[EagleWings]

BTW, I wonder how does the LPG sounds? Because some of my friends who tried the Dream with it seem to dislike the two together. I'm interested in trying the LPG, and Sony WM-1 DAPs someday in the future. Maybe during next CanJam visit.. Hope to see Deezel again too, I bet he'll have a lot more gears by then. No pressure!

Dream + LPG is a bad combo is what I have heard from my bro @Sanman whose observations are mostly along the same line as mine. LPG apparently accentuates the treble to a point that it is fatiguing and the mid-range is quite dry and analytical. Additionally not sufficient warmth from the bass either, as the bass of the dream apparently is tilted towards lower-bass and sub-bass.

Nic once told me that the stock wm1z helps bring some balance into dream's dry signature.

Moral of the story: Buy a WM1Z bro!

 

[EagleWings]

AK70 is nothing special, and probably ii as well. LPG is like hot sauce, pretty much everything sounds good out of it, it has a very engaging sound. With the LPG, there's a bit of a static noise heard, it wasn't hiss. Slightly audible static sound when changing tracks, when things get activated or switched I believe.

The clicking on the LPG you are referring to occurs when switching between different bit rates/sample rates or between formats. Something to do with the clock.

 

[subguy812]

Excited to have a good evening of playing...

 

[Gavin C4]

I think the Pioneer XDP 300r (same as DP-X1, as I understand) is pretty good sounding, but I haven't compared it to DAPs at around the $1k+ level...could be another "you get what you pay for" type deal.

I'd say the DP-X1 allows you to get the most bang for the buck. A used DP-X1 only cost 30,000 yen, and it is more than enough for an average music lover to enjoy their music. Whereas others how are enjoying their gear together with their music would look for SP1000 wm1z .

 

[doctorjazz]

Could be, I use a Pono and the Pioneer, different sound signatures, but I like them both. Ordered a TOTL DAP from LH Labs, crowd funded, spent stupid dollars on it, keeping me from buying another high end DAP, and I suspect I likely won't ever get it. My error, of course...

 

[kubig123]

Excited to have a good evening of playing...

... my precious...

 

[subguy812]

Could be, I use a Pono and the Pioneer, different sound signatures, but I like them both. Ordered a TOTL DAP from LH Labs, crowd funded, spent stupid dollars on it, keeping me from buying another high end DAP, and I suspect I likely won't ever get it. My error, of course...

You and I were both big Pono supporters, I moved on to the A&K 100ii &120ii, sold those because I felt I didn't need a DAP. I picked up an Opus #2 but I still have fond memories of my Pono in balanced.

 

[doctorjazz]

Been thinking about an Opus 2, in fact... Along with all these other expensive toys... Need another job.
{wait... The Opus 2 IS a DAP, what do you mean you didn't need a DAP?)

 

[subguy812]

... my precious...

 

[PinkyPowers]

Been thinking about an Opus 2, in fact... Along with all these other expensive toys... Need another job.
{wait... The Opus 2 IS a DAP, what do you mean you didn't need a DAP?)

He came to his bloody senses.

Opus#2 is like the perfect player for me. Utterly natural sound, and resolves at the highest level. HUGE soundstage.

 

[subguy812]

He came to his bloody senses.

Opus#2 is like the perfect player for me. Utterly natural sound, and resolves at the highest level. HUGE soundstage.

My reference DAP is the Opus #2

 

[fuhransahis]

Also highly recommend the DX200 using AMP 3. Plays in the same league as WM1Z and SP1000 according to some (I haven't heard them), at 1/3 the price. And yeah I know it sounded a bit sterile to some using it's original AMP 1 card, myself included, but the new amp truly makes very noticeable improvements in nearly every way.

 

[doctorjazz]

Of course, there's always the A&k 380 Gold... And divorce.

 

[Deezel177]

I always drink cool water from the dispensary, maybe that's why. Thanks for the info on 'reference' sound. Your analogy is also quite helpful in a way, haha. I think I'm starting to get it. Yeah, it's also a preference thing IMO. My definition of 'natural' may differ from yours. I really like how the Prelude pairs with your modded AK70. They sound quite natural, and just right together. Excited to try the enticing AK70MKII in the future. It looks so good in that monolithic shape, and black colour. Don't you think?

