SMSL DO400 DAC & HP Amp Review

[Roland68]

I absolutely do not understand how such a completely superfluous thing can receive a recommendation, but an innovative device like the Wiim Pro with tons of features and more than adequate sound quality does not.

Edit: "poor" from me

Isn't this review supposed to be about the measured performance and the features that a device in this class offers?
Did you honestly evaluate it on those grounds?

The DO400 has been doing an excellent job for me for two years now—it could hardly be any better. It is absolutely reliable; its measurements and performance—including output power—are top-tier, and there are no known issues regarding failures.
Even today, this device remains one of the very best; and since three DX5 II units have already been returned by friends of mine due to various issues, that model isn't a viable alternative either.

As for the WiiM Pro: it was indeed measured by Amir and reviewed by users. It is a well-functioning device—no question about that—but its measured performance didn't exactly blow me away. Moreover, WiiM has since demonstrated that they are capable of doing much better. This feels more like an artificial—and entirely unnecessary—handicap designed solely to justify the existence of their more expensive devices. It is not customer-friendly, especially considering there are dongles available for €10–€30 that deliver superior performance.

Furthermore, the WiiM Pro lacks absolutely *all* of the features I require in the DO400: no USB input, no balanced outputs, and no headphone amplifier.
For me personally, the WiiM Pro would be completely useless—it would just end up sitting in a corner gathering dust.
Consequently, I would have to rate the WiiM Pro as "absolutely insufficient" (or even lower).

 

[shuppatsu]

Isn't this review supposed to be about the measured performance and the features that a device in this class offers?
Did you honestly evaluate it on those grounds?

The DO400 has been doing an excellent job for me for two years now—it could hardly be any better. It is absolutely reliable; its measurements and performance—including output power—are top-tier, and there are no known issues regarding failures.
Even today, this device remains one of the very best; and since three DX5 II units have already been returned by friends of mine due to various issues, that model isn't a viable alternative either.

As for the WiiM Pro: it was indeed measured by Amir and reviewed by users. It is a well-functioning device—no question about that—but its measured performance didn't exactly blow me away. Moreover, WiiM has since demonstrated that they are capable of doing much better. This feels more like an artificial—and entirely unnecessary—handicap designed solely to justify the existence of their more expensive devices. It is not customer-friendly, especially considering there are dongles available for €10–€30 that deliver superior performance.

While Amir has on at least one occasion berated a user for not voting in a sufficiently ASR-like manner, the original stated reason for having user voting was to get people off his back by giving the community to apply its own standards to the device and the information provided. Including, IMO, price and value. I personally voted 'fine' but would not gainsay someone else applying their own standards and voting 'poor.' It is yet another DAC that only does DAC things, clears the bar for transparency, and costs $500.

The Wiim Pro provides a staggering amount of functionality. Multiroom streaming, yes, but also PEQ, room correction, bluetooth, airplay, chromecast. Oh, and a DAC, whose performance was so terrible that Amir couldn't bestow his recommendation. How bad was it? 17 bits S/N ratio, so no problems there. The offending measurement was 2nd order harmonic distortion -95dB down from FS. As discussed recently, even -80dB 2nd order distortion will be completely masked.

Amir likes his DACs (and streamers I guess) to be able to faithfully transmit Red Book. That's his bar. I don't agree with it, but it's as justifiable as any other standard. It has some advantages such as not having to argue over the gray areas of audibility every single time. But it's not my bar, and naturally I think my bar is better since it's mine. I submit that no system is compromised by using the Wiim Pro's DAC over the Wiim Pro Plus's DAC, in any way that a person can hear. Currently the Pro is $126 and the Pro Plus $219 on Amazon. For that extra $93 you get a remote that sells for $19 and better measurements that you and anyone who listens to your system will never hear. So by my rubric, not only would I recommend the Pro, I'd recommend it *over* the Pro Plus.

Furthermore, the WiiM Pro lacks absolutely *all* of the features I require in the DO400: no USB input, no balanced outputs, and no headphone amplifier.
For me personally, the WiiM Pro would be completely useless—it would just end up sitting in a corner gathering dust.
Consequently, I would have to rate the WiiM Pro as "absolutely insufficient" (or even lower).

I agree that the Wiim Pro makes for a terrible standalone DAC and headphone amplifier, because it is neither of those things. The MoFi SourcePoint V10s are similarly absolutely insufficient for those purposes, but luckily they are evaluated as loudspeakers.

