Hiby R3 Pro Review

Sound

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Right off the bat, I can easily say that R3 Pro sounds better to the original R3. It has better speed, dynamics, separation and sound-stage. The sound is cleaner and crisper, the instruments have better dynamism, and the bass has better control and texture. Let’s get into more detail and see how the R3 Pro outperforms the R3.

Bass

The standard R3 model has a bit less bass quantity together with a more neutral mid-bass section. The R3 Pro gives a warmer bass with better definition in mid-bass in particular. However it has better control in there with more authority and layering. When you switch to the R3, the bass feels somewhat bloated and uncontrolled.

So I think this is one of the highlights of the Pro model in terms of sound quality. A better controlled and textured bass basically means a better overall sound simply because your bass is in shape and does not interfere with other frequencies. Other than that, the slam and kick is very satisfying with the Pro, so your bass heavy music are checked. Even with classic genres like Jazz, Rock and Classical, the bass quality of the Pro can still be heard over the standard model.

Mid

I found the mid presentation to be close between the two, but the Pro obviously has separation and transparency advantages over the standard model. Vocals sound cleaner with more air and the instruments have a bit more natural tonality.

HiBy R3 Pro

The R3 Pro basically gives cleaner mids with more detail and space. When you switch to the R3, the mids sound a bit congested and they’re like squeezed into a smaller room. The Pro has a spacious mid reproduction when compared. I also think that the Pro gives slightly more body and fullness in its timbre, which to me is very nice to hear. Other than those points, their mid presentation is quite close as I mentioned.

Of course, the mids sound close to the stage and it’s not the best positioning or the best depth when you compare them to high-end DAPs. But for 199 $, I think the Pro does a very good job in terms of tonality and presentation of mids.

Treble

The treble again is similar presentation-wise, but different in technicalities. The R3 Pro controls the peaks and sibilance very well, whilst the R3 is more edgy and unforgiving. The R3 Pro, like in the bass section, simply has better control and dynamics in treble. Highs flow much better with the Pro, especially with electrostatic hybrids like Kinera Nanna and Fearless Roland.

You also have better treble extension and better micro details with the Pro. Just like the mids, there’s more space and air in this section. Maybe this is not that important for popular music, but if you listen to modern Jazz recording for instance, you will hear the difference. The Pro has the edge without a doubt to me.

HiBy R3 Pro

Technical Performance

The advantages of the R3 Pro from a technical standpoint are transparency, separation, treble extension, bass texture & control, and lastly the staging performance. The stage has more depth in it and it is very apparent after listening to a few tracks. The width is not that different, but the positioning and separation is. Especially the spaciousness in mids is much better as I touched upon above.

Micro detail performance and noise floor is also superior with the R3 Pro. That means that it has a better background performance, which automatically makes the imaging performance better. I also found the transparency part better as well with good overall tonal accuracy. So there’s not much to think about here, the R3 Pro proves itself as a successful replacement over the standard version. It’s good to see the obvious improvement with the R3 Pro and the difference was already quite apparent with my first listening session.

The review continues on Page Four, after the click HERE or by using the jump below.