New HiBy R3 Pro Saber DAP announced
A few days ago we covered HiBy’s new Livestream event where the company introduced its new flagship R8 Music Player. Today the company surprises us again yet with another Music Player release. The R3 Pro Saber.
Design
If you look at the new and compare it to the R3 Pro, The resemblance is quite clear. The two models are basically identical. The new R3 Pro Saber has the same eye-catching small form factor, same user interface, and uses the same HiBy OS. While they both similar from the outside, they are not similar from the inside. The differences can be seen under the hood.
Dual ES9218P vs Dual CS43131
While Cirrus Logic’s chips have enjoyed a reputation of being musical, ESS DAC chips have been described by some as being razor-sharp, analytical, and highly accurate. Some music listeners describe it as sounding too detailed, with some proclaiming that they pretty much preferred listening to the Cirrus Logic “smooth sound” instead.
While the R3 Pro utilized two Cirrus Logic’s CS43131 DAC chips, The R3 Saber comes equipped with two ES9218P DAC chips in a dual DAC design for a true balanced output. According to HiBy, the R3 Saber edition was made for a “different type of audiophile”. Those who enjoy critical listening more and want to hear every ounce of detail available in their music. ” The HiBy R3 Pro Saber suits for ACG and electronic music more”, remarked the company. Speaking of Dual ES9218P, Hidizs has recently released the AP80 Pro DAP that features the same dual SoC chips in a fully balanced design.
Better specs
The specs appear to be pretty much identical except for the THD+N which has improved from 0.0007% on the R3 Pro to 0.0003% on the new R3 Pro Saber.
More power
While both models have roughly the same output power in balanced mode, the newer R3 Pro Saber has a slightly more powerful single-ended output, offering 80mW per channel @32Ω vs the 60mW per channel @32Ω on the regular R3 Pro. On the balanced output, both devices offer roughly the same amount of power. 210mW per channel @32Ω.
An Ultraportable Touchscreen Hi-Fi Network Music Player
The R3 Pro Saber has Tidal and Quboz online streaming support thanks to it’s continuously updated HiBy OS.
MQA support
Thanks to the new dual ES9218p chips, The R3 Pro Saber can unfold MQA files at the hardware level via streaming or through the HiBy Music player. The portable player can also decode PCM up to 32-Bit/384kHz, and native DSD up to DSD256.
Storage
The device includes microSD support up to 2TB.(no internal storage).
Battery life
The R3 Pro has a long battery life, the device is quite capable of lasting 19 hours of single-ended music playback (14 hours if balanced), on a single charge.
Other Features
5G Wi-Fi
Bluetooth 5.0
HiByOS
HiByLink
UAT
MSEB
MQA certified
Two-way LDAC
Dual HiRes certifications
2.5mm balanced output
Native hardware DSD256 decoding
Custom themes
Web radio
19 hours single-ended, 14 hours balanced.
50 days standby
Availability
The HiBy R3 Pro Saber will be available in black only. It is unknown if more color s are available in the future.
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