[bizkid]

Just got my ZEN DAC in today, on first listen it takes the edge off my Mackie MC-350 in a very transparent way. I honestly don't know how it does that. The MC-350 has a small spike at 7khz (around 4dB, not much compared to some beyers ) which makes some pop music a little harsh. Not so with the ZEN DAC. Never expected that and now it's the perfect closed headphone for me and my budget. Treble still sounds very detailed and not rolled of at all. Must be magic at work

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Just got my ZEN DAC in today, on first listen it takes the edge off my Mackie MC-350 in a very transparent way. I honestly don't know how it does that. The MC-350 has a small spike at 7khz (around 4dB, not much compared to some beyers ) which makes some pop music a little harsh. Not so with the ZEN DAC. Never expected that and now it's the perfect closed headphone for me and my budget. Treble still sounds very detailed and not rolled of at all. Must be magic at work

Glad the pairing is working out well for you. Thanks for the impressions (especially for other MC-350 owners who might be looking for a new source as well)! The ZEN DAC is indeed a little piece of magic.

 

[Tripokaridos]

Very beautiful Dac amp i like the feeling of knob also. But its not powerful like the nano black in SE for sure , i do have 4.4 for my hd6 series headphones the original that came with 660s but i never use balanced connections .
In the end it sounds amazing on hugh sensitive headphones but to me cant run HD6 series and Sundara for my taste on SE .

 

[bizkid]

Glad the pairing is working out well for you. Thanks for the impressions (especially for other MC-350 owners who might be looking for a new source as well)! The ZEN DAC is indeed a little piece of magic.

I've had more time to test the ZEN DAC and i would say that it mates very well with headphones which might be a bit elevated in the treble. I get a slightly unpleasent treble with my "treble torture test tracks" from my MC-350 on all of my other gear (MOTU M2, Sony A45 DAP, Phone, Onboard Sound etc) but it's all fine on the ZEN DAC. Smoothest highs i ever heard but take in mind my last big setup (Benchmark DAC1 + SPL Phonitor) was many many years ago and that was clearly aimed at analytical listening. I'm happy as it is but just out of curiousity i might also consider the ZEN CAN someday

 

[Bernard23]

apologies, not read through all 54 pages..but how does it compare to the Cambridge Audio XS? I've been using one for a couple of years and sonically is fine, just not always enough juice to drive big ohm insensitive phones. I'd be tempted by the Zen if it's more powerful. An improvement in SQ would be the additional bonus of course.

 

[overhaze]

I'm thinking of buying this as my bedroom amd dac combo. Is it powerful enough to drive Modhouse Argon MK3s? How does it compare to my main atom+tone board stack?

 

[Bernard23]

I'm thinking of buying this as my bedroom amd dac combo. Is it powerful enough to drive Modhouse Argon MK3s? How does it compare to my main atom+tone board stack?

I'm interested too in what the power output specs are in USB3.0 mode. My current reference point is the dacmagic XS

 

[overhaze]

To answer both my and Berbard23's question yes it will power the the Argons. Comfortable listening levels are reached on low impedance around 4 to 5 o'clock on the knob at low gain while the Argon's become uncomfortably loud on high gain around 12.

Very early impressions; man this thing is organic and smooth! Not the most analytical sound on earth but damn it's a pleasurable listen! Also that's a dangerously fun bass boost.

Edit: I am powering it with an Ifi iPower if that makes any difference.

 

[Bernard23]

After much reading and agonizing I decided to get the Marantz HD DAC1, for several reasons, I had bundled everything from IFI into my amazon basket, including the £99 PSU and a 4.4mm balanced connector with CAN + DAC, but suddenly that's 2 power sockets needed, plus more cables, plus 2 units with limited space. As good as the these units are, I concluded that the Marantz is a step up, and I managed to get one at a good price.

 

[overhaze]

Okay there is a lot going on here. I downloaded the GTO firmware and now the Zen is managing to be both highly resolving and forgiving of low quality tracks a the same time. I was expecting a slightly V-shaped warm and fun secondary amp dac not something this interesting. I'm starting to think the Zen might be special.

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

After much reading and agonizing I decided to get the Marantz HD DAC1, for several reasons, I had bundled everything from IFI into my amazon basket, including the £99 PSU and a 4.4mm balanced connector with CAN + DAC, but suddenly that's 2 power sockets needed, plus more cables, plus 2 units with limited space. As good as the these units are, I concluded that the Marantz is a step up, and I managed to get one at a good price.

Thank you for considering the stack one way or another! Glad you're happy one way or another, your ears and what speaks to them along with what works for your life situation are what matters in the long run!

Okay there is a lot going on here. I downloaded the GTO firmware and now the Zen is managing to be both highly resolving and forgiving of low quality tracks a the same time. I was expecting a slightly V-shaped warm and fun secondary amp dac not something this interesting. I'm starting to think the Zen might be special.

It's a bit overwhelming to take it in all at once, isn't it? Glad you're enjoying it and it surpassed what you suspected of it at first glance. We think it's something special too

 

[SHADRICK]

How to know whether the ZEN DAC are actually powered from USB or 5V DC external power supply?

Without plug in 5V DC external power supply... The unit will turn on with lights on the front (Volume Knob)... Power Match and True Bass light up after press.... which is normal....

However, when I try plug in the 5V DC external power supply... only the External Power indicator at the back lights up (Green). The unit wouldn't turn on... No lights on the front (Volume Knob)... Power Match and True Bass wouldn't light after press... until i plug in to PC/Latop/HP...

If the ZEN DAC are powered by the 5V DC external power supply, why it drain the battery from phone... After about an hour listening with HFM Sundara (Power Match and True Bass both ON, Volume around 10-11 o'clock), the phone battery drops from 100% to 91%. With the HIP DAC... the phone battery only drops like 1-2%... Seems like ZEN DAC are drawing power from USB via instead of the 5V DC external power supply.... How do i make sure the ZEN DAC only draw power from the 5V DC external power supply instead from the phone....

Hi,

I have the same issue with the same combination of headphones you have. Any updates were given by IFI in regards to this issue?

 

[504960]

Hi, i buyed the ifi zen dac and i have foobar2000 and i am using windows 10 how i need to configure it? where can i find a tutorial? which is the best configuration? thanks

 

[Zeka]

You mean a tutorial for foobar2000?
https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/digital/pc-software/foobar-2000-for-dummies/

 

[hamachan]

Hi, i buyed the ifi zen dac and i have foobar2000 and i am using windows 10 how i need to configure it? where can i find a tutorial? which is the best configuration? thanks

Use ASIO driver;
https://ifi-audio.com/firmware/windows-usb-2-0-drivers/
See also here for DSD native playback.
https://ifi-audio.com/home/computer-audio-tutorial/enhanced-listening/