SMSL DL100 vs DL400 vs FiiO R7

[namcost]

SO. I am looking to buy a new unit. Something NEW that supports USB-C (which all three units do). In the past I have owned....

Topping DX7PRO (the original square one, died 1 year 6 months into ownership, they wanted FULL PRICE to repair since it was outside warranty which is just ridiculous, trashed it)

FiiO K9 PRO ESS (died 1 years 2 months after ownership. they wanted $400 to repair outside warranty, trashed it)

FiiO K7 and K7BT. Both still work. Both are okay sounding. Not as good sounding as the K9 PRO ESS though.... DX7PRO only sounded good to me because I replaced the OPAMPS with MUSES which made it sound chef-kiss.

FiiO K11 because I wanted to see what the Cirrus Logic sounded like. Which I will admit has an oldschool sound to it, but I also feel like bass is lacking. Even switching between K7 and K11 I can tell a difference. The K7 has a much nicer low end than the K11 but the K11 sounds sharper on the top end....

Other than those units, prior to all of these I was typically a sound card user, like the Soundblaster ZXR and AE-9 in terms of most recent products owned. Both of which had severe issues (ZXR quality issues)(AE-9 in headphone mode loses "behind" sounds like its taking a 5.1 signal and only giving front left/front right so you can't hear behind you in FPS titles). Those soundcard issues were why I switched to external and now only go with external.

Now I get that the DL100 is the cheapest using 4x Cirrus Logic CS43131 chips, the DL400 being double price using ES9039MSPRO, and the FiiO R7 using ES9068AS being the most expensive.

My thinking? DL100 being dirt cheap making it an easy "buy it" without thinking. Which might end up happening. I loved how the ESS chips sounded in the FiiO K9 PRO ESS so I assume the DL400 will sound great. And then the FiiO R7 uses THX AAA 788 for headphone amp which I know to be amazing because of the K9 PRO ESS which also had the same headphone amp. So a part of me wants that THX AAA 788 amp because I know how well it sounds. But am not sure if the ES9068 is better than the 9039? so that's a thought. The DL400 being the true middle man as its got ES chips but lacks THX amplifier. Not to say the amp it does have is strong as **** (and supposedly similar loudness for both DL100 and DL400 making them both cheaper alternatives).

So what does anyone who minds posting replies think of my three choices? honest opinions. Granted, im not really looking for opinions to sway me but hearing from those that have heard/owned them can help make a decision. These are my three choices, so no need to offer other choices. I am hard learning towards the cheaper options mind you. Just because I have been burned twice prior with expensive products. So far my cheap ones have never broken even after using them just as long as the others that did die.... so another reason why im hesitant to spend the money on the higher priced FiiO....

 

[dunring]

I've had all the Topping and SMSL products for the business and the DL100 is a good performer and a nice 5v DAC if you ever add an amplifier for more power. ASR did measurements and it's a great value for money. Currently testing a DL200 and HO150X and the only downside is what amp will fit on the DL1O0 with its smaller form factor. The DL20O will fit a Topping A70Pro perfect on it. The DL100 will fit a Topping A30Pro, but nothing larger.

 

[namcost]

I've had all the Topping and SMSL products for the business and the DL100 is a good performer and a nice 5v DAC if you ever add an amplifier for more power. ASR did measurements and it's a great value for money. Currently testing a DL200 and HO150X and the only downside is what amp will fit on the DL1O0 with its smaller form factor. The DL20O will fit a Topping A70Pro perfect on it. The DL100 will fit a Topping A30Pro, but nothing larger.

If I am not mistaken the DL200 is older. The only new models are DL100 and DL400. At least in terms of release dates. DL100/400 both came out last year while the DL200 is much older. Another reason why I am moving in that direction. In terms of adding other boxes on top.... im too lazy to have multiple products for a single reason (seperate dac/amp) I prefer combo items. But I appreciate your input.

Yes. I saw the DL100 test on ASR. Its one of the reasons I even added that to my list of possible purchases. Sadly the FiiO R7 "in terms of testing" does seem worse than the SMSL products. So I am leaning toward buying the SMSL.

Update for the fella's. I had my brother get me the DL100 and ill just pay him back next month. Mainly because my PC I just build, the liquid cooler was making a god awful noise which didn't make sense. And weirdly when I turned up the FAN speed it got worse, so i had to use the fans on 25% to keep the noise down. replaced that and now its running good.

BUT, this DL100. HOLY crap. The NOS mode (Filter 5/FL5) is so much more richer than ANY dac/amp ive owned. I have the FiiO K9 PRO ESS, Topping DX7PRO (older square version), the K7 (and K7BT), the K11, and this NOS mode sounds so much more full bodied than any of them. I usually have to go into Dolby Atmos to +X dB for 32hz in order to make it sound good. This time, I haven't touched my my dolby atmos app and its so freaking rich and creamy sounding. I didn't think the NOS mode would make that much of a difference.... it does. I am blown away. It sounds better than what I remember my K9 PRO ESS sounding.... just wow.