HiBy R1 Black - Hi-Res Player

Light as a flash drive (70 g) and smaller than a credit card (83.5 × 51.1 × 12.3 mm), this player packs a Cirrus Logic CS43131 DAC capable of 32-bit/384 kHz PCM and DSD256 decoding, Bluetooth 5.1 LDAC and Wi-Fi for lossless streaming; all managed by HiBy OS on a 3″ IPS touchscreen.

Touch screen and HiBy OS system

The 800 × 480 pixel interface responds smoothly to the touch and allows toggling between Pure Music, USB-DAC or DLNA/AirPlay mode, as well as customising the ringer via MSEB}.

Dual Hi-Res certified

Features Hi-Res Audio and Hi-Res Audio Wireless seals, uncompressed playback support and LDAC streaming up to 990 kbps.

Power for IEMs and laptops

3.5 mm output delivers up to 101 mW @ 32 Ω (1.8 Vpp-p) with THD+N 0.001 %, enough to drive most dynamic headphones and some lightweight planars.}

Battery and storage

Its 1150 mAh cell yields 15 h playback and goes to 400 h standby; the microSD slot accepts cards up to 2 TB, ideal for uncompressed libraries.

Versatile connectivity

• USB-C 2.0 OTG and DAC mode up to native DSD256.
• 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi for Tidal, Qobuz and OTA updates.
• Two-way Bluetooth with SBC, AAC, aptX (TX), LDAC.

Comparison

In the sub-100 € range the HiBy R1 stands out for its balance. It offers 101 mW, compared to the 1 mW of the Sony NW-A306 and beats the 75 mW of the FiiO M3 Pro without sacrificing battery life or weight. It does not have a balanced output like the HiBy R3 II (380 mW), but in exchange it reduces the volume by 40% and the bill by almost half. If you prioritise portability, moderate power and full wireless functions, the HiBy R1 is today's reference in terms of price/performance ratio among compact Hi-Res players.