8 Reasons Why I Use A Digital Audio Player (DAP) 

I think It Is pretty useless for everyday use, unless you are a sound designer or something like that

Very bad analogy.

DAPS are like an industry in decline milking the last shred from profit from their dwindling customer base by convincing them that the minor differences are worth the extreme price hike.

Wtf was that analogy

Why would you NEED a mural painted?

Only if they still made smartphones :(

@@idontwalkslow Buy used!

Hey what kind of model of lg that used ess sabre dacs?

But their Volume is WACK. Very VERY LOW

@@thesevenleggedspider7102 I believe most of their phones, at the very least their later phones, that had it

As a music lover, I just want to share my experiences with like minded individuals so they may discover the world of better audio.

Not a good reason tbh. You have focus modes now in android and iOS to silence notifications from distracting apps. So need a better reason.

I’ve tried Do Not Disturb and it was OK. But that’s something I don’t want to think about turning back off when I’m done listening. I’m just lazy maybe.

I keep looking for one of these higher end devices that doesn't run Android....just plays my music from a 512GB SD card, that's all.

It's a good reason for me. If I listen to music on my computer before going to bed chances are I'll end up browsing and staying up late in front of a screen. With a DAP there's no chance of that happening.

​@@adarsh_hatwar While I used to share your opinion a year ago, I've realised that focus modes are too easy to bypass. If focus modes and other distraction reduction apps are working for you, you don't know what its like to be addicted to your smartphone yet.

Thank you. Helpful, practical, suggestions. Right on. Appreciative for input

I loved my V30, too bad I ruined the audio jack trying to get a piece of debris out of it though...

I’ve looked into the LG V phones and I’m thinking of picking one up.

A phone will not properly run various headphones due to not enough power.

The lg's just aren't powerful enough

I ripped my entire CD collection to FLAC about a decade ago. The hard drive that has all that music now needs data recovery. I've also bought more CDs since then. Right now, I'm re-ripping my CD collection again. It is worth the hassle. Another bonus, modern Intel Core chips now do the FLAC encoding in seconds, instead of several minutes.

I agree it is well worth ripping your CDs. I unfortunately got rid of a good chunk of my CD collection a decade ago and I’ve been slowly re-building my collection since.

Use Exact Audio Copy or CueRipper for re-ripping the CD's, but do it as one track with a cue sheet (to WAV or FLAC). It's faster as you can convert the CD Image to split FLAC files with something like Foobar2000, fre:ac, or the like. You could even convert it to ALAC so you don't have to use some 3rd party workaround on the iPhone.

I ripped my entire 2000 CD collection to 320kbps. I guess i dont feel compelled to re-rip it because the sound difference between 320kbps and FLAC isn't worth the considerable difference in storage space.

I’m glad you enjoyed the video. For awhile I was good playing ALAC files from my iPhone using the Apple dongle. Maybe I should try an AudioQuest Cobalt sometime to compare the differences.

I have different models from Fiio. From low end to mid level. All have their places.

Team DAP!

There’s always the option to buy used if you’re on a budget.

Back when mixtapes were on tapes! At this point I’d even say the older iPods are nostalgic as well.

Glad to help! Happy hunting!

You're welcome. I hope you got something out of my video.

100% agree with you! Why not invest a little money to hear your favorite artists in the best possible quality!

Bullshit. Hifi is a systemic way.

And it’s unfair , in Europe all hifi stuff is 40% tax. We can t discover high end stuff.

​@@EtreGeneriquethat's why i still kept my LGV60 for their Quad DAC.

@@hachi1631 does it have higher voltage than LG V30 ? (I mean output mink jack)

​@@hachi1631 me too, but i had some misunderstandings, i bought 80ohm headphones but after connecting the headphone with amp it works like a charm quad dac pairs well with headphone amp

For $100, the price is right!

I’m glad you liked the video! Question, why did you choose to bypass the DAC & amp of the M11S and use the MODI & MAGNI instead?

