I bought the ifi audio micro idsd bl a while back to leave at my fiances place and still have a reasonably powerful, flexible, goodsounding option to listen there. My ifi idsd has made up the centrepiece of my desktop setup for the last 3 years. Kudos to ifi for bringing this to the market and such a bargain price. Ended up using the ifi driver in jriver and to play 4xdsd i had to set driver to 100ms with my music server. Since then ive tried numerous dacs and amps but still the idsd remains. Perhaps this is how we might best think of ifis latest portable dacheadphone amplifier. The newest flagship product in ifis micro series, the idsd black label is a portable dac and headphone amplifier capable of playing mp3, pcm, dsd, dxd files. May 28, 2018 the ifi micro idsd black label is surely expensive.
The newest flagship product in ifi s micro series, the idsd black label is a portable dac and headphone amplifier capable of playing mp3, pcm, dsd, dxd files. The sound is light in a positive sense and precise, but the imaging much more compressed, the pronunciation of the instruments is quite good, but not so overwhelmingly, as is the soundstage in that combination. Asio driver results windows installation audirvana. For its asking price and multiples thereof, the ifi idsd makes a nobrainer recommendation for use as a pcm, dxd, and dsd dac. The upgrades include stronger power output, improved power supply, audiophile thin film resistor and polymer capacitors, a new iematch feature, mqa support and a new volume knob design. On windows, one needs to install ifis driver for windows for the. Aug 17, 2015 the ifi micro idsd is a phenomenal piece of gear, incorporating stateoftheart digital design in a beautifully well thought out package.
As a happy owner of ifis portable micro idsd dacamp, i was drawn to the booth to see what was new. May 15, 2014 ifi nailed it id say ifi nailed this one. As a result, the pro idsd is not optimised as a headphone amplifier, yet it will still drive most headphones well. This is a nice natural tone with very little digitization in its timbre. But until then, micro idsd will have a solid place at the top of my usb dacamp food chain because no other product ive tested in this category comes close to its performance and sound quality. Dec 12, 2017 the ifi micro idsd black label does not perform as spectacular with the phone as it does in my regular chain. However, i was particularly interested in the new micro idac2 being showcased for the first time. List of android compatible device and list of android noncompatible device 1. Jun 14, 2016 as a happy owner of ifis portable micro idsd dacamp, i was drawn to the booth to see what was new. Review by clive meakins for some the ifi audio micro iusb3. With the nano or micro idsd or retro stereo 50, with foobar2k, one must. The idsd offers what i hear as a more fulsome, dimensional, and all around more engaging sound as compared to many of the likecompetitors on the market. Oct 25, 2014 i had similar issues with jplay and the ifi idsd dac. It seems that ifi idsd bl micro also comes with its feet attached via factory.
In doing so i wound up comparing it to a whole bunch of other similar dacamps, dongledacs and daps but ill limit my comments here to those focused on the micro idsd bl. This little bad boy can drive these headphones without. Amrs founders conceived ifiaudio as a direct response to the changes inherent in the younger generations more mobile lifestyle. I ended up buying one right when i had to return my demo unit. I had similar issues with jplay and the ifi idsd dac. In some instances it may be necessary to disable the anti virus software to install this driver. If your device is not on the list, you may just have to try it out. Another advantage of the ifi over the mojo is that it plays dsd natively, whereas the mojo converts dsd to pcm. Follow the on screen instructions and ensure the ifi equipment is plugged in.
Brian, might want to check to make sure the unit you have has the current firmware. The micro idsd delivers more power, more resolution and a cleaner presentation by comparison. The ifi micro idsd blacklabel is the improved version of the previous ifi micro idsd. If you happen to be around bangkok, thailand, i highly recommend you to check out proplugin for their extensive pro audio solution especially ifi audio. I didnt know much about ifi before getting the bl, but they have proven to be very friendly so far and their interaction with their customers and fans is a commendable one. The sonic transparency is there for all to hear and is secondtonone. The idsd pro uses a quad stack of the ifi bitperfect dsd and dxd dac by burrbrown in a custom interleaved configuration. In fact, my single biggest complaint is that the idsd isnt really portable, but rather transportable. Lets jump right in and see what the microidsd is all about.
