[twister6]

When using Dignis Design's Patina case, sometimes more than two buttons are pushed unintentionally. And it causes troubles.
iriver's original cases don't cause this trouble.The difference of the shapes of cases does it. In my case, the screen of "setting"
became blank and I could not change the setting. Reboot did not solve this problem. After some trials, I had to use u boot menu
and wipe setting. So be careful when you use tight cases for SP1000.

What do you mean "two buttons" pushed unintentionally? On the left side, where you have play/pause/skip buttons? I haven't experienced that, unless you are talking about something else?

 

[twister6]

Very nice review, right on the mark. I've had the SS model for a good long while now and continue to be amazed by it. No buyer's remorse, no desire to try something new (well, it would be nice to have the CU version for those tracks that need more bass and timbre due to mixing and mastering- I demo'd it at CanJam and heard what you report re middle and lower end differences when compared to the stainless model). I liked how you kept using the word "transparency"- that's what impresses me the most with the SP. It's not producing a thick sound, you can hear inside the music. Paired with my Zeus XR I can, as you suggest, spend hours picking apart all of the details in each track. It's wide as all get out, has incredible detail, and presents the music in a way that makes me smile. I also agree with you that A&K doesn't want users fooling with the sound characteristic. Their devices deliver a specific sound and that's what they expect you to listen to. I've had the 120ll. the 240SS and now the 1000SS and they just keep getting better. GUI is wonderful, battery life is better even when using hi-res tracks, the feel is solid, and the sound is sublime. The only downside, and it's not the fault of the player, is that with poorly mastered or mixed tracks you can hear just how poorly they were done. But for decent or better tracks, you will hear new sounds on familiar tracks. Yes, the SP is heavy, but I carry mine in a belt case and don't suffer for it. It's basically the size (area) of my iPhone 7+, just a bit thicker and a fair amount heavier. It pairs well with my UERM, it paired well with my Angie, and it's very good with my Phantom (I'm still not sure the Phantom pairs well with me, but I'm working on it). I tried the Legend X at CanJam, lasted about a minute with it, made Jack laugh at how quickly I said "nope." The Zeus, to me, is the perfect match for the SP. I got the Aries ll in single 3.5 with both EE models (later bought a 2.5 for the Zeus and Jack swapped out the one on the Phantom for a 2.5 when he got a new shipment in) and agree that balanced is the way to go with this device. It's a noticeable sound difference, for the better.

For those of you reading Twister's review, all I can say is that his reviews led me to buy both the 120ll and the Angie, and I was very happy with both (I beat him to the SP, though ). If you are considering buying it, this review is a good way to make up your mind to take the plunge.

Thank you for the kind words! Just one comment, since you do read all my reviews, sounds like you skipped my Legend X review Otherwise you wouldn't be as surprised about overwhelming bass impact

 

[staticdynamo]

What do you mean "two buttons" pushed unintentionally? On the left side, where you have play/pause/skip buttons? I haven't experienced that, unless you are talking about something else?

I think pushing the buttons on the left and the power button at the same time was problematic. When I changed the case, a button or two on the left and
power button on the right were pushed. After that, I could listen to the music, but couldn't change the setting. And accidentally I found U BOOT MENU
and from the recovery menu, I chose "wipe setting" and after reboot I set the name of my SP1000 and selected language, connected to Wi-Fi once.
After that, my SP1000CP started to work as before.

 

[olddude]

Thank you for the kind words! Just one comment, since you do read all my reviews, sounds like you skipped my Legend X review Otherwise you wouldn't be as surprised about overwhelming bass impact

Nope- I read everything about the Legend from rumors up through reviews (including yours). I always do due diligence before buying. I also looked at the EE website where it shows (relative) sound signature I knew exactly what it was and what it did. Just wanted to try it (and Jack was standing right there beaming like the proud father of a newborn). The Zeus X is really more my cup of tea. Especially for the types of music I listen to. We all have our preferred signatures, I've just settled into mine. Keep up those great reviews!

