At the moment, Meldrick opinions the Shanling EH1, a compact desktop USB DAC and headphone amplifier with as much as 1015mW of balanced output energy. It’s priced at $219.
Disclaimer: This pattern was despatched to me in change for my sincere opinion. Headfonics is an unbiased web site with no affiliate hyperlinks or standing. I thank Shanling for his or her help.
Click on right here to study extra about Shanling products we beforehand reviewed on Headfonics.
This text follows our present scoring guidelines which you’ll learn in additional element right here.
Shanling is not any stranger within the multi-function desktop house, particularly with their EM5 and EH3 models.
Nevertheless, Shanling is attempting one thing new with their newest EH1, touting it as “most likely the only system they’ve launched in latest reminiscence”. As a simple desktop DAC/AMP unit, its simplicity isn’t a foul factor.
With a complete suite of enter and output choices and the inclusion of bass and treble tone controls, learn my evaluation under to see if the $219 EH1 has what it takes to grab the crown from its friends within the value vary.
Options
The EH1 is the primary desktop DAC/AMP I’ve examined that comes with bass and treble tone controls.
Whereas {hardware} stage tone adjustment is probably not to everybody’s liking, the flexibility to simply make fast adjustments to the general sound signature is a brand new worth add inside this class of product.
Like various sub-$200 DAC/AMPs such because the FiiO K11, the EH1 additionally comes with a Cirrus Logic CS43198 DAC and a pair of SMG 8262 amplifiers, delivering a clear and detailed sound as much as PCM 32BIT/768kHz or native DSD512.
Whereas the EH1 comes with the enter and output choices audiophiles have change into accustomed to at this value vary, it additionally provides a coaxial output, letting customers join from USB sources to older DACs or Hello-Fi Receivers.
Design
The very first thing that stands out concerning the EH1 upon taking it out of the field is its curved chassis. Its curvature isn’t as excessive because the shells used within the iFi Zen line of merchandise, however it’s noticeable sufficient to interrupt away from a sea of rectangular audio sources that flood our pastime.
Coming in both silver or black, the unit given to us for evaluation is the silver selection. The shell is constructed out of anodized aluminum, giving the unit a easy end whereas exuding a smooth and opulent enchantment.
The silver shade of our evaluation unit is a barely darker shade than different anodized aluminum units I’ve tried, resembling extra just like the house gray end of laptop computer computer systems of sure “fruit” firms.
This darkish gray end contrasts properly with its piano-black faceplate of the unit, housing its knobs, dials, jacks, and management buttons. The perform labels throughout the faceplate have a subdued gold shade, giving it a smooth high-end really feel.
Regardless of the piano black end of the faceplate, I discovered it to be fairly immune to fingerprints, requiring very minimal cleansing throughout every day use.
The unit’s rear plate is made out of anodized aluminum, housing its completely different enter and output jacks and a line/pre-out change.
The EH1’s aesthetics completely toe the road being distinctive sufficient to offer it some persona and visible flare, whereas additionally being stealthy sufficient to suit into essentially the most subdued desktop setups.
I/O
The Shanling EH1 has a sturdy set of enter and output choices that make it a flexible choice for audiophiles increase their desktop system.
Regardless of it changing into extra widespread, it’s good to see that the EH1 comes with each a SE 6.35mm jack and a 4.4mm balanced output. With extra reasonably priced IEMs and headphones now coming with balanced cables, this inclusion additional aids in maximizing completely different headphone or IEM pairings.
The rear of the unit is the place the EH1 begins to shine. Regardless of having solely, a single USB-C port for the unit’s sole information enter, it makes up for this with a flexible set of outputs.
The fitting of the unit homes the coaxial digital output, letting the unit act as a USB to Coaxial converter, a helpful characteristic for these trying to pair the EH1 with classic DACs or AV receivers.
The leftmost portion of the rear shell homes the DC Barrel jack for further energy. It’s price noting that the EH1 might be powered solely by its USB-C enter, however plugging within the included DC energy cable bumps up the output energy on each the SE and BAL output fairly considerably.
Throughout IEM pairings, I appreciated the choice of having the ability to use a single cable for energy and information. Nevertheless, after I began testing the EH1 with full-sized headphones, plugging the unit into DC energy grew to become essential.
The rear additionally homes the RCA analog outputs, with a pre-out and Line-out change proper beside it.
I want this pre/line out choice system over the management scheme utilized by the FiiO K11 since this removes the necessity to navigate by completely different menus, which may very well be fairly cumbersome in the course of the preliminary setup.
Controls
The EH1 has a quite simple and intuitive management scheme when in comparison with its competitors within the value vary.
The EH1 has a big satisfying quantity knob up entrance, with the only function of getting used to alter the quantity. It doesn’t click on in or have infinite rotation; it’s a easy knob with ends at 5 and seven o’clock.
An RGB ring surrounds the quantity knob, shining a unique shade relying on the pattern fee and file sort of the sign being fed into the unit.
This can be a useful characteristic for many who need to be sure that their high-fidelity digital supply isn’t being resampled or downsampled because it goes by the completely different steps on the audio chain
The unit additionally has a devoted achieve button that cycles between excessive and low achieve, in addition to a devoted energy button on the rightmost aspect. Nevertheless, the principle attraction is the smaller pair of knobs to the suitable of the quantity knob.
