- Joined
- Mar 19, 2016
- Posts
- 111
- Likes
- 280
Owned the Shanling H0 for a few days, just sent it back.
OK power single ended (175mW@32Ω), good power balanced (690mW@32Ω). Low output impedance, small size (fits in your palm), USB powered.
I really liked the wheel, makes changing the volume and navigating the menus really nice. I like the wheel more than the knob on the Fiio K11, for what that's worth.
It's approx £93 on Amazon in the UK, I can't find it anywhere else. There's not much info about it online, at the time of writing there's no page on Shanling's own website (which is insane).
The sound is very good and somewhat familiar, if you've heard the CS43198/SGM8262 combo before. Clean, with good low end, very pleasing.
I tried it with both a desktop PC and my Xperia 10 IV. It worked well with both.
It has a 3.5mm line out, which I didn't try at all (just forgot). There is also a digital coxial/optical output.
I bought it on impulse, just out of curiosity. I thought it could be small enough to use portably attached with velcro to my phone, but it's a little too thick, a little too heavy (91g) and the smooth metal surface was too slippery. I could have probably made it work, i) by sticking some rubber to the amp to give it more grip, ii) using a longer usb cable to get a better angle and placement on the back of the phone, etc. Instead, I just changed my mind and sent it back. The wheel is really nice to use, but it's a few too many comprises I would have to make and I don't need it otherwise.
One last thing, it has a feature hidden in the menu that I've never seen before on a DAC/Amp. They call it 'Mute Time' and it can be set in increments from 0ms to 400ms. As far I can tell (since there is no documentation to confirm), it varies the length of time the DAC is muted when a sound plays for the first time. It could be a notification, a song, etc, but by reducing the mute time to 0ms, the start of the sound is never cut off. It's most noticeable with the sound test in the Windows sound menus, i.e. the left and right chime:
Most DACs I've used ruin the sound test by cutting off the start of both the left and right chime. Maybe there are DACs out there that don't do this by default, but there are many that do and don't have an option to change it. Kudos to Shanling for including such an option.
I would definitely recommend the Shanling H0, if you don't need a lot of power and you're looking for a small DAC/Amp that fits in the palm of your hand and is highly portable. The wheel is implemented well and overall the amp feels good in the hand, the build quality is excellent. However, if you're thinking of attaching it to your phone, pay attention to the thickness and overall size/weight, and plan to do a little extra work to make it comfortable to use in this way.
OK power single ended (175mW@32Ω), good power balanced (690mW@32Ω). Low output impedance, small size (fits in your palm), USB powered.
I really liked the wheel, makes changing the volume and navigating the menus really nice. I like the wheel more than the knob on the Fiio K11, for what that's worth.
It's approx £93 on Amazon in the UK, I can't find it anywhere else. There's not much info about it online, at the time of writing there's no page on Shanling's own website (which is insane).
The sound is very good and somewhat familiar, if you've heard the CS43198/SGM8262 combo before. Clean, with good low end, very pleasing.
I tried it with both a desktop PC and my Xperia 10 IV. It worked well with both.
It has a 3.5mm line out, which I didn't try at all (just forgot). There is also a digital coxial/optical output.
I bought it on impulse, just out of curiosity. I thought it could be small enough to use portably attached with velcro to my phone, but it's a little too thick, a little too heavy (91g) and the smooth metal surface was too slippery. I could have probably made it work, i) by sticking some rubber to the amp to give it more grip, ii) using a longer usb cable to get a better angle and placement on the back of the phone, etc. Instead, I just changed my mind and sent it back. The wheel is really nice to use, but it's a few too many comprises I would have to make and I don't need it otherwise.
One last thing, it has a feature hidden in the menu that I've never seen before on a DAC/Amp. They call it 'Mute Time' and it can be set in increments from 0ms to 400ms. As far I can tell (since there is no documentation to confirm), it varies the length of time the DAC is muted when a sound plays for the first time. It could be a notification, a song, etc, but by reducing the mute time to 0ms, the start of the sound is never cut off. It's most noticeable with the sound test in the Windows sound menus, i.e. the left and right chime:
Most DACs I've used ruin the sound test by cutting off the start of both the left and right chime. Maybe there are DACs out there that don't do this by default, but there are many that do and don't have an option to change it. Kudos to Shanling for including such an option.
I would definitely recommend the Shanling H0, if you don't need a lot of power and you're looking for a small DAC/Amp that fits in the palm of your hand and is highly portable. The wheel is implemented well and overall the amp feels good in the hand, the build quality is excellent. However, if you're thinking of attaching it to your phone, pay attention to the thickness and overall size/weight, and plan to do a little extra work to make it comfortable to use in this way.
