[abitdeef]

Somehow if I hit a tree while skiing I start believing in solid matter.

But then I that happened I would probably be using the M0 not the M5S so that is another matter entirely.

Lol seems like more than just electrical impulses jumping through space doesn’t it?

 

[Leonne]

Can you post the pictures of your red M5s?

forgive my potato camera, it looks pink-ish while it has solid red irl

I am looking for more feedback from owners of both the M5s and the Cayin N5II.

Not looking to start a fight, but what is the rationale for break in for a solid state device? I can see it with headphones when parts physically move, but electronics?

i wasn't a believer either, but i have a Sony NW A-55 which sounded really harsh and hurt my ears out of the box, luckily the Parametric EQ works like a charm and i listened to it with heavy EQ. after 100+ hours of listening session with no faith of "break in" now i can listen to it with no EQ to tame the treble. Either i have hearing impairment or the sounds tamed a bit idk lol, but it happened for real. Anyway i tried the NW A-55 at the store again and it sounds unbearably harsh

So is the one of a kind red M5s divine right now?

Not that divine because the first time i heard ZX300 was a year ago when i have a cheap gear to compare. But im really impressed how good its balanced DAC works, not really sure if i use the right words but the sound feels so 'focus' and sophisticated . it sounds warm but not in the bad way, most Warm DAP feels so thick but the sound is like "stretched" as if a low res Picture got over resized and lose its resolution. Listening to this is like looking at Hi resolution picture which stretched properly to it's real size. i cant imagine how good it sounds if i use Meze 99

@Shanling can you please do something with the EQ in the next updates? i've read that you recommend to Equalize only on frequency what we want, but only equalize 2 or 3 band just doesn't feel complete.

 

[papa_mia]

Ah, now we are verging into quantum theory. Because matter as we know it is composed of both particles and waves and because of Heisenberg we know that we can't be sure where the physical object really is...(except for the Heisenberg of Breaking Bad). So Ant man and I can go into the quantum realms and save the avengers and also champion high fidelity.....

Best digression of 2019 so far....

Just don't go there man, ain't no coming back from that place this isn't a movie.

 

[vodanhkhack]

@Leonne so that means you don' t regret to pick the Shanling M5s over the ZX300? Your red M5s looks special btw ..

 

[dsrk]

forgive my potato camera, it looks pink-ish while it has solid red irl




i wasn't a believer either, but i have a Sony NW A-55 which sounded really harsh and hurt my ears out of the box, luckily the Parametric EQ works like a charm and i listened to it with heavy EQ. after 100+ hours of listening session with no faith of "break in" now i can listen to it with no EQ to tame the treble. Either i have hearing impairment or the sounds tamed a bit idk lol, but it happened for real. Anyway i tried the NW A-55 at the store again and it sounds unbearably harsh


Not that divine because the first time i heard ZX300 was a year ago when i have a cheap gear to compare. But im really impressed how good its balanced DAC works, not really sure if i use the right words but the sound feels so 'focus' and sophisticated . it sounds warm but not in the bad way, most Warm DAP feels so thick but the sound is like "stretched" as if a low res Picture got over resized and lose its resolution. Listening to this is like looking at Hi resolution picture which stretched properly to it's real size. i cant imagine how good it sounds if i use Meze 99

@Shanling can you please do something with the EQ in the next updates? i've read that you recommend to Equalize only on frequency what we want, but only equalize 2 or 3 band just doesn't feel complete.

That looks sexy in red, thanks for the pics.

 

[Leonne]

That looks sexy in red, thanks for the pics.

yeahh it was really good

@Leonne so that means you don' t regret to pick the Shanling M5s over the ZX300? Your red M5s looks special btw ..

thanks , no regret man, it was better than ZX300

 

[fish1050]

None, some people don't believe in burn in.