 

[MisterNobody]

Do you all prefer to use the EQ or no?

 

[twister6]

Do you all prefer to use the EQ or no?

on SP1000? To my ears, its semi-PEQ (it has a Parametric EQ but 20 frequency bands are fixed) has a rather subtle effect on the sound. If you are heavy into sound shaping using the EQ, SP1000 experience will be a little different.

 

[MisterNobody]

on SP1000? To my ears, its semi-PEQ (it has a Parametric EQ but 20 frequency bands are fixed) has a rather subtle effect on the sound. If you are heavy into sound shaping using the EQ, SP1000 experience will be a little different.

Not into sound shaping just wasn't sure what people preferred since as you mentioned the effect is subtle.

 

[olddude]

What he is saying is what we all find- A&K EQ'ing is so subtle as to be not worth the effort. A&K sets its devices up with its preferred sound sig and I think it throws in the EQ just so it can say the devices have one.

 

[olddude]

What do you mean "two buttons" pushed unintentionally? On the left side, where you have play/pause/skip buttons? I haven't experienced that, unless you are talking about something else?

He means he pushed one of the three WITH the power button at the same time. At least that's what I got from reading above. I originally though he meant he pushed the fwd and stop buttons or rev and spot buttons at the same time. I wonder if pushing a button simultaneously with the power button is a developer's input access. Not going to try it.

 

[Hifi2jungle]

Dear all. Wanna say goodbye. Just sold my sp1000. It is not acceptable for me that ak does not support qobuz anymore and that there’s no tidal offline mode.

 

[MisterNobody]

Dear all. Wanna say goodbye. Just sold my sp1000. It is not acceptable for me that ak does not support qobuz anymore and that there’s no tidal offline mode.

I was never really a fan of streaming services it was always "what if you're in an area with no service" although my job requires that I go out to sea for extended periods of time so streaming was never really an option for me. I hope you can find something that fits your needs.

 

[denis1976]

Dear all. Wanna say goodbye. Just sold my sp1000. It is not acceptable for me that ak does not support qobuz anymore and that there’s no tidal offline mode.

you are free to do what you want to do, but not acceptable for me is someone gives more than 3k for a top Dap and sells it because of qobuz or tidal...

 

[Omega139]

Hey guys, I was wondering if anyone could help me figure out how to use my SP1000 to play USB audio from my Macbook pro. I think the term is DAC? I can't seem to figure out how to do it. Basically, i'm trying to listen to some youtube videos through my SP1000 via my macbook. If anyone could help me out it would be appreciated.

 

[MisterNobody]

Hey guys, I was wondering if anyone could help me figure out how to use my SP1000 to play USB audio from my Macbook pro. I think the term is DAC? I can't seem to figure out how to do it. Basically, i'm trying to listen to some youtube videos through my SP1000 via my macbook. If anyone could help me out it would be appreciated.

I use this exact set up. Plug the SP into your MBP, swipe down the menu on the SP and change the USB mode, just hit the circle. In OSX click the volume icon in the menu bar and ensure the audio output is set to SP1000 and you're done.If you want to take it a step further you can open the midi application, finder>apps>utilities>Audio Midi setup, and you can change the output format based on what you're listening too. Unless you're listening to audio above 48kHz I wouldn't set it higher than that otherwise the audio will be upsampled and you may experience artifacts. Entirely up to you though.

 

[Omega139]

I use this exact set up. Plug the SP into your MBP, swipe down the menu on the SP and change the USB mode, just hit the circle. In OSX click the volume icon in the menu bar and ensure the audio output is set to SP1000 and you're done.If you want to take it a step further you can open the midi application, finder>apps>utilities>Audio Midi setup, and you can change the output format based on what you're listening too. Unless you're listening to audio above 48kHz I wouldn't set it higher than that otherwise the audio will be upsampled and you may experience artifacts. Entirely up to you though.

Ahh, I see. I followed the steps in the manual but I missed on the audio output mode change on my MBP pro. Sincere thanks!