Cowon Plenue R2 Review

In this review we’ll be giving Headfonia readers our impressions on the new Plenue R2 Digital Audio Player from South Korean manufacturer Cowon. The R2 is the latest revision to their mid-range ‘R’ series, as is currently available for $549. We’ve reviewed several of Cowon’s products at Headfonia in the past, which you can check-out here. 

🔊 Listen to this

Note: the Plenue R2 was sent to us directly from Cowon in exchange for out honest thoughts, impressions, and opinions. We appreciate the opportunity!

DAPs, and me.  

Let’s get this out of the way up-front: I’ve been avoiding digital audio players (a.k.a ‘DAPs’) for a very long time. I’m a dyed-in-the-wool audiophile of both desktop and on-the-go inclinations, but the notion of adding yet another box (and yet another screen) to my life simply didn’t stack-up in either the value or lifestyle equations. Now, I know that many Headfonia readers are avid DAP fans and come here for advice and impressions on them, so please, hear me out. 

Ok, so you need three things to make music “go” on the go: a source; an interface; and something to amplify your headphones. For me, a smartphone checks those first two boxes perfectly, and the third box…adequately. Hence, I’ve been more of a ‘stacker’ – choosing to hook-up the Chord Mojo to my smartphone for when out-and-out sound quality is required on-the-go. More recently, I’ve been using the Earstudio ES100 for a less ‘clunky’ arrangement, favouring the convenience of having slightly fewer wires. My main concern with opting for a DAP was being tied to a buggy, outdated user-interface and connectivity suite when I tend to update my phone every couple of years, on the other hand. 

The last “DAP” I bought (c. 2003 iPod Photo) alongside the Cowon Plenue R2.

But, smartphones are, by definition, phones. There are all kinds of digital interruptions that tend to prevent you from simply zoning-out and enjoying an entire album end-to-end. And for that very reason, I still use my ancient iPod Photo from time-to-time. This vintage iPod was well-regarded for its Wolfson DAC chip, and I’ve subsequently given it a new lease on life by ripping-out the physical 60gb hard-drive and replacing it with a 400gb microSD card. It’s amazing how much of a pleasure they are to use all these years later, with that intuitive click-wheel interface, and basic, but eminently usable screen interface. 

Introducing the Plenue R2

Ok, so back to 2020. Cowon got in touch with us to let us know that they were releasing their new Plenue R2, sitting firmly in the ‘value’ end of their very comprehensive DAP portfolio at $549 USD (at time of writing). Despite wifi being an Australian innovation (represent!), it piqued my interest that the Plenue R2 eschewed internet connectivity, streaming apps and an Android-based architecture. As someone with a digital library of around half a terabyte of lossless audio, the R2 seemed to me to represent a promising purist player + source proposition, and so with an open mind (and clean ears), I set-about finding-out whether Cowon’s new Plenue R2 is a worthy DAP entry-point for Headfonia readers, and perhaps even for the DAP veterans among you.

Cowon Plenue R2.

Head over to page 2 to read about the Plenue R2’s build, design, and UI.