Innovative products will always be questioned by others at the beginning. Your review is great, and I have been using M1 for more than three months. The sound is very similar to what you described. I have previously used Chord QUTEST and RME ADI2 Pro. The craftsmanship, size, Heat dissipation control, output, and sound quality of M1 have surpassed these two classic products.
I compared this M1 with Chord Dave, dCS Lina and several Cayin dac amp packages at an exhibition held in Shenzhen, it sounds fuller and more wide open which gives a larger stage feeling. A more clear, natural tone with abundant layerings in its presentation. Really good and competitive.
I've been using it for six months and this thing is truly reference quality as a DAC and a headphone amp. I will probably go for a desktop amp that's 4-5 times its size to drive my HiFiMAN Susvara to sound slightly more authoritative than with the M1 but the Susvara is an anomaly in its unreasonable hunger for power. For all my other headphones and IEMs the M1 delivers state-of-the-art sound quality and in some cases shows me potential from some of my headphones which I'd never imagined. The M1 doesn't just get frequency response or dynamic range or transient right, the heart of its strength is that it delivers music with lively emotions that moves you. As music lovers, we are sometimes left cold by audio components that get most technical aspects right but are on the analytical side of things. Not the M1. I feel that the M1 has continued on with that irresistible lively soul of the DTR1, Dethonray's very first compact music player that got me hooked. We often see an audio product that advertises its superb specs on paper but comes up short in delivering a musical experience, or a product that has a beautiful sound but is too flawed in certain aspects to be of reference quality. I am not saying one of these is better or worse than the other but the M1 is neither of those.
People without the slightest idea are putting war in the comment section probably never gonna afford it. I have had it for quite a long time, it is a Sonic marvel
For a baked-in sound signature maybe. But for that price my money would go to the RME ADI-2/4 Pro SE and would stay that way for a very long time. I also have the ADI-2 DACfs (old AKM version) that doubles as my transportable AIO desktop solution when I go for long/month long vacations. RME's software support is a gold standard too, one that Dethonray and other hi-fi based brands usually lack. Positively, Dethonray never fail to impress when it comes to their sound. Great review!
I have been using M1 for a long time, which powerful enough to drive most high imdepande headphone or earphone in amazing performance with the book size. Moveable size with desktop performance which can challenge famous brand dacamp product, the price is good or poor value , you should have an answer. For Reference: Before using M1 , i am using weiss dac502 + fidata hfas1-xs20u
I got a Boulder 812 originally, then made a side by side comparison with my colleague's Dethonray M1 (with iPad Air M1 as source) with my Elite...the result makes me mad. That tiny M1 outplays my 812, in terms of soundstage, density & details. You guys being a 3rd party do not realise such madness...
H1 & SG1 Gold by Dethonray are already comparable to Hugo 2. According to my listening in exhibitions, M1's sound quality is competitive at least in front of Dave, Weiss 502, etc
I strongly disagree with this. I've just compared the Listening M1 with the LAiV Harmony DAC (which is about on par with something like a Schiit Yggy+ and therefore a small step below TT2) and the Harmony is better as a DAC (no pre-amp or HP out of course). The M1 is an excellent device, but it's around Hugo 2 level, not way beyond it.
Hi, How would you describe the sound signatures - Organic - Lifelike / Natural or Warm / Colored? Neutral - Lifelike / Natural? It's important to understand... Thank you 🙏
Did Anson fix the pop and volume control lag in a firmware fix like he did with Pegasus SG1? And man do i wish SG1 had a timbre switch instead of having to load new firmware. I find Rhapsody great for most of my gear, but I prefer Serenade when listening to Meze 109 Pro to relax the top the a bit.
How funny i ended up with the ef600 into the s17pro which is the same dac as seranade, its a great pairing! However i just upgraded to the vmv p2 and d2r stack, and i feel like it has the same characteristics of the m1 from how you are explaining it. But it still is 600 dollars cheaper than m1 which is pretty wild. Love the way it looks and how tiny it is. Curious to hear it for myself sometime.
No. It's 100% digital as far as I understand. There are lots of digital, lossless volume solutions these days (e.g. all modern DAC chips). The role of the analog is just to signal the volume level and that's it, based on what I took from Anson's email about it.
There's no way to quantify value by $/£ in audio. As I said in my comparisons at the end, you can match or exceed the sound of the M1 for less money if you're happy to have two larger boxes and more cables
I completely agree. China and Chinese companies have invested a huge amount into their manufacturing infrastructure. Sometimes, they're one of few places that can even make certain high tech designs.
