Shanling M1s - Compact Portable Player (Discontinued)

[fish1050]

Hiby R3 II vs M1S,

I have been reading some very positive reviews on the M3 II and I am now trying to decide between the two. The R3 II would cost about $70 CDN less and offers a larger screen than the M1S. It offers better features as well and comes with my preferred side mounted buttons vs the front mounted M1S. Would appreciate any feedback from anyone familiar with both. Reviews on R3 II sound quality are very good so I can't imagine there will be a big difference between the two in terms of sound quality.

If Shanling had released the M1S this time last year (1 year since announced) I probably would own one by now and the discussion would be moot. The delay in release has now presented me with another compelling option. It seems only now after firmware release 2.5 that the M1S is relatively issue free. Waiting for Black Friday will give me more time to consider both and sale price could be a factor as well at that time.

 

[rastikae]

How to enable USB Audio 2.0, I did not find such a setting on the player.

 

[Shanling]

How to enable USB Audio 2.0, I did not find such a setting on the player.

M1s always work in UAC2.0 mode.

 

[InvisibleInk]

How to enable USB Audio 2.0, I did not find such a setting on the player.

Evidently, its processor only supports that mode, even if the USB hardware could do 3.xx in something like a modern computer or phone.

 

[fish1050]

Does Shanling need to respond to the Hiby R3 II with an M1S Pro?

Shanling has said that the M1S would be the top end of their MTouch DAP lineup. So does it stack up against the R3 II or does Shanling need to look at an M1S Pro to compete? To me the R3 II is close to what I would expect from an M1S Pro. A larger screen, dual DAC's, more power at least through balanced and better streaming features and now of course a much higher file limit (50,000 vs 20,000) and the preferred side mounted buttons. The only feature the M1S has over the R3 II is the better processor which Shanling doesn't seem to be taking full advantage of at least to this point. I hope to see a side by side review of the two for sound quality impressions but I can't imagine there will be that much difference.

Can we expect Shanling to drop the price of the M1S to better compete with the R3 II, this makes me a little excited to see the prices for the two come Black Friday next month. There would need to be a significant price difference for me to take the M1S over the R3 II at this point.

 

[Shanling]

Does Shanling need to respond to the Hiby R3 II with an M1S Pro?

Shanling has said that the M1S would be the top end of their MTouch DAP lineup. So does it stack up against the R3 II or does Shanling need to look at an M1S Pro to compete? To me the R3 II is close to what I would expect from an M1S Pro. A larger screen, dual DAC's, more power at least through balanced and better streaming features and now of course a much higher file limit (50,000 vs 20,000) and the preferred side mounted buttons. The only feature the M1S has over the R3 II is the better processor which Shanling doesn't seem to be taking full advantage of at least to this point. I hope to see a side by side review of the two for sound quality impressions but I can't imagine there will be that much difference.

Can we expect Shanling to drop the price of the M1S to better compete with the R3 II, this makes me a little excited to see the prices for the two come Black Friday next month. There would need to be a significant price difference for me to take the M1S over the R3 II at this point.

We do not sell M1s, it's an exclusive product of Aoshida, so you need to go ask them about any price drops.

 

[fish1050]

We do not sell M1s, it's an exclusive product of Aoshida, so you need to go ask them about any price drops.

I understand that but you had to have a price point in mind when you decided to make the M1S.

Regardless of who controls the price it is simply priced to high right now to compete with the R3 II which offers more for a lower price!

The decision to have a much lower file max of 20,000 despite a more powerful SOC than the R3 II and other Hiby DAP's hurts as well. I understand you don't want to reduce performance but why not up the limit and put 20,000 as the recommended file limit and give the customer the choice on whether they want to sacrifice some performance if they need to exceed the limit? Why limit your potential customer base by offering a limit so much lower than your competition?

 

[anli]

Almost any gadget get own advantages and drawbacks. Would you please list the last ones for m1s?

 

[fish1050]

Almost any gadget get own advantages and drawbacks. Would you please list the last ones for m1s?

It isn't so much that there is anything wrong with the M1S on its own but when you compare it to a competing DAP like the R3II which offers more for the same or less money it is hard to justify the M1S by comparison.

So compared to the R3 II:

The R3 II offers a larger screen, higher power output with balanced output, side mounted buttons (personally not a fan of the front mounted buttons), supports more streaming services, dual DAC's vs single DAC, more refined OS with MSEB for much greater sound customization, lower price.