Count me in on the whole burn-in thing. It is not that the sound changes it is the user getting use to the sound over time, it is a psychoacoustic effect basically a person getting use to how something sounds. The M0 for me is a perfect example, coming from the A17 to the M0 which sounds quite different I didn't really like the M0 sound and kept going back to the A17 for its warmer sound. Fast forward a few months and now to me the M0 sounds no different but I have adjusted to it and now I prefer it to the A17. In sales of audio products you learn that there is a reason most stores give you at least two weeks return on purchases. Studies have found that it typically takes that long for the user to adjust to the sound of a new device. If you don't like how it sounds at two weeks you probably never will.

 

[technobear]

Count me in on the whole burn-in thing. It is not that the sound changes it is the user getting use to the sound over time, it is a psychoacoustic effect basically a person getting use to how something sounds. The M0 for me is a perfect example, coming from the A17 to the M0 which sounds quite different I didn't really like the M0 sound and kept going back to the A17 for its warmer sound. Fast forward a few months and now to me the M0 sounds no different but I have adjusted to it and now I prefer it to the A17. In sales of audio products you learn that there is a reason most stores give you at least two weeks return on purchases. Studies have found that it typically takes that long for the user to adjust to the sound of a new device. If you don't like how it sounds at two weeks you probably never will.

If this were true then most of the audio industry would not exist because people's brains would, after a short time, massage away the harshness and sibilance and fill in the missing deep bass and sparkly treble from their budget hifi systems and no one would ever need to consider an upgrade.

 

[My Little Phony]

More impressions <--

Sound:

I listened to the M5s till 03:00 in the morning. I really enjoyed the soundquality of the player and would always grab it over the M0 for home-listening.

I found that the the musical presentation is close to neutral without highs, mids and bass being elevated to stand out. The bassquality is pleasing and with the Denon AH-D5200 i was able to hear the lows go deep without sounding boomy or unlayered. The player can manage the music at high volumes without sounding forced or stressed. The player is able to provide a nice wide soundstage when its in the music file.

Overall i found the sound to be not harsh to my ears while using the Denon headphones. Every music genre was a pleasure to listen with the M5s and the Denons.

I plugged in my IMR R1 iems and that was a much pickier combination. For example listening to noisy metal songs the presentating of the highs on combination with the R1 was too much for me. Using the Denon headphones with the same songs and it was listenable.

this and that:

Coming from the M0 i directly enjoyed the UI. Im using 500 x 500 pixels cover art and it looked ok on the screen. Bluetooth is working very good and it was a pleasure to spontaneously send music to my homestereo.
Build quality and haptics are good.

I only found a few things that i dont like or that can be improved by a s/w upgrade:

- the player (set to german language) cant handle to show song names correctly when some special characters are involved. Example: „Khruangbin - Cómo Me Quieres“ The letter „o“ will be exchanged for a chinese letter.

- using ff/rw function of the hardware buttons (haptic feel and click is nice) feels a bit sluggish when using it while looking at the screen but when i ff/rw blindly i dont have any indicator how far i spooled.

- wifi is a nice option i like to have for comfortably updating the firmware. It was not possible to do that this way. Error message: "version query failed".

The one big personal issue***:

Theres one big issue for me due to the way i personally handle my daps. It was already on my mind before purchasing the M5s but i wanted to find out if this would really bother me. Sadly it does.

Im talking about the headphone connectors located on the bottom of the player. If you use the M5s out of your four walls and put it head-over into your pocket than i have to agree that having the headphone connectors on the bottom of the device is the best ergonomically way to be able to reach into you pocket and have good access to the hardware buttons of the device.

I personally use a big and heavy good quality player only on my couch or bed lying on the back. While listening to the music the player lies on my stomach. But i often push it a bit up so i can look at a nice coverart or some other song infos. I dont grap the player and lift it in the air and hold it in direction to my eyes. My noodle-arms just dont have the power (just joking).

What happens when my precious 2.5mm balanced cable is plugged into the bottom of the device? Yes. Theres no stability for the player to stand on my stomach and like „Count Bass D“ (was part of my bass test) would say: too much pressure... the cable bends under the players weight.

