New M8 DAC from SMSL (9018/XMOS)

[money4me247]

I'm not sure what the Massdrop M8 price is but they're pretty close thru normal retailers ($249 vs $299).

massdrop was offerin $179

 

[Trae]

Well, I got my M8 in. The only thing I can compare it to is an E17 (DAC section), so I'm sorry that I can't really give a well rounded impression. In short, it's better in every way. I'm feeding the audio through USB.
 
When I first played a song on it, I instantly heard that it sounded more neutral (E17 is warmer) and more revealing than the E17 (I'm using the L7 to use it as a standalone DAC, bypassing the amp). It sounds like a veil has been lifted compared to the E17, although a small one. I'm hearing some hiss on recordings that wasn't there with the E17, the bass sounds more distinct, less bloated and more coherent, and there is more separation than with the E17 (again, a slight difference).
 
Now, although the difference is instantly noticeable, the difference isn't night and day. It's difference enough for me to pick out which is which in an A/B blind test, though. Well, I guess it is night and day if I can spot it out in a blind test, haha. I'm satisfied

 
The only downside is that I didn't know that MassDrop had a drop on it, so I ended up paying $220 for it. To make it worse, I frequently buy stuff off of there, so it was completely possible for me to join the drop. The only reassurance I can give myself is that I spent $220 on it instead of $250, and that I don't have to wait until late January to get one

It's still $40 more than MD, though...Grrr.

 

[Waqar]

My m8 dac is here, just have to get it from the post office.

 

[sgbwill2]

My m8 dac is here, just have to get it from the post office.

Interested in your impressions of it. What DAC's do you have for comparison?

 

[Waqar]

Interested in your impressions of it. What DAC's do you have for comparison?

Not many right now, only the built in dac in my xtz d100 mk2 amplifier. So i cant compare it. Uswd to have a yulong d200.

 

[crazylegs]

I also have received my M8 yesterday.  I have to say the sound quality is amazing. I will give give a more detail review later.  It is worth noting that this little dac has an amazing sound quality. I purchased mine through amazon. They delivered it to me in two days. I do have two issues to share.  Please let me know if those of you that have this dac are experiencing the same bugs.  
 
Bug 1:
The dac automatically turns off after being on standby (idle) for ~5min..  It works excellent if sound is going through it, but it shuts off if no sound is going through it.  Not a deal breaker but when plugged into the PC i have to remember to manually turn it on.  
 
Bug 2:  
This one is of a concern  as this is one of the reasons on why i purchased the M8.  The M8 is being advertised as being android 4.0+ compatible. I cannot get my samsung tab pro 12 to recognize the M8.  I have other usb dac that do work with my tablet so im pretty confident it isn't the tablet or my USB OTG cable.  When i plug in the M8 you can hear it click over. The LCD display immediately changes to USB locked.  When the  music begins playing, the M8 switches from locked to unlocked several times. When the music stops you hear a digital buzzing noise.
 
Those of you that have the M8, Please chime in and let me know if you are experiencing these same bugs.  If not then i will attempt to get a replacement though amazon.  Perhaps i got a bad apple.
 
Anywho.
I'm pretty sure the SMSL can easily solve these problems with a simple firmware upgrade.  I've sent them an email today.  I hope to hear a response from them soon.  
 
Its a shame because as a stand alone PC USB DAC the M8 is flat out awesome.  It has played everything i thrown at it with incredible detail.

 

[Trae]

Well, I'd count bug 1 as a feature more than a bug. The M8 uses an OLED display, which is susceptible to screen retention and burning. So, having it shut down while not in use will definitely prolong the life of the screen, and the timed shut down was most likely incorporated because of that. Granted, I'd prefer to turn off the screen by some selectable setting, or to have it turn on when audio plays, but it's not a big deal to me, personally. With my short time with it so far, turning it back on and restarting whatever application that's running audio only takes a couple seconds. It's more steps than it should be, but I'll live with it.
 
I can't comment on the second part. I have an android tablet with 4.4.2 (1st gen kindle fire with a custom rom) on it, but it doesn't support usb host.

 

[Trevorlj]

I haven't tried a tablet or phone via USB with my M8.

 

[edinaldo12]

I've just ordered a m8, and I'm anxious to get it.
Have anyone changed the stock cables or power supply?

Also, I wonder how does it compare to Matrix mini pro, that I considered to buy but had to give up given it was pricy.

 

[Trevorlj]

FYI...while my desktop sounded great with the M8 there was quite a bit of light background/interference noise with my laptop (coinciding with heavy processor and hard drive operation) while connected via USB.  I tried a 4 various cables that I had laying around and there was barely any change.  I opened up one of the cables and clipped the power and ground wires and that completely eliminated the noise.

 

[Trae]

  FYI...while my desktop sounded great with the M8 there was quite a bit of light background/interference noise with my laptop (coinciding with heavy processor and hard drive operation) while connected via USB.  I tried a 4 various cables that I had laying around and there was barely any change.  I opened up one of the cables and clipped the power and ground wires and that completely eliminated the noise.

 
Nice tip. I did the same to my cable, and it got rid of a lot of the noise. I still get some interference if I turn up the volume on my H10, though (my other amps are fine, but the H10 seems to be really sensitive to interference noise). I'm also getting an 8kHz sound after cutting the wires. It goes away whenever I close out of a program that plays audio. I thought I could dodge getting a wyrd...guess not.

 

[Trae]

Small update on the noise issue I have. Got the Wyrd in, and it still didn't work, but I found out why I got noise. It was my RCA cables hooking into the amp. I replaced them with Monoprice RCA cables, and there is no noise at all when using the modified USB cable. I can turn the gain and volume at max on the H10, and the only noise I get is a slight hissing sound from the amp. There is still some interference when using a normal USB cable, but it's much less than with the original RCA cable I was using. I'd say it's about the same noise level as when I was using the original RCA cable with the modified USB cable.
 
So, for those who are having interference issues with this DAC, try using the above linked RCA cables with a chopped up USB cable. Alternatively, you could just use S/PDIF and get the same results. You won't be able to go above 192kHz/24-bit or use DSD, though.

 

[Guidostrunk]

Interesting. Are you basically making an diy USB to coax cable? If so I'd like to know how to make one. Lol thanks......... Nevermind. I read back through the thread.

Small update on the noise issue I have. Got the Wyrd in, and it still didn't work, but I found out why I got noise. It was my RCA cables hooking into the amp. I replaced them with Monoprice RCA cables, and there is no noise at all when using the modified USB cable. I can turn the gain and volume at max on the H10, and the only noise I get is a slight hissing sound from the amp. There is still some interference when using a normal USB cable, but it's much less than with the original RCA cable I was using. I'd say it's about the same noise level as when I was using the original RCA cable with the modified USB cable.

So, for those who are having interference issues with this DAC, try using the above linked RCA cables with a chopped up USB cable. Alternatively, you could just use S/PDIF and get the same results. You won't be able to go above 192kHz/24-bit or use DSD, though.

 

[Sunsyn]

Great DAC, love it with DSD files, but PCM is no slouch.
Nice design.
Great improvement is possible by replacing power adapter with clean linear supply as TeraDak U9VA.
All in all, lot of sound for 250$.

 

[mikey1964]

Anyone has this DAC with a Lyr? I'm thinking of getting the M8 to stack with my Lyr. Had intended/planned for an iFi Nano iDSD but since I already have the Micro iDSD, I'd decided to shelf the idea. I still have a couple to a few days before the local distributer here gets stock of it, so should I pull the proverbial trigger?