No-one can actually know the original sound of the recording unless you were in the mixing studio. In the end, it has to be about what each person prefers because that's the only thing we can know for sure.
I can't say much more than what I already have in the video. It's a little rich/warm, but not lacking details and clarity. Everything sounds lifelike and real, but there's a tonal range within which no-one can say what's "correct".
Have deathonray sg1 Bluetooth receiver.. sounds great just software very very problematic.. keeps losing all sound.. have to reinstall software each time usually after using twice.. wouldn't buy deathonray again.. shame
That's a reasonable suggestion, but there comes a point where a more expensive headphone is hamstrung by a lower level DAC and headphone amp so it's all about balance IMO
I like your hooded sweatshirt USB message, really great.
Haha. Yeah, I enjoy that one too. (It's available from the merch shop 😉)
$2,600 for that tiny thing means that it needs to be absolutely flawless.
You will get the same thing from a fiio k11
Innovative products will always be questioned by others at the beginning. Your review is great, and I have been using M1 for more than three months. The sound is very similar to what you described. I have previously used Chord QUTEST and RME ADI2 Pro. The craftsmanship, size, Heat dissipation control, output, and sound quality of M1 have surpassed these two classic products.
Thanks for sharing your experiences!
I compared this M1 with Chord Dave, dCS Lina and several Cayin dac amp packages at an exhibition held in Shenzhen, it sounds fuller and more wide open which gives a larger stage feeling. A more clear, natural tone with abundant layerings in its presentation. Really good and competitive.
Thanks for sharing your experiences
I've been using it for six months and this thing is truly reference quality as a DAC and a headphone amp. I will probably go for a desktop amp that's 4-5 times its size to drive my HiFiMAN Susvara to sound slightly more authoritative than with the M1 but the Susvara is an anomaly in its unreasonable hunger for power. For all my other headphones and IEMs the M1 delivers state-of-the-art sound quality and in some cases shows me potential from some of my headphones which I'd never imagined. The M1 doesn't just get frequency response or dynamic range or transient right, the heart of its strength is that it delivers music with lively emotions that moves you. As music lovers, we are sometimes left cold by audio components that get most technical aspects right but are on the analytical side of things. Not the M1. I feel that the M1 has continued on with that irresistible lively soul of the DTR1, Dethonray's very first compact music player that got me hooked. We often see an audio product that advertises its superb specs on paper but comes up short in delivering a musical experience, or a product that has a beautiful sound but is too flawed in certain aspects to be of reference quality. I am not saying one of these is better or worse than the other but the M1 is neither of those.
Thanks for sharing your experiences!
People without the slightest idea are putting war in the comment section probably never gonna afford it. I have had it for quite a long time, it is a Sonic marvel
I agree. Lots of unfortunate assumptions and "judging a book by its size and price".
Glad you're enjoying it - the M1 is special!
For a baked-in sound signature maybe. But for that price my money would go to the RME ADI-2/4 Pro SE and would stay that way for a very long time. I also have the ADI-2 DACfs (old AKM version) that doubles as my transportable AIO desktop solution when I go for long/month long vacations. RME's software support is a gold standard too, one that Dethonray and other hi-fi based brands usually lack. Positively, Dethonray never fail to impress when it comes to their sound. Great review!
Having tried the ADI-2 FS, this is leagues ahead, but of course doesn't have the features and controls of the RME.
I think you have to offer genuine sophistication for that price.
I'd say this is genuinely sophisticated
I have been using M1 for a long time, which powerful enough to drive most high imdepande headphone or earphone in amazing performance with the book size.
Moveable size with desktop performance which can challenge famous brand dacamp product, the price is good or poor value , you should have an answer.
For Reference: Before using M1 , i am using weiss dac502 + fidata hfas1-xs20u
Thanks for sharing your experiences!
I got a Boulder 812 originally, then made a side by side comparison with my colleague's Dethonray M1 (with iPad Air M1 as source) with my Elite...the result makes me mad. That tiny M1 outplays my 812, in terms of soundstage, density & details. You guys being a 3rd party do not realise such madness...
The M1 is pretty crazy, isn't it?
@@PassionforSound that's true, unbelievably
I just looked up the Boulder 812 and I can't believe how weak the headphone amp section is 😮
For £11,000 I'd expect at least 1W not 0.2W.
is the Amp powerful enough to drive high impedance headphones?
Yes
Why not compare it to the Hugo 2? Would it reflect badly on it, a head to head?
