Having owned Two Red Wine Audio Imod modified Apple 5.5 generation iPods, I was already familiar with the sound quality and workmanship that Vinnie Rossi was capable of. I have read several reviews of Red Wine products and have never read anything negative, on the contrary, the gushing thoughts of those individuals that have been lucky enough to audition said products have been borderline crazy. When Vinnie released the Isabellina HPA I longed to own one, and finally sold enough gear to make that dream happen.
On arrival of the Isabellina you become aware that this is not some everyday consumer audio device. The quality of the shipping box alone is a thing of beauty. After unboxing the HPA I was immediately impressed by the build quality and workmanship. It has a nice heft, giving me a nice sense that my money was well spent. I quickly plugged the Isabellina into my system between my MacMini and a Sunfire Theater Grand Signature Edition 425x5 amplifier, going from the output RCA outputs into the front left/right inputs of the Sunfire amp. I opted to get the HPA version with the optional variable RCA outs, so that I could use it as my DAC as well as a preamplifier. And when I say plugged in I don't mean into the wall because the great thing about the Isabellina is that it runs off of battery power. That's right just grab it and go no cords needed. Until it needs to be charged of course
This will be a short initial overview of the HPA being implemented into my gear rack for two channel stereo listening. Keeping in mind that Vinnie recommends at least 100 hours break-in time to really make the Isabellina sing. Well all I can say is my ears have never heard anything sound so awesome. The sound stage was so wide coming from my pair of Klipsch RF-7's, I thought I had moved into a concert hall. Bass output was deep and powerful and the treble is to die for, sweet and with nice decay. But in my opinion the Isabellina's most awesome ability is it's midrange. Never has Diane krall and Nora Jones sounded so real and lifelike. So far I could not be happier with this purchase. Next I will be trying out the headphone out ( the real reason I bought the Isabellina ). If you are looking for a high-end DAC/ headphone amp/ digital source switcher that has the most amazing sound you will ever hear, look no farther than the Red Wine Audio Isabellina HPA LPF-V.
