Forward:
First, a shoutout to @gc335 for letting me borrow his DX220 Max, and DX300. Thank you bro! I chose to do this comparison with my Legend-X CIEM because I wanted to limit issues with headphone movement, earpad placement, tip changes, or anything else. I have a ton of hours on my Legend-X, and am highly familiar with their sound. They were my pre-covid travel earphone, and have been enjoyed for a great number of hours while in hotels. I have bought a ton of music from NativeDSD, and recommend them for your DAPs. I am a bit of a vinyl person at heart though. I decided to focus on the music instead of doing a physical or use comparison. If you're looking for the best screen, and snappiest interface, the DX300 is out front undoubtedly.
IEMs:
Empire Ears Legend-X CIEM w/ Effect Audio Thor Silver II 8wire
DAPs:
Fiio M15
Ibasso DX220 Max
Ibasso DX300 (stock amp)
Albums used:
Carmen Gomes Inc. - Don’t You Cry (DXD)
Jacintha - Autumn Leaves (DSD 256)
Vanessa Fernandez - I Want You (DXD)
Wytske Holtrop - Cello Frysienne (DSD 256)
Reference speaker setup:
Magico S5 MkII, Accuphase E-480, Technics SL-1210GAE, ZYX Ultimate 4D, MIT cabling
Jacintha - “Skylark”
Immediately, Jacintha’s voice comes into focus. With a light touch of brass cymbals. The M15 has a wet voice presentation, and seems to originate from vaguely in front of me, and a bit high up. The DX300 sounds a bit dryer, and I feel like I hear slight sibilance on the opening consonant. However the brass sounds wonderful, and has a nice sizzle. The DX220 sounds more like the M15’s wet style presentation, but I do detect a larger headstage. Progressing through the song, the M15 seems to have a more laid back presentation. The bass seems to have great texture, I can feel the picks. The DX300 has a really airy touch on Jacintha’s voice as she scales. I do detect some sibilance on her at times though. Like “sad as a gypsy serenading the moon” The DX220 feels like it’s flowing with the song, but the bass is lacking a bit of texture. The snare drum on the DX220 sounds really good. The headstage for the guitar solo sticks out in front of me. The M15 has a sort of calming sound. As Jacintha eases in, and out of her words I can feel her breathiness.
Vanessa Fernandez - “Human”
Immediately, the guitar, and shaker come in. The M15 feels tight, and authoritative. There is an air to the voice, and huge separation between instruments. You can really tell this is a multi-mic track. The DX300 has really good bass. Reaching deep, and the texture sounds good. The midrange of the guitar sounds a bit off to my ears. Separation is equally good as the M15. The higher frequency parts of Vanessa’s voice sound really smooth. I do not hear any sibilance at all. The DX220 has a good headstage. Bass sounds authoritative, and well textured. Instrument separation is considerably smaller than the DX300 and M15. The sound from the DX220 sounds very neutral here. As the song progresses, I find myself really enjoying the bass on the DX300. I can really picture the vibration of the bass. The M15 feels somewhat analytical in this track, but something tells me that the track was recorded like this. Overall, the DX220 flows well with the song, but it reminds me that I’m using an earphone instead of my speaker setup.
Wytske Holtrop - “Sonatine Française”
Immediately, I am drawn to the pace, and decay on the M15. It sounds great, and ethereal. The piano comes in and sounds haunting. There is a sense of “woodiness” to the cello, which I find a bit distracting however. As though the body of the cello is emphasized a bit more than I’d expect. The DX300 is missing some of the resolution of the M15 on the piano. So a bit of that whispy sound is missing. The DX300 has great headstage, and the sound is projected out in front of me. The DX300 is smearing a bit of the piano, and the decay does not sound quite right. The cello sounds pleasing though. Like a cello does in person. The DX220 sounds a fair bit like the M15 in this case, but does not seem to have the same woodiness I observed in the latter. The piano’s timing sounds really good. I feel like the DX220 is digging deep in the lower frequencies. It may be emphasizing them a bit more than I would expect. Overall, I think the M15 seems to be most captivating, but all are a bit flawed in this well-recorded piece.
Carmen Gomes Inc. - “Summertime”
Immediately. I know this is a single mic track. Bass on the M15 has stellar decay. A good vibration, and the soundstage feels deep, and tall. Cymbals are placed really well, and sound brassy, and palpable. The voice sounds well placed, and natural. The DX300 has a larger sound stage. The bass feels a bit misplaced however. It’s not focused, and consistent at my right front. It’s sort of wavering in and out depending on which chord is struck. The guitar is focused though. Her voice sounds a touch “digital”, and maybe sort of “hifi” sounding. The DX220 sounds good here. Her voice is well placed, and all instruments are consistently where they should be. The DX220 is a bit boomy in the bass however. I feel like it sounds a bit flabby on the lower frequencies. Or that somehow they are being boosted artificially. Progressing through the song though, I get used to the bass sounding a bit boomier than my reference setup. Returning to the M15, the bass sounds a little bit thin, but it’s well textured, and has good control. The voice is most calming on the M15 overall, and has a good cadence. I feel like the DX220 is the one that makes me want to listen though. The DX300’s instrument focus is distracting in an otherwise excellent sound of the instruments. I really like the large, open soundstage of the DX300, and it might be my winner if not for the odd instrument placement. I find there is a truth to the highly analytical voice in this track, and the DX300 may be showing me the truth there.
Overall:
Fiio M15- A DAP that excels at air, and focus.
