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New M8 DAC from SMSL (9018/XMOS)
Nov 27, 2014 at 11:18 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 1,112
ljbrandt

ljbrandt

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Looks interesting!   Especially at this pricepoint!
 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SMSL-M8-DAC-ES9018-OPTIC-Coaxial-XMOS-USB-Asynchronous-384KHZ-24Bit-DSD64-128-/351220414036?pt=US_Home_Audio_Amplifiers_Preamps&hash=item51c65e3654
 
Dec 15, 2014 at 8:35 PM Post #5 of 1,112
The SMSL M8 is an upgrade to my current XMOS PCM5102 DAC. I tried it first with my PC and foobar2000. I played music in 32bit/352.8KHz format and also DSD64 format, it sounds excellent compared to my old DAC. I then connected it to my main system in my listening room and that's where it shined. It is now a permanent fixture in my listening room.
 
Dec 16, 2014 at 12:10 AM Post #8 of 1,112
bbqrooster said:
The SMSL M8 is an upgrade to my current XMOS PCM5102 DAC. I tried it first with my PC and foobar2000. I played music in 32bit/352.8KHz format and also DSD64 format, it sounds excellent compared to my old DAC. I then connected it to my main system in my listening room and that's where it shined. It is now a permanent fixture in my listening room.
Click to expand...


Did you try the sound filters 7 different ones it is suppoused to have? Do they make alot of difference?
 
Dec 16, 2014 at 7:28 AM Post #9 of 1,112
Very tempted to get one like this myself, but there are only very few reviews or opinions about this.
Would also like to hear what people have to say about this who have gotten one of these. The specs looks stunning.
 
Dec 16, 2014 at 8:56 AM Post #11 of 1,112
I going to pick one of these up next week along with a Gustard H10. As P701 said, the specs of this DAC is awesome for its price. You usually have to fork over a lot of money in order to get over 20 usable bits of audio (125dB dynamic range) while having crosstalk, THD, and SNR levels that good. I'm guessing they were able to keep the price down by using an external power adaptor, and using unbalanced outputs and components. Balanced dacs are typically much more expensive since you have to double up on basically everything for both channels.
 
I wish someone could review the unit and provide some measurements since I'm still a bit skeptical of these specs. These specs are better than a Schiit Bifrost Uber...for over half the price and size.
 
Dec 16, 2014 at 10:37 AM Post #12 of 1,112
There are 7 filters, 3 for the PCM mode (Fast roll-off, Slow roll-off and mini phase roll-off) and 4 for the DSD mode (47K, 50K, 60K and 70K cut-off frequency). These filters are supposed to alter the music characteristic during playback. For example, the slow roll-off is supposed to attenuate slightly the high frequency. Up to now, I have been using the fast roll-off filter and found the sound to be my liking. I have not used the other filters for extensive comparison yet.
 
Dec 16, 2014 at 11:56 AM Post #13 of 1,112
bbqrooster said:
  The SMSL M8 is an upgrade to my current XMOS PCM5102 DAC. I tried it first with my PC and foobar2000. I played music in 32bit/352.8KHz format and also DSD64 format, it sounds excellent compared to my old DAC. I then connected it to my main system in my listening room and that's where it shined. It is now a permanent fixture in my listening room.
Click to expand...

 
Out of curiosity, which PCM5102 DAC were you coming from?  I currently use the Stoner UD120 and think it's really nice! 
 
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