Eversolo's DMP-A8 is pure AUDIOPHILE CATNIP!
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- čas přidán 31. 05. 2024
- This episode is brought to you by T+A and Roon:
👉 www.ta-hifi.de/en/
👉 roon.app/en/
🎥 Camera: John Darko
🎬 Editor: John Darko
🌈 Colour: Olaf von Voss
🕺🏻 Motion GFX: John Darko
💰 Ad segment: Jana Dagdagan
Tofu's Instagram: / miss.tofulini
🎵 Song IDs? Playlists of all music heard in this video - and other videos - can be found on PATREON: / johndarko
0:00 Functionality & foibles
7:23 Side-by-side comparisons
13:22 My favourite three features
👉 As seen/mentioned in this video...
Eversolo DMP-A8
🛒 audioadvice.io/DMP-A8
Eversolo DMP-A6
🛒 audioadvice.io/DMP-A6
Eversolo DMP-A6 Master Edition
🛒 audioadvice.io/A6-Master
Cambridge Audio CXN100
🛒 audioadvice.io/Cambridge
Mytek Brooklyn Bridge II
📖 mytek.audio/world/shop/brookl...
My Eversolo DMP-A6 review
📺 • ALL HYPE? Eversolo DMP...
Plexamp
📺 • Street life with PLEX ...
HDMI ARC vs HDMI eARC
📖 www.whathifi.com/advice/hdmi-...
Cables and power products by AudioQuest
🛒 audioadvice.io/Audioquest
Hi-fi furniture and speaker stands by Solid Steel
🛒 howl.me/ckbW9947Hdi
Room treatment by Vicoustic
📖 audioadvice.io/Vicoustic
Darko.Audio may earn a small commission from items purchased via affiliate links, which are indicated with a '🛒'.
#cats #audiophile #catnip
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One of the best compliments I can give you is that I watch your videos even when I’m not remotely interested in the product being reviewed.
And thanks for introducing me to Kings of Convenience as well as so many other artists.
Four Tet, Matthew Halsall and Tom Waits in a single video; chapeau sir, chapeau!
Thanks John, always enjoy your content and love learning about all the new stuff. You make it very accessible and your enthusiasm is infectious.
Tofu is ADORABLE!!!!
Hi John Darko, just thought you should know with regards to the Eversolo's A6/A8 input, DSP and EQ processing
After communicating with Eversolo they have confirmed the following;
1. The software EQ of A6/A8 processes up to 192K but doesn't resample.
2. The DSP of A8 is a hardware DSP, only effective for the internal player, digital audio inputs (coaxial/optical/USB-B/ARC), and outputs through RCA/XLR analog audio interfaces. The DSP of A8 (not A6) asynchronously samples (ASRC) to 48K when processing internally.
A very informative and detailed review with elements not discused by others in the community.
John, you got a beautiful cat that mixes well amongst that beautiful set of audio elements and deco!
Oh the bloopers.. just love it! :D
Thanks for the great videos and reviews . But this one was special. Tofu, Tofu..... Please keep Tofo in your videos. 🎉🎉
I value your opinion so much! Thank you for this review John!
I hope that Plexamp will be adopted by more HiFi manufacturers. Lots of promise and relatively easy to set up. Also worth mentioning is that one can pair Tidal with Plexamp and, like Roon, add Tidal-hosted and streamed titles to libraries. I love how easy it is to have multiple libraries and switch between them. Also, if one doesn't have the facility to set up a local server, there are many very cheap, super fast seedbox solutions with enough storage to upload one's own library and stream remotely anywhere, including at home.
Great review as always. I love the stands you use for your ZU DWX speakers 👌👌
I have a pair of DWX myself and really want to know who makes those stand. They’re fantastic.
They were custom made for me by a Patron.
@@DarkoAudioWell darn it, that’s exactly what I need for my crazy custom Zu speakers.
Good to see some jazz in the mix , Matthew Halsall is producing some great stuff ! a cure for Jazz phobia ! thanks John and Olaf.
Great you mention Plexamp, I'm looking forward to seeing it more often in streamers
Great review!
Thanks Darko! Your video has convinced me to give the A8 a go.
