Geshelli JNOG Review (Balanced DAC)

[Swtoby]

Maybe I'm an idiot, but to me that isn't a failure. The case design is a little goofy, but at least they're trying something different rather than yet another generic extruded aluminum box.

And they have great customer service. Which is not the norm in my experience.

 

[Hemi-Demon]

The Geshelli stock measurements on their site, max at 2.5V, why then does this unit only reach 1.94?

Seems like a good, not great device, at $250. What's the issue, not everyone wants a topping device (although I do)?

I do think the Geshelli engineer made a mistake in using the Amanero USB versus XMOS. My experiences with Amanero based USB ports have tended to be a little dirty soundwise. Its interesting how different their jitter measurements are from Amir's
Are the AP settings different?

They have the AP 555B version, maybe that makes a difference?

 

[max233]

If they cannot compete with the prices of the bigger players, and they can't outperform them, and they have no other advantages, they will never be a successful company. That is about as basic a business concept as it gets. So either you are wrong, or they will fail--assuming they actually want to make a profit and are not running it as a hobby. The absolute first question anyone should ask themselves before starting a new business or launching a new product that is not the first of its kind is, "Why should someone buy this instead of another product that already exists?" They can't even compete based on being a U.S. manufacturer, as Schiit is, also. In addition, new companies without lots of financial backing have to overcome the worry that they will no longer be around in the future if their product needs repair. So if it can't compete on price, either the product needs to outperform its competitors, be of noticeably higher build quality, or have some other attribute such as attractive appearance that sets it apart. (Or a very large advertising and marketing budget.) This fails on all fronts. The ONLY reason I can see for someone buying this, if it were still available, at $250 is if they just want to support the company. They won't stay in business with only those customers.

Personally, I bought their product because I watched their interviews and liked the way they came across. Real people. Unlike many others that I've watched. I try not to deal with people that I don't like. Their product is as good as most and better than many. Furthermore, they have a unique look. Black and silver reminds me of the beige PCs from the 90's. It doesn't match any of my decor.
One other thing: If you buy Chinese, good luck with any type of warranty. Been there, done that. Things get "lost" in the mail over there. A lot.

 

[max233]

I'm ordering the J2 and let's see how it measures. I'm surprised they didn't use ESS 9038PRO but instead went with 9026PRO which was from early 2016 (the one on my Yamaha CX-A3070 back then).

I totally agree that the "blinking led long-short press" user interface from Geshelli is not user friendly and confusing. It's one of the few products that I had to read the user manual to see how to use. I would rather they drop the feature to change the LED lighting (kinda remind me of the "mood lighting" in my cars, which is kinda pointless) and design a better UI. Or... maybe that's how they differentiate themselves from others, together with the metal case with acrylic front and back?

It's not confusing trust me. A monkey could figure it out.

 

[H-713]

Personally, I bought their product because I watched their interviews and liked the way they came across. Real people. Unlike many others that I've watched. I try not to deal with people that I don't like. Their product is as good as most and better than many. Furthermore, they have a unique look. Black and silver reminds me of the beige PCs from the 90's. It doesn't match any of my decor.
One other thing: If you buy Chinese, good luck with any type of warranty. Been there, done that. Things get "lost" in the mail over there. A lot.

International warranty in general can be tricky, though it isn't specific to Chinese companies. If you want a warranty for your foreign-made product, you're stuck going to the distributor most of the time. Some companies seem to care about it a lot more than others too. Siglent and Rigol, for example, have distributors and (as I understand it) warranty service isn't too difficult.

For example, warranty repairs (rare event) on MC2, L-Acoustics and Powersoft amplifiers aren't bad in the US, because they have distributors who take care of it. Some of the small Chinese brands that have more of an international distributor, well, the logistics and getting it sorted out can be a big pain.

 

[shrimp_dude]

The Geshelli stock measurements on their site, max at 2.5V, why then does this unit only reach 1.94?