Same here: I switched from X1 to X3 II to X9 to X5 III to M11 Plus..will soon get a M15, since the M11 Plus is the worst player of them all soundwise IMHO.

Love it! Congrats on the 2TB (20K songs) of music, that's massive!

Just switch on plane mode, then you have a "pure" player without any distractions and way longer battery time..

These are all good points. I'm sure these options are more for higher end DAPs as I would consider my M11S as a mid-tier DAP. But for now, I'm happy playing my FLACs off SD and streaming from Spotify.

100% agree with you there.

Their cameras are still no where near cameras either.

I’m glad you liked the video!

There is definitely some nostalgia to it!

Ah. The young. I don't get disturbed by phone calls, app notifications or anything else (other than the wife) because I use the Hi Fi system I bought in 1992. And my car has a CD player and USB port. Perfect! Now where did I put my sony cassette walkman.....?

Yes, Yes. When I first tried the first Walkman I was so overwhelmed by the experience I wouldn't hand it back to my mate. I was equally blown away by my first trip in a train as I remember, hurtling along at over 30 mph !!.I used to listen on my crap Android phone, with thirty quid crap earbuds, but I've gone down the DAP and DAC road and bought some (used) IEMs and I'm loving it. I hate my phone and spend my life deliberately leaving it places. I'm in my sixties and don't want to waste the rest of my life with all that shit. Wake up children! Get into something real! @@pootle5096

On the other hand zoomers are playing vinyl recordings 👎

MiniDiscs were great.

I’ve never owned a MiniDisc player. Maybe I should look into that and listen to them myself.

@@sevensoulcostanza Nowadays the top models (all old) are very expensive

@@lltechview That’s doesn’t surprise me. What are some of those models that I should look into?

@@sevensoulcostanza SONY Hi-MD MZ-RH1 The pinacle of minidiscs. I have this beauty as I was able to get it pretty cheap a few years ago

Thank you! Funny enough my iPhone feels lighter than my M11S but it’s a valid point if your phone is heavier!

yea i dont get that, most daps are bigger and or heavier than your average phone

Some are, but they're not really marketed as portable. There's a huge number of small touch screen DAPs out there, which do a really good job. That's why I bought one, along with my hatred of being tied to a phone, which as a mid-range Android model needs a DAC plugging in to listen reasonably . That's a lot to carry around compared with a 60mm square DAP . @@ToastyTexan911

R6 is amazing loving hiby

If people love music as much as we do, why not try a DAP? I’m a believer after I decided to try it.

Team DAP! Fist bump to you sir.

Thanks for checking out my video!

🍻

what are you using

@@houseoflightassembly7171 If you are asking what DAP I use, it's the Fiio M11S.

@@sevensoulcostanza i bought a 40.00 4inch screen on temu ..great deal sounds great...

Smart move

if you have the M11 why upgrade to the M17 ? don't make regret my recently purchase of the M11 plus ESS

@@luiscastro5456 I have the standard m11 from 2016. It's underpowered compared to the m17 and the amps/processing isn't the same. Ones a lower mid range dap vs a higher end one

@@SpencersStuff1777 i have the experiia does it play flac files??

@@houseoflightassembly7171 yep!

@@SpencersStuff1777 whats the best way to load these files right from the computer and IF i was going to go with a seperate DAP im sure the quality would be better what would you recomend without going over the top?

True, it's multipurpose so there's no point having the main music collection in anything higher than a lossy file format.

SD card? Well if you're using Iphone then I suppose not, and Android phones seem to be ditching card support for some reason.

@@ruekurei88 All of them following the Apple train like mindless zombies.

plus phones dont even have headphone jacks or micro SD ports anymore :(

There’s always the used market like the Head-Fi classifieds! Audiophiles never stop upgrading equipment 😉

Yes, most of the time it's mainly a first world-only kind of thing.

