iBasso DX320 - Flagship Digital Audio Player (DAP) - Official Thread

iBasso Audio DX320 Reference Digital Audio Player

Dual System Controllers & Dual Batteries, With ROMH MUS-ICTM DACs

A New Flagship Level Dual DB34301EKV Era Kicks Off

iBasso Audio DX320 Reference Digital Audio Player

Dual System Controllers & Dual Batteries, With ROMH MUS-ICTM DACs

A New Flagship Level Dual DB34301EKV Era Kicks Off

The BD34301EKV DAC chip, developed as part of ROHM’s high-grade MUS-IC series representing the pinnacle of audio ICs, emphasizes ‘spatial reverberation’, ‘quietness’, and ‘dynamic range’ - qualities important for reproducing all music. Original sound quality design technology makes it possible to successfully reproduce the targeted natural reproduction of sound. At the same time, a class-leading low noise and distortion (130dB SN ratio, -115 dB THD+N) provides the high performance demanded by high fidelity audio equipment.

On the iBasso DX320, iBasso has carefully designed circuitry and implementation of this DAC to allow all the quality of the BD 34301EKV to shine through. With more than ten years of tuning and design experience and the persistent pursuit of technological innovation, the new flagship DX320 is a product based on the excellent performance of iBasso’s past generations of DAPs.

In-House Developed FPGA-Master A Dedicated Controller of the Audio System

In the DX320, iBasso adopted an in-house developed our FPGA-Master technology. The FPGA-Master, as the audio system controller, directly requests audio data from the SoC, and plays a major role in signal reproduction and maintaining signal integrity. It synchronizes and generates all audio clocks at the same time utilizing two Accusilicon femtosecond oscillators, to achieve a fully synchronized single clock source. The FPGA and oscillators also reduce jitter to an extremely low level, building an exceptionally clean digital audio signal. Android audio processing does not have high system priority. The addition of FPGA-Master technology raises audio scheduling to the system’s highest priority processing sequence, creating a stable and interference-free digital audio system for DX320.

Patented Dual Battery Power Supply Structure Separate AMP & Digital Power Supplies

The power system is one of the most significant parts of a player and has a decisive influence on its sound quality. SOC, DAC, AMP, and other components, all have strict requirements for transient power supply. When a single battery is powering the entire system, a large demand of current by the digital section and the analog section can affect each other, which can cause distortion degrading the sound quality. The DX320 utilizes a patented (see patent number below) dual battery structure with the AMP and digital section being powered by independent batteries. The independent battery provides a sufficient power supply to ensure the stability of the AMP section and it isolates the digital section interference to achieve better overall sound quality. This ensures that the analog section is receiving extremely clean DC, allowing the AMP section of the player to evolve to its full potential.

14nm 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 660, OG RAM +128G ROM As Smooth As Using Smartphone

The DX320 is equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 as the SOC. With the powerful performance of this 14-nanometer 8-core processor, the operation is outstanding in the field of digital audio players! With 6GB of RAM there is ample memory for a consistent and fast response and the 128GB of onboard, storage space allows for the convenience of installing more APPs and music.

Replaceable AMP Card Infinitely Wonderful, Free to Define

A replaceable AMP Card Design provides for more variety, personalization, and enjoyment of your music. Currently, there are discrete AMP cards AMP11 MK2, and super-class A discrete balanced AMP card AMP12, in addition, Nutube AMP, card AMP13 will also be listed soon. There is no need to replace the player, just replace the amp card and you can freely switch between the transistor with sharpness and crispness based AMP and the vivid tube sound quality. Note: When using AMP12 with DX320, it is recommended to select medium or low gain. Due to the circuit design compatibility, the AMP12 has a certain noise floor at high gain.

Discrete AMP Card AMP11 AMK2s Sound Supreme

The default AMP card AMP11 MK2s is based on AMP8’s discrete circuit and is equipped with 3.5mm single ended, 2.5mm balanced and 4.4mm balanced outputs ports (all ports can also be changed to line outputs). A +/-8V power supply provides sufficient and stable energy for the AMP section. The maximum output current of the transistor reaches 2A, which allows the AMP11 MK2s to drive IEMs and headphones that require high current with ease. The maximum voltage output of DX320 reaches 7.1 Vrms, and thanks to the independent battery power supply, the maximum output power of 320 load is as high as 1200mW!

