ddHIFI TC35PRO Eye2 HIFI Dongle DAC AMP – Silver Data Opens Up The World
ddHIFI TC35PRO is a $75 USD dongle DAC AMP that employs a CS43131 DAC chip, with an ES9603Q AMP chip, designed to bring high-quality audio to your smartphone and portable setup. Today we will review the TC35PRO, how it sounds like, and briefly explore how it compares to the market.
Introduction
DD Hifi has always been at the top of the game for accessories, high quality dongles and portable DACs, and they are one of the most reliable producers of cables and headphone stands. Today they are available through all major Hifi sale channels, amazon, Aliexpress and they made their products easily accessible, having a clean track record and tight quality control for their products. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. A huge thanks to ddHIFI for providing us with the sample for this review.
PROs – Strong contrast and detail, high resolution for the price paid, intimate, warm, full and smooth sound, lush midrange, powerful and punchy bass, enough power for larger headphones, dynamic sound with a strong imaging. Battery drain is minimal and it is sturdy, well made.
Cons – Gets a bit warm during usage.
Product Link
You can grab one here – https://amzn.to/3WGG87q
Build Quality/Aesthetics
ddHIFI TC 35 PRO is a high quality dongle DAC with a simple design, having a Type-C port at one side, and the DAC/AMP/Headphone output block at the other end. The connection between the two is made using an entire ddHIFI TC07 silver data cable, and the type-c port is gold plated, while the headphone output is single ended, 3.5mm in size. The name Eye 2 comes from the fact that this is the 2nd generation of the DAC, and the way the volume is distributed will allow it to get loud quickly and require less than half of the headroom to get loud and punchy.
There is an LED light at the headphone amp block side of the cable, which lights up the sheathing of the cable, in a blue color for PCM, and green light for DSD data. There are options for both Type-C and lightning connectors available out there, and the maximum output power is 65mw + 65mw for an impedance of 32 OHMs. The dynamic range is 120 dB, while the SNR is 122 dB, with a THD lower than 0.0004%. Using the new CS43131 DAC, ddHIFI made the Eye2 decode signals up to 32 Bit / 384 kHz, with Native DSD decoding abilities up to DSD256.
The cable has a length of 100mm, and the whole unit is super light at 13 grams, with the unit feeling really sturdy and well made. The cable is not super flexible, but it isn’t too rigid either, offering a good balance between being well made and offering enough flexibility for pocketed smartphone usage.
In subjective usage, ddHIFI TC35PRO gets warm during usage, especially the DAC/AMP block, but it doesn’t seem to drain too much power from my Samsung S23 Ultra, not affecting the battery life much, compared to playing music via bluetooth or on the smartphone speakers. As I receive this question often, there is no USB DAC delay when using it with a smartphone, laptop or windows PC. The driving power is more than enough for IEMs, and even enough for some full-sized headphones, including Crosszone CZ-8a Enhanced, Crosszone CZ-10, Campfire Bonneville, Campfire Cascara, Swear He-Live5, ZiiGaat Cincotres, Soundz Blade V2 and Questyle NHB12. With IEMs, I can’t say I notice the noise floor or background hissing, while with headphones, I hear good control, impactful bass, and a contrasty, well separated sound.
Sound Quality
Overall Signature – The sound of the Eye2 is full, smooth, slightly midrange forward, clean and well defined. Instrument separation and imaging are top notch, although the soundstage is on the slightly intimate side. Voicing is natural and smooth, with TC35PRO having the effect of taking away the harshness and hard edge from most songs and instruments, leaving in a thick and pleasing signature that works well with all music styles.
Bass – When looking for the low end, you will find that it is the central element in the sound of TC35 PRO, as eye2 has one of the punchiest, best defined bass presentations out there. It is clearly tuned to sound heavy, lush and warm, although the effect is tastefully done, with a strong treble up to, keeping the contrast high and distortion low. In fact, the bass stays plenty controlled and clean even at maximum volume, with the headphones that need to be taken there, so the volume and driving power are there to be used, not just for show. I like how it produces the low-end in rap, pop, edm and even rock / metal / emo. You can expect a smooth bass note response, so very little grain.
Midrange – Sweet, lush and slightly forward are the ways I would describe the midrange of the Eye2, as it brings forward the lead voices in most songs, gives music contrast, and presents instruments within an intimate but clear space, with a strong imaging. Both male and female voices are natural, with both being presented naturally. Musical note response is smooth, with no grain, and a slightly soft impact, especially compared to the bass which has a much harder impact.
Treble – While most entry-level dongles usually fail at the treble part being either too bright and becoming shrill, or too smooth and losing detail / resolution, ddHIFI TC35PRO sounds rather well balanced, the treble has a smooth texture, clean body, but has excellent extension, up to 19 kHz, with an airy, but smooth and relaxed treble. The higher you climb in the frequency response, the more gentle and smoother the musical note gets, and the less impact is at that frequency. It is an interesting, musical tuning that works realy well for commercial music.
Volume Control – The sound gets more punchy, more dynamic and more contrasty, with a stronger detail, at higher levels but I was surprised to notice that there is no added distortion at maximum volume, and in fact the sound has the hinges impact, best detail and best definition at that volume. This indicates that the DAC is always running at maximum volume, and at lower volumes there is digital volume control iunvolved, which reduces the dynamic range / clarity / detail of music. There’s no problem with this approach, it offers the lowest THD and distortion possible, but it makes the sound gentle and soft at ultra low volumes.
Gaming Usage
There are a few key points that make the TC35PRO eye2 an excellent gaming dongle DAC AMP, and those include the smoother but wide and well separated tuning, which puts you right in the middle, allowing music and sound to happen all around you, both in the front and in the back. This offers strong placement for competitive games, and gives you a clear layout of the space around you.
The bassier tuning also gives you a satisfying explosion, and smoother, musical background music presentation, TC35PRO being one of the better dongle DACs to enjoy soundtracks and making background music thicker, warmer, smoother and fuller sounding. The fact it draws little power also makes it a great option for smartphone gaming, tablet gaming, and laptop gaming, plus it is compatible with all smartphones, windows PCs and laptops I paired it with.
Value and Conclusion
DD HIFI always provides strong price / performance ratio, and the new TC 35 PRO Eye 2 is the kind of DAC AMP that offers outstanding price / performance ratio, it has almost zero distortion even at maximum volume, but it comes with a natural, smooth and clean sound, plus excellent resolution and detail, being one of the better DAC/AMPs with a single ended output you can purchase at the moment.
At the end of the day, if you’re looking for a Type-C Dongle DAC AMP with excellent sonics, beautiful craftsmanship, and a basic but effective design, strong driving power and control, low distortion and high performance, ddHIFI TC35PRO eye2 is a top choice and should bring you happy musical moments every single day you’ll be using it.
Product Link
You can grab one here – https://amzn.to/3WGG87q
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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