[gikigill]

Hmm, getting the Sony,iBasso, Fiio and the Calyx or the AK240.

First world problems!

 

[Takeanidea]

Shame you couldn't audition them first before you spend that sort of money. That being said , I seldom practice what I preach. I fell in love with the DX100 when I listened to it , the clunkiness of the thing and lack of battery life has tainted that a bit but I still have no regrets buying it.
I wouldn't have bought the AK100 C4Pro or DX100 new. They're not worth the asking price

 

[Willieboy]

Guys, I received an HM802 this week and have started a stand-alone impressions thread.  If you think it would be more helpful in this thread, maybe the Mods can move it here.

 

[DigitalFreak]

  Guys, I received an HM802 this week and have started a stand-alone impressions thread.  If you think it would be more helpful in this thread, maybe the Mods can move it here.

Feel free to message the mods and ask them to move it here. The more the merrier is my feelings on the subject

 

[DigitalFreak]

Hmm, getting the Sony,iBasso, Fiio and the Calyx or the AK240.

First world problems!

This is head-fi, get em all soldier. Whadsa  madda wit ya mang? So you live on ketchup soup for a year, its worth it in the end isn't it?

 

[zilch0md]

Hahaha!  LOL 

 

[gikigill]

 
This is head-fi, get em all soldier. Whadsa  madda wit ya mang? So you live on ketchup soup for a year, its worth it in the end isn't it?

Oh I will get all 4 before the year ends.
 
And keep 1

 

[Willieboy]

My Hifiman HM802 arrived this morning and I wanted to give you guys my thoughts thus far. I will add some pictures soon.
 
The unit is quite hefty, about like the HM801.  However the HM802 is smaller in size and would fit in a shirt pocket.  Its color is kind of a metallic teal.  I like it. The build quality is solid.
 
The unit came fully charged and ready to go.  I have been enjoying the beautiful tunes for about two hours.
 
The UI may be a little hinky as it does not always do what I expect.  There may be a learning curve involve so I'm not going to be too critical at this time.
 
I've plugged in a 32GB card and am listening to Emmylou Harris.  The sound quality is just beautiful, with nice bass.  I cannot find fault at all with the sound produced.
 
Now, I ordered the unit with the standard amp card and I assume that's what in the unit.  However, it also came with a second amp card called a "headphone (not IEM) amp card".  The extra card looks different from any shown on the Head-Direct site.  When my ears fall off or I need to charge the battery, I'll open the unit and see what amp card is in it.  Then I'll Hifiman's domestic customer service number and see if they were just feeling generous or did they make a mistake.  Of course, I'll return the extra card or pay for it, depending.  By the way, I did have occasion to to call HM's service center with a couple questions.  I had the pleasure of speaking with a nice young lady named Summer.  She picked up the phone on the first ring and answered my questions easily.  She seemed quite familiar with the product.  This service is a far cry from the dismal experience I had getting my questions answered on the HM801.
 
So, as you guys ponder what to buy from all the new DAPs coming to the marketplace, I suggest you not overlook the HM802.  It's very nice.
 
February 19, 2014 - Editted to add:  I am learning that the user interface is indeed kinda twitchy. 
 
At one point the player would not turn on.  I have no idea why.  I took off the back and took the battery for a few minutes.  Taking out the battery not easy because there's a little tab that has to be push while pulling up on the battery.  Problem is, I have only two hands and they is nothing on the battery to grasp and no way to pull it out.  Just have to keep trying.  When I reinserted the battery, I gave the unit a few minutes and then it powered on.
 
At another point, the player would not play music... which is kind of annoying.  I think the reason was because I had just turned it on and the music wasn't fully loaded.  I think with this player a modicum of patience is called for becasuse it seems there are things going on behind the scenes and until they're finished, nothing much is going to happen.
 
Another time the unit just froze and no matter what button I pushed, nothing happened.  I could not even power the unit off.  I had to reset the system.
 
When music is playing, there are two counters at the bottom of the screen, as well as a progress bar.  One counter is for elapsed time and the other for time remaining.  Well, sometime the progress bar and counters work... and sometimes they don't.
 
Regarding the user interface, I can live with the options offered.  I can play all songs, songs by artist, by album, favorites, etc.  Plenty of options for me.
 
That little wheel that is used to navigate is not very tactile.  It has ribs on it but they're very shallow.  It would help if the wheel had a rubber finish to make it a little tacky.
 
The power switch is spring loaded.  To turn the unit on or off, you must push this little guy in the same direction.  However, the spring is very weak and I fear this will be a problem area at some point.
 
These are all little problems that annoy.  If I can identify software issues, HifiMan should have found and fixed the issues before release.  The hardware issues are design problems and they are what they are.  I'll just have to be careful not to break anything.
 