But thats only my personal preference. If you want a very good dap for 400 coins and you like bottom-connectors (sounds funny) you cant go wrong with this device. At least give your ears the chance to listen to it.

last words:

This device in epox white color, a bit wider in size and not so long, a new housing design (its not bad but its an streched M0 with a notch on the left side for the hardware buttons) and headphone connectors located on top of the device would be my personal dream

***

 

[fish1050]

If this were true then most of the audio industry would not exist because people's brains would, after a short time, massage away the harshness and sibilance and fill in the missing deep bass and sparkly treble from their budget hifi systems and no one would ever need to consider an upgrade.

No because if something were unpleasant on first listen then we would return it right away or not buy it. When I demo products especially headphones I pretty much know within a few minutes if I want to give it a longer audition. What I am talking about is sounding different vs sounding bad or good. If it sounds bad then why keep it or take it home if you heard it in the store.

For me neither the A17 or M0 sounds bad they just have a different sound signature and each has its own strengths and weaknesses. I still like how they both sound but it took time to get use to the M0 which I did over time.

 

[ConcreteSnake]

More impressions <--

Sound:

I listened to the M5s till 03:00 in the morning. I really enjoyed the soundquality of the player and would always grab it over the M0 for home-listening.

I found that the the musical presentation is close to neutral without highs, mids and bass being elevated to stand out. The bassquality is pleasing and with the Denon AH-D5200 i was able to hear the lows go deep without sounding boomy or unlayered. The player can manage the music at high volumes without sounding forced or stressed. The player is able to provide a nice wide soundstage when its in the music file.

Overall i found the sound to be not harsh to my ears while using the Denon headphones. Every music genre was a pleasure to listen with the M5s and the Denons.

I plugged in my IMR R1 iems and that was a much pickier combination. For example listening to noisy metal songs the presentating of the highs on combination with the R1 was too much for me. Using the Denon headphones with the same songs and it was listenable.


this and that:

Coming from the M0 i directly enjoyed the UI. Im using 500 x 500 pixels cover art and it looked ok on the screen. Bluetooth is working very good and it was a pleasure to spontaneously send music to my homestereo.
Build quality and haptics are good.



I only found a few things that i dont like or that can be improved by a s/w upgrade:

- the player (set to german language) cant handle to show song names correctly when some special characters are involved. Example: „Khruangbin - Cómo Me Quieres“ The letter „o“ will be exchanged for a chinese letter.

- using ff/rw function of the hardware buttons (haptic feel and click is nice) feels a bit sluggish when using it while looking at the screen but when i ff/rw blindly i dont have any indicator how far i spooled.

- wifi is a nice option i like to have for comfortably updating the firmware. It was not possible to do that this way. Error message: "version query failed".

The one big personal issue***:

Theres one big issue for me due to the way i personally handle my daps. It was already on my mind before purchasing the M5s but i wanted to find out if this would really bother me. Sadly it does.

Im talking about the headphone connectors located on the bottom of the player. If you use the M5s out of your four walls and put it head-over into your pocket than i have to agree that having the headphone connectors on the bottom of the device is the best ergonomically way to be able to reach into you pocket and have good access to the hardware buttons of the device.

I personally use a big and heavy good quality player only on my couch or bed lying on the back. While listening to the music the player lies on my stomach. But i often push it a bit up so i can look at a nice coverart or some other song infos. I dont grap the player and lift it in the air and hold it in direction to my eyes. My noodle-arms just dont have the power (just joking).

What happens when my precious 2.5mm balanced cable is plugged into the bottom of the device? Yes. Theres no stability for the player to stand on my stomach and like „Count Bass D“ (was part of my bass test) would say: too much pressure... the cable bends under the players weight.

But thats only my personal preference. If you want a very good dap for 400 coins and you like bottom-connectors (sounds funny) you cant go wrong with this device. At least give your ears the chance to listen to it.

last words:

This device in epox white color, a bit wider in size and not so long, a new housing design (its not bad but its an streched M0 with a notch on the left side for the hardware buttons) and headphone connectors located on top of the device would be my personal dream

***

The easiest fix seems to be enable 180degrees rotation in the software. Quick and easy, isn't @Shanling

 

[My Little Phony]

The easiest fix seems to be enable 180degrees rotation in the software. Quick and easy, isn't @Shanling

Thats totally true, but for my aesthetics i dont like to turn devices upside down and have the volume wheel and hardware buttons at other positions.

