First off, I want to thank Tim @ Kitsune Hifi who sold me on iFi gear and gave me good advice on improving the digital end of my system (between the transport and the DAC), which was sorely lacking. However, the iDSD BL could probably stand in for my home system, and at times makes me forget I even have a giant, overcomplicated rig.
Pre-disclaimer: I never write reviews and this will be a quick early one - some first impressions and my gut instincts on it - don't expect anything hyper-analytical, just some macro level stuff.
First impressions:
This thing is long and narrow, while it's not for pocket use, it's not going to take up much room on the desktop, just place it judiciously. It still takes up less area than a Chord Hugo, while clocking in at 1/5 the price. It is made of hefty aluminum and the switches and knobs feel solid. It has some heft to it, and the internal photos show a menacingly dense set of boards and exotic parts. iFi does their own totally custom opamps, the digital clocking comes courtesy of their AMR ultra high end brand, and there are some badass caps and resistors in there for sure. It's based off the new TI DSD DAC chips, of which it has two. While you're going to have to make some adjustments to your hookups if you have all balanced stuff, it's well worth it.
Features:
The bass boost and crossfeed 3D toggles are subtle and don't seem to detract from the experience. Not annoying me is a good sign, I left them on at most times, especially with the Utopia which can always use a little help to max out its bass capabilities. The three different filters toggled on the side will take some experimentation and vary in their function for different filetypes so you can have hours of entertainment working out how they stack up. With three different gain settings, I found that the Utopias do not need the high gain level - the Black Label seems not to flinch at really any of my mountain of headphones, even the hard to handle LCD4. There are further IEM modes that can be activated to really dial things back and impedance match so it was able to play nice with my various CIEM.
Sound:
The iDSD has a male, recessed USB-A in the back panel; the included USB 3.0 cable has a cable mount female on it that slots into the recess. I'm not going to think too hard about what iFi was going for here, nor am I going to agonize over the best way to hook everything up; copious adapters are included to make sure all avenues are covered. I just plugged it into my Holo Audio Titanis USB Turbo to further clean up the Macbook's USB output, plugged in my Utopia, and that was what I spent the most time with. I was really floored flipping through my DSD library (which has been dormant due to my use of the Yggdrasil, but is about to change with the impending arrival of the Holo Spring KTE Edition DAC, which will go head to head in my audio lab rig) as I think even on my home setup I've been missing out on some really insane little details using the Utopia - and this setup is by no means burned in or hooked up to an external amp. I'm basing this all on about 4 hours listening tonight and on-off listening in the past week. Loads of power and dynamics, ultra tight bass, and minimal fatigue. I'm honestly laughing in horror at what i've spent on a gaggle of other portable dac/amps and DAPs. They're all going to be spending a lot of time on the shelf. If thieves showed up for the rest of my rig, I wouldn't even be that put out, so long as I had the Utopia or the Z1Rs and the iDSDBL. The big thing is the dead silent background due to how well implemented the digital end of things is; pair that with the well-above-average power output and the relative efficiency of the Utopias, and they feel like they are being pushed hard even on medium gain. This little dac/amp gets out of the way and lets the Utopia do their thing, while playing nice with literally every file format, even ones for which there are no files yet (DSD512 lol). DSD256 classical is just fearsome, I don't even know what to say there, except it's a new level of delicate, nuanced clarity. The free Mozart violin concerto on 2l.no should be a must have in everyone's test rig, with amazing transitions between the most quiet tiny bits towards the periphery of the soundstage exploding into the full orchestra, and each instrument placed laser-like in the headstage. At this point in my audiophile career I have a ridiculously short attention span, so the fact that this new toy is not in a drawer somewhere yet is a testament to its value to me. It's a keeper and at $550 should be on everybody's desk.
Verdict:
Give it a try - in the very least you can feed your favorite amp with it, use it as a preamp, and everything in between. iFi does not mess around and this is a disruptive product that has a no-holds-barred assault of technology and synergy to let it perform as it's doing right now. Once I use it for months I might find something to whine about, but for now, it's a no brainer. The real reason I'm using it is that it doesn't fatigue me with the Utopia, which is no mean feat. With the wrong amp and dac, they have ludicrous clarity but will drive you nuts with that little bit of extra edge and attack and shrillness. The only solution is a really good source and source material, and with some good DSD & hires files and the iDSD Black Label, you're all set.
