[Cuthbert 80]

Absolutely. There's these two videos of this Japanese drummer, that really illustrate the capabilities of the Neo. The first is a cover of a well known band's song. The second is an original instrumental but better illustrates her playing energy.





I can't stress enough how well-balanced the balanced headphone output is (no pun intended). It was honestly my lowest expectation going into the loaner, but it's really impressed me so far, and really drives up the value ratio as an all-in-one unit. The Soloist 3X with stock Vivid V6 just isn't as synergistic with it as I hoped. I think the SparkoS op-amps in the Soloist might be a better match for the Neo. I'm tempted to hook up the Burson Fun (with SparkoS), and maybe dig out the Gilmore Lite Mk. 2 just to see if the ADI-2 was the real reason I got bored with the latter. It might actually be a better match. I'm selling both, but the GLite Mk. 2 hasn't sold yet and has just been sitting in the box for several weeks. I'll try to stop be lazy and hook them up later to give people some more context of other amp combos. I suspect the built-in amp will hold it's own against the other two, which I hold in high regard at their price points.

Ermmmm....sorry to go off topic a little but godammit...this Japanese drummer is pretty amazing to say the bloody least. LOVE her energy

Back on topic...thanks for your impressions. Your opinions are quite interesting especially considering you're a drummer that can pick up on certain things.

 

[corgifall]

The NEO is ready to rock and roll!

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

The NEO is ready to rock and roll!

Yay! I spy another fellow Dunu Chord cable, hmmm?

 

[corgifall]

Yay! I spy another fellow Dunu Chord cable, hmmm?

Yup! I'm a pretty hardcore Null audio cable fanboy but I really really like the Dunu Chord! The chord is quieter than some other balanced cables when it comes to gear with higher output noise from balanced.

 

[corgifall]

The NEO sounds pretty good so far after a few hours of listening. Since I’m the first person this unit got sent to, I’ll wait until a few days of listening have passed before I really comment on the sound. It’s competing with the new smsl su/sh-9 stack fairly well and both are in the $700-800 range. Still a little noisy with my sensitive iems running balanced. Not a big deal IMO however. I’ve heard worse noise out of super expensive gear.

 

[Baten]

The NEO sounds pretty good so far after a few hours of listening. Since I’m the first person this unit got sent to, I’ll wait until a few days of listening have passed before I really comment on the sound. It’s competing with the new smsl su/sh-9 stack fairly well and both are in the $700-800 range. Still a little noisy with my sensitive iems running balanced. Not a big deal IMO however. I’ve heard worse noise out of super expensive gear.

Hmm noise is kinda concerning though..?

 

[corgifall]

Hmm noise is kinda concerning though..?

This is running balanced. Running the same sensitive iems single ended either ends up with no hiss or close to no hiss. Of course the few over ear headphones I threw at it had no problems with noise.

 

[Reyess]

I will chime in, here.

To start - this is the best my music has sounded - ever, and despite the below, I am very happy...

That said, I have had some issues with this model.

I bought one from @Andrew DiMarcangelo Bloom Audio (Great guys, btw... awesome customer service - can't recommend them enough... go buy from them!) and it had some fairly obnoxious electronic humming sound from the 4.4 and 1\4. It did not change with the volume knob - stayed the same volume no matter what. It was also coming through the RCA's out.

The noise\hum changed based on the then-current sample rate (so, 44.1 and 96khz sounded a bit different than each other.). This would happen when USB powered only, and when powered with the included iPower - on both wall and a battery backup. It also appears when no source is connected - that is, just connected to power, and some headphones, you could hear it - since the unit will 'remember' the last sample rate it had used for each input type (usb\spdif\etc)

Bloom swapped me for a brand new unit after they got mine back, and confirmed the issue - and sent me a new one (Again, amazing customer service... i will only buy from them!). I've got the new one now, and I'm hearing the noise there still, though it is quieter than the last unit to a degree - so something was improved in the exchange (the first one was atrocious)... - perhaps I've been spoiled by THX stack\DAPs to this point? Maybe this is how the burrbrown works...