I agree with you. Yes, it's a pain to manage a separate device, but I love it. Plus it frees my phone up for all those other duties.

Thank you!

Thanks for the love!

Thank you for watching it! Let me know what you decided on when you shop for a DAC. I like to see what others decide on and why.

agreed a little pricey...

i like a dedicated music player for the car. I drive 2hours a day and also need to take calls. You can hear the difference between your phone, which may also be giving you directions too

Funny enough I still haven’t tried connecting my DAP in my car yet.

Agreed! My iPhone for everyday use and my DAP to enjoy some tunes. 😎

Thank you!

Cube was a beast in his prime!

Have the same device and absolutely love it I totally agree.

@@claudiabailey5302 🫶

I wanted to pull the trigger on one, but man....that price...

Both are solid picks! Let me know what you think after you've used them for awhile.

@@sevensoulcostanza Here are my initial thoughts on both: the G8 is honestly more fun than my current S24+, and the Moondrops I can't tell much of a difference between them and bluetooth, but I like the music more on the moondrops.

@@AzureRT456 Thanks for following up. I'm glad you like the G8 especially since that the phone is older. As for Bluetooth vs Aria, I don't blame you. Your ears hear what they hear. I have a pretty big MP3 collection mixed in with my FLAC files, and listening to both formats back to back, I can't tell the difference. But I stick with FLAC nowadays just because I know I could always convert to MP3 if I ever want to.

@@sevensoulcostanza Glad to know I'm not only one who can't tell the difference. I've been enjoying the two so far. I know that somehow the Arias just make music enjoyable even though I know I can't tell the difference.

@@AzureRT456 As long as you enjoy it, then that's all that counts!

I’ve seriously considered going back to Android but there’s still so many cons of using my phone as my primary listening device. I might explore it still as my iPhone ages. Last I researched was that the Sony Experia phones had good DACs in them.

All great points. So I’m thinking maybe I should revisit dongle DACs again…

1. Digital audio players are made lightweight to fit in your pocket just like a smartphone is. 2. There is no fighting for space between music and everything else on digital audio players. 3. In any event that your smartphone happens to die on you have that same music library on a DAP and cut on your DAP and you are back jammin' again. 4. There are DAPs who do have a speaker on them but yes there are DAPs that don't. Q. How can you listen to your DAP without headphones? A. Loudspeaker accessory. Plug it in and you are listening to your music on a DAP without headphones. 5. There are DAPs with a bigger screen and that are as easy to use as a smartphone. 6. If your DAP is a Smart DAP such as one that runs Android or like that iPod Touch was that ran iOS then yes Easy share tracks and albums is available on those DAPs too. 7. No need for airplane mode or do not disturb functionality on DAPs I used DAPs before. In fact I happen to have some DAPs on me.

@@djthereplay I never thought about running a loudspeaker from my DAP and that’s an idea I might explore. Something for get togethers and you don’t tie up your phone if it’s the music streamer.

​@@djthereplay 1. - Still this is a second device that I personally don't want to cary in my pockets. 2. - I have 500 GB for my audio library and there is literally no fighting for space. Phone has its own 256 GB.) 3. - Never let my phone dies accidentally, so music with me all the time. 4. 5. 6. - Yet this is more devices in a pocket. Thanks but nah. 7. - When I in music - nothing's disturbs me. Turn off sound notification - no big deal at all. P.S.: I'd used DAPs before. Never go back to this experience. Me one device person.

DAPs aren’t for everyone. I love mine and use mine nearly everyday. If you decide to buy and use one as a DAC, let me know.

I’m glad you enjoyed the video.

I'm glad you enjoyed my video. The ability to take your music collection with you, especially without a network connection, is overlooked until it happens. And yes I love Bluetooth, it's super convenient, but the audio quality just isn't the same.

