Improved SU-9 at a Lower Price?!
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- Опубликовано: 31 июл 2024
- SMSL SU-9n is a midrange DAC in SMSL's line, going for 400 USD. Read my written reviews with scores at iiwireviews.com/
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00:00 SU-9N and MQA
02:59 Connectivity, Remote...
04:44 Settings
06:26 Sound
08:51 vs SU-9
10:19 vs Topping D30 Pro
12:18 More Comparisons
14:15 Conclusion
Test system:
Raspberry Pi with Allo DigiOne Streamer
Denafrips Ares II DAC
Hegel H90 Integrated Amp
KEF LS50 speakers: amzn.to/2ztRg0s
#hifi #audiophile #dac #stereo 
Наука
"If anybody disagrees with that, I'm sorry but your wrong and I'm right" That line gave me a deep and honest laugh. Thank you.
No kidding. He's been getting his snark on lately and I LOVE it!
Motto to live by.
Guy you’re growing so much! Each time more accurate and exhaustive. I like the touch of humor you’re adding. I’m perfectly fine with my new smls su 9n and I perfectly agree with your review. Keep on like this and thank you!
Really like the way your evolving your review style :-) Keep at it - currently the best reviewer on RUclips I've come across. Well done.
SMSL seem to be upping their game. Bought the DA-9 on the back of your review and I haven't regretted the decision.
Got the SMSL SU-9n last month during 11.11 and using it as my dedicated DAC in the office vice my iFi Micro iDSD Signature. Pairing it with a xDuoo MT-602. Enjoying it a lot thus far. Performance and versatility are key features I like. By the way, keep it up with the reviews! Been enjoying your content for the past several months. Your opinions/impressions make me enjoy watching your stuff 👍
Thank you for another awesome review!!
Another great review. How you describe sound + how you compare + you stay "realistic" - is just great 👍
Personally, i got my SU-9 exactly one year ago - and will of course keep it.
It gets music from my PC (high-res/Quobuz as well as my older mp3 collection) and my 1988 Philips CD630 player (yes, i'm 1st owner, my true "precious" i'm very proud of - a fabulous sounding CD player for even today).
Connected via XLR to my Pro-ject Headbox DS2-B (and my headphone collection - yes, i'm a "headphone only" guy).
Runs awesome every day without any problems, still sounds just nicely right - i'm very, very pleased with it.
Someone without a DAC, looking for a really great one - sure can't go wrong with this SU-9N.
It's right on the edge of diminishing returns (you need to spend 2x to xxxx times more, on every piece of soundchain, to get some minor noticeably improvement) - and could be "endgame" for a lot of people...
Great Review. I enjoy your work!👍👍👍
Great review. I love your insite into how a DAC sounds. I would love to hear you review the gustard x16 which I found to be a couple of step above my old SMSL su8 v2
Amazing review as always buddy
Always a pleasure Srb. Keep on truckin'
Hello from Australia. I really enjoyed the review.
If you disagree with that, I'm sorry - you are wrong and I'm right 😂 You made my evening. Thanks for your videos, find them really interesting.
I really like your reviews - thumb went up ;-) Cheers, Przemek
Couldn't agree more, love my SU-9n. Was extremely well priced for the 11/11 sale and it's one of the few DACs that works well with my TV's optical port. In comparison to D90SE which wouldn't work with my LG TV no matter which optical cable I used. No issues at all with SU-9n and saved a lot of money.
got it at $339 during the 11/11 sale. best bang for buck DAC with great sound. From hereon, one needs to spend 2x to get a noticeable improvement which can be better achieved by investing in something else like a better pair of speakers. Nice review.
You ARE right. Great content.
Great video!
I thought this was one of your best reviews. Very tongue in cheek. I especially liked your brief commentary on MQA. Just don’t is a perfect reaction. Thanks and keep up producing your content!
The way you slam MQA.... I LOVE IT!
WoW, thanks for conparing it with D30 Pro
Well said!
I wonder how different the do200 is
good job !