I have some degree of anxiety posting this and asking if this is normal for this unit, given the trouble ive put both iFi and my vendor through and the terms of the purchase were very generous from their end. I especially have anxiety if this is expected behavior for this unit \ dac type (i am somewhat new to things other than ess\akm). Am I just being too picky? You dont hear the sound at all when music is playing, and even with it off, it isnt super loud... its just kinda there...

It seems to greatly diminish if i use 300ohm hd600's... but it's still faintly there. Ive tried a variety of different headphones\cables... my primary is elegia (35ohm\105db/mw.)

FWIW - the actual sound of the unit when playing music is sublime. I love it - hearing things i never heard in songs before... i just cant mentally let go of this noise thing? Its just -barely- there when no music is playing and... idk. Maybe im being unreasonable.

@iFi audio - what say you? I raised a ticket with your support team and you told me i had a defective unit originally so i went that route with my vendor and seeked a new one.

comments?

 

[corgifall]

I will chime in, here.

To start - this is the best my music has sounded - ever, and despite the below, I am very happy...

That said, I have had some issues with this model.

I bought one from @Andrew DiMarcangelo Bloom Audio (Great guys, btw... awesome customer service - can't recommend them enough... go buy from them!) and it had some fairly obnoxious electronic humming sound from the 4.4 and 1\4. It did not change with the volume knob - stayed the same volume no matter what. It was also coming through the RCA's out.

The noise\hum changed based on the then-current sample rate (so, 44.1 and 96khz sounded a bit different than each other.). This would happen when USB powered only, powered with the included iPower - on both wall and a battery backup. It also appears when no source is connected - that is, just connected to power, and some headphones, you could hear it - since the unit will 'remember' the last sample rate it had used for each input type (usb\spdif\etc)

Bloom swapped me for a brand new unit after they got mine back, and confirmed the issue - and sent me a new one (Again, amazing customer service... i will only buy from them!). I've got the new one now, and I'm hearing the noise there still, though it is quieter than the last unit to a degree - so something was improved in the exchange (the first one was atrocious)... - perhaps I've been spoiled by THX stack\DAPs to this point? Maybe this is how the burrbrown works...

I have some degree of anxiety posting this and asking if this is normal for this unit, given the trouble ive put both iFi and my vendor through and the terms of the purchase were very generous from their end. I especially have anxiety if this is expected behavior for this unit \ dac type (i am somewhat new to things other than ess\akm). Am I just being too picky? You dont hear the sound at all when music is playing, and even with it off, it isnt super loud... its just kinda there...

It seems to greatly diminish if i use 300ohm hd600's... but it's still faintly there. Ive tried a variety of different headphones\cables... my primary is elegia (35ohm\105db/mw.)

FWIW - the actual sound of the unit when playing music is sublime. I love it - hearing things i never heard in songs before... i just cant mentally let go of this noise thing? Its just -barely- there when no music is playing and... idk. Maybe im being unreasonable.

@iFi audio - what say you? I raised a ticket with your support team and you told me i had a defective unit originally so i went that route with my vendor and seeked a new one.

comments?

I did some testing to check on this since I have a demo Neo in. When plugging in my sensitive iems into the single ended jack, 44.1 has a small but high pitched buzz or ringing sound and 48-705.6khz has a noticeable and annoying buzz going on. I use audirvana and I've simply run DACs upscaled to the maximum output. At 768khz there is zero buzz/ringing. I didn't notice this cause I was listening through audirvana at 768khz. Each of the DSD options has different noise except the DSD512. When that is selected for upscaling there is zero noise. I would say maybe a grounding issue might be to blame but there is no noise at 768khz or DSD512. I'm sure some the IFI crew will chime in at some point. I didn’t test this balanced since my sensitive iems get noise from the 4.4 jack anyways.

