[ai_enabled]

Doesn't sound like the battery. Could be computer issues or something else. Please send us an email to info at centrance dot com and let's talk to figure this out.

Thank you for the quick reply, Michael!

What version of software do you have?

Thanks for your reply. I've tried a fresh driver from CEntrance but it didn't resolve the issue. I've also tried the device with my iPhone and the issue is the same.
Even worse, I've left the device disconnected from the external power for a few hours (something I haven't done for more than a year), then connected it back - but now my HiFi-M8 shutdowns after 1-2 seconds every time I try to turn it on. I've left it charging for a few hours - the charging LED indicators haven't displayed any charging progress and the issue was not improved, it still shutdowns almost instantly. So the device is completely unusable now.

Do you physically switch off your device when you are done using it ?

I've always turned it off but it was 24/7 on the external power source for years - as I remember reading in the official response from Michael, it's perfectly safe because HiFi-M8 has a sophisticated battery management circuit to control the charging.

I hope Michael will provide me with some ideas and I will post here if we will be able to find a solution!

 

[peterinvan]

Unfortunately, it seems the repair is quite expensive to me and I hardly can justify it (I recall somebody mentioned here that the official battery replacement price is 100 USD + shipping cost, in my case, it's a dealbreaker as I will be charged a pretty high customs fee).
Has anyone run into the same problem?
Has anyone tried disassembling it and replacing the battery? If so, what are the compatible battery specs? Or maybe the device can work properly if the battery is completely disconnected from the board (as in case of a truly dead battery)?

My M8 is over four years old, and now it only holds it’s charge for two hours. I emailed info@centrance.com a week ago to ask if I could purchase a new battery.... no reply so far.

I am running Windows 7 and my CEntrance driver is at 7.4.9

Anyone from Centrance: can I please buy a new battery from you? I want to install it myself.

 

[ai_enabled]

I emailed info@centrance.com a week ago.

I've contacted Michael at mgoodman[at]centrance.com and he replied quickly (as usual, that's not my first support request).

BTW, the battery replacement is not really straightforward as it requires a very careful device disassembly and soldering the new battery wires. I would recommend sending the device for the battery replacement if possible. I believe the battery price itself is pretty high (as it is a quite unique 3700 mAh Li-Po battery) so the replacement cost I read somewhere before (100 USD) is pretty much justified (if you're going to use it; I'm not so in my case it was not really justified, especially with the very expensive customs fees here).

 

[ai_enabled]

Regarding my issue with the device I wrote here:

After about 3.5 years of regular usage, my HiFi-M8 started dropping the USB signal every few minutes

With my latest test the device stopped functioning at all. I've checked the power adapter voltage and it was proper so with help of Michael we've figured out that we need to have a look on the battery.
Turns out the battery was actually dead. No surprise as a lifetime of a high quality Li-Po battery is 3-5 years and might be even less if it's recharged daily (as was in my case).
Unfortunately, it seems in my case the battery got a short circuit so my HiFi-M8 stopped operating even on 100% external power.
Michael told me that the device should work fine on 100% external power and suggested to cut the battery wire (as the battery is soldered to the board) to disconnect it completely (and isolate the ends to prevent the possible short circuit!) to restore the device functionality. I did this and it helped. My HiFi-M8 doesn't try to recharge anymore (the recharging LED indicator doesn't light anymore) and works perfectly fine now!

If anyone has a similar issue with their HiFi-M8, please note that some Li-Po batteries might fail when they're almost dead and prevent the device from the proper operation (even if you want to use it on 100% external power mode). In such case the battery should be replaced or removed.

if you've noticed that your battery doesn't recharge anymore or doesn't hold the charge more than a few minutes, I would recommend sending it to CEntrance to replace the battery as soon as possible. Most manufacturers of the devices with lithium-ion polymer batteries (especially Apple https://www.apple.com/vn/batteries/service/ , Samsung, etc) are recommending the timely servicing and recycling/replacement of the batteries which have reached their end-of-life.

