SMSL DL200 the best ever value DAC/AMP?

[FreakyKiwi]

I am ordering one from the smsl store at alliexpress. Let's see if I am getting one with the new firmware (it's on sale on top of $15 off coupon btw ).

I don't know lf there's anyway to tell what firmware version is installed, or if there is more than one version released anyway.

 

[Deleted member 68540]

@FreakyKiwi : sorry to hear and happy it has not affected your unit otherwise. Did you see a green loading bar at the bottom?

My results are on the left (desktop) / bottom (mobile). On the right / top are results copied from update instructions posted above. It seems my results and yours are very similar except for the 'trim error', which is positive in your case and negative in mine. If this means that firmware update may produce different results for different units, you may be right, after all, that there is a hardware-related component here as well.

For those who have not yet installed the firmware, I would suggest waiting for an official update from @SMSL-Mandy , who I am sure is reading us, right?

In my case, I am happy to report I now only get clicks if I induce a transition between tracks, but then I get them with other DACs as well -- just tested with my FC4, and it's the same.

In fact, I regret testing the FC4. They are so good and so small that I could just have kept my headphones connected to them and my MR4 connected to the rather decent DAC of my Philips monitor. There's DSP going on in the MR4 anyway. I doubt I would feel much of a difference -- and I would have avoided all this trouble.

 

[FreakyKiwi]

@FreakyKiwi : sorry to hear and happy it has not affected your unit otherwise. Did you see a green loading bar at the bottom?

Yes, it did but took less than 5 seconds to complete so I wondered if it did anything.

Looking at the image you have posted from the instructions it does indicate the same firmware version 7.1.3.12U as my result so I guess I'm up to date although I have no idea what version I had before.

Anyway, I plugged in my new Edition XS to test after the update and I'm still in budget audiophile nirvana with what I'm hearing.

 

[AudioNoob404]

Hi everyone... Just registered here because I need some support. I am totally new to this audio game...have been a fan of good headphones for years, but never had any. Now I've chosen to get Sennheiser HD660 S2 (loved it in comparison to 650)... and now I'd need a DAC/AMP combination for my desktop. Currently only from MacBook or iPhone as audio source... maybe, just maybe, some other stuff will come in the future.

I was looking at what is available and found couple devices that fit my needs:

1) Fiio K11 - has USB-C input, looks great, apparently sounds good, enough power for 660s2, but has some issues as I understood
2) SMSL DL200 in this thread, also looks good, has USB-C and stuff ... but I also saw some issues there
3) Fiio K7 - no USB-C, but seems to be more stable and better for headphones (that's what I got from reading, but correct me if I'm wrong).

What would be you suggestion for something below 250€?

Appreciate your help!

 

[kevinladd]

Hi everyone... Just registered here because I need some support. I am totally new to this audio game...have been a fan of good headphones for years, but never had any. Now I've chosen to get Sennheiser HD660 S2 (loved it in comparison to 650)... and now I'd need a DAC/AMP combination for my desktop. Currently only from MacBook or iPhone as audio source... maybe, just maybe, some other stuff will come in the future.

I was looking at what is available and found couple devices that fit my needs:

1) Fiio K11 - has USB-C input, looks great, apparently sounds good, enough power for 660s2, but has some issues as I understood
2) SMSL DL200 in this thread, also looks good, has USB-C and stuff ... but I also saw some issues there
3) Fiio K7 - no USB-C, but seems to be more stable and better for headphones (that's what I got from reading, but correct me if I'm wrong).

What would be you suggestion for something below 250€?

Appreciate your help!

I have the k11 and the dl200 and both are great. The K11 issues are fixed with the 1.22 firmware on their website!!

I am using as LO for speakers and I have never heard any of the pops/clicks etc using that function.. I have swapped back and forth a couple times and the DL200 sounds marginally better than K11 but really splitting hairs in my setup at least.

I have no experience with the K7..

You can't really go wrong with either K11 or DL200 imho

 

[AudioNoob404]

I have the k11 and the dl200 and both are great. The K11 issues are fixed with the 1.22 firmware on their website!!

I am using as LO for speakers and I have never heard any of the pops/clicks etc using that function.. I have swapped back and forth a couple times and the DL200 sounds marginally better than K11 but really splitting hairs in my setup at least.

I have no experience with the K7..

You can't really go wrong with either K11 or DL200 imho

Hey, thanks for such a quick reply - sounds really good! K7 was rather Plan C.

Edit: Just to follow on this - which of the two would have balanced output? I'm reading confusing different statements about that. And do I really should care?

