What do you think of their strategy to use cosplay to attract the younger crowd? A big thank you to Shenzhen audio for sponsoring the trip. Visit their website at shenzhenaudio.com/ Non affiliated links for the cd players shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-discdream-2-portable-cd-player shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-discdream-2-ultra-portable-cd-player Non affiliated links for the speaker shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-m4p-mtm-passive-monitor-speaker?srsltid=AfmBOor9_c76dVeju0ToLp4gov3REOX7cSqKtAC7EjNskxFOdX2J-eEV
C'mon... there's a term for this... Booth Babes. Its in every industry. (Especially IT and Boat and Auto shows) Nothing wrong w cosplay. Its not just the younger crowd considering that most men in Asia have been watching Anime for years. Hope you had fun!
This video was so cool! Chinese hifi companies have really pushed the industry forward with excellent engineering. I think their presence in the North American market has made great gear affordable for people with modest budgets. I would be like a kid in candy store at this show!
Their hifi technology is about 3~5 years behind the best, but the best set 5 years ago is still selling at >10x higher than the best Chinese brand today. Unless you are really into it, you can't tell the difference.
Great video Thomas and what an experience. China is definitely carrying the flag for introducing the younger generation to qualify hifi and at the same time making quality hifi affordable for all. Long may it continue.
@@ThomasAndStereo lucky you! By the way shanling now offer a 270$ cd transport and ripper called the CR60, available over here in Europe. Fiio make some lovely gear including desktop speakers.
@@ThomasAndStereo you still not done return of the jedi to prove your hi-fi is capable with the ranco , i'm calling you out as your bass is not good enough
Glad you enjoyed it! I was worried people would get bored if it is too long so I removed a lot of footage. For example, Fosi new tube integrated amp, a whole area selling fancy keyboards and etc. Apparently, young people who use headphone and IEM tends to be gamers, so that is why they also display high tech keyboards there.
Really enjoyed this video. People really need to get off Chinese bashing. Their competing favorably now. Right off the bat, what struck was the age. Lots of younger people interested. Audio shows back home their primarily older gentlemen. This is a problem that needs to be addressed
China is great. Overfishing the seas, polluting the planet, and repressing their citizens from freedom of speech or freedom to practice religion. Lol. No, they are a total bad player on the global theater... let's support them !! The Chinese people deserve freedom to express themselves however they like.
Your intentions are the most legit! Not chasing an increase in subscribers allows you to build your brand in an authentic way and truly connect. It's great to see you having fun! Cheers!
Wow! Thanks Thomas! What a variety of interesting gear at that show! Shanling, Fiio, the Fosi luxury brand, and SMSL VMV gear all look interesting. Happy listening! 😊👍🎶🎶
btw I couldn't agree more with you and the gentleman from Dita, HPs are easily more detailed, and may I also add acoustically inert from our wives than any speaker setups. 😂
First, it was the food for me. Second, the finds you discovered. Third, the price points are accessible for the entrants in the hobby, who are younger. Great episode….
🤗 THOMAS 😎YOU GOT TO GO TO THE SHOW 🥶 AS A GUEST AND TRY THE 🍛🍣🍜 Did they have good Ramen noodles?😁 🤷♂️ I would have thought that they would properly ground the equipment ⚡️😬💚💚💚
Excellent video. FYI, recently I replaced my ~3 YO Audiolab CDT6000 (MSRP $599) with a Shanling ET3 (MSRP $729) and am shocked at the value. They also have a SACD player for < $1300. Might be cool to review it/them
OMG !!! There are many new concepts that my friends and I have not seen in North America. I am Really Happy that Thomas is sharing such a wonderful experience with us. Audio gear , Cosplay girls and Foods 🍱 😍👍👍👍
Very cool Thomas. I would love to see you exploring the headphone sector and for those of us enjoy traditional channel & headphone pathways. I was at the SoCal CanJam and the attendance was something else. Though it was a nice generational mix, the younger audiophile set was there in some force. Many of them love the gear but stated that they looked forward to the next revolution breakthrough via lossless wireless. Cheers!♠️🎸
I haven't been to Shenzhen since the early Noughties - all I remember is how much construction was going on all around me. I've seen the videos of the influencers with dozens of mobile phones set up to record them for different social media channels while they hold up whatever product they are selling/promoting - I prefer your more laid back approach. Thanks for the vid.
I wish more reviewers started paying attention to Chinese Audio. The youth, the innovation and the exuberance portend a significant and growing impact on the hobby. I remember the days when cheap Japanese brands were considered junk, until they dominated the market starting in the 70s. A similar pattern is happening with Chinese brands. It seems to me that more of the American and European audio press should pay attention or risk irrelevance.
Good luck pushing the China agenda here in USA. We want the Chinese people free... let's see how well that goes... Chinese audio is irrelevant to all but people with a few hundred bucks to spend on audio... so no. The American mags will kill it. I will boycott it. We believe in Human Rights over cheap audio...
Thanks for a really enjoyable and informative video Thomas. You saved me the price of the flights to go there, although I did miss out on the delicious looking food! 😅.
In response to your statement at 6:15 to 6:23, high resolution, high sampling rate digital audio players (DAPs) have been on the market in the U.S. for more than a decade. In 2010, Stereophile magazine had a reveiw of Head-Direct’s HiFiMAN HM-801 DAP, which cost $790. The owner's manual for the HM-801 informs us: “This is not just your father’s music listening device. You have just invested in a ground breaking, earth shattering, ‘changing life as we know it’ music device that is going to transform the way that audiophiles listen to music, ‘while on the go.’” Compatible file formats: MP3, WAV, OGG, and 24-bit/96kHz FLAC. Today, there are many high end DAPs available in the U.S. from such brands as Astell & Kern, iBasso, HiBy, Hidizs, HiFi Walker, Surfans, Sony, Shanling, and yes, even FiiO, to name a few. I find it hard to believe that most of these would not be available in Canada as well.
