amazon Shanling M5s reviews
Shanling M5s is Shanling’s newly launched flagship tablet player. This brand is well known for its high-performance music players, beautiful designs and extremely affordable prices. Whether this comeback will make Shanling’s name go further in the world audio community.
Designed and boxed
Shanling made M5s from a solid aluminum sheet made of CNC and it has a very impressive grip. Absolutely without any point on the body I feel redundant or stretched, the feeling of extremely high-end finishing. At this price, I think this is one of the machines with the highest level of finishing, it really won my hearts.
At only about 180g, Shanling M5s feels solid from top to bottom. The physical keys on the side of the body give good bounce. The microSD memory card cover is a nightmare to remove. If you ask yourself if there is any defects in the design, there is no doubt that this is the cover of the memory card. But it’s also not a big deal, and it rarely takes the memory card out because if you copy data, you can use the Type-C port.
Another thing is that the Shanling M5s has a fairly thick body, but overall it is still very compact in the palm.
The accessory included with the Shanling M5s includes a Type-C charging cable and a few supporting documents. In addition, you can buy additional cases for Shaling M5s sold separately. If you often carry the device around, I recommend you to equip this accessory, both increase the elegance of the device, and protect the device better.
Battery life
The charging port on the Shanling M5s is USB Type C. The battery inside the Shanling M5s has a capacity of about 3400mAh and for 17 hours of continuous use as announced by the manufacturer. Of course, in practice, the duration is always lower. As I tested with music files other than DSD / FLAC, it is true that it can use about 15 hours continuously when the screen is off.
However, the charging time on Shanling M5s is not very impressive, it takes about 3 hours to charge continuously, the battery is 100% full. Perhaps Shaling did so to protect the thermal stability of the entire circuit board system.
I played a DSD track in repeat mode, turned on the High-gain mode. As a result, Shanling M5s survived for about 6 hours in a row, which is quite good.
Interface and features on Shanling M5s
Boot and home screen
The main screen allows for very user-friendly customization. You can change these icons to your liking at any time. The boot time of the device is not as fast as lightning, but compared to some music players running the operating system, the Shaling M5s certainly wins. It takes about 4-5s for a boot on Shanling M5s.
By default there will be 3 themes to choose from in the settings menu. Sometimes changing the theme to reduce boredom is also an interesting experience on Shaling M5s. I have a habit that likes minimalist things, so in the custom display icon on the home page, I turn off the redundant icons. It’s nice not to have to look at icons that never touch the screen. Just swipe from the right edge of the screen to see this feature.
Through continuous post
Response time next track continuous on Shanling M5s is a bit slow. It takes an average of about 1 second from the time you press the next button on the screen repeatedly to the machine processing and playing the song you want to hear. Please note that this only happens when you click next repeatedly. When next normal post, Shaling M5s will respond almost immediately, if the DSD file will be a little longer.
Shutdown
If someone like me has more than one music player, turning off the device is also a consideration. I found out that my Colorfly U8, which costs three times as much as the Shanling M5s, experienced lag whenever I wanted to turn it off. Fortunately, on Shanling M5s, this situation is not repeated. It’s easy to turn off Shanling M5s, hold the rotate key, the screen will light up and then it will say goodbye too.
EQ
For me, it is sad that the Shaling M5s, the EQ feature is not worthy of this price range. With the sound of Shaling M5s really makes me feel very satisfied but when you want to add a little seasoning, this does not seem to be encouraged by Shanling.
You can only adjust the frequency range from 31Hz to 16kHZ quite difficult because of limited screen size. Each adjustment must drag back and forth between different frequency areas so it is difficult to imagine the overall tonal graph adjusted. The preset part is also made poorly.
Particularly in this section, I find that the Hiby R6 and Hiby R3 are probably the best with the MSEB EQ feature. Anyone who has used this feature of the Hiby family will surely feel like Shanling M5s like me.
Wireless feature
Our Shanling M5s have lots of cool features for a $500 music player. If you’re a fan of wireless capabilities, this is a great device for you. Wifi, Airplay, DLNA, and especially 2-way Blueooth. This feature allows you to play Bluetooth from Shanling M5s and turn M5s into a Bluetooth DAC. You did not hear wrong. Shanling M5s is equipped with the most powerful Bluetooth codecs like LDAC, Aptx to ensure high quality wireless audio transmission.
The DLNA features allow you to stream music directly from the hard drive system in your home WiFi network, which allows the expansion of the memory of the Shanling M5s to infinity.
Features DAC and DAC output
Through the included type-C data cable, you can completely turn Shaling M5s from a music player into a true portable DAC / AMP. Only need set up DAC Mode on M5s. Then connect Shanling M5s to the computer and plug in headphones. The music on your computer has become a lot better.
The Shanling M5s also has the ability to output a digital signal to another discrete DAC via the Type-C port.
Feeling of sound quality
Bass range
The bass range of Shanling M5s is firm, balanced and very clean. But one thing, is that it’s a bit lacking in emotion. That means the bass strip of Shaling M5s is very flat and natural, without any additional taste. If you are a fan of natural rustic then you will love this bass. As for me, I like the bass more fun, more explosive.
If you don’t use EQ, then listen to EDM and you see the bass is a bit lacking in volume. However, the ability to layer in the bass range from top to bottom is still very good. You should mix Shanling M5s with any ear that has good bass for a little fit.
Mid range
Shanling M5s has a very relax mid quality, which I did not feel with the midrange band of Colorfly U8. At the same volume level as the Colorfly U8, the sound on the Shanling M5s is a bit smaller but wider. As far as I can feel, the M5s has again scored with its mid range and this will be the best mid-player I’ve heard in 2019. However, the thickness and weight of this negative strip still lacks something to reach perfection. The mid range details are kept very high but due to insufficient power, the experience is reduced quite a bit.
If say the mid of the thin Shanling M5s is not true, but certainly it is thinner when compared to Colorfly U8. This mid range can be said to be natural. Perhaps it is necessary to combine Shaling M5s with headphones with a thick mid and a good feeling, so this machine can play its best.
Treb Strip
According to my feeling, treb on Shanling M5s is not very energy rich. Up to just enough, the small details in the treb strip are very well separated. The hi hat, clear jingle. This treb strip is made quite smooth, not too sharp, the level is quite good. The whole is still neutral, without any extra steps.
Sound and soundstage
The soundstage of the M5s is very spacious, wider than the Colorfly U8. The singer’s voice does not go forward, nor backward. Stage space is well presented and has depth. The position of the instruments is arranged exactly. This is most evident when you listen to live recordings, surely Shangling M5s will not disappoint you.
CONCLUDE
Shaling has done a great job with its most advanced player. Overall performance on price is extremely good when compared to other brands. Impressive battery life, plenty of wireless connectivity, a smart and user-friendly interface, an impeccable finish. The overall sound is extremely balanced, extremely natural and relax will suit classical and symphonic music.
where can you get a Shanling M5s online
Shanling M5s Hi-Res Portable Music Player Bluetooth Music Player Wi-Fi Music Player (Black): Buy it now
