Audioquest: Dragonfly Red USB DAC + Headphone Amp

LAB POINTS

• ultra-portable, high quality Digital-Audio Converter (DAC)
• drastically upgrades computer audio output to high-fidelity
• plugs into your USB output
• output to headphones, amp, powered speakers, pre-amp or receiver
• approximately the size of a USB stick drive
• plays all music files: MP3 to high-res
• improved signal to noise ratio, lower power consumption, + improved 32-bit DAC chips
• high output (2.1 volts) drives almost all headphones (even power-hungry models)
• use the DragonFly Tail to extend connection and add flexibility
• compatible with MAC, PC, as well as Android and iOS with Apple Camera Adapter or Made for Android/OTG adaptor

LAB REVIEW

Newly upgraded "Red" model, now with improved 32-bit DAC chips, improved signal to noise ratio, lower power consumption, and high output (2.1 volts) to drive even the most power-hungry headphone models. We were very skeptical of the Dragonfly DAC. How could this measure up to the traditional metal box DACs we're used to? We plugged it into our iMac and we were instantly convinced. The Dragonfly drastically improves the sound quality of your computer output... not by a little, but by a lot. Not only was the output much louder (we had to lower the computer volume considerably), the sound was obviously fuller and brighter.

And at the size of a USB stick, the Dragonfly is built for the modern lifestyle. Plug it in to your desktop and forget that it's there, or throw it in your laptop bag for portable audiophile sound.

The Dragonfly works by bypassing the poor sound quality of your computer's audio card. It utilizes sophisticated electronics (centered around a 32-bit ESS Sabreconversion chip, a high-performance solution that's typically found in better CD and Blu-ray Disc players); reduces timing errors (which gives it that fuller, more natural sound); and optimizing the output in direct relation to the native (original) sample rate of your music file.

TECH SPECS

• high output of 2.1 volts to successfully drive almost all headphones, even the most power-hungry models
• 24-bit/96kHz resolution
• asynchronous transfer ensures digital timing integrity
• 32-bit ESS 9016 DAC with minimum-phase filter
• bit perfect digital volume control