HIFI Audio Decoder Amplifier - Aimpire AD10 MINI USB DAC CSS XMOS XU208 ES9018K2M OPA2134 Audio Amplifier Decoder (D10 Black)

I don't give out 5 stars lightly. This deserves it.I'll cover each aspect of the device.# 1/4" Headphone SocketFirstly, this is much better than a 3.5mm socket. They're sturdier and give more options. I tend to leave a an adapter in there for convenience when plugging in headphones, as they're mostly 3.5's.Some amps won't let you leave an adapter sitting in there. They redirect output to the headphones automatically when they detect a physical item entering the socket, disabling the speakers. As the M6 has a separate control to switch between headphones and speaker output, this is much nicer.# Control StickI was worried this mini joystick would be a pain to use. I prefer physical, analog dials. But this hasn't been an issue here.The second day I tried to turn the M6 on it wouldn't work. I thought it was defective. But there's a technique to turn it on and off. The dial must be pressed in exactly horizontally to power on and off. My mistake was just pressing the whole stick in with a casual thumb, which pushed it slightly to the side as well. This won't work. Once you get the hang of it it's easy, but it stumped me for a few minutes.Left changes the input source between USB, coaxial and optical.Up/down changes the volume. You can hold either up or down and it will change more quickly.Right disables the headphone socket and directs output to the R/L out for your speakers. This is especially useful.Whilst this control stick isn't as satisfying as a dial, it's doesn't have any of the classic dial flaws either. So no channel imbalance at different volumes. No non-linear volume increases. No scratchiness developing over time. A well executed dial is a thing of beauty, but you don't get them on cheaper devices. So I'm glad they went with a digital control here.# LCD ScreenA really crisp white pixel font. I like small text. Even if you don't however, there's nothing displayed here that you need to constantly see for daily use when you know the controls.# Build QualityIt's a solid metal box. So it's very sturdy.The connectors on the reverse are all solid.The feet let it stay flat.It looks good.When it's been on a while it gets slightly cooler than warm.The metal body does a good job a dissipating heat.# Power CableIt comes with an external power brick in the middle of the cord, which is tiny. It's the size of 2 or 3 match boxes, so you won't have problems finding a space for it. The cable is a good length as well.# USB, Optical & Coaxial InEach of these 3 come with a red rubber cap for protection, which is nice.I tested the first 2, but not coaxial.Both these sources came from a PC.I did some blind testing and couldn't detect any audible difference between the 2. There's much debate about which is the "best" input, but from my experience, either is fine.They all provide a digital signal which the DAC can chew on.# R + L OutThe RCA pass-throughs are much appreciated. A flick of the control stick to the right and my speakers can come on, the headphones go off.I'm running these through a separate speaker amp, so the circuitry there would colour any comments I could make about the quality output here. Seems fine to me however.# VolumeThe LCD shows this going from 0 to 60.With the MK3s 15-25 is a good listening level. I tend not to listen to music loud, but 40 is about as much as I'd need from this amp. No distortion I can detect at all before the volume hurts.With a dial you could change things quicker. But I've come to live the precision of the digital on the M6. If you need rapid volume changes, it only takes a few seconds to go from 0 to 60.Compared to a portable DAC/AMP, the M6 is much better. Having the dedicated power supply (not just USB power) means it packs a punch and can deliver a much more pleasing sound. Also I didn't want to get a portable and leave it plugged in most of the time. It degrades the battery life, and eventually it becomes non-portable with a 10 minute battery life.# Sound QualityI tested the headphone sound quality with the DT770 and T50RP MK3s.The M6 drives both headphones very well. Way more depends on the headphones you've got than than the DAC here however. This DAC does it's job and is true to the source material.I could say it has presence, punchy bass and great detail. But that would be a comment about headphones more than the DAC.I tested this against a huge Yamaha receiver/amp. I couldn't tell any difference at all with the modest volumes I list at. If you like listening on max volume there might be a difference. But you probably won't detect it after a few years at that volume.There is also zero hiss, static, interference of any kind I can detect.# PriceThis isn't the cheapest DAC/AMP. For the price you could get a basic, full sized receiver with integrated amp.The SMSL M6 is very small however. It's perfect for desktop use. And in direct testing with a beefy Yamaha it held it's own.-If you're using this on a desk or are space constricted - this is the DAC/AMP for you.Even if you're not - it's at least worthy of your short list.

The reason I'm giving this 3 stats is because on arrival the item had a scratch on the the metal case, I would have expected that not to be the case for the amount of mony they charge for this. The item does work really well and the sound quality is excellent and dose make a massive difference to the onboard sound from my laptop. As I say the 3 stars is not for the items performance it's for the cosmetics of the units condition on arrival. I would recommend this but check it over when its delivery for scratching or marking

I bought this DAC to power a pair of AKG 702 Headphones.The SMSL M6 has a USB input, a coaxial input and a SPDIF optical input.There are two outputs: A 6.5MM Headphone Jack at the front and two RCA analogue outputs on the rear.Asynchronous mode via USB will transform your sound; The M6 DAC can become the ‘chief’ in the music chain- effectively determining when, and how much data, it receives.Result: Much lower jitter and excellent timing!On Windows operating systems, (laptop/desktops) this DAC produces a sound which is well above average. Much better than the sound outputs built into computers nowadays.However, on Linux based operating systems, the M6 sounds phenomenal (via the asynchronous USB input). It produces sound/music which is hauntingly good!The bad points:To be picky, only one,The navigation is controlled by the on off push button which doubles up as a navigation cursor to change settings.However, once set up to your liking, it is unlikely you would change any settings on the DAC itself.EnJoy!

