[royhendo]

Just wanted to say I appreciated this post mate. I actually got in touch with Head Direct about doing a manual for them (I'm a qualified Tech Author with a decade or so behind me) but they turned me down. I didn't even ask for payment - just a loan of the unit. Ah well.
 
Quote:

This is the beginning of what I hope to be a longish report and I want to start by thanking Fang for loaning me the HM-801. I am also writing this for the not so technical user (like me) on what to do and hopefully what not to do. Finally I will write a "wish list" of features/options.

BTW, I have had the pleasure to both buy and get loaner pieces from Fang in the past and I have been very pleased with his customer service. Needless to say I was excited to try this unit without having to front the $790 asking price. I did have to buy a 32 GB Kingston Type 4 SD Card, I bought it from Newegg for about $85 including S&H. Note: If the initial impressions hold over the next couple of weeks I may have be buying this unit. 

Anyways this is not going to be so much an impressions thread but more of what people like me need to do to make this unit work properly. I say this because I am not a very knowledgeable computer person and recently I made the transition to an iMac which further made things very difficult. So the first thing I did was to transfer a large number of my Apple Lossless files to an external USB 250 GB HD. I did this to avoid messing up the iMac which I am just beginning to learn how to use. Once done I took the HD to an old (2004) Dell PC and did a search including starting a thread here on how to convert the ALAC files to FLAC. I intended to give the HM-801 the best possible files, just like I do with my iPods where I use ALAC files.

I took the advice of many and downloaded the trial version of dbpoweramp, of course I did not set it up correctly on the first try nor the second try. 

 This meant I spent about 3 days in converting about 7,300 ALAC files instead of just 1 day. I have to thank all who assisted this "old fart" in learning (at least partially) a new software and method to convert files. BTW, not all of the 3 days were lost since I had to wait for the 32 GB SD Card to arrive. 

So today I finally was able to load about 1,150 FLAC files unto the 32 GB SD Card and I have been able to finally listen to the HM-801. I need to learn how to navigate through the various buttons specially to locate specific songs, until I learn it is a pain to find songs and I am just listening in the same order I loaded the files in. Luckily I loaded them alphabetically so it is not a total pain to use.

As you probably know the HM-801 retails for $790 plus if you wish to have the same capacity as an iPod Classic you would need five 32 GB SD Cards at about another $410 (some savings in S&H are realized) for a grand total of $1,200 as compared with about $850 for an iPod Classic, good amp, and a good line out dock. The HM-801 by itself is larger than an iPod but when you include the amp and line out dock the HM-801 is smaller. Since I am comparing the two I should mention the iPod Classic play time is about 3 times that of the HM-801, say 25 hours to 8 hours both using lossless files.

As far as carrying the HM-801 I am not aware of any case for it so IMO it is more of a transportable unless you do not mind risking damaging the HM-801 by carrying on a cargo pant pocket. I guess a camera bag would work as an alternative for many so it may not be too bad of an option.

For the first listen I used a HiFiMAN RE-252 IEM and a Grado RS-1 with the 1/4" to 1/8" Grado converter. The first two songs were by Nina Simone and Nicole Henry and I also asked "she who must be obeyed" to listen and provide feedback (she was very impressed and liked it a lot). 

 How does it sound? To this old tired ears it has more detail, clarity, and treble extension than an iPod Classic 6th Generation, iPhone 3G, and Nano 2nd Generation. I also hear more air between notes and female vocals are more engaging and it is easier to understand the words being sung (weird ain't it). Again these are very quick impressions and I will let the "new toy" mentality settle over the next couple of weeks before I can truly say more.

If I was to start a wish list it would include:

1. A better instruction manual either electronic or hardcopy.
2. Longer play time, I would suggest a 20 hour target.
3. A way to shut down the screen to extend the battery life.
4. Inclusion of a case, even if it adds $30.
5. The case should have a place to carry an additional two SD Cards.
6. Ability to use the upcoming 64 GB and 128 GB SD Cards.
7. Gapless which I believe it is being worked on as we speak.
8. A more common A/C plug into the HM-801 so it would be easier to secure wall warts replacements in the future.

I hope to be able to add more in the next couple of weeks.

Cheers.

PD: Sorry for the long post.

 

[rudiraith]

Among several minor problems with the firmware, I found one which has imho not yet been addressed: if I insert an SD card with data on it, it is not recognized immediately unless inserted at the prompt "insert SD card!". It also is not if the unit has been switched off in the meantime. This also happens on a 602.

 

[fomoz]

how do you guys connect an external amp to the HM-801 line out? do you put them on top of each other or side by side? any pics? i ordered mine today and i'm trying to figure out how long of a 3.5mm to 3.5mm mini i need.

 

[Bojamijams]

Nankai, any word on future firmware updates? How about ability to finally play ALAC as promised? 

 

[mrarroyo]

Fang, with your new balanced IEM all we need now is a balanced amp module for the HM-801!

