentioned about it. It
feels like a slight pressure coming from the earphones. Not
noticeable, and hard to perceive, unless you really go and listen to
it. (Which is dumb, I mean I would just forget about it)
CONCLUSION|
I was lucky to update it straight to 1.1.4 the moment I got it so I didn't experience much issues people are facing before the update. Big thumbs up to iBasso for refining the line-up.Really happy with the price I paid (Sold off my DX90 and only have to top it up approx 100USD) The DX90 is definitely a good player, having maintained the market price basically tells the story.
Definitely a step-up ahead, would love to see incremental improvements with the future updates. Thank you iBasso.
|In reality not everyone can be pleased, and people often complain about little problems that can be fixed with alternatives at the present. This is a mature device, not a toy. If you're having problems now, deal with it. I'm sure iBasso's doing their best with fixing your problems even while you're slacking off or drinking your coffee. So just give them the time. Not everyone's free, especially with the release of the DX80, upcoming DX200 and there's much to be done. So, In the mean time let's just all appreciate this great piece of art.
