Seiun player, $150 player with monster spec. Too good to be true?

[glassmonkey]

 

  I don't have an iPhone and haven't experienced any problems on a Windows laptop with any 'horrible noises', but now upon testing on Android, it performs poorly (sounds muffled, metallic interference sounds, some vinyl-like clicks, compressed sounding with FLAC).  My comments above also list an audible noise floor and bass light tuning (we are in agreement).
 
I think, in spite of the limitations of the Feather DAC, the value for money equation remains unchanged at the price I paid. I got the DAC and a pair of bass boosted headphones that complement it for $35 from Cyberdrive. There aren't really any competitors in that space that play 16/44.1 to DSD256. Time will tell on the engineering of the upcoming units, but the Feather DAC is pretty good for what it is.

Let me see if I understand this......
 
You have a Feather DAC from Cyberdrive.
You attach it to your Laptop and have no issues whatsoever.
You attach it to an Android device and it is beyond horrible.
You come to the conclusion the Feather DAC is to blame.....this defies any logic. Sorry.
 
Cheers.

This doesn't defy logic, and the response to my comments presents no logical train of argument. The presumptive logical argument forgets that Windows compatibility is not equivalent to universal compatibility. Whether the poor compatibility with iPhone and Android is the fault of the phone or the DAC implementation is irrelevant, what is important is that the DAC has two observers (small sample size caveat) who have had sound issues when trying to use the DAC with phones running the two most popular platforms. I'm running a Note 2 with Android 4.4.2, maybe it will work better on Android 5 or 6 or other devices, but I don't have the device to know. I think Originalsnuffy probably has it right, when used with Android or iPhone there is no driver and a lack of buffer. The DAC wasn't recognized in USB Audio Player Pro (no DAC attached error), I used Neutron Pro (which plays perfectly with my Geek Out 1000 and Geek Out V2). It may be the case that other users don't have these problems, but this could present another potential problem: quality control. Either way, it is worth having observations from people who have the device. If you'd like to confirm observations, you can go buy the DAC. The bundle I bought was 50% off and $15 for shipping to the UK, so it was actually $40 in total (my memory was $5 off) with headphones (mid-fi at best but complementary to the DAC). You can get the bundle for $50, or just the DAC for $40, neither including shipping.
 
There is a Windows driver for the DAC (and it is important to have the right driver, Aura DAC driver will play, but not well) which allows the DAC to use an adjustable buffer on the PC side. Macs have excellent DAC compatibility, so I expect that this would work fine on Macs, too. My value judgement was based on how I would use it, as a cheap on the go DAC. I don't need this device to work with my phone. I'm getting the Seiun Pro X and an Echobox Explorer, I'll have something to work well as a portable DAP, and I have enough space to carry it around. I paid next to nothing for this because I got it on a Black Friday deal and it is excellent value for what I paid. Individual value judgments will vary.

 

[ybouc]

Guys...
 
I came here to get some impressions on the player from anyone who might have gotten it yet, but from what I read, it looks like I'm the one who's gonna be giving the information!  In fact I just finally registered, just so I could clarify some things.  And let's be clear: I don't work for Cyberdrive, any of its partners, nor am I affiliated with them in any ways. I'm just a regular Joe who signed up on the Indiegogo campaign. 


First things first, I wanna point out some stuff :

1 - Yes, Cyberdrive is based in California, but of course the units are manufactured by an OEM in China.

2 - I am currently based in China for work, and asked for shipping my units to my home in Shanghai.

3 - As a result, someone from the OEM factory _directly contacted me_ to confirm my address, and said they would be shipping my first 2 units immediately through SF Express (the biggest courier company in China).

4 - We JUST came out (yesterday) of the Chinese New Year holiday, which lasted from February 8 to 14.  The country completely shuts down at that point, and that is not an exageration. So if nothing came through it's because of that, I guarantee you.

5- I received my units from the courier TODAY. (I want to attach a picture but I guess my account is too new for that? Here's a link to it instead: http://imgur.com/Wia04AY ).  

6- And I'm currently testing one by playing some various Genesis tracks ripped from CD, just 16-bit / 44.1khz FLACs for now. Using my ATH-M50x.

7- The units look good, the UI is obviously a little convoluted, due to the limited monochrome LED screen space, but it does a great job of just browsing and playing the tracks. 

8- It sounds VERY good!!  Very impressed so far.  I cannot believe the value we're getting, here.

9- I haven't tested the earbuds yet; curious to see what kind of combination that will create.


There you go. Very much looking forward to getting my Pro unit.
 

 

[Middy]

Nice post thanks

 

[ybouc]

  If they ordered enough product thru China for the original order then they would have shipped what they promised... they missed it...
the last update they did was to show a stack of shipping envelopes on a desk...   about a dozen show to be full and ready to ship...  again
these pics are from California ... not China....  
They last updated the facebook page on 6 Dec...  
 
for some reason they can't/wont even show a pic of a sample of the ProX....   several people have asked to be in a beta test prior to final production...  all have been denied so far...
 
