The biggest surprises come in small and unassuming packages. The Sabre 9018 DAC from HiFimeDIY comes in the smallest and the most unassuming of all packages. And it delivers the biggest surprises.
Review unit for this review was provided by Pristine Note.
The views in this review are entirely my own.
The Sabre 9018 has an exceedingly simple case with an USB input jack. The case is non-detachable and sturdy enough to survive accidental drops. The USB jack is well built and gold plated. The 3.5mm jack, also quite study, functions as both 3.5mm output and SPDIF port for further connectivity needs.
On a Windows PC this does not need any separate driver installation. The volume control is through the OS software.
Being very small, I just tucked it out of sight behind the CPU cabinet and forgot about it.
Point to note is that the Sabre 9018 does not support high resolution 192kHz, 384kHz or DSD files natively. This was a design choice to keep to the bare basics and ultimately keep the cost down. However, it will play such high resolution files, but with downsampling it to 96kHz.
In case you need a DAC with such capabilities, HiFimeDIY has another 9018 variant which supports all kinds of high res file formats natively.
Compared to the very basic audio processor on my motherboard, this DAC is a huge improvement in almost every aspect, soundstage, imaging, audio reproduction. Compared to the equally tiny Sansa Clip Zip, the soundstage is almost the equal. However, the imaging is quite better on the Sabre 9018. Highs, mids and lows are quite cleanly reproduced.
On a good pair of headphones, the bass is very clean and tight. The Signature Acoustics O16, which is generally quite weak in the bass department, responds quite well when driven off the Sabre 9018.
I did not find any discernible coloration in the sound. Vocals sound quite natural.
The SABRE9601 driver is quite powerful. All the earphone/headphones that I used to test this, I never had to go more than 30 on my computer’s volume. By my guess and going by some other reviews on the internet, the Sabre 9018 can drive higher impedance cans comfortably.
I also do a lot of gaming on my PC using my Kingston HyperX Cloud. So while testing the DAC, I also decided to try out some gaming. While the HyperX Cloud is quite bright sounding out of the box, the Sabre 9018 really brings out the best in it. While the brightness does not go away, the mids and the bass really pack a punch and make the HyperX Cloud a really good all-purpose set of cans.
I tried out Battlefield 1/4 and Witcher 3 and Tomb Raider and some other random games with good in-game audio. It makes the games a blast to play. The battlefield, cities, towns and tombs come alive with all the ambient sounds. The explosions and gun shots in battlefield sound brilliantly real. The already awesome background score in Witcher 3 and ambience coupled with the terrific graphics just take it to a level that I have not experienced since testing the iBasso DX80.
Final takes:
The Sabre 9018 packs a punch that is way more powerful than it seems like. If you have a run-of-the-mill integrated audio or just want to gift yourself a little something this Christmas, the Sabre 9018 is what you want.
It is hard to get a better deal at this price point.
Amazon.in: Buying Choices: HiFimeDIY Sabre 9018 USB DA
Shout Out to [MENTION=157395]SignatureAcoustics[/MENTION] for providing the review sample.
Review unit for this review was provided by Pristine Note.
The views in this review are entirely my own.
Build/Design
Electronics: SA9023 USB receiver -> Sabre ES9018k2m DAC -> SABRE9601 driver
The Sabre 9018 has an exceedingly simple case with an USB input jack. The case is non-detachable and sturdy enough to survive accidental drops. The USB jack is well built and gold plated. The 3.5mm jack, also quite study, functions as both 3.5mm output and SPDIF port for further connectivity needs.
On a Windows PC this does not need any separate driver installation. The volume control is through the OS software.
Being very small, I just tucked it out of sight behind the CPU cabinet and forgot about it.
Point to note is that the Sabre 9018 does not support high resolution 192kHz, 384kHz or DSD files natively. This was a design choice to keep to the bare basics and ultimately keep the cost down. However, it will play such high resolution files, but with downsampling it to 96kHz.
In case you need a DAC with such capabilities, HiFimeDIY has another 9018 variant which supports all kinds of high res file formats natively.
Sound
Compared to the very basic audio processor on my motherboard, this DAC is a huge improvement in almost every aspect, soundstage, imaging, audio reproduction. Compared to the equally tiny Sansa Clip Zip, the soundstage is almost the equal. However, the imaging is quite better on the Sabre 9018. Highs, mids and lows are quite cleanly reproduced.
On a good pair of headphones, the bass is very clean and tight. The Signature Acoustics O16, which is generally quite weak in the bass department, responds quite well when driven off the Sabre 9018.
I did not find any discernible coloration in the sound. Vocals sound quite natural.
The SABRE9601 driver is quite powerful. All the earphone/headphones that I used to test this, I never had to go more than 30 on my computer’s volume. By my guess and going by some other reviews on the internet, the Sabre 9018 can drive higher impedance cans comfortably.
I also do a lot of gaming on my PC using my Kingston HyperX Cloud. So while testing the DAC, I also decided to try out some gaming. While the HyperX Cloud is quite bright sounding out of the box, the Sabre 9018 really brings out the best in it. While the brightness does not go away, the mids and the bass really pack a punch and make the HyperX Cloud a really good all-purpose set of cans.
I tried out Battlefield 1/4 and Witcher 3 and Tomb Raider and some other random games with good in-game audio. It makes the games a blast to play. The battlefield, cities, towns and tombs come alive with all the ambient sounds. The explosions and gun shots in battlefield sound brilliantly real. The already awesome background score in Witcher 3 and ambience coupled with the terrific graphics just take it to a level that I have not experienced since testing the iBasso DX80.
Final takes:
The Sabre 9018 packs a punch that is way more powerful than it seems like. If you have a run-of-the-mill integrated audio or just want to gift yourself a little something this Christmas, the Sabre 9018 is what you want.
It is hard to get a better deal at this price point.
Amazon.in: Buying Choices: HiFimeDIY Sabre 9018 USB DA
Shout Out to [MENTION=157395]SignatureAcoustics[/MENTION] for providing the review sample.