― Love For Music & Technology ―
DAC/AMP devices are those that have both a DAC or a digital to analogue converter inside, but also an AMP, either for headphones and portables for a stereo AMP made for speakers. They are usually great for versatility, and have better price / performance ratio compared to getting standalone AMPs, DACs and other in between devices.
You can find my reviews on DAC/AMPs below, and also the best DAC/AMPs here: https://amzn.to/3JQcUM6
Views 42,198 Jade Audio / FiiO KA1 is a dongle DAC / AMP priced at 49 USD, with a type-C connector, Type-A adapter included in the package, RGB status indicator, and with an ES9281AC PRO DAC Chip. It will be compared to other entry-level Dongle DAC / AMPs in the …
Views 60,910 Tempotec Sonata HD II is a mini DAC/AMP Dongle priced at 29.9 USD, with a type-C USB Port, a 3.5mm Headphone Output, and 70mW of power into 32 OHMs, making it a good option for those who don’t have a 3.5mm headphone output for their smartphones, or who …
Views 23,664 Hiby FC5 is a DAC/AMP with MQA Decoding, priced at 159 USD, and has one balanced output in the form of 4.4mm, 125MW of power per channel at 32 OHMs, a LED data rate indicator, and a type-C USB port. It will be compared to other DAC/AMPs in …
Views 22,274 Paw 1 is a complex recording interface bundle with a price tag of 800 USD, and with multiple usage scenarios. It has an embedded memory of 64 GB, which should be enough for most people, and it also has a type-C interface, it can drive headphones, and the …
Views 27,880 We have an interesting guest today, in the Tone 2 PRO, from Khadas, priced at 250 USD, and with a 4.4mm balanced headphone output, and a Class A amplifier design. It will be compared to other DAC/AMPs, and the list includes Pro-Ject Head Box DS (400 USD), iFi …
Views 42,900 Priced at 49 USD, Rhodium is one of the smallest and discreet dongle DAC/AMPs made to date, with 32Bit / 384 kHz decoding abilities. It features a fairly low power output, of 31mW, so it will be suited for usage with IEMS and portable headphones. Introduction Periodic …
Views 24,663 Ikko designed a new DAC/AMP with a pocket-friendly price point of 59 USD, under the Zerda naming. It features a high-quality decoding chip or DAC, and a magnetic detachable cable with a proprietary interface. The main competitors, given the price point, will be iBasso DC05 (69 USD), Soundmagic …
Views 52,306 We’re having a look at Shanling UA1, a dongle USB DAC priced at 45 USD, making it one of the most affordable DAC/AMPs, so today’s mini review will focus on the sound of UA1, as within this price point there are far too few competitors capable of the …
Views 60,988 iBasso comes back to the entry-level to help music lovers enjoy their passion, DC05 being a 69 USD Dongle DAC/AMP with a Dual ES9219C DAC, and capable of decoding MQA up to 16X, and 140mW output power. I will also be comparing DC05 to Spectra X2 from Maktar (200 …
Views 62,201 HIDIZS DH80 is a Dac Amp priced at 139 USD, made as a cradle for their AP80 DAC, but which can work standalone as well. It has a good amount of output power, an ESS 9281C PRO DAC, and supports MQA as well. Given the design, I will …
Views 67,351 Coming straight out of the technologized South Korea, N25 is a flagship streamer with DAC functions, and priced at 1400 USD. For this price, it features a Streaming function, network player, Roon point, and MQA decoding, along with a DAC function, so you can connect it straight to …
Views 40,603 Maktar Spectra x2 is a DAC/AMP made for smartphones, and iPhones (the model we’re reviewing today), and it features a price tag of 200 USD, placing it above, or at least in line with iFi Hip-DAC2 (150 USD), Earmen Sparrow (200 USD), and Lotoo Paw S1 (170 USD), …
Views 59,003 Head Box DS is a DAC / Headphone Amplifier made by Pro-Ject in Austria, and priced at 400 USD at the moment of its release, and now being a pretty old-school device, as it was released around 2016, so about 5 years ago. I will be comparing it …
Views 60,788 iFi Audio hip-dac2 is the latest DAC/AMP from iFi, and it is priced at 190 USD, and comes with full Balanced output, MQA support, Hi-Res support. It will be compared to other high-quality DAC/AMPs in the price range, including Earmen TR-AMP (250 USD), JDs Labs Atom+ + JDS …
Views 62,088 SMSL DO200 is a high-end balanced DAC priced 490 USD at the moment of writing today’s full written review, and it comes with full balanced output, a high number of input interfaces, and the title of being the world’s only DAC with MQA support across all its input …
Views 41,918 You heard about Hilidac’s Audirect Beam, Whistle, and Atom PRO, now it is time for the second beam of enlightenment, Beam 2, with MQA and Hi-Res support, and priced at 100 USD, and which will be compared to FiiO BTR5 2021 (130 USD), iFi Hip DAC (150 USD), …
Views 61,899 Soundmagic A30 is a baguette-shaped DAC/AMP, just like NextDrive ones, and it is priced at 30 EUR / 50 USD. This would make it technically one of the most affordable DAC/AMP I reviewed to date, and I know very few DAC/AMPs at 50 USD to compare it to, …
Views 65,402 We’re reviewing the new iBasso DX240 today, a portable music player or Digital Audio Player (DAP), priced at 950 USD, and a iBasso is back on top, and wants to make sure that you can use the AMP modules ecosystem from their DX220, so the new one is …
Views 58,463 I liked the original SE180 with its SEM1 Module and the ESS Chip, but the company promised to make more DAC/AMPs for this flagship of a modular DAP, and with a single DAC/AMp module costing 350 USD, and including both a new DAC and a new amplifier circuit, …
Views 27,221 We sometimes work on reviewing something that’s so tiny it gets lost in the queue, and this is the case with the 50 USD H2 Bluetooth Amplifier / Receiver from HIDIZS. This one doesn’t really have any comparisons I can make given its price, and the closest Bluetooth …
Views 63,177 We sometimes have a really basic DAC/AMP that proves to be really effective, and that’s the case with the 60 USD Hiby FD1 as well, a DAC/AMP, with Single Ended, and Balanced Headphone Outputs, a Type-C connector, and a full metallic body. It will be compared to other …
Views 67,112 S.M.S.L AO200 is a full sized, full powered 50W Speaker Stereo Amplifier priced at 280 USD, and designed with many features like a USB input, Bluetooth input, RCA and XLR inputs, and runs in class D. Today we will compare it to other stereo amplifiers, like Burson Funk …
Views 40,537 UA2 is the kind of DAC/AMP that eats a lot of power, but gives you a lot back as well, and it is priced at 85 USD, so it will be compared to other similar DAC/AMPs like the Audirect Atom PRO (70 USD), and Tempotec E35 Sonata (80 …
Views 47,988 The title says it all, and we’re at the end of 2021, but the latest version of BTR5 has the 2021 monicker, support for MQA, and it is priced at 130 USD, which is a bit more than the 110 / 120 USD that the original costed at …
Views 35,997 JDS Labs Atom DAC+ is a DAC made by JDS Labs from the USA, and priced at 100 USD at the moment of writing this review. Given the affordable price point, it will be a unique item on Audiophile-Heaven, and most DACs I review in the price range …
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