MEIZU Hifi Pro USB-C Phone Dongle DAC Review

[staticV3]

I recently got the meizu master hifi, I use it on the pc. Which sampling rate do you recommend? 32bit 384? 24/96? Putting the maximum available (32/384) are there problems with audio interruptions?

The Windows Direct Sound up/downsampler is not very good at its job. I recommend you set your DAC in the sound control panel to the sample rate that you consume most of the time, to avoid sample rate conversion as best as possible. Bit depth should be set to the highest possible value.
If you're listening to MP3s, FLACs, WAVs, use a player with wasapi output to bypass the direct sound mixer and to always play at the native sample rate of your files.

 

[daniell92]

The Windows Direct Sound up/downsampler is not very good at its job. I recommend you set your DAC in the sound control panel to the sample rate that you consume most of the time, to avoid sample rate conversion as best as possible. Bit depth should be set to the highest possible value.
If you're listening to MP3s, FLACs, WAVs, use a player with wasapi output to bypass the direct sound mixer and to always play at the native sample rate of your files.

windows 24 bit / 44.100 khz or 48khz ? ----- Foobar 24 bit o 32 ?

 

[Veri]

Furthermore, when playing 44.1KHz content on the regular Meizu HiFi with foobar wasapi output, no stutter occurs.

On OSX / Core Audio I haven't really noticed the stuttering at either 44/48k, 24-bit.

windows 24 bit / 44.100 khz or 48khz ? ----- Foobar 24 bit o 32 ?

I recommend 44 or 48k, 24-bit.

 

[staticV3]

Afaik, there's no reason to choose a lower bit depth than what is possible. Going with the highest means that you have more headroom for digital volume reduction before losing bits of data

 

[Veri]

I kinda fail to see the point of 32-bit since 24-bit is already plenty for any sane use case. I can imagine more apps will be buggy with 32-bit than with 24-bit, too. But yes in theory it shouldn't hurt anything Some newer devices show only 32-bit options using default Windows 10 driver, I've noticed, anyway.

 

[vkvedam]

I kinda fail to see the point of 32-bit since 24-bit is already plenty for any sane use case. I can imagine more apps will be buggy with 32-bit than with 24-bit, too. But yes in theory it shouldn't hurt anything Some newer devices show only 32-bit options using default Windows 10 driver, I've noticed, anyway.

Well, I still haven't figured out the audible benefit of 24-bit , forget about 32-bit

 

[raistlin65]

Well, I still haven't figured out the audible benefit of 24-bit , forget about 32-bit

Me neither. I'm all set with 16/44.1

 

[Veri]

Me neither. I'm all set with 16/44.1

Well... 24-bit is still better than 16-bit pretty much always. You gain 8 bits for lossless volume control as well as better jitter performance on 24-bit data transfer.

 

[vkvedam]

Well... 24-bit is still better than 16-bit pretty much always. You gain 8 bits for lossless volume control as well as better jitter performance on 24-bit data transfer.

Technically, yes. I wish my ears are as capable as an AP analyser !

 

[raistlin65]

Well... 24-bit is still better than 16-bit pretty much always. You gain 8 bits for lossless volume control as well as better jitter performance on 24-bit data transfer.

I've never been able to understand why the volume control difference for 16 vs 24 matters, given the dynamic range of most recordings is very narrow compared to the dynamic range of CD quality audio. Am I missing something?

 

[Veri]

I've never been able to understand why the volume control difference for 16 vs 24 matters, given the dynamic range of most recordings is very narrow compared to the dynamic range of CD quality audio. Am I missing something?

I'd be mostly concerned by lousier 16-bit jitter spectrum than with 24-bit data transmission. It's a free win. The bit depth itself, heck if I truncate 24-bit to 16-bit I still can't really hear it (I must be bit-depth deaf )

 

[maverickronin]

I've never been able to understand why the volume control difference for 16 vs 24 matters, given the dynamic range of most recordings is very narrow compared to the dynamic range of CD quality audio. Am I missing something?

Just to keep everything well above the noise floor no matter what. Useful for for everything from super sensitive IEMs to unfixable gain-staging issues.

 

[pedrola_marola]

Hello, this is my first post here. I would like to know if it is safe to connect this dongle to the input of the pre amplifier of my vintage sansui au alpha 607dr. I don't know how to interpret the measurements made by amirm very well, in the post he talks about 1.75 volts of output, is that too much or too little? Is there a chance to burn or spoil the sansui? Sorry for my lack of knowledge on the subject, I searched the internet but I didn't find any answer to this question.

 

[vkvedam]

Hello, this is my first post here. I would like to know if it is safe to connect this dongle to the input of the pre amplifier of my vintage sansui au alpha 607dr. I don't know how to interpret the measurements made by amirm very well, in the post he talks about 1.75 volts of output, is that too much or too little? Is there a chance to burn or spoil the sansui? Sorry for my lack of knowledge on the subject, I searched the internet but I didn't find any answer to this question.

Welcome to the forum. You can connect it to Sansui preamplifier, no problem with that. Nominal would be around 2 volts but this being a dongle it can pump out 1.75 volts. In practice you might need to add a few more turns on the volume knob as compared to a nominal voltage source. Hope it helps!
Ven

 

[pedrola_marola]

Welcome to the forum. You can connect it to Sansui preamplifier, no problem with that. Nominal would be around 2 volts but this being a dongle it can pump out 1.75 volts. In practice you might need to add a few more turns on the volume knob as compared to a nominal voltage source. Hope it helps!
Ven

Thank you! Two more questions: the right operation would be let the volume on the cell phone on the maximum? And should I be worried with the android upsample stuff? (the second question there are nothing to do with my previous post xd)

 

[vkvedam]

Thank you! Two more questions: the right operation would be let the volume on the cell phone on the maximum? And should I be worried with the android upsample stuff? (the second question there are nothing to do with my previous post xd)

Phone volume on maximum. Where do you play the music from? Streaming or locally stored on the phone?

 

[Zarniwoop]

So I just found the HFi Pro on Amazon for 22,99- here in Germany.

Could you provide a link from your amazon.de order? I can only see the non pro one.

 

[daniell92]

Can I use the meizu as a dac to connect a phone to an a / v receiver to listen to music? So meizu on the phone and classic rca for the receiver. It works ?

 

[Jimbob54]

Can I use the meizu as a dac to connect a phone to an a / v receiver to listen to music? So meizu on the phone and classic rca for the receiver. It works ?

Yup. Simple 3.5mm to RCA cable. If you get EM interference in your area on it, I wouldnt though as that could be nasty. But if you dont get it via headphones , see no reason why you would with the cable.

 

[ClosDeLaRoche]

Are these avaliable anymore? Seems like they've been sold out for a long time now.