 

[swbf2cheater]

I didn't know there were any other compatible amp modules for the hm801.   Any suggestions?

 

[mrarroyo]

Well the stock Gangi module is very nice for IEM's and less demanding cans. The 627 is supposed to be the better sounding but it retails for about $160 USD.

 

[holidaynova]

Quote:

One last try for information on which SoC used in the device?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nankai /img/forum/go_quote.gif They add too much concept which is harmful to sound quality, such as eq. They try to make the working current as little as they can, so that they can show off their new tech of long battery life.

See, this is where I have a problem. You say that EQ is harmful to sound quality? Perhaps it might have been in the analog world, but here in the digital realm, it doesn't make a bit of difference. EQ may not be wanted by some listeners (I don't really use it, myself), but to say that implementing it is harmful to sound quality is wrong at best. In the digital realm, it is either on or off. I haven't seen what SoC you are using for this, but it must be pretty beefy if you can play high APE files. There is no reason why you wouldn't have plenty of power to implement it in software like we do with many devices. Once again, it is either active, or it isn't. There is no way it can affect sound quality when not active provided that the implementation didn't introduce some code defects.Regarding the second statement in this quote, I agree, but to a point. Even with your goals, there are plenty of ways that you can use to improve battery life that will have no affect on the resulting sound quality which I hope you have at least made an effort to do. These can include many things I mentioned in my first post in this thread - things like scaling down the processor when the power is not needed, turning off components when they are not needed (accessory ports, LCD, certain chips, etc), improving codec efficiency so that the codecs require less power to run, minimizing storage accesses, and even improving the core of the firmware in general. Many of these are things that manufacturers don't bother to do because it simply works and don't want to spend the money for further development. Many manufacturers probably choose to go with lower end hardware for cost and power consumption reasons, but I am merely saying that that is only one side of the coin here and the other side can be looked at without sacrificing any quality whatsoever. Quote:

They successfully made most of their customers believe that "fancy" or "cool" is more important than sound quality.

One part where we agree on. It is nice to see that someone is at least attempting to go the other way, and I congratulate you on putting forth this effort.

 
When you design a system with very stringent requirements, like closest to perfect audio quality, you don't want to have to design a filter that can cope with a lot of variability in the I/O.. Think of the example of photography, a prime lens (no zoom) always outdoes a multi-focus lens. Fang is absolutely right in tightening the variance to produce the best possible sound (picture) from his hardware.  We don't listen to digital.. everything must get converted to analog in the end  
 
 

 

[myared]

Quote:

Nankai, any word on future firmware updates? How about ability to finally play ALAC as promised? 

I emailed their customer service about this last month.  Here's their reply:
 
"We did a lot work on ALAC. But finally we know that ALAC can not be supported by current generation.

Kindest regards,
Ms. T"
 
On another note, I am interested in buying an 801.  Is there anything I need to know before I pull the trigger on this expensive device like for example any rumors about an upcoming newer model etc.?  Thanks.

 
 

 

[immtbiker]

A little birdie told me that the next generation 801/602's will support ALAC and gapless, but you didn't hear it from me 

. 
Since this is the internet, I know my secret is safe with you guys 

 

[myared]

Did the little birdie tell you when the next generation 801 may be coming out?

 

[Walley Bendz]

Ladies and Gentlemen...
 
I own an 801 player and have it connected to equipment via SPDIF. I thought of a clever way to easily make the rather uniqe cable required. Here is how I made it:
 
1) Obtain a proper SPDIF Coax cable with RCA plugs at each end.
 
2) Obtain a standard but high quality (Low capacitance) STEREO MINI- RCA ADAPTER. Usually one side will be marked RED and the other WHITE.
 
3) Make or find an RCA Plug. I'm certain Radio Shack would carry these. Solder a piece of bare wire between its PIN to GROUND. Thus, it's a SHORTING PLUG.
 
4) Insert the shorting plug into the WHITE (Left) jack of the adapter. This connects the PIN of the adapter to Ground. Thus, both the Tip and Sleeve and Ground. The Ring is HOT.
 
5) Finally, plug in one end of the SPDIF Cable into the RED (Right) jack of the adapter and connect the other end of the SPDIF Cable into the equipment used.
 
This simple trick works great! Let me know what you think...
 
Walley Bendz
walleybendz@comcast.net
 

 

[mrarroyo]

Quote:

A little birdie told me that the next generation 801/602's will support ALAC and gapless, but you didn't hear it from me 

. 
Since this is the internet, I know my secret is safe with you guys 

I believe I spoke with the same birdie. 

 

[FrostIK]

Received my HM-801 just a week ago and this morning it just did not turn on. It's hot and not getting cold. I think, it's some kind of accumulator controller problem. Spent $815 for a week of listening the music and now have to send it back to China. What a disappointment.

 

[ClieOS]

Have you reset or try taking the battery out yet?