Ibasso DX300- A hifi DAP that has huge sound staging
Ibasso DX220- A romantic DAP with a smooth midrange
First, a shoutout to @gc335 for letting me borrow his DX220 Max, and DX300. Thank you bro! I chose to do this comparison with my Legend-X CIEM because I wanted to limit issues with headphone movement, earpad placement, tip changes, or anything else. I have a ton of hours on my Legend-X, and am highly familiar with their sound. They were my pre-covid travel earphone, and have been enjoyed for a great number of hours while in hotels. I have bought a ton of music from NativeDSD, and recommend them for your DAPs. I am a bit of a vinyl person at heart though. I decided to focus on the music instead of doing a physical or use comparison. If you're looking for the best screen, and snappiest interface, the DX300 is out front undoubtedly.
IEMs:
Empire Ears Legend-X CIEM w/ Effect Audio Thor Silver II 8wire
DAPs:
Fiio M15
Ibasso DX220 Max
Ibasso DX300 (stock amp)
Albums used:
Carmen Gomes Inc. - Don’t You Cry (DXD)
Jacintha - Autumn Leaves (DSD 256)
Vanessa Fernandez - I Want You (DXD)
Wytske Holtrop - Cello Frysienne (DSD 256)
Reference speaker setup:
Magico S5 MkII, Accuphase E-480, Technics SL-1210GAE, ZYX Ultimate 4D, MIT cabling
Jacintha - “Skylark”
Immediately, Jacintha’s voice comes into focus. With a light touch of brass cymbals. The M15 has a wet voice presentation, and seems to originate from vaguely in front of me, and a bit high up. The DX300 sounds a bit dryer, and I feel like I hear slight sibilance on the opening consonant. However the brass sounds wonderful, and has a nice sizzle. The DX220 sounds more like the M15’s wet style presentation, but I do detect a larger headstage. Progressing through the song, the M15 seems to have a more laid back presentation. The bass seems to have great texture, I can feel the picks. The DX300 has a really airy touch on Jacintha’s voice as she scales. I do detect some sibilance on her at times though. Like “sad as a gypsy serenading the moon” The DX220 feels like it’s flowing with the song, but the bass is lacking a bit of texture. The snare drum on the DX220 sounds really good. The headstage for the guitar solo sticks out in front of me. The M15 has a sort of calming sound. As Jacintha eases in, and out of her words I can feel her breathiness.
Vanessa Fernandez - “Human”
Immediately, the guitar, and shaker come in. The M15 feels tight, and authoritative. There is an air to the voice, and huge separation between instruments. You can really tell this is a multi-mic track. The DX300 has really good bass. Reaching deep, and the texture sounds good. The midrange of the guitar sounds a bit off to my ears. Separation is equally good as the M15. The higher frequency parts of Vanessa’s voice sound really smooth. I do not hear any sibilance at all. The DX220 has a good headstage. Bass sounds authoritative, and well textured. Instrument separation is considerably smaller than the DX300 and M15. The sound from the DX220 sounds very neutral here. As the song progresses, I find myself really enjoying the bass on the DX300. I can really picture the vibration of the bass. The M15 feels somewhat analytical in this track, but something tells me that the track was recorded like this. Overall, the DX220 flows well with the song, but it reminds me that I’m using an earphone instead of my speaker setup.
Wytske Holtrop - “Sonatine Française”
Immediately, I am drawn to the pace, and decay on the M15. It sounds great, and ethereal. The piano comes in and sounds haunting. There is a sense of “woodiness” to the cello, which I find a bit distracting however. As though the body of the cello is emphasized a bit more than I’d expect. The DX300 is missing some of the resolution of the M15 on the piano. So a bit of that whispy sound is missing. The DX300 has great headstage, and the sound is projected out in front of me. The DX300 is smearing a bit of the piano, and the decay does not sound quite right. The cello sounds pleasing though. Like a cello does in person. The DX220 sounds a fair bit like the M15 in this case, but does not seem to have the same woodiness I observed in the latter. The piano’s timing sounds really good. I feel like the DX220 is digging deep in the lower frequencies. It may be emphasizing them a bit more than I would expect. Overall, I think the M15 seems to be most captivating, but all are a bit flawed in this well-recorded piece.
Carmen Gomes Inc. - “Summertime”
Immediately. I know this is a single mic track. Bass on the M15 has stellar decay. A good vibration, and the soundstage feels deep, and tall. Cymbals are placed really well, and sound brassy, and palpable. The voice sounds well placed, and natural. The DX300 has a larger sound stage. The bass feels a bit misplaced however. It’s not focused, and consistent at my right front. It’s sort of wavering in and out depending on which chord is struck. The guitar is focused though. Her voice sounds a touch “digital”, and maybe sort of “hifi” sounding. The DX220 sounds good here. Her voice is well placed, and all instruments are consistently where they should be. The DX220 is a bit boomy in the bass however. I feel like it sounds a bit flabby on the lower frequencies. Or that somehow they are being boosted artificially. Progressing through the song though, I get used to the bass sounding a bit boomier than my reference setup. Returning to the M15, the bass sounds a little bit thin, but it’s well textured, and has good control. The voice is most calming on the M15 overall, and has a good cadence. I feel like the DX220 is the one that makes me want to listen though. The DX300’s instrument focus is distracting in an otherwise excellent sound of the instruments. I really like the large, open soundstage of the DX300, and it might be my winner if not for the odd instrument placement. I find there is a truth to the highly analytical voice in this track, and the DX300 may be showing me the truth there.
Overall:
Fiio M15- A DAP that excels at air, and focus.
Ibasso DX300- A hifi DAP that has huge sound staging
Ibasso DX220- A romantic DAP with a smooth midrange
Last edited:
