Hello Andy thanks for advice today i recived m1p and i can tell yuo after some hours of burn it this akm dongle sound better to all my expensive ess and cirus and burr brown chips all have and i try this is buy far the most musical dac amp i ever try....magic for 70eur sound more musical than mojo 2 for 600eur..magic akm this dongle is most enjoying listening music ...now i know what is about old magic akm sound....best of the best...thanks
@@Nordi1_0745 Mojo 2 that I have in my hand now, is known for being exceedingly resolving and technical, so on this account M1P is not as technically focused like Mojo 2, however I will admit M1P does it better with overall texture richness and analog sound reproduction
Andy, my CDA M1P arrived. I am AMAZED by it's sound, specially because I listen most of the time to vocals. It is the best for vocals! I am so glad that I bought it! Thank you again, my friend!
I took delivery of this dongle yesterday and so far I'm very impressed. I also own the Shanling UA3, which houses the same 4493S chip, but in my opinion this dongle is the better unit by a wide margin. Sound wise it has a very weighty, full-bodied presentation. At low to medium volume it almost sounds like a desktop system driving my headphones, not a dongle you can hold in the palm of your hand. UA3 does have great bass, but it sounds thinner and not as fleshed out. To put it in simpler terms, many dongles have the bones but not the flesh. The bones are the basic elements in music, the details. The flesh is what blends the details together and makes music sound full-bodied and enjoyable. This thing has the flesh. It pulls you into music and before you know it you've been listening for longer than you should. This is the biggest upside of the M1P. Control wise it's more intuitive than the UA3. The UA3 needs you to long press the middle button to adjust internal volume. With M1P though you only have to press the two volume buttons. Device volume and dongle volume are separate so you can just set device volume to max. It also remembers the volume you last set it at so it won't blast your eardrums when you connect it to a new device. The last thing is the weight. This thing weighs a ton. Much heavier than any dongles I've owned or tried. I know some people prefer lighter dongles but I much prefer the solid feel of this one. All in all a very, very impressive unit. I still wonder why it took a year and a half before another company releases a 4493S dongle. But if all that time goes into tuning and experimenting, I think colorfly made the right choice in releasing it late. AK also released their 4493S dongle at almost the same time as Colorfly. I will also be checking that one out once I have the opportunity. I doubt it will be much better though, given how marvelous the M1P is. Before taking delivery of it I was thinking of selling it if it isn't good, but no. This is definitely a keeper.
Exactly my thoughts too. I guess they took the time to carefully plan for the successor of M1, which was already great. And I am so relieved they opted for the less trendy route of going for analog sound experience, not too engrossed with technicalities. In the end, a result that harbor satisfying results especially for people who have grown fond of the classic AKM sound
@@lambdastorm7787Andy somewhat didn't convince me, but you do! My local dealer has this on sale today, so I pulled the trigger. I already have another 4493 SEQ desktop amp, but a decent AKM for traveling shouldn't hurt, I guess. PS: Andy, my man, you have one job, one job! 🤣
I always like to check out Andy's reviews on dongle dacs and the few reviews over the last two months have been no exception. Andy doesn't leave out the biggest details when reviewing the sonic aspects, and the whole review is backed up by a very elaborate rating system at the end. Thank you very much for all the recent reviews as well.. it is interesting to see what price levels the processing of the digital audio signal into its analogue form has been getting into over the last two or three years. As I have stated in the past, my sweet spot is the DC04Pro.. Kudos to Andy.
@@donglemadness Andy, have you had any issue with feedback when connecting this dongle? On four or five occasions I've had extreme feedback when connecting to my samsung s23 ultra. I've upgraded the cable but still have the same issue. Its never happened with the UA4 or BTR7 i have.
Look at me making another purchase off Andy's review! I bought the dawn the, dco4 pro and I am adding this to the cart. Thank you for your hard work Andy!
I got it (based on your review) and I can confirm that sound-wise it is as good as the DC04Pro. Though there are some issues (not present with DC04Pro): - my Hiby music app installation when using USB exclusive mode have some "hiccups" (brief pauses/skips) during playback. I hope I can fix it with a firmware update (or Hiby app update). - there is some floor noise when connected to a computer and using normally sensitive iems - electromagnetic interference from phone is sometime present when moving through hilly terrain All-in it is still a great value for the price as it sounds great.
Does this issue still happen with HIBY App version 4.2.1 Build 5552? because I know anything later than that build, the app giving so much hiccups with playback
@@donglemadness I will test it. And indeed the hiccups occur with other dongles as well, though not with the DC04Pro ! But it is unfortunate that DC04Pro costing 120 USD becomes unusable after less then a year of (normal) use due to wear.
Oooh, this is tempting! I love AKM sound. The thing holding me back is that I already have Hiby FC6, so I'm not sure if would be with it to have both...
If you already have FC6, I can say you don't have to worry about it. FC6 still has mild advantage overall. But if you don't have FC6 and you want FC6 sort of sound without paying FC6 price, M1P is the solution
For me personally I prefer the smooth analog sound timbre of M1P for EA500. But I must also admit that if you prefer something more energetic sounding yet expertly toned, KA17 has my vote
Hello Andy! thanks for the reviews. after watching your recent reviews, there are 2 dongles that caught my eyes, the Onix and the colorfly CDA M1P. in terms of richness, organic sound, and note weight/density which one from the two is better in that department? I'm looking for dongle that has that good vocal weight/lushness (some people called it velvety?) smooth sounding without sacrificing the technical department. Thanks
Thank you for the great review, Andy! My Colorfly CDA M1P arrived yesterday. It has a really, really great sound but I can't control anything on it. I tried all the listed button combination and more... Nothing helps. It seems like it has stuck in a weird mode. It's indicator light is constantly blinking in cyan (whitish) color.
@@donglemadness I'm so sorry! My comment above is a bit misleading... I have to say that it seems like M1P is working somehow properly, the only oddity is the constant blinking. That's it. Fortunately the volume control and gain switch (low-level mode / high-level mode) are working and maybe the filter change too but I can't hear the difference between filter modes. :) Thank you so much for your effort and your quick answer, Andy! It is always a pleasure to follow your work.
About the amplifier stage, it is one exar XR2001 for 3.5mm and one exar XR2001 for 4.4mm, as i understand. Some people report that the 2 outputs sound the same which is a good thing.
I don't have the details, but yes they sounded the same from either 3.5 or 4.4 if you use relatively easy to drive stuffs under 32 Ohm and with sensitivity over 105 dB, but if you driving planars, then the 4.4 with the higher output will offer more resolved dynamic transients and authority
Hello again Andy! Great review! can M1P drive HD600 or is only for iems? Is it capable of driving such full-size headphones such as Senn HD600 or HD650? Moreover as I look, RU7 has 3.5mm output w 160mW @ 32Ω and 4.4mm 400mW M1P has 125mW@RL=32Ω and 4.4mm 240mW In score results RU7 takes 9 but M1P takes 10. But if I see correct RU7 seems much more powerful that M1P Am I missing something about driving power here? Thanks for all
Just like many other recently released 4 Vrms rated dongles, including this M1P, they all can drive HD600, HD650. As noted in my vid, M1P can drive T40RP MK3 which is even more demanding than both HD600 or 650, with proper headroom and dynamic authority. It sounded like driven from a desktop DAC
I ordered this M1P, thanks Andy! I plan to buy one of the top dongle DAC next year, but I wonder, would you compare your top dongles to Mojo2 please? And yes, I know Mojo2 is not a dongle and a bit big to take around on the go, but everyone is saying how great it is and comparing it to more expensive desktop DAC units, so I wonder how top dongles like HIBY FC6 and Cayin RU7 compare to Mojo2??? (Pricewise not a big difference.)
@@donglemadness that would be awesome. What about Dragonfly dongles? Not that new, but people still love them for their high quality sound they produce...
@@just2share I already tested Audioquest Cobalt over two years ago, you can check it out here on Head-Fi www.head-fi.org/showcase/audioquest-dragonfly-cobalt.23926/review/27138/
@@donglemadness Andy really a comparison of the best dongles (please include M1P) to Mojo 2, will be really a big help so as to compare how dongles much a less portable device but with many funs, reviewers and users that rate it high enough and almost excellent to portable dac/amp section.
Man, my wallet is crying, because I need to take this one too. haha I think I'll sell my Link2 Bal and take this M1P to have a different signature to my DC03 Pro. I wanna both of the worlds :) Was gonna take a R2R dongle, but it costfull and if I wanna smooth velvety sound (specially vocals/mids), now this CDA M1P delivers for a fraction of the price.
Hey Andy, I got the m1p some weeks ago and I hear quite a lot of RF interference when it’s reasonably close to my cellphone… apparently this is also an issue with other dongles like the questyle m15. What are your thoughts on this? And what are your suggestions for me ( could be a better dongle you could recommend )? Thanks!!
I understand what you mean. Just to allway your worries, I have even more RF interferences with my favorite HIBY FC6 or even worse on R2R based dongles. It is also quite bad with AKLIAM PD5 which is the same internals as M1P. In fact more than half of my dongles experience this issue. One way to reduce the RF interferences is to use properly shielded cable and I have found that ddHiFi TC09S has been good to reduce the likeliness. But I am still experimenting with other solution as well. Might do a video on this one
Hello Andy, I’m intrigued by the ‘analog sounding’ characteristic of this DAC. I’m particularly interested in how it would perform with EDM and Rock tracks. Given that I currently own the iBasso DC04 Pro and the HiBy FC4, would you recommend this DAC for me?
Analog sound is less applicable to EDM or electronic music, they are digital sound after all, so it does not matter. But for Rock, analog/organic sound means there's no hint of metallic aggression on the upper Mids all the way to Treble that I consider as beyond natural. Best way to compare this is to listen to a typical ESS Sabre DAC tuning with a bright sounding IEM, you will find how digital sounding they are with crisp, sharp note and lots of emphasis on macro details, some may like it, but I am one of those who don't like it. If you are familiar with that sharp, energetic bright sound, then the sort of sound you hear from M1P would be considered as "warm", that's how natural and organic sound are being regarded these days
Hola Andy. Muchas gracias por tus excelentes videos y por siempre darte el tiempo de responder nuestras dudas. Quería preguntarte que es exactamente el control de volumen del hardware en un dongle. Es el control con botones físicos del dongle o es un control interno del DAC?. Esto te lo pregunto porque con el colorfly cda m1p, tanto en USB audio player pro como en hiby music, puedo aumentar o disminuir el volumen del hardware aparte del ajuste con los botones físicos. Mientras que con el ibasso dc03 pro, ambas aplicaciones me dicen que este dispositivo no tiene control de volumen de hardware, siendo que tiene botoneras de control independiente. Si me puedes aclarar está duda, te lo agradecería mucho. Saludos desde Chile.
Thanks. Both DC03Pro and M1P has independent hardware volume adjustment on the dongle itself, both with 100 steps, they are the same, when you adjust volume on the dongle, it doesn't change the volume on the host. As for your situation I can't quite explain what you see, but if you adjust M1P and the player on the host does not change volume level, then it is independent regardless what it says. I always lock or max out volume on the host and adjust only on the dongle side
Gracias por tu respuesta Andy. Si me permites una última pregunta, podrias confirmar que el Volume independiente del colorfly es de 100 niveles?. En mi dispositivo solamente llega a 60 pasos. Gracias de antemano.
Fantastic review as usual Andy! With the tests that you've done on this and the iBasso DC04 Pro, which would you prefer to use with the Hidizs MP145? Also, what filters on this worked best for you with that same IEM?
Thanks. If I want airy and more extensions on the upper frequency, with wider sense of soundstage then DC04Pro it is, otherwise I am completely mesmerized by the velvety richness of sound texture from M1P and have found myself enjoying it quite a lot with MP145
Hi Andy, for improving vocals, which is better, the CDA M1P or the FiiO Q11? Also, my friend is selling the Q11 for $52. Do you think it's worth to buy? My preference leans towards enhancing vocals.
Improving vocals? M1P does have richer sounding Mids so it will be a bit more forward with more vocals presence compared to Q11 which is more transparent
Hello!) Thanks for review and comparisons! I got Colorfly CDA M1 and I like it very much! But you intrigued me with CDA M1p))). Is there much difference between their sound? Worth M1 to be replaced with M1p In your opinion, or every of them sounds good in its own way?)
Different sound tuning. M1 is largely technical and M1P as noted in my video offers rich sound texture with great velvety analog timbre, the sort of sound that is similar to DACport HD or HIBY FC6. So yes it depends on what you perceive as good based on your own taste and preferences, that will determine which one you like more
Yes of course, for days I have spent listening to some Lo-Fi Metal stuffs as well as lots of Pelican and Russian Circles with M145 and Fostex T40RP MK3, non fatiguing long indulgence even with the most extreme of Metal
@@donglemadnesslove the mp145, perfect amount of thump and slam. It being a planar means it doesn’t get muddy either without having to scoop the midbass. Good stuff! Odd fit due to the cable position, but it’s still comfy. It sounds closer to a planar headphone than my other planar iems.
Hola andy. Muy buena revisión. Me interesa este dongle. Hay alguna forma de saber que filtro se está utilizando?. Crees que sería una buena actualización al ibasso dc03 pro? Saludos.
Hola. Doesn't really matter which filters, as mentioned in my video I barely can hear audible differences. Compared to DC03Pro, not really an upgrade, but different sound tuning altogether, as mentioned, M1P offers classic AKM sound tuning, DC03Pro is modern energetic Hi-Fi colored sound
@@donglemadnessgracias andy por tu respuesta. Una última pregunta. Si te dijeran que solo puedes usar un dongle de aquí en adelante, entre el ibasso dc04 pro y colorfly , cual elegirías y por que?
Excellent review, unfortunately I need a battery and Bluetooth for my situation. The best I have been able to come up with is the soon to be released FiiO Q15 for $400. Would you have any other suggestions…? warm neutral is what I prefer.
hey andy, do i get this or the dc04 pro i’ve had the cda m1 in the past as per your recommendation and i really loved it but it broke so i got a dc03 pro which i have now. if i’m looking for an upgrade, do i get this one or the dc04 pro- im using the s12 pro right now and i wonder which of those would compliment my s12 better? great content as always man
For S12 Pro I would say M1P might sound richer, smoother compared to DC04Pro, but remember that DC04Pro has mild advantage on upper frequency sparkle and micro details, and wider sounding too. You decide which one you like more
Love my m1p! Pairs perfectly with my Simgot Ea1000. It’s very picky on the c to lightning cable though, all of Fiio’s cable I tried doesnt work, including LT3
I have ordered EA1000, and planning to order the colorfly cda m1p, you have another dongles to compare, or only tested m1p with ea1000. No very sharp treble o too much mid bass?
M1p really pairs well with the ea1000, I got a ka13 first, but it sounds too digital and too "sharp". If you have extra budget, I can suggest the Hiby FC6 also (what I'm using now). It's a direct upgrade to the m1p imo @@AKALAKABRA
I haven't tried UP5, but I can tell you DS1 is brighter and less organic sounding compared to M1P, if that's what you looking for then it makes sense to get M1P
Hello Andy Is this m1p better more dense and fuller sounding than shanling ua3 i m indecision between this two wich is superior sounding of this akm dongles? I love creamy sound of old AKM chips
Hello Andy, may i ask for advice for dac, i currently using kefine klanar for my main cans which dongle you think is better to be pair with klanar, currently the candidate are m1p, ua4, dew4x or maybe got other suggestion?