Tofu steals the show😍
Wonderful video John! I would say I do like the idea of streaming but only my collection of music. So far still sticking to my computer witha NAS.
You made it!
I had the opportunity to test the A8 with my Ampandsound tube headphone amp. With an old, classic Sennheiser HD600, the sound was excellent. The built-in parametric E.Q. was very useful. Thank you for sharing. P.S. I'm in love with Tofu
Thanks for the review. I agree with your opinion having tried the A8 and returned it quickly since the A8 does many things and ticks many audiophile boxes but simply doesn’t sound audiophile enough when the dac is engaged. It is indeed very soft at the edges and if you like music with attack this is simply not adequate.
Well done John. A lot of info here to digest. Streamer/dacs for just about everyone. I’m still new to streaming coming up on one year. My Node X is all I can handle at the moment. So many options as usual.
The node x is a great streamer!
A couple months ago I got the dmp a6 master edition and I love it but I still have my nodes 130 and 2i and those are great too. The node x is no slouch at all compared to the eversolo in sound quality, the eversolo is a bit prettier but your not missing much. For your 1st streamer I’d say you chose very well! Enjoy!👍🍻
Node x is a great start. Especially when using a separate DAC.
Eversolo IMHO is for the looks and that touch screen. the a8 should have better sound but would think a dedicated DAC with streamer would sound better than the 8 with its DAC.
Interesting vid. I bought the DMP-A6 master edition last year and I love it. I went for the master edition after a couple of reviewers such as yourself talked about the brightness on the normal A6. I'm not able to compare them side by side, but I have no regrets. I have it connected to a pro-ject amp box DS2 to power my speakers.
I bought the Eversolo due to the sheer number of inputs (its a desktop solution and i wanted it to play sound from my PC), its Apple Music Hi-res capabilities - and yes, the VU meters!! ;)
The only thing I haven't managed to get working yet is my Zen Dac v2 for headphones - need to spend some time trying to figure that one out.
Almost spilt my tea when I saw New Fast Automatic Daffodils featured. That’s a welcome blast from the past.
I bought the A6 when it first came out and was somewhat disappointed until the updates started coming out. Now I can’t see upgrading as it does everything I would need. I have a new Marantz stereo 70 for my hdmi needs and analog needs
Hey Tofu Welcome to audio gear! Our Cat Mia loves to sit on my Dali Floor stands and look out the window.
Cannot slay giants, love your level headed approach. I do own a dmp-a8 and I think most people will be impressed
Love that you flash a Lee Perry Blackboard Jungle track in an ‘audiophile’ review. Easily one of my favourite producers but it certainly challenges the definition of audiophile, which I love.
Love your cat!
As much as I enjoyed the A8, I like my HiFi Rose 150 way more... admittedly though, I haven't used either as a DAC, for that I have a Chord.
Hi Darko, about parametric eq part, is 48k still considered HIRES? or anything above? Thanks
I really love the sound of the CA cxn100 but really curious about the A8 but not sure whether it’s worth the jump in price, would I really hear much difference? Apple Music hi res sounds good though and great news about Plexamp too
On behalf of the community, please continue to include TOFU on ALL future content. Thank you! 😝
I recently purchased the DMP A6 master edition. While I'm not a big fan of the DAC compared to other options I have at home, I was utterly floored how good the A6 is as a transport / streamer only. Coming from a BlueSound and Wiim, it's a big upgrade as a streamer and transport. The functionality is excellent as well and I do love the interface, but to me the sound quality is #1.
I agree sound quality over features, recently got the A8 to upgrade from the WiiM Pro.
I was using the DAC in my integrated (ESS SABER), LAN wired and high $ SPDIF to give the most performance from the WiiM. Using Analog out (A8's DAC's) with nice RCA cables, the A8 is another level up.
Also loading my whole uncompressed CD library to the SSD card I installed really makes this a complete digital solution for me (My far bigger investment has been into the turntable/Analog part of my system).
Oh yeah, I also upgraded the power cable, probably needless, but I want all my components wiring to match.
@@pnichols6500 nice. I’ve heard a difference with power cables too. Once your system starts to get to a point where I can resolve the detail.