 

[ConcreteSnake]

Thats totally true, but for my aesthetics i dont like to turn devices upside down and have the volume wheel and hardware buttons at other positions.

Another workaround which jumps onto mind is to get an lshaped extender. Not good for aesthetics either nonetheless would do the job.

 

[fish1050]

More impressions <--

Sound:

I listened to the M5s till 03:00 in the morning. I really enjoyed the soundquality of the player and would always grab it over the M0 for home-listening.

I found that the the musical presentation is close to neutral without highs, mids and bass being elevated to stand out. The bassquality is pleasing and with the Denon AH-D5200 i was able to hear the lows go deep without sounding boomy or unlayered. The player can manage the music at high volumes without sounding forced or stressed. The player is able to provide a nice wide soundstage when its in the music file.

Overall i found the sound to be not harsh to my ears while using the Denon headphones. Every music genre was a pleasure to listen with the M5s and the Denons.

I plugged in my IMR R1 iems and that was a much pickier combination. For example listening to noisy metal songs the presentating of the highs on combination with the R1 was too much for me. Using the Denon headphones with the same songs and it was listenable.


this and that:

Coming from the M0 i directly enjoyed the UI. Im using 500 x 500 pixels cover art and it looked ok on the screen. Bluetooth is working very good and it was a pleasure to spontaneously send music to my homestereo.
Build quality and haptics are good.

I guess if you are worried about stability you could get an L shaped adapter. Plug that into the headphone jack and plug the headphones into the adapter. Then your headphone connector and cable would be horizontal instead of vertical. Less stress on the headphone connector and being oriented horizontally it would give more stability on the DAP sitting in your pocket.



I only found a few things that i dont like or that can be improved by a s/w upgrade:

- the player (set to german language) cant handle to show song names correctly when some special characters are involved. Example: „Khruangbin - Cómo Me Quieres“ The letter „o“ will be exchanged for a chinese letter.

- using ff/rw function of the hardware buttons (haptic feel and click is nice) feels a bit sluggish when using it while looking at the screen but when i ff/rw blindly i dont have any indicator how far i spooled.

- wifi is a nice option i like to have for comfortably updating the firmware. It was not possible to do that this way. Error message: "version query failed".

The one big personal issue***:

Theres one big issue for me due to the way i personally handle my daps. It was already on my mind before purchasing the M5s but i wanted to find out if this would really bother me. Sadly it does.

Im talking about the headphone connectors located on the bottom of the player. If you use the M5s out of your four walls and put it head-over into your pocket than i have to agree that having the headphone connectors on the bottom of the device is the best ergonomically way to be able to reach into you pocket and have good access to the hardware buttons of the device.

I personally use a big and heavy good quality player only on my couch or bed lying on the back. While listening to the music the player lies on my stomach. But i often push it a bit up so i can look at a nice coverart or some other song infos. I dont grap the player and lift it in the air and hold it in direction to my eyes. My noodle-arms just dont have the power (just joking).

What happens when my precious 2.5mm balanced cable is plugged into the bottom of the device? Yes. Theres no stability for the player to stand on my stomach and like „Count Bass D“ (was part of my bass test) would say: too much pressure... the cable bends under the players weight.

But thats only my personal preference. If you want a very good dap for 400 coins and you like bottom-connectors (sounds funny) you cant go wrong with this device. At least give your ears the chance to listen to it.

last words:

This device in epox white color, a bit wider in size and not so long, a new housing design (its not bad but its an streched M0 with a notch on the left side for the hardware buttons) and headphone connectors located on top of the device would be my personal dream

***

 

[maira]

No because if something were unpleasant on first listen then we would return it right away or not buy it.

Some folks give a DAP 200 hours of play time without listening. Then they try again... .