I had one of these and returned it. The sound was detaild but pretty flat or whatever you want to call it. But the real reason was that the input swithching was faulty and failed to connect with coax.
friend bought his SU-9N over and we compared to my SU-9 . there was no major difference to our ears . SU-9 was bit warmer and that's about it. SU-9N didn't sound better. Still Great review as always. I also bought the Denafrips Ares 2 and after 4 weeks , i went back to my SU-9. Ares was too slow and boring for me.
wow..youre the first person to say Denafrips is not the king of dacs..Maybe I will hold onto my Su9 dac instead of jumping from dac to dac..
It should sound the same. Same design, same electronics components, same firmware
@@wemustgo thats the thing about audio gear in general..you have to spend lots more to have maybe an extra thin of hair of difference and/or extra inputs like IIS and other things that maybe youll never use.
@@jesushuerta9878 go and check out the measurements of the Ares 2 on ASR. King of overcharging for the given performance is more like it.
@@AbsoluteFidelity Many engineers Say delta Sigma is new tech and resistor dacs Aka r2r are the old generación of dacs...maybe they sound more organic and costs more because the procedure of built and materials costs more vs a delta Sigma that is surprisingly clinical and precise un sound.
Srboljub how are you? Greetings from Argentina! Loved your videos, very detail. If you may i want to ask you a question. i saw 2 smsl dacs that seem the same but one is from smsl and other is from the top of the brand. VMV sd1 se dac vs SMSL do200. Both on paper are similar. Do you test any of those. The vmv has a beefer toroidal transformer. Thanks and sorry for the long message!!!!
Will this pair well with da-9? I like my sound a bit full and warm with good soundstage.
Hi, what about the combo SU-9N as dac with HO-200 as preamp?
I would like to connect them to my integrated to use it as a final!
I'm considering buying this DAC to stack with my SMSL Ho200. Should be a good pairing.
Great video!!! What is the best for voices?
I'd love it if smsl and loxjie (etc) stuff came with a simple EQ as standard.
i have topping e50, want to add one more dac, which one will be best choice : the newest topping dx5 or smsl su9n or topping d90 or topping d30 pro, for my wharfedale linton heritage speakers, yamaha as1200 amplifier
Hello thanks for another great review,. This one or d30pro for an SMSL DA9/a0200 amplifier from a sound perspective and not apparence. Thanks a lot for your reply! Friendly
I have the SMSL m200 . Anyone know if I'll get more from the Su-9n?
Thank you for another fine review. Indeed the SMSL SU9N does sound like good value at this price point. I recently purchased the Topping D30 Pro and the matching A30 headphone amplifier. The amplifier has plenty of power and balanced output as well as single ended. I really like this stack. One feature I like is the balanced signal pass through so that the combination can be used as a good pre-amplifier. I chose this to use my TV optical output to the DAC and pass through the amplifier the balanced signal to connect to a pair of pre-amplified monitor speakers. I’ve not set that up yet as I haven’t purchased the speakers. I am considering Focal EVO 65 (6.5” bass), Adam TV5 (5”) or TV8 (8”), or maybe Mackie or KRK offerings in size 5-8” bass. Have you any knowledge of these active studio monitors? Best wishes for the New Year.
Thanks. Sorry, but I'm not of much help here cause active monitors are not my strong suit.
I like you list. I would also add Kali Audio IN-5 v2 or IN-8 v2 as a candidate. Cheers!
I dont know wich one choose su 9n or d30 pro... My systèm : monitor audio silver 6 and marantz pm8006. Help !
Any chance of reviewing the Sabaj A20d?
"If anybody disagrees with that. I'm sorry. You re wrong and I'm right." Buddy, I'm gonna steal your punch line because it's too cool haha
Does Su9n have more details than Topping E50 or Topping D30 Pro ?
I hope someday you can have a chance to review FiiO K9 Pro. I have been waiting for months for FiiO K9 pro, but so far there is none. Thank you.
You are right
Greetings to all. Can anyone confirm for me if the SMSL SU-9n DAC is compatible with an Android smartphone via USB port? Thanks in advance for the information.