 

[Reyess]

I did some testing to check on this since I have a demo Neo in. When plugging in my sensitive iems into the single ended jack, 44.1 has a small but high pitched buzz or ringing sound and 48-705.6khz have a noticeable and annoying buzz going on. I use audirvana and I've simply run DACs upscaled to the maximum output. At 768khz there is zero buzz/ringing. I didn't notice this cause I was listening through audirvana at 768khz. Each of the DSD options has different noise except the DSD512. When that is selected for upscaling there is zero noise. I would say maybe a grounding issue might be to blame but there is no noise at 768khz or DSD512. I'm sure some the IFI crew will chime in at some point. I didn’t test this balanced since my sensitive iems get noise from the 4.4 jack anyways.

You too, huh?

Glad (and sad) it is not just me. I feel like I'm going crazy here.

Perhaps a design issue. Will wait to hear ifi reply.

 

[SoLame]

I will chime in, here.

To start - this is the best my music has sounded - ever, and despite the below, I am very happy...

That said, I have had some issues with this model.

I bought one from @Andrew DiMarcangelo Bloom Audio (Great guys, btw... awesome customer service - can't recommend them enough... go buy from them!) and it had some fairly obnoxious electronic humming sound from the 4.4 and 1\4. It did not change with the volume knob - stayed the same volume no matter what. It was also coming through the RCA's out.

The noise\hum changed based on the then-current sample rate (so, 44.1 and 96khz sounded a bit different than each other.). This would happen when USB powered only, powered with the included iPower - on both wall and a battery backup. It also appears when no source is connected - that is, just connected to power, and some headphones, you could hear it - since the unit will 'remember' the last sample rate it had used for each input type (usb\spdif\etc)

Bloom swapped me for a brand new unit after they got mine back, and confirmed the issue - and sent me a new one (Again, amazing customer service... i will only buy from them!). I've got the new one now, and I'm hearing the noise there still, though it is quieter than the last unit to a degree - so something was improved in the exchange (the first one was atrocious)... - perhaps I've been spoiled by THX stack\DAPs to this point? Maybe this is how the burrbrown works...

I have some degree of anxiety posting this and asking if this is normal for this unit, given the trouble ive put both iFi and my vendor through and the terms of the purchase were very generous from their end. I especially have anxiety if this is expected behavior for this unit \ dac type (i am somewhat new to things other than ess\akm). Am I just being too picky? You dont hear the sound at all when music is playing, and even with it off, it isnt super loud... its just kinda there...

It seems to greatly diminish if i use 300ohm hd600's... but it's still faintly there. Ive tried a variety of different headphones\cables... my primary is elegia (35ohm\105db/mw.)

FWIW - the actual sound of the unit when playing music is sublime. I love it - hearing things i never heard in songs before... i just cant mentally let go of this noise thing? Its just -barely- there when no music is playing and... idk. Maybe im being unreasonable.

@iFi audio - what say you? I raised a ticket with your support team and you told me i had a defective unit originally so i went that route with my vendor and seeked a new one.

comments?

I'm sorry to hear about your experience. I also purchased a Neo from B\oom Audio on the first day it was released and I received my unit in three days (NJ > CA.) That was fast, so kudos to them.

I'll add my experience using the Neo for about three weeks below.

As a DAC/Amp - through the two headphone outputs, my unit sounds very good and clean on most occasions (may lack a bit of power for some genres or style of music)...and I never heard any hum or hissing. I've listened with almost all inputs: USB (Tidal from MacBook Pro), Bluetooth (Tidal from my S10 cell phone), and Optical (from my old Sony 5-CD Changer)...no noise or interference issue through either headphone output. I use Senn. HD 800S (balanced & singled-end), HD6xx (balanced & singled-end), Sony Z7m2 (balanced only), Z5 iem (balanced) with the Neo.

HOWEVER, my Neo has an issue in Pre-amp mode (variable RCA output) with USB input. 70-80% of the time it would pick up noise (audible interference or clicks) when listening Tidal music especially when it changes tracks and when I click play, pause, forward, and stop music on my computer. This is kind of annoying to hear and I tried the iSilencer+ but it doesn't improve/fix that. In DAC only mode (fixed RCA output), I don't hear any interference...no hissing, no hum, so I'm not sure if problem is actually with the Neo's RCA, or the App or the combination???