@@ThomasAndStereo In that case, welcome to the fresh air and light of the world above the rock. 😉 BTW, in my bedroom setup, I have a relatively new (a couple of months) FiiO K11 R2R DAC/headphone amp that I listen to with my 7Hz Timeless IEMs. It sounds pretty darn good to me in NOS mode using the balanced output. However, I also still enjoy my old school Cayin HA-1A1 (original version) tube headphone amp in SET mode driving my Sennheiser HD600 headphones. Old school or cutting edge doesn't matter to me as long as it sounds good to my ears. I recall a reviewer saying long ago about the debate between solid state and tubes that he couldn't care less if the audio technology was made of jelly beans as long as it sounds good, is reliable and is available for a reasonable price. That's my philosophy extended to old vs. new, R2R vs Sigma Delta, IEM vs headphones vs speakers, vinyl vs CD vs streaming, etc. as well as solid state vs tubes.
Hi, Thomas! I'm from Canada and I'm a big fan of your channel. While I totally appreciate your reviews on home/speaker based audio; i have to tell you that I've been much more into iems and headphones for over 8 years now. Why? Because I live in a very small apartment (less than 500 square feet) and i just don't have the space to properly set up a speaker based hifi system. I delved into personal audio many years ago and I can tell you that I've never been happier. I own over 20 iem's ranging from $15 to $300. I've owned a couple that were between $460 and $1200, but sold them because they weren't to my taste. Brands like Fiio and Shanling are not new to me. I prefer portable Bluetooth dac/amps like the Fiio Q1MK2, Q5s and BTR7. I also own 2 Qudelix-5K and 2 Radsone Earsonics portable dac amps. So, why do I prefer iem or headphones based gear? It takes the ROOM out of the equation. I used to have a home audio/speaker based system. Every time I moved, my system sounded crappier. It was all based on room acoustics and i didn't have the time, money, or patience to deal with all of that. In 2005, I sold my $10,000 high end audio system piece by piece on ebay, and went to a headphone setup. Took a break for a few years, but back in 2018 I got back into the audio hobby. Never looked back since. Thanks to the emerging Chinese audio market, I was finally able to delve into different sound signatures, own many different iems and discover many different flavors of sound. All without breaking the bank. I discovered that by changing eartips, it coukd be the same as spending thousands on room treatments, for a fraction of the cost. Imho, the only thing that headphones or iems CAN'T do as well as apeakers, is give you that visceral, feel it in your chest bass experience. Besides that, I've got no complaints about switching to headphones/iems or personal audio. I'm glad you had the opportunity to listen to some of this Chinese gear. I hope it has opened your mind in that good sound doesn't always have to be with home audio speakers.
Thanks for supporting my channel. My views have definitely changed regarding IEM and Headphone. I am just worry if I start, I will end up deep into it. So much to check out and yeah, prices are very affordable over there.
@ThomasAndStereo They are here in North America too. It costs alot less to be audiophile in the headphone/iem world. I have 20 different iens. Can't say I could have ever had 20 different speakers at the same time. I'd have had to sell one set to buy another. And then, what if it didn't work in my room or with my electronics? Now, what do I do? I gave up many years ago on the whole home audio thing. Learned my lesson long time ago. I'm done with going down that rabbit hole.
A fantastic review indeed Thomas! Chi Fi is no longer degrading term, it has earned loads of respect everywhere now! While many still has the impression of China 20 years ago and be totally flabbergasted by the advancement! Come to China and experience yourself!!
40k views in 2 days congratulations Thomas . I'm more into IEMs , you get amazing details in an affordable price $500 $1000 etc.....Not like speakers $10k $20K $50k etc ...... Thank You for the tour review cheers.
That Mamoritai Euphony looks quite interesting, but for less price I would go for Quad Artera Pre Analogue with balanced connections, but the Euphony is very compact though.
The Moondrop speakers were interesting to me, because they resemble speakers I bought 45 years ago. Don Kliewer was the creator of the DLK speaker line, hugely popular in the American midwest at the time. Later he owned the Soundmates speaker company, and his little .375 model featured small woofers at the top and bottom of a narrow enclosure, with treble/midrange driver in between. Later he went to work for Koss, where the .375's were sold under the Koss brand. Mine are still at work in my living room, and still sounding good after almost half a century.
Thomas. Get into headphones. Do reviews. We’d love it if you did. Headphones are my first love over speakers, so I’m a bit biased. Anyhow. Terrific video!
Nice cd player, btw my son knew all the spec of that player and said the older model they made was better , see u down the road - thanks for the coverage
I had two peaks of interest in HiFi gear, once in 70's gear and the last in 2007 with Tripath amps, any brands in China making Tripath amps and full range Fostex type speakers ? I know there are many audiophile grade Chinese HiFi brands like Dussun, Shanling, FFYX etc, but never owned any of them.
The new Fosi audio DAC/Preamp you liked the looks of is the ZD3. MSRP is $180 and it ships October12. It's fully balanced and uses ESS chip but has swappable OpAmps.
Thomas, its so funny watching you learn about all these Daps and amps, when alot of your subscribers like me are already in this Hifi IEM, headphone (and headphone amp) and DAP space deep in North America. Plus many of us are customers of these companies times over--and are very very familiar with all the brands and products you showed for months now. Ironically, I have the Hiby R4 you showed at the 10:00 mark. In fact I am subbed to that reviewer Andy who was standing in front of you from @andyaudiovault channel
@@ThomasAndStereo hey Thomas, Andrew from Montreal, been watching you from the beginning and I do have one question. With the A 75 why does it not it not double the power into 4 ohms. I am not an electrical engineer, but my favourite amplifiers have always had two characteristics, one low feedback, and the second is doubling power into 4 ohms. I will always be open to new ideas, wishing you well.
