[FangJoker]

Hope not just recently got mine... But yeah in November it'll be two years old.

What can they do to improve it though? TI/burr brown is not producing new upgraded chips (as far as I know). XMOS has upgrades out but this will hardly matter. The clock might be upgradeable but again will hardly matter. The capacitors are really really good panasonic ones. MQA is already supported, filter is just upgraded to GTO. The amp is freakishly powerful and very silent.

What do you want to see in a new revision? Very little room for improvement. Next step might be iDSD Pro. only $2500

The item I'd like to see changed most is the USB input. Why can't they use a regular usb input instead of having to use the purple USB adapter or cable that it comes with?

There's other newer chips they could use. I'm not a fan of ti dac chips. I have always found looking up ifi dac chip info to always be somewhat hidden too. Why is it always hard to find which model chip they are using in their products?

Most of my friends are looking for something in the 500 to 1000 range and also something that is transportable. This fits the bill, but there's things I think could be improved as well. There's lots of products in the below $500 and above $1,000, but not very much in the middle. It's really the mojo or the BL.

 

[Baten]

The ti dac is kind of what makes ifi's signature sound though. Hardware teardown reveals TI 1793 chips on the idsd nano, micro, the ione and idsd pro.

They use that chip because it converts top 6 bits via R2R/ladder/multibit design, the remaining is converted using delta sigma. I don't see iFi changing that any time soon, except in another product line separate from the iDSD maybe.

More info here https://www.head-fi.org/threads/ifi...ssion-impression.683406/page-65#post-11119457

 

[Baten]

It's already been upgraded with the Black Label edition. Hard to improve on perfection. There really isn't any more you could do with it unless moving to a bigger box - but that's the Pro-iDSD.

Yes the iDSD PRO, or the newest AMR DAC. I think it will be a 32-bit multibit design of their own which has been teased before... not sure though. Both will be really pricy compared to the idsd micro, that's for sure..

 

[technobear]

There's other newer chips they could use. I'm not a fan of ti dac chips. I have always found looking up ifi dac chip info to always be somewhat hidden too. Why is it always hard to find which model chip they are using in their products?

It's not hard at all. It's a Burr Brown DSD1793 multi-bit/delta-sigma hybrid.

There are newer chips and if they sounded better then iFi would use them.

The other Burr Brown/TI chips you commonly see, like the PCM1792, are not like the DSD 1793.

See here for iFi's take on the subject:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/ids...se-info-page-153.711217/page-57#post-10641478

 

[FangJoker]

I swapped a BL for a week with a friend and the things I didn't like about it were the USB implementation and I thought it wasn't transparent enough for me but I own a Hugo 2 so it's not fair to compare. Most of the guys I talk to don't want to get a dac and amp. They like aio solutions and while I thought the BL was good for the price, I felt that maybe an upgrade would be coming as the cheap mimby and vali combo sounds better to me and even though the stack is small, the 2 guys that are looking for real headphones and or IEMs (currently airpods and beats guys) are looking to pair a dac amp combo with anything from laptops to phones at home and work. This price range is poorly represented unless you're willing to go with a separate dac and amp and are willing to lose the portability of the BL or mojo.

In any case, I've told both to buy the BL from musicdirect as they can refund it in 60 days if they aren't happy with it. For guys that are starting out into this money pit hobby, I think they will find anything above what they own right now to be a lot better and should love it.

 

[Baten]

This price range is poorly represented unless you're willing to go with a separate dac and amp and are willing to lose the portability of the BL or mojo.

In any case, I've told both to buy the BL from musicdirect as they can refund it in 60 days if they aren't happy with it. For guys that are starting out into this money pit hobby, I think they will find anything above what they own right now to be a lot better and should love it.

True. And, nice recommendation

 

[phthora]

Hope not just recently got mine... But yeah in November it'll be two years old.

What can they do to improve it though? TI/burr brown is not producing new upgraded chips (as far as I know). XMOS has upgrades out but this will hardly matter. The clock might be upgradeable but again will hardly matter. The capacitors are really really good panasonic ones. MQA is already supported, filter is just upgraded to GTO. The amp is freakishly powerful and very silent.