Between the ones you listed, I will personally pick M1P for Klanar - but assuming you don't have budget limit, then the very best would be HIBY FC6, Cayin RU7 or Aune Yuki
If you want something different that is even smoother, richer sounding yes, with classic AKM analog timbre, only FC6 and DACPort HD has that dense sound beside M1P
If you define being natural and organic as warm, yes then M1P is "warmer" than AP90 (I have tested both extensively so I know). AP90 has a tuning approach that emit digital, edgy and crispy sound notes, the timbre is not as traditionally smooth like an AKM normally behave, sounding more like an ESS Sabre instead with audible Pinna glare when paired with highly resolving and neutral IEMs (which does not happen on M1P)
@@donglemadness I don't agree with your assessment of AP90 (I have it since release). But I also mostly don't use highly resolving and neutral IEM.... I actually like the treble on AP90. So probably my ears are just not sensitive to this issue, or maybe our devices don't sound exactly the same!
Ok I am buying this, I have looked at everything else, maybe cayin what is it, u6? The r2r one? Maybe it's better for what I want, and maybe the fc6 is better, but I can afford this one😅.. Thanks again, you are ever helpful.
I'm thinking of getting a Venture Electronic Asura 3.0FE and Colorfly CDA M1P instead of Megatron. Your thoughts and suggestions will be highly appreciated.
Sir, I'm uncertain about choosing between the Colorfly CDA M1p and FiiO KA13, both priced at $79. Which one would you suggest for use with planars like MP145 or Letshuoer S15? I would greatly appreciate your expert opinion on this matter.
I would go for Colorfly CDA M1-P. There, a good reason I rated it overall higher than KA13, because it is a better dongle especially for planars. Just make sure you run 4.4mm BAL to get 100% power
@@bestcocbaseswithlink5069 Paper specs don't tell the whole story. #donglemadness is all about testing dongles in real life applications and you would be surprised if I say the 100 mW rated HIBY FC6 is the BEST dongle for driving my 300 Ohm Sennheiser HD600/HD650, Fostex T40RP MK3 (91 dB Magnetic Planar), HiFiMan Sundara (94 dB Magnetic Planar), all of these are demanding headphones. Unless your FT5 is even more demanding than T40RP MK3 (which is the most stubborn planar except for HiFiMan Susvara), then M1P has all the power and headroom to perform well with them, I have demonstrated this in my M1P review
@@donglemadness Woah, crazy! Do you by chance know the headphone jack output data of mi 9T (branded as redmi k20 pro where I live, in Nepal) as it is my primary smartphone as well. Is it more than 100mW? People in forums sing high praises about its DAC and say it is significantly better than its peers. I have not tested the HiFi DAC as the only audiophile equipment I have as of know is my $20 discontinued truthear hola. 😅
Which do you think is more recommended, the Colorfly CDA M1P or the Ibasso DC04Pro for assessing sound quality without paying attention to features and so on?
To do that you need transparency, between DC04Pro and M1P, I would use DC04Pro to access sound transparency because the richer smooth nature of M1P may impart biased observation despite both being relatively uncolored
I can plug into my Hiby R3 Sabre? It sound very thin and not much bass, note weight poor and nonexistent in lower mids.. Would I be better off buying a new DAP like tempotec V3 using the AKM dac? I am thinking if it can upgrade my sound, it's a good thing budget wise..have you tried it with your pr2's? You are saying it's neutral, it's not the slightly warm akm sound with good note weight in mids? I hear your video just want to confirm about this. Can use Bluetooth? Thanks...
I am not familiar with the R3 Sabre but assuming it will allow an external USB DAC connection, then yes, any dongle will work. What will happen then is that all audio processing and output will be handled by the attached external DAC/Amp and what you will hear is the sound performance from them, the R3 Sabre totally bypassed. No, dongles don't like this don't have BT. M1P is neutral uncolored, a DAC/Amp can be neutral and offering warm sound timbre, the sound frequency itself appear linear and non boosted/altered, but they can still be either bright or natural (warm)
@@donglemadness That is what I want to do, use the R3 for a transport.. I don't like the sound.. so this one sound like akm? Did you try with pr2? I think we are using language differently, warm timbre does not mean neutral to me, it means warm.
can i use this m1p for gaming ? and i order a fosi audio ds1. which one is better for gaming . i love the akm analoge sound. or should also buy the m1p ?
Well thank you .. then i will also buy a MP1 ..and again thank you for the reply. I really like you videos . And it helps me a lot . Again thank you . Keep it up, We love u and support you ✊
there is an annoying low volume pop at the beginning of each song, it is mentionned in their document it is a depop system when you go from silence to music, none of my other dac does that
Can you please describe how you connect your CDA-M1P? was this on Android? iPhone? PC? what player you use? USB Exclusive mode or no? And what file format? These will help others to understand under which circumstances this issue may appear, would be useful to everyone
@@donglemadness happens with all my iems, macbook (audio output set to 24 bits/ 48khz) player is youtube videos (Opus 251 160k) after each song when we go from music to silence it pops and when the next song comes it pops again. it is not loud but it is annoying (m1p documentation says "the analog switching element makes a tiny sound when it switches") i have that on my studio monitors but it does it after a few minutes of silence not after 1 second of silence). to reproduce : click in the youtube timeline, you hear the pop just before sounds restarts
sharing my experience comparing m1p to dawn 4.4 : they are similarly priced and on the opposite side of dongle madness "analog" vs "hifi" signature scale. the difference i hear is that there is more sharpness/attack/energy on dawn 4.4 which may be fatiguing for long listening sessions to those that are trebble sensitive. the difference is easy to spot on vinyl crackles, they are smoothed out/attenuated on m1p which is a good thing. i ended up reselling m1p because my personal taste goes to a more energetic and dynamic sound. on iem that are too bright/sharp m1p may be a better choice but usually these iem with piercing highs are sub $20 iems and if you invest $80 on a dac you most certainly have a $100+ iem that don't have these poor quality sharp trebble. for those that are trebble sensitive and prefer this smooth/analog sound why not buying a "hifi" signature dac and cutting off high freqencies with eq when you want a smoother sound so you can have both signatures in one dac ? especially if you use the dac for speakers (vintage speakers usually are very smooth and the extra bite from a "hifi" dac is welcome in this situation )
@@audiofilo- any dac that scores high on dongle madness "hifi" scale will have a similar energetic sound so don't focus only on dawn 4.4, it sounds good but is not great with features my remarks were more general on "analog" vs "hifi" so qudelix 5k that also rates high on "hifi" type of sound is even a better buy because it has bluetooth and parametric equalisation, it sell for $89 on drop
Very closely matched, for easy to drive stuffs, with Playmate 2 having a bit more of authority with dynamic energy and PRAT, FC6 slightly mild but pleasing. The difference then will be evident when pushing heavyweights like full sized planars which scale further on Playmate 2
To me yes, M1P offers richer sound texture and that alone is something I really like, M1P having similar richness to sound comparable only to HIBY FC6 and CEntrance DACport HD
@@donglemadness so if I use it with something like simgot ew200, the balanced and unbalanced port will have the same sound quality but the balanced port will just have higher volume? I just returned my dawn pro because it had qc issue and I'm planning on getting the m1p. Tyia.
@@donglemadness thank you Andy, another thing you did not mention is, this dongle requires warm up (about 10 min) in order to sound good (it's a bit harsh if not warmed up). I don't know if it's because of different amplification. the problem is iphone and OPPO phones I have cannot warm it up only the laptop can, which makes it not portable at all
What is your defintion of better bass? do you like it fast, crisp and impactful? M1P can do that, if you want a bit more of Subbass extension, a bit more of decays, DC04Pro has it. TP50 a bit of both. All of them being neutral does not add coloration to the bass itself, but they do offer variance of density and pace
@@donglemadnessThanks, yes I mainly I listen to edm so prefer a faster and impactful bass with gd sub bass that rumbles. And for soundstage which is wider ? What recommendation of dongle for the kind of music I'm listen to?