It's incredible to see 👀 the height that China 🇨🇳 has been scaling. They have become obsessed with engineering and technology 👨🔧, be it civil, electrical or electronics as also in batteries🔋 and material science. The bigger the challenge, the greater they get excited about executing it. China 🇨🇳 is undoubtedly now the world's best and most advanced country full of people with golden hearts. I wish I could shift to China 🇨🇳! Many thanks for this insightful video 🎥.
Yes, you should do some xanjams and headphone reviews. Headphones are how I afford true hi-fi. You just have to give up profound bass most the time. Most of the imaging can be retained with good cans. But the amazing resolution is worth it.
Good to see you having a meal with most of the reviewers in the IEM space. Would be interested to hear your impression on IEMs if you do choose to review them.
Just make sure 1) you have wechat and alipay setup. 2) install letsvpn before going as it was the only one that worked for me. 3) Use Taxi or Didi, very affordable there.
I remember someone recommended the Hiby R4 when it was on sale a few months ago. I saw it in the standard colors and thought, "Wow! This is looks like something straight out of Evangelion. It looks so cool. I gotta get that someday." Then I see the Hiby R4 X Evangelion collaboration in your video and it all makes sense.
Thomas, you were overwhelmed by the crowding and can sympathize. In the Orient people have a way of gathering in enormous densities but observing a space approximating to turning 180 degrees with hands on hips which is innately regarded as a private zone. People bumping into each other -- even on road crossings -- is a breach of etiquette. Equally interesting is that companions walking side by side revert to single file in crowded areas. Couples (usually married or engaged people) also do this and loosely hold hands. In Marco Polo's time, this was observed and the man would usually be in front but the convention in the last 50 years is for the 'leader' to be whichever has the agreed itinerary. In shopping this is usually the woman. A slight difference in urban Japan and the part of Russia which has a large Japanese population, the man always boards public transport first, offers his hand to his companion (usually refused unless there are mobility issues) then will obtain tickets and walk ahead. Some say that this is a residual result of ensuring safety of the immediate environment. The man always sits on the aisle side. These ways apply over much east and south east Asia except in the Philippines, which lost its manners during its American years and some parts of the former Dutch East Indies. Hearing anything in such a crowd is bound to be difficult and in-ear cabled audio devices make sense. High accuracy ones are called 'speakers' because they are, as opposed to many western types which are based on what Sony thought would be acceptable to westerners when the Walkman was released. Co-developer Phillips judged that ear canal "earphones" would be unpopular. It was common to 'sterilize' them by mouth in Asia but not the west. You are correct about Oriental tastes being for clarity = as much of the data on the given medium as practical rather than a more generalized sound seeming to be preferred in the Occident. Such as i-pods without cables are not natural in the east by practical convention, nor is Bluetooth all that popular. The science is obvious re no loss in both senses of quality and dropping a pod somewhere and the probability of finding it intact being low. Some people in the comments assume that China as somehow 'caught up' with the west but analog fidelity never went away in the far east and your experts should be able to prove that back home in Canada by doing serious research. Japanese, Chinese, Korean and other countries have university systems under education and culture ministries which did not allow the digital compromise we know too well to interfere with music and technology graduate courses in more universities than are extant in N.America and Europe. The latter lost their courses to generalized performing arts thinking and studies in the history of music also faded. By contrast, the graduate courses in China and Japan start with understanding the physics and psychology of organized sounds and typically spend a year on recording and reproduction inclusive of its history. Post-grad music tech courses deepen the latter and analog sound is pre-eminent by being Darwinistic in deep and wide experience. It is vanity to assume that what we in the west call "high fidelity" had its origins here. The dominant days of the flat shellac then vinyl records was certainly with labels and companies as an industrial fact from the 1920s to the 1950s but Oriental countries had their own on a smaller scale in the wake of WW2 and its destruction of so much and so many. Just because the music of the far east was not aired in the west does not mean that recordings were not made. They were rather difficult to obtain and were usually stored in universities which offered Oriental Languages and Studies degree courses. I suspect that you will return to the far east as soon as you can and your family allows!
This video is a breath of fresh air. So different from what we're used to. As you describe the Asian tuning of products and what they value in their audiophile presentations, it's so different from what we've been conditioned to here in North America. I'm not into Cosplay at all and don't see the value in it, but if it has a sexual connotation for Asians, that I understand. We all know sex sells. People have been using female models to help sell everything from cars to, well...audio gear for decades. Nothing new in that regard.
After Oct 8. Non affiliated link: shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-m4p-mtm-passive-monitor-speaker?srsltid=AfmBOor9_c76dVeju0ToLp4gov3REOX7cSqKtAC7EjNskxFOdX2J-eEV
I don't think DAP record. It is a play back device. It is so good that you can use it as a source on a $20k system no problem. I got a chance to listen to it at Shanling HQ.
As I travel the country during this trip, I did come across amplifiers that can rival the high end $50k+ to 100k+ amps. I know since I am familiar with amps in that price range. The funny part is I come across this in a Little shop in a small mall that no one knows about, one man show. So there are lots of 'genius' out there. I did see some high end speakers but those I did not go listen. So I think the skill is there but not the market. Sure, there are systems that are made in China that cost $4 million dollars but not many. It will take a while before people can accept $20k speakers from China.
@@ThomasAndStereo a number of china companies can make some Hi-end speaker,but few people will buy them because their brand are not that famous to convince people that their quality is equal to their price.
We in North America could be having all this energy and development happening here but we made the choice of farming all this tech to China. Education has fallen way behind the Chinese and all this young energy is creating all these very competitive products.