That is for the newer J2, not this JNOG. Still not sure why it's only 2.5v though.

 

[PeteL]

If they cannot compete with the prices of the bigger players, and they can't outperform them, and they have no other advantages, they will never be a successful company. That is about as basic a business concept as it gets. So either you are wrong, or they will fail--assuming they actually want to make a profit and are not running it as a hobby. The absolute first question anyone should ask themselves before starting a new business or launching a new product that is not the first of its kind is, "Why should someone buy this instead of another product that already exists?" They can't even compete based on being a U.S. manufacturer, as Schiit is, also. In addition, new companies without lots of financial backing have to overcome the worry that they will no longer be around in the future if their product needs repair. So if it can't compete on price, either the product needs to outperform its competitors, be of noticeably higher build quality, or have some other attribute such as attractive appearance that sets it apart. (Or a very large advertising and marketing budget.) This fails on all fronts. The ONLY reason I can see for someone buying this, if it were still available, at $250 is if they just want to support the company. They won't stay in business with only those customers.

You are mentioning Schiit. Fact is... They are the only North American company that can compete, the sole... Kudos to them. What you say, altough partly true, is a bit fatalistic. It's like saying everybody should stop trying, it's useless, you should give up now. I don't see it like that. Sure it's a struggle, but what is fail for some is success for some. Maybe this guy don't care if he sells 50 units, if he need to have a second day job, if he has to assemble all himself and don't get money from it or just barely to just be alive. Maybe for him it's not a fail, a struggle, yes. If expectations are low, it's not failing. Who are we to say that since he can't compete he has no business existing? He does what he likes, So far his company survive. Not a failure. Plus this DAC is not horrible, I’m sure it sounds fine.

 

[bequietjk]

I see this a lot lately. Audio is art blah blah blah. Not very original.

The music is art, the device that reproduces it is a tool. Simple as that.

Beautiful.

 

[TheTalbotHound]

For its time it is pretty good. Luckily the updated J2 measures a little better. Still not quite up with the top performers, but definitely respectable. And Geshelli's amps are up there with the top performers, and really nice value to boot. Good manufacturer.

 

[DualTriode]

Hello All,

I am guessing that the thing was sent by Geshelli months ago and sat on amirm’s shelf and Geshelli got impatient and asked amirm what is up in a brisk way.

It looks like this review of a years old design is a bit less than kind.

Thanks DT

 

[Walter]

You are mentioning Schiit. Fact is... They are the only North American company that can compete, the sole... Kudos to them. What you say, altough partly true, is a bit fatalistic. It's like saying everybody should stop trying, it's useless, you should give up now. I don't see it like that. Sure it's a struggle, but what is fail for some is success for some. Maybe this guy don't care if he sells 50 units, if he need to have a second day job, if he has to assemble all himself and don't get money from it or just barely to just be alive. Maybe for him it's not a fail, a struggle, yes. If expectations are low, it's not failing. Who are we to say that since he can't compete he has no business existing? He does what he likes, So far his company survive. Not a failure. Plus this DAC is not horrible, I’m sure it sounds fine.

I agree with you. That is what I meant when I said unless it is a hobby. I'm all for supporting small businesses if they make a product I like. Also, a product can fail without the whole business failing, and I have read a review of at least one other Geshelli product that did not leave me thinking it was such a poor value. I hope the company prospers.

 

[amirm]

I am guessing that the thing was sent by Geshelli months ago and sat on amirm’s shelf and Geshelli got impatient and asked amirm what is up in a brisk way.

You have it half right. A member bought and sent it to me around May. Pinged me a few days to know what is going on and I figured it is time to review it.

 

[amirm]

It's not confusing trust me. A monkey could figure it out.

Simple thing like selecting the input should not require figuring out. It is not like you get something for your troubles. It is harder to use because a decision was made to have stacked LEDs rather than a row of them with labels around them. Overloading the input button to then select input levels adds to this aggravation.

