[OspreyAndy]

AUDIOQUEST DF COBALT VS SHANLING UA2​

• Headphone: FOSTEX T40RP MK3 Magnetic Planar 91db 50Ω
• Filters: Cobalt (Stock), UA2 (Apodizing Fast Roll Off)
• EQ: Always OFF
• Both on ES9038Q2M with dedicated Amp stage

SOURCE: WINDOWS 10, NATIVE WINDOWS USB
Hoff Ensemble “Polarity” FLAC 32/44.1

• 8 passes for each Dongles
• Volume: Cobalt 50/100 (SE), UA2 30/100 (BAL)
• Slightly forward intimate for Cobalt vs UA2
• Slower attack on Cobalt, UA2 slightly faster
• Nasal warm edged piano tone on Cobalt, crisper neutral on UA2
• Percussions crisper on UA2, smooth decays, Cobalt slightly pale, soft decays
• Macro and Micro details equal on both

As the crescendo peaked up between 1.18-1.26 and 4.05-4.28, Cobalt exhibited sibilance & micro distortion while UA2 remained smoothly controlled.

SOURCE: IPHONE 7 USB 2.0 (DDHIFI ADAPTER)
Diana Krall “California Dreaming” Deezer FLAC

• 6 passes each Dongles
• Volume: Cobalt 80/100(SE), UA2 70/100(BAL)
• Slightly cleaner crisper, punchier bass responses on UA2, fuzzy on Cobalt
• More neutral vocal staging for Cobalt, slightly intimate for UA2
• Mildly recessed backing vocals on Cobalt, better nuanced on UA2
• Soft edged piano tone for Cobalt, crisper on UA2
• Crisper micro details on UA2, softer on Cobalt
• Coarse edged vocals decays on Cobalt, smoother on UA2
• Overall warmer presentation on Cobalt, natural on UA2

Hans Zimmer “Mombasa” Deezer FLAC

• 2 passes each Dongles
• Cobalt 80/100(SE), UA2 68/100(BAL)
• Very well controlled dynamics on UA2, jittery on Cobalt
• Bass distortion on Cobalt, tight, deep and well controlled on UA2
• Transients and speed compressed between 4.12-4.38 for Cobalt, UA2 survived cleaner

Alison Krauss “When You Say Nothing at All” Deezer FLAC

• 1 pass each Dongles
• Volume: Cobalt 80/100(SE), UA2 68/100(BAL) Matched Loudness
• Nasal jittery Mids for Vocals and Guitars on Cobalt, UA2 clean and truthfully neutral

Shanling UA2. A true performer to the max.

 

[Shanling]

short letter of complaint to Shanling CEO:
I realize that you might have one firmware employee who is burdened with multiple products, and therefore unable to fix the bugs in recently released products within a reasonable timeframe.
I bought the UA2 dongle, and am unable to use it due to sound cutoff issues.
There is no date on the firmware update.
Which TEACHES me that I should wait 6 months before I buy another Shanling product.
And when that time comes, there will be competing products on the market.
So tell me, why should I rush and buy your products? Or buy them at all?
Thank you for the three seconds you spent reading this, if you ever did.

Signed: A customer who feels stiffed.

Forwarded your message.

Depends on what you're using it for. Go through the thread theres so many reported bugs, none of which have been addressed. Read every post on this thread and so far all the reponses from Shanling is to ignore questions and answer whatever they feel like answering.

I purchased two UP4s and the UA2, it will be the last Shanling product I will ever purchase. Their hardware is good but their software development and support is horrendous.

I can only answer questions for which I have answers. Most of it is now up to software team to come and deal with.

 

[Shanling]

New USB Drivers for UA1 and UA2.

Google Drive download

 

[recephasan]

New USB Drivers for UA1 and UA2.

Google Drive download

win10, followed the uninstall instructions, rebooted, installed driver dated 2021/04/21, version 6.0.1.4031.
still cuts off whenever there is a small spike in cpu activity, like launching the web browser.
C+ for effort

EDIT: the red led mode no longer works, and has rendered my UA2 unrecognizable by windows. I uninstalled the recent drivers, installed the old versions.

 

[FLN Luco]

win10, followed the uninstall instructions, rebooted, installed driver dated 2021/04/21, version 6.0.1.4031.
still cuts off whenever there is a small spike in cpu activity, like launching the web browser.
C+ for effort

Same situation here with my Dell Windows 10 [20H2]...
Shanling UA1 cuts off the sound several times every 5 minutes, even with low CPU usage.

 

[Shanling]

New UA1 Version Coming Soon

Due to chip shortage on the global market, we have to announces discontinuation of the UA1 USB-C DAC.

Instead, we will be releasing new version, called UA1 Pro. There will be just small change in the DAC/AMP chip, rest of the device will stay the same.

 

[Shanling]

win10, followed the uninstall instructions, rebooted, installed driver dated 2021/04/21, version 6.0.1.4031.
still cuts off whenever there is a small spike in cpu activity, like launching the web browser.
C+ for effort

EDIT: the red led mode no longer works, and has rendered my UA2 unrecognizable by windows. I uninstalled the recent drivers, installed the old versions.

Same situation here with my Dell Windows 10 [20H2]...
Shanling UA1 cuts off the sound several times every 5 minutes, even with low CPU usage.

So far our engineers released no fix for this.

 

[recephasan]

So far our engineers released no fix for this.

do you have the release/update notes for yesterday's update?

 

[Shanling]

do you have the release/update notes for yesterday's update?

No detailed info on it, sorry.

 

[brazy001]

New UA1 Version Coming Soon

Due to chip shortage on the global market, we have to announces discontinuation of the UA1 USB-C DAC.

Instead, we will be releasing new version, called UA1 Pro. There will be just small change in the DAC/AMP chip, rest of the device will stay the same.

couple of questions, if possible:
1. what is the new DAC/AMP chip?
2. will it come in Black as well as the silver shown?

 

[Shanling]

UA1 Pro will be using new ESS Sabre ES9219C, follow up to the older ES9218p.

Overall same sound and performance, with just a little bit better THD measurement.

 

[recephasan]

https://en.shanling.com/article-M2XM5sFwJuly21.html
firmware update for yet another product.
I am beginning to accept the possibility that I have a lemon with the UA2.

 

[niron]

My Shanling UA2 LED doesn't change colors when I play one of my DSD / FLAC songs on my Windows 10/latest firmware. It stays at blue all the time.

I do get the other colors whenever I play the same music via USB Audio Player PRO app on my smartphone.

I have tried WASAPI with max settings but nothing really happens.

Any ideas?

 

[recephasan]

My Shanling UA2 LED doesn't change colors when I play one of my DSD / FLAC songs on my Windows 10/latest firmware. It stays at blue all the time.

I do get the other colors whenever I play the same music via USB Audio Player PRO app on my smartphone.

I have tried WASAPI with max settings but nothing really happens.

Any ideas?

ASIO and SACD drivers were all packaged together with the previous usb driver update. I used the ones for Foobar2000, and was successful. Alternately, you could download them separately. I don't have access to the names of the drivers, someone else will have to pitch in. Or maybe Shanling can provide the link to the file.

 

[niron]

ASIO and SACD drivers were all packaged together with the previous usb driver update. I used the ones for Foobar2000, and was successful. Alternately, you could download them separately. I don't have access to the names of the drivers, someone else will have to pitch in. Or maybe Shanling can provide the link to the file.

I tried the previous firmware as well with the ASIO drivers included inside and it was basically the same, colors never changed. Unless you are talking about 2-3 versions before.