@ThomasAndStereo, If you look at the head phone / IEM and portable market, its actually well known in North America. You should check out your fellow Canadian Tone Deaf Monk (TDF) who covers this space. In terms of IEMs the DITA Project M is a great one and punches above its weight. I got a pair and love them. It works well when you want to listen to music but you don't want to disturb your wife when you're working late at night and she wants to sleep. (Try doing that w your amp and speakers.) Now I thought besides launching your Amp and speakers, you also have your own store? Maybe you should think about expanding? You can go crazy with the number of IEM models / brands out there. Think of DAP as high end portable music players with built in DAC. And if you want to just go from your iPhone / Android... you can get a dongle dac to help improve the sound for your IEMs. 🙂
The IEM market is crazy, new products every week. I tried a few of the better ones and I can say for a few of them the sound quality is really really good nd less then $100. My problem is most have a "curve" that they all think needs to be their. For me they were many that were just too bright on the top end. I just dont like haveing them stuck in my ear for a long time.
What do you think of their strategy to use cosplay to attract the younger crowd? A big thank you to Shenzhen audio for sponsoring the trip. Visit their website at shenzhenaudio.com/
Non affiliated links for the cd players
shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-discdream-2-portable-cd-player
shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-discdream-2-ultra-portable-cd-player
Non affiliated links for the speaker
shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-m4p-mtm-passive-monitor-speaker?srsltid=AfmBOor9_c76dVeju0ToLp4gov3REOX7cSqKtAC7EjNskxFOdX2J-eEV
What can you say? Sex sells. If it helps sell hifi audio to the youngsters, then oh what the heck. 😂
@@vangmx I know the regular HIFI audio shows over there have models standing next to the speakers.
@@ThomasAndStereo LOL! Distracting, though?
C'mon... there's a term for this... Booth Babes.
Its in every industry. (Especially IT and Boat and Auto shows)
Nothing wrong w cosplay. Its not just the younger crowd considering that most men in Asia have been watching Anime for years.
Hope you had fun!
@@michaelsegel8758 I had a blast!
This video was so cool! Chinese hifi companies have really pushed the industry forward with excellent engineering. I think their presence in the North American market has made great gear affordable for people with modest budgets. I would be like a kid in candy store at this show!
Haha, I was like a kid in a candy store.
@@ThomasAndStereoGreat Chinese philosophy,affrodable audio ,very qality and sound great (Fiio,Shalling and others)
Their hifi technology is about 3~5 years behind the best, but the best set 5 years ago is still selling at >10x higher than the best Chinese brand today.
Unless you are really into it, you can't tell the difference.
Wow, so many cool things, man, thanks for sharing!
Great video Thomas and what an experience. China is definitely carrying the flag for introducing the younger generation to qualify hifi and at the same time making quality hifi affordable for all. Long may it continue.
Yeah, I was probably one of the oldest at that show :)
@@ThomasAndStereo lucky you! By the way shanling now offer a 270$ cd transport and ripper called the CR60, available over here in Europe. Fiio make some lovely gear including desktop speakers.
@@ThomasAndStereo you still not done return of the jedi to prove your hi-fi is capable with the ranco , i'm calling you out as your bass is not good enough
Thomas, thanks so much for this tour. It’s fascinating what is available elsewhere. I could have watched a couple of hours of this. 👍👍👍
Glad you enjoyed it! I was worried people would get bored if it is too long so I removed a lot of footage. For example, Fosi new tube integrated amp, a whole area selling fancy keyboards and etc. Apparently, young people who use headphone and IEM tends to be gamers, so that is why they also display high tech keyboards there.
I agree, should have been longer. How about a part 2? Thanks!
Hey Thomas, what a fun and fascinating report. Thanks for exposing us to several very unexpected products and sales approaches of the region. Bravo.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Really enjoyed this video. People really need to get off Chinese bashing. Their competing favorably now. Right off the bat, what struck was the age. Lots of younger people interested. Audio shows back home their primarily older gentlemen. This is a problem that needs to be addressed
The thing is, if people actually meet up, they will discover that a lot of people are just people and they can have fun hanging out.
China is great. Overfishing the seas, polluting the planet, and repressing their citizens from freedom of speech or freedom to practice religion. Lol. No, they are a total bad player on the global theater... let's support them !! The Chinese people deserve freedom to express themselves however they like.
Thomas !! You are not nobody. There are many audiophile trust your reviews more than anyone eles.
Your intentions are the most legit! Not chasing an increase in subscribers allows you to build your brand in an authentic way and truly connect. It's great to see you having fun! Cheers!
Wow! Thanks Thomas! What a variety of interesting gear at that show! Shanling, Fiio, the Fosi luxury brand, and SMSL VMV gear all look interesting. Happy listening! 😊👍🎶🎶
Yeah, it was interesting, there was even a whole area selling fancy keyboards.
Great video Thomas, I look forward to seeing further adventures from your trip😅, and I don't mind you looking at the Cosplay models 🤣🤣🤣
btw I couldn't agree more with you and the gentleman from Dita, HPs are easily more detailed, and may I also add acoustically inert from our wives than any speaker setups. 😂
Awesome video, love the innovation coming out of China.
Thanks for watching!
Great coverage! Those Matrix power amps look very interesting!
First, it was the food for me. Second, the finds you discovered. Third, the price points are accessible for the entrants in the hobby, who are younger. Great episode….
Yeah, many of the products were affordable.
Thank you for sharing your trip
I really appreciated the different ... models ... and products at the show. Very nice indeed.
HAHA, I see what you did there! Best comment ever.
Those MoonDrop Speakers look amazing... sorta like a Amphion clone..