I'm hoping for the best outcome... but its not looking too good at this time...   

 
I have a post explaining all this right above.  Sit tight. I got my 2 units of the base model today, and I have pics.  It's more than legit, and I'm listening to the player right now with my ATH-M50x's as I type this. 

 

[FlacFan]

A logical person might conclude the dac is suffering from interference with the Android device.

 
 

  This doesn't ........

 
Yes, it does.....
 
Actually, we would want to start with something, which gets overlooked 99% of the time and is at fault 90% of the time: The cable!
 
Also, Android on device 1 never equals Android on device 2. Sound implementation on any given Android is adventurous at best. On top of it the phone carriers bang their own stuff on top of it, so it is safe to say that "sound out" of any given Android device is more a matter of having luck than anything else....
 
I have two Samsung phones and an Asus tablet, it is amazing how different they are when it comes to Audio out - small wonder that it works at all.
 
If your Android device does not have a line out, you will always end up double amping, which is the worst case. So, if you want to enjoy your external amp the most you really want to go USB OTG, which in my case is a non starter right there, because my carrier has crippled both Samsung phones that one of them does not support OTG at all and the other one keeps cutting out this signal 5 times a minute, while the tablet works just fine with it.
 
So, there you go.....
 
Cheers.

 

[jdog]

  Guys...
 
I came here to get some impressions on the player from anyone who might have gotten it yet, but from what I read, it looks like I'm the one who's gonna be giving the information!  In fact I just finally registered, just so I could clarify some things.  And let's be clear: I don't work for Cyberdrive, any of its partners, nor am I affiliated with them in any ways. I'm just a regular Joe who signed up on the Indiegogo campaign. 


First things first, I wanna point out some stuff :

1 - Yes, Cyberdrive is based in California, but of course the units are manufactured by an OEM in China.

2 - I am currently based in China for work, and asked for shipping my units to my home in Shanghai.

3 - As a result, someone from the OEM factory _directly contacted me_ to confirm my address, and said they would be shipping my first 2 units immediately through SF Express (the biggest courier company in China).

4 - We JUST came out (yesterday) of the Chinese New Year holiday, which lasted from February 8 to 14.  The country completely shuts down at that point, and that is not an exageration. So if nothing came through it's because of that, I guarantee you.

5- I received my units from the courier TODAY. (I want to attach a picture but I guess my account is too new for that? Here's a link to it instead: http://imgur.com/Wia04AY ).  

6- And I'm currently testing one by playing some various Genesis tracks ripped from CD, just 16-bit / 44.1khz FLACs for now. Using my ATH-M50x.

7- The units look good, the UI is obviously a little convoluted, due to the limited monochrome LED screen space, but it does a great job of just browsing and playing the tracks. 

8- It sounds VERY good!!  Very impressed so far.  I cannot believe the value we're getting, here.

9- I haven't tested the earbuds yet; curious to see what kind of combination that will create.


There you go. Very much looking forward to getting my Pro unit.
 

Thanks for your update.  Hopefully we'll be getting our Pro units within the next couple of months....

 

[JimmyJam]

So does the base player have any memory?  And have you tried a 128 gig microsd? 

 

[rtar]

  Guys...
 
I came here to get some impressions on the player from anyone who might have gotten it yet, but from what I read, it looks like I'm the one who's gonna be giving the information!  In fact I just finally registered, just so I could clarify some things.  And let's be clear: I don't work for Cyberdrive, any of its partners, nor am I affiliated with them in any ways. I'm just a regular Joe who signed up on the Indiegogo campaign. 


First things first, I wanna point out some stuff :

1 - Yes, Cyberdrive is based in California, but of course the units are manufactured by an OEM in China.

2 - I am currently based in China for work, and asked for shipping my units to my home in Shanghai.

3 - As a result, someone from the OEM factory _directly contacted me_ to confirm my address, and said they would be shipping my first 2 units immediately through SF Express (the biggest courier company in China).

4 - We JUST came out (yesterday) of the Chinese New Year holiday, which lasted from February 8 to 14.  The country completely shuts down at that point, and that is not an exageration. So if nothing came through it's because of that, I guarantee you.

5- I received my units from the courier TODAY. (I want to attach a picture but I guess my account is too new for that? Here's a link to it instead: http://imgur.com/Wia04AY ).  

6- And I'm currently testing one by playing some various Genesis tracks ripped from CD, just 16-bit / 44.1khz FLACs for now. Using my ATH-M50x.

7- The units look good, the UI is obviously a little convoluted, due to the limited monochrome LED screen space, but it does a great job of just browsing and playing the tracks. 

8- It sounds VERY good!!  Very impressed so far.  I cannot believe the value we're getting, here.

9- I haven't tested the earbuds yet; curious to see what kind of combination that will create.


