anyone heard this DAC? (SMSL M8 ES9018)

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by avanti1960, Aug 26, 2016.

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  1. avanti1960

    avanti1960 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Chicago metro, USA
  2. Mike34260

    Mike34260 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toledo, Ohio
    I haven't heard that model but I own the Sanskrit DAC and the SA 50 amplifier, for the price you pay their products are actually quite good. I would check what the negative reviews say but overall SMSL is pretty decent IMO.
     
  3. triple

    triple Senior Member

    Location:
    Zagreb, Croatia
    The description says that M8 will bring your system to a fever- level design.
     
  4. ShallowMemory

    ShallowMemory Classical Princess

    Location:
    GB
    I bought their SA36Pro am and liked it.They're a big Chinese concern and rather like Fiio, it's no reason to avoid when they produce good quality products.
     
    KeninDC, avanti1960 and Rolltide like this.
  5. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    I have quite a few modern mastering's that resemble that description :laugh: :cussing:
     
  6. BIGGER Dave

    BIGGER Dave Forum Resident

    Massdrop offers SMSL products often. I believe they had the M8 at one time for $150. If an item is popular, they usually bring it back. Perhaps they'll be offering it again soon. If you keep any eye out, you may get lucky.

    https://www.massdrop.com/buy/smsl-m8/talk
     
    avanti1960 likes this.
  7. Rolltide

    Rolltide Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vallejo, CA
    I had this on my Amazon wish list for over a year, but never got around to trying it out. In the $250 desktop DAC market it doesn't seem there's much that can compare from a feature standpoint. My Geekout V2 and Pono sound more similar then different, probably on account of the 9018K2M that the SMSL uses. If the M8 sounds like either of those in a livingroom-friendly form factor, it would be a no brainer at that price.
     
  8. avanti1960

    avanti1960 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Chicago metro, USA
    This is what i'm thinking. I was just wondering if anyone has experienced the gritty treble mentioned in the one critical review.
     
  9. Ham Sandwich

    Ham Sandwich Senior Member

    Location:
    Sherwood, OR, USA
    For $250 I'd rather have a Schiit Modi Multibit. Unless you really need DSD support. Then I'd opt to get something like the SMSL M8 and the Schiit Modi Multibit.
     
    murphythecat likes this.
  10. Carl Swanson

    Carl Swanson Senior Member

    Maybe the gritty treble is a revelation rather than a coloration.
     
  11. ishmaelk

    ishmaelk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Madrid
    I'm also interested in this DAC. I wanted an upgrade from my Pro-Ject Dac Box S USB but I don't want to spend a lot. Everything I've read is good. It's maybe too good to be true.
     
  12. BIGGER Dave

    BIGGER Dave Forum Resident

  13. jyang

    jyang New Member

    Do you mean it might be a revelation of something else in his signal chain?

    Thanks.
     
  14. Carl Swanson

    Carl Swanson Senior Member

    No, I was thinking more like a revelation of certain recordings, but you bring up a distinct possibility. Speakers?
     
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