R3 II
I’m not familiar with the original R3, but from what I’ve been reading, the new R3 II is both a tweak and an upgrade. The dual ESS SABRE ES9219C DAC chips of the original R3 remain, while the amp section has been boosted by at least 20%, with the new 4.4mm balanced port replacing the 2.5mm port on the original R3 and boasting a beefy output power of 380mW at 32Ω. All other specs, including the battery, dimensions, operating system, and connectivity, remain consistent with the original.
Here’s a breakdown of R3 II specs for reference:
- Operating system: HiByOS (Linux-based)
- CPU / logic SoC: X1000E
- DAC / audio SoC: Dual ES9219C
- Audio formats: DSD256 & PCM384kHz/32bit /MQA16X
- Display: 3.2″ touchscreen with 320×480 resolution
- Audio ports: 3.5mm PO, 4.4mm BAL, 3.5mm LO
- Digital audio ports: Coaxial digital (via Type-C port)
- USB ports: USB3.1 (up to 10Gbps)
- Wireless: 2.4GHz WiFi (Airplay, DLNA, HiByLink) / Bluetooth 5.1 (two-way) with UAT, LDAC, AptX, AAC, SBC
- Storage: No internal storage, Micro SD support up to 2TB
- Battery: 2000mAh/3.8V with >15h runtime
- Max power output: 112mW/380mW at 32Ω (unbalanced/balanced)
- THD: 0.0005%
- Dynamic range: >115dB
- SNR: 119dB
- Noise floor: 2.2uV/3uV (unbalanced/balanced)
- Channel separation: 74dB/103dB (unbalanced/balanced)
Packaging, accessories and design
HiBy markets R3 II as an entry-level player, and indeed only R2 II ($89) is cheaper in its lineup. As such, R3 II ships in a compact box with an attractive silkscreened cover, a no-fuss, no-frills presentation, but still very neat and practical.
The first thing you’ll see when opening the box is the player itself inside a foam cutout. HiBy has cleverly pre-applied screen protectors on the front and back, with protective film ready to peel off prior to first use. Along with the DAP you get a USB-C to A cable, a clear plastic protective case, and a basic user guide.
Measuring just 8.6cm x 6cm x 1.4cm and weighing 118g, R3 II is smaller than I imagined but has a reassuring solidity in hand. The aluminium and glass finish is smooth and attractive, and while I opted for the sleek black version, R3 II is also available in different colours for the more adventurous. The rounded edges and compact size make it easy to hold in one hand, or hide away in even the smallest pocket, and it doesn’t feel much larger than a dongle in many respects. Fit and finish, as is always the case with HiBy products, is excellent.
The buttons, ports and slots are all easy to access, sit flush and feel solid to the touch. You’ll find all the active buttons – play/pause, back and forward – on the right-hand side, beneath the new multi-function wheel, which serves as a power on-off switch, context switch, and volume knob. Despite being slightly loose, the wheel is a clever interface element and makes the player very easy to use, even though some of the UI elements rely on touch inputs rather than wheel prompts.
Both headphone output ports are on the bottom of the player, along with the USB-C port, with the covered Micro SD card slot the only feature on the left panel. Lastly, an LED strip on the top right, above the wheel, visually indicates plater status modes and music bitrate during playback.
Connectivity isn’t limited to the hardware ports, however, and I was quite impressed to find both WiFi and Bluetooth support included.
WiFi support allows for easy AirPlay and streaming service connectivity (both Tidal and Qobuz, minus offline downloads), and also allows for wireless file transfer to R3 II and HiBy Link control via a compatible player (HiBy Link is also accessible via Bluetooth). That said, the DLNA support advertised is a bit misleading; R3 II can function as a DLNA renderer (from a Plex NAS, for example), but can’t control a DLNA source, so if you want to play music off your NAS from R3 II, it’s a no-go.
Bluetooth support is more standard though, with all the usual codecs – including hi-res LDAC and UAT – available for both transmission (to wireless IEMs and headphones) and reception (from casting devices like phones and TVs). AptX is only available for transmission, though, and try as I may, I couldn’t get my phone to send music streams successfully via SBC or LDAC, despite having no issues pairing the two devices.
Lastly, I had issues with LDAC high-bitrate quality using Sony TWS IEMs and the original firmware (1.0), although the latest FW update (1.1) seems to have fixed that issue. Just be mindful that a tiny player like this is not going to have high-powered wireless functionality like a full-size device, limiting some Bluetooth functions and also limiting WiFi support to 2.4GHz networks, but just to have this functionality in a tiny portable player is a bonus.
Interface and UX
R3 II is built around the nifty HiBy OS UI, a simple, mostly icon-based system that makes navigation fairly quick and easy. The ‘home screen’ is split into six panels, one each for Music, Stream(ing), Wireless, Books, System and About. Each in turn drills down into further options, depending on the context.
The panels aren’t the only way to control the player. A gesture-based drop-down from the top of the screen gives you quick access to volume control, along with common toggles such as WiFi, Bluetooth, gain, AirPlay and playback controls. Enabling HiBy Link is also seamless, giving you full control over playback functions from your phone (or any other devices with HiBy Music installed).
HiBy also included its proprietary sound shaping software, MSEB, which is oddly accessible via a special settings menu that’s only enabled on certain screens. I generally prefer MSEB to EQ, especially the very basic EQ sliders that are also available on the R3 II, and it seems to function just as well here as it does on any of the higher-end HiBy players.
The one change I’d suggest to HiBy for future firmware revisions is to replace the totally pointless ‘Books’ panel with MSEB; I have no idea who thought support for ‘books’ or any text files was a good idea on such a tiny device and low-res screen.
Overall, I’d say the R3 II UX is acceptably intuitive but quite basic, and nowhere near as visually rich as a modern Android-based UI. It’s also not slow, but not quite as slick as more powerful players. My only gripes are the lack of a back button (or gesture) for one-click access to the home screen, and that some of the menu items are buried too deep, without an easy way to get back to them.
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