🤗 THOMAS 😎YOU GOT TO GO TO THE SHOW 🥶 AS A GUEST AND TRY THE 🍛🍣🍜 Did they have good Ramen noodles?😁 🤷♂️ I would have thought that they would properly ground the equipment ⚡️😬💚💚💚
@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461 oh, I got to eat amazing noodle with my wife after the show.
Subscribers aren't just the number. I think you are one of the most influential UA-camrs in audio.
Watching this was like watching worlds colliding. My speaker world mixing with my headphone and IEM world. What a trip!
Very cool! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Mesmerized - could have watched a two hour presentation. Thank you very much, Thomas.
Shenzhen is absolutely gorgeous!*🌹☀️✨
China helps the world contain the inflation by providing cost effective products. Thank you China 👏👍. Audiophiles today are so fortunate.
THOMAS 🥶🤗 you got to go try all those new experiences, and I am THANKFUL 🙏 you shared the experience💚💚💚
I am so grateful about it.
@@ThomasAndStereo I KNEW YOU WOULD BE 🤗💚💚💚
Excellent video. FYI, recently I replaced my ~3 YO Audiolab CDT6000 (MSRP $599) with a Shanling ET3 (MSRP $729) and am shocked at the value. They also have a SACD player for < $1300. Might be cool to review it/them
Yeah, I should ask for a review unit to check them out.
That was awesome Thomas...glad you had such a good time!
Wish you would have tried one of those high end extreme bass IEMs...
Yeah, one day.
OMG !!! There are many new concepts that my friends and I have not seen in North America.
I am Really Happy that Thomas is sharing such a wonderful experience with us.
Audio gear , Cosplay girls and Foods 🍱 😍👍👍👍
Very cool Thomas. I would love to see you exploring the headphone sector and for those of us enjoy traditional channel & headphone pathways. I was at the SoCal CanJam and the attendance was something else. Though it was a nice generational mix, the younger audiophile set was there in some force. Many of them love the gear but stated that they looked forward to the next revolution breakthrough via lossless wireless. Cheers!♠️🎸
Greetings, it's great that you were able to experience and enjoy the event.
Yes, it was so fun.
you're so lucky you get to go to china. thanks for bringing awesome video.
I haven't been to Shenzhen since the early Noughties - all I remember is how much construction was going on all around me. I've seen the videos of the influencers with dozens of mobile phones set up to record them for different social media channels while they hold up whatever product they are selling/promoting - I prefer your more laid back approach. Thanks for the vid.
The guy at 10:05 wearing black shirt with the word GODFLESH is dongle, DAP, IEM and headphone reviewer. His channel name is AndyAudioVault.
Yeah, super fun guy to hang out with. He was part of the group the show invited.
I wish more reviewers started paying attention to Chinese Audio. The youth, the innovation and the exuberance portend a significant and growing impact on the hobby. I remember the days when cheap Japanese brands were considered junk, until they dominated the market starting in the 70s. A similar pattern is happening with Chinese brands.
It seems to me that more of the American and European audio press should pay attention or risk irrelevance.
The show does have a lot of youth energy. The organizers are all young people.
Good luck pushing the China agenda here in USA. We want the Chinese people free... let's see how well that goes... Chinese audio is irrelevant to all but people with a few hundred bucks to spend on audio... so no. The American mags will kill it. I will boycott it. We believe in Human Rights over cheap audio...
It was really nice meeting you in person, Thomas. Loved the coverage! 👍
Nice meeting you too, thanks for featuring me in your video.
I wish i was there to see all of that. Looks like a fun time.
Amazing!
Thanks for a really enjoyable and informative video Thomas. You saved me the price of the flights to go there, although I did miss out on the delicious looking food! 😅.
Put it on your bucket list!
@@ThomasAndStereo will do!
In response to your statement at 6:15 to 6:23, high resolution, high sampling rate digital audio players (DAPs) have been on the market in the U.S. for more than a decade.
In 2010, Stereophile magazine had a reveiw of Head-Direct’s HiFiMAN HM-801 DAP, which cost $790.
The owner's manual for the HM-801 informs us: “This is not just your father’s music listening device. You have just invested in a ground breaking, earth shattering, ‘changing life as we know it’ music device that is going to transform the way that audiophiles listen to music, ‘while on the go.’” Compatible file formats: MP3, WAV, OGG, and 24-bit/96kHz FLAC.
Today, there are many high end DAPs available in the U.S. from such brands as Astell & Kern, iBasso, HiBy, Hidizs, HiFi Walker, Surfans, Sony, Shanling, and yes, even FiiO, to name a few.
I find it hard to believe that most of these would not be available in Canada as well.
Haha, I have been living under a rock!
@@ThomasAndStereo In that case, welcome to the fresh air and light of the world above the rock. 😉
BTW, in my bedroom setup, I have a relatively new (a couple of months) FiiO K11 R2R DAC/headphone amp that I listen to with my 7Hz Timeless IEMs. It sounds pretty darn good to me in NOS mode using the balanced output. However, I also still enjoy my old school Cayin HA-1A1 (original version) tube headphone amp in SET mode driving my Sennheiser HD600 headphones.
Old school or cutting edge doesn't matter to me as long as it sounds good to my ears.
I recall a reviewer saying long ago about the debate between solid state and tubes that he couldn't care less if the audio technology was made of jelly beans as long as it sounds good, is reliable and is available for a reasonable price.
That's my philosophy extended to old vs. new, R2R vs Sigma Delta, IEM vs headphones vs speakers, vinyl vs CD vs streaming, etc. as well as solid state vs tubes.
