Shanling M3X

amazon Shanling M3X reviews

Shanling is a brand that must be no stranger to audio players. From the early days of walking on this road, I was fortunate to experience two of its two models of music players, the M2 and M5.

The first thing that impressed me was the design, which is unique but still feels comfortable to hold in hand, not as tight and sharp as the machines from Astell & Kern or Cowon, along with great quality sound for the price.

Shanling M3X is the latest model of the music player that the company launched into the audio community. That is known as the world’s first Hi-res Android music player equipped with Dual Dac ES9219C with full MQA decoding capability.

DESIGN

In terms of design, Shanling M3X follows the M2X, but the width of the body is larger. The whole machine is covered in black tones; the chassis is made of aluminum alloy with a rough surface finish and two polished glass surfaces that create an impressive light and dark contrast.

The ability to finish is also a bright spot when the coupling between glass and metal is made very meticulously, very tight, and without any ripples or redundant details. The manufacturer is also very careful when giving us two soft stickers in the box, so you can comfortably use it without worrying that the two beautiful glass sides will be fingerprinted or scratched.

The front of the machine is a 4.2-inch screen with HD resolution processed by Sharp, so the sharpness or color is very good; it is on par with mid-range smartphones.

On the right side is a rotary button with integrated volume control, a power button, and a screen toggle.

The three buttons on the left are the back, play, and pause buttons; these keys are solid and highly responsive when pressed.

The top is a 3.5 Po port and a 4.4 balance port.

The bottom is a microSD card slot and a Type-C port. In addition to charging and transferring data, users can also turn the M3X into a high-quality USB Dac/Amp for PC/Laptop via the Type-C port.

The size of Shanling M3X is 109x72x15.9mm, and the weight is 168g; I find it quite comfortable to hold with one hand or put in a pocket. You can take Shanling M3X anywhere you want.

CONFIGURATION

In terms of hardware, Shanling M3X is equipped with Snapdragon 430 CPU, 2GB ram, 32GB ROM; you may not notice that this configuration is on par with the Nokia 6, a mid-range smartphone been launched in 2017 bought one for a relative to use. It still works fine so far this configuration is perfect for a music player running Android 7.

M3x is also equipped with dual DAC chip ESS Saber ES9219C that supports PCM decoding up to 32-Bit / 384kHz, DSD256 Native, and MQA 16X.

At this point, many of you will be wondering about MQA 16X; in simple words, it is a way of compressing high-quality files into small files through “folding” many times, this audio data compression process is done. A company called Music Origami. The extension multiple of the MQA format file is directly related to the audio quality of the file. Currently, products on the market can achieve 8x scalability, and 16-fold expansion is only possible with M3X.

Shanling M3X supports 2-way Bluetooth with high-quality codecs, including LDAC, LHDC, aptX HD, and more. Users will easily connect the M3x to Bluetooth headset models to enjoy wireless music or turn the M3x into a high-quality Bluetooth DAC/amp…

Shanling M3X is equipped with two Headphone-out ports, a 3.5mm SE port and a 4.4mm Bal port. The 4.4mm Bal port with 240mW at 32Ω delivers enough power for your headphone models with ease.

The M3X has a battery life of up to 23 hours in Single DAC mode; even with the 4.4 Bal port, the player can play music continuously for up to 19 hours.

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SPECIFICATIONS

Dual DacESS Saber ES9219C

Supports PCM decoding up to 32-Bit/384kHz and DSD256 Native.

Support 16X MQA decoding

Dual Output: 3.5mm SE and 4.4mm BAL.

Output power: up to 240mW @ 32Ω (4.4mm)

Output Impedance: <1Ω.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 octa-core CPU.

2GB RAM + 32GB ROM.

Dual-band WiFi: 2.4gHz & 5gHz.

Supports two-way Bluetooth.

LDAC, LHDC, aptX HD, SBC, and many more Bluetooth HI-res codec support.

Open Android 7.1 operating system.

4.2-inch screen (1280×768).

Battery: Up to 23 hours (SE, single DAC), Up to 20 hours (SE, dual DAC), Up to 19 hours (Bal)

Dimensions: 109mm X 72mm X 15.9mm.

Weight: 168 gms.

SOUND QUALITY

As for the output, the headphones that I combine will be a fairly new line from Shanling: ME700 lite; this is a newly launched headset model that uses the included wire. The songs I tested include Hotel California – Engle, The One I Love – Meav, Amarantine – Enya.

The overall sound quality of Shanling M3X is still in favor of a gentle and balanced style, with a little emphasis on the mid-range, a spacious soundstage, and quite good detail. This type of sound can help you listen for a long time without getting tired.

When listening to the legendary song “Hotel California” on Shanling M3X, the layering and placement of instruments are shown very well. The soundstage is wider. The high-energy highs bring the audience’s applause or cheer to life. That is a song I’ve heard many times, but it makes me excited and wants to sway to the music every time I listen to it. The M3x and ME700 lite performance are not perfect, but it is enough to bring out the emotions that make me want to listen to this immortal song again.

“One I Love” This song is purely a solo of vocals (A cappella genre); the appearance of instruments is very little. The first thing that I feel is that details such as the singer’s breathing or snorting are reproduced very clearly. The mid-range tends to be smooth, making the attachments in the high notes very balanced, not dazzling and harsh. The vocal part is also brought to the front of the head to make it more prominent, making you not feel very comfortable listening for a long time.

“Amarantine” this song allows the M3x and ME700 lite to show all the advantages of their sound quality. Those who first listen to Enya’s music will feel like she is lulling them to sleep; indeed, the voice is somewhat even and inclined to low tones, making the overall song sound very melodic and gentle. The pair’s spacious soundstage and fairly advanced mid-range make Enya’s voice stand out above the background music, adding more emphasis to the song.

CONCLUDE

Compared to its predecessors, what the M3x shows is a big step forward; the sound quality is easy to hear, the price is comfortable, the hardware configuration is on par or even better than the same competitor’s segment Hiby R5 or Ibasso DX160.

The ability to decode MQA16X is also a plus. However, the applicability is still not practical when the current MQA codec only stops at a maximum MQA8X. Still, in the future, with the development of technology and increasing demand, the increase of digital music players disparity will also be erased.

In the end, the decision is still up to you, but I believe that Shanling M3X is worth your time to experience and maybe own this great music player.