Watching this through my A8 connected to my TV through HDMI eARC on Apple TV 😂😂😂 A few observations in comparison to my earlier daily driver before this which was the Ifi Zen Stream + RME ADI-2 DAC FS - the DAC on the Eversolo is more refined and resolving than the RME. The Streamer section is also ever so slightly more resolving than the Zen Stream. The soundstaging on the RME is more forward with slightly better dynamics and mid bass punch but loses out a bit on detail retrieval, top end refinement and depth of soundstage. However, these differences are very minor indeed and it'd be safe to say they are at par and sound very similar.
Thank you for the extra data point! Most helpful. 🙏🏻
I am under the impression that the a8 doesn’t have CEC in its hdmi implementation. Does your setup allow power control (a8 power on when you power on your tv from couch) and auto source switching ? Looking forward to hearing your experience!
@daverose515 - you're correct in your assumptions inasmuch as the A8 does not allow power on through CEC and auto source switching. Thankfully, volume control does work through the AppleTV/TV remote control.
Love seeing the Plexamp coverage. I streaming via a Intel NUC out via USB to my DAC since I'm leveraging Plex for video as well which I'm sure most people are but it would be interesting to see a comparison to using a PC to stream vs a dedicated streamer with Plex since some people say there is a quality difference.
Thank you for another great video! Would,really like to hear your take on the Silent Angel Rhein Z1 Plus
I just ordered the A-8. It’s gonna be used as a pre-amp paired with a couple of Bridged NAD power amps and Bowers 703. s3
PlexAmp for the win :) I'm experimenting with PlexAmp on an old Nexus tablet controlled from smartphone - dac taking output from usb port....... (cheap dac dongle until I can afford a 'big' dac )
Spring Heel Jack! Great album.
A question about the plex capabilities....can we use the ssd or a pluged hard to set the eversolo as a Plex server or eversolo is just end point...
Tofu is like catnip for audiophile's partners or spouses! My wife likes Darko, but never watches the videos, but she watched this one! John, don't feel badly though, the only reason that she watched the Mandalorian was because of baby Yoda (Grogu). So clearly, more Tofu means more viewership. Just sayin'. =;~) Thanks and keep up the great work.
Hi John. What do you think about using DMP A8 or DMP A6 with KEF LS60 as a pre-amp specifically for PEQ-ing purpose? Since LS60 have limited adjustability. Does it make any sense? And which Audio out would you use to connect it. Thank you for the review.
Interested in John's opinion and others here too. I have my A8 hooked up with RCA for now to the LS60. Only been a week...willing to adjust and tweak over time.
Sorry but I have not connected the A8 to the LS60.
Hi there - as a long time subscriber, I really appreciate your reviews and insights! I do have a question. I recently relocated to Singapore and my Focal Sopra 2s just arrived. I have been using the M33 to drive them, but I am not enjoying the M33. I am considering replacing the M33 with a streamer and amp. I am considering the eversolo A8, hifi rose RS130, unless you have a better recommendation. But the next question is which AMP would you recommend for this system.
Many thanks,
Nick
What most reviewers dont mention: be careful choosing the DAC filter. If you have a decent resolving set up the differences arent night and day but clearly comrehensible. I ended up at "Slow Roll off" and use the A8 (as the full package:streamer, DAC, preamp) on ADAM Audio S3Hs (plus Sub 12) and couldnt be happier:) It blew away my Linn Majik DSM. But be patient and let the A8 run in for at least 3 full days. Fresh out of the box you wont have that magic resolution, pace, bass definition and 3 dimensionality. Hope that helps!
Hello. I was thinking of getting those Zu speakers. May I ask what stands you are using and do you like them better than the linton stands? Thank you for your review.
They were very kindly custom made for me by a Patron.
@@DarkoAudio Ah got it. Thank you for still kindly responding back. Much appreciated. Have a terrific day.
@@DarkoAudio, ask the patron if he sells them! They are really pretty, especially with those red Zus.
Thanks John. I use my Lyngdorf TDAI-1120 as a pre-amp, fed into a Cambridge Edge W. Now, would you choose the A8 over the 1120, or is it a case of swings and roundabouts? With regards to pre-amp only.
Sorry but I have not done that comparison.
@@DarkoAudio no worries. I know you have previous experience with the Lyngdorf, but I guess as an integrated amp only. Thanks again.