 

[Rottmannash]

@Walter,
It is completely invalid to compare/judge the price called for this to something similar produced by SMSL, Topping etc. Geshelli is a microscopically small US-based company which means all their cost factors are at least 10x of what those global asian players see. As far as I can see, Geshelli actually isn't even making any net profit from their products.

How long does it take you folks finally get this?

If they're not making net profit why/ how are they in business? Altruism?

 

[Doodski]

If they're not making net profit why/ how are they in business? Altruism?

True love man... some people love electronics. It's a labor of love. I don't really know but that's what you guys are heading towards.

 

[ousi]

If they're not making net profit why/ how are they in business? Altruism?

If someone around remember a brand called Monarchy Audio (now closed), they are also based in US and the owner was the one who assembled all the amps. They did turn out a small profit but when I asked CC Poon why he did that in the first place - it's literally "passion". He just liked to make amps and stuff, then why not sell them too. He is now retired though.

But then it's still valid to compare this DAC with the other offering simply because they are all on the market, and customer should know other alternatives. The customers then decide if they want to pay more for a lesser performant product - be it due to brand (plenty example, McIntosh came to mind) or simply want to support local business (e.g. Schiit). Seems like everyone forgot about how Schiit started back in 2010.

 

[PeteL]

True love man... some people love electronics. It's a labor of love. I don't really know but that's what you guys are heading towards.

Me my point was more, if you get in this business with the idea that you will be able to compete with the pricing of the Asian big guns, you shouldn't start the business, stop right there, maybe you'll get the break and be able to turn big volumes and make the home run, and it's great when that happens, but for everybody else yes, it's a matter of doing what they are passionate about, staying small, cut the middle man, do as much as you can yourself and you may be able to pay the rent, but compete in price, you need to have huge backing, involve massive investment and have something revolutionary that everybody will want. The problem is, there's nothing revolutionary in consumer audio, they are all little guys doing products that are more or less doing the same thing, DAC, amps, speakers, what else can you do really in this business. Personally I am happy that we have smaller players, If the only valid way of doing this is to be big enough to compete in pricing, none of these small brands would survive and we'd be left with just a handful of companies dominating the market, because you simply can't be as cheap as they do in China, the numbers don't add up.

 

[Doodski]

Me my point was more, if you get in this business with the idea that you will be able to compete with the pricing of the Asian big guns, you shouldn't start the business, stop right there, maybe you'll get the break and be able to turn big volumes and make the home run, and it's great when that happens, but for everybody else yes, it's a matter of doing what they are passionate about, staying small, cut the middle man, do as much as you can yourself and you may be able to pay the rent, but compete in price, you need to have huge backing, involve massive investment and have something revolutionary that everybody will want. The problem is, there's nothing revolutionary in consumer audio, they are all little guys doing products that are more or less doing the same thing, DAC, amps, speakers, what else can you do really in this business. Personally I am happy that we have smaller players, If the only valid way of doing this is to be big enough to compete in pricing, none of these small brands would survive and we'd be left with just a handful of companies dominating the market, because you simply can't be as cheap as they do in China, the numbers don't add up.

There's generally 3 players. Mom & PoP, boutique and mass merchandiser. each has their place and each contributes to the mass of the business. Each has financial strengths and weaknesses.

 

[PeteL]

There's generally 3 players. Mom & PoP, boutique and mass merchandiser. each has their place and each contributes to the mass of the business. Each has financial strengths and weaknesses.

Sure, me what I say is it's unfair to judge mom and pop by saying it can be had for cheaper by mass merchandiser. When mom and pop tries that, thinking that's how you reach success, mom and pop gets into huge debt, and mom and pop goes bankrupt.

 

[amirm]

They are a vertically integrated company with their own pick and place machine (to assemble parts on PC Boards), laser cutting equipment (which they use for plastics work independent of audio), etc. This increases capital investment but gives them lower cost.