It takes time to make a product this good! Dethonray Listening M1

A review of the Dethonray Listening M1 DAC and headphone amp, including comparisons with the HiFiMan Serenade, Aune S17 Pro and FiiO K19.

My top recommended HEADPHONES (prices in USD)

My top recommended IEMS (prices in USD)

My top recommended TRANSPORTS (prices in USD)

My top recommended DACS (prices in USD)

My top recommended HEADPHONE AMPS (prices in USD)

My top recommended DONGLE DACS (prices in USD)

My top recommended WIRELESS 'PHONES (prices in USD)

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00:00 Introduction
00:56 Features & specs
02:00 Origins of the Listening M1
05:50 Sound quality
06:21 Timbre mode
08:43 The negatives
12:18 Dethonray Listening M1 vs HiFiMan Serenade
16:14 Dethonray Listening M1 vs FiiO K19
18:29 Wrap-up

#audiophile #audioreview #allinone

[Rob-Davidson]

$2, 600 for that tiny thing means that it needs to be absolutely flawless.

[rm-mastering]

I like your hooded sweatshirt USB message, really great.

[SevenSea-yf]

Innovative products will always be questioned by others at the beginning. Your review is great, and I have been using M1 for more than three months. The sound is very similar to what you described. I have previously used Chord QUTEST and RME ADI2 Pro. The craftsmanship, size, Heat dissipation control, output, and sound quality of M1 have surpassed these two classic products.

[面具人宇智波]

I compared this M1 with Chord Dave, dCS Lina and several Cayin dac amp packages at an exhibition held in Shenzhen, it sounds fuller and more wide open which gives a larger stage feeling. A more clear, natural tone with abundant layerings in its presentation. Really good and competitive.

[PradiptaElFerrariSur]

People without the slightest idea are putting war in the comment section probably never gonna afford it. I have had it for quite a long time, it is a Sonic marvel

[peterfang]

I've been using it for six months and this thing is truly reference quality as a DAC and a headphone amp. I will probably go for a desktop amp that's 4-5 times its size to drive my HiFiMAN Susvara to sound slightly more authoritative than with the M1 but the Susvara is an anomaly in its unreasonable hunger for power. For all my other headphones and IEMs the M1 delivers state-of-the-art sound quality and in some cases shows me potential from some of my headphones which I'd never imagined. The M1 doesn't just get frequency response or dynamic range or transient right, the heart of its strength is that it delivers music with lively emotions that moves you. As music lovers, we are sometimes left cold by audio components that get most technical aspects right but are on the analytical side of things. Not the M1. I feel that the M1 has continued on with that irresistible lively soul of the DTR1, Dethonray's very first compact music player that got me hooked. We often see an audio product that advertises its superb specs on paper but comes up short in delivering a musical experience, or a product that has a beautiful sound but is too flawed in certain aspects to be of reference quality. I am not saying one of these is better or worse than the other but the M1 is neither of those.

[dentboxhero]

For a baked-in sound signature maybe. But for that price my money would go to the RME ADI-2/4 Pro SE and would stay that way for a very long time. I also have the ADI-2 DACfs (old AKM version) that doubles as my transportable AIO desktop solution when I go for long/month long vacations. RME's software support is a gold standard too, one that Dethonray and other hi-fi based brands usually lack. Positively, Dethonray never fail to impress when it comes to their sound. Great review!

[forecastcompare]

I got a Boulder 812 originally, then made a side by side comparison with my colleague's Dethonray M1 (with iPad Air M1 as source) with my Elite...the result makes me mad. That tiny M1 outplays my 812, in terms of soundstage, density & details. You guys being a 3rd party do not realise such madness...

[johnshaw]

I think you have to offer genuine sophistication for that price.

[skyversuschoy]

I have been using M1 for a long time, which powerful enough to drive most high imdepande headphone or earphone in amazing performance with the book size.

Moveable size with desktop performance which can challenge famous brand dacamp product, the price is good or poor value, you should have an answer.

For Reference: Before using M1, i am using weiss dac502 + fidata hfas1-xs20u

[thelastrhino]

Why not compare it to the Hugo 2? Would it reflect badly on it, a head to head?

[ronenbuium]

Hi,
How would you describe the sound signatures -
Organic - Lifelike / Natural or Warm / Colored?
Neutral - Lifelike / Natural?
It's important to understand...
Thank you 🙏

[nmatheis]

Did Anson fix the pop and volume control lag in a firmware fix like he did with Pegasus SG1?

And man do i wish SG1 had a timbre switch instead of having to load new firmware. I find Rhapsody great for most of my gear, but I prefer Serenade when listening to Meze 109 Pro to relax the top the a bit.

[trollights]

is the Amp powerful enough to drive high impedance headphones?

[vinnydolce]

I see you add the Aune s17 pro for an amp option. How does m1 compare to the Aune S9c pro?

[defu]

How funny i ended up with the ef600 into the s17pro which is the same dac as seranade, its a great pairing!
However i just upgraded to the vmv p2 and d2r stack, and i feel like it has the same characteristics of the m1 from how you are explaining it. But it still is 600 dollars cheaper than m1 which is pretty wild. Love the way it looks and how tiny it is. Curious to hear it for myself sometime.

[GadZookz]

Ah yes! The essence is nothing less than essential. 🧐

[mikelm]

I'm guessing the designer might be mixing analogue & digital volume controls to keep a good bit depth - just a thought

[jonfairway]

How Much ! is it £2000 better than the SMSL SH-9 and a good DAC ?

[ronenbuium]

In other words: The sound is not Neutral, it stays less faithful to the original recording,
so it's a matter of preference...
Thank you