I don't own one
H1 & SG1 Gold by Dethonray are already comparable to Hugo 2. According to my listening in exhibitions, M1's sound quality is competitive at least in front of Dave, Weiss 502, etc
I strongly disagree with this. I've just compared the Listening M1 with the LAiV Harmony DAC (which is about on par with something like a Schiit Yggy+ and therefore a small step below TT2) and the Harmony is better as a DAC (no pre-amp or HP out of course).
The M1 is an excellent device, but it's around Hugo 2 level, not way beyond it.
@@PassionforSoundSo what is your definition and standard regarding “better" on sound?
Hi,
How would you describe the sound signatures -
Organic - Lifelike / Natural or Warm / Colored?
Neutral - Lifelike / Natural?
It's important to understand...
Thank you 🙏
I'd say it's more towards organic. It's smooth and a touch warm, but very natural overall to my ears.
I see you add the Aune s17 pro for an amp option. How does m1 compare to the Aune S9c pro?
I haven't tried the S9C - sorry
Did Anson fix the pop and volume control lag in a firmware fix like he did with Pegasus SG1?
And man do i wish SG1 had a timbre switch instead of having to load new firmware. I find Rhapsody great for most of my gear, but I prefer Serenade when listening to Meze 109 Pro to relax the top the a bit.
My SG1 got broken by a shorted headphone cable so I don't know how the latest firmware performs. I agree that a timbre switch would have been great.
How funny i ended up with the ef600 into the s17pro which is the same dac as seranade, its a great pairing!
However i just upgraded to the vmv p2 and d2r stack, and i feel like it has the same characteristics of the m1 from how you are explaining it. But it still is 600 dollars cheaper than m1 which is pretty wild. Love the way it looks and how tiny it is. Curious to hear it for myself sometime.
I'm guessing the designer might be mixing analogue & digital volume controls to keep a good bit depth - just a thought
No. It's 100% digital as far as I understand. There are lots of digital, lossless volume solutions these days (e.g. all modern DAC chips). The role of the analog is just to signal the volume level and that's it, based on what I took from Anson's email about it.
How Much ! is it £2000 better than the SMSL SH-9 and a good DAC ?
￡2,172.99, never for chi-fi
There's no way to quantify value by $/£ in audio. As I said in my comparisons at the end, you can match or exceed the sound of the M1 for less money if you're happy to have two larger boxes and more cables
@@artureff3046 Things can be from China and also be high quality and worth paying extra for. It's a big country.
I completely agree. China and Chinese companies have invested a huge amount into their manufacturing infrastructure. Sometimes, they're one of few places that can even make certain high tech designs.
Ah yes! The essence is nothing less than essential. 🧐
In other words: The sound is not Neutral, it stays less faithful to the original recording,
so it's a matter of preference...
Thank you
No-one can actually know the original sound of the recording unless you were in the mixing studio. In the end, it has to be about what each person prefers because that's the only thing we can know for sure.
@@PassionforSound The tonality sounds Lifelike/ Natural / Uncolored to your ears? How would you describe it?
I can't say much more than what I already have in the video. It's a little rich/warm, but not lacking details and clarity. Everything sounds lifelike and real, but there's a tonal range within which no-one can say what's "correct".
Have deathonray sg1 Bluetooth receiver.. sounds great just software very very problematic.. keeps losing all sound.. have to reinstall software each time usually after using twice.. wouldn't buy deathonray again.. shame
Oh dear. Sorry to hear about the SG1 problems you've had!
I have used SG1 for a few months, but never need to install or reinstall any software for its usage...Actually have you ever used SG1?😂
@@yaukiki4638 yes.. I bought it at launch..
i'm sorry but costing that much and still cannot do some basics correctly like volume... definitely a pass.... thanks for the review
I wouldn't say that the volume is incorrect. It doesn't skip large increments and could well get fixed in firmware.
I would spend my cash on better headphones, makes more difference, use geshelli stack or schiit stack and call it a day
That's a reasonable suggestion, but there comes a point where a more expensive headphone is hamstrung by a lower level DAC and headphone amp so it's all about balance IMO
It's to small to be a ....GET the f outa here it's huge, how wouldmsomething that big not power headphones 😂😂😂😂 litterally mwatts
For crazy people only. It's a joke!
You must like /< For that $$$ /< You usually push pep's to SEPERATES. ???
I will normally recommend separates even with this in the world, but for size and performance, the M1 is really unique.
@@PassionforSound =1 LONG TIME FOLLOWING #1 GO TO GUY. ✅️💯‼️