audio-sound @ hatena

An audio review & news blog. The volume should not exceed 80 dB is recommended. I usually adhere to the safe-listening style by WHO. Please note that my aural impressions and interpretations of measurements are also made from a safe-listening style.

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Portable Headphone Amp

Luxury & Precision Launches "W4" & "W4-Ex" Flagship Portable USB DAC/AMPs

Luxury & Precision is a premium HiFi audio brand from China. They design, develop, and market top-quality audio products primarily known for their P6 Pro digital audio player and W2 Portable USB DAC/AMP. Today, Luxury & Precision has come …

AUDIRECT BEAM4: High-End Portable HiFi Decoding and Headphone Amplifier

The AUDIRECT BEAM4 is a portable digital decoding headphone amplifier that supports DSD up to 512 and PCM up to 32-BIT/768kHz. It features both single-ended and balanced headphone output ports, three levels of adjustable gain, and a batter…

iBasso DC04 Pro: Brand New USB DAC/AMP With Dual CS43131 DAC and Dual Headphone Output

iBasso has released an upgrade to its classic DC04 Portable USB DAC/AMP, presenting the all-new DC04 Pro. The OG DC04 came out back in 2021, it grabbed a lot of positive feedback from users worldwide, the only problem that people raised ba…

FiiO KA5: Dual DACs Portable Headphone AMP

The FIIO KA5 is a portable and powerful headphone amplifier with 3.5mm singled-end and 4.4mm balanced headphone ports, as well as flagship dual DACs and high-res decoding capabilities. It has customizable OLED screen and multifunction key,…

HiBy FC6: Brand New Portable USB DAC With R-2R Darwin Architecture

HiBy is among the most active brands from the HiFi audio industry in Shenzhen China. They probably have one of the largest if not the largest collection of HiFi audio gear including portable USB DAC/AMPs, Digital Audio Players, and in-ear …

(Portable Headphone Amp Review) Hidizs XO: Fun LED light effects, solid choice in price range.

The Hidizs XO is a fun portable headphone amp with colorful LEDs that can drive both IEMs and headphones well and works well with HiBy Music, making it a good candidate for those seeking an all-in-one dongle amp in this price range.

HiBy FC3: HiFi ES9281pro DAC chip MQA Headphone Amplifier

HiBy has released its latest portable headphone amplifier, the HiBy FC3.

Shanling H7: High-End AK4499EX + AK4191EQ DAC chips Portable Amplifier

The Shanling H7 portable headphone amplifier with flagship-class top-quality DAC is now available.

Audirect ATOM3: ESS9280 AC PRO Chip Portable Decoder Amplifier

The ATOM series of compact DAC amplifiers has a new face: the Audirect ATOM3.

TANCHJIM SPACE: Dual CS43131 Decoding Chips Portable Headphone Amp

The latest portable headphone amplifier, TANCHJIM SPACE, has been released.

Meet The All-New Audirect Atom 3: Latest Portable USB DAC/AMP With Premium ESS Sabre DAC Chipset

Audirect has released a brand new Portable USB DAC/AMP, presenting the all-new Audirect Atom 3. As a successor to the Atom 2, the Atom 3 here is a tiny package with massive sound characteristics. With top-quality features such as a premium…

Tanchjim Space: Brand New Portable USB DAC/AMP With Dual CS43131 DAC Chips

Tanchjim, a brand commonly known for IEMs has debuted in the portable DAC/AMP market with the release of the all-new Tanchjim Space. “Space” is the brand’s first-ever take on the DAC/AMP market. It is designed with premium audio circuitry …

Shanling Introduces UA1s: Brand New Portable USB DAC/AMP With ES9219C DAC Chip & Interchangeable Connector Cable

Shanling has released an update to its collection of portable handy USB DAC/AMPs. The series that compromises of several successful models including UA1 Pro, UA2, UA3, UA5, etc, has got a brand new upgraded entry-level model, presenting th…

Let's Update FiiO BTR7 To Latest Firmware V1.85: Adds New Features and Functions With Minor Bug Fixes

FiiO has released a brand new firmware update for its BTR7 Bluetooth and USB DAC/AMP. BTR7 is a highly-acclaimed flagship Bluetooth DAC/AMP that features Dual ES9219C DAC chips, Qualcomm’s Latest QCC5124 Bluetooth chipset, and Dual THX AAA…

Presenting the JCALLY AP10: Lightweight, Compact, Powerful Portable DAC/AMP With Dual CS43131 DAC Chips

JCALLY has come up with a brand new Portable USB DAC/AMP with high-performance audio circuitry at a pocket-friendly price, meet the all-new JCALLY AP10. It houses a high-performance dual-DAC chipset from Cirrus Logics with two CS43131 DAC …

Shanling UP4 2022: Full format balanced Dual ES9219C DAC Bluetooth 5.0 decoded Headphone Amplifier

The popular Shanling UP4 portable headphone amplifier is now available in a 2022 model.

