It’s that point of 12 months once more when our ideas flip to presents for family members. The brand new iFi hip-dac 3 moveable USB DAC/headphone amplifier strikes me as a superb concept for anybody who enjoys listening to high-quality audio on the transfer.
The hip-dac 3 is a battery-powered gadget that may play hi-res audio recordsdata streamed from a smartphone, laptop or pill. The hip-dac 3 has a particular look and resembles a basic hip flask for carrying whisky. The hip-dac was launched in 2019 and refreshed in 2021. Now, the maker has introduced a 3rd iteration of the hip-dac that includes a heat, refined gray end that adjustments its look underneath completely different lights.
The brand new hip-dac 3 has two USB-C ports: one for audio enter and the opposite for charging its built-in battery. And now that Apple has dropped the proprietary Lightning connector on the brand new iPhone 15, this USB DAC/headphone amplifier can adequately be described as a common to be used throughout all new smartphones, tablets and laptops.
An extra change on the hip-dac 3’s underbelly activates one thing known as IEMatch. This expertise is a proprietary circuit that optimizes the amplifier’s output to match the sensitivity of any hooked up headphones or earphones.
When used with hard-to-drive IEMs, switching on IEMatch reduces background hiss whereas boosting particulars and the dynamic vary of the music. Different adjustments to the hip-dac 3 embrace new metallic movie capacitors and additional refinements that enhance frequency response. The DAC part options upgraded GMT (International Grasp Timing) circuitry, together with a brand new crystal oscillator for decreasing part noise and providing a crisper sound.
Aside from these adjustments, the hip-dac 3 is just like the hip-dac 2. The DAC part makes use of a Burr-Brown chipset with True Native structure. The design permits DSD and PCM audio recordsdata to make use of separate pathways to stay ‘bit-perfect’ of their native format by means of the analog stage.
The customized circuitry within the hip-dac 3 reproduces high-quality sound with most digital audio codecs. One essential element is the XMOS chip that processes audio knowledge from the digital inputs. The hip-dac 3 has a 16-core XMOS microcontroller, which optimizes sound high quality and squeezes the utmost efficiency from the Burr-Brown DAC.
The hip-dac 3 helps hi-res PCM and DXD audio knowledge at pattern charges as much as 384kHz, alongside DSD recordsdata starting from 2.8MHz to 12.4MHz (DSD64, 128 and 256). There’s additionally full decoding of MQA recordsdata as a substitute of the fundamental render of MQA. This makes the hip-dac 3 splendid for listening to MQA recordsdata on Tidal’s HiFi Plus tier.
On both facet of the hip-dac 3’s rotary quantity management, a pair of LEDs change colour to point out the kind of audio file being decoded. Firmware might be up to date in order that options like digital filtering are stored fully updated as digital expertise progresses.
The hip-dac 3’s analog amplification stage circuit is a real balanced (differential) design. iFi claims that is uncommon in a DAC/headphone amp at this worth. The amplifier reduces sign distortion. Excessive-quality parts all through the hip-dac 3 embrace a customized iFi OV op-amp, precision low-noise energy provide IC from Texas Devices, and a high-quality analog quantity potentiometer.
The amp stage of the hip-dac 3 delivers as much as 400mW into 32Ω, guaranteeing compatibility with a variety of headphones and earphones. Even high-impedance headphones can be utilized due to an output voltage of 6.3V into 600Ω.
The amp stage of the hip-dac 3 has a switchable acquire function known as PowerMatch. This matches the extent wanted to drive the headphones by adjusting enter sensitivity and sign energy. With high-sensitivity IEMs, PowerMatch at its decrease setting ensures a silent and hiss-free background.
XBass is one other user-selectable function provided with the hip-dac 3. This refined type of ‘bass enhance’ enhances the low frequencies with out muddying the midrange. XBass is especially helpful when driving open-back headphones which may be a bit gentle on bass. XBass operates fully within the analog area as a substitute of processing the digital sign through DSP. It may be switched in or out of the sign path.
The hip-dac 3’s USB-C audio enter can deal with audio knowledge as much as 32-bit/384kHz and is asynchronous, which means the info price is regulated purely by the hip-dac 3’s specialised audio clock circuitry for correct and jitter-free knowledge switch from the supply gadget. By offering a separate USB-C port for charging the hip-dac 3, there’s a devoted audio enter for the purest sign path and you need to use the hip-dac 3 whereas related to a mains energy provide.
There are two headphone outputs on the hip-dac 3: a 3.5mm socket for headphones with a single-ended cable/connector and a 4.4mm Pantaconn balanced output for headphones outfitted with balanced connectivity to take full benefit of the hip-dac 3’s differential amp design. As well as, the three.5mm output advantages from iFi’s proprietary S-Balanced circuitry, slicing crosstalk and distortion in half when used with common, single-ended headphone connections.
The hip-dac 3’s 2200mAh battery lasts for round 7-12 hours between costs, relying on the amount degree and the way power-hungry the related headphones are. The gadget is bundled with a USB-C OTG (On-The-Go) cable, a USB-A to USB-C cable, and a USB-C to Lightning cable for iOS units outfitted with Apple’s proprietary connector.
Pricing & Availability: The iFi hip-dac 3 is obtainable from chosen retailers from sixth October 2023 and prices £199.
Extra data: ifi-audio.com
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