Cowon D3 RMAA Tests

[dfkt]

The D3 measures basically the same as any other modern Cowon player, unsurprisingly. It has a slight bass roll-off with very low impedance phones, which should generally be inaudible. It has low output impedance (only a bit higher than the Clip+), so it works well with multi-armature IEMs (unlike the Sony A845 or Archos 32). Distortion levels and stereo crosstalk are all very fine on the D3. Dynamic range and noise levels are a bit weaker than on other Cowons, but that shouldn't matter much.

RMAA results:

Cowon D3 - Impedances
Cowon D3, C2, J3, V5 - 16 Ohm
Cowon D3, Sansa Clip+, Sony A845, Archos 32 - 16 Ohm
Cowon D3, Sansa Clip+, Sony A845, Archos 32 - 32 Ohm

[Marvin the Martian]

I've seen a couple of comments on various sites where users say the D3 sounds better to them than the other Cowons....do you think this is placebo? (perhaps due to the high cost of the player)

Does it sound the same to you as the J3 and C2?

[dfkt]

Of course it sounds exactly the same as any other Cowon (or any other non-broken player, for that matter). People claiming they hear a difference are talking complete nonsense, as usual.

I did a volume-matched AB test between the D3 and J3, with both dynamic driver (IE8) and multi-armature (SM3) IEMs, and there is not even the tiniest noticeable difference to be heard. Besides flat output I also tested various BBE settings on both players, and they also sound exactly the same.

I wish some people would stop being complete morons and stop spreading such lies about differences in sound quality where there are none. But people like to believe in fairy tales, it seems.

[musichound]

Originally Posted by Marvin the Martian

I've seen a couple of comments on various sites where users say the D3 sounds better to them than the other Cowons....do you think this is placebo? (perhaps due to the high cost of the player)

?

It's probably the same type of placebo crap that makes "audiophiles" believe a HiFiMan-801 sounds better than a Sansa Clip.

[dfkt]

The Hifiman does sound a tiny bit different than 'normal' players, because it has audibly rolled off treble. Also, the Sony A845 does sound different with multi-armature IEMs, since it has such high output impedance that it can't handle such IEMs properly. One could certainly say these players are kind of broken and don't behave like they should.

However, doing volume-matched AB tests between Cowons, AMS Sansas, and other players that perform as expected, you won't hear an audible difference.