Review and Measurements of Aune X1S DAC & Amp

[mshenay]

I've got one of these as well, I'll be comparing it to my EL Dac + Atom here soon, but my X1S also has the upgraded power supply,

Either way It's quite nice! Good to see some hard data 4 it

 

[GeekyBastard]

Good, so does Aune still involved in this hifidiy.net as it was before ?
Aune has really been among the very first Chinese brands to build devices up to the western standards, well before SMSL Topping Gustard ...
I like Aune.

Sadly (Or not) no, Aune is a big brand in China now, it's being discussed on almost every Hi-Fi related forums, hifidiy.net doesn't have that many people as before...

 

[confucius_zero]

So it beats the dx3pro as a dac except for "intermodulation" thing which is below the lenient threshold. Best high sinad value of the forum?

 

[Veri]

So it beats the dx3pro as a dac except for "intermodulation" thing which is below the lenient threshold. Best high sinad value of the forum?

Value, maybe. Output impedance, not so; a problem for more sensitive headphones. Not a huge problem, but a problem none the less.

 

[confucius_zero]

problem for more sensitive headphones

will use it to feed into the atom.

 

[Veri]

will use it to feed into the atom.

That's fine. Thumbs up

 

[graz_lag]

... Best high sinad value of the forum?

Yeah, but you buy a device, which is old by design, pretty good DAC performance though.
The MarchAudio's DAC1 @ would offer the best value for money if one could get it at $/€ 300 ...
IMHO

 

[GeekyBastard]

Yeah, but you buy a device, which is old by design, pretty good DAC performance though.
The MarchAudio's DAC1 @ would offer the best value for money if one could get it at $/€ 300 ...
IMHO

Wait... Ain't March Audio DAC1 just Khadas Tone Board with a case?

 

[confucius_zero]

which is old by design

Doesn't bother me one bit if the numbers check out. I run a rega dac at home that's quite old but great sounding.

 

[Veri]

Yeah, but you buy a device, which is old by design, pretty good DAC performance though.
The MarchAudio's DAC1 @ would offer the best value for money if one could get it at $/€ 300 ...
IMHO

It's shown here the 9018 chip performs quite well though. The 9038 doesn't seem necessarily better especially in the budget dac section.
Also the DAC measured here is the 10th anniversary version which supposedly has some improvements, the design is not that old.

 

[la2ygoo]

Aune is quite honest

 

[sonci]

Nice review of old technology, 25 year old cd player..

https://kenrockwell.com/audio/sony/cdp-x303es.htm

 

[JJB70]

Nice review of old technology, 25 year old cd player..

https://kenrockwell.com/audio/sony/cdp-x303es.htm

I am still using one of those! Bought it new and has served me well ever since. I am honestly not sure you could buy a CD player anywhere near the quality of design and construction today. After 25 years I am sure that I could easily buy something that measures better for a fraction of the price, I am also sure that it wouldn't sound any better to my ears and would not be in the same world in terms of build quality and durability. Sony really knew how to nail stuff together, the fit and finish and tactile feel shames most stuff.

 

[sonci]

I am still using one of those! Bought it new and has served me well ever since. I am honestly not sure you could buy a CD player anywhere near the quality of design and construction today. After 25 years I am sure that I could easily buy something that measures better for a fraction of the price, I am also sure that it wouldn't sound any better to my ears and would not be in the same world in terms of build quality and durability. Sony really knew how to nail stuff together, the fit and finish and tactile feel shames most stuff.

https://kenrockwell.com/audio/why-cds-sound-great.htm
Another nice read. Especially the jitter section, cd players are natively superior to outboard dacs,

 

[dropbear]

And now let's hope for another kind loan in the form of (supposedly new, I did not check it for some time now) S6 Pro
http://en.auneaudio.com/index.php?s=Home/Article/detail/id/159.html .
Well, at least it looks like so as I have not found selling it yet, even their own store does not list S6 Pro, but I got a message by one of the distributors in EU they have them coming in next couple of weeks.

 

[sonci]

And now let's hope for another kind loan in the form of (supposedly new, I did not check it for some time now) S6 Pro
http://en.auneaudio.com/index.php?s=Home/Article/detail/id/159.html .
Well, at least it looks like so as I have not found selling it yet, even their own store does not list S6 Pro, but I got a message by one of the distributors in EU they have them coming in next couple of weeks.

It seems to have AES input. Is there any advantage?

 

[tired_guru]

@amirm

In standard version of X1s (not anniversary) you could use input change button by holding it for a few seconds, and it would switch between 3 different digital filters - you can check this out, you can measure it (If I recall correctly the led will change its color from green to red during this process)

Can you run jitter test using toslink input ? That would be great !

How about headphone output dynamics ? Is it able to pass dac's performance ? Or will it be better to use JDS atom (for high impedance headphones scenario) ?

This can be nice all in one combo, with nice and wise pricing that's why I am asking ...

Aune always sounded great to my ears and never broke down. This is one of Chinese company that you can rely on. Built like a tank with great musical performance. Now we know that it also measures superbly.

Would love to see how aune S16 measures in the future.

Thanks

 

[confucius_zero]

I'll be comparing it to my EL Dac + Atom here soon

any news of that?

 

[amirm]

And now let's hope for another kind loan in the form of (supposedly new, I did not check it for some time now) S6 Pro
http://en.auneaudio.com/index.php?s=Home/Article/detail/id/159.html .
Well, at least it looks like so as I have not found selling it yet, even their own store does not list S6 Pro, but I got a message by one of the distributors in EU they have them coming in next couple of weeks.

I bought an S6 months ago from Massdrop but had not had a chance to fully review it. It does look very nice.

 

[Koen]

Hey guys,

I'm new to this forum here, but have been comparing DACs for the last couple of months. I currently own a Edirol UA-25 DA/AD converter (a recording device like the Behringer UMC202HD) which is more than 10 years old and want to upgrade my system and have a more dedicated DAC (instead of a recording device).

I just saw that the AUNE X8 was launched in Europe, where I live, and seems to be the successor of the X1s (can't find any information on the official Aune site). It uses the ESS9038 DAC chip, comes with a linear power supply and multiple opamps which enables sound tuning. Compared to the X1s, they got rid of the headphone amplifier (which means I get more bang for buck )

Does anybody has some thoughts on this new Aune DAC?

I heard Aune generally does a decent job in the sub $400 segment (which is approximately my budget for either new or second-hand DACs), so should I include it in my current shortlist, consisting of: Pro-Ject Pre Box S2 Digital, Topping D50, Micromega MyDac?

Thanks guys!




https://www.auneaudio-europe.com/index.php/products/aune-x8-magical-dac-32-768k-dsd512-silver.html