While it’s a bit late, a few people asked me what I thought were the best products of 2018. That’s a difficult choice, as I didn’t get to experience as many as I had wished, and some are still due to be reviewed. As well, I didn’t get to explore Bluetooth headphones as I had hoped, so they will be missing in this comparison. I went over everything where I’d posted a review in the last year, added items that are here for review, grouped them and selected the best of each. Here is the list. Best closed-back headphones $500-1000 […]
iFi Audio
6 posts
For some time I have been interested in iFi’s products, though never made it around to reviewing them. After some discussion with the company, they offered to send me a Pro iCan for review, as I was keen to find out how well it handled all the high-end headphones I have here. In stark contrast to my Studio Six, with its Braun-inspired minimalist intentions, the Pro iCan is loaded with knobs, switches and sockets. Also in great contrast, it is much smaller, its larger dimensions about enough to sit two Hugos on top. Part of that has to do with […]
INTRODUCTION My iFi iDSD has made up the centrepiece of my desktop set-up for the last 3 years. Since then I’ve tried numerous DACs and amps – but still the iDSD remains. More recently its coupled with an iUSB (for clean power input), a Gemini cable (to separate signal from power), an iTube (my my LSR 305’s), and it sits nicely on an iRack. Yep – I’ve become a bit of an iFi fan. Every part I’ve just mentioned is owned by me – no review samples. My review today is the iFi xDSD – a portable DAC/amp in one, […]
Around 4 years in the making, the iFi Pro iDSD is the third component in their Pro line series after the Pro iCan and Pro iESL. The Pro iDSD features a plethora of inputs, not only including the usual S/PDIF and USB, but also with both wired and wireless networking and a micro-SD card slot and the ability to act as a DLNA server. In addition to that, the S/PDIF features word clock support, allowing synchronisation with pro audio gear, or multiple Pro iDSDs to be chained together in a multi-channel environment. In the digital side of things, it features […]
As you get more into high-end in-ear monitors (IEMs) it is not unusual to encounter discussion online that you need amps or DAPs that have a low, or near zero output impedance, or people talking about how much noise they hear hiss or noise with certain IEMs. The iFi iEMatch (2.5mm version linked. 3.5mm version is also available) is designed to deal with that when your set-up is less than ideal for the IEMs you have bought. My example for this review will be Campfire Audio’s Andromedas, which have two of the most common problems that IEMs can have. Firstly, they […]
iFi have carved a name for themselves with affordable and powerful DACs and headphones amps, as well as noise-reducing USB and digital accessories. The new xDSD has been my first introduction into their digital guru, Thorsten Loesch. Opening up the box, I was surprised at just how small the xDSD is. Most of their DAC/amps have been somewhat larger and not only has the size changed, but the form factor as well. Unusually-shaped designs are not something I’m new to, but the wavy case of the xDSD has had people wondering how it would be possible to attach to a […]