In order to have the best match with the DX320, the AMP11 MK2s was tuned, with some electrolytic and film capacitors, including the new custom iBasso Premium Al foil audio capacitor.

Excellent AP Measurements Outstanding Flagship Sound Performance

In the core measurements, the DX320 is also excellent. The measured signal-to -noise ratio is 125dB, the dynamic range is 125dB, and the THD+N is -112dB. With these good measurements, the foundation laid for its flagship sound. The maximum voltage output of the DX320 balanced output is 7.1 Vrms, and it effortlessly drives most all full-size headphones! The output power with a 320 load reaches 1200mW, which is a very high among portable DAPs.

  • S/N: 125dB
  • Dynamic Range: 125dB
  • THD+N: -112dB
  • Output Power: 1200mW@320
  • Maximum Output Level: 7.1Vrms

6.5 Inch 2340*1080 Full Screen Enhance Both Auditory and Visual Enjoyment

The DX320 adopts a 6.5 inch full screen design with a very narrow bezel. The screen resolution is 2340*1080 pixels, with a color reproduction second to none in digital audio players. There is also an indicator light on the top of the screen, which allows for the working status of the DX320 at a glance.

Android 11 + Mango OS Open Android & Closed Linux OS

The DX320 is equipped with the up-to-date Android 11 OS. The faster system response and smoothness ranks the DX320 at the forefront of the HiFi players. You can freely install most any APP and enjoy online streaming. As with previous iBasso players, the DX320 bypasses the SRC from the system level, whether it is the built-in Mango player or the third-party streaming APK, you can enjoy the system-level “Non-SRC” feature.

At the same time, the DX320 has a Linux-based system specially developed for pure audio playback, the Mango OS. With the powerful GPU acceleration of Qualcomm 660, the fluency of the Mango system is close to that of Android. This Mango OS has accumulated a lot of optimization results for music decoding and underlying driver algorithms. Also, Mango OS disables Bluetooth and WiFi to reduce EMI interference. It has also minimized the CPU and RAM usage to maintain the system purity to achieve better sound quality.

Professional-grade Parametric Equalizer Provides High-precision EQ Fine-tuning

The in-house developed Mango player APK brings together the EQ algorithm accumulated by iBasso for many years. In addition to the graphic equalizer, the DX320 adds a more professional parametric equalizer, providing 6-band with 8 types of high-precision filters of all types. Each section of the filter can be individually adjusted to adjust the F value, Q value and gain, with detailed visual adjustment capabilities. It can achieve fine adjustment with almost no distortion, and freely defines EQ for different listening situations, bringing a more professional and advanced gameplay than graphic EQ.

MQA 16X

MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) captures 100% of the original studio performance, then folds the file to make it small enough to stream. The DX320 includes MQA technology, which enables you to playback MQA audio files and streams, enjoying the sound of the original master recording.

Bluetooth 5.0 + 5G WiFi 2x2 MIMO Speedy & Carefree Wireless Experience

With an upgraded internal antenna, the DX320 gives you great coverage. The 5G WIFI adopts a 2x2 MIMO WIFI antenna design, with two input and two output channels, resulting in the data transmission speed and data volume being greatly upgraded. The DX320 supports Bluetooth 5.0, with an enhanced antenna that gives longer transmission distance and a stronger signal.

Fully Evolved, No Compromise

Up to 10 hours of playtime

  • The DX320 supports QC3.0, PD3.0 quick charge protocols and fully charges within 2.5 hours.

USB sound card

  • USB sound card function, support of Windows PC, Mac, smartphone, tablet, and other platforms.

Coaxial output

  • Support of PCM 384kHz and DoP DSD128 over the coaxial output.

High-speed USB-C

  • USB 3.1 high-speed transmission compared to the USB2.0 standard has the theoretical transmission speed is increasing by 10 times over USB2.0.

The BD34301EKV DAC chip, developed as part of ROHM’s high-grade MUS-IC series representing the pinnacle of audio ICs, emphasizes ‘spatial reverberation’, ‘quietness’, and ‘dynamic range’ - qualities important for reproducing all music. Original sound quality design technology makes it possible to successfully reproduce the targeted natural reproduction of sound. At the same time, a class-leading low noise and distortion (130dB SN ratio, -115 dB THD+N) provides the high performance demanded by high fidelity audio equipment.