 

[renaudrenaud]

Hi everyone... Just registered here because I need some support. I am totally new to this audio game...have been a fan of good headphones for years, but never had any. Now I've chosen to get Sennheiser HD660 S2 (loved it in comparison to 650)... and now I'd need a DAC/AMP combination for my desktop. Currently only from MacBook or iPhone as audio source... maybe, just maybe, some other stuff will come in the future.

I was looking at what is available and found couple devices that fit my needs:

1) Fiio K11 - has USB-C input, looks great, apparently sounds good, enough power for 660s2, but has some issues as I understood
2) SMSL DL200 in this thread, also looks good, has USB-C and stuff ... but I also saw some issues there
3) Fiio K7 - no USB-C, but seems to be more stable and better for headphones (that's what I got from reading, but correct me if I'm wrong).

What would be you suggestion for something below 250€?

Appreciate your help!

I got the DL200 for 158€. The unit is not so nice in photo but the real thing is better, with a not informative but very legible screen.

Technically speaking, there is the new XU316 for USB input, the new ES9039Q2M, and the good Texas Instruments OPA1612 for my difficult to drive pair of headphones.

Plan to use it with XLR outputs to the amp later, but right now just with the Headphones. Cannot see a better alternative and since few days I spend a lot of time listening a lot of music.

It's quite easy to get a wonderful system at 10% of the cost of a simple entry level cable sold by snake oil companies.

 

[FreakyKiwi]

Hey, thanks for such a quick reply - sounds really good! K7 was rather Plan C.

Edit: Just to follow on this - which of the two would have balanced output? I'm reading confusing different statements about that. And do I really should care?

Balanced headphone output or line output?
The DL200 has TRS balanced line output but not balanced headphone output, although it does have a 4.4mm balanced connector which is not actually balanced if I am not mistaken.

Both are a bit pointless in most cases IMO.

In a portable DAC the balanced headphone outputs are included to provide more power for hard to drive headphones, although still not as much power as a typical unbalanced desktop headphone amp output.
e.g. my Quedelix 5K produces 240mW from the balanced headphone connector, compared with 1500mW unbalanced from the DL200.
The K11 looks to be boosted portable DAC in a desktop enclosure.

Balanced line outputs were designed for long cable runs in professional environments and as far as I'm aware really add nothing for a typical home system.

Comparing your options, the DL200 is quite large which may be a good or bad thing in your case, and the display is not particularly useful, always showing the bitrate and only showing the volume when you are changing it. The K11 display looks to be more useful, the K7 has no display and relies on a multi colored light for the knob to provide limited information.

 

[Qu@rk]

I would assume the 158 Euro are without VAT. That's the regular price at the moment from Amazon in the EU.

I've ordered two DL200 from Amazon (seller: Bestaudio Parts) and got them yesterday.
Hooked one of them to my very old Sony TV (optical) today just for testing with 2 Neumann KH 120.

I am so relieved that there is no loud plopp at power on or off. That was my biggest concern.

Filter: FL1 (default: FL2)
It seems SMSL kept the order of filters from the ES9039Q2M data sheet this time (but filter 8 is missing).

DPLL: 1 (default: 4), works great so far, also did my DO100 which I usually use with this old TV.

After some basic tests, everything seems to be fine, has worked perfectly the whole afternoon. But of course I will have to do more detailed tests with Windows (WASAPI, ASIO), Linux, Bluetooth, different headphones, changing titles and sample rates etc. with both units.

I don't know if this has already been mentioned:

A long press of the FN button on the remote (3 seconds or so) disables the display - very nice. The display is very bright even at the lowest level setting. It comes back for a view seconds as soon as the volume or sample rate changed or for changing settings.

Is it possible to measure the DC level at the RCA/XLR outputs using a good digital multimeter?

Edit: typos

 

[AudioNoob404]

I got the DL200 for 158€. The unit is not so nice in photo but the real thing is better, with a not informative but very legible screen.

Technically speaking, there is the new XU316 for USB input, the new ES9039Q2M, and the good Texas Instruments OPA1612 for my difficult to drive pair of headphones.

Plan to use it with XLR outputs to the amp later, but right now just with the Headphones. Cannot see a better alternative and since few days I spend a lot of time listening a lot of music.

It's quite easy to get a wonderful system at 10% of the cost of a simple entry level cable sold by snake oil companies.

Thanks - I just saw the DL200 for around 158€ as well (with shipping from France), hope than one goes well

 

[renaudrenaud]

Thanks - I just saw the DL200 for around 158€ as well (with shipping from France), hope than one goes well

Well, the cost was so low I ordered also the M300SE .

 

[renaudrenaud]

Thanks - I just saw the DL200 for around 158€ as well (with shipping from France), hope than one goes well

Shipping from France ? Tu es français ?

