This matches the level of drive to the load presented by the headphones, by adjusting input sensitivity and thereby signal strength.
Like the ZEN DAC and ZEN DAC V2, the ZEN Air DAC’s headphone amp has switchable gain, which iFi terms PowerMatch. Whilst simplified in comparison to the ZEN DAC V2’s fully balanced topology, the ZEN Air DAC’s analogue stage remains of exceptional quality at the price, with a symmetrical channel layout and audiophile-grade circuit components, including a custom op-amp offering ultra-low noise performance, and low-impedance power supply rails featuring Taiyo Yuden and Murata low-ESR inductors.
#Ifi zen dac v2 vs schiit stack full
MQA is also supported (MQA rendering, like the original ZEN DAC, rather than full MQA decoding as performed by the ZEN DAC V2). Thanks to the Burr-Brown chip’s True Native design, PCM and DSD take separate pathways – this enables both PCM and DSD to remain ‘bit-perfect’ in their native form. Hi-res PCM is supported to 32-bit/384kHz, alongside DXD, and DSD64, 128 and 256. The core DAC technology is the same as the original ZEN DAC, using a Burr-Brown DAC chip that iFi favours for its natural-sounding ‘musicality’ and True Native architecture, combined with custom technology including bespoke XMOS firmware and digital filtering, and iFi’s GMT clock system to tackle jitter. It connects to PCs, Macs, smart devices and so on via USB, elevating the sound quality of digital sources to a higher plane. It can also be used as a DAC/preamp to feed an amp and speakers, or a pair of active speakers, via stereo RCA outputs.
Like the ZEN DAC, the ZEN Air DAC includes a high-quality headphone amp capable of driving all manner of headphones and earphones. The ZEN Air DAC redraws the blueprint, offering sound quality that rivals the original ZEN DAC but at an even lower RRP. Winner of a host of awards since launching in 2019, the ZEN DAC and its V2 successor deliver a performance that competes with DAC/headphone amps at more than twice its price. USB DAC + headphone amp – RRP £99 /€99/$99 Further information about each model is provided below. The ZEN Air CAN and ZEN Air Phono follow in May. The ZEN Air DAC and ZEN Air Blue arrive first, available from selected retailers from 4 March. Certainly, there’s nothing on the market at under £100 that is their match. But by retaining most of the core features and ensuring the circuit designs remain high-quality – discrete components and symmetrical channel layouts, for example – their performance comes remarkably close to the mainline ZEN models. Some of the upgrades made to the latest V2 editions of the ZEN DAC and ZEN Blue, such as the enhanced GMT clock system, are also absent.
#Ifi zen dac v2 vs schiit stack series
For example, the fully balanced circuit topologies in the ZEN devices have been simplified, which means the 4.4mm balanced connections offered throughout the ZEN Series are not included in the ZEN Air devices. The simplification of the circuitry within the ZEN Air models means the mainline ZEN devices remain sonically superior, and some of the features they sport are correspondingly absent from the ZEN Air equivalents.
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