I am really keen on choosing this as a dac to feed desktop monitors through XLR ,but what bothers me is that the volume control is too small-ish for my dad's liking,and it seems digital too!I'm wondering if this can be used as a decent preamp as well?And is there any sort of signal clip indicator,like my MOTU M4 has a cute little in-out clip indicator lcd screen on front?It has an ESS9018 chip too!WIll I experince a significant leap in performance and quality,if I choose the SMSL SU 9,that costs almost double that of a MOTU interface/dac/preamp with analog volume?With an old ESS chip?My only gripe is,the MOTU has TRS and RCA outs,and no XLR!Please don't mind me silly questions,I'm a little cukoo in the head too!But I'm sure you can help!
You could have been a Criminal Courtroom Lawyer. Honestly you have what it takes. Cheers.
Good review, Could the Khadas Tone 2 pro be compared in balanced DAC mode against this DAC at least at a similar level?
I think it can. Tone 2 Pro is a bit leaner but more precise in the bassline, more neutral overall. SU-9n is generally more dynamic, punchier, and dig more details in the highest registers... But the difference is not huge by any means, that's just the nature of this hobby and its uphill battle.
How good is SU9n compared to SMSL D300?
Which dac from topping or smsl have you reviewed that you felt had the widest and deepest soundstage along with the airiest highs?
Topping D70s so far.
How high up do you hold topping D70S to date, how's it holding up? Sorry to ask, being you mentioned the Ares 2 and the other one/800 dollar dac to come; I'm still curious on that dac, and where it stands, over some time now. The "you're just wrong" line, was funny, btw. 😆
I mentioned these two because I had them for a direct comparison. D70s was a loaner, but I'd definitely take it rather than SU-9n. D70s digs slightly more details and can throw a wider soundstage as far as I remember.
@@iiWiReviews Totally understand that. Thanks. Much appreciated. 👍🏼
As an upgrade to the sanskrit mkII? Or modi multibit
It's a very good upgrade from MKII, if the rest of the system is up to it. I also feel it is an upgrade to Multibit, but that's a more tricky answer because if you get hooked to that 3D midrange-centric sound of the Multibit, you might still prefer it, even though SU-9n is objectively more transparent and more revealing DAC.
Curious to know what dac has best soundstage under Ares2 price point
Topping D70s For sure
I agree that D70s is probably the most spacious sounding DAC that costs less than Ares II. Even lower than that we have E50 that's pretty good once a low noise power supply is added.
Hello. For a30pro, what would you choose, su9n or d30pro?
I would go for D30pro cause I like that fuller presentation... and stack looks nicer when it's matched. 😄
Hi! I must say I´m envious about your memory for sound. How does the SU--9n stand against a iFi Neo-iDSD? Best regards M
Hi! I haven't heard Neo iDSD so can't help there really. As for the memory, its perfectly true that we don't remember the exact sound itself, and I'm no different. It's just a clever use of indirect compressions with DACs that I keep around as references exactly for that purpose. But bold and funny statements are just more fun. 😊
@@iiWiReviews Thanks and I really appreciate your humor!
How would this compare to the e50 with upgraded power supply?
Out of the box, I feel that SU-9n is a bit better (punchier and crisper) sounding. But when a low noise power supply is added to E50, it equals the playfield. I even prefer E50's then slightly for its more neutral tonality.
I'm a novice. I would like to get a DAC that I could eventually connect to both a streamer and (possibly) a CD player (and an amp naturally). I believe I could with this DAC -- can anyone confirm? (I'm especially ignorant of what cables/connections are used.) Thanks for any help or advice.
PS this DAC is currently €359 including tax on German amazon (sold by Shenzhen Audio).
If your streamer and cd player have coaxial and/or optical outputs then yes, you can connect them, with an optical and/or coaxial cable, to an SU-9 and then the SU-9 to your amp, with either xlr or rca cables, depending on your amp's back panel, input connections. Also your PC or laptop to the SU-9, with a USB cable so that you can bypass your computer's sound card and let the SU-9 do the digital to analogue conversion. There's the bluetooth option too, if for example, your streamer can transmit via bluetooth.
@@Yiannis2112 thank you
@@sdrtcacgnrjrc You're welcome. If you got more questions feel free to ask
Awesome! Is smsl sp200 a good pairing for it? My headphones are hd 660s and akg k712
Which headphones do you prefer? I also have akg712pro and want upgrade to 660s . Is it worth it ? Thank you 🙏🏻
@@enjoyunreality I only use my akg for gaming and watching movies , don't like how they present music but I find them perfect for movies and gaming , I use my 660s only for music listening , if I had to choose one would choose hd 660s it's just much better headphone
@@ccdani2 thank you very much. But is the 660s not good for games and movies?
