[eke2k6]

Great review. I'm definitely going to rebut the zx1 soon and probably the x5 as well. Actually for some reason every time I decide I want to buy it an unforseen expense gets in the way.

I do agree about the minimal increase in sound quality as you go up the chain in daps from my experience at least. It isn't huge but that could be due to my commute which can be loud but enough for me to go up the chain.

 
I'll trade you your SR-007 for the X5 

 

[james444]

  This will be an interesting comparison, no AK100, 120 or AK240 ?
Don't forget the Tera and the Calyx

 
Told you so!

 
Seriously, great writeup Eke, thanks for the good read!

 

[rawrster]

I'll trade you your SR-007 for the X5 

hah only if you include this random headphone called the sr009

 

[eke2k6]

   
Told you so!

 
Seriously, great writeup Eke, thanks for the good read!

 
 
 

hah

only if you include this random headphone called the sr009

 
 

 

[Edwood]

Nice and Concise review.
 
Sorry to say, it really sounds like your Aurisonics ASG-2 is the bottleneck in this review.

 

[Carlsan]

Nice review Eke.
I wonder how the about to be released DX90 would compare.
 
I find myself that I would rate these that I own in this order for SQ:
IBASSO HDP-R10 > RWAK100 (Modified ASTELL & KERN AK100) > DX50 > Cowon J3=  Fiio X3 > Cowon Z2
 
For portable form factor and convenience of the three I use at least a few times a week or more:
RWAK100 > DX50 > R10
 
My Samsung Galaxy S3 sounds good as well, better than the cowons and the X3.

 

[Ardian]

Great review!

Can we know also how is the iPod Classic or the Sansa against these high-end DAP?

 

[eke2k6]

I'm packaging up the DAPs to send out tomorrow. If anyone wants a head to head comparison between any two, feel free to send me a PM.
 

---

 
Quote:

  Nice review Eke.
I wonder how the about to be released DX90 would compare.
 

 

 
Hopefully it's as good a value as the X5
 
 

Great review!

Can we know also how is the iPod Classic or the Sansa against these high-end DAP?

 
Just peek at the conclusion in the first post.

 

[Leonardo Drummond]

Congratulations. It's difficult to find such a down to earth approach around here. It's very easy to get carried away by so many things... and you didn't. This seems like an honest and very realistic review.
 
Your opinions mirror my own – I also think that portable players are overall very good and that you get minimal differences as you climb up the ladder into more sophisticated DAPs. All of the "don't get those headphones unless you want to use a gazillion kHz files with a 2 thousand dollars player" nonsense is unfathomable to me. A Roxanne with 256kbps mp3s in a Sansa Clip will beat the crap out of 99% of other in-ears playing 192kHz files on one of those kilobuck players, I can guarantee you that. This situation changes when you want to use power hungry headphones, but then the setup can no longer be called exactly portable.
 
I'm going to get a Sony ZX1 for my Roxannes but mostly for the whole experience, and I won't be surprised if I end up selling them and staying with my good old iPod Classic – which survived a HM-801 and a DX100 when I had a JH13, by the way.
 
Once again, congratulations for a great review!

 

[eke2k6]

  Congratulations. It's difficult to find such a down to earth approach around here. It's very easy to get carried away by so many things... and you didn't. This seems like an honest and very realistic review.
 
Your opinions mirror my own – I also think that portable players are overall very good and that you get minimal differences as you climb up the ladder into more sophisticated DAPs. All of the "don't get those headphones unless you want to use a gazillion kHz files with a 2 thousand dollars player" nonsense is unfathomable to me. A Roxanne with 256kbps mp3s in a Sansa Clip will beat the crap out of 99% of other in-ears playing 192kHz files on one of those kilobuck players, I can guarantee you that. This situation changes when you want to use power hungry headphones, but then the setup can no longer be called exactly portable.
 
I'm going to get a Sony ZX1 for my Roxannes but mostly for the whole experience, and I won't be surprised if I end up selling them and staying with my good old iPod Classic – which survived a HM-801 and a DX100 when I had a JH13, by the way.
 
Once again, congratulations for a great review!

 
I really appreciate your kind words!
 
Half of me thinks that the people who report these huge improvements aren't lying. They genuinely do hear these changes, but methinks it's from a lack of volume matching, and the use of differently mastered files on the newer players. 
 
