For music lovers, a good-sounding and easy-to-use portable device is a must-have. Many people often find themselves torn between portable decoding headphone amplifiers and portable players, unsure which one is right for them. In fact, making this choice is not that difficult. Portable players are more convenient to use and can play music without the need for any other equipment. However, if you have high demands on audio performance, then a portable decoding headphone amplifier in the same price range will undoubtedly be able to better meet the needs of audiophiles than a portable player. For example, the Shanling H5, which will be introduced in detail below, is a very popular all-in-one portable decoding headphone amplifier in the 2K price range.
A Cost-Effective Choice in the 2K Price Range
As the mainstay of the Shanling H series of portable decoding headphone amplifiers, the Shanling H5 not only inherits many of the features of the flagship product H7, but also has a more affordable price, making it a very cost-effective portable decoding headphone amplifier in the 2K price range. Some people may ask, how to choose between H2, H5 and H7? If the budget is sufficient, you can directly go for the flagship H7. If the budget is limited, the entry-level H2 can also bring a very good experience. If you prefer a warm, thick and smooth sound, and also have requirements for audio performance and optical coaxial interfaces, then the H5 at a moderate price is a very cost-effective choice.
Distinctive Design
The appearance design of the three major products in the Shanling H series is not much different. They all use a magnesium-aluminum alloy rounded body design, and the feeling of holding them in the hand is very similar. However, with the increase in level, the bodies of the H2, H5 and H7 are gradually becoming larger, and the weight is naturally also increasing. The body weight of the H5 is about 270.4g, and the size is not too big. The length is only about two-thirds of the current mainstream mobile phones, and the portability is not bad. Putting it in the bag is equivalent to carrying an extra mobile phone. At present, the H5 has two color schemes, titanium and black. The one I have in hand is the titanium version. It looks like gray in low-light environments and slightly silver in bright environments. The appearance is quite high.
Dual Roller Button Design
The dual roller button design can be regarded as a signature design of the Shanling H series portable decoding headphone amplifiers. It not only provides a convenient and fast interactive experience, but also looks very personalized and unique, with a high degree of recognition in the market. However, due to the fact that the two roller buttons are located at one end of the body, occasional misoperations may occur during daily use. Fortunately, the problem is not big. Pay attention when holding the machine to avoid misoperations. You can even lock the buttons through the APP. The H2, which was launched later, solved this problem very well by embedding the roller buttons in the middle of the body. It is estimated that the new products in the H series will continue to use this design in the future.
Rich Interfaces
The interfaces of the Shanling H5 are much richer than those of the H2, with additional RCA output and optical and coaxial input interfaces. Compared with the flagship H7, it only lacks a 6.35mm headphone interface, and the functions can be said to be very complete. Here, by the way, if you usually only use it with your mobile phone, then it is enough to choose a small tail with similar functions, after all, the small tail has an advantage in size. The main focus of portable decoding headphone amplifiers like the Shanling H5 is on powerful audio performance and complete functions. As long as you give it a large-screen interactive device, it can immediately be transformed into a super-strong portable player. Here, by the way, when used with Shanling’s own Eddict Player APP, the H5 can indeed be used as a portable local player, which is also one of the reasons why the Shanling H series portable decoding headphone amplifiers are so popular.
Small Screen with Rich Information Display
In terms of the screen, although the screen size of the H5 is only 0.87 inches, the information displayed is still quite rich, including the current input mode, music sampling information, gain status, volume size and remaining power. The three indicator lights next to the screen can also provide some indication functions. For example, when the MQA light is on, it means that the MQA file has been successfully unfolded, and the different colors of the kHz indicator light correspond to different input modes.
Strong Decoding Capability and Diverse Operational Functions
The Shanling H5 not only supports dual Hi-Res audio certifications familiar to audiophiles, but also supports 8x unfolding of MQA digital signals from USB.
With the help of the roller buttons, you can directly perform various operations such as switching between three gain levels, switching between single and dual DAC modes, and switching between 6 digital filters. However, since there are not many buttons for control, this cyclical and hierarchical interaction method is not very convenient. It only provides an interaction method that can be adjusted directly on the body. In actual use, most settings are done on the mobile phone through the Eddict Player APP, which is convenient and fast.
Excellent Sound Quality and Strong Driving Force
In terms of acoustic hardware, the Shanling H5 is not only equipped with two powerful and well-tuned AK4493SEQ DACs, but also uses dual OPA1612 op-amps as low-pass filters, providing a soft and textured sound. There are also two TPA6120A2 op-amps for the headphone amplifier section, along with four Silmic II series 47μF film capacitors for filtering, resulting in a thick, warm, and smooth sound. In addition, there is an LTA8092 op-amp as an adder, which realizes the single-to-dual DAC switching function. The USB chip used is the same Xmos XU316 as the H7, which supports 768kHz/32bit and DSD512 hard decoding, and the power consumption control of this chip is also excellent.
