Khadas Tea

I currently have a nice little collection of portable DAC/amps to review and the Khadas Tea was among them. I always wanted a Magsafe compatible adapter or some way that I could latch a portable DAC/amp to the back of my iPhone 12 Pro without using tape or rubber rings. I did try using cheap Magsafe on the back of the iFi hip dac but it wasn’t strong enough to hold onto the iPhone 12 Pro. I figured a Magsafe DAC/amp would eventually come out and it did, just like a whole iPhone generation later. The Tea uses a ESS ES9281AC Pro DAC and Qualcomm QCC5125 Bluetooth chipset. The unit retails for $200 but it can still be picked up for early bird pricing(at the time of this writing).


Quick shoutout to Khadas for hooking me up with a review unit. While I always appreciate stuff being sent in to test and review, It never affects the rating of my review.


Info on the Khadas Tea can be found below.
https://www.khadas.com/tea

If you plan on ordering, link to the indiegogo page below.
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/tea-ultra-slim-hi-res-headphone-amplifier#/

Gear used​

Lotoo PAW S1, iFi GO Blu, DUNU Falcon Pro, THIEAUDIO Clairvoyance, Moondrop Aria and Sennheiser HD560S.

Looks and Feel​

The Tea is a sleek and pretty device. It has a plate design with two seperate housings on it. One housing is for the battery and the other is separated for the PCB. The light blue finish is very well done and just holding the all metal Tea screams quality. It’s a fairly lightweight device and doesn’t add much weight to an iPhone when latched to the back via the magsafe magnets. I really like that there isn’t a ring or cheap design of the magsafe structure like many cases for iPhones have. It’s just a simple flat semi matte finished color. The magnets hold well and the grip it has on my official Apple silicone case is better than the wallet or magsafe battery which is wonderful. It can still come off with a little effort but I didn’t have it popping off when I put my phone in my pocket. It has a power button that acts as a multifunction button as well. Volume buttons on the other side that can be held down to switch tracks.

Accessories and unboxing​

The box is simple and not much bigger than the Tea unit. I like the smaller packaging and with the presentation, it looks like something you would see from Apple. Inside the box we get a warranty card, user manual and then two short data cables.

Sound(overall)​

These final impressions were a mix of Bluetooth and wired via my Apple iPhone and iPad Pro. This will be what the Tea sounded like with all the headphones I used. Things like headphone pairings or going wired will produce different results and impressions vs what my ears hear on my specific gear.

The Tea definitely goes for a warmer sound and that was the very first thing I noticed. There is a decent amount of bass impact for headphones that call for it. Lows aren’t overly detailed but fairly good. The mids are also on the warm side with a relaxed presentation. Vocals came through alright but they mix into the background instead of really standing out. The treble also sounds tame. The detail retrieval up top is about average but nothing crazy to write home about. The treble lacks a little extra bite at the end of notes. Pretty much every headphone I used never got very sibilant. I would call this a warm-neutral sounding DAC/amp. Not really a bad thing and I found the sound signature acceptable.

*Side Note* There is an app set to be released by launch. I don’t have much info but if they add an EQ option that can be saved to the Tea, this would allow one to move from that neutral-ish sound to something a little more exciting.

Imaging/Soundstage​

The soundstage and imaging tend to be headphone specific(at least to me) but DAC/amps can add a little extra on occasion. The Tea is very accurate and It played on the strengths and weaknesses of the headphones I used. It didn’t add any extra width or depth. It didn’t sound cramped either.

Battery life​

The Tea claims 8 hours of playback time. It doesn't state whether that is via Bluetooth or wired. I didn’t do any wired battery tests but it indeed lasted just about 10 hours via bluetooth before complaining about being charged. So it should get most people through a day just fine. The Tea is charged via USB-C so one will need to keep a cable on hand if they’re using an iPhone.

Bluetooth/Wired connectivity​

Wired didn’t make a big difference in sound to me via my iPhone. That being said I did run it off the Hiby R6 2020 with better results. The R6 picked up the LDAC compatibility and it was functioning fine according to Poweramp. I feel like the sound cleaned up a little but that's more of a bluetooth chipset thing possibly. Wired into the R6 sounded exactly the same. This is however the best range I have gotten via LDAC. I made it like a whole two feet before it started cutting out. I expect those using LDAC to have their source device on them or very close. Range via AAC was fairly long and I could move to other rooms without issues.

Single ended power output​

We have a single ended output power of 165mW into 32ohm which is pretty good for such a small and thin device. It will power most IEMs just fine and those easier to run full size headphones will work just fine. Would I have preferred a 3.5mm and 2.5mm balanced option on the Tea? Yes, I absolutely would. This is the perfect use case for a smaller 2.5mm balanced jack. I have attempted to explain balanced to new audio people and in person they lose interest quickly. So for the Tea, I think single ended works fine.

