[goodyfresh]

Hi guys,

So I am looking for a new DAP which is under $900.  What I am looking for is the best possible sound quality, with a non-buggy (or reasonably non-buggy) User Interface.  I am not trying to drive anything especially demanding, so I don't need a huge amount of output power.  I know that people will now recommend the Questyle QP1R, but let me emphasize that I do not want that one (for reasons I explain below).  I do need a line-out on the player, so anything without a line-out from the DAC is a no-go.  Something which does not get any hiss even with sensitive IEM's is certainly preferable, however I will mostly be using this with headphones, so hiss on sensitive IEM's would by no means be a dealbreaker for me.

The features I want:  Preferably as few bells and whistles as possible but I want something which works as a USB DAC with a Windows 10 computer.  I do not care about features like wi-fi, bluetooth, app capability, etc., and would prefer to not have such features, as I want something where I get the most sound quality for my money.  However, if the best sound-quality I can get for under $900 turns out to be from a player which does have such features, then I will get it, as long as the UI isn't annoyingly glitchy.
 
Note that I am looking for anything which is not the Questyle QP1R.  I will not get the Questyle QP1R due to a very poor customer service record and reputation when it comes to warranty service, including an issue a friend of mine and I are having currently with them.
 
Also, anything with a ridiculously short battery-life (like under 5 hours) is a no-go.
 
Any recommendations the community can give me would be very much appreciated!
 
--Jack
 
P.S.  The vast majority of my music library is 320kbs AAC files, and those are what I have loaded onto the Micro SD which I will be putting in my new player.  It needs to be able to accept a 128GB Micro SD.

 

[yanaginagi]

Hi Jack,
 
From what I know all the the Fiio's (x3/5/7), cayin's (n5/n6/i5), AK's, and the ibasso's (dx80/90/200) support USB DAC. 
If you want the best sound quality per price you can first exclude the AK's, and the best sound quality out of the rest in my opinion, also the most pricey, is the new ibasso dx200, however the price of ~<$950 is a little over your budget. 

 

[goodyfresh]

  Hi Jack,
 
From what I know all the the Fiio's (x3/5/7), cayin's (n5/n6/i5), AK's, and the ibasso's (dx80/90/200) support USB DAC. 
If you want the best sound quality per price you can first exclude the AK's, and the best sound quality out of the rest in my opinion, also the most pricey, is the new ibasso dx200, however the price of ~<$950 is a little over your budget. 

How is the User Interface on the DX200?  I've seen reviews saying that it's really glitchy/bad?

More importantly though it seems extremely bulky, my friend who ahs used both it and the QP1R says the DX200 is even bulkier.  And the QP1R already seemed on the large side for portable use, to me.

Anyone else have any input?  I'd really like a number of different recommendations to research!

 

[goodyfresh]

Let me rephrase the question, then:  Is there any other DAP under $1000 which actually sounds as good (or close to it) as the QP1R, isn't significantly more bulky than the likes of the QP1R, has a USB DAC feature, and a non-laggy, non-crappy UI?

 

[fixated]

Just having tried the QP1R recently (and also comparing it to other DAPs). Not exactly sure how to match a DAP with a nice UI and performance based on your requirements. I would suggest a Cowon DAP (PM1/PM2/P1/PS) but they don't have a line out, but other than not having line out they have a great UI and sounds great. Though I've seen in some of the cowon threads that using a separate amp for the PM2 isn't bad, haven't tried it myself but worth the try.