[FraGGleR]

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[size=12pt] Hi Larry,[/size]
 
You are spot on again...this time the Centrance M8.  I received my M8 LX (optical-in).  I finally found the perfect (small footprint, unwieldy, compact) DAC + Headphone amplifier for my Sonos/LCD3 headphone rig.  
 
Michael is true to his words that the M8's DAC and amplifier are good enough that i will not consider replacing any of them.  
 
I did not miss my Eximus DP1 & Mytek DSD & NAD M51 and will be putting up my CLAS -db (no optical in) for sale soon.  Partly i do not require the additional inputs/outputs that could add clutter to my desk and cherish small footprint more. The choice gets easier especially when the pre-order M8 LX is just 1/3 the price of CLAS + Rx MK3b.
 
I read that i could use just the DAC for the M8 LX.  But is there anyway i could use just the headphone amplifier and not the DAC for the M8 LX?  If not, i will be keeping Rx MK3b solely for my Korg DSD.
 
 

 
Nice, high praise, especially since you have tried well regarded DAC's before.  
 
Unfortunately, no way to isolate the headphone amplifier.  It only has digital inputs which have to go through the internal DAC for the amplifier to use.

 

[Audiowood]

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I did not miss my Eximus DP1 & Mytek DSD & NAD M51 and will be putting up my CLAS -db (no optical in) for sale soon.  Partly i do not require the additional inputs/outputs that could add clutter to my desk and cherish small footprint more. The choice gets easier especially when the pre-order M8 LX is just 1/3 the price of CLAS + Rx MK3b.
 
 

 
Love those pictures..

 

[Overkill Red]

Finally got to try the HiFi M8 today at the Mook Audio Festival.
All I can say is that our preorder money was well spent indeed.
 
Build quality is great, as expected of a CEntrance product. I think a red iPod Touch would look amazing on top of the M8.
Couldn't really judge SQ well as the FitEar booth next to the CEntrance one was buzzing with activity at the time, but the M8 sounded clear and authoritative.
I especially liked the bass and treble switch; they were noticeable but not glaring like many other bass boosts.
Personally, with my TG!334 I left both the switches in the middle (1 level of boost).
 
Thanks CEntrance! Can't wait for my unit to ship out in August...

 

[FraGGleR]

For anyone at CEntrance or who has their M8 already.  What sized screw is used to hold it together (mainly the 4 front screws)?  I'd like to order some colored thumbscrews to add some personalized flair to mine.  

 

[mgoodman]

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Notice with the 4-pin XLR output, the orientation of the pins is such that for the connector to insert, the usual 'top' spot is towards the left at 9 o'clock, instead of being at 12 o'clock. Any reason for that?
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The significance is that most good 4-pin XLR connectors will have a 'top', so that users can insert them easily. 
Also all amps with 4-pin XLR outputs probably have it orientated the same way, so it's counter intuitive to insert it another way in.

This was done to make HiFi-M8 thinner. We were able to shave about 5 mm off the overall unit thickness that way. The internal connector is not square, it's actually smaller if you lay it on its side -- a small price to pay for extra portability.

 

[mgoodman]

Quote:

 
 
 
I read that i could use just the DAC for the M8 LX.  But is there anyway i could use just the headphone amplifier and not the DAC for the M8 LX?  If not, i will be keeping Rx MK3b solely for my Korg DSD.
 
 

Wow, these are beautiful pictures!
 
You can use the HiFi-M8 as a DAC/amp, but you cannot feed an analog signal into the HP amp directly. We simply ran out of space on the side panels to put another jack there. Once again, portability was more important. Otherwise, we'd have added a separate analog input. 

 

[mgoodman]

Quote:

For anyone at CEntrance or who has their M8 already.  What sized screw is used to hold it together (mainly the 4 front screws)?  I'd like to order some colored thumbscrews to add some personalized flair to mine.  

I'ts an M3 screw. However, please be careful with the screwdriver. The screws are designed to be put in place and forgotten. They are not designed for repeated changing. The reason for that is that the screw goes into a tapped thread in an aluminum body, which is not as tough as a steel nut. After several tries the thread may loosen and the screws will fail to hold. Please don't experiment too much, even though I like that you want to put a personal touch on the M8.

 

[FraGGleR]

Quote:

I'ts an M3 screw. However, please be careful with the screwdriver. The screws are designed to be put in place and forgotten. They are not designed for repeated changing. The reason for that is that the screw goes into a tapped thread in an aluminum body, which is not as tough as a steel nut. After several tries the thread may loosen and the screws will fail to hold. Please don't experiment too much, even though I like that you want to put a personal touch on the M8.

Thanks, Michael.  I understand.  I learned that the hard way a couple years ago when I was learning how to DIY amps.  How deep is the tap (how long a screw should I look for)?

 

[mgoodman]

Quote:

Thanks, Michael.  I understand.  I learned that the hard way a couple years ago when I was learning how to DIY amps.  How deep is the tap (how long a screw should I look for)?

It's a 10mm M3 screw

 

[ButtUglyJeff]

Just out of curiosity, has anyone found a DAP other then the 2 Astell & Kern models, that implement the Toslink out, so it can be used with the HiFi-M8 LX?
 
I thought the upcoming Ibasso DX50 might be an option, but it uses mini-coax instead.  I think the upcoming FiiO X5 might, but things are still a bit grey on its specs.

 

[Trogdor]

Just out of curiosity, has anyone found a DAP other then the 2 Astell & Kern models, that implement the Toslink out, so it can be used with the HiFi-M8 LX?

I thought the upcoming Ibasso DX50 might be an option, but it uses mini-coax instead.  I think the upcoming FiiO X5 might, but things are still a bit grey on its specs.

HM-901 I would suspect.

 

[AnakChan]

HM-901 I would suspect.

Not optical. But the DX100/HDP-R10 can.

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

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Not optical. But the DX100/HDP-R10 can.

Do you mean DX100 can hook up M8 LX both using optical out and usb audio out?

 

[AnakChan]

Do you mean DX100 can hook up M8 LX both using optical out and usb audio out?

Oh I thought the question was only Optical out.

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

Quote:

Oh I thought the question was only Optical out.

Got it, thanks