דונגל Shanling UP5 BT Amp/DAC

The UP5 has clean sounding outputs. Throughout my testing I did not observe any hissing or humming. This is the case whether it is paired with IEMs or full-size headphones.

The UP5 has a pleasant sound signature. It is not overly colored and takes a step in the lean direction. This is made clear when comparing it with my Radsone ES100. The ES100 is more impactful in the bass region without sounding much warmer.

While I don’t travel much in the current state of the world, I do enjoy getting away from the house and bringing my music with me. The UP5 makes a good companion for this.

Shanling is very attentive when responding to firmware and software problems. This is good because the hardware seems solid. It would be nice to see the UP5 get firmware updates via the app. In a world where not everyone has a Windows PC, I think this would go a long way.

Last Words

I think Shanling did a good job with the UP5. There is an audible improvement over the previous generation, and this device came with better battery life, a newer chipset, a newer DAC, and a couple of new features. It also has better SNR, practically inexistent noise floor, and a better amplification stage. However, Shanling increased the price by around $80 USD over the last generation. The Bluetooth market is a tough one and we’ll together see how the Shanling will keep up with the increasing number of rivals. The UP5 offers solid build quality and the app support is great to have. The UP5 has many usage cases and performs well both wirelessly and wired. The new Qualcomm premium chipset in UP5 offers stable signal performance and pairs fast and easy. I definitely recommend you to try UP5, if you are in the market for a multi-purpose DAC & AMP that features 4.4mm balanced output and solid wireless sound.