 

[AudioNoob404]

Shipping from France ? Tu es français ?

Yep.. at least I hoped so. Now they are saying it will be shipped from China, which means - customs and tax on top. So no 158€ anymore An no - not French, Germany

Not it's either 190€ or go for K11 with about 140...or directly go for K7 with 220€...

 

[jozhix]

Just received mine. No pops / clicks whatsoever, so far all good. Also ordered from "France", 10 days from order to delivery (China -> France? -> EU). 160,82 EUR in total (taxes included).

 

[Qu@rk]

I would assume that you both ordered at hifi-express.com?
I found this before my Amazon order but I was hesitating regarding their return policy.
With Amazon I have time until end of January, maybe worth a few bucks more.

My second device shows a very quiet click when switching on from standby at the XLR outputs. But I have to increase the sensitivity of my Neumann KH 120 to an absurd 114 dB to make the click clearly audible, but even then it's still no problem at all.

Filters:
If you notice that the sound characteristic of your new, cherished DL200 is a little too bright, you could experiment with the filters.

FL1 and FL2 (default) add some brightness. Speech intelligibility benefits from this for example in movies or tv shows. If this is too much brightness for you, try filter FL7 (minimum phase slow roll-off) as a starting point.

Clicks:
Both devices produce quiet clicks when changing the sample rate or when stopping/starting a title with Linux (alsa, mpd, upmpdcli, BubbleUpnp). Switching from one track to the next does not produce a click.

I can live with it because even my mighty RME ADI-2 PRO FS R shows similar behaviour when used with my Linux setups.

So, at the moment I am happy but more tests are necessary.

I would like to measure the DC offset of the outputs of both devices, which is a big concern based on reports from owners. I hope my DMM delivers conclusive results.

 

[paulg1]

I just received my SMSL DL200 and got it hooked up. Mine works great, no pops or click anywhere, switching tracks etc. It takes quite a while to warm up. Afterwards, sounds really great, smooth, detailed. I can go through the menu and select without problems. I'm using USB input, set at USB 1.1 and the default windows 11 driver. I'm using long USB active optical cable for the connection to a PC, and short RCA cables to powered speakers.

I guess I don't understand the display. It's supposed to support up to 24 bit, 96 kHz files this way, and I bought an HD tracks 24/96 album to try out. It sounds great, but the display reads 48. Why? Is something wrong? Did the DAC downsample my file?

 

[renaudrenaud]

I just received my SMSL DL200 and got it hooked up. Mine works great, no pops or click anywhere, switching tracks etc. It takes quite a while to warm up. Afterwards, sounds really great, smooth, detailed. I can go through the menu and select without problems. I'm using USB input, set at USB 1.1 and the default windows 11 driver. I'm using long USB active optical cable for the connection to a PC, and short RCA cables to powered speakers.

I guess I don't understand the display. It's supposed to support up to 24 bit, 96 kHz files this way, and I bought an HD tracks 24/96 album to try out. It sounds great, but the display reads 48. Why? Is something wrong? Did the DAC downsample my file?

No, the XU316, the micro controler in charge of USB input manages up to 32/768, with USB 2.0

When you set USB 1.1 you downgrade the input from full speed to high speed.

Maximum USB 1.1 audio frequency is 96kHz and resolution is 24 bits.

I don't understand why you do this with a computer, except if your optical conversion requires it. I this case, this is not the problem of the DAC but the problem of your settings.

Putting the unit near your computer, using some USB standard cable and USB 2 selection, you will see the correct information on the screen.

Finally the ESS chip will work in 32 bits and x8 base frequency 44.1 or 48.

 

[FreakyKiwi]

USB 1.1 is for compatibility with devices such as a game consoles, use USB 2.0 with a computer or mobile device.

You will need to install the SMSL driver and use the ASIO output device or similar to allow Windows to switch bitrates automatically, otherwise you will only have whatever bitrate is selected in the Windows audio device settings.

https://www.smsl-audio.com/upload/portal/undefined/SMSLUSBAudioDriver.zip

 

[staticV3]

You will need to install the SMSL driver and use the ASIO output device or similar to allow Windows to switch bitrates automatically, otherwise you will only have whatever bitrate is selected in the Windows audio device settings.

https://www.smsl-audio.com/upload/portal/undefined/SMSLUSBAudioDriver.zip

You can do automatic sample rate switching (=bit perfect playback) without installing SMSL's driver, using the Wasapi Exclusive API.
It's compatible with Microsoft's generic UAC driver.

 

[paulg1]

StaticV3 how do I do this? The SMSL driver seems to be part of the pop and click problem, I'd rather try your suggestion first.