If it wasn't for the R3 II recent release I would probably be grabbing an M1S on Black Friday but now I have to consider a better bang for the buck option in the R3 II. Since I can't demo either unit I have trust my gut and go what is the best option for me. Having owned previous Shanling DAP's and been happy with them I have no reservations about the M1S on its own and if it were cheaper than the R3 II I might still consider it as it really has all the features I need, front mounted buttons aside.

 

[anli]

It isn't so much that there is anything wrong with the M1S on its own but when you compare it to a competing DAP like the R3II which offers more for the same or less money it is hard to justify the M1S by comparison.

So compared to the R3 II:

The R3 II offers a larger screen, higher power output with balanced output, side mounted buttons (personally not a fan of the front mounted buttons), supports more streaming services, dual DAC's vs single DAC, more refined OS with MSEB for much greater sound customization, lower price.

If it wasn't for the R3 II recent release I would probably be grabbing an M1S on Black Friday but now I have to consider a better bang for the buck option in the R3 II. Since I can't demo either unit I have trust my gut and go what is the best option for me. Having owned previous Shanling DAP's and been happy with them I have no reservations about the M1S on its own and if it were cheaper than the R3 II I might still consider it as it really has all the features I need, front mounted buttons aside.

It is funny, I'm going to replace R3 II with M1s. All listed R3 advantages are not valuable for me. But R3 II has got rather big - and very annoying - lag on commands execution at BT-receiver mode. Also R3 II output impedance is 1.3 Ohm for SE output vs 0.4 Ohm on M1s. It does matter for low impedance phones.

 

[fish1050]

It is funny, I'm going to replace R3 II with M1s. All listed R3 advantages are not valuable for me. But R3 II has got rather big - and very annoying - lag on commands execution at BT-receiver mode. Also R3 II output impedance is 1.3 Ohm for SE output vs 0.4 Ohm on M1s. It does matter for low impedance phones.

Thanks for the info on the R3 II, not planning on using BT-Receiver mode, my headphones are easy to drive and get plenty loud with my underpowered A55 so not to concerned on the power end. For me given my needs and my age I appreciate the larger R3 II screen and not to beat a dead horse but the side mounted buttons as well. Battery life is close between the two. Given Hiby's software background and the fact they provided the OS for pretty much all Chinese DAP's at some point and still do for some I find the OS more polished and capable than the Shanling MTouch.

Two things that tip the scales to the R3 II for me are the higher file limit and of course the significantly cheaper price. If I buy a DAP now it needs to last a couple of years and I am fast approaching the file limit of the M1S.

 

[anli]

my headphones are easy to drive and get plenty loud

It isn't about phones sensitivity, it is about phones impedance.


Yes, for your needs R3 II seems to be more suitable.

 

[fish1050]

It isn't about phones sensitivity, it is about phones impedance.


Yes, for your needs R3 II seems to be more suitable.

Would love to get your impressions on the sound quality of the R3 II. I don't have any balanced headphones so I am interested in SE sound quality. I know from reviews balanced output improves sound quality quite a bit but I am hoping sound quality is still good through SE.

 

[anli]

Would love to get your impressions on the sound quality of the R3 II.

Sorry, I can't describe as reviewers can. Sound quality sufficient for me on walking. I'd say, it is great.

I don't have any balanced headphones so I am interested in SE sound quality. I know from reviews balanced output improves sound quality quite a bit but I am hoping sound quality is still good through SE.

Is is a myth balanced output is just great. It is useful at the only condition: when increased voltage is needed (usually for high impedance phones). So, if SE output provides some volume margin (say, it is sufficient to use 50-70 of 100), there isn't technical reason to use balanced output (if you don't want to discharge battery faster).

Also balanced output (almost) doubles output impedance (and it is bad for low impedance phones).

 

[rastikae]

It is funny, I'm going to replace R3 II with M1s. All listed R3 advantages are not valuable for me. But R3 II has got rather big - and very annoying - lag on commands execution at BT-receiver mode. Also R3 II output impedance is 1.3 Ohm for SE output vs 0.4 Ohm on M1s. It does matter for low impedance phones.

Of course, you overly indicated the output impedance of 1.3 Ohm for SE, where does this value come from if you have R2 II 0.5 Ohm for SE - I do not believe! - you have an error somewhere.