If you look back at DAWN Pro, it is a 4.5 Star dongle with the score of 86. M1P is a 5 Star dongle with the score of 89, you get the idea. But I would say it depends subjectively also what sort of sound preferences you have, if you are familiar with classic AKM tuning, then a no brainer choice to get M1P
@@donglemadness No i haven't used any dongle till now apart from VE ODESSY. Dawn Pro was going for $42.5 and this one for $67 so that's why i asked that does it really make difference worth $25? If yes then i would love to grab this.
I did mention in the video that M1P is single DAC with Dual Amp stage. So yes it is not balanced from the DAC stage, but the analog is dual mono. Any which way does not matter to me because ultimately, I only judge by the final output, the actual sound
UAC is a mode between UAC1 and UAC2. UAC1 support older 24 bit CD qualtity and UAC2 pushes it further to 32 Bit. Older devices like Sony PS series uses UAC1
You have good point there. I have a plan to re-evaluate everything for 2024 and streamline the rating system to reflect the current standards (which has improved drastically since #donglemadness started). We see how it goes for 2024
I also hear background noise when connecting this dongle to my LG v50 and Samsung tab S7. This does not happen with the ibasso dc03 pro or the hiby fc3. I hope they can solve it with an update.
Hello Andy thanks for advice today i recived m1p and i can tell yuo after some hours of burn it this akm dongle sound better to all my expensive ess and cirus and burr brown chips all have and i try this is buy far the most musical dac amp i ever try....magic for 70eur sound more musical than mojo 2 for 600eur..magic akm this dongle is most enjoying listening music ...now i know what is about old magic akm sound....best of the best...thanks
My pleasure. Enjoy your music!
No creo que sea técnicamente superior,debe ser por el sonido analógico y suave.
Is it really at match with Mojo 2? I think is a bit difficult! Can you be more analytic about the comparison?
@@Nordi1_0745 not in technicalities is less impressive for sure than mojo2 but is way more musical way more
@@Nordi1_0745 Mojo 2 that I have in my hand now, is known for being exceedingly resolving and technical, so on this account M1P is not as technically focused like Mojo 2, however I will admit M1P does it better with overall texture richness and analog sound reproduction
Andy, my CDA M1P arrived. I am AMAZED by it's sound, specially because I listen most of the time to vocals. It is the best for vocals! I am so glad that I bought it! Thank you again, my friend!
Rock on!
I took delivery of this dongle yesterday and so far I'm very impressed. I also own the Shanling UA3, which houses the same 4493S chip, but in my opinion this dongle is the better unit by a wide margin. Sound wise it has a very weighty, full-bodied presentation. At low to medium volume it almost sounds like a desktop system driving my headphones, not a dongle you can hold in the palm of your hand. UA3 does have great bass, but it sounds thinner and not as fleshed out. To put it in simpler terms, many dongles have the bones but not the flesh. The bones are the basic elements in music, the details. The flesh is what blends the details together and makes music sound full-bodied and enjoyable. This thing has the flesh. It pulls you into music and before you know it you've been listening for longer than you should. This is the biggest upside of the M1P. Control wise it's more intuitive than the UA3. The UA3 needs you to long press the middle button to adjust internal volume. With M1P though you only have to press the two volume buttons. Device volume and dongle volume are separate so you can just set device volume to max. It also remembers the volume you last set it at so it won't blast your eardrums when you connect it to a new device. The last thing is the weight. This thing weighs a ton. Much heavier than any dongles I've owned or tried. I know some people prefer lighter dongles but I much prefer the solid feel of this one.
All in all a very, very impressive unit. I still wonder why it took a year and a half before another company releases a 4493S dongle. But if all that time goes into tuning and experimenting, I think colorfly made the right choice in releasing it late. AK also released their 4493S dongle at almost the same time as Colorfly. I will also be checking that one out once I have the opportunity. I doubt it will be much better though, given how marvelous the M1P is. Before taking delivery of it I was thinking of selling it if it isn't good, but no. This is definitely a keeper.
Exactly my thoughts too. I guess they took the time to carefully plan for the successor of M1, which was already great. And I am so relieved they opted for the less trendy route of going for analog sound experience, not too engrossed with technicalities. In the end, a result that harbor satisfying results especially for people who have grown fond of the classic AKM sound
@@donglemadness Right, this dongle has character. They also have M2 planned at the end of this year. I'm really curious what it will sound like.
@@lambdastorm7787¿se sabe que precio tendrá?, no he encontrado información
@@lambdastorm7787Andy somewhat didn't convince me, but you do! My local dealer has this on sale today, so I pulled the trigger. I already have another 4493 SEQ desktop amp, but a decent AKM for traveling shouldn't hurt, I guess.
PS: Andy, my man, you have one job, one job! 🤣
I always like to check out Andy's reviews on dongle dacs and the few reviews over the last two months have been no exception.
Andy doesn't leave out the biggest details when reviewing the sonic aspects, and the whole review is backed up by a very elaborate rating system at the end.
Thank you very much for all the recent reviews as well.. it is interesting to see what price levels the processing of the digital audio signal into its analogue form has been getting into over the last two or three years.
As I have stated in the past, my sweet spot is the DC04Pro..
Kudos to Andy.
Thanks Jaroslav. Cheers!
As per usual, a very well done and concise review Andy. This sounds like a game changer at its price point. Cheers 🤙
Thanks. It makes the competition better and hopefully push further for price to performance ratio. Game changer indeed
@@donglemadness Andy, have you had any issue with feedback when connecting this dongle? On four or five occasions I've had extreme feedback when connecting to my samsung s23 ultra. I've upgraded the cable but still have the same issue. Its never happened with the UA4 or BTR7 i have.
Added to my cart. Thank you andy for the great review! Appreciated.
No worries. I hope you will enjoy it
Look at me making another purchase off Andy's review! I bought the dawn the, dco4 pro and I am adding this to the cart. Thank you for your hard work Andy!
LOL. Enjoy it man :D
Hi bro according to you what is the best ibasso dc04 or the colorfly CDA m1p as you have the 2 ?
Which Dac you liked most?
Thank you for the great review. I'm waiting for Shanling UA4. 😊
My pleasure
thanks Andy, appreciate your review.
My pleasure!
Andy👑... you're a Legend as always! Kickass review of this hidden gem dac dongle! 💎✨👌
😁
Your reviews are the best❤subscriber from India
Thank you!
Thanks for the review Andy.. Steady
Steady.
I got it (based on your review) and I can confirm that sound-wise it is as good as the DC04Pro.
Though there are some issues (not present with DC04Pro):
- my Hiby music app installation when using USB exclusive mode have some "hiccups" (brief pauses/skips) during playback. I hope I can fix it with a firmware update (or Hiby app update).
- there is some floor noise when connected to a computer and using normally sensitive iems
- electromagnetic interference from phone is sometime present when moving through hilly terrain
All-in it is still a great value for the price as it sounds great.
Does this issue still happen with HIBY App version 4.2.1 Build 5552? because I know anything later than that build, the app giving so much hiccups with playback
@@donglemadness I will test it. And indeed the hiccups occur with other dongles as well, though not with the DC04Pro ! But it is unfortunate that DC04Pro costing 120 USD becomes unusable after less then a year of (normal) use due to wear.
Con que audífonos lo usaste? también me gustaría saber si lo conectaste a la computadora por si hubo una mejoría
. Im curious, what broke ecactly on the DC04?
I still use M1 and love it so much for it's sound signature
I've been waiting for this one with the AK4493. 😊
Great review!
Thank you!
thanks for the review Andy. Will you be reviewing the CDA M2 soon?
Yes, once I got it, I intend to
@@donglemadness looking forward to it
GREAT dongle! For this price, it's unbeatable for it's timbre!
Tiene otros doongle con los que se puedan comparar?
