I've been given a chance to review the soon to be released Burson Conductor Air, which I'm quite thrilled to do given the form factor and specs of this unit. I'll be comparing it to a few other DAC/Amp combos I own and have heard extensively. This includes a Burson V5 OpAmp equipped Asus Essence STX, the legendary Galaxy S Voodoo Mod + FiiO E11 Combo and
Schiit's Bifrost 4490+Asgard 2. The headphones I'll be using will be the Hifiman HE-400i, Beyerdynamics DT770, and Ultrasone Pro 900's.
I like keep my thoughts fairly brief and highlight the key strengths and weaknesses I believe are characteristic of each configuration. I will focus highly on the Air however given that it is the heart of my review. As a reference I spend a couple hours on each song swapping gear, volume matched as best I can noting down my impressions. Be aware that the differences between these setups are very apparent to me.

For reference the music I'm listening to includes: Radiohead - Sail to the Moon, Skrillex - Kill Everybody, Metallica's S&M - No Leaf Clover, Led Zeppelin - Moby Dick, Atmosphere - Southsiders, Perfect Circle - By and Down and Korn - Make Believe
Asus Essence STX/V5 - Really great depth here, the V5 upgrade lowers the noise floor of the STX considerably and adds a LOT of weight and realism. This soundcard would not be a contender without it. This plays well with all of my headphones, however instrument separation isn't the best and some of those sounds and symbols that come in on the sides of the soundstage are not as clear as they could be. I do not have the cap mod however, which I've been told will clear some of this up. Regardless, I've got a smile on my face from this setup with each set of headphones.
Burson Conductor Air - Excellent air, pun intended I suppose.. Coming off of both the V5 and Schiit setups this was one of the first things I noticed. Instrument separation is good with sounds coming from where they need to be and the power is definitely there. Vocals have great depth and presence with a strong center stage, which is really quite involving.
I did however feel at first that the sound could be a tad more weighted on the HE-400i's in my testing. This symptom disappeared upon the unit 'warming up'. After a short while the Air runs warm to the touch, however I would definitely not consider it hot.
Now for the big news.. I can also honestly say you can rest assured all of the micro details are there and then some. Specifically on Led Zeppelin's Moby Dick the Burson Air was able to pull considerably more detail and harmonic resonance during the intro than even the 4490+A2 combo. Also an important take-away is that the Air performed better with my dynamic cans than the Schiit/A2 setup even over SPDIF, besting the stack on both the DT770 and Pro 900 headphones especially in the detail department. The HE-400i shows the strengths and weakness of each setup, so I'm going to call that set of cans a tie to be broken by musical preference/mood.
Galaxy S Voodoo Mod + FiiO E11 Combo - This combo combined with the Pro 900's is synergy heaven. The Pro 900's specifically performed better on this setup harmonically than any other. However this setup could not complete on a detail level with the Air or 4490/A2. The STX retrieved the details slightly better than the Voodoo+Fiio, however, they were also slightly blurred due to my card not being cap modded. The HE-400i's were not enjoyable on this setup at all. The DT770's were decent though. The Pro 900 synergy is where the magic is here, however the Air+DT770 sounded better.
Schiit Bifrost 4490/Asgard 2 - Not much to say here, a fantastic experience that many ears have shared. I've found that dynamic cans sound pretty thin on it though. The Pro 900's do not work well on this setup. DT770's do great, however that thin nature remains. The HE-400i's however are quite at home and have more depth and fullness to the sound than any other setup, albeit at a loss of detail.

There is more on the table than just the sound with the Burson Air though, and that needs to be addressed. Don't get me wrong the Conductor Air sounds great however this unit serves more than one purpose. I like that it has
the jack-of-all trades thing going for it while mostly avoiding the master of none pitfall. This is what makes the Air as appealing as it is.
First let’s talk about portability, this unit does not have an internal battery - which given the power output I don't exactly believe it would last too long even if it did given the size. You won't be tossing this in your pocket with a DAP and battery bank then going for a jog, and this unit isn't designed for it either. However I've tested it with my bank and it works great as a travel/backpack or work setup.