@@sevensoulcostanza I did some research on Bluetooth and discovered that, regardless of the codec used, it applies compression to the audio. That defeats the purpose I had for ripping to FLAC. I'm not looking for hi-res audio, as I said before Red Book CD is good enough for me and that is what I want to listen to. Due to that, I've decided that I will use Bluetooth for casual listening, or when wired headphones are not practical, but I will use wired when it comes to serious listening. To me, this is justification for keeping the 1/8" headphone jack around.

@@Solitaire001I 100% agree with your use of Bluetooth. For the gym or listening to music on the go, I use Bluetooth. My wired IEMs are for when I'm working at my desk or serious listening sessions when I can be undisturbed.

Agree with you there.

Lesser known fact about LG V series. Sadly not advertised ! The Quad DAC is superb !

The sound quality from those are actually disappointing and too affected for my tastes.

I’ve always been curious about the LG V series phones. Maybe I’ll pick one up off eBay.

That’s the built in Fiio Music app. I know there’s others but I haven’t looked into them yet.

YOD is one of my favorites right now! He’s been consistent with the quality bars and beats.

Thank you for watching the video! I’m glad you enjoyed it! I am currently using the Kinera Ace cable for my Variations. The detachable plug lets me use it across multiple devices including my DJ mixer. Although for DJing, I do wish the cable was a bit longer. Thanks for suggesting the Tempotec V6. I’m not familiar with that brand but it looks promising!

Fiio M11S.

I’m glad you agree!

Great minds think alike.

I never even thought of that.

Thanks a million fam, I was on a endless search for 1 😂 that had bis

Yes, I've thought that.

Thank you for watching. Unfortunately I have never heard or owned the NW-A306.

@@sevensoulcostanza no probs. Its the new reasonably priced Sony.

And higher refresh rate fr

This is something I’ll look into. I get distracted way too easily when I’m listening to music on my iPhone. Nowadays I only listen to music on my iPhone while I’m at the gym. It’s convenient but not for serious listening sessions.

@@sevensoulcostanza yeah I still respect your point and enjoyed the video, I may still grab a dap, take care!

No you can use wired headphones or earphones as long as they have the proper plug for your DAP.

Those are the Moondrop Variations which retail around $500 USD. Of course you can catch them on sale often or pick up a used pair for a steep discount.

I’m not sure I understand your question. You can install the Tidal app on your DAP to play songs from Tidal.

@@sevensoulcostanza yes I know that, but offline is not possible unless you get on of those illegal music downloaders right?

@@motivationmore7025 I think you mean offline as in downloading music within the Tidal app itself so you can still listen to your Tidal music without a network connection. You absolutely can offline music from Tidal. If you meant download music off of Tidal and store it locally, I don't know about that. I'm sure there are illegal music downloaders for that but I have never used them.

@@sevensoulcostanza thanks

I bought my M11S brand new which was $500 USD. I’m sure they are a lot cheaper now.

All over the place but hip-hop is my main choice. Lately it’s been Billy Woods, Black Thought, Earl Sweatshirt, UGK, Lupe Fiasco. I’m also into Drum N Bass so I’ve got Noisia, Logistics, A.M.C., Upbeats in rotation. For jazz it’s been Bob James, Ronnie Foster, Deodato. I can go forever with what I’ve been listening to lately.

@@sevensoulcostanza HEY thanks,,,MOST of these are new to me, so I'll definitely enjoy checking them out.Thanks for taking the time to reply man ,MUCH MUCH appreciated👍

also btw, with all these reccomendations , u CAN make like a series of videos on best artists in each category , the people need to listen to new things and hidden gems that the algorithm doesnt always reccomend

@@sadssddsd2926 That’s a good idea. After all, we all need something to listen to on all this audio equipment we buy!

You rip your cds that you own and copy them over. It's easy.

Yup, I agree. Rip your CDs, or buy lossless files from Qobuz, Bandcamp, 7Digital, etc.

Yessir! YOD's new album Movie next month!

To be honest, I've only used the USB-C to either charge my DAP or connect it to my laptop to load music onto it.