More Tofu please. 👍
Hi, Great review!
Where can I find the APK file & which port on the A8 do I plug the USB drive into?
Thanks
are we going to see a comparison between the Kef lsxII LT and the psb alpha iq or a passive setup a similar price? at/under 1k usd?(lsxII. ii LT and alpha are about that price in the US) haha I sold my lsxII, loved them but could not stand the delay when you play/pause... It made movies unwatchable when doing so from my Macbook(at least M1 pro and iphone 12 pro as well as 15 pro) unless I went wired.
Nice, but too many features I know I won’t use. I happy with just a Bluesound node for now. I do like your videos. I always learn from them.
John, do you know if Plexamp on the DMP A6/8 is bit perfect and uses the Eversolo Audio Engine?
Was definitely waiting to hear your thoughts on this one. Thank you for the video. Main question is does this DAC hold up to the R2R DACs?
How is Eversolo DMP-A8 compare to Nad M66? Both also streaming+preamp.
So you mentioned that Tidal is different in the Eversolo app. Does it not have Tidal Connect?
When Plexamp can be usb loaded; i am curios if Gentoo is als working on this unit.
New Fads - ooh there’s a blast from the past!
Parametric EQ downsampling. How does it affect the sound quality? Thinking of using it to connect a sub via unbalanced outputs, sending the balanced outputs to a power amplifier.
Sorry but I have not done that comparison.
Unfortunately you cannot use different filters on XLR and RCA in A8 so you cannot filter out low frequencies on XLR and higher on RCA
Now I can actually say I like Tofu! I keep looking for a speaker that is the "cat's meow"....
Compare to NAD M66? DAC and preamp quality. Thanks
Thank you for this video. You hit the EXACT points I was wondering. I was wondering how the sound would compare with an NAD M12. I have been wanting to downsize and combine components but I am not willing to lose any of the fullness and spaciousness I get with my M12 and Purrifi amp. Thanks!
hi Sammy....i Just compared the m12/c298 against Sugden 21 signature on ls3/5a Graham...and to be honest the sugden/eversolo outperforms the nad combi....in mine opinion ofcourse
Nice review, now I wonder how it sounds vs Fiio R9? So far I'm not liking the Eversolo Dmp A6 so the A8 and the R9 are in my sights.
What beter Eversolo DMP A8 or Coctail audio x45 i need buying ?
Can you tell what’s the LS50 stands i see behind?
Are the following apps available on the DMP-A8?
- Beatport
- CZcams Music
The A6 is capable of playing multichannel SACD types via an HDMI out. The A8 doesn’t have a HDMI out. As I have 100’s of multichannel recordings in these formats, I returned the A8. Very disappointed Eversolo removed this feature
...and a big wahoo for Thomas Dolby! Those first four albums from him are quite remarkable.
I lean towards the first three. 😉
I see a review of the KEF LSX2 LT coming 🤓😎
hey John,
how you would arrange, for example space like a coffee shop?, where you need to put more than two speakers lets say four or five of them.
i think it might be a good theme :) (space where you need quite decent quality of sound also not loud at same time )
Can you compare the Fiio R9 in the near future? Keep up the amazing work. We all appreciate your feedback and passion for all things audio! Cheers
Great review. One thing that has been discussed about the A8 is the quality of the preamp. Did you compare it against your PS Audio preamp? Or against any other preamps?
Sorry but I did not do that comparison.
I had a Yamaha AS2100 integrated which I gave up in favor of a Classe Sigma 2 power, I also have a Rega RP8 turntable and a Moon 110LP V2 phono stage. AS 2100 is an exceptional integrated but in the current setup it didn't offer anything extra so I preferred to sell it with tears in my eyes and recover some money
Hair metal band Bulletboys recorded a pretty respectable cover of that Waits track back in the 90s.
Makes me think they could have upgraded the screen but it would need to be handing off preamp/processing could be put on the second screen eg bouncing vu meters one side and album / plex/ tidal/room data on the other.
A quirk of single screen Android formatting....
Can someone explain the buzz about VU meters on streaming DACs? I don’t get it. 🤷♂️
Is there a quality difference between the Tidal app and Tidal Connect on this unit?
