Looking at this comment thread just makes me so fucking angery.
Like come on, lets just face it, the astell and Kern ak380 is a big piece of shit at $2000. Anyone who has a pair of working ears and a working brain will know that the ak380 is a big piece of shit at $2000.
In case you rich dumbasses protecting the ak380 cannot understand the meaning of $2000, this is what $2000 can buy you.
Dpx1a + Andromeda + $300
Zx300a + Andromeda + $500
Qp2r + $700
The qp2r can drive all headphones without an external amp with insane quality power, sounds like absolute heaven, comes with balanced and USB dac, and you still have $700 to blow on whatever fancy iem or cable you want, and oh yeah, it doesn't hurt your hand because its actually designed for humans to use.
To the other people comparing spects and shit, dude, you need to give the players a try. A shitty chifi dap with a totl dac chip ain't gonna beat a basic quality dac chip implemented properly.
Here are a few examples of good implementations of DACs in daps:
Onkyo dpx1a
Sony wm1a, wm1z(shitty price), zx300
Questyle qp1r, qp2r
(Nice sound, shit price)
Astell and Kern ak240, ak240ss, ak380 all models, sp1000
Good sources in general:
Chord mojo, Hugo 2( I think, the price tag MAY be justified on this one)
Ifi micro BL, nano BL
Alright iv let off steam. Yay.
But in all seriousness, audio is whatever floats your boat. If you really like that sound that something provides that you can't get elsewhere, just get it, disregard everyone else's opinion.
Because at the end of the day, its your ears and wallet, not mine.
Scarce97Man, you're so awesome, you spend 30 lines bashing and insulting A&K and potential buyers only to say at the end that people are free to buy what they want.
Chill out and try to respect people.
Respect will prevent me from making comments on some of the DAPs you listed as "good" (Onkyo and Questyle, the "kings" of quality check and autonomy... and Chord/iFi products are NOT sources).
People have different needs and taste, if you can't get this, life must be very frustrating for you.
Until we change economy, prices are free, and although 2000$ is not a bargain (1500$ would be more reasonable), this DAP is a good quality, polished product with no big defect beside its high price.
It features a slightly warm and smooth sound, with plenty of details, if that can help choosing (unlike DPX1A, Q2PR for example, which are tuned differently).
Scarce97I have QP1R and AK380, and the Ak sounds better - and I didn't pay a ludicrous amount for it. I also tried the QP2R as I considered upgrading the QP1R, but I don't see the need, and it has less storage space.
Sound of Qp2r is probably the best of all Daps I've tried so far, but the product is honestly a hot mess STILL when it comes to UI/ controls and product flexibility. As an audiophile, obviously sound comes first, but for a thousand bucks, the least you can expect in 2018 is tidal streaming, touch screen and good battery life. I just use my questyle at home, and use my ak380 90% of the time on the go..
Just my two cents as a long term user of both products.
Like come on, lets just face it, the astell and Kern ak380 is a big piece of shit at $2000. Anyone who has a pair of working ears and a working brain will know that the ak380 is a big piece of shit at $2000.
In case you rich dumbasses protecting the ak380 cannot understand the meaning of $2000, this is what $2000 can buy you.
Dpx1a + Andromeda + $300 Zx300a + Andromeda + $500 Qp2r + $700
The qp2r can drive all headphones without an external amp with insane quality power, sounds like absolute heaven, comes with balanced and USB dac, and you still have $700 to blow on whatever fancy iem or cable you want, and oh yeah, it doesn't hurt your hand because its actually designed for humans to use.
To the other people comparing spects and shit, dude, you need to give the players a try. A shitty chifi dap with a totl dac chip ain't gonna beat a basic quality dac chip implemented properly.
Here are a few examples of good implementations of DACs in daps:
Onkyo dpx1a Sony wm1a, wm1z(shitty price), zx300 Questyle qp1r, qp2r
(Nice sound, shit price) Astell and Kern ak240, ak240ss, ak380 all models, sp1000
Good sources in general: Chord mojo, Hugo 2( I think, the price tag MAY be justified on this one) Ifi micro BL, nano BL
Alright iv let off steam. Yay.
But in all seriousness, audio is whatever floats your boat. If you really like that sound that something provides that you can't get elsewhere, just get it, disregard everyone else's opinion.
Because at the end of the day, its your ears and wallet, not mine.