The last time I evaluated the products of Shanling or M8, I did it or video evaluation, but I was tossed and injured, trouble not to say, but also because the information density of the video is too low, need to refine the language, a lot of details have been skipped, this M9 evaluation or graphic bar, the machine received more than half a month, the cooker is almost the same, you can talk in detail.
This article is reviewed first and then described later
1. Shanling's first portable player of more than 10,000 yuan may also be the portable player of the last AK4499EQ flagship DAC;
2. The Android system is not the most helpless choice, and the streaming experience is excellent;
3. The sound modification is just right, and the "runfi" sound can adapt to most of the pan-pop styles and classical songs
4. Currently one of the top android lossless music players
Shanling's portable player should be the last in the industry to cross the threshold of 10,000 yuan of first-line Hi-Fi brand, the Hi-End level player "M8" launched in 2020, with the configuration of double AK4499EQ DAC, also failed to break 10,000 yuan, this time the "M9" appeared in a limited edition posture, comprehensively improved the hardware configuration, the price also came to 14980 yuan, but horizontal comparison, the price is still very "close to the people".
Because of the epidemic and fire, AKM's AK4499EQ has been discontinued, the follow-up upgrade model has been suspended indefinitely, the focus of AKM production is still on the image AD analog-to-digital conversion chip, the AK4499EQ on the market is to use a piece of less, and Shanling this time also manually screened the DAC, and the balance of the channel is not error-free, so the overall output of M9 is very low, and the domestic limited number is only 300 units.
Or to briefly say AK4499EQ, as a special for small equipment current output DAC, after digital conversion to analog signal, analog signal to be represented by current, rather than the traditional voltage type, the advantage is that small devices are more friendly, the need for lower working voltage, easier to drive, the current status in the portable player is still irreplaceable. Even if you replace other voltage output DACs, you can still achieve a good sense of hearing and considerable quality, but the demand for power supply is also greater, the circuit design is more complex, and the cost may be higher.
Regarding the stacking of other parts, Shanling is also very willing to spend money, such as: acoustic part of the integrated circuit design; three sets of independent boost circuits; the American ADI ADA4896-2 high-speed voltage feedback operational amplifier; Panasonic polymer low-loss tantalum capacitor; Panasonic ELNA advanced filament film capacitor; the third generation of FPGA processor and Japan's KDS femtosecond low-phase noise active crystal oscillator combined into an operation clock, etc., each link uses first-class components (dare not say the top, After all, some components I do not understand, but absolutely first-class) combined with more than thirty years of design experience of Shanling, the acoustic circuit part can be completely assured, after all, Shanling is also the world's top in the field of desktops.
There is also a bright spot on the hardware, which is also what I like very much, that is, the continuation of the modular plug seat design of the M8, which can be replaced according to user needs, which is very spiritual, like I have unified the headphone plug into a 4.4mm balance, so the fuselage does not need other sockets, which can make the fuselage more concise and beautiful. PS: Shanling seems to have design ideas for modules such as RCA and LO, but it has not yet been mass-produced.
In recent years, there have been more and more players using the Android system, but in the top stream players, there are still relatively few, one is the inherent concept of Android forcing SRC problems, and the other is that the early Android system is too hungry for hardware resources, and it is difficult for player manufacturers to get a reliable master control.
Forced SRC problem, Google has long given a solution, Shanling's Android player is also several generations, self-developed Android global lossless output technology, but also completely solved the forced SRC problem.
M9 this time using Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 octa-core processor, with LPDDR4X 8GB RAM and UFS2.1 256GB RAM, forming the strongest Combination of Android hardware in the portable player, the overall performance is comparable to the entry-level mid-range smartphone, you can even take it to play "Glory of the King" or "Original God" (of course, the frame rate and special effects will not be very high), with the Android 10 system, the commonly used audio and video App is no problem, and the fluency of use is also very good, Not to say that it can be silkier than mobile phones, but it is also smoother than the Android machine of friends. There is also the Snapdragon 665 process is more advanced, 11nm, power consumption is also lower.
The player advantages of the Android system are also obvious, that is, streaming media, NetEase Cloud Music and Apple Music, such streaming media APP is still very attractive for burners, even if I am an old-school player, I have also "surrendered" to Apple Music upgraded to a full lossless format, and even I personally bought a family member, and installed the player and mobile phone that I can hold Apple Music in my hand. The reason is also very simple, one is that the music is faster and more complete, especially the classical repertoire; the other is the fidelity of the genuine music library, and there will be no lossy format upscaling into false lossless.
Say a paragraph is not a paragraph, I saw in a certain manufacturer group that there are burners drying equipment, the result of the cover is very spiritual, a forum from a car CD to grab the track of Adele's lossless music, but also with the Chinese song title, "cottage fine packaging piracy pseudo-lossless", really wasted this set of tens of thousands of pieces of equipment! It can only be said that reliable streaming apps are more reliable than lossless music packaged and shared on the Internet.
Shanling M9 is the smoothest player running Apple Music in my hand, the hardware configuration is high, the Android system version is also high, and the horizontal comparison is also the smoothest.
Also, Shan Ling actually got Sharp's full fit screen this time, the overall display effect is better than M8, install B station to chase or love youteng to watch the drama are good choices, for example, I recently chased the second creation of "Goddess Split View" on the B station. PS: Sharp this screen is obviously prepared for mobile phone manufacturers, reserved for the installation of the camera bangs, Shanling here to make up a small monochrome secondary screen, you can turn off the screen display time and play the bit rate of the track, etc., but also quite interesting, the sinking second screen, but also let the main screen of the suspension sense is stronger.