There you go. Very much looking forward to getting my Pro unit.
 

Thanks for your report. It would be very informative if you could compare the player with one of the clips, and/or Fiio M3 (which, I feel is an incredible bargain, and probably a direct competitor). Your impressions, after you test earphones will also be interesting.

 

[Xdaggersoul]

  Guys...
 
I came here to get some impressions on the player from anyone who might have gotten it yet, but from what I read, it looks like I'm the one who's gonna be giving the information!  In fact I just finally registered, just so I could clarify some things.  And let's be clear: I don't work for Cyberdrive, any of its partners, nor am I affiliated with them in any ways. I'm just a regular Joe who signed up on the Indiegogo campaign. 


First things first, I wanna point out some stuff :

1 - Yes, Cyberdrive is based in California, but of course the units are manufactured by an OEM in China.

2 - I am currently based in China for work, and asked for shipping my units to my home in Shanghai.

3 - As a result, someone from the OEM factory _directly contacted me_ to confirm my address, and said they would be shipping my first 2 units immediately through SF Express (the biggest courier company in China).

4 - We JUST came out (yesterday) of the Chinese New Year holiday, which lasted from February 8 to 14.  The country completely shuts down at that point, and that is not an exageration. So if nothing came through it's because of that, I guarantee you.

5- I received my units from the courier TODAY. (I want to attach a picture but I guess my account is too new for that? Here's a link to it instead: http://imgur.com/Wia04AY ).  

6- And I'm currently testing one by playing some various Genesis tracks ripped from CD, just 16-bit / 44.1khz FLACs for now. Using my ATH-M50x.

7- The units look good, the UI is obviously a little convoluted, due to the limited monochrome LED screen space, but it does a great job of just browsing and playing the tracks. 

8- It sounds VERY good!!  Very impressed so far.  I cannot believe the value we're getting, here.

9- I haven't tested the earbuds yet; curious to see what kind of combination that will create.


There you go. Very much looking forward to getting my Pro unit.
 

Thanks for the short review. Do you have other dap's to compare to?

 

[ybouc]

  So does the base player have any memory?  And have you tried a 128 gig microsd? 

It doesn't seem to have any built-in memory, but it comes pre-loaded with a 16gb microsd (and a few sample songs on there).  I haven't tried a 128gb card yet, but it is confirmed to be supported in their documentation.

 

[ybouc]

  Thanks for your report. It would be very informative if you could compare the player with one of the clips, and/or Fiio M3 (which, I feel is an incredible bargain, and probably a direct competitor). Your impressions, after you test earphones will also be interesting.

I don't have any Fiio players right now (I do have some of their amps and DACs though), but my player of choice so far has been the Sony NWZ-A17, so I'll try to do some A-B testing there.  (with the Cyberdrive earphones on both, too). 

 

[ybouc]

  Thanks for the short review. Do you have other dap's to compare to?

My go-to player so far has been the Sony NWZ-A17, so I'll try to A-B review these 2 as comprehensively as I can.   I'll give some more non-sound-related details on the Seiun in a bit too. (more about the build quality, materials, UI, ergonomics, etc.).

 

[Faelix]

  It doesn't seem to have any built-in memory, but it comes pre-loaded with a 16gb microsd (and a few sample songs on there).  I haven't tried a 128gb card yet, but it is confirmed to be supported in their documentation.

 
This is odd and disappointing. I was expecting it to have 16Gb built-in memory, for reaching the stretch goal. Do you mean the 16Gb is just an included MicroSD card? Would this be a(nother) communication failure by Cyberdrive? Now I hope the Pro (X) memory upgrade to be indeed an "internal memory upgrade".

 

[ybouc]

   
This is odd and disappointing. I was expecting it to have 16Gb built-in memory, for reaching the stretch goal. Do you mean the 16Gb is just an included MicroSD card? Would this be a(nother) communication failure by Cyberdrive? Now I hope the Pro (X) memory upgrade to be indeed an "internal memory upgrade".

I have to say, I was also expecting the memory to be built-in.  But no, it's a MicroSD card that's already inserted in the unit. 

 

[jdog]

   
This is odd and disappointing. I was expecting it to have 16Gb built-in memory, for reaching the stretch goal. Do you mean the 16Gb is just an included MicroSD card? Would this be a(nother) communication failure by Cyberdrive? Now I hope the Pro (X) memory upgrade to be indeed an "internal memory upgrade".

Actually, I agree with you somewhat, but if you go back to the original story page on the basic Seiun player, they never claim the player has built in storage, just a microsd slot with upgrade to 16 gb.  This makes more sense now when we found out that Seiun was offering 32 gb storage for the Seiun player in one of its exhibits in Asia.  The story on the Pro/ProX clearly states that they will have built in storage plus microsd slot, so this is what I expect we will receive....  So, I don't think that Seiun misled anyone, rather, I think some of us may have assumed that the 16 gb storage for the Seiun would be internal....