Hi, Thomas! I'm from Canada and I'm a big fan of your channel. While I totally appreciate your reviews on home/speaker based audio; i have to tell you that I've been much more into iems and headphones for over 8 years now. Why? Because I live in a very small apartment (less than 500 square feet) and i just don't have the space to properly set up a speaker based hifi system. I delved into personal audio many years ago and I can tell you that I've never been happier. I own over 20 iem's ranging from $15 to $300. I've owned a couple that were between $460 and $1200, but sold them because they weren't to my taste. Brands like Fiio and Shanling are not new to me. I prefer portable Bluetooth dac/amps like the Fiio Q1MK2, Q5s and BTR7. I also own 2 Qudelix-5K and 2 Radsone Earsonics portable dac amps. So, why do I prefer iem or headphones based gear? It takes the ROOM out of the equation. I used to have a home audio/speaker based system. Every time I moved, my system sounded crappier. It was all based on room acoustics and i didn't have the time, money, or patience to deal with all of that. In 2005, I sold my $10,000 high end audio system piece by piece on ebay, and went to a headphone setup. Took a break for a few years, but back in 2018 I got back into the audio hobby. Never looked back since. Thanks to the emerging Chinese audio market, I was finally able to delve into different sound signatures, own many different iems and discover many different flavors of sound. All without breaking the bank. I discovered that by changing eartips, it coukd be the same as spending thousands on room treatments, for a fraction of the cost. Imho, the only thing that headphones or iems CAN'T do as well as apeakers, is give you that visceral, feel it in your chest bass experience. Besides that, I've got no complaints about switching to headphones/iems or personal audio. I'm glad you had the opportunity to listen to some of this Chinese gear. I hope it has opened your mind in that good sound doesn't always have to be with home audio speakers.
Thanks for supporting my channel. My views have definitely changed regarding IEM and Headphone. I am just worry if I start, I will end up deep into it. So much to check out and yeah, prices are very affordable over there.
@ThomasAndStereo They are here in North America too. It costs alot less to be audiophile in the headphone/iem world. I have 20 different iens. Can't say I could have ever had 20 different speakers at the same time. I'd have had to sell one set to buy another. And then, what if it didn't work in my room or with my electronics? Now, what do I do? I gave up many years ago on the whole home audio thing. Learned my lesson long time ago. I'm done with going down that rabbit hole.
A fantastic review indeed Thomas! Chi Fi is no longer degrading term, it has earned loads of respect everywhere now! While many still has the impression of China 20 years ago and be totally flabbergasted by the advancement! Come to China and experience yourself!!
40k views in 2 days congratulations Thomas .
I'm more into IEMs , you get amazing details in an affordable price $500 $1000 etc.....Not like speakers $10k $20K $50k etc ......
Thank You for the tour review cheers.
That strategy definitely attracting the older crowd too!!
Nice. I’m happy for you 👍
That Mamoritai Euphony looks quite interesting, but for less price I would go for Quad Artera Pre Analogue with balanced connections, but the Euphony is very compact though.
The Moondrop speakers were interesting to me, because they resemble speakers I bought 45 years ago. Don Kliewer was the creator of the DLK speaker line, hugely popular in the American midwest at the time. Later he owned the Soundmates speaker company, and his little .375 model featured small woofers at the top and bottom of a narrow enclosure, with treble/midrange driver in between. Later he went to work for Koss, where the .375's were sold under the Koss brand. Mine are still at work in my living room, and still sounding good after almost half a century.
Nice!
Thomas. Get into headphones. Do reviews. We’d love it if you did. Headphones are my first love over speakers, so I’m a bit biased. Anyhow. Terrific video!
Great Fun.. Thanks for sharing
Fiio is very popular in Oceania.
Nice cd player, btw my son knew all the spec of that player and said the older model they made was better , see u down the road - thanks for the coverage
It’s really great to see so many young creative entrepreneurs in Asia working in audio-great video some really great industrial design to boot.
Yes, as someone who runs a company now, their energy does inspire me.
I had two peaks of interest in HiFi gear, once in 70's gear and the last in 2007 with Tripath amps, any brands in China making Tripath amps and full range Fostex type speakers ? I know there are many audiophile grade Chinese HiFi brands like Dussun, Shanling, FFYX etc, but never owned any of them.
Cosplay !!! man , i'm so jealous we don't have this at our show in MTL🤩🤩🤩
We always ask, how do we attract the younger crowd...there you go, that is one of the solutions.
Wow really so lovely ❤❤❤❤
Great exploring 😃😀
The aesthetics of these 2 portable CD players/transports is really nice.
My wife at SoCal CanJam really liked the Dita project M so we picked a pair up. Very balanced sound.
Nice, Danny in the video is actually one of the owner...I feel so honor that he is a subscriber of mine!
The new Fosi audio DAC/Preamp you liked the looks of is the ZD3. MSRP is $180 and it ships October12. It's fully balanced and uses ESS chip but has swappable OpAmps.
Oh, thanks for the info. That is so affordable.
Thomas, its so funny watching you learn about all these Daps and amps, when alot of your subscribers like me are already in this Hifi IEM, headphone (and headphone amp) and DAP space deep in North America. Plus many of us are customers of these companies times over--and are very very familiar with all the brands and products you showed for months now. Ironically, I have the Hiby R4 you showed at the 10:00 mark. In fact I am subbed to that reviewer Andy who was standing in front of you from @andyaudiovault channel
Yeah, Andy was very entertaining to hang out. Great stories from him.
wow really interesting, thanks for making me travel Thomas!
Thomas I’m so glad you got to have a proper meal❤
They treated me like Royalty!! I ate so much I gain at least 10lb!
@@ThomasAndStereo hey Thomas, Andrew from Montreal, been watching you from the beginning and I do have one question. With the A 75 why does it not it not double the power into 4 ohms. I am not an electrical engineer, but my favourite amplifiers have always had two characteristics, one low feedback, and the second is doubling power into 4 ohms. I will always be open to new ideas, wishing you well.
