Comparison.

In this test, I was using Jewel, MM, and IT07.  Each of these DAPs, besides a difference in tonality and pair up synergy, has their own Pros/Cons when it comes to features, all of which should be taken into consideration depending on your priorities if you need streaming or not, which balanced termination you prefer, how much output power do you need, your battery requirements, etc.

320Max vs 300Max – both have a very similar soundstage expansion but do vary in imaging which makes 320 sounds more 3D due to a more holographic placement of instruments and vocals.  The sound tuning is also slightly different.  Both have a deep textured extension of the bass, but mids are more colored in 300 which makes the sound warmers and a bit thicker.  In comparison, 320 mids are very transparent, no coloring, with a better precision of layering and separation of the sounds.  And this transparency doesn’t make it brighter or colder, but rather cleaner and more micro-detailed.  With this change in mids, both upper and lower, the treble has more airiness and better extension in 320 as well.  So, overall, 300 has more colored analog tonality while 320 has super clean and transparent micro-detailed sound.

320Max vs DX320 w/amp14 – 320Max soundstage is a little bit wider, but the bigger difference here is in imaging of mids where 320OG brings imaging closer to the center while 320Max expands the position of sounds.  320OG bass hits a little bit harder while 320Max bass sounds tighter and faster.  Mids have a little more coloring in OG vs more transparently and improved layering/separation in Max.  But the biggest and the most noticeable difference here is in treble where 320OG is brighter and more energetic while 320Max sounds more natural and “cleaner”.  320OG treble is not harsh or exaggerated like in M9, but it just more boosted in comparison to 320Max.

320Max vs Hiby RS8 – right away you will notice a difference in soundstage expansion where 320 is wider in comparison to RS8 which has a more intimate soundstage.  With tonality, again, a difference in mids is quite noticeable as well where RS8 has a little more coloring while 320 offers super transparency and more expanded dynamics.  Treble extension is very similar, and the bass tonality is not too far off, but technical performance does vary, with RS8 being a little more relaxed with a longer decay of lower end notes while 320 having a faster, tighter bass.

320Max vs Cayin N7 – these two have a very similar 3D soundstage expansion with holographic imaging. But when it comes to a tonality, you will hear a more analog smoother mids in N7 vs more transparent cleaner mids of 320.  As a result, I do hear more precision in layering and separation of the mids in 320, while it blends in more in N7.  Their treble is very similar, but bass varies where I hear it being more rounded and a bit slower with N7 vs being faster and tighter with 320.

320Max vs Shanling M9 – soundstage width between these two is very similar, but imaging varies due to V-shaped sound sig of M9 which brings mids/vocals closer to the center.  I never usually refer to DAPs as having a specific “sound sig”, but M9 is an exception because it boosts bass and treble in most of the IEMs I tested with it.  As a result, 320 offers a more balanced tuning with a faster tighter bass, more transparent clear detailed mids, and more natural extended treble, while M9 has a boosted bass which adds weight to low end of iems, more recessed mids, and more aggressive forward treble.

320Max vs Cayin N8ii – I spent more time than with any other DAP going back’n’forth in this comparison.  There are many similarities between these two DAPs, but I had to switch N8ii to P+ power mode, Class AB amp mode, and low gain to get to a similar level of tonality in order to match N8ii with 320.  Starting with bass, I do hear a little more rumble in N8ii but 320 sounds tighter and a bit faster.  Tubes do add more coloring to N8ii, so I also had to switch it to solid state, making N8ii a little bit brighter in mids.  Treble is where I probably hear more difference.  In high gain N8ii treble sounds brighter, the reason I had to switch it to low gain, while 320 sounded more natural, more neutral in comparison.  These differences are not that drastic, perhaps with treble being the most noticeable, and it will be up to a personal preference depending on pair up synergy of your preference.

320Max vs A&K SP3000 – another very close comparison, especially after I had to enable DAR in SP3k.  Both of these DAPs have a very similar holographic imaging, but 320 stretches the soundstage even wider.  Bass is close, though SP3k has just a bit more sub-bass rumble.  Both have a very clean and clear detailed natural mids, and the treble is not too far off either.  But all these similarities are common to comparison with IEMs.  Once you throw harder to drive headphones into the mix, 320 excels, especially in low end presentation since I find SP3k not to be as friendly with more demanding full-size headphones.

320Max vs Sony WM1ZM2 – the first and the most noticeable difference is in soundstage width.  Imaging is not too far off, but M2 soundstage is narrower in comparison to 320.  The overall tonality is warmer in M2 where you hear a slower bass with longer decay of notes, warmer fuller body mids/vocals, though treble has a similar presentation.  320 has a faster and tighter bass, more transparent, cleaner, detailed mids, and while having the same slightly laidback presentation of treble, the tonality actually a touch smoother with 320.

320Max vs Lotoo LPGT – another interesting comparison with two noticeable changes.  320 soundstage is wider, spreading more from the left to the right, while imaging is not too far off.  Their bass and treble are quite similar, though 320 still feels tighter and faster in low end.  Another noticeable difference is in mids where LPGT is more neutral and smoother while 320 is more transparent, cleaner, and has better layering and separation of the sounds.  And, with LPGT being audio playback only, 320 has “android” advantage.

