[Aroma Audio] Our new "AIR" Bluetooth DAC Amplifier
Mar 27, 2024 at 11:01 AM Post #91 of 127
It’s not great. You won’t have issues if it’s in another pocket away from your phone. It just won’t be great on a table while you’re walking around. Esp through walls.

I will say, one feature I love is that it connects to more than one device at once. No need to reconnect between laptop and phone.
Oh no... defeating the purpose of wireless conectivity. Such a pity i was taking interest in the sound quality but if there is no other mean to connect the device like cable connection then i will pass. I tend to walk around the house and traveling bringing my dongle with me.
 
Mar 31, 2024 at 10:47 PM Post #92 of 127
I finally had the chance to try out the Aroma Air and I must say I am quite fascinated with the device and am considering to buy it.
First thing I noticed was, it is a lot smaller and pocket friendly than I expected (see pictures in comparison to my Muse M4). Haptics and looks are wonderful, especially with that beautiful case. The Air worked flawlessly in my case, no connection-, interference or noise issues at all! Of course I have not tested it long term.

As for sound, I have read statements in this thread as the one beneath, so I was quite curious.
If you asked me to place it, it is above any dongle dac/amp or bluetooth dac/amp by a mile.

I have owned several "contenders" for the best BT dongle and if you ask my personal opinion, after listening to the Air, even though I really liked it, I did not hear it as "miles ahead" from the competition (of course I just state this as an opinion and respect everybody else`s :) ).
Actually I was surprised that my first impression, that the Air and M4 sounded quite differently, changed a lot after volume matching them (welcome to the world of psycho acoustics)! They actually sounded much closer than I thought.
Still, I agree the Air sounds maybe objectively a bit better than the rest. When listening very carefully, in comparison to my M4 it sounded slightly more "velvety" and fluid (compared to a slightly "edgier" and a bit thinner sound of the M4) . In addition, the Air had a slightly different tonal balance, a bit more linear, while the M4 somehow pronounced voices differently (they sounded slightly shoutier and were being brought more to the front). I think because the Air did not do that, it sounded a bit wider, the same time midbass sounded slightly fuller and cleaner. In my opinion, both devices had a very similar level of detail retreval, just the slighty different tonal balance lets one perceive details a bit differently.

As you can realize, I use the words "slightly" and "a bit" a lot - and that was exactly what I heard. The big question (as always in our hobby) to me was, is that worth the almost triple price? I am currently thinking about the answer to that question for myself! :sweat_smile:

The only other dac/amp that I think competes is the Dethonray Pegasus. I feel like they're siblings. For reference, I think the Air destroys ifi Gryphon.

Me personally, I found the Air to be better than the Pegasus (regular version). In this case, honestly tonality is quite different. Pegasus sounds a lot more colored in the lower mids, for sure it has more bass impact but also quite softened treble. Air, on the other hand, sounds more neutral, clean and tonally correct imo. Of course if one prefers that analogish sound of the Pegasus, one could still like it more. I also liked the Pegasus when I owned it, but I experienced a bit of listening fatique from its colored sound after a while (something did not sound quite transparent enough for me). Also it did not have enough power to drive some of my IEMs properly and was quite quirky in many ways (almost like a Beta version of a product). In today`s listening session I did not experience any of those problems with the Air.
 

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Apr 1, 2024 at 2:28 AM Post #93 of 127
I have finally had the chance to try out the Aroma Air and I must say I am quite fascinated with the device and am considering to buy it.
First thing I noticed was, it is a lot smaller and pocket friendly than I expected (see pictures in comparison to my Muse M4). Haptics and looks are wonderful, especially with that beautiful case. The Air worked flawlessly in my case, no connection-, interference or noise issues at all! Of course I have not tested it long term.

In terms of sound, I have read statements as the one beneath in this thread, so I was quite curious.