Be safe....Someone is always watching you...
Too late, I already gain 10 lbs.
It's incredible to see 👀 the height that China 🇨🇳 has been scaling. They have become obsessed with engineering and technology 👨🔧, be it civil, electrical or electronics as also in batteries🔋 and material science. The bigger the challenge, the greater they get excited about executing it. China 🇨🇳 is undoubtedly now the world's best and most advanced country full of people with golden hearts. I wish I could shift to China 🇨🇳! Many thanks for this insightful video 🎥.
It is very busy and fast pace forsure.
Yes, you should do some xanjams and headphone reviews. Headphones are how I afford true hi-fi. You just have to give up profound bass most the time. Most of the imaging can be retained with good cans. But the amazing resolution is worth it.
I'm buying old 1980's audio stuff!
Interesting, I need to have a look next year. Pretty small fair though, where was it exactly? Looks like in a hotel or so.
Good to see you having a meal with most of the reviewers in the IEM space. Would be interested to hear your impression on IEMs if you do choose to review them.
Yeah, they were all super nice and I had a great time chatting with everyone of them. IEM...I am now curious.
I pre-ordered the moondrop M4P speaker in Malaysia
@@mcaik77 what!!!! Let me know if it is any good.
@@ThomasAndStereo ok it takes about 3 weeks to get to Malaysia . Cost around USD 700
thanks for sharing!
Moondrop releasing a speaker was a big surprise.
I'm going to take advantage of that 144 hour visa for my trip in 2025.
Not only that, but man, are things a really good value over there!
Just make sure 1) you have wechat and alipay setup. 2) install letsvpn before going as it was the only one that worked for me. 3) Use Taxi or Didi, very affordable there.
I remember someone recommended the Hiby R4 when it was on sale a few months ago. I saw it in the standard colors and thought, "Wow! This is looks like something straight out of Evangelion. It looks so cool. I gotta get that someday." Then I see the Hiby R4 X Evangelion collaboration in your video and it all makes sense.
Yeah, I love the color.
Back in my time when you say cd transport ,there is no dac ,so u need an external dac to play music
Yup yup, I just don't know what is the correct term to describe what I wanted to say.
Thomas, you were overwhelmed by the crowding and can sympathize. In the Orient people have a way of gathering in enormous densities but observing a space approximating to turning 180 degrees with hands on hips which is innately regarded as a private zone. People bumping into each other -- even on road crossings -- is a breach of etiquette. Equally interesting is that companions walking side by side revert to single file in crowded areas. Couples (usually married or engaged people) also do this and loosely hold hands. In Marco Polo's time, this was observed and the man would usually be in front but the convention in the last 50 years is for the 'leader' to be whichever has the agreed itinerary. In shopping this is usually the woman.
A slight difference in urban Japan and the part of Russia which has a large Japanese population, the man always boards public transport first, offers his hand to his companion (usually refused unless there are mobility issues) then will obtain tickets and walk ahead. Some say that this is a residual result of ensuring safety of the immediate environment. The man always sits on the aisle side.
These ways apply over much east and south east Asia except in the Philippines, which lost its manners during its American years and some parts of the former Dutch East Indies.
Hearing anything in such a crowd is bound to be difficult and in-ear cabled audio devices make sense. High accuracy ones are called 'speakers' because they are, as opposed to many western types which are based on what Sony thought would be acceptable to westerners when the Walkman was released. Co-developer Phillips judged that ear canal "earphones" would be unpopular. It was common to 'sterilize' them by mouth in Asia but not the west.
You are correct about Oriental tastes being for clarity = as much of the data on the given medium as practical rather than a more generalized sound seeming to be preferred in the Occident. Such as i-pods without cables are not natural in the east by practical convention, nor is Bluetooth all that popular. The science is obvious re no loss in both senses of quality and dropping a pod somewhere and the probability of finding it intact being low.
Some people in the comments assume that China as somehow 'caught up' with the west but analog fidelity never went away in the far east and your experts should be able to prove that back home in Canada by doing serious research.
Japanese, Chinese, Korean and other countries have university systems under education and culture ministries which did not allow the digital compromise we know too well to interfere with music and technology graduate courses in more universities than are extant in N.America and Europe. The latter lost their courses to generalized performing arts thinking and studies in the history of music also faded. By contrast, the graduate courses in China and Japan start with understanding the physics and psychology of organized sounds and typically spend a year on recording and reproduction inclusive of its history. Post-grad music tech courses deepen the latter and analog sound is pre-eminent by being Darwinistic in deep and wide experience.
It is vanity to assume that what we in the west call "high fidelity" had its origins here. The dominant days of the flat shellac then vinyl records was certainly with labels and companies as an industrial fact from the 1920s to the 1950s but Oriental countries had their own on a smaller scale in the wake of WW2 and its destruction of so much and so many. Just because the music of the far east was not aired in the west does not mean that recordings were not made. They were rather difficult to obtain and were usually stored in universities which offered Oriental Languages and Studies degree courses.
I suspect that you will return to the far east as soon as you can and your family allows!
Thanks for your long comment and sharing your thoughts. This year, I went to Malaysia, Singapore, Japan and China. So much to see.
This video is a breath of fresh air. So different from what we're used to. As you describe the Asian tuning of products and what they value in their audiophile presentations, it's so different from what we've been conditioned to here in North America. I'm not into Cosplay at all and don't see the value in it, but if it has a sexual connotation for Asians, that I understand. We all know sex sells. People have been using female models to help sell everything from cars to, well...audio gear for decades. Nothing new in that regard.
Thanks, I am so glad the video was well received, I filmed it in a way like bringing everyone with me on a journey.