@@enjoyunreality hd 660s is good for those purposes too it has better positioning and much better low end than k712 , for me it's the huge soundstage of the akg that makes watching movies just more enjoyable. I have had all sennheiser headphones from hd 540 gold to hd 700 and I have tried hd 800 in shop , to me the hd 660s is their best headphone , it is a big step up from the classic hd 600 series , if you ever heard hd 600/650 it retains all the awesomeness of the series but improves just everything , it has much better lows and mid lows , it retains the awesome mids and has much better highs , the soundstage is also improved much more spacious sound than the 600/650 much more detail and better positioning. To me it's the best sennheiser headphone in their line , it's better than 600/650 and hd 700 which are way too sharp , I even prefer them to hd 800 ,the 800s is a better headphone but only for specific uses it needs a very good setup to bring out the best sound and still it's not as all rounded as hd 660s .
i literally trust your ears and more i listen to your reviews the more confused in a good way i am , - please recommend me around 250 € dac for hifi system its start of 2022 ?
🤗 I DON’T DISAGREE WITH YOU SRBOLJUB 😉 but it’s still not in my budget 😊
BUT THE HIDIZS S9 PRO IS A RECOMMENDATION OF YOURS AND I AM STILL ENJOYING IT 🤗🤩🤩🤩
SO I THANK YOU FOR THAT 🤗 ONCE AGAIN 😍😍😍
Curious to know how it compares against the E50 in terms of SQ alone
Out of the box, I feel that SU-9n is a bit better (punchier and crisper) sounding. But when a low noise power supply is added to E50, they are equal. I then maybe slightly prefer E50's more neutral tonality.
@@iiWiReviews what would you recommend for a power supply? Right now I'm using a samsung phone charger with my e50
iFi iPower or iPower X
@@iiWiReviews Thanks :D
@@iiWiReviews added the ifi power supply to my Digi one transport, resulted in a significant improvement to my original dacmagic. Well worth the money.
So for the same price, would you go for SMSL SU-9n or Topping D70s? Thanks.
D70s in my opinion.
@@iiWiReviews you’re lucky you chose that one because I bought that because of you 😂 lol And love it by the way
Glad to hear that. Cheers! 🍺
Thank you. Appreciate the quick reply. Happy Holidays😉
@@iiWiReviews Not considering the price, between SMSL M400 and Topping D70s which do you prefer?
You are right. They are wrong.
I am right You're Wrong 😂,Its nice that you are getting more confident , but take it easy .. Don't let comments bother you
I'm just goofing around. Comments are super nice most of the time... I have the greatest audience ever. 👍🥇
@@iiWiReviews Well , keep Rocking then !
@@iiWiReviews You’re damn right you have the best audience in here that’s because I’m in here all the time. 😆
Flac can sound shit too, also Hi Res audio is often nothing to write home about. I've heard some MQA tracks that sound great so it's really not a slam dunk.
I do believe we need to look into MQA more deeply and really forensically to understand what's going on, what are its strengths and weaknesses etc. before dismissing it out of hand.
There are too many band wagon jumpers in the Audio world and a more than few have clearly vested interests in MQA being rubbished.
Bob Stewart is a well respected designer and engineer and Meridian Audio likewise have produced some superb and innovative products.
Consider also, many so called lossless streams sound crap because they were mastered that way, with huge compression built in and crushed dynamic range, yet are we to accept this as a lossless stream and therefore it has to sound better right? wrong!
Many Cd's and digital streams are recorded and masterd to be played on multiple equipment formats car stereos, bluetooth speakers phones etc. They need to sound roughly the same, the wall of sound effect if you like and loud. That is not High Fidelity, its fakery.
Perhaps you should talk about this more too.
Goldensound did a video exposing MQA. So if you want to look more deeply into MQA you should definitely check it out
@Gerald Holley . MQA is nothing special in my opinion, but you are absolutely right about other factors being far more important.