 

[ejr]

I have one of these, as well as the Loxjie D60 Pro.

The D60 Pro has a horrible UI and, after a few months, the display has become nearly unreadable. (Double images and tripple images sometimes. Very difficult to read. It's not stable, changing all the time.)

The output from the XLR connectors seems to be identical. However, contrary to what others may claim to have heard, the headphone amp on the DO400 seems to be better. Specifically, when doing an A/B comparision, from a connected CD player (using the optical connection), I hear more of the extreme highs on the DO400. I want to stress that statement again -- the extreme high frequencies -- so, if your hearing can't detect the pitches that I am talking about, you won't know the difference. But, if you can, it adds a nice sparkle to the overall mix. Worth the difference for me, especially since it doesn't cost much more than the D60Pro.

 

[Roland68]

I have one of these, as well as the Loxjie D60 Pro.

The D60 Pro has a horrible UI and, after a few months, the display has become nearly unreadable. (Double images and tripple images sometimes. Very difficult to read. It's not stable, changing all the time.)

The output from the XLR connectors seems to be identical. However, contrary to what others may claim to have heard, the headphone amp on the DO400 seems to be better. Specifically, when doing an A/B comparision, from a connected CD player (using the optical connection), I hear more of the extreme highs on the DO400. I want to stress that statement again -- the extreme high frequencies -- so, if your hearing can't detect the pitches that I am talking about, you won't know the difference. But, if you can, it adds a nice sparkle to the overall mix. Worth the difference for me, especially since it doesn't cost much more than the D60Pro.

What you describe is extremely unlikely, given that both devices (as well as the other two) feature the exact same circuitry for the HPA—and, consequently, the exact same headphone amplifier.

It is far more probable that the sound settings on the two devices differ slightly; your best bet is to perform a factory reset on both units and configure them identically. It is also possible that something was inadvertently misconfigured within the D60's "Sound Color" settings.

The second possibility is the order of the filters in the DO400, which were swapped in the first firmware versions.
At the time, I used @nanook measurements as a reference when configuring the settings.
SMSL subsequently released corrected firmware versions, though I haven't kept up with whether the filter order was indeed properly rectified and updated.

 

[ejr]

Or your ears are different.

(I don't use sound colors and use the NOS filter setting.)

 

[AkodoGilador]

No 12V trigger. Poor.

 

[the_brunx]

Or your ears are different.

(I don't use sound colors and use the NOS filter setting.)

Do not use the NOS filter setting it will cause IMD distortion.

 

[David_M]

That is a myth I think. Look at my FFT:

The second harmonic is in the treble range. No way does it add warmth. And that is what I hear with tube products. Their treble doesn't sound good and the spray of harmonics creates a grungy, unpleasant sound.

The only case for warmth would be if the second harmonic in bass coincides with a room mode. There, it would sound like there is more bass and hence warmth I guess. I have heard this a couple of times.

Measure spectrum anywhere from 100Hz to 500Hz. You'll see their respective 2nd harmonic distortion spikes, hence the warmth one hears from tubes. Second harmonics at treble frequencies result in what many may consider as softer highs or 'crystalline' highs.

 

[David_M]

And what benefit would you gain from having a USB-C port on the device?
It remains a 4-wire USB 2.0 connection. You would simply end up with a much more delicate port—one that is far more prone to failure. USB-B ports are many times more robust and resilient.

eARC is, in fact, much more difficult to integrate and far more prone to issues—as problems encountered with other devices repeatedly demonstrate. The use of official HDMI ICs—along with the associated licensing fees—would drive up the cost of the device even further. I can certainly understand why they chose not to integrate it.

AES/EBU and/or I²S interfaces require virtually no development effort and can be integrated for mere pennies. Furthermore, these devices are frequently deployed in (semi-)professional environments.
While I²S tends to be of greater interest to the audiophile community, it offers a practical solution: if needed, a high-quality supplementary USB interface can be added for just €69—without sacrificing any of the device's existing inputs.

AES/EBU and I²S are so cheap coz they have been direct taps off the ESS DACs from the very beginning. No $$$ needed for R&D.

 

[Roland68]

AES/EBU and I²S are so cheap coz they have been direct taps off the ESS DACs from the very beginning. No $$$ needed for R&D.