The casing is very rugged, as is the remote casing which is a big plus. As a comparison my E11 with its cheap casing is starting to look like a pop can that has been crushed and reformed. The Air may lightly scratch over time, but it won't dent. The casing on the remote is set to match, and both units feature a nice magnetic system making the product seamless without screws.
I do see many people wanting to compare the Air to the Mojo, and I'd say they have different purposes.. If you're 100% mobile, I'd be inclined to recommend Mojo due to the internal battery. However, if you plan to use this as a dual purpose portable or leave it plugged to your PC as a preamp or on all the time I'd be suggesting the Air. I've enjoyed a friend’s Mojo for a week and it gets incredibly HOT. It’s got a lithium ion battery, there is no safe way to run a battery that hot all the time or unattended. I don't care what a manufacturer tries to claim it just isn't happening for me.
The Mojo is great in its own right, however in my eyes it is a purely mobile unit. I won't comment on sound quality between the two as I did not A/B them, however I can say I've never heard the amount of detail from Zepp's Moby Dick that I have heard when listening to the Air this week.

Now we're on to multi-use, this unit has a LOT going for it. It sounds better than the STX V5 on my home theatre setup thanks in part to the detail retrieval and it has a remote for ease of use. It can also be set upright on my case so that I can see the volume clearly, especially in low light. With the Air users can also retire their soundcard and go ITX form factor... can't tell I've been wanting to do this for a while can you? I was also able to easily pull it and use the Air for bedside duty with my Nexus 5X using an OTG adapter. On another front I do play competitive CSGO on my gaming PC and I'm happy to report that the positioning was stellar. Another bonus is not requiring an additional power connection, so it is LAN/travel ready. Check check check and check. Side note, the unit itself has volume up, down and a mute button as does the remote. Preamp and headphone out, a USB power connector is needed when in use with OTG. Connecting via a PC USB only requires the one connection.
Downsides? Well, there is one downside to this unit. I prefer the SPDIF input option on any external PC usable device. While many have different views on this topic I believe it did not detract from the positive experience. It isn't a buzz kill for my purposes, but the future inclusion would be nice. All in all, I definitely give this unit a thumbs up especially at the early bird price point it's a steal. The sound is there, the versatility is right there with it. Burson has been on a roll lately with their products, and I'm happy to report this continues with the Conductor Air. I hope you've enjoyed the read and a big thank you to Burson for giving me a chance to try and review the Conductor Air for all of those interested.
Schiit's Bifrost 4490+Asgard 2. The headphones I'll be using will be the Hifiman HE-400i, Beyerdynamics DT770, and Ultrasone Pro 900's.
I like keep my thoughts fairly brief and highlight the key strengths and weaknesses I believe are characteristic of each configuration. I will focus highly on the Air however given that it is the heart of my review. As a reference I spend a couple hours on each song swapping gear, volume matched as best I can noting down my impressions. Be aware that the differences between these setups are very apparent to me.
For reference the music I'm listening to includes: Radiohead - Sail to the Moon, Skrillex - Kill Everybody, Metallica's S&M - No Leaf Clover, Led Zeppelin - Moby Dick, Atmosphere - Southsiders, Perfect Circle - By and Down and Korn - Make Believe
Asus Essence STX/V5 - Really great depth here, the V5 upgrade lowers the noise floor of the STX considerably and adds a LOT of weight and realism. This soundcard would not be a contender without it. This plays well with all of my headphones, however instrument separation isn't the best and some of those sounds and symbols that come in on the sides of the soundstage are not as clear as they could be. I do not have the cap mod however, which I've been told will clear some of this up. Regardless, I've got a smile on my face from this setup with each set of headphones.
Burson Conductor Air - Excellent air, pun intended I suppose.. Coming off of both the V5 and Schiit setups this was one of the first things I noticed. Instrument separation is good with sounds coming from where they need to be and the power is definitely there. Vocals have great depth and presence with a strong center stage, which is really quite involving.
I did however feel at first that the sound could be a tad more weighted on the HE-400i's in my testing. This symptom disappeared upon the unit 'warming up'. After a short while the Air runs warm to the touch, however I would definitely not consider it hot.