I have no doubt the ZX1 will be an excellent experience for you. I may relegate my iphone to permanent DAP status once I get a new phone this fall, or look into getting the X5 as a DAP and DAC for my speaker setup.

 

[AmberOzL]

I don't have much knowledge about the ASG2 but it may also have an effect on your results. Maybe something more resolving, something brings out the even smallest details can make a difference in those listening sections.
 
Then again, I seriously appreciate the effort you put in this review. Volume matching, using the same files with the same mastering but only in different formats like compressed mp3. Then again, maybe using lossless codes could also provide a bigger difference in those players. I am not saying go for DSD or 24/192 but regular CD quality can maybe do a difference.
 
I think it is more or less understood that once you go higher end sources, the SQ doesn't improve as much as the price you pay.

 

[Leonardo Drummond]

   
I really appreciate your kind words!
 
Half of me thinks that the people who report these huge improvements aren't lying. They genuinely do hear these changes, but methinks it's from a lack of volume matching, and the use of differently mastered files on the newer players. 
 
I have no doubt the ZX1 will be an excellent experience for you. I may relegate my iphone to permanent DAP status once I get a new phone this fall, or look into getting the X5 as a DAP and DAC for my speaker setup.

 
I'm also confident that they're not lying, and I agree with you that there are other variables at play – such as the ones you said and also possibly some placebo going on.
 
I also think it's a matter of proportions. I always feel the need to be coherent in my discourse, so if the differences between two headphones are what is considered "big" or "huge", the difference among players has to be classified as small or mild at best, as they are nowhere near the difference you hear between two different headphones. I'm aware that small differences can completely change the whole experience, but to me this is personal and can vary between different individuals. 
 
I reckon the result of this lack of proportions on one's discourse can cause many problems. I remember I was quite disappointed when I joined the Head-fi world and tried to bring out the mids on my Sennheiser IE8 and make it warmer by purchasing a Little Dot MKIII. It was a stupid decision as it didn't even begin to bring the differences I was expecting, because I expected the "huge" differences everyone talks about with new amplifiers.
 
Obviously I came a long way since then and got to try out a lot of things for myself, and it took a while for me to understand the real effects of every bit of the chain. Well, the point is that I try to be as coherent, grounded and realistic as possible with what I say. It's easy to get carried away with this sort of thing, and this is what hasn't happened to you!

 

[eke2k6]

  I don't have much knowledge about the ASG2 but it may also have an effect on your results. Maybe something more resolving, something brings out the even smallest details can make a difference in those listening sections.
 
Then again, I seriously appreciate the effort you put in this review. Volume matching, using the same files with the same mastering but only in different formats like compressed mp3. Then again, maybe using lossless codes could also provide a bigger difference in those players. I am not saying go for DSD or 24/192 but regular CD quality can maybe do a difference.
 
I think it is more or less understood that once you go higher end sources, the SQ doesn't improve as much as the price you pay.

 
If you look the link in my signature, you'll see the link to my ASG-2 review thread. In the second post of that thread, I compare it to the likes of the 1plus2 and K3003. While the signatures are quite different, the ASG-2 loses nothing in detals to either, and sometimes outresolves the 1plus2 in the midrange. I also used a cable that affects the sound in a way that makes it more linear. I never believed in cables until I heard this particular one.
 
I plan to send my ASG-2 on a world tour once a couple of things clear up. You'll be one of the first to hear it.
 
I didn't mention this in the review, but I also used lossless versions of the tracks (despite my prior experiences) because I was so shocked by what I was hearing - or not hearing. The results were the same. Believe me, I tried everything. I have a biology degree and chemistry minor, halfway through doctorate in pharmacy. I'm trained to be pretty thorough 

 
I'm now convinced that what you pay for with "higher end" sources isn't sound quality, but features and driving power.
 
 

   
I'm also confident that they're not lying, and I agree with you that there are other variables at play – such as the ones you said and also possibly some placebo going on.
 
I also think it's a matter of proportions. I always feel the need to be coherent in my discourse, so if the differences between two headphones are what is considered "big" or "huge", the difference among players has to be classified as small or mild at best, as they are nowhere near the difference you hear between two different headphones. I'm aware that small differences can completely change the whole experience, but to me this is personal and can vary between different individuals. 
 
