At this 12 months’s Excessive Finish Vienna present, iFi unveiled its newest and best moveable DAC, the iFi iDSD GR 2 — and I used to be there to see the massive reveal.
This moveable and decidedly hip flask-shaped DAC / amp is endeavouring to construct on the extraordinarily robust foundations laid by its predecessor, the iFi xDSD Gryphon, which we rated 5 stars beneath intense evaluate. This mannequin delivers much more amplification energy, and goals for much more detailed audio alongside a extra intuitive interface — fairly promising stuff proper?
Not solely did I see the product at its unveiling occasion, however I’ve additionally tried it out for myself. I obtained to pay attention to a couple tracks with the GR 2, mess around with its new interface and in addition hear from the iFi crew about some all-new options. It’s secure to say we’re feeling fairly optimistic in regards to the GR 2 thus far, having given it one among our Best In Show awards at High End Vienna, so right here’s every part it’s essential learn about iFi’s newest creation.
iFi crams in much more tech
Though the GR 2 might look much like its predecessor on the skin, it has loads of massive enhancements on the within — so to start with, let’s run via a number of the foremost ones.
iFi advised me that this mannequin delivers round 50% extra output energy than its predecessor (as much as 1,513mW RMS), however on the identical time, provides higher dynamic vary and fewer distortion. That is largely enabled by the DAC’s new current-output Burr Brown PCM1795 chipset, which may additionally serve up “true” 32-bit decision audio.
iFi was additionally eager to spotlight how this new chipset retains the “heat, analog home sound” it’s recognized for. The crew had been additionally eager to impress on us that as a result of the GR 2 is a current-output DAC, (its circuitry outputs {an electrical} present proportional to the digital enter worth, fairly than a voltage) the corporate had “freedom to engineer a bespoke analog output stage.”
One main distinction is that the GR 2 contains a colour OLED touchscreen, including a brand new stage of intuitiveness that we felt was lacking from the unique Gryphon (which had a purposeful however un-colorful black and white show). This OLED display screen allows you to swiftly cycle between core settings and completely different connectivity strategies, making the consumer expertise extremely slick.
However regardless of including this touchscreen, battery life has been considerably boosted. Nath Chinn, Product Advertising & Technical Enablement Guide at iFi, advised me that the brand new mannequin has a capability of 4,900mAh, which is a few third greater than the unique Gryphon.
Maybe one of the best function that’s been added to the GR 2 from an iFi fan’s perspective is K2HD tech (additionally discovered within the a lot pricier and actually fairly enormous iDSD Phantom desktop DAC) which Chinn emphasised continues to be completely licensed by JVC Kenwood to iFi merchandise. K2HD is meant to revive harmonic element, and convey a monitor nearer to its supposed sound. Chinn revealed a bit in regards to the licensing course of to me, stating that “we needed to principally spend 18 months doing a dance, sending them [JVC] merchandise, after which evaluating them of their grasp recording studios with engineers to see whether or not we’re worthy sufficient. It’s a labor of affection, however we’re honored to have that privilege”.
Chinn described the GR 2 as a “Swiss military knife” and the inclusion of K2HD solely boosts the product’s versatility. Talking of which, there are a selection of connectivity strategies on board to swimsuit nearly any scenario. There’s Bluetooth 5.4, with aptX codecs together with Lossless and Adaptive in addition to Sony’s LDAC. However there’s additionally a 4.4mm and three.5mm enter and output, a USB-C port, and extra.
However simply how good is the GR 2 in use? Nicely, I headed on over to iFi’s demo house, which was geared up with the brand new DAC/amp, a music streamer, and a pair of the Sennheiser HD 820. I tuned into Grace by Jeff Buckley in 24-bit/192kHz, and it sounded spectacular. This mixture served up a phenomenally balanced presentation, with intricately textured vocals and expertly separated devices.
I additionally discovered the GR 2 extremely simple to make use of. It was so easy to activate settings like K2HD, cycle between USB-C and Bluetooth connectivity modes, and make any delicate changes I wanted. This mixture of high-end specs and seamless usability actually does make it really feel like a superb cellular/desktop resolution for hi-res audio followers.
All of that is much more spectacular when you think about that the GR 2 has a decrease launch value than its predecessor. It is available in at $529 / £529 / AU$849, which is certainly not low cost, however fairly aggressive given the system’s specs. Is it price the price? You’ll have to attend for our full evaluate to seek out out…
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