@@andresvr8357 Hello mate. I have Ibasso DC03 Pro, Xduoo Link2 Bal, LG V50 and LG G7 too. Most of the time paired with Topping NX7.
Hello Andy. Hope you will soon be getting the latest Colorfly CDA-M2 for another dongle review. Cheers!
Sabes dónde puedo encontrar ese Dac Amp?
Looking forward to it!
Oooh, this is tempting! I love AKM sound. The thing holding me back is that I already have Hiby FC6, so I'm not sure if would be with it to have both...
If you already have FC6, I can say you don't have to worry about it. FC6 still has mild advantage overall. But if you don't have FC6 and you want FC6 sort of sound without paying FC6 price, M1P is the solution
Hi Andy,Thaks for this great review.i need a suggestion, what will be best suited for Simgot Ea500, this one or cda-m2 or fiio ka17?
For me personally I prefer the smooth analog sound timbre of M1P for EA500. But I must also admit that if you prefer something more energetic sounding yet expertly toned, KA17 has my vote
Hello Andy! thanks for the reviews. after watching your recent reviews, there are 2 dongles that caught my eyes, the Onix and the colorfly CDA M1P. in terms of richness, organic sound, and note weight/density which one from the two is better in that department? I'm looking for dongle that has that good vocal weight/lushness (some people called it velvety?) smooth sounding without sacrificing the technical department. Thanks
Thanks. Sounds like you will like the CDA-M1P more definitely
Hey man! Shanling UA4 and iBasso DC06 Pro are out. I hope you will review them in near future. They both are based on ESS chip.
UA4 will arrive very soon, so does DC06Pro a bit later
@@donglemadness Thanks.
Terbaik info tuan
✌️
Thanks for great review! Do you plan to test new Aune Yuki dongle?
That's the plan! And thanks!
Always impressed with your review videos. I defeat my anxiety at 4am after chose this over moondrop dawn pro. Done checkout. Ty sir, appreciated.
Thanks, enjoy your gears!
Thank you for the great review, Andy!
My Colorfly CDA M1P arrived yesterday. It has a really, really great sound but I can't control anything on it.
I tried all the listed button combination and more... Nothing helps. It seems like it has stuck in a weird mode.
It's indicator light is constantly blinking in cyan (whitish) color.
Thanks. M1P controls can be clunky. But I assume that the volume up/down is okay? Just the combo press to change fiters not working?
@@donglemadness I'm so sorry! My comment above is a bit misleading... I have to say that it seems like M1P is working somehow properly, the only oddity is the constant blinking. That's it. Fortunately the volume control and gain switch (low-level mode / high-level mode) are working and maybe the filter change too but I can't hear the difference between filter modes. :) Thank you so much for your effort and your quick answer, Andy! It is always a pleasure to follow your work.
@@bregokrisztian2761 All good then!
About the amplifier stage, it is one exar XR2001 for 3.5mm and one exar XR2001 for 4.4mm, as i understand. Some people report that the 2 outputs sound the same which is a good thing.
I don't have the details, but yes they sounded the same from either 3.5 or 4.4 if you use relatively easy to drive stuffs under 32 Ohm and with sensitivity over 105 dB, but if you driving planars, then the 4.4 with the higher output will offer more resolved dynamic transients and authority
Hello again Andy! Great review! can M1P drive HD600 or is only for iems? Is it capable of driving such full-size headphones such as Senn HD600 or HD650?
Moreover as I look,
RU7 has 3.5mm output w 160mW @ 32Ω and 4.4mm 400mW
M1P has 125mW@RL=32Ω and 4.4mm 240mW
In score results RU7 takes 9 but M1P takes 10. But if I see correct RU7 seems much more powerful that M1P
Am I missing something about driving power here?
Thanks for all
Just like many other recently released 4 Vrms rated dongles, including this M1P, they all can drive HD600, HD650. As noted in my vid, M1P can drive T40RP MK3 which is even more demanding than both HD600 or 650, with proper headroom and dynamic authority. It sounded like driven from a desktop DAC
I ordered this M1P, thanks Andy! I plan to buy one of the top dongle DAC next year, but I wonder, would you compare your top dongles to Mojo2 please? And yes, I know Mojo2 is not a dongle and a bit big to take around on the go, but everyone is saying how great it is and comparing it to more expensive desktop DAC units, so I wonder how top dongles like HIBY FC6 and Cayin RU7 compare to Mojo2??? (Pricewise not a big difference.)
Thanks, that is something I can do perhaps soon when I get a Mojo2 for testing. We shall see :D
@@donglemadness that would be awesome. What about Dragonfly dongles? Not that new, but people still love them for their high quality sound they produce...
@@just2share I already tested Audioquest Cobalt over two years ago, you can check it out here on Head-Fi www.head-fi.org/showcase/audioquest-dragonfly-cobalt.23926/review/27138/
thanks for the link@@donglemadness , checked your YT channel but didnt see a review on Dragonfly.
@@donglemadness Andy really a comparison of the best dongles (please include M1P) to Mojo 2, will be really a big help so as to compare how dongles much a less portable device but with many funs, reviewers and users that rate it high enough and almost excellent to portable dac/amp section.
Man, my wallet is crying, because I need to take this one too. haha
I think I'll sell my Link2 Bal and take this M1P to have a different signature to my DC03 Pro. I wanna both of the worlds :)
Was gonna take a R2R dongle, but it costfull and if I wanna smooth velvety sound (specially vocals/mids), now this CDA M1P delivers for a fraction of the price.
My condolences to your wallet...LOL
@@donglemadness Hahaha, it will recover soon. 🤧🤣
Hey Andy, I got the m1p some weeks ago and I hear quite a lot of RF interference when it’s reasonably close to my cellphone… apparently this is also an issue with other dongles like the questyle m15. What are your thoughts on this? And what are your suggestions for me ( could be a better dongle you could recommend )? Thanks!!
I understand what you mean. Just to allway your worries, I have even more RF interferences with my favorite HIBY FC6 or even worse on R2R based dongles. It is also quite bad with AKLIAM PD5 which is the same internals as M1P. In fact more than half of my dongles experience this issue. One way to reduce the RF interferences is to use properly shielded cable and I have found that ddHiFi TC09S has been good to reduce the likeliness. But I am still experimenting with other solution as well. Might do a video on this one
Thanks a lot for the quick reply Andy! I’ll definitely take a look at the cable you suggested
Hello Andy, I’m intrigued by the ‘analog sounding’ characteristic of this DAC. I’m particularly interested in how it would perform with EDM and Rock tracks. Given that I currently own the iBasso DC04 Pro and the HiBy FC4, would you recommend this DAC for me?
Analog sound is less applicable to EDM or electronic music, they are digital sound after all, so it does not matter. But for Rock, analog/organic sound means there's no hint of metallic aggression on the upper Mids all the way to Treble that I consider as beyond natural. Best way to compare this is to listen to a typical ESS Sabre DAC tuning with a bright sounding IEM, you will find how digital sounding they are with crisp, sharp note and lots of emphasis on macro details, some may like it, but I am one of those who don't like it. If you are familiar with that sharp, energetic bright sound, then the sort of sound you hear from M1P would be considered as "warm", that's how natural and organic sound are being regarded these days
Hola Andy. Muchas gracias por tus excelentes videos y por siempre darte el tiempo de responder nuestras dudas. Quería preguntarte que es exactamente el control de volumen del hardware en un dongle. Es el control con botones físicos del dongle o es un control interno del DAC?. Esto te lo pregunto porque con el colorfly cda m1p, tanto en USB audio player pro como en hiby music, puedo aumentar o disminuir el volumen del hardware aparte del ajuste con los botones físicos. Mientras que con el ibasso dc03 pro, ambas aplicaciones me dicen que este dispositivo no tiene control de volumen de hardware, siendo que tiene botoneras de control independiente. Si me puedes aclarar está duda, te lo agradecería mucho. Saludos desde Chile.