Sorry but I have not done that comparison.
no difference. they both work fine.
How about a review of what sounds best. Roon Audirvana Plex Sense or a transport.
Dear friend… can’t understand why you don’t mention a word about the Fiio R9, considering it’s the natural comparison. Specially having seen you’ve already used it for some videos ! You’ ve done so in the A6 review, putting it aside to the R7.
Thanks John. Great video as always. 1) please share the name of the stand for Zu DWX. 2) I offered a pair of active speakers to my Son and he said cats will destroy it. Is that cute cat yours? 😊
Shout out to Depeche Mode, Peter Gabriel, and Tofu! I'm holding out for the NAD M66. It is everything I've been wanting for the past 3 years.
Is it possible to disable the little spinning disc in the upper right? Most probably don’t care, but I hate how it looks… reminds me of Apple’s skeuomorphic era with iOS.
I tried to but couldn't.
Nice to see Matthew Halsall
Jana's voice is pure audiophile catnip
Would upgrading
my DMP-A6 ME with
an LPS mod be worth it?
yes
Offtopic: waiting for the review of its competitor, the FiiO R9. At least Eversolo includes Gigabit ethernet as it should, since Fii0 is still inexplicably stuck on 10/100 ethernet.
And yeh, there is no excuse for that considering the cost of these products. We are talking $5 difference. That being said, 100 mbit is more than enough to play even the highest bitrate audio files.
@@NeilLavitt You're right. In fact, even 10/100 would be enough to use the new HDMI function to play 4K videos. As you say, in this price range, and in a product with such a premium finish, it is the only spec that, IMO, falls behind compared to the competition.
At the price quoted I will be comparing to the Audiolab 9000n as this in partnership with Lumin should provide a interesting comparable..
Nice review. Eversolo seem to have been "crushing it" as the youngsters say. Wonder what they will come up with next? A turntable with a holographic representation of the artist floating above the platter? A cd player you control with your mind?
A clock which also has a radio and makes tea?
The sky is the limit.
Actually you can already get the last one. How about a clock which also has a radio and makes a hologram of tea.
I wish we can get you an Aurender N30 and a Taiko Extreme, a Burmester 911MK3 and 088 preamp and a pair of rockport technology atria II's to do reviews with to compare stuff.
Same here. I wish that was an i2s input.
Your taste in music is an assault on my auditory system.
I received a faulty A6 which the VU meter didn't work and it sounded similar to a WIIM Plus am I wrong ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I have a video idea: Rating your favourite streaming services in terms of the way they look on a connected TV (and general usability).
Love the new USM Haller sideboard. 😊
Have you seen the Ian Canada stuff for Paspberry Pi? It's essentially streamers abd DAC hats, that are affordable but have a lot of audiophile catnip!
Solid review John.
Would be good if they did just a basic but high quality streamer - sans DAC, pre, and even screen. Especially if they have and continue good support and development. The relative value is killed when elements are redundant, and the higher the price/quality, the morenusers are likely to have their preferred DACs/amps etc?
Those are pretty much the reasons why I just bought an Airlens.
How will the DMP-A8 be dealing with about 30 000 flac files on an SSD? Which database does this device / firmware use, and how user friendly is it? Just asking because I'm considering to get rid of my Cocktail Audio X35 after Novatron ruined their own products by introducing a new firmware that simply cannot handle compilation albums (and looks like they ignore all customers complaints about it or are not able to fix it)
Meow. I thought I was the only person with a cat called tofu !
Hello to Tofu, a great addition to the team.
Why no headphone port? Some of us listen mostly through headphones and would love a one box hifi streaming solution. No bluetooth for headphones either??
“Bluetooth” 😂
The Fiio R7 & the R9 has a headphone amp if interested!
I bought the A8 and love it . Way better than my Bluesound node 2I.. only wish Apple Music was native like Amazon music ect , I mean Apple Music works but it's not a native app... Apple just make your stuff landscape compatible already . It's annoying
I wish Roon would hurry up and certify this thing. I bought it for Roon months ago :(
I received email from ESolo, still waiting in line for roon
Route John, not rout. Great review, you have a super approach to reviews that make you feel your leaning on the bar in a boozer with a mate. You will be saying whatterrr very soon.