Now for the big news.. I can also honestly say you can rest assured all of the micro details are there and then some. Specifically on Led Zeppelin's Moby Dick the Burson Air was able to pull considerably more detail and harmonic resonance during the intro than even the 4490+A2 combo. Also an important take-away is that the Air performed better with my dynamic cans than the Schiit/A2 setup even over SPDIF, besting the stack on both the DT770 and Pro 900 headphones especially in the detail department. The HE-400i shows the strengths and weakness of each setup, so I'm going to call that set of cans a tie to be broken by musical preference/mood.
Galaxy S Voodoo Mod + FiiO E11 Combo - This combo combined with the Pro 900's is synergy heaven. The Pro 900's specifically performed better on this setup harmonically than any other. However this setup could not complete on a detail level with the Air or 4490/A2. The STX retrieved the details slightly better than the Voodoo+Fiio, however, they were also slightly blurred due to my card not being cap modded. The HE-400i's were not enjoyable on this setup at all. The DT770's were decent though. The Pro 900 synergy is where the magic is here, however the Air+DT770 sounded better.
Schiit Bifrost 4490/Asgard 2 - Not much to say here, a fantastic experience that many ears have shared. I've found that dynamic cans sound pretty thin on it though. The Pro 900's do not work well on this setup. DT770's do great, however that thin nature remains. The HE-400i's however are quite at home and have more depth and fullness to the sound than any other setup, albeit at a loss of detail.
There is more on the table than just the sound with the Burson Air though, and that needs to be addressed. Don't get me wrong the Conductor Air sounds great however this unit serves more than one purpose. I like that it has
the jack-of-all trades thing going for it while mostly avoiding the master of none pitfall. This is what makes the Air as appealing as it is.
First let’s talk about portability, this unit does not have an internal battery - which given the power output I don't exactly believe it would last too long even if it did given the size. You won't be tossing this in your pocket with a DAP and battery bank then going for a jog, and this unit isn't designed for it either. However I've tested it with my bank and it works great as a travel/backpack or work setup.
The casing is very rugged, as is the remote casing which is a big plus. As a comparison my E11 with its cheap casing is starting to look like a pop can that has been crushed and reformed. The Air may lightly scratch over time, but it won't dent. The casing on the remote is set to match, and both units feature a nice magnetic system making the product seamless without screws.
I do see many people wanting to compare the Air to the Mojo, and I'd say they have different purposes.. If you're 100% mobile, I'd be inclined to recommend Mojo due to the internal battery. However, if you plan to use this as a dual purpose portable or leave it plugged to your PC as a preamp or on all the time I'd be suggesting the Air. I've enjoyed a friend’s Mojo for a week and it gets incredibly HOT. It’s got a lithium ion battery, there is no safe way to run a battery that hot all the time or unattended. I don't care what a manufacturer tries to claim it just isn't happening for me.
The Mojo is great in its own right, however in my eyes it is a purely mobile unit. I won't comment on sound quality between the two as I did not A/B them, however I can say I've never heard the amount of detail from Zepp's Moby Dick that I have heard when listening to the Air this week.
Now we're on to multi-use, this unit has a LOT going for it. It sounds better than the STX V5 on my home theatre setup thanks in part to the detail retrieval and it has a remote for ease of use. It can also be set upright on my case so that I can see the volume clearly, especially in low light. With the Air users can also retire their soundcard and go ITX form factor... can't tell I've been wanting to do this for a while can you? I was also able to easily pull it and use the Air for bedside duty with my Nexus 5X using an OTG adapter. On another front I do play competitive CSGO on my gaming PC and I'm happy to report that the positioning was stellar. Another bonus is not requiring an additional power connection, so it is LAN/travel ready. Check check check and check. Side note, the unit itself has volume up, down and a mute button as does the remote. Preamp and headphone out, a USB power connector is needed when in use with OTG. Connecting via a PC USB only requires the one connection.
Downsides? Well, there is one downside to this unit. I prefer the SPDIF input option on any external PC usable device. While many have different views on this topic I believe it did not detract from the positive experience. It isn't a buzz kill for my purposes, but the future inclusion would be nice. All in all, I definitely give this unit a thumbs up especially at the early bird price point it's a steal. The sound is there, the versatility is right there with it. Burson has been on a roll lately with their products, and I'm happy to report this continues with the Conductor Air. I hope you've enjoyed the read and a big thank you to Burson for giving me a chance to try and review the Conductor Air for all of those interested.