Thanks. Both DC03Pro and M1P has independent hardware volume adjustment on the dongle itself, both with 100 steps, they are the same, when you adjust volume on the dongle, it doesn't change the volume on the host. As for your situation I can't quite explain what you see, but if you adjust M1P and the player on the host does not change volume level, then it is independent regardless what it says. I always lock or max out volume on the host and adjust only on the dongle side
Gracias por tu respuesta Andy. Si me permites una última pregunta, podrias confirmar que el Volume independiente del colorfly es de 100 niveles?. En mi dispositivo solamente llega a 60 pasos. Gracias de antemano.
Fantastic review as usual Andy! With the tests that you've done on this and the iBasso DC04 Pro, which would you prefer to use with the Hidizs MP145? Also, what filters on this worked best for you with that same IEM?
Thanks. If I want airy and more extensions on the upper frequency, with wider sense of soundstage then DC04Pro it is, otherwise I am completely mesmerized by the velvety richness of sound texture from M1P and have found myself enjoying it quite a lot with MP145
@@donglemadness - Man, that's quite the toss-up between the two. Time to make a decision then, or eventually get both 😁
@@donglemadnessis it kind of like a budget Cayin ru7?
@@sethismynameget both lol. I have a btr7, so I might get this instead of an ru7 or fc6….not quite sure yet.
@@Hijynx87 More like budget FC6, which is my personal No.1. But of course FC6 is still superior with outright technicalities
Hi Andy, for improving vocals, which is better, the CDA M1P or the FiiO Q11? Also, my friend is selling the Q11 for $52. Do you think it's worth to buy? My preference leans towards enhancing vocals.
Improving vocals? M1P does have richer sounding Mids so it will be a bit more forward with more vocals presence compared to Q11 which is more transparent
Hello!) Thanks for review and comparisons! I got Colorfly CDA M1 and I like it very much! But you intrigued me with CDA M1p))). Is there much difference between their sound? Worth M1 to be replaced with M1p In your opinion, or every of them sounds good in its own way?)
Different sound tuning. M1 is largely technical and M1P as noted in my video offers rich sound texture with great velvety analog timbre, the sort of sound that is similar to DACport HD or HIBY FC6. So yes it depends on what you perceive as good based on your own taste and preferences, that will determine which one you like more
@@donglemadnessThank you very much! I have just ordered it!😁👍
@@МихаилДемин-э6зCuál dirías que es más detallado de los dos?.
As always, I find Andy's review on the Colorfly M1P is concise but still entertaining. Does it suit for metalheads?
Yes of course, for days I have spent listening to some Lo-Fi Metal stuffs as well as lots of Pelican and Russian Circles with M145 and Fostex T40RP MK3, non fatiguing long indulgence even with the most extreme of Metal
Pelican 🤘🤘🤘
@@donglemadnesslove the mp145, perfect amount of thump and slam. It being a planar means it doesn’t get muddy either without having to scoop the midbass. Good stuff! Odd fit due to the cable position, but it’s still comfy. It sounds closer to a planar headphone than my other planar iems.
@@donglemadness Bravo, bro!
Hola andy. Muy buena revisión. Me interesa este dongle. Hay alguna forma de saber que filtro se está utilizando?. Crees que sería una buena actualización al ibasso dc03 pro? Saludos.
Hola. Doesn't really matter which filters, as mentioned in my video I barely can hear audible differences. Compared to DC03Pro, not really an upgrade, but different sound tuning altogether, as mentioned, M1P offers classic AKM sound tuning, DC03Pro is modern energetic Hi-Fi colored sound
@@donglemadnessgracias andy por tu respuesta. Una última pregunta. Si te dijeran que solo puedes usar un dongle de aquí en adelante, entre el ibasso dc04 pro y colorfly , cual elegirías y por que?
@@andresmansilla9699 I go for Colorfly CDA-M1P, because I always prefer natural rich analog sound which M1P does it better than DC04Pro
Excellent review, unfortunately I need a battery and Bluetooth for my situation. The best I have been able to come up with is the soon to be released FiiO Q15 for $400. Would you have any other suggestions…? warm neutral is what I prefer.
Thanks!. Unfortunately, my experience with battery and BT equipped portable DAC is severely limited so I have no idea what to recommend
Btr7 is solid. It doesn’t really color the sound a whole lot though, but it sounds great
hey andy, do i get this or the dc04 pro i’ve had the cda m1 in the past as per your recommendation and i really loved it but it broke so i got a dc03 pro which i have now. if i’m looking for an upgrade, do i get this one or the dc04 pro- im using the s12 pro right now and i wonder which of those would compliment my s12 better? great content as always man
For S12 Pro I would say M1P might sound richer, smoother compared to DC04Pro, but remember that DC04Pro has mild advantage on upper frequency sparkle and micro details, and wider sounding too. You decide which one you like more
@@donglemadness you're the GOAT man thank you so much for answering!
Great review, do you think it would be a good combination with Simgot Em6l? Tks
Thanks, and yes it will sound great with EM6L
Love my m1p! Pairs perfectly with my Simgot Ea1000. It’s very picky on the c to lightning cable though, all of Fiio’s cable I tried doesnt work, including LT3
Awesome
I have ordered EA1000, and planning to order the colorfly cda m1p, you have another dongles to compare, or only tested m1p with ea1000. No very sharp treble o too much mid bass?
M1p really pairs well with the ea1000, I got a ka13 first, but it sounds too digital and too "sharp". If you have extra budget, I can suggest the Hiby FC6 also (what I'm using now). It's a direct upgrade to the m1p imo @@AKALAKABRA
@@carlonombres7064 Thank, i don't have the money for the fc6, it was in offer for only 150 USD but i didn't buy it, im going to order the M1P
Привет, Енди! У меня по вашей рекомендации, F.audio ds1 и shanling up5, стоит покупать colorfly m1p? Наушники вкладыши, smabat m4, и m5pro. Спасибо.
I haven't tried UP5, but I can tell you DS1 is brighter and less organic sounding compared to M1P, if that's what you looking for then it makes sense to get M1P
a spreadsheet with all dongles with their respective analog or hifi charts woudl be ncie
I plan to consolidate that end of this year, which is around the corner. 157 dongles and that could take some time to consolidate and streamline
Hello Andy
Is this m1p better more dense and fuller sounding than shanling ua3 i m indecision between this two wich is superior sounding of this akm dongles? I love creamy sound of old AKM chips
Absolutely, UA3 is tuned to sound more like ESS Sabre than a true AKM, I pick up M1P over UA3 anytime
Hello Andy, may i ask for advice for dac, i currently using kefine klanar for my main cans which dongle you think is better to be pair with klanar, currently the candidate are m1p, ua4, dew4x or maybe got other suggestion?
Between the ones you listed, I will personally pick M1P for Klanar - but assuming you don't have budget limit, then the very best would be HIBY FC6, Cayin RU7 or Aune Yuki
If i already hv DC04 Pro, does this still worth for the grab or i juz stick to DC04 Pro?
If you want something different that is even smoother, richer sounding yes, with classic AKM analog timbre, only FC6 and DACPort HD has that dense sound beside M1P
Btw. I have compared this dongle with JCALLY AP90 (same AKM chip) and they sound very similar. Maybe the CDA M1P is just a hint warmer....
If you define being natural and organic as warm, yes then M1P is "warmer" than AP90 (I have tested both extensively so I know). AP90 has a tuning approach that emit digital, edgy and crispy sound notes, the timbre is not as traditionally smooth like an AKM normally behave, sounding more like an ESS Sabre instead with audible Pinna glare when paired with highly resolving and neutral IEMs (which does not happen on M1P)
@@donglemadness I don't agree with your assessment of AP90 (I have it since release). But I also mostly don't use highly resolving and neutral IEM.... I actually like the treble on AP90. So probably my ears are just not sensitive to this issue, or maybe our devices don't sound exactly the same!