What do you want to see in a new revision? Very little room for improvement. Next step might be iDSD Pro. only $2500

Well, because you asked... Ditch the 6.3 for 4-pin XLR output and include an adaptor, dual 3-pin balanced input, improved USB isolation and type B so I can use better/shorter cables, more convenient bottom switches, more robust/stiffer switches in general (so they don't accidentally get pushed around), inset spots for the rubber feet (which will be black now), better indication and grip on the volume knob, user replaceable batteries, crossfeed, ditch the USB phone charging port, better use of the light to relay information. What do you say, @iFi audio ?

That said, I agree that the DAC and amp implementations are excellent, as is the overall build quality. The changes I want are mostly in connectivity and usability. I love my Black Label to death and it will only ever be replaced by a new and hopefully improved Black Label.

 

[Baten]

Well, because you asked... Ditch the 6.3 for 4-pin XLR output and include an adaptor, dual 3-pin balanced input, improved USB isolation and type B so I can use better/shorter cables, more convenient bottom switches, more robust/stiffer switches in general (so they don't accidentally get pushed around), inset spots for the rubber feet (which will be black now), better indication and grip on the volume knob, user replaceable batteries, crossfeed, ditch the USB phone charging port, better use of the light to relay information. What do you say, @iFi audio ?

That said, I agree that the DAC and amp implementations are excellent, as is the overall build quality. The changes I want are mostly in connectivity and usability. I love my Black Label to death and it will only ever be replaced by a new and hopefully improved Black Label.

XLR with adapter might make sense for many, but might annoy a deal of other people. Not sure. personally I'd be all for it!

 

[phthora]

XLR with adapter might make sense for many, but might annoy a deal of other people. Not sure. personally I'd be all for it!

A fair point. I suppose it would make more sense as a product to exist alongside the current BL. XLR and additional inputs would also increase the size of the BL, which is on the very high end of portable as it is.

 

[iFi audio]

What do you say, @iFi audio ?

We say: we read thoroughly what people here write and want. Not all ideas can be used and to improve micro iDSD BL is a challenge to behold. But who knows what our skunk works will deliver.

 

[WilliamLeonhart]

Before I realize it 2 years had already passed. So with some money to spend I was thinking about getting an iDSD for transportable use (not mobile use). But with all the sudden chatter about the iDAC2 these days, I’m not sure anymore. I had both used to prefer the iDSD, but the gap wasn’t huge and my music taste have been changing a lot.
It would be great if I can afford a BL right now but I don’t. So I’m going to ponder over this for a few days more.

 

[Baten]

Before I realize it 2 years had already passed. So with some money to spend I was thinking about getting an iDSD for transportable use (not mobile use). But with all the sudden chatter about the iDAC2 these days, I’m not sure anymore. I had both used to prefer the iDSD, but the gap wasn’t huge and my music taste have been changing a lot.
It would be great if I can afford a BL right now but I don’t. So I’m going to ponder over this for a few days more.

Always worth checking out iDSD BL on the used market every year during black friday they also seem to go $380 and under.

 

[WilliamLeonhart]

Always worth checking out iDSD BL on the used market every year during black friday they also seem to go $380 and under.

I just got the iDAC2. The BL is going to have to wait for a few years I guess.

Has anyone here noticed a change in sound signature after firmware update on your iFi DAC? I don’t really care about functionality so if nothing changes sound-wise I’m going to keep my iDAC2 the way it is right now

 

[Baten]

I just got the iDAC2. The BL is going to have to wait for a few years I guess.

Has anyone here noticed a change in sound signature after firmware update on your iFi DAC? I don’t really care about functionality so if nothing changes sound-wise I’m going to keep my iDAC2 the way it is right now

The firmwares that support MQA will also upsample x8 your music, so if you want to use bitperfect/NOS mode I would not upgrade.

If you don't care about digital upsampling and want to try their newest GTO filter, I would upgrade. Personally I stay on shipped firmware and use Bitperfect.

 

[WilliamLeonhart]

The firmwares that support MQA will also upsample x8 your music, so if you want to use bitperfect/NOS mode I would not upgrade.

If you don't care about digital upsampling and want to try their newest GTO filter, I would upgrade. Personally I stay on shipped firmware and use Bitperfect.

Thanks for the prompt answer. I haven’t looked up what upsampling actually brings in this case and I really wouldn’t want to ruin something that I’ve already liked a lot.