I have owned nearly all "main contenders" for the best BT dongles and if you ask my personal opinion, after listening to the Air, even though I really liked it, I did not hear it as "miles ahead" from the competition (of course I just state this as an opinion and respect everybody else`s :) ).
Actually I was surprised that my first impression, that the Air and M4 sounded quite differently, changed a lot after volume matching them (welcome to the world of psycho acoustics)! They actually sounded much closer than I thought.
Still, I agree the Air sounds really beautiful and maybe objectively a bit better than the rest. When listening very, very carefully, in comparison to my M4 it sounded slightly more "velvety" and fluid (compared to a slightly "edgier" sound of the M4) . In addition, the Air had a slightly different tonal balance, a bit more linear, while the M4 definitely pronounced the mids a tad more (voices sounded slightly louder and were being brought more to the front). I think because the Air did not do that, it sounded slightly wider and airier, also lower mids seemed slightly cleaner. In my opinion, both devices had a very similar level of detail retreval, just the slighty different tonal balance lets one perceive a bit differently.

As you can realize, I use the words "slightly" and "a bit" a lot - and that was exactly what I heard. The big question (as always in our hobby) to me was, is that worth the almost triple price of the Air. I am currently thinking about the answer to that question for myself! :sweat_smile:



Me personally, (again!) I found the Air to be better than the Pegasus (regular version). Tonality is quite different. Pegasus sounds a lot more colored in the lower mids ,for sure it has more bass impact and softened treble. Air, on the other hand, sounds a lot more neutral, clean and tonally correct imo. Of course if one prefers that analogish sound of the Pegasus, one could still like it more. I liked the Pegasus when I owned it, but I experienced a bit of fatique from its sound after a while. Also it did not have enough power for all of my IEMs and was quite quirky. Did not experience any of those problems with the Air.
If you’re willing to spend that much money, you should also listen to the Questyle CMA18P.
Did not hear the „Air“ but with the Questyle you’d have the chance to drive it via Bluetooth or USB-C. And it probably has some other advantages too compared to the Air. Just my thoughts :wink:
 
Apr 1, 2024 at 4:21 AM Post #94 of 127
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Apr 1, 2024 at 6:27 AM Post #95 of 127
If you’re willing to spend that much money, you should also listen to the Questyle CMA18P.
Did not hear the „Air“ but with the Questyle you’d have the chance to drive it via Bluetooth or USB-C. And it probably has some other advantages too compared to the Air. Just my thoughts :wink:
Yeah, that is definitely also on my list! :beerchug:
 
Apr 4, 2024 at 12:15 PM Post #96 of 127
does anyone know where to get it in europe? dont want the hassle with german customs, as i always have to travel an hour one way, when ordering from outside of eur.
 
Apr 4, 2024 at 5:52 PM Post #97 of 127
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Apr 5, 2024 at 6:08 AM Post #99 of 127
Apr 8, 2024 at 2:40 AM Post #102 of 127
Just change Original Op Amp to Muses02. The Sound is more Dynamic, more Separation.
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Yup, mine also on MUSES02 too, very nice sounding!
I feel it also add more body to the vocals.
 
Apr 8, 2024 at 2:50 AM Post #104 of 127
Use my Aroma Air as a source to Aroma Audio A100TB(w power supply unit) all my iems sounds damn good bring it up to another level, so much more bass slam, even better imaging (holographic sound) & overall sound becomes very controlled. Overall, this stack looks very nice to me as well, using it for my bedside listening.
Not to forget, my Aroma Air is connected to Rocoon UFO grounding block. 😅
IMG_20240406_202819.jpg
 
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Apr 8, 2024 at 2:52 AM Post #105 of 127
Use my Aroma Air as a source to Aroma Audio A100TB(w power supply unit) all my iems sounds damn good bring it up to another level, so much more bass slam, even better imaging (holographic sound) & overall sound becomes very controlled. 😍
IMG_20240406_202819.jpg

It not portable , more like stacks for stationary .
 

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