Ignore the golden sound video, it is misleading. Reviewers are just jumping on a cancel culture bandwagon
@@Grrrr3FKAGrrrrGrrrrGrrrrthanks for your response and I agree MQA so far has not proved its case to the point where tidal are using it to the exclusion of other formats as something superior but I have one observation, Meridian has historically produced some innovative and high performance audio equipment. However it is not and never has been an industry behemoth. I simply fail to understand how by its own resource, miniscule in comparison to the big boys, manged to gain acceptance of a format that was and is not particularly needed or by the golden ear determination even wanted. Yet here they are stomping and dictating to so many huge equipment manufacturers around the globe into MQA submission. How exactly have they achieved this in the face of critique from eminent audio engineers and designers. I agree they need to be more transparent but I can also see they are defending their technology against the often overwhelming desire to rubbish everything that is non conformist I.e. the Snake oil police.
I'm not skilled enough to do either but I get there are polarized views and what's needed to establish fairness is a panel agreed by both ends of the argument that examines the claims of both sides, protects proprietary technology rights and presents a non subjective report for everyone to access.
I appreciate the work that the poster has put into his side of the argument and I agree it's encumbent on MQA to properly respond but I really don't think they will as they probably regard it as a hatchet job, again I'm not arguing it is or it isn't, I would just say this, there is far more so called snake oil in the digital audio world than there ever was in the analogue one. How many times have I read reviews on equipment that measured absolutely perfectly against any and all measurement systems only to sound awful in the real world. I don't know why cables sound different and most electronics engineers beyond some basic parameters don't know either but 45 years of listening to music reproduction systems has taught me there is a difference.
So nothing is what it seems, I would like to see a closer examination of and challenge to the recording and mastering world of fakery which is far more culpable in conditioning consumers and delivering terrible sound, lossless or not via their use of compression, crushing dynamic range in favour of loudness etc etc..
What's the point of lossless or Hi Def if all your getting is a wall of sound with little or no dynamics.
I would also just add, I'm not a digital guy I have a high quality Turntable, I avoid modern vinyl records that have simply been mastered from CD etc. I instead buy older recordings and occasional DSD recordings direct cut to vinyl. I appreciate CD where they have been recorded and mastered properly but that's rare in modern CD's and therefore rare in modern streams. It's a bloody minefield out there in my view we as consumers are being short changed by a recording industry that are wasting and emasculating the fantastic technologies that have brought so much potential to both digital and analogue audio. The lunatics I.e. accountants are in charge of the Assylum i.e. the recoding industry.
@@Gez492 Bob Stuart did respond to the golden sound video.
At best golden sound did not understand how to do a scientifically relevant test of mqa (he genuinely couldn’t understand the Q&A paper he said he wasn’t qualified to assess), if he was not naïve then the video is a deceptive farce (he understood mqa’s stated parameters and purposefully exceeded them to create distortion).
MQA is only relevant to one streaming service, and only a part of it’s content. Hardware manufacturers are free to include this feature or not, it is entirely optional. I see all the talk of them bullying the hi-fi industry and dominating the recording industry as a typical internet conspiracy theory
@@Grrrr3FKAGrrrrGrrrrGrrrr Hi yes I agree. Hans Beerkhausen raised some of these points in response to the Golden Sound post
ruclips.net/video/zwZ5hDzQ5Jg/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/9NHuwOgWYOo/видео.html
Didn't know Borat is doing audio reviews now 😅
Yeah, I was bad at comedy, so ashamed I grew my hair, shaved my mustache, and switched to audio reviews. 🥸
@@iiWiReviews 😂
@@iiWiReviews you are the best reviewer out there..
MQA is such a load of crap.
I’m noticing a trend, “I’m sorry you’re wrong and I’m right”, easy my friend you are losing European civility in favor of American self importance rudeness! Don’t work against your appeal!
I hope it would be clear by my tone that I'm joking and not making a serious statement. I guess it might not be to everyone's taste but I hope it will be accepted as fun. Browse trough some other comments and you'll see many laughing about it. That was the intention.
@@iiWiReviews Apologies, my bad! Thank you for that clarification, I certainly missed your intentions, Ugh!! I really enjoy your videos please carry on as usual. Cheers!
American self important rudeness would be suggesting budget considerations are rude to even consider. It is civil to consider that.