iFi Hip-dac2 - Portable Balanced DAC Headphone Amplifier for Android, iPhone with USB Input Only/Outputs: 3.5mm Unbalanced / 4.4mm Balanced – MQA Decoder

This is an incredible piece of kit. Tried today for the first time properly playing my go-to test track, I am the Sea, the first track on Quadrophenia by The Who where the sound of the stormy seas at the beginning tend to become almost just noise as the track progresses even with some expensive headphones. Played on a Galaxy S20 SE the storm sounds were so impressive you could almost hear individual drops of rain falling in the guttering along with the crashing of the waves and the bell and cat sounds along with Daltrey's vocals were absolutely clear, with the burst of Entwhistles bass coming in fabulously at the end of these effects.Now the downside, and the reason for the 4-star review. The bundled cables are an unbranded and unmitigated disaster. The USB C to Female USB connector supplied didn't work at all. As I was aware that Amazon would advise returning the product for a replacement with the hassle this represents, I contacted iFi hoping that they might send one of their cables or at least give a small discount on the purchase of one as I was pretty certain the issue was the cable. The response was to contact Amazon for a replacement DAC. Bought an iFi branded cable instead which is brilliant, so why not bundle this in the first place. Companies really do themselves no favours in this type of situation as there is no shortage of alternatives. Would I go back to iFi, probably, as the quality of the main product is excellent at the price, but I would now certainly give more attention to alternatives than I otherwise would have. PS iFi your customer support page is horrible. Rant over!!

First, confession I love Ifi products. Second, I was with a very big Japanese electronics manufacturer which made Walkmans and PlayStations. Third, I love Music especially if it’s hi res.Ifi Hip Dac2. Yep it does what it says on the product blurb. The Uk tech press wows about Chord. They are good but are they great? You spend that sort of money and you are in the rarefied world of high end DAC’s chasing the elusive dream of perfect music.Back to the Hip Dac 2. I had Hip Dac 1 and thought it was right up there. I have Mojo,Zen, Diablo and idsd and this can compete with the very best. I have used AKG N40 (now discontinued), Grado 325S, Sony XM4 but with the wire and the Hip Dac 2 delivers in spades. The processor is the same as the Diablo (more expensive Ifi Dac). The USB C charging is a plus. My streaming platform is Qobuz but the MQA masters will be a real big plus for Tidal Users. I love the Burr Brown chip as it warms up the music.Conclusion. Buy yes. Especially if you want pin sharp clarity from your phone or portable music player. I hitched my DAC2to Sony’s Zx 500 and also to my A&K Norma and Kann and it stepped up their presentation. Most noticeable uplift was my Hi res streaming via my iPhone.Product build and quality fantastic.Any gripes- Would have preferred the pricing around £ 150 - £160 but versus the venerable Mojo this is a winner. Cases and accessories unnecessarily pricey.

Wow! What an incredibly ‘Big’ sound from such a small package.Listening via Tidal HiFi From an IPad Pro into the ifi hip DAC ii driving a pair of either Shure 535s or Sennheiser HD600 (Customcans Mod weight with all foam removed, Oem 3.5mm cable or Van Damme handmade 4.4mm balanced cable) both balanced and unbalanced I am absolutely blown away. Listening to Music I am very familiar with from a variety of Genres, the depth that this little gem adds is sublime.Genuinely I’m not sure I’ve heard the HD600 sound better even on Tubes. The sound is very rich and opens up the Sennheisers (even compared to a Valhalla 2 or Darkvoice I dare say) but still not even sounding bloated. Balanced or unbalanced it’s still an enjoyable listen. Balanced I feel does give a noticeable improvement in soundstaging, I would say this is to be expected though?The Shure Iems also sound fantastic, a very involving sound. Of course this could be as they are being listened to balanced but still, really gets you sitting up listening.I can’t say the amp has a particular sound signature other than very airy. Rich sounding but not warm. Smooth but not laid back nor too punchy. Instrument separation is a particularly strong point of the amp. The last section of Dave Brubecks “Take Five” is a fantastic show of this, you feel you can point to where each musician is playing from and the drums….oh the drums!In a live version of Fink’s “Troubles what you’re in” you're able to hear every rasp of his voice and without cliché, feel like your 8 feet away from the stage!I am ashamed to say I had never brought an ifi product before and had stuck with other Brands of audio gear, however, if this is a benchmark of there house sound, I’m hooked.An absolute steal! Genuinely cannot believe how this is under £600 let alone £200. Pick one up before they realise how good it is.Thanks to Sevenoaks sound for incredibly quick dispatch and delivery.A huge thank you to ifi for such a great Amp/DAC

I know everything with HI-Fi is subjective and i've had a lot of stuff over years but i just couldn't get a good bass response from this unit unless i cabled it up with my old Fiio Alpen amp and turned the bass control up full. i had the original Hip Dac and have to say that it was better sounding than this model and that lacked bass as well.Please be aware that i am not a bass head but i couldn't live with the lack of punch with this.

I got this about two months ago to run my sennheiser 660 headphones. It was delivered ok and on time. It was well packaged and protected.On first impressions it looks very good and made of good quality materials.Volume knob turns it on and is of good quality along with other functioning buttons of good quality.The dac itself looks impressive.After setting it up on my iPad it with my headphones I hear the sounds from tidal music app and I’m impressed. Sound is of good quality, clear, crisp and sharp.Battery is a bit of a nuisance having to charge for ages and charging wire is tiny short making it awkward to charge.This little connecting wire that goes from the dac to the iPad/iPhone is a joke. I bought two from apple, one for the iPad and one for the iPhone because they are different and it seems the camera connection for the iPhone does not fit exactly and stops working after some time, at 35euro I’m not chancing buying another one.I just feel when your lying back in bed listening to your favourite tunes it can be awkward with all the wires and the dac hanging out of the iPad and your wired headphones hanging out of the dac.I have just ordered a proper amp that I plug into the wall that beside my bed where I can just plug in the headphones. I would not buy that dac again, it’s probably ok for travelling if your willing to put up with the iPad, the dac and the wired headphones all coming out of a bag or something. It’s just too awkward for me.