On the iBasso DX320, iBasso has carefully designed circuitry and implementation of this DAC to allow all the quality of the BD 34301EKV to shine through. With more than ten years of tuning and design experience and the persistent pursuit of technological innovation, the new flagship DX320 is a product based on the excellent performance of iBasso’s past generations of DAPs.

In-House Developed FPGA-Master A Dedicated Controller of the Audio System

In the DX320, iBasso adopted an in-house developed our FPGA-Master technology. The FPGA-Master, as the audio system controller, directly requests audio data from the SoC, and plays a major role in signal reproduction and maintaining signal integrity. It synchronizes and generates all audio clocks at the same time utilizing two Accusilicon femtosecond oscillators, to achieve a fully synchronized single clock source. The FPGA and oscillators also reduce jitter to an extremely low level, building an exceptionally clean digital audio signal. Android audio processing does not have high system priority. The addition of FPGA-Master technology raises audio scheduling to the system’s highest priority processing sequence, creating a stable and interference-free digital audio system for DX320.

Patented Dual Battery Power Supply Structure Separate AMP & Digital Power Supplies

The power system is one of the most significant parts of a player and has a decisive influence on its sound quality. SOC, DAC, AMP, and other components, all have strict requirements for transient power supply. When a single battery is powering the entire system, a large demand of current by the digital section and the analog section can affect each other, which can cause distortion degrading the sound quality. The DX320 utilizes a patented (see patent number below) dual battery structure with the AMP and digital section being powered by independent batteries. The independent battery provides a sufficient power supply to ensure the stability of the AMP section and it isolates the digital section interference to achieve better overall sound quality. This ensures that the analog section is receiving extremely clean DC, allowing the AMP section of the player to evolve to its full potential.

14nm 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 660, OG RAM +128G ROM As Smooth As Using Smartphone

The DX320 is equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 as the SOC. With the powerful performance of this 14-nanometer 8-core processor, the operation is outstanding in the field of digital audio players! With 6GB of RAM there is ample memory for a consistent and fast response and the 128GB of onboard, storage space allows for the convenience of installing more APPs and music.

Replaceable AMP Card Infinitely Wonderful, Free to Define

A replaceable AMP Card Design provides for more variety, personalization, and enjoyment of your music. Currently, there are discrete AMP cards AMP11 MK2, and super-class A discrete balanced AMP card AMP12, in addition, Nutube AMP, card AMP13 will also be listed soon. There is no need to replace the player, just replace the amp card and you can freely switch between the transistor with sharpness and crispness based AMP and the vivid tube sound quality. Note: When using AMP12 with DX320, it is recommended to select medium or low gain. Due to the circuit design compatibility, the AMP12 has a certain noise floor at high gain.

Discrete AMP Card AMP11 AMK2s Sound Supreme

The default AMP card AMP11 MK2s is based on AMP8’s discrete circuit and is equipped with 3.5mm single ended, 2.5mm balanced and 4.4mm balanced outputs ports (all ports can also be changed to line outputs). A +/-8V power supply provides sufficient and stable energy for the AMP section. The maximum output current of the transistor reaches 2A, which allows the AMP11 MK2s to drive IEMs and headphones that require high current with ease. The maximum voltage output of DX320 reaches 7.1 Vrms, and thanks to the independent battery power supply, the maximum output power of 320 load is as high as 1200mW!

In order to have the best match with the DX320, the AMP11 MK2s was tuned, with some electrolytic and film capacitors, including the new custom iBasso Premium Al foil audio capacitor.

Excellent AP Measurements Outstanding Flagship Sound Performance

In the core measurements, the DX320 is also excellent. The measured signal-to -noise ratio is 125dB, the dynamic range is 125dB, and the THD+N is -112dB. With these good measurements, the foundation laid for its flagship sound. The maximum voltage output of the DX320 balanced output is 7.1 Vrms, and it effortlessly drives most all full-size headphones! The output power with a 320 load reaches 1200mW, which is a very high among portable DAPs.

  • S/N: 125dB
  • Dynamic Range: 125dB
  • THD+N: -112dB
  • Output Power: 1200mW@320
  • Maximum Output Level: 7.1Vrms

6.5 Inch 2340*1080 Full Screen Enhance Both Auditory and Visual Enjoyment

The DX320 adopts a 6.5 inch full screen design with a very narrow bezel. The screen resolution is 2340*1080 pixels, with a color reproduction second to none in digital audio players. There is also an indicator light on the top of the screen, which allows for the working status of the DX320 at a glance.