Should I get the Colorfly CDA M1P or Colorfly CDA-M2?
Do both dacs have that analog sound?
I can only speak for M1P as I am still testing the M2 which I will review next week
thank you andy .wonderful review.how this collorfly compare to ovidius B1?
My pleasure, B1 has a bit more of air and decays but less dense body of sound versus M1P, and a bit more energetic too for B1
thanks
@@donglemadness
Ok I am buying this, I have looked at everything else, maybe cayin what is it, u6? The r2r one? Maybe it's better for what I want, and maybe the fc6 is better, but I can afford this one😅.. Thanks again, you are ever helpful.
No worries, this is the same sort of FC6 sound without the price tag of FC6
@@donglemadness I started in this hobby in the mid 70s, Luxman class A amp and Wharfedales...I like an analog organic sound.
I'm thinking of getting a Venture Electronic Asura 3.0FE and Colorfly CDA M1P instead of Megatron. Your thoughts and suggestions will be highly appreciated.
That would be a great synergy combo, the output will be very analog sounding and smooth. Go for it!
@@donglemadness Exactly. I'm definitely going for it after your approval. Thank you so much.
Sir, I'm uncertain about choosing between the Colorfly CDA M1p and FiiO KA13, both priced at $79. Which one would you suggest for use with planars like MP145 or Letshuoer S15? I would greatly appreciate your expert opinion on this matter.
I would go for Colorfly CDA M1-P. There, a good reason I rated it overall higher than KA13, because it is a better dongle especially for planars. Just make sure you run 4.4mm BAL to get 100% power
@@donglemadness On paper, the power output seems less though. Is it capable of powering planar headphones like the FiiO FT5?
@@bestcocbaseswithlink5069 Paper specs don't tell the whole story. #donglemadness is all about testing dongles in real life applications and you would be surprised if I say the 100 mW rated HIBY FC6 is the BEST dongle for driving my 300 Ohm Sennheiser HD600/HD650, Fostex T40RP MK3 (91 dB Magnetic Planar), HiFiMan Sundara (94 dB Magnetic Planar), all of these are demanding headphones. Unless your FT5 is even more demanding than T40RP MK3 (which is the most stubborn planar except for HiFiMan Susvara), then M1P has all the power and headroom to perform well with them, I have demonstrated this in my M1P review
@@donglemadness Woah, crazy! Do you by chance know the headphone jack output data of mi 9T (branded as redmi k20 pro where I live, in Nepal) as it is my primary smartphone as well. Is it more than 100mW? People in forums sing high praises about its DAC and say it is significantly better than its peers. I have not tested the HiFi DAC as the only audiophile equipment I have as of know is my $20 discontinued truthear hola. 😅
Which do you think is more recommended, the Colorfly CDA M1P or the Ibasso DC04Pro for assessing sound quality without paying attention to features and so on?
To do that you need transparency, between DC04Pro and M1P, I would use DC04Pro to access sound transparency because the richer smooth nature of M1P may impart biased observation despite both being relatively uncolored
You put another item in my list which one I wanna buy😂
lol
I can plug into my Hiby R3 Sabre? It sound very thin and not much bass, note weight poor and nonexistent in lower mids.. Would I be better off buying a new DAP like tempotec V3 using the AKM dac? I am thinking if it can upgrade my sound, it's a good thing budget wise..have you tried it with your pr2's? You are saying it's neutral, it's not the slightly warm akm sound with good note weight in mids? I hear your video just want to confirm about this. Can use Bluetooth? Thanks...
I am not familiar with the R3 Sabre but assuming it will allow an external USB DAC connection, then yes, any dongle will work. What will happen then is that all audio processing and output will be handled by the attached external DAC/Amp and what you will hear is the sound performance from them, the R3 Sabre totally bypassed. No, dongles don't like this don't have BT. M1P is neutral uncolored, a DAC/Amp can be neutral and offering warm sound timbre, the sound frequency itself appear linear and non boosted/altered, but they can still be either bright or natural (warm)
@@donglemadness That is what I want to do, use the R3 for a transport.. I don't like the sound.. so this one sound like akm? Did you try with pr2? I think we are using language differently, warm timbre does not mean neutral to me, it means warm.
Andy, Any plans on evaluate FIIO KA13? to My country is cheaoer and more easy to find a trusted seller than ibasso dca04 pro.
I am working on KA13 now. Thanks
Interesting..the value price is quite same as dc04 pro..only one point less than dc04 pro
What do you think, is it worth replacing fiio ka3 on Colorfly CDA M1P? Thanks.
I think it is a good move especially if you want richer analog sound and overall more powerful than KA3
@@donglemadness Thanks for your valuable advice! This is exactly the type of sound I want.
How about compatibility with an iphone? Does it come with a USB C to lightning cable? Thx for the good informative reviews
I am not sure about it. I don't see any lightning cable included, also I don't have iPhones. And thanks!
Thanks for responding. Really enjoy your reviews.
its surprisingly better than q7, good pick if m17 is expensive/ unpreferred
ah it uses different chip
Hello, is there a review for Lotoo Paw S2? I can't find it on UA-cam channel.
S2 written review was done 2 years ago, so there's no video on it
can i use this m1p for gaming ? and i order a fosi audio ds1. which one is better for gaming . i love the akm analoge sound. or should also buy the m1p ?
DS1 clinical sound will be better suited for gaming, but if you like smooth resolution for music, I will pick MP1 all the time over DS1
Well thank you .. then i will also buy a MP1 ..and again thank you for the reply. I really like you videos . And it helps me a lot . Again thank you . Keep it up, We love u and support you ✊
@@dhimana.k2004 My pleasure. Cheers
@@donglemadness cheers 🍻
You already buy them? I have fosiaudio ds1 and planning to order the colorfly cda m1p, which one do you like more?
En tecnisismimo como se compara con truthear shio?¿Segun lo que he leído son casi identicos?
At this level most of them are equally matched technically, not just between SHIO and M1P
there is an annoying low volume pop at the beginning of each song, it is mentionned in their document it is a depop system when you go from silence to music, none of my other dac does that
Can you please describe how you connect your CDA-M1P? was this on Android? iPhone? PC? what player you use? USB Exclusive mode or no? And what file format? These will help others to understand under which circumstances this issue may appear, would be useful to everyone
@@donglemadness happens with all my iems, macbook (audio output set to 24 bits/ 48khz) player is youtube videos (Opus 251 160k) after each song when we go from music to silence it pops and when the next song comes it pops again. it is not loud but it is annoying (m1p documentation says "the analog switching element makes a tiny sound when it switches") i have that on my studio monitors but it does it after a few minutes of silence not after 1 second of silence). to reproduce : click in the youtube timeline, you hear the pop just before sounds restarts
Hello friend, do you prefer M1P or fiio Q11 and Ka13? Which one has the better soundstage?
Between the three you mentioned? M1P of course. Soundstage is a bit wider on KA13 but I am still testing it and need to compare further
@@donglemadnessThank you, you got a new piece of writing. I'm from Brazil. You are very cordial and helpful.
@@donglemadness I would like to know what your favorite IEM is, I couldn't see the make and model of the A5000 that you mentioned?
