[jayteeare]

When it first came out a couple years ago, the Fiio M15 Flagship with the dual AK4499EQ DAC was the second to only Astell and Kern 2000, and sold MSRP $1500.

This was the last DAP before the infamous AKM fire, and for a while these sold for nearly $2k on the secondary market even used.

Now on eBay, I see so many of these units being sold for around $700-$900.

What’s up with that? It doesn’t make any sense since we’ve come to discover that the ESS DACs for other top of the line DAPS are used because of thier super low power consumption as compared to the far superior velvet sound of the AKM. Even the M17 is a overpriced unit using the ESS chips. Want an example of AKM being superior to ESS? Why then is the astell Kern Sp2000T with the inferior ESS chip being sold for nearly $1000 less than the AKM Sp2000 version?

The newish Shanling M9 features the AKM 4499 chips as well, and is retailing for nearly $1800.

So what gives? Why the mass unloading of used yet perfectly conditioned M15 being sold on eBay for half the value of when it came out? Further, other flagship daps haven’t changed in price much, especially the SP2000 which hasn’t dropped a cent?

 

[jayteeare]

And I only speak to this since I myself am a proud owner of the M15. And if Fiio innovations can evolve to the point where the M20 can retain all the same specs as the M15 with added THX, but in a form factor closer to the perfect pocketable size of the M9, then it’s game over.

 

[EMINENT]

Probably the end of life Android version. No dark mode was my biggest issue with it.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

DAPs are worse than phones. As soon as you buy one it becomes nearly worthless. And there is always something "better" coming out. Even a run of the mill phone gets two years worth of security patches. How long do FiiO or any of those companies issue new firmware?

I bought some FiiOs years ago and I won't be buying any more of them.

 

[Death_Block]

AKM far superior? All in the eye of the beholder. Ketchup, tomato sauce

 

[jayteeare]

AKM far superior? All in the eye of the beholder. Ketchup, tomato sauce

Death_Block, I feel ya, and my wording was kind of ignorant since I realize a lot of people are fans of the ESS DAC; but the fact remains that ESS DACs do seem to be cheaper, and mostly used due to their much lower power consumption (ie A&K Kann Alpha, SP2000T). And I also realize most of us, especially myself would fail a double blind test between the two. Spurious adjectives to describe the sound differences are entirely speculative and subjective. By now we know its been years and there hasn't been any scientific test studies on which particular DAC is better than the other. And of course the IEM/Cans you're using will be even more crucial at the end of the day.

I just seems odd that one of the very few flagship items on the market (though no longer made apparently) with the final AKM flagship AKM4499EQ has gone from being super sought after (I paid $1300 for mine 1 year ago which was the going price) to nearly half the amount, while others have retained their street value a lot better, like the AK SR25, Shanling M9 holding strong at $1900 new, and the SP2000 sometimes found in the wild on ebay or here for $2000, which I guess is an another significant price drop from its $3400 price tag.

I wonder if the emergence of dongles is whats going on, and people just preferring to pair them with their phones, despite the long running opinion that people are happy to carry two separate devices (phone and DAP) as to save battery on the phone, and also to avoid interruption. Convenience and minimalism being what the masses look for, it would make send to have an all in one device with the a nice dongle.

I love DAPS, and have been collection them for years. The other day when I just had the XDuoo Link 2 hooked up to my LG ThinQ G8, it sounded at least 10 times better than without it.

Regardless, there will always be niche markets for over expensive DAPS I believe no matter what.

 

[jayteeare]

On a sidenote, I find it hilarious that A&Kern are still selling DAPS from yesteryear for ridiculous prices, and the second hand market follows suit, with DAPS like the AK380 being sold for north of $700-$1200.

 

[originalsnuffy]

I think ESS and CS chipsets can provide great sound. But I always look at AKM as a plus when considering various devices.

I suppose all that goes out the window with R2R.

 

[jayteeare]

So just a preface here, Im documenting the status of the going price for this particular device, and if you are in this thread its because you are also interested.

On eBay right now, another M15 FiiO on sale for $668. This is not an auction, has a crack on the back panel glass, and the box is slightly damaged. Other wise the device looks great.

Whats going on here? I realize its been out on the market for may 2 years, but the price depreciation on this thing is crazy since it was the previous Flagship at $1500 not too long ago. This item is no longer in production, and no more are planned to be made. It was made specifically to complete with SP2000; this device is no slouch, and can power my 250ohm 990DT Pro Beyerdynamic with ease.

I just dont under stand how this device can be so undervalued now, especially with the Shanling M9 selling for nearly $2800.

 

[jayteeare]

Just checked ShenZhen Audio website.

Priced at $1299.99, M15.

Lowest Priced on Ebay (used in perfect condition) $683.99 (shipped from Japan).

Highest priced on eBay (used in perfect condition) $1342.19 (shipped from Japan).

I cannot locate ANY brand new Fiio M15 unused on eBay.

Lowest price in the USA pre-used going for $999.

It appears that AliExpress only has 6 of these in stock listed as brand new. Currently selling for $1314.94, being on sale 15% from original retail price of $1546.99.

By comparison, the cheapest you can find the Astell & Kern SP2000 on eBay Brand New is $2011.24, nearly $1500 off of the normal retail price of $3400.00

 

[jayteeare]

The price continues the downward trend, now with used (excellent condition) M15's being sold currently at $680, which is about half of the original retail price. So $680-$780 is the common price range on the used market, as I used eBay, Mercari, Offer up and Reverb as my sources.

Whats going on here? Just alot of buyers remorse, the US economy, or trading up? THis device was the only one really considered second best only to the AK SP2000.

This of course is coming from someone who paid $1300 for the M15 just almost a year ago.

 

[chef8489]

Its because it is a Fiio player and they dont maintain value like A&K players. It just seems you are salty your player is not maintaining value like other top tier players. It is typical for a Fiio player to loose half its value within a year or two of its release.

 

[jayteeare]

True it does seem salty, I give you that. But compared to other players it's price dump seems to be especially interesting since others have retained thier resell value alot better. I mean sure, would have been glad to buy at half price, but buying it at $1300 back then was still cheaper than paying retail, so I dont really have any regrets as Ive grown fond of it.

 

[chef8489]

Look at the Fiio m11 plus ltd. You can find them for under 500.00 and they are not even a year old. You can find m11 and m11 pro around 300.00.

 

[jayteeare]

Look at the Fiio m11 plus ltd. You can find them for under 500.00 and they are not even a year old. You can find m11 and m11 pro around 300.00.

Yes, the Fiio M11 Plus Ltd was released with a retail price of $749.00. So yes, in 1 year its value had dropped about $250., if not less. The Fiio M15 was Fiio's first foray into the high end DAP price target to complete with Astell Kern. Before this, Fiio had never charged $1300 for a DAP before this device was introduced in Dec 2019.

The Fiio M9 has held up pretty well on the resale market; it originally sold for $299 released in Sept 2018. And the value on the resale market is either exactly that amount or more. It seems to be a harder to find Fiio DAP as will, compared to the others.