Hi thomas, whats the brand of that retro looking cd player? When will it be out in the market? Tnx is it a player or transport? Thanks
Dunu concept R. Cdplayer
Thanks for sharing.
Love it.
Very interested with the moondrop speakers. I wonder when they will be available for purchase.
After Oct 8. Non affiliated link:
shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-m4p-mtm-passive-monitor-speaker?srsltid=AfmBOor9_c76dVeju0ToLp4gov3REOX7cSqKtAC7EjNskxFOdX2J-eEV
@@ThomasAndStereo i got confused on the type from the options. Style one and two? Does it mean 1 piece and a pair for style two .
@Beb0ptrane yeah style 2 would be a pair, it should come down to $800 usd. I will ask them to send me a pair to review.
@@ThomasAndStereo thanks will wait for your vid review first but it looks promsing already specially for the price.
Hi Thomas, may i ask about the brand of headphones amp that you mentioned at 20:24 ? The tube headphone amps. Thanks for any replies, Regards, ~P
mamoritai.audio/?srsltid=AfmBOopYyDWOy_cU3xe4I7gLALrNT45k6FBuAZWt6cAQinqZkkdW4Niw
Thomas, what is the brand name of the tube amps at 21:25 ?
They look like Marantz 5 vintage tube amps.
Which hotel did you stay at in Shenzhen? Which restaurants did you eat at? Your viewers would love to see you show off China in a video.
The names are all in Chinese. For example, restaurant 啫啫煲深业上城店, hotel : 全季酒店 深圳福田会展中心店 the nearest Ji hotel
Look at the kids at the show - this is the future!
I have the Shanling CD3.2
Love it.
Congrats
Hi Thomas, Does that tube DAP record in stereo with an external stereo mic?
I don't think DAP record. It is a play back device. It is so good that you can use it as a source on a $20k system no problem. I got a chance to listen to it at Shanling HQ.
@ThomasAndStereo no matter I will stick with the nagra . I liked tube concept though ...and the variety of stereo stuff.
I like Thomas’s Mandarin with a Canadian accent
What brand and model was that awesome small aluminum cd player (concept arts).
DUNU concept R
Which is best HIFI Audio companies Chinese origin which produces quality speakers equalant to sony, focal . etc
scale of company or quality of the product?
To be honest most hifi audio in china are focus on headphones and in ear monitors
As I travel the country during this trip, I did come across amplifiers that can rival the high end $50k+ to 100k+ amps. I know since I am familiar with amps in that price range. The funny part is I come across this in a Little shop in a small mall that no one knows about, one man show. So there are lots of 'genius' out there. I did see some high end speakers but those I did not go listen. So I think the skill is there but not the market. Sure, there are systems that are made in China that cost $4 million dollars but not many. It will take a while before people can accept $20k speakers from China.
@@ThomasAndStereo a number of china companies can make some Hi-end speaker,but few people will buy them because their brand are not that famous to convince people that their quality is equal to their price.
@@ThomasAndStereo and you know that hifi is a quite subjective,u think it not that good,maybe you will feel not that good.
Guys if youre an audiophile and have not tried even mid priced IEMs I think youll have your minds blown.
I was definitely impressed.
My wildest dream is to align and enhance the relations between China, India and Pakistan.
When they find peace it would be great
You sure you are not in anime expo? Good luck with that rice cooker lol😅 great video
Lol.
Hi, thanks for this. Can you share a link where to buy the small cd player? The company had 2 units you showed...one 120 usd and another one...
Thanks
Let me check
Non affiliated link
shenzhenaudio.com/products/moondrop-discdream-2-portable-cd-player
To0 reporting Thomas, 👌🏿
As a headphone guy, those are exactly the kinds of products that I lust about (except for the IEMs, but I am 50 🤣)
You would have had a blast there.
the other day, I saw a dude driving a vintage (80’s) Mercedes and he was fumbling with a cassette - nostalgia indeed
Thanks for this presentation…some nice products. 👍🏼…as for the cosplay…not really sure of the relevance to HiFi / Audio 🤔
We in North America could be having all this energy and development happening here but we made the choice of farming all this tech to China. Education has fallen way behind the Chinese and all this young energy is creating all these very competitive products.
Also, the young people over there seems to have more hunger for success.
I want to know about the rack at 21:53
Those are Matrix element I series.
@@ThomasAndStereo
The equipment rack that the Maxtrix gear is sitting on is what I'm talking about.
@ThomasAndStereo,
If you look at the head phone / IEM and portable market, its actually well known in North America.
You should check out your fellow Canadian Tone Deaf Monk (TDF) who covers this space.
In terms of IEMs the DITA Project M is a great one and punches above its weight.
I got a pair and love them. It works well when you want to listen to music but you don't want to disturb your wife when you're working late at night and she wants to sleep.
(Try doing that w your amp and speakers.)
Now I thought besides launching your Amp and speakers, you also have your own store?
Maybe you should think about expanding? You can go crazy with the number of IEM models / brands out there.
Think of DAP as high end portable music players with built in DAC. And if you want to just go from your iPhone / Android... you can get a dongle dac to help improve the sound for your IEMs.
🙂
Man, I have been living under a rock :) Yeah, IEM is such a big world, very interesting.
The IEM market is crazy, new products every week. I tried a few of the better ones and I can say for a few of them the sound quality is really really good nd less then $100. My problem is most have a "curve" that they all think needs to be their. For me they were many that were just too bright on the top end. I just dont like haveing them stuck in my ear for a long time.
Yes, I should dig a bit deeper into the IEM world, very interesting.
👍👍👍
What is that FIIO streamer cannot find it?
FIIO S15 🙂
Cosplay? Why not if it brings people in. Thanks for sharing.
That iem case looks like a Festool Systainer tool storage box