Just looking at the hardware configuration, the H5 has a significant advantage over the H2. Compared with the H7, the difference is not that big in my opinion, just with different sound styles. In terms of thrust, the single-ended output reaches 227mW@32Ω, and the balanced output reaches 840mW@32Ω, which can basically meet the needs of most audiophiles. It is important to note that apart from the USB DAC, other channels of the H5 only support up to 384kHz/32bit and DSD256 hard decoding, while the flagship H7 has super high performance on all channels.
Subtle Differences in Sound Compared to H2
I previously used the Shanling H2 for a period of time. After switching to the H5, I felt that although both have a style, there are still significant differences in taste and frequency balance. The sound of the H2 is clean, balanced, and slightly warm, giving a feeling of elegance and refinement. The taste is not strong, but the details are rich, and it sounds natural and refreshing, close to a fresh and clean feeling but not bland. The sound of the H5, on the other hand, sounds like it has a lot more story to tell, with a much warmer and richer sound, and a stronger sense of story and emotion in the songs. If the sound of the H2 is likened to a cup of special latte, then the sound of the H5 can be described as a well-aged red wine or whiskey, with both strength and flavor.
Easy to Drive Most Headphones
The Shanling H5 is a relatively easy-to-drive device. At least none of the headphones I have on hand have had any problems with pairing. It’s not hard to understand when you think about it. The H5 provides excellent quality and a warm sound base, which allows the headphones’ own strengths to be fully shown while this balanced and full-bodied style is also not easy to bring a sense of aggression or stimulation. In most cases, it will not produce bad sound, unless the headphone’s own tuning style is too unconventional.
Examples of Pairing with Different Headphones
The Shanling MG100 itself is an earbud with a very strong sense of quality and very full frequency energy. However, when paired with the H5, there was no problem of the quality overwhelming the flavor. Instead, the rich sense of flavor became the sole protagonist. The three frequencies are smooth, flowing, and powerful, with rounded edges and not sharp. Whether it is high frequencies or vocals, they sound very mellow and smooth. The low frequencies have a deep dive and moderate rebound, similar to a Q-bomb feeling but not that fast. I have paired the Shanling MG100 with many devices, but only the H5 was able to achieve such a smooth connection between the three frequencies, making the listening experience very comfortable with no harsh transitions.
Improving Previously Existing Issues
The other earbud I used is the Dan Clark Audio DN1000. I’ve been using it for almost ten years, and while the quality is clearly not as good as the MG100, I really like the unique sound of this earbud. With the MG100, you only need about 30% volume on the 4.4 balanced port to get enough sound. With the DN100 in 3.5mm single-ended dual DAC mode, you need to turn up the volume to around 50%. Driven by the H5, the DN100 delivers full-bodied and powerful low frequencies with a certain sense of explosiveness. The vocals are solid and mellow enough, and the high frequencies are clear and powerful with a noticeable sense of detail. Originally, the issue of the DN100’s mid-bass and low-bass connection being too abrupt was quite obvious, but when paired with the H5, this connection issue was mitigated to a certain extent, and the feeling of separation was significantly less strong.
A Perfect Match for Open-Back Headphones
The Hifiman Ananda Nano is the open-back headphone I used for testing. This headphone itself is relatively easy to drive. In 3.5mm single-ended dual DAC mode, you only need to turn up the volume to around 60%. Most of Hifiman’s planar open-back headphones have a flat and elegant sound style. The quality is excellent but rather restrained, with a slightly warm but not strong taste. Driven by the H5, the Hifiman Ananda Nano delivers a relaxed sound. It sounds smooth and natural, with no artificial embellishment, as if the sound was always meant to be this way.
Immersive Listening Experience
How can I put it? The sound of the Shanling H5 is of the introverted and deep type. It focuses on sincerity and avoids showing off. It has a strong sense of story and atmosphere, and it can easily immerse you in the emotions that the song wants to express. You won’t be deliberately focusing on things like treble, soundstage, or details. To put it bluntly, this is a device that can let you quiet down and listen to music properly. In my opinion, this is the true return to the essence, and it is the most brilliant interpretation of Shanling’s sound style.
Additional Features
The Shanling H5 also has many other features, such as the dual Type-C port design that allows for simultaneous data connection and charging, Bluetooth support for the LDAC codec, and the ability to connect directly to PS5, Switch, etc. after enabling Switch Mode. If your budget is around 2K and you have certain requirements for both sound and functionality, I believe the Shanling H5 portable decoding headphone amplifier is definitely a good choice that you can confidently go for.