Disclaimer: I paid retail price for any gear I've bought from Kitsune. It's worth it to get an extra helping hand on what stuff to try next. If I really wanted to, I could try to fish around for show samples direct from manufacturers to save a few bucks, not the case here.
Pre-disclaimer: I never write reviews and this will be a quick early one - some first impressions and my gut instincts on it - don't expect anything hyper-analytical, just some macro level stuff.
First impressions:
This thing is long and narrow, while it's not for pocket use, it's not going to take up much room on the desktop, just place it judiciously. It still takes up less area than a Chord Hugo, while clocking in at 1/5 the price. It is made of hefty aluminum and the switches and knobs feel solid. It has some heft to it, and the internal photos show a menacingly dense set of boards and exotic parts. iFi does their own totally custom opamps, the digital clocking comes courtesy of their AMR ultra high end brand, and there are some badass caps and resistors in there for sure. It's based off the new TI DSD DAC chips, of which it has two. While you're going to have to make some adjustments to your hookups if you have all balanced stuff, it's well worth it.
Features:
The bass boost and crossfeed 3D toggles are subtle and don't seem to detract from the experience. Not annoying me is a good sign, I left them on at most times, especially with the Utopia which can always use a little help to max out its bass capabilities. The three different filters toggled on the side will take some experimentation and vary in their function for different filetypes so you can have hours of entertainment working out how they stack up. With three different gain settings, I found that the Utopias do not need the high gain level - the Black Label seems not to flinch at really any of my mountain of headphones, even the hard to handle LCD4. There are further IEM modes that can be activated to really dial things back and impedance match so it was able to play nice with my various CIEM.
Sound:
The iDSD has a male, recessed USB-A in the back panel; the included USB 3.0 cable has a cable mount female on it that slots into the recess. I'm not going to think too hard about what iFi was going for here, nor am I going to agonize over the best way to hook everything up; copious adapters are included to make sure all avenues are covered. I just plugged it into my Holo Audio Titanis USB Turbo to further clean up the Macbook's USB output, plugged in my Utopia, and that was what I spent the most time with. I was really floored flipping through my DSD library (which has been dormant due to my use of the Yggdrasil, but is about to change with the impending arrival of the Holo Spring KTE Edition DAC, which will go head to head in my audio lab rig) as I think even on my home setup I've been missing out on some really insane little details using the Utopia - and this setup is by no means burned in or hooked up to an external amp. I'm basing this all on about 4 hours listening tonight and on-off listening in the past week. Loads of power and dynamics, ultra tight bass, and minimal fatigue. I'm honestly laughing in horror at what i've spent on a gaggle of other portable dac/amps and DAPs. They're all going to be spending a lot of time on the shelf. If thieves showed up for the rest of my rig, I wouldn't even be that put out, so long as I had the Utopia or the Z1Rs and the iDSDBL. The big thing is the dead silent background due to how well implemented the digital end of things is; pair that with the well-above-average power output and the relative efficiency of the Utopias, and they feel like they are being pushed hard even on medium gain. This little dac/amp gets out of the way and lets the Utopia do their thing, while playing nice with literally every file format, even ones for which there are no files yet (DSD512 lol). DSD256 classical is just fearsome, I don't even know what to say there, except it's a new level of delicate, nuanced clarity. The free Mozart violin concerto on 2l.no should be a must have in everyone's test rig, with amazing transitions between the most quiet tiny bits towards the periphery of the soundstage exploding into the full orchestra, and each instrument placed laser-like in the headstage. At this point in my audiophile career I have a ridiculously short attention span, so the fact that this new toy is not in a drawer somewhere yet is a testament to its value to me. It's a keeper and at $550 should be on everybody's desk.
Verdict:
Give it a try - in the very least you can feed your favorite amp with it, use it as a preamp, and everything in between. iFi does not mess around and this is a disruptive product that has a no-holds-barred assault of technology and synergy to let it perform as it's doing right now. Once I use it for months I might find something to whine about, but for now, it's a no brainer. The real reason I'm using it is that it doesn't fatigue me with the Utopia, which is no mean feat. With the wrong amp and dac, they have ludicrous clarity but will drive you nuts with that little bit of extra edge and attack and shrillness. The only solution is a really good source and source material, and with some good DSD & hires files and the iDSD Black Label, you're all set.
Disclaimer: I paid retail price for any gear I've bought from Kitsune. It's worth it to get an extra helping hand on what stuff to try next. If I really wanted to, I could try to fish around for show samples direct from manufacturers to save a few bucks, not the case here.