What can i say, £120 of musical genius, got this to power my AKG K712 Pro's just because of reading another review on here where someone mentioned that they had used this on another AKG headset so thought what the hell i will give it a go not expecting the earth as it cost half of what the headphones cost but Jesus it powers them perfectly.I use it off of my pc via USB, i use most of the volume control about 55 out 60 on the dial but then i just control the lot from the pc so don't have to keep adjusting it, but that does have them screaming so personal preference really as i like it loud, i also tried it on a pair of Audio Technica M50x which unfortunately i had to send back as the ear cups are designed for a 5 year old child for some reason and where very uncomfortable within a few minutes of wearing them, but it pushed them no problem, the bass was vibrating the pads off of my head.I usually avoid the made in China stuff just because of previous bad experiences but hands up, i cant fault this little beast at all, the only negative i can find is it comes with a grey USB cable where black would of been a bit stealthier, and if that's the only negative then really its perfect.

An excellent bit of equipment this. Its my first SMSL piece of hifi, but judging by its quality, both of build and performance, it wont be the last. The dac is pretty full specced and the headphone amp superb. Quite how they do this for the lowly price is a mystery, but I'm not complaining.Excellent next day service from Amazon too. Worth 6 stars really.

A great Dac/amp combo does the job that my laptop cant handle powering my AKG K702. The SMSL M6 would easily power higher impedance headphones if needed. I personally used the WASABI plugin in Winamp so the music is sent straight to the dac with nothing in the pc interfering works great and once set up sounds brilliant. Great Dac/amp for the price highly recommend.

Fantastic for headphones. Far, far better than my HK AVR171 amp connected to the same PC. Unfortunately it just... died a year and a half later (it wasn't used that much, maybe a few hours a week).It turned on, worked for about 20 seconds, turned itself on and never worked again. Unfortunately I'm seeing lots of complaints about SMSL products in terms of reliability so whilst they are great, they seem very hit and miss.

Excellent dactrès belle sonorité

___General___Pros- Quality build- Works perfectly- Unbelievable soundCons- None, but I found out my smarphone can generate noise when close to the unit. (20 cm)__Sound___I've used a regular audio interface for a long time.Edirol UA25-EX + the AKG K712 Pro headphoneIt sounded like this:- Thin (Not much bass)- Harsh High frequency's- Not really dynamic- Panning location was hard to hearI did some research, and probably the AKG needs a good headphone amp to shine.So, I ordered the SMSL M6. I was scared the headphone would not improve much but boy it did!- Full sound (Bass, finally!)- Smooth, not harsh anymore- Dynamic- Perfectly can hear the sounds direction.___Conclusion___Need a good DAC, or AMP?For cheap? (Yes cheap, schiit stack2 Quality (or better?) for less money, no joke)Got any AKG Headphone? (Most AKG's wil not sound great without a good headphone amp I found out)Just buy this, the SMSL M6 will not let you down.

今後を踏まえ、取り合えず再生域の高いものを探していたが、1万円以下でPCM384kHz/32Bitまで対応していること自体が凄いと思いました。また皆さんがおっしゃっている通り、バスパワー駆動でオペアンプの交換が可能なことも大きなメリットです。なお不満とまではいかないが、スイッチのOn/Off切替はあった方が良かったかな？というところです。

Lo uso ormai da qualche giorno molto di frequente (anche diverse ore continuative) con delle AKG K712. Il prodotto soddisfa tutte le mie aspettative. Il case in alluminio lo rende davvero robustissimo e sopratutto gli da un aspetto molto professionale.Il suono è caldo e pulito, i bassi non sono invasivi ma sono chiari e controllati, così come gli alti non risultano troppo incisivi (sicuramente dipende anche dalle cuffie) e la potenza è piu che sufficiente: con le k712 da 62ohm non mi sono mai spinto oltre i 40/60 di volume.I comandi sono molto semplici e intuitivi, ogni azione si effettua tramite il mini pulsante/joystick frontale. Anche il mini display è comodissimo, per visualizzare tutte le info di riproduzione correnti.Altra nota positiva è che è praticamente plug and play (necessita di modificare le impostazioni per lavorare alla qualità massima) e che funziona anche con Android con un adattatore OTG.Segnalo che alla lunga scalda un po, ma non credo sia nulla di preoccupante, si vede che è fatto per lavorare a quelle temperature (testato per oltre 8 ore continuative).Consiglio di usarlo connesso tramite USB e di usare file musicali di alta qualità (flac, dsd, ecc ecc)

per quanto funzioni abbastanza bene, leggermente esasperato negli alti non ha nessuna presa per cuffia