iFi-Audio Finally Unveils The Pro iDSD
Well folks, it’s been quite a wait; hasn’t it? But it seems, finally, that the wizards over at iFi-Audio are nearly ready to deliver their much anticipated Pro iDSD!
If you’ve been in the audiophile world for a while now, you will almost certainly be familiar with the brand iFi-Audio. They’ve given us audio enthusiasts some truly remarkable equipment. From the fantastically versatile over-achiever that is the Micro iDSD Black Label, to the more desktop-orientated and feature-rich iOne, iFi-Audio really know how to create some genuinely fine equipment.
But, of course, we are human, and we always need more. More power, more numbers, lower noise, infinite dopamine.
What’s The Fuss About the Pro iDSD?
Well, it’s the beastly bigger brother of the Micro iDSD (Black Label). It’s not like the Micro iDSD wasn’t an already stellar performer, but the Pro iDSD (just like the rest of iFi-Audio’s Pro-line) takes things up a whooooole other level.
On the inside we get a quad-DAC setup! Yup, that four Burr-Brown DAC chips. But, it also has FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays), somewhat similar in concept to what Chord has employed in their high performance solutions.
Details on the power capabilities of the headphone section are not quite clear yet, but iFi-Audio have stated that the Pro iDSD’s amplifier is “second only to standalone Pro iCAN”. That’s pretty impressive.
It also has a total of 3 available outputs – a single ended 6.3mm, single ended 3.5mm, and a 2.5mm balanced connection. Initially they did plan on doing a 3.5mm balanced connection, but due to the input from the audio community they felt that going the 2.5mm route would be best. This has caused a delay in the release of the device, though.
Oh, and what’s that I hear you say? Solid state amps suck? Well, firstly, you’re wrong. But fret not, iFi-Audio did think of you and have included tube-based circuitry too. You can switch between an all-solid-state amp, or an all-valve Class A section based on 2x GE5670 tubes. There’s even a “Tube+” mode which “reduces available negative feedback to a minimum. As a result, a greater amount of the tubes natural harmonic distortion is produced (even order harmonics dominate)”. Neato!
For fans of streaming-services, the Pro iDSD has WiFi on-board, allowing you to connect to your Airplay-enabled devices, as well as your TIDAL and Spotify accounts (amongst others). Heck, go ahead and connect it to your NAS – that’s supported too!
And as a cheery on top, iFi-Audio have recently announced that they’ve included compatibility with MQA files as well.
Pricing and Availability
As mentioned, the release of the Pro iDSD was pushed back due to a change in plans for the balanced connection. So, so far the only info we have about the release date is pretty much “soon”. Retail pricing has been announced, though, and iFi-Audio have pegged the price at $2,499 (ex-taxes and/or shipping).
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They’d sell a more if these weren’t the price of a used car.
exactly, ….. if television technology is used as an example, the prices are more realistic and better adapted, …..
Unfortunately, this comes down to economies of scale. Sticking with TVs as an example, sales of TV sets FAR outnumber the sales of these audio products, and so, because more of them are being produced, the production cost of each TV set is dramatically reduced. This is one of the downsides of niche and specialised market segments.