Other Wired/Wireless connections.

In this section of the review, I will go over various wired and wireless connections I tested and verified with 320Max.

Streaming

Not much to say here since 320Max has a solid Wifi connection, as fast as my Galaxy S22 phone.  Using apps is a pleasure, again, no different than with my smartphone; it’s a smooth experience considering Snapdragon 660, Android 11, and 6GB of RAM for multitasking.  Just install Google Play Store and you are all set!  Tested with different hi-res streaming services, no compatibility issues, including running Tidal with a full MQA 16x unfolding (if anybody still cares about it).

Coax out

Tested with iFi micro iDSD BL.  I used the provided iBasso cable to get the connection going; worked without a problem.  As expected, I found the volume on 320Max to be fixed, output volume adjustable using micro iDSD.  The sound has a typical smooth natural tonality I’m used to with iFi micro iDSD BL dac/amp.

Digital audio usb-c out

Tested with Cayin RU7 and L&P W4 usb-dac dongles.  It works with 320Max without a problem, just connect usb-c cable and off you go.  As expected, analog volume control on the DAP has no influence on a digital usb-c output so you will have to control the volume from the dongle.  The sound was no different than connecting it to my smartphone or other android DAPs.  If you are using older iBasso usb-dac dongles without a volume control, don’t forget to install the volume limiting app so you can control the output.

Line Out

I tested LO of 320Max using Cayin C9 amp, and to be sure I’m not saturating the input of C9, I switch 320Max to Gain#1 setting.  Actually, as you go up in gain setting by turning the knob, you can hear the volume of amp output going up as well.  Also, you have to be sure you select LO from the 320Max settings.  In terms of the sound quality, the sound was very clean and detailed.  One thing I did notice, with a number of other DAPs connected to C9 as I switch from its solid to dual NuTube timbre, sometimes the difference in sound is more subtle.  Here, it was very noticeable with a cleaner more transparent sound using solid state amp (C9) vs NuTube (C9).  But even in solid state output, it wasn’t as transparent as 320Max own internal Class A amp.

USB DAC

USB DAC mode needs to be activated in Advanced setting of Mango app.  When activated, you have option to change the digital filters.  Win10 recognized it right away, no drivers were necessary.  When playing the same song from my laptop+320Max vs directly from 320Max, I found the sound to be not exactly the same.  It was slightly warmer playing with laptop connected to 320Max, something I have found in the past with other Max daps, but here the soundstage was also narrower using 320Max as a usb DAC.  Playing the same song standalone from 320Max, it sounded wider and more holographic.  During the playback, volume can be adjusted from both 320Max and laptop.  Also, when enabled, you have the option to enable/disable charging mode, so you don’t have to drain your source battery charging 320Max during the connection.  This is convenient when using smartphone as a source to prevent 320Max draining its battery.

Wireless Bluetooth Rx DAC

This (Bluetooth DAC) mode gets activated from Mango app in Advanced setting, and the pair up connection was fast and effortless with my Galaxy S22.  Volume could be either adjusted from S22 or 320Max.  Also, I was able to confirm a close to 60ft open range operation.  But to my surprise, no option to enable LDAC was available.

Wireless Bluetooth Tx

Tested it with Hiby WH2 tws.  I found the pair up with these tws earphones to be fast and effortless, was able to select LDAC codec in Bluetooth setting of 320Max, and it worked about 28ft across the open area, allowing full remote control of playback with WH2.  I was a bit nervous how the volume control will be handled here since BT goes through a digital volume.  To my big surprise, once I opened Audio setting screen after BT pair up, it had a separate volume control for Bluetooth Audio.  By default, it is set to 50, so if your BT headset sounds too loud or quiet, make sure to adjust the volume in Audio settings.

Conclusion.

I always draw a line between portable and transportable.  In my personal hectic life, both at home and at work, I don’t get a chance to stop and smell the roses, thus a portability of pocket friendly DAPs and IEMs is very important to me because I’m often on the go.  DX320Max Ti was the first transportable DAP where I made the exception because of how clean and effortless it sounds with anything I paired it up with, including most of the IEMs I have access to.  And as many are aware, IEMs don’t need a powerful source to drive them to their full potential, but a high-quality source can transform and elevate it to a whole new level.  And that is exactly what happened once I started listening to 320Max.

Not too long ago I had a chance to audition Brise Audio Tsuranagi amp and was impressed by the transparency and the dynamics of Japanese tuning.  But Tsuranagi requires a proper source LO and matched IC cable to get the best out of it.  That made me appreciate 320Max even more considering the similarities in the sound performance between these two while having everything packed inside of one transportable eye-candy Ti chassis with a classic analog volume pot and a hardware rotary gain switch.  Then, add to this a clean, detailed, natural, transparent tuning with a dynamic sound and 3D holographic soundstage and imaging, and top it off with a fast Android performance, and you will forget that you are dealing with a transportable DAP.

I’m glad to see iBasso continuing with Max series DAP development, surprising us with more Maximized finetuned releases in addition to their other portable modular audio players, such as a compact DX240 or a flagship DX320.  But if you don’t mind transportable footprint, in my humble opinion DX320Max Ti is one of the top DAP choices currently available for serious audiophiles.