Not quite; AES is nothing more than balanced S/PDIF operating at a higher voltage level, which makes it significantly less susceptible to interference over longer distances.
I2S has no direct connection to ESS.
I2S is the original inter-IC protocol that has been used to feed (almost) all DAC chips since the late 1980s. Furthermore, all S/PDIF and USB inputs are converted back into I2S for the DAC chips—as are Bluetooth and audio signals transmitted via HDMI. External I2S is typically transmitted as an LVDS signal (balanced), though unfortunately, there is no standardized connector type or pinout.

Thus, both I2S and AES/EBU have been in use—and integrated into systems—for over 36 years.

 

[RandomEar]

Measure spectrum anywhere from 100Hz to 500Hz. You'll see their respective 2nd harmonic distortion spikes, hence the warmth one hears from tubes. Second harmonics at treble frequencies result in what many may consider as softer highs or 'crystalline' highs.

The harmonics are at -95 dB and below. This is CD quality audio, even with the added distortion. You will never be able to hear that.

I think there are sound color options with higher peak values, but even those don't go over -60 dB, which is still far below what most people can discern in very favourable test conditions with pure tones and direct A/B switching.

 

[David_M]

Not quite; AES is nothing more than balanced S/PDIF operating at a higher voltage level, which makes it significantly less susceptible to interference over longer distances.
I2S has no direct connection to ESS.
I2S is the original inter-IC protocol that has been used to feed (almost) all DAC chips since the late 1980s. Furthermore, all S/PDIF and USB inputs are converted back into I2S for the DAC chips—as are Bluetooth and audio signals transmitted via HDMI. External I2S is typically transmitted as an LVDS signal (balanced), though unfortunately, there is no standardized connector type or pinout.

Thus, both I2S and AES/EBU have been in use—and integrated into systems—for over 36 years.

I2S is one of the acceptable data formats of the ESS dac chips. $0 for r&d needed.

 

[nanook]

T

The specs of this new SMSL DO400 are too close to the otherwise very good SMSL D-6s, but at double the price.

I measured 2 pieces D-6s and the DO400. The DO400 is extremely clean also at reduced levels, whereas the D-6s shows a distinct hump in my THD vs. level plots (Note: the white trace above is THD+N)
Disclaimer: Well hidden in the noise floor, so absolutely not audible of course. In addition, it's harmonics in this case, not "grass" that often shows up at intermediate levels.

SMSL D-6s Balanced DAC Review

Meridian certainly has made the most out of this chip. But of course the PCM5102 is not comparable to the ES9039q2m and the D-6s is a well executed design. Yes, there are pops from time to time between different songs, but they are not loud at all in my system. WiiM Pro - > Coax input of D-6s...

www.audiosciencereview.com

This is why I'm using the DO400 as source when measuring audio electronics.
I use several D-6s for listening - they do sound excellent, they are small and nice to look at and so far they turn out to be very reliable.

 

[M.C. Logan]

What Topping and SMSL are understanding is that what people actually like about tubes is low-order harmonic distortion, especially 2nd order -- and IMO, I don't think there is really a lot more to tube sound than that. How much more ideal it is that the this effect can be introduce more perfectly with solid-state design than actual tubes.

There is very little doubt that 2nd order harmonics are at worst benign and, for many people, warmer and more "musical" experience than a distortionless design. IMO, 2nd/3rd also mask other distortions i.e. higher-order harmonics.

BTW, I still enjoy my tube preamp from time to time.

You can always use jriver as your source and use a really good tube vst3 plugin with it. Also gives you lots of choices for eq in 64bit float, way more power in a pc CPU than in a crummy ASIC.

 

[nanook]

Just take the plugin @pkane wrote:

PKHarmonic VST Plugin - Audiophile Harmonics Generator | Distort documentation

PKHarmonic 1.0 is the initial release of this software. Use at your own risk!

distortaudio.org

 

[David_M]

It should be noted that Tube sound is not just a matter of pre-amp and power tubes and their biasing, but a combination of these tubes and their high voltage step-down output transformer as well. The latter is also non-linear, especially at the frequency extremes, and also when it begins to saturate with higher output signals.

I have listened to tube amps before and possessed some (Bob Carver VTA305 Crimson Reds). I like the sound of the of those with low feedback. High feedback tube amps begin to sound like SS amps (i.e., neutral) since the even harmonics are highly suppressed out of the amplifier by the high feedback design.