IEM pairing opinions​

Moondrop Aria​

The Aria is still my favorite “all rounder” IEM that comes in at $80. I’m gonna start out and say this is my favorite pairing I used in this section. The Aria benefited from the added warmth down low and it also took a little of the upper mids brightness down just a bit. Same with the treble. As much as I love the Aira, most people I know who aren’t audiophiles complain that the Aria sounds too harsh to them. I think the Tea does well in keeping a good focus on vocals while keeping the brightness in check and giving the bass a little extra oomph when it’s asked for. I think this is the exact combo that I’ll be recommending to most new audiophiles or those who are curious about audio when it comes to a portable unit.

DUNU Falcon Pro​

I was hoping that the super warm and thiCC sounding Falcon Pro would be too much for the Tea. It was definitely hovering into bloated lows and mids but it held together and actually ran the Falcons just fine. I would say this is the warmest sound tuning wise I'm willing to get before using a different source device. The treble did kinda struggle the most with this pairing. The Falcons don’t really do top end sparkle so this sounded super dull. I did think the vocals really stood out well. I wouldn’t recommend this pairing or other IEMs that might be too warm sounding.

THIEAUDIO Clairvoyance​

I had planned to use my recently reviewed UM MEXT with the Tea but I know the sound of the Clairs on way more devices and I know what the Clairs are able to achieve. I did most of the final impressions with the Clairs. Is this fair to judge a $200 portable with a $700 IEMs? I think so, at least for reviewing purposes. I won’t rehash what I said above in my sound section but the Clair isn’t something I would use with the Tea for intense and critical listening. I would however use this pairing maybe on the go or in bed. This pairing is great for casual listening. Something to keep in mind as I had the same feelings with my UM MEXT as well.

Over ear pairings​

Sennheiser HD560S​

I’m running my 560S 4 pin balanced so I had like a disaster of adapters to make the pairing work. The tea was able to run the HD560s just fine volume wise. The Tea does well in adding a slight flavor to the lows of the 560S. It doesn’t do much to the mids so things such as the vocals still come through well. It does tame the highs a little which means a more enjoyable listening experience. The Tea however didn’t push enough power and I could tell things had a little less soul overall. It’s not a bad pairing but I would call the Tea a portable only. Not a unit I would use both as a portable or desktop unit.

DAC/Amp comparison​

I’m not gonna beat around the bush. Both the PAW S1 and GO Blu sound better than the Tea. The things I’m gonna compare mostly are the ups and downs of those portable systems compared to the Tea.

Lotoo PAW S1​

Starting off with the dongle! I love the PAW S1 and it’s what I use the most with my iPad Pro. The S1 also sounds warm but it sounds detailed with well controlled.. everything. It however is a dongle. Not fair since the Tea has Bluetooth but I’ve broken an endless amount of cables at the lightning portside when using it on the go. It just doesn’t compare reliability wise when portable. The Tea can also run into the same cable problem but you have Bluetooth as a backup. I usually use Bluetooth these days or use a DAP when I need/want wired connections.

iFi GO Blu​

The GO Blu is more of a competitor to the Tea, it’s priced the same(retail price) and does both Bluetooth and wired. The GO Blu has a clear and dynamic sound compared to the Tea. The GO Blu has more features than the Tea as well. It has a 4.4mm balanced jack with more output power, the hardware EQ options as well. It does lack a case in the box and unless you hunt for a leather case or clip, you're having to stuff it in a pocket. The Tea is way more convenient over the GO Blu if you want things in the same pocket. The two are aimed at wildly different audio groups. If you’re deeper into the rabbit hole and want the best sounding small portable with balanced ports, I’m always gonna recommend the GO Blu. If you want to get into audio or want something to use with entry/mid level IEMs, or if you mostly use an iPhone, I’m now gonna recommend the Tea since it’s easier to use and keeps things less complicated.

Overall thoughts​

The conclusion I came to at the end of testing is as follows, It’s a device that’s not really meant for those deep into super critical listening. The Tea is really targeted for those who are either on the fence with checking out higher end audio or those looking for something to use on the go without having to carry a dongle around or having a heavy DAP on them. This little Tea unit looks like an Apple made product, it doesn’t add much weight and since it’s Magsafe compatible, it’s super convenient. I really like the Tea and after letting some coworkers try out the Tea and Aria, they showed way more interest vs when I bring daps or bigger portable DAC/amps that are thicker than my iPhone 12 Pro to work. This is a device for the normal masses! It also works for some audiophiles who don’t mind running only Bluetooth from their iDevices and don’t want to lug complicated portables around. If you think you fall into those categories, I would highly recommend the Khadas Tea. Those hunting a more analytical sound will either need to wait to see what the Tea’s iOS/Android app looks like, wait for the Khadas Tea Pro model or find something else. I was really impressed with the functionality of the Tea. Sound wasn’t quite there for me in terms of using it to review gear critically but I’m using it in my portable rotation. For my casual listening this is sticking around for me. Good job to the design team at Khadas. I look forward to the release of their “Pro” version down the road. Thanks for reading!!