Android 11 + Mango OS Open Android & Closed Linux OS

The DX320 is equipped with the up-to-date Android 11 OS. The faster system response and smoothness ranks the DX320 at the forefront of the HiFi players. You can freely install most any APP and enjoy online streaming. As with previous iBasso players, the DX320 bypasses the SRC from the system level, whether it is the built-in Mango player or the third-party streaming APK, you can enjoy the system-level “Non-SRC” feature.

At the same time, the DX320 has a Linux-based system specially developed for pure audio playback, the Mango OS. With the powerful GPU acceleration of Qualcomm 660, the fluency of the Mango system is close to that of Android. This Mango OS has accumulated a lot of optimization results for music decoding and underlying driver algorithms. Also, Mango OS disables Bluetooth and WiFi to reduce EMI interference. It has also minimized the CPU and RAM usage to maintain the system purity to achieve better sound quality.

Professional-grade Parametric Equalizer Provides High-precision EQ Fine-tuning

The in-house developed Mango player APK brings together the EQ algorithm accumulated by iBasso for many years. In addition to the graphic equalizer, the DX320 adds a more professional parametric equalizer, providing 6-band with 8 types of high-precision filters of all types. Each section of the filter can be individually adjusted to adjust the F value, Q value and gain, with detailed visual adjustment capabilities. It can achieve fine adjustment with almost no distortion, and freely defines EQ for different listening situations, bringing a more professional and advanced gameplay than graphic EQ.

MQA 16X

MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) captures 100% of the original studio performance, then folds the file to make it small enough to stream. The DX320 includes MQA technology, which enables you to playback MQA audio files and streams, enjoying the sound of the original master recording.

Bluetooth 5.0 + 5G WiFi 2x2 MIMO Speedy & Carefree Wireless Experience

With an upgraded internal antenna, the DX320 gives you great coverage. The 5G WIFI adopts a 2x2 MIMO WIFI antenna design, with two input and two output channels, resulting in the data transmission speed and data volume being greatly upgraded. The DX320 supports Bluetooth 5.0, with an enhanced antenna that gives longer transmission distance and a stronger signal.

Fully Evolved, No Compromise

Up to 10 hours of playtime

  • The DX320 supports QC3.0, PD3.0 quick charge protocols and fully charges within 2.5 hours.

USB sound card

  • USB sound card function, support of Windows PC, Mac, smartphone, tablet, and other platforms.

Coaxial output

  • Support of PCM 384kHz and DoP DSD128 over the coaxial output.

High-speed USB-C

  • USB 3.1 high-speed transmission compared to the USB2.0 standard has the theoretical transmission speed is increasing by 10 times over USB2.0.
5 Likes

@Precogvision’s review of the DX320!

3 Likes

I have the DX220, purchased 2nd hand for $500 (and I payed too much).

I’d wager a blind test of the sound quality against the newest version couldn’t be discerned.

1 Like

I actually just bought the dx320 as my first DAP.

Got a health question though, for someone that enjoys loud music. Is there a way to limit the sound output to headphones to, say, 70db? Or 80db?

There’s a volume limit, but it doesn’t tell you the db.

1 Like

Hello there.
Currently I own FIIO M17 and Cayin N8ii, very happy with both, I am using it only as DAP not for headphones but as a line out for high end speakers and result is phenomenal.
Gear: WAVAC 805v2 amp, Wavac PRT-1 PRE and II acoustics Tower speakers.(https://iiacoustics.com/#rec512772927#!/tproduct/511007367-1501253736112)
My question is, what can be better, can ibasso sound better for this kind of line out stuff, or what would guys recommend to use, maybe I am looking into wrong direction because before my main source was CD, LP and tape.
Thank you in Advance

H.M.

I’m a little confused by your question. You’re using some nice DAPs in line out mode to feed your $30,000 (retail) pre-amp and probably equally good amplifier? You’re not looking for a music streamer, just playback? Probably whatever @Torq recommends. (Callout to you, Ian)

I do not use DAPs because I can’t find a use case for them for me personally. Based on my experience with the brand, Luxury & Precison is top quality, and I see they make a TOTL DAP, the P6 Pro.

But I would think that Torq and maybe a few others would have non DAP suggestions.

