Hello!Is there any who tested both X20Pro and UHD2000? Im curious about the sound quality.Im wonder is it worth to upgrade because the sound quailty improvements? The other thing is how stable the actual fw of UHD2000? X20 pro has far more fw repairs than UHD2000, so Im afraid still not as good like th old one. Please share real expreineces not just opinoins based on specs. Thanks.
My main experience so far with the UHD2000 is very positive: - Supports forced subs - Great picture and sound - Fast (super fast) gui - Great build quality -Looks more attractive than the x20 -etc. The only problem I see currently is the freezing issue when I am streaming Mkv files through wife. I have tried everything and it's still there so it's definitely the player. I am using the latest firmware...
FW is virtually identical on all RTD1296 platforms. So don't expect differences between X20 Pro and UHD2000. The main boards are even identical only the Audio Panel and PSU are different and potentially could even be swapped. FW versions just may be released at slightly different moments in time. Sound differences are very subjective, subtile and next above all highly depending on the total setup including the Amplifier + Speakers. To really compare them you need a (very) high end audio setup at least in the € 1000 - € 10.000 range (or even € 10.000 to € 100.000 range) just for Stereo. So my answer is simple if you have a setup in those price ranges then why not spending just a bit more money for the best player you can get? These are my practical experiences using a high end audio setup not having a X20 Pro neither a UHD2000 but using an External USB DAC (very close to the DAC build used within UHD2000) with my Z9S. https://www.futeko.com/newforum/index.php?topic=3868.0 Includes also experiences with various Music Player APP's supporting USB DAC's and SACD audio. Comments are more than welcome. Would I swap my own setup for an UHD2000 (or Zidoo X)? a) Probably, for ease of operation, this provided Zidoo Music Player becomes a true integral replacement for USB Audio Player Pro / HibyMusic used now. b) Yes, I would go immediately for it if a) is met and DSD Stereo and DSD MCH output via HDMI is facilitated too. I will now wait for Zidoo X to be launched first though for validation on that platform. c) Never, if SACD output in DSD does not work flawless with Zidoo Music Player as advertised. Simply not tested yet, but should be OK. @mirror The Zidoo X specifications include "DSD 512 and PCM 768KHz@32bit hardware decoding and passthrough". I don't know if "passthrough" is here meant for HDMI passthrough or mere Internal USB to XMOS passthrough?
Thank you guys! Meanwhile I stick with the X20 Pro, not worth the replacement to UHD2000 I think. The last 2.3.10 fw is the most stable and most useful fw since I bought my X20 Pro. HT and MP 5.0 both seems working well.
A friend of mine actually got himself the fancy UHD2000, so I am able to add some practical experiences here via him. Unfortunately we can't do this in a nice joint listening session with some spirits as corona is spreading here and we all have a kind of house arrest. - As a first observation a common nuisance shared by both UHD2000 and X20 PRO: NO idea which audio format is actually forwarded to the Audio Panel. Is it doing DSD or PCM for SACD DSD formats (ISO, DSF and DFF) and which sampling rates and bit-lengths are actually used as output? Music Player should show this on-screen (not even merely via Info) like USB Audio Player Pro does for example. This for both source format + output format of the actual track playing. I hate getting things in the blind and I am not the only one. - The second one is also shared by both UHD2000 and X20 PRO: It is far too clumsy to change output from HDMI to Analog using the Audio panel via Setup Settings. The active mode also should be visible via an icon on the main screen and in fact also the front panel display. This has been acknowledged by Zidoo and a more convenient handling is promised with a coming FW update. Using Zidoo Controller is the easiest at the moment. Also applies to choosing Digital Filters. - My friend tried USB Audio player Pro (UAPP) for me with UHD2000 but it did not find the internal USB port. UAPP only worked via an external USB port connected DAC integrated into his Amplifier. - HibyMusic in contrary for sure runs on UHD2000 as it should, which is good news. I got the rumor that HibyMusic player runs fine on Zidoo X too. This despite the fact that each is actually using a different DAC (but identical USB/XMOS interfaces). X20 Pro is not working with it as that player is not using USB but ISL as its interface. Using a Client/Server setup it can be controlled using a smartphone without a need to put on the TV. Unfortunately this is using BT (not WiFi) and isn't implemented exactly bug-free/stable. - Other APP's supporting USB DAC's plus DSD being Neutron Music Player and Onkyo HF Player have not been tested (yet). Hiby Music in fact is functionally a real alternative to USB Audio Player Pro with even wider native audio format support (DST DSD and DTS-CD included). The big real drawback is controlling the HibyMusic UI which will only work via touch/pointer-mouse field actions. The standard BT remote is absolutely useless with this APP. There is an option though to run HibyMusic just in Server mode on the Zidoo and HibyMusic in Client mode on a smartphone. That way the Storage and the Audio Playback (via USB DAC + AMP) of the media player is used controlling the UI integrally via the smartphone. The weak part of this setup is the use of Hiby tweaked BT for the communication. For sound quality testing we will need to wait for the corona virus to pass. We will do this when we can sit together at our leisure with various setups.