The EH1 is the primary desktop DAC/AMP I’ve tried {hardware} tone controls in-built. Admittedly, I used to be by no means too eager on utilizing software program EQ or the {hardware} tone controls on my speaker amplifier. Nevertheless, the EH1 has modified my thoughts.
The knobs silently click on into place in its impartial place, making certain that it’s all the time straightforward to return to the EH1’s default tuning. It takes fairly a little bit of drive to show the knob previous this level in each instructions, nonetheless, the bass and tone changes are gradual sufficient to make fine-tuning a breeze.
I discovered myself typically altering the EH1’s tuning on a track-per-track foundation. I by no means turned it previous 1 / 4 previous impartial, however it helped in accentuating completely different devices and coloring the sound to my desire.
Packaging & Equipment
The EH11 is available in a brown cardboard field with an overview of the system on the entrance and key specs on the again.
Contained in the field, you can see the EH1 unit, a USB Kind-C to USB-A cable, a barrel jack to USB-A cable, a 3.5mm to six.35mm adapter, and the usual system paperwork.
The equipment are the naked minimal wanted for operation with a USB-based supply. I might have additionally appreciated the inclusion of a USB-C to USB-C for pairing units with extra trendy laptops.
It’s price noting that though the unit might be powered by the only USB-C information and energy enter, Shanling nonetheless included a DC energy cable out of the field.
Customers will nonetheless want to provide their very own USB energy brick, however the inclusion of the elective energy cable already provides its equipment a greater worth over the iFi Audio ZEN DAC.
Sound Impressions
The next sound impressions had been made with the Sennheiser HD 580, Audio Technica R70X, Moondrop Blessing 3, and Yanyin Canon II as my primary headphone and IEM pairings.
Until in any other case acknowledged, all ideas and comparisons had been carried out with the bass and treble knobs at their impartial setting, and with the EH1 plugged into DC energy.
Bass
The EH1 is a natural-sounding DAC/AMP with a slight tilt in the direction of the nice and cozy finish. Sub-bass hits, particularly kick drums in less complicated acoustic tracks, have a decent and textured presentation, however it’s by no means performed at a stage that overwhelms the remainder of the combo.
In additional trendy complicated Hip-hop or pop tracks, I discovered myself wanting a bit extra sub-bass at instances. Nevertheless, I did discover that turning up the bass knob round 15 levels helped counteract this.
With this warmer-sounding presentation, bass guitars and synths have a really satisfying and luxurious tonality to them. They envelope the sound, giving it a extra relaxed signature, particularly when evaluating it to cleaner and extra analytical sources.
Particularly in additional melodic pop or rock tracks, this hotter presentation of the mid-bass, alongside the tight and textured sub-bass presentation, provides the EH1 good dynamics, making tracks sound pure and interesting on the identical time.
Mids
The heat within the bass area finds its manner into the mid-range. Male vocals have a really robust sense of authority and weight, giving tracks a easy presentation.
I loved listening to 80s funk and disco tracks on the EH1’s inventory settings because it gave horns and synths extra satisfying dynamics, with out disrupting the observe’s general tonal steadiness.
Nevertheless, the EH1 isn’t as proficient in enjoying again extra delicate string devices corresponding to acoustic guitar or piano keys. The heat provides these devices a extra enclosed and claustrophobic presentation.
On extra feminine vocal-focused tracks with fewer stripped-down layers of acoustic devices, I discovered myself turning down the bass knob under impartial and ever so barely growing the treble knob.
This opened up the sound, giving devices a greater sense of air, and improved the extent of instrumental separation.
Treble
With a impartial sound signature that leans in the direction of the nice and cozy finish, the EH1 has a soothing treble presentation that minimizes fatigue in less complicated tracks but in addition struggles to articulate micro-detail and air in comparison with extra impartial sources.
All through my testing, I by no means skilled any sibilance on the EH1 with the DAC on its impartial setting. In most pop tracks, I discovered the quantity of treble completely ample and by no means discovered the presentation of chimes and cymbals to detract from the general vitality.
Even in additional complicated tracks with completely different cymbals and chimes, I discovered that reducing the bass barely and growing the treble by round 5-10 levels improved micro element. Nevertheless, I discovered this configuration to be very observe and genre-dependent.
In less complicated, and better-mastered tracks, the treble does its job of accenting the music, however it by no means stands out or wows the listener. However with its tuning versatility, it may well tailor the treble presentation in the direction of completely different preferences which might be near impartial.
Staging and Dynamics
On the EH1’s inventory tuning, the imaging isn’t class-leading by any means, with string devices sounding compressed in additional complicated mixes, however by tweaking the bass down a number of notches and barely boosting the treble, I discovered that the imaging efficiency within the mid-range improved.
Staging is kind of respectable in comparison with its friends, it doesn’t overtly bottleneck wider-sounding headphones nor does it enhance the staging efficiency of extra intimate-sounding headphones, however it’s nonetheless ample in enjoying again a 360-degree soundscape across the listener.
On its inventory tuning, Devices within the bass area have good dynamics, coming off with good word weight and authority, nonetheless, devices within the mid-range and treble areas solely have common ranges of dynamics.
Click on page 2 below for my recommended pairings and selected comparisons.
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