That’s the Fiio M11S which you can catch on sale often.

I don’t run headphones with mine but I think you can.

@SK Yeah, I agree for the most part, even though I still have my old iBasso DX90 and a new DX320. 😊 And the DX320 is one of the few DAPs I've owned that is comparable to the best smartphones in terms of GUI speed with no lag. But you usually have to spend a decent amount on a DAP to get that type of GUI speed and performance. And it's easy enough to turn on Airplane Mode or Do Not Disturb on your smartphone and not be distracted. I have a large library of music on local file storage for my smartphone and/or DAP via 1TB microSD cards. But streaming services can cover 80% of my local file library while using either the smartphone or DAP. And 90% of people use a DAP on-the-go with IEMs and not full size headphones, so most people don't really need a large DAP with tons of output power just for IEMs. Though I will still use my DAPs when at home with my full-size cans. While I have much higher end home audio and car audio equipment, the inexpensive *Hidizs S9 PRO* drives all of my IEMs and even high impedance over-ear headphones with ease and great SQ. But it will drain my smartphone battery much faster than normal. However, I chose a smartphone with an amazing 5,000 mAh battery, which could otherwise be an issue for some users who don't want to compromise their smartphone's battery life. And his point regarding the physical transport/playback buttons (and sometimes a dedicated volume knob) on most DAPs are definitely nice to have. But with the Hidizs S9 Pro dongle DAC/HP amp, I'm not worried about potential damage, theft, or losing it as I would be with one of my DAPs. The S9 Pro and others can be had for little more than $100.

@@bbfoto7248 nicely analyzed mate.. i am wondering, where does your S9 pro stands against dx320, when it comes to sheer SQ...?

@@bbfoto7248 All excellent points. I won’t rule out my iPhone just yet but I’ve definitely been using my DAP pretty often lately.

I use Moondrop Variations for IEMs. As for the app, it’s the default Fiio music app to play local files.

@@sevensoulcostanza thank you.

It’s their loss. I’m sure if they listened themselves they’d hear the difference.

I’m the wrong one to ask for a recommendation. I would check out the Head-Fi forums, Reddit, and any of the RU-vidrs that do reviews. Just use that as a starting point though. It’s always best to listen to them first, if possible.

I haven't used mine in that capacity but I'm sure you could, depending on which outputs come with the DAP. I know my DAP can play through my car using Bluetooth but it's not the greatest sound.

I use Bandcamp and Qobuz primarily. I've also browsed 7Digital although I have never purchased from there.

@@sevensoulcostanza Thank you sir

Moondrop Variations.

I still use Spotify for streaming and the built in Fiio music app to listen to my local audio files.

Agreed. Privacy and phones don’t mix.

@@sevensoulcostanza Especially those Smartwatches as well I am hearing some pretty scary articles searching them online.

"Owning" my digital music files and having the freedom to put them on any device I choose will always be my favorite choice. That is why I operate my DAP offline most of the time so there's less chances of me being tracked by advertisers and less chance of an unscheduled update messing up my OS.

Technically, it would work, but it would be cumbersome and far from ideal. I have a portable Zoom H6 for location recording, but it just has a basic, inexpensive "chip amp" headphone output that is just for "monitoring" and not for critical listening. I would never use it for everyday music LISTENING. In addition, a dedicated DAP (Digital Audio Player) has a nice, large, touchscreen just like a modern smartphone, and has much more intuituve playback controls, as well as much easier and faster file navigation/search/selection, album art display, and playlists management. A DAP and a portable recorder such as the Tascam or Zoom units are different devices for different purposes.

Plus one. Just got the Fiio Lightening to USB-C data cable (careful, many other cables only transmit power, not data/audio). The BTR-7 sounds even better than via Bluetooth, and that’s not only due to avoiding BT AAC codec but DAC/amp implementation.

Audio being transmitted through more 0s and 1s will further degrade the sound quality. It's not noticeable to the consumer pair of ears...but it does.