 

[carlosgab]

There are still some Hifi M8 amps available in my area for about half the original price and brand new. I would like to know your thoughts. Are they still good to today's standards? Like compared to black label and similarly priced portable amps.

 

[jmills8]

There are still some Hifi M8 amps available in my area for about half the original price and brand new. I would like to know your thoughts. Are they still good to today's standards? Like compared to black label and similarly priced portable amps.

Whats the price ? I have too many gears , Im mostly listening on the go, and need to sale mine. I only charged it two times. I like it as much or more as : Hugo, Hugo 2 , and ifi Bl.

 

[haipn]

Hi everyone,
I have a CEntrance Hifi M8 but I lost my power supply adapter.
Could you show me the DC output of adapter?
And can I using other adapter to replace stock adapter?

Thank you very much

 

[peterinvan]

Hi everyone,
I have a CEntrance Hifi M8 but I lost my power supply adapter.
Could you show me the DC output of adapter?
And can I using other adapter to replace stock adapter?

Thank you very much

It’s 19 volts DC out at 2630 milliwatts, and 110-200 VAC in. Power capacity is 50 watts. I believe this is typical of a laptop power supply.

The DC plug is 5mm in diameter.

Regards.

 

[peterinvan]

There are still some Hifi M8 amps available in my area for about half the original price and brand new. I would like to know your thoughts. Are they still good to today's standards? Like compared to black label and similarly priced portable amps.

The M8 is still my go to amp for my hard to drive Audeze LCD2F. Better bass than my Hiby R6. Just as good sound quality. I have an old iPhone 4S paired to it to make a bulky but portable DAP.

On a used M8 test the battery holding time.

I replaced the battery after five years. Like new now. About 5-6 hours per charge driving the LCD2F at max gain

 

[haipn]

It’s 19 volts DC out at 2630 milliwatts, and 110-200 VAC in. Power capacity is 50 watts. I believe this is typical of a laptop power supply.

The DC plug is 5mm in diameter.

Regards.

Thank you very much.
Do you have stock adapter in there?
Could you please capture the spec in the stock adapter for me?

 

[jmills8]

I have one for sale in box and only charged it three times.

 

[peterinvan]

Thank you very much.
Do you have stock adapter in there?
Could you please capture the spec in the stock adapter for me?

These are the specs on the stock CEntrance power supply.

 

[MrMan]

Thank you very much.
Do you have stock adapter in there?
Could you please capture the spec in the stock adapter for me?

 

[carlosgab]

The M8 is still my go to amp for my hard to drive Audeze LCD2F. Better bass than my Hiby R6. Just as good sound quality. I have an old iPhone 4S paired to it to make a bulky but portable DAP.

On a used M8 test the battery holding time.

I replaced the battery after five years. Like new now. About 5-6 hours per charge driving the LCD2F at max gain

What interests me is using this to test headphones in Audio shops. Now its price BN is close to a used IFI BL though Im concerned if its AK4490 chip still has some edge against the latest DAC chips in the market now. Did you change the battery yourself?

 

[peterinvan]

What interests me is using this to test headphones in Audio shops. Now its price BN is close to a used IFI BL though Im concerned if its AK4490 chip still has some edge against the latest DAC chips in the market now. Did you change the battery yourself?

I have not tried the iFi BL, so can’t compare for you. The M8 is one of the few DAC/amps that connects with an iPhone or iPad without the CCK adaptor. It has three output sockets, ideal for testing headphones. It also has bass and treble EQ adjustments. Note the 4 pin XLR is not really balanced, it’s just for the convienence of using the XLR terminated headphones.

Yes I changed the battery myself... mostly to save shipping from Canada. It’s a non-trivial task, especially removing the old battery and de-soldering the tiny battery leads.. I would suggest sending it to the nice folks at CEntrance for battery replacement.

One note... Tyll chose the M8 for his epic road trip when he retired.