Shanling M3 Plus promises Hi-Fi sound thanks to quad DAC and 800mW at mid-range price
The Shanling M3 Plus is the new flagship model in the M3 series. Therefore, this new device is supposed to offer even better audio quality compared to the M3X and M3 Ultra. In order to do so, Shanling has equipped the M3 Plus with no fewer than four Cirrus Logic CS43198 DAC chips, which can process music at up to 32 bit, 768kHz and DSD512. Additionally, there are two SGM8262 headphone amplifiers.
These have a remarkable output of 800mW when headphones are connected via the balanced 4.4 mm port, or 200mW when connected via 3.5mm. Shanling further advertises a channel separation of 110dB, a total harmonic distortion of 0.0007% and a signal-to-noise ratio of 130dB. Besides wired headphones, the music player also supports Bluetooth headphones and earbuds. It supports the high-quality Sony LDAC and Qualcomm aptX HD codecs, but lacks aptX Lossless.
The Shanling M3 Plus has an aluminum chassis that measures 0.7 inches in thickness and weighs around 7.2 oz. On the front, there's a 4.7-inch IPS panel with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. It’s powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 665, which is a rather common processor in music players and is paired with 4GB RAM and 64GB of flash storage, which can be expanded via microSD. The 3,500mAh battery supposedly offers 11 hours of music playback on a full charge. Meanwhile, the USB-C port can be used for charging and allows the M3 Plus to act as a USB DAC for computers and laptops.
Price and availability
The Shanling M3 Plus Hi-Fi music player can be preordered at Linsoul for $469 excluding shipping and potential import duties. First deliveries are expected to arrive in early May. One of the most notable competitors to this new Shanling music player is the FiiO M23, which can be found on Amazon.