By the way, Shanling has provided HiFi cloud music library, although it is a paid membership system, but M9 users activate and send it for one year. Members can listen to the lossless music library online, can also be downloaded, and is non-encrypted, understand everything, there are many classical and classical pop music, which can be used as a supplementary music library. As a veteran Hi-Fi company, Shanling spares no effort to promote "music copyright".
In terms of the shape of the M9, compared with the redefined "black brick" of the M8, there has also been great progress, and the flow pattern on the side makes the whole machine more three-dimensional and improves the recognition of the whole machine. The fuselage color is only a kind of "lingyun gray" (similar to Apple's starry sky gray), the fuselage is made of integrated aluminum alloy cnc, the surface is anodized and colored, and then hardened by sandblasting, the surface is frosted and delicate, not sticking fingerprints, and the back cover is also the same as the mobile phone AG frosted tempered glass, which has a strong sense of design and high-grade on the whole.
As a top-flow player, M9's driving force is not bad, 3.5mm single-ended maximum 460mW@32 Ω, 4.4mm balance up to 920mW@32 Ω, no problem with common earbuds, in the lateral comparison, also belongs to the upper middle level, although compared to those portable desktops that can use wire power or worse, but they are essentially desktops, the voltage of the line is higher, belongs to the "open and hang" behavior. M9 itself has three levels of gain, there are additional large headphone modes, but personally feel that the large headphone mode is better when strengthening the gear, because now the large headphone market is basically only the flagship big ear, portable large headphones and mid-range large headphones basically no manufacturers do, of course, some low-impedance high-sensitivity flat headphones can try.
To be honest, the M9's tuning isn't my favorite, but it's probably the best fit for the mountain spirit at the moment. First of all, the dynamic is significantly improved than M8, the analysis is high at the same time, the sound base has also become hardened, although the sense of oppression in the large compilation of classics is not as good as some friendly products, but in the lyrical classical is more durable, with moving iron headphones will not have a sense of hardness; secondly, the tuning still continues the "runfi" route of the mountain spirit, extremely high frequency and high frequency restraint, medium frequency and tooth tone softening, smooth connection, the old mountain spirit fans should be able to blindly listen to the tone inherited from the high-end taiwan machine, the pursuit of listening and long listening, Rather than the sensory release of an ear, of course, some old fans feel that M9 is not soft enough before the mountain spirit, which is also no way to do things, the more top equipment, the more neutral the personality, Hi-Fi's ultimate goal will eventually converge, but M9 can adapt to most of the pan-pop style and classical tracks.
Front end: Shanling M9 Headphones: Shanling ME800 (4.4mm plug original line)
Track: "One Last Kiss"
ME800 is Shanling's latest circle iron headphones, using 2 micro-dynamic circle + 4 moving iron combination, there is an electronic crossover switch, you can choose four timbre modes, the unit of this headset is quite matched, the frequency band is smooth, the tuning is also Shanling's consistent moistFi, and the sound density and sense of space are also strong. The combination of M9 and ME800 can be said to be the best interpretation of the current Mountain Spirit tuning, especially the Japanese ACG track, which can make the slightly frizzy burning song become smooth, the lyrical style becomes more affectionate, the vocal details are preserved richly, the separation between the instrumental music is better, the formation is clear, the sound density is high, simply put, a thin layer of soft light filter is added, although it reduces a certain degree of realism, but it becomes more durable and more suitable for long-term listening.
Front end: Shanling M9 Headphones: Astri Phoenix Block 6 (4.4mm plug original line)
Track: Beethoven's Sixth Symphony Pastoral
Phoenix 6 is the latest flagship of Astri, the price exceeds 10,000, using 4 voices of static electricity + 1 sound moving iron + 1 custom dynamic circle combination, the sound goes up the big opening and closing route, the sound field is open, the junction is accurate, the sense of positioning is strong, the timbre is neutral, more suitable for the large compilation of classical; the lyrical "Bei 6" is very suitable for the use of Mountain Spirit M9, this combination is good in the restoration of instrumental music, the tone is neutral and soft, for example: the violin is pleasant and durable, sharp but not stinging, the overall strength is clear, the spatial positioning is also clear, and the sense of density is not low, The characteristics of the electrostatic unit are evident.
Front end: Shanling M9 headphones: qdc V14 private mode (4.4mm plug original line)
Song: "Solitary Hero"
V14 should be the current top monitor to the headphones, word of mouth can only be said to understand all understand, I chose the private model is also for the reference level headphones. M9 and V14 collocation, vocals close to the ear, details like open macro lens, information explosion, low-frequency diving depth, and fierce, chorus part of the explosion of a strong sense, the spatial positioning of the vocals has not been squeezed away by low frequencies, belongs to the combination of listening and listening.
Samples: "Goddess Split View" and various second-created Bilibili Apps
Strong blow a wave of "original god" this new PV, the second creation is also a variety of gods, the national team Mei Pai descendants are down, and the volume is good.
In fact, the positioning of Shanling M9 is obvious, first of all, to meet the needs of their own fans, continue the "RunFi" tuning route, improve and fine-tune, to ensure the preferences of most people; and then, to make a top flagship Android lossless music player, enhance the experience of streaming media users, if you happen to have this demand, M9 will be an excellent choice.