Acoustic Research AR M2

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Reshen

Lumous Audio
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Commercial Member
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Nov 14, 2014
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Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the forum and I thought I start posting with my impressions of the AR M2. I got this off a fellow forumite a few months ago and it's made the lockdown a tad bit more bearable!

There are a few good reviews of the device but not as many as for more popular devices. Firstly, I was a bit sceptical about a getting a DAP after owning a couple of LG phones with the ESS DAC chips. The LG's are remarkable for a phone, but the AR M2 is a bit of revelation. It has my favourite DAC implementation, being the Burr Brown Chip. I know that the chip alone is not the final word on the sound signature but of all the DAC's I've tried the BB's and Wolfson's are my favourite. With a well mastered hi -res music file the AR M2 really shines and it can easily drive my HD 6XX and LCD2F, really bringing out the two different characters of those headphones. I also have a HD58X which does not need much grunt, but it sounds great too. I have tried the ADL EH008 IEM?s too and fortunately I did not find any low-level buzz or hissing from the amp. They sound superb with a very balanced sound.
The other great thing is that it can side load other android music apps like Tidal and Spotify. I don?t think it can decode MQA but it still sounds brilliant. The AR Pro Player app is far better for accessing Tidal, but my word it?s a terrible piece of software. I dare not search a track or it?? fall over. Does sound a bit better than the app though.

But sadly, as is the problem with these DAPs, is they never use a current version of Android as their basis. So, things are getting quite long in the tooth. For instance, the Tidal app refused to log in as of a few days ago. Tidal support just gives the generic support i.e. minimum requirement is Android 5.0. The AR M2 is built on 4.3. So, could very well be the app isn?t supported anymore. Spotify still works. Any other AR M2 owners have a similar experience?
I have not heard any of the more recent DAP?s form Fiio or AK or Cayin or ?.  But if they can provide the same or better sound quality as the AR M2 then I?ll definitely look at a newer one in the future.

Keen to hear any opinions about the relevance of the AR M2 compared to the newer models.

 
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