I reckon the result of this lack of proportions on one's discourse can cause many problems. I remember I was quite disappointed when I joined the Head-fi world and tried to bring out the mids on my Sennheiser IE8 and make it warmer by purchasing a Little Dot MKIII. It was a stupid decision as it didn't even begin to bring the differences I was expecting, because I expected the "huge" differences everyone talks about with new amplifiers.
 
Obviously I came a long way since then and got to try out a lot of things for myself, and it took a while for me to understand the real effects of every bit of the chain. Well, the point is that I try to be as coherent, grounded and realistic as possible with what I say. It's easy to get carried away with this sort of thing, and this is what hasn't happened to you!

 
Exactly! What makes me somewhat disappointed is how much these minuscule differences are made seem huge.
 
Some days I wonder if I'm in the wrong hobby. That's why I've been gravitating more towards photography, where I can at least see what I'm paying for with my own eyes first. For instance, verse one of the audiophile's bible is that Beats are utter crap. Imagine my surprise when I heard one of the newer Studios and thought they sounded very good.

 

[AmberOzL]

   
If you look the link in my signature, you'll see the link to my ASG-2 review thread. In the second post of that thread, I compare it to the likes of the 1plus2 and K3003. While the signatures are quite different, the ASG-2 loses nothing in detals to either, and sometimes outresolves the 1plus2 in the midrange. I also used a cable that affects the sound in a way that makes it more linear. I never believed in cables until I heard this particular one.
 
I plan to send my ASG-2 on a world tour once a couple of things clear up. You'll be one of the first to hear it.
 
I didn't mention this in the review, but I also used lossless versions of the tracks (despite my prior experiences) because I was so shocked by what I was hearing - or not hearing. The results were the same. Believe me, I tried everything. I have a biology degree and chemistry minor, halfway through doctorate in pharmacy. I'm trained to be pretty thorough 

 
I'm now convinced that what you pay for with "higher end" sources isn't sound quality, but features and driving power.

Oh, I am in the ASG2 demo tour? Well, uhm, okay

I also have a bacheler in biology and I am about to finish my master in molecular biology (hopefully this September). Though I didn't study on human hearing so I can't comment on science related aspects of it.
 
So if I don't bother with 24/192 and simply use cd quality or maybe even mp3 there is no need to buy 1.5k 2k players? I should just get something with nice UI, capacity and all?
 
Edit: If ASG2 happens to sound nice for me, I might order AS2 custom version of it. I hope living in Eu wouldn't create a problem. I actually would like to try something with very nice, deep enhanced/boosted bass + creamy mids + polite non-tiring highs. I have a feeling like a dynamic driver can provide it.

 

[eke2k6]

  Oh, I am in the ASG2 demo tour? Well, uhm, okay

I also have a bacheler in biology and I am about to finish my master in molecular biology (hopefully this September). Though I didn't study on human hearing so I can't comment on science related aspects of it.
 
So if I don't bother with 24/192 and simply use cd quality or maybe even mp3 there is no need to buy 1.5k 2k players? I should just get something with nice UI, capacity and all?
 
Edit: If ASG2 happens to sound nice for me, I might order AS2 custom version of it. I hope living in Eu wouldn't create a problem. I actually would like to try something with very nice, deep enhanced/boosted bass + creamy mids + polite non-tiring highs. I have a feeling like a dynamic driver can provide it.

 
 
Regardless of the encoding of your files, I see no sonic benefit to those players. Have a look at this post to get a better understanding of this "hi-res" deal:
 
 http://www.head-fi.org/t/415361/24bit-vs-16bit-the-myth-exploded
 
Also, the spoiler at the bottom of this post: http://www.head-fi.org/t/646411/lossless-vs-128kbps-mp3-vs-320kbps-mp3-blind-test
 
The mids of the ASG-2 are kind of dry in character, which is what makes them stand out. It's a generally warm signature, but possesses one of the clearest and most engaging midranges I've heard. It uses a 15mm full-range dynamic complemented by two balanced armatures. No crossover is used either.
 
Seriously the ZX1 is the epitome for me in UI and software features. The X5 is right beside it thanks to dual microsd slots, DAC function, DSD playback (I tried the new alpha firmware, and DSD works), and seriously good UI. Plus it has the power to drive cans.