The sound quality, when the unit will play music, is beautiful.  So far, I have listened through Etymotic ER4-Ps and some simple Bose headphone (not noise cancelling).  I have yet to listen through my HD600s and I think they will be a great match.  I also have some Mad Dogs but have the 1/4 inch plug so, until I can get an adapter, I'll have to wait to hear these.

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

@ClieOS mentioned that the HM802 comes with two amp cards now:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/706278/hm802-initial-impressions#post_10285910

 

[zilch0md]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willieboy /img/forum/go_quote.gif

My Hifiman HM802 arrived this morning and I wanted to give you guys my thoughts thus far. I will add some pictures soon.
 
[snip]
 
 Of course, I'll return the extra card or pay for it, depending.

 
I think they normally include two amp cards, but I have to say, your integrity gives me hope for humanity.
 

 
Quote:

  The sound quality, when the unit will play music, is beautiful. 

 
I was tempted to quote each issue you've had with the HM-802, but that one sentence (above) says it all.  
 
As I've written earlier in this thread, I intentionally waited until I read that HiFiMan had published the final firmware revision for the HM-801, before ordering it - a refurbished one. They had already released the HM-901 - and that's what happens - they stop fixing bugs on the older generation as soon as the current generation is released. The end result is that nobody ever gets their hands on a bug-free DAP and many of those who say they're not having any problems have actually just modified their use of the product to thread their way through a minefield of dysfunction. They enable the product - in the worst sense of the word.  
 
I was certain my patience would be rewarded by taking the strategy of a "late-adopter" - waiting for all the bugs to get fixed in the HM-801 before ordering it. Wrong! It was still a royal pain in the rear - even with the last firmware revision. Absolutely unacceptable. I returned it under their trial guarantee, but suffered a barrage of questions, some of them unreasonable, in my opinion. They eventually parted company with my money. I appreciate their having honored their guarantee, but HiFiMan will have to re-invent themselves to get another order from me. This endless cycle of releasing new products to escape having to fix the last one is ridiculous.
 
Mike

 

[Willieboy]

Thank you for your kind words Mike.  Christianity and honesty must walk together.
 
Regarding the HM802, it has been trouble free since I became familiar with it.  One confusing design issue is that there is a play/pause button among the column of four buttons on the left side of the unit that seems redundant in that the center button, inside the navigation wheel, does the same thing.  One wonders about these inscrutable Chinese.  Where is Charlie Chan when we need him?
 
Bill

 

[iamthem]

I've yet to meet a person that can successfully differentiate my iPod Touch 5g and a top of the line "Audiophile" DAP, both driving power-thrifty headphones like IEMs (assuming that the "Audiophile" DAP does not have some ridiculous distorted FR.) Pop in a nice amp, and you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference at all. <1 Ohm output impedance, ruler flat FR and inaudible distortion. What more could you ask for? The only thumbs up I'd give towards Audiophile DAPs would be a nice amp and other bonuses like balanced outputs, but even then getting a dedicated portable amp may be the better option. Frankly headphone upgrades are usually far more rewarding than source upgrades.
 
Edit: meet. Typo xD

 

[Hutnicks]

  I've yet to met a person that can successfully differentiate my iPod Touch 5g and a top of the line "Audiophile" DAP, both driving power-thrifty headphones like IEMs (assuming that the "Audiophile" DAP does not have some ridiculous distorted FR.) Pop in a nice amp, and you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference at all. <1 Ohm output impedance, ruler flat FR and inaudible distortion. What more could you ask for? The only thumbs up I'd give towards Audiophile DAPs would be a nice amp and other bonuses like balanced outputs, but even then getting a dedicated portable amp may be the better option. Frankly headphone upgrades are usually far more rewarding than source upgrades.

 
Bingo
 
I would love to see a  full blown shootout between ?UberDAPS vs a selection of smartphones.

 

[ClieOS]

  Thank you for your kind words Mike.  Christianity and honesty must walk together.
 
Regarding the HM802, it has been trouble free since I became familiar with it.  One confusing design issue is that there is a play/pause button among the column of four buttons on the left side of the unit that seems redundant in that the center button, inside the navigation wheel, does the same thing.  One wonders about these inscrutable Chinese.  Where is Charlie Chan when we need him?
 
Bill

 
The center button was meant to bring up a sub-menu initially, which gave you extra functions. But those extra functions were so unstable that Hifiman decided to disable them right after the first firmware reversion until they can sort them out properly. So at the meantime, it is just another play / pause button.

 

[Willieboy]

   
The center button was meant to bring up a sub-menu initially, which gave you extra functions. But those extra functions were so unstable that Hifiman decided to disable them right after the first firmware reversion until they can sort them out properly. So at the meantime, it is just another play / pause button.

Thanks Clie.  Good to know.