If youve ever wondered what an ifi micro idsd would sound like if it had effectively unlimited power for driving headphones, plus the ineffable harmonic rightness of valves, then the stereo 50 is your answer. Ill accuse it of having a mouthful of a name but otherwise for myself its not controversial at all. Take it anywhere small enough to fit in your pocket, the ifi nano idsd dac and headphone amplifier signifies the first time you can enjoy sterling dsd audio on the go. The ifi micro idsd will recharge a smartphone or similar from its sidemounted type a usb port. Lots to learn from the post, therefore i think it is worth to post the link to the early discussion here. Plays true native octadsd512, pcm768, and double dxd there is nothing on the market like the micro idsd. The ifi sounds great with the phone as a source the bifrost 2 sounds terrible. Review and measurements of ifi nano idsd black dac and amp. And finally, we should mention the sleek black and orange design. In some instances it may be necessary to disable the antivirus software to install this driver. Jul 15, 2015 just wanted to give an update that both of my ifi micro idsd 5. Windows firmware installation ifi audio products only.
The ifi micro idsd is a phenomenal piece of gear, incorporating stateoftheart digital design in a beautifully well thought out package. If using windows os x not required as already compliant, install the ifi driver. This actively kills noise to ensure your musical enjoyment remains as topnotch as its components. Shes funky, fun and a flattering addition to any music lovers.
Follow the on screen instructions and ensure the ifi. The ifi micro idsd black label does not perform as spectacular with the phone as it does in my regular chain. For digital io, the unit supplies a coaxial jack that supports coaxial and optical spdif input, and coaxial spdif. Every support request is assigned a unique ticket number which you can use to track the progress and responses online.
The ifi micro idsd usb dac did a commendable job driving a popular upper end pair of magnetic planar headphones, and did not disgrace itself in comparison to a dac nearly three times the price. Our mini dacheadphone amplifier, the hipdac, can go. Welcome to the amr and ifi audio support centre in order to streamline support requests and better serve you, we utilise a support ticket system. A key factor behind why the nano idsd le sounds so true is directdrive which means there are no output coupling capacitors. The following video attempts to indicate how to correctly install ifi firmwares via the. Compared to the first iteration of the micro idsd silver, the black label does exhibit some sonic differences. Ifiaudio was launched at the 2012 rocky mountain audio fest and is an amr subsidiary, a shorter and younger branch from the same audio tree. This enables a total of eight pairs of differential signals to be used and mixed thats four pairs of signals per channel. This direct signal path is without peer and is a mainstay of the ifi dac range including the idsd le. The micro black label is our transportable dac and amp.
For me 4xdsd was the best sounding setting output encoding in dsp for that dac imo. During the development, headfis members requested that the micro idsd was 75% desktop and 25% portable. In 2020, the 4watt monster that is the ifi micro idsd black label is still the dacamp to beat when it comes to delivering raw, clean power. Hipdacmicro idac2micro idsdmicro idsd blnano idsd discontinuednano. With the ifi bl as a dac on battery it is able to power the input to my subs and the input to my integrated chip amp by rca y adapter alone. Connect the micro idsd to a windows computer os x is not. The phone straight out of headphone cannot, just either or. The micro idsd black label has a battery life of up to 12 hours, and should your phone need a boost, the micro bl can charge it from 0% to 100% through the usb charging port on the side not once, but twice. It is currently only possible to complete this update with an androidbased smartphone or tablet. My only wish, and the only critical comment, is for ifi design team to be able to pack performance and sound quality of micro idsd into nano idsd. As a result, its manufacturer, ifi, has gained somewhat of a reputation as a portable amplification specialist. I have been to shows and have heard expensive headphone setups with amps and cans that can not touch the sq i am getting.
But this high price affords you a complete device that is a bit of a swiss army knife its got lots of features and is extremely capable in everything it does. More recently its coupled with an iusb for clean power input, a gemini cable to separate signal from power, an itube my my lsr 305s, and it sits nicely on an irack. For digital io, the unit supplies a coaxial jack that supports coaxial and optical spdif input, and coaxial spdif output, with autoswitching between ins and outs. Lizard king can only be talking about the new nano bl. The bl softens the tone a little more than the micro idsd and instead delivers a smoother presentation with a little more warmth. And with up to twelve hours of battery life, you can show off your musical chops with enough power left over to charge your mobile phone. Here youll find all windowscompatible drivers for the products listed above. Combat unwanted system noise with the ifi audio dc ipurifier. Meanwhile, the same circuitry in the pro idsd is optimized as a line driver, but has enough output current to drive headphones. The micro idsd is a constant hires companion on the road for business travel and can drive any headphone i plug into it. Its output power is reduced in the process and the bias is much less towards class a. Just wanted to give an update that both of my ifi micro idsd 5. Aug 05, 2014 the ifi micro idsd blacklabel is the improved version of the previous ifi micro idsd. It is awesome at home on a desktop or in a setup as a preamp, but its even cooler when youre out and about.
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