Dude, the Prelude is just awesome to me no matter what, I think. Jokes aside though, Calvin of MS told me he doesn't like the Prelude paired with his WM1Z (probably due to excessive warmth), and that he listens to his Prelude mostly out of his iPhone. Fortunately, yes, it does indeed sound great out of the AK70. I tried the single-ended output of the MKII for a brief second at MS. Funnily enough, tonally, the MKII's SE sounds like the stock MK!'s balanced output; smooth, laid-back, but more transparent, resolving, and well-separated. However, to me, it still loses out to the AK70-Kai in terms of clarity, instrument resolution, bass rumble and physicality, and left-right separation. Those were my immediate reactions from my short A/B tests, and I'm sure I'll have a better informed opinion once I spend more time with it. But, despite the MKII's drop-dead gorgeous looks, I don't think I'll be getting one anytime soon, simply due to the fact that I already have the Kai. It is a great player though, no doubt about it.

AK70 is nothing special, and probably ii as well. LPG is like hot sauce, pretty much everything sounds good out of it, it has a very engaging sound. With the LPG, there's a bit of a static noise heard, it wasn't hiss. Slightly audible static sound when changing tracks, when things get activated or switched I believe.

Some of those lowend AK models are not any better than avg players. Just like DP-X1, and Fiio players are avg sounding.

Sony was underwelming as well for 1k monies as well. Common, it's over 1k. Placebo pricing?

I think what makes the AK70 special is its tonal balance. It has a really engaging yet natural sound that makes up for its middle-of-the-ground technical performance. In a sense, it's kinda like the DAP-equivalent of the Aether. Plus, when you consider its portability and ergonomics in addition to its sound, you get a package that's pretty difficult to beat, unless you're okay with carrying around a brick in your jeans every day of the week.

 

[SilverEars]

He came to his bloody senses.

Opus#2 is like the perfect player for me. Utterly natural sound, and resolves at the highest level. HUGE soundstage.

Right on. This is a good player, and I would agree it is a highly resolving player. My Andro is a different beast out of this one, and shows off how a well matched source does to an iem.

LPG for sure is an engaging sounding player(especially the vocals), I call it hot sauce because of this reason(you apply it to everything that need flavoring), but treble can be hot with certain iems, but the PEQ is quite good and it's just a matter of adjustment(unlike most DAP EQ which are not really that good). LPG stage is not really as wide either as other top level DAPs.

Opus #2 is one of the higher resolving players, and yes, it is higher reolving that LPG. So, LPG is not a perfect player, and not the one for super micro-details, but I like it a lot due to how well it drives iems(bass slams, drives iSine planars like no other) in an engaging nature(this sounds arbitrary, but you'd understand if you experience the sound). No other players can make iSines(and therfore, likely LCDi4 as well) with a bit of a wonky non-Cypher cable tune to sound it's best, and sound like it's driving the best. In general, anything I've tried being outputted by LPG sounds like it's driven well(if that makes any sense).

I bet not much people heard of The Bit(the company), and what the hell Opus is, and would have not expect the #2 to be the best player out of #1,2, and 3. It is a good player, doesn't work well as a pre-amp(for speakers per say, my best JBL powered speaker preamp is the Mojo interestingly). but as a DAP for BAs, I say at least of the best if not at the best level. It's just not known company for most I think. My Andro has the fastest transient response out of the #2, and this really puzzles me.

AK380 was another higher resolving player than LPG as well, but different from Opus or LPG. Opus and LPG has more of a forward treble in comparison, but AK380 has very fine or thin treble that creates a impression of being able to output minor nuances, but it's not a perfect player either(not really better than Opus #2, and value is not 2.5 times as it's priced).

So, my point is that DAPs have a certain threshold of performance, and separate them as either it's hifi sounding or not(for iems I'm speaking of course). Majority out there are not. Not (at least much)better than basic players.

DX200 would come close to hifi level, but not quite, this is why I find it to be a hyped player, not really warrant the price level. Doesn't reach the level of Opus #2, a bit below in performance. Like the LPG, not a high resolving player. It does have hifi sound characteristics.

Anyway, sources are important for fidelity of iems.