This may be considered a minor issue to some and may only happen to my particular circumstance, but I hope that at least @iFi audio take a note of my issue and provide a 'fix' or 'suggestion' if/when available. (Thanks in advance!)

 

[Paperinoil]

Super interesting to read these latest feedbacks from users. It almost sounds like a potential EMI issue going on internally? No idea if it would make a difference but I wonder if users experiencing any of these issues could try shutting off the display or perhaps disconnecting the antenna on the BT? Perhaps even cell phones or routers in proximity to the Neo or on the same circuit? Maybe some group trouble shooting is in order to try to track this down. Just trying to think of things that could be potential sources of noise.

 

[corgifall]

Super interesting to read these latest feedbacks from users. It almost sounds like a potential EMI issue going on internally? No idea if it would make a difference but I wonder if users experiencing any of these issues could try shutting off the display or perhaps disconnecting the antenna on the BT? Perhaps even cell phones or routers in proximity to the Neo or on the same circuit? Maybe some group trouble shooting is in order to try to track this down. Just trying to think of things that could be potential sources of noise.

Just tried it without the Bluetooth antenna and the screen off with no luck.

Also... What?! It plays just fine too without wall power. Maybe it’s not switching to power and running off only usb for power and input? It makes no sound difference when plugging the power plug back in either. I went to unplug the usb cable and grabbed the wrong cable so I wasn’t expecting that.

 

[Reyess]

balanced since my sensitive iems get noise from the 4.4 jack anyways.

Just tried it without the Bluetooth antenna and the screen off with no luck.

Also... What?! It plays just fine too without wall power. Maybe it’s not switching to power and running off only usb for power and input? It makes no sound difference when plugging the power plug back in either. I went to unplug the usb cable and grabbed the wrong cable so I wasn’t expecting that.

Yes I discovered this as well. The manual states that It can run off usb power so I guess it isn't that surprising.

Re the above - I don't have my unit near any radio router stuff. Good thoughts though... Turning the screen off didn't help either for me.

Also, I too, have seen that if I run at 768 or dsd512 I don't hear any noise... Any other sample rate / type I hear it. Seems to be a common with @corgifall . Thanks for that tip - least I can upsample to that in the interim until ifi can chime in a remediation path.

 

[BattousaiX26]

I'm sorry to hear about your experience. I also purchased a Neo from B\oom Audio on the first day it was released and I received my unit in three days (NJ > CA.) That was fast, so kudos to them.

I'll add my experience using the Neo for about three weeks below.

As a DAC/Amp - through the two headphone outputs, my unit sounds very good and clean on most occasions (may lack a bit of power for some genres or style of music)...and I never heard any hum or hissing. I've listened with almost all inputs: USB (Tidal from MacBook Pro), Bluetooth (Tidal from my S10 cell phone), and Optical (from my old Sony 5-CD Changer)...no noise or interference issue through either headphone output. I use Senn. HD 800S (balanced & singled-end), HD6xx (balanced & singled-end), Sony Z7m2 (balanced only), Z5 iem (balanced) with the Neo.

HOWEVER, my Neo has an issue in Pre-amp mode (variable RCA output) with USB input. 70-80% of the time it would pick up noise (audible interference or clicks) when listening Tidal music especially when it changes tracks and when I click play, pause, forward, and stop music on my computer. This is kind of annoying to hear and I tried the iSilencer+ but it doesn't improve/fix that. In DAC only mode (fixed RCA output), I don't hear any interference...no hissing, no hum, so I'm not sure if problem is actually with the Neo's RCA, or the App or the combination???

This may be considered a minor issue to some and may only happen to my particular circumstance, but I hope that at least @iFi audio take a note of my issue and provide a 'fix' or 'suggestion' if/when available. (Thanks in advance!)

Ifi's included rca is not really good in quality. Mine didn't even last a week and all sorts of channel imbalance before one channel started not working. Bought a new rca cable and all issues gone.