MUSE HiFi M3: ES9038Q2M-Based Premium Portable USB Type-C DAC/AMP

Muse HiFi is a fairly new name in the industry. The brand debuted internationally with “Power” Planar Magnetic driver IEMs, and they also entered the world of portable DAC/AMPs with the release of Muse HiFi M1 and M1 Smart portable DAC/AMP…

DUNU DTC500: Brand New Portable USB DAC/AMP With ESS Sabre DAC Chipset

In 2022, DUNU doesn't require any introduction. The brand is mainly associated with several successful sets of in-ear monitors like DUNU Zen Pro, SA6, and more. Keeping up with the market trends, DUNU has also entered into the world of por…

Topping Releases G5 All-New Portable DAC/AMP with Premium Sabre DAC and HD Bluetooth Input

Topping has just released a brand new portable USB and Bluetooth DAC/AMP, the latest Topping G5. It’s a highly versatile device that serves as a premium Hi-Res audio source with its high-performance DAC chipset, powerful NFCA-based amplifi…

Dethonray Pegasus SG1: Latest Portable Bluetooth DAC/AMP With High-Res Transmission

Dethonray is a famous brand behind the successful DTR1, DTR1+ audio players, and Honey H1 Portable DAC/AMP. They have just dropped their latest portable Bluetooth Amplifier, the Dethonray Pegasus SG1. Alike other products from Dethonray, t…

Quloos QLS MC01/MC01SE: Latest Flagship-Grade Portable DAC/AMPs

Portable Audio scenes can easily get sorted with your favorite pair of IEMs and a Portable USB DAC/AMP with your smartphones. These little devices are slowly replacing digital audio players for many portable users. Brands are regularly bri…

(News) Moondrop Dawn Gets An All-New 3.5mm Single-Ended Variant

Following the success of the recently launched Moondrop DAWN 4.4mm Portable USB DAC/AMP, Moondrop has now revealed a single-ended variant for the DAWN, Let’s meet the all-new Moondrop DAWN 3.5mm Single-Ended Portable USB DAC/AMP. They have…

(News) MUSE HiFi M1: Type-C To 3.5mm Portable Audio Dac Adapter

MUSE HiFi has released the MUSE HiFi M1, a compact audio adapter with built-in DAC.

(News) Five Upgrades With The Brand-New FiiO Q3 MQA: Q3 MQA Vs OG Q3!!

Back in 2020, FiiO released the Q3 Portable USB DAC/AMP. At that time, The Q3 was one of the only few portable DAC/AMPs in the market to feature powerful THX AAA amplification. It brought excellent performance with a premium AKM DAC chip, …

(News) FiiO KA2: Compact Fully Balanced USB DAC/AMP

Earlier this year, FiiO entered into the world of HiFi Portable USB DAC/AMPs along with its sub-brand Jade Audio with the KA3 and KA1 USB DAC/AMPs. Yesterday at their online launch event, FiiO and Jade Audio introduced the latest KA2 Porta…

(News) Six Upgrades With FiiO BTR7 Compared To The BTR5: Brand New Bluetooth DAC/AMP

FiiO took the internet with its summer launch event yesterday where they announced several much-awaited products from their catalog along with a few surprises. The biggest awaited product for us from their catalog was the BTR7, the flagshi…

(News) FiiO BTR7 Dongle Amplifier with THX AAA!!!

The FiiO BTR7 dongle amplifier with THX AAA amplifiers has been announced and is now available for pre-order on HiFiGO. The price is $239.

(News) Moondrop Releases "DAWN" Brand New Fully Balanced Portable USB Type-C DAC/AMP

Following the success of the amazing Moonriver 2 USB DAC/AMP, Moondrop has come up with a brand new Portable USB DAC/AMP in the budget category, presenting you with the all-new Moondrop DAWN. Moondrop Dawn is a compact yet powerful portabl…

(News) iBasso Released DC06 Latest Portable USB DAC/AMP With Dual Sabre DAC Chips

iBasso has added a new Portable USB DAC/AMP to its famous “DC” series of USB DAC/AMPs, meet the all-new iBasso DC06. The “DC” series is famous for multiple successful products such as the DC02, DC05, etc. The latest iBasso DC06 comes equip…

(News) HiBy FC4: A Mighty Powerful Compact USB DAC/AMP With Dual DAC Configuration

The wait for the latest Portable USB DAC/AMP from HiBy is finally over, the HiBy FC4 is here. HiBy has been teasing the FC4 for the past few days, showcasing its various features like Dual DAC chipset, Hardware volume keys, Multi-colour RG…