1 Like

As I read the question, @Henrikas_M is asking if an iBasso DAP would be better than the FiiO M17 or the Cayin N8ii. And I would say that, on objective grounds there’s probably nothing in it (they all hover around the same measured performance).

Subjectively of course it comes down to the person etc.

Beyond that, objectively I don’t think it really matters what you feed the Wavac PRT-1 with … while I’ve not heard one its (manufacturer published) performance numbers are WAY behind even a $9 Apple USB-C to 3.5mm dongle. It can’t even achieve audible transparency at that level, so I expect the coloration the pre-amp imparts here is going to dwarf any coloration from any potential source.

Thank you. I had thought about sticking my neck out to say that given the rest of the system that pretty much any DAP’ll do ya. (Apologies to Brylcream)

Well you are very wrong on dwarfing any potential source. As the difference between any source is immense. by the numbers they show it doesnt sound promising at all, tho in reality is much different thing. Outperforms many highend preamps as accuphases, gryphons and etc… So. What would be your go to source if the pricepoint wouldnt matter?

Objectively, no I’m not.

Something throwing 0.5% THD+N (like the PRT-1) is incapable of transparently passing a signal at 0.002% THD+N (what you need to hit, objectively, just to transparently pass basic Redbook audio). Even if they were understating the technical performance by a factor of 100, it’d still fail to meet that threshold.

Subjectively … what I think isn’t relevant … the only thing that matters is if you like it.

Outperforms in what manner?

Your subjective preference or some objective measure?

And don’t get me wrong - I buy audio based mostly on my subjective evaluation - but there’s only one’s personal preference at work there … so “better” or “outperforms” in a subjective context is always going to differ by person.

Since I’ve not heard the Wavac stuff … I can really only go by objective criteria … and like most similar products it is quite poor in that regard.

I can’t give you a subjective recommendation because a) I’ve not heard the PRT-1 so, other than seeing it being a relatively high-distortion/noise low-dynamic range device, I don’t know exactly how that is coloring the sound and even if I did, b) I have no idea what your preferences are to able to use point “a” to steer a recommendation.

I don’t even know what you think you’re missing and/or trying to “better” vs. the two DAPs you have right now (nor which you prefer). One is almost entirely neutral, the other quite colored, with the iBasso DX320 being closer to the M17 than the N8ii in signature.

1 Like

From the beggining.
THD has different ways of measurement and different gear, more accurate less accurate for measurement. Depends on the company. So 0.5% THD+N for tube pre amp I think is good as it is. 0.002% is target definetely but measuring some other preamps you can easily forget those 2 zeros.
about better or outperforms, been tested on many very different systems which different amps and it really works and sounds clear, natural and very much enjoyable. tried against ACCU C2900, gryphon commander, AN M8 and different others, Plinius m10… so I dont honestly care about measurements so far as it makes people happier and much more involved into listening.
M17 is very analytically sounding DAP compared to N8ii. N8ii is much more natural allthough much more precise I would say, better balance. with M17 you get tired of listening, with N8ii no fatigue for long hours, as its my personal experience tested on pro109 heaphones and the home system as well.
for me M17 is far from neutral. It is very much colored on “white” side, which is very annoying to listen to, harsh, dead. with Cayin is much more subtle, relaxed and balanced which I think is go to for me. So anything on similar side but maybe better would be amazing to know about.

I’m largely in the same boat - unless asked about things I’ve never heard - so the only point of reference I have is the measurements.

The DX320 is closer to the M17 than the N8ii, so perhaps not the direction you’d want to go.

The only current DAP I can think of that’d improve on the N8ii in ways that it sounds like you’d appreciate (and that would be able to deliver that same sound to both the headphone outputs and its dedicated line-outputs) is the Cayin N30LE (which may wind up being the foundation of the N8iii in the future).

The N30LE will basically give you a technical improvement over the N8ii, but with a similar signature, if you use the N30LE in “Tube: Modern” mode. And then in “Tube: Classic” mode will be richer, more holographic, a bit warmer, and a bit sweeter than the N8ii.

In terms of desktop/non-DAP sources … some of the MDHT models are similar sounding the to the N8ii (though perhaps not quite as objectively performant), and the Rockna units, while more neutral, are very dynamic and will “punch up” the sound you get vs. similar options.

Bro could you help me to export the Mango Player from your ibasso dap and send it to me? i would like to test and compare any music player from any DAP brands out there, but unfortunately i dont have iBasso DAP