@@sonhobrasileiro My pleasure
@@sonhobrasileiro My fav, Final Audio A5000 alongside Hidizs MP145 and Tanchjim ZERO. My reference and all time fav is Shure KSE1500
sharing my experience comparing m1p to dawn 4.4 : they are similarly priced and on the opposite side of dongle madness "analog" vs "hifi" signature scale. the difference i hear is that there is more sharpness/attack/energy on dawn 4.4 which may be fatiguing for long listening sessions to those that are trebble sensitive. the difference is easy to spot on vinyl crackles, they are smoothed out/attenuated on m1p which is a good thing. i ended up reselling m1p because my personal taste goes to a more energetic and dynamic sound. on iem that are too bright/sharp m1p may be a better choice but usually these iem with piercing highs are sub $20 iems and if you invest $80 on a dac you most certainly have a $100+ iem that don't have these poor quality sharp trebble. for those that are trebble sensitive and prefer this smooth/analog sound why not buying a "hifi" signature dac and cutting off high freqencies with eq when you want a smoother sound so you can have both signatures in one dac ? especially if you use the dac for speakers (vintage speakers usually are very smooth and the extra bite from a "hifi" dac is welcome in this situation )
amigo no entendi con que dawn 4.4 lo estas comparando que tuvo de malo el m1p
@@audiofilo- moondrop dawn 4.4 ua-cam.com/video/ZNjf8ccQGjo/v-deo.html
@@amanieux me mandas el link de compra
@@audiofilo- any dac that scores high on dongle madness "hifi" scale will have a similar energetic sound so don't focus only on dawn 4.4, it sounds good but is not great with features my remarks were more general on "analog" vs "hifi" so qudelix 5k that also rates high on "hifi" type of sound is even a better buy because it has bluetooth and parametric equalisation, it sell for $89 on drop
Entre este y ibasso dc-04 cual diria que es mas realista en el sonido de los instrumentos y las voces?
M1P sounded more natural the way I hear it, but both are already quite good with this
@@donglemadnesspuedo preguntar si fue un bit más o de haber Sido extremo 2?,que impresionante para lo que cuesta😮
Hi Andy, where is your dongle chart? Any updated chart?
Please chech this video description, I have included the list there
@@donglemadness ok noted thx
How does Hiby FC6 compare to Burson Playmate 2 in sound quality? not the power but only in sound quality
Very closely matched, for easy to drive stuffs, with Playmate 2 having a bit more of authority with dynamic energy and PRAT, FC6 slightly mild but pleasing. The difference then will be evident when pushing heavyweights like full sized planars which scale further on Playmate 2
Do you think this a good compliment to DC04 pro and how hot does this thing get?
To me yes, M1P offers richer sound texture and that alone is something I really like, M1P having similar richness to sound comparable only to HIBY FC6 and CEntrance DACport HD
Is there a difference when it comes to sound on the balanced and unbalanced port other than power?
The weaker side running only 50% sounds softer with more demanding partners, it is more suited for highly sensitive stuffs
@@donglemadness so if I use it with something like simgot ew200, the balanced and unbalanced port will have the same sound quality but the balanced port will just have higher volume?
I just returned my dawn pro because it had qc issue and I'm planning on getting the m1p. Tyia.
Colorfly cda-m2 next?
When it is released, yes of course
Hi Andy, can you recommend me a DAC for KZ ZAR on 5000mah Android phone ?
Get Venture Electronics ODO for $5, or if you have no budget restrictions, EPZ TP50
which one sounds more holographic the Dawn Pro or M1P?
M1P
Please review SOUND TIGER Sinfonia
Let me check what that is. Thanks
colorfly CDA M1P specs says is has XR2001 opamps but mine has 6863D opamps is that normal?
I think it is best to send an email to Colorfly to clarify this because at the time of my review, I do not have that information at hand
@@donglemadness thank you Andy, another thing you did not mention is, this dongle requires warm up (about 10 min) in order to sound good (it's a bit harsh if not warmed up). I don't know if it's because of different amplification. the problem is iphone and OPPO phones I have cannot warm it up only the laptop can, which makes it not portable at all
¿Que tan holográfico lo considera en comparación con Yuki?
Yuki is a bit more holographic
How does it compare against RU6?
RU6 is overall less with sound texture and richness when compared against M1P, in simple terms people would say M1P is "warmer" than RU6
Which has a better bass the m1p, dc04pro or the epz tp50 paring with cca ckx
What is your defintion of better bass? do you like it fast, crisp and impactful? M1P can do that, if you want a bit more of Subbass extension, a bit more of decays, DC04Pro has it. TP50 a bit of both. All of them being neutral does not add coloration to the bass itself, but they do offer variance of density and pace
@@donglemadnessThanks, yes I mainly I listen to edm so prefer a faster and impactful bass with gd sub bass that rumbles. And for soundstage which is wider ? What recommendation of dongle for the kind of music I'm listen to?
Hey, as compared with dawn pro where it stands and what's the difference?
If you look back at DAWN Pro, it is a 4.5 Star dongle with the score of 86. M1P is a 5 Star dongle with the score of 89, you get the idea. But I would say it depends subjectively also what sort of sound preferences you have, if you are familiar with classic AKM tuning, then a no brainer choice to get M1P
@@donglemadness No i haven't used any dongle till now apart from VE ODESSY. Dawn Pro was going for $42.5 and this one for $67 so that's why i asked that does it really make difference worth $25? If yes then i would love to grab this.
@@shubhkukreja If you like VE Odyssey, M1P is the one you want
@@donglemadness thanks so much for the reply.
Another review of m1p says it is not a real balanced dac because there is only a single dac chip, is it correct ?
I did mention in the video that M1P is single DAC with Dual Amp stage. So yes it is not balanced from the DAC stage, but the analog is dual mono. Any which way does not matter to me because ultimately, I only judge by the final output, the actual sound
Ok get it, does the cheaper dawn pro that has dual dac also has dual mono amps ?
@@amanieux DAWN Pro is using dual CS43131 natively without any added amp components, built in amp of CS43131 which is already more than sufficient
The ak4493seq costs only $8 per unit and 6$ per 100 pieces why did not they put a second dac, is there no advantage to have dual dac designs ?
@@amanieux I have no idea why, it could be that they can do better with 1 DAC? more is not always better
What is UAC ? If you could tell
UAC is a mode between UAC1 and UAC2. UAC1 support older 24 bit CD qualtity and UAC2 pushes it further to 32 Bit. Older devices like Sony PS series uses UAC1
@@donglemadness thanks!
Hello, Do you know its output impedance?
Sorry, I don't have that information on hand
¿Que significa driving power en su tabla?
Sorry I don't understand this question, Google translate not translating properly
@@donglemadness lo que aparece abajo de “sound (technicalities)",ya que power efficiency es diferente
how does it compare with the AK HC4?
I wished I know, haven't tried HC4 yet
@@donglemadness ah would love to hear your views on AK dongles. Especially Hc4 as it has an AKM chip! Thanks for all your great reviews
It has usc 1? I bet it works on ps5 and switch then!
Yes indeed, swithc UAC1 and UAC2 and you have a versatile dongle to use even on PS5 or Nitendo gears
m1's technicalities better than m1p?
Same
Why is value assessment just 8? It should be 10, because sound-wise it compares to top ones who cost over $300, and this Colorfly costs under $100.
You have good point there. I have a plan to re-evaluate everything for 2024 and streamline the rating system to reflect the current standards (which has improved drastically since #donglemadness started). We see how it goes for 2024
@@donglemadness great! BTW, I ordered this Colorfly DAC based on your review. I found it for €70 (on AliExpress it's €90).
FYI Users are reporting RF interference issues on this dongle including myself. Buyers beware
No RF interference on mine. Zero issues
Anyone else experience background hiss and artifacts while using M1P. It sounds great but the darn hiss means I need to return it.
What IEM are you using and do you know what sort of sensitivity or impedance of your IEM? hybrid? connect to PC or Android?
@@donglemadness tinhifi P1 Max via Android on Samsung galaxy s23
Hear it via different cables and while using both Tidal and Hiby via exclusive both
I also hear background noise when connecting this dongle to my LG v50 and Samsung tab S7. This does not happen with the ibasso dc03 pro or the hiby fc3. I hope they can solve it with an update.
@@andresmansilla9699 yup. I've seen several people report this issue. It's just not a good design and has a lot of interference. Sending mine back
On a scale of 1 to 10, how is the soundstage like for M1P and RU7?
9