Micro iDSD Black Label: A Different Flavor of Review

[buonassi]

Indeed, I've found that you can take a good DAC, like iFi, and make it a great DAC through upsampling - but as you state, time is required to "learn" how to hear the effects and determine what tradeoffs you're willing to make with respect to filter steepness, ringing, aliasing, etc.    

 

Playing to my ego, I feel I've turned a $250 DAC into something better than I thought was possible.  I truly feel I've maxed what my down chain components can resolve in the PCM realm.  Then again, DSD could be yet another audible upgrade for me.  I just may have to get the iFi micro iDAC2 to test that out!  Think of it as an instantly updatable FPGA DAC on the cheap, all thanks to upsampling. 

 

Great article. 

[buonassi]

2 minutes ago, Em2016 said:

 

Your iDSD BL supports up to DSD512. The iDAC2 supports up to DSD256

 

 

 

yeah, but I don't have any of the iFi products yet.... just commenting on the virtues of upsampling in general.  However, I am looking closely at iFi as my next DAC so I can enter the realm of DSD upsampling.  My current DAC is only PCM.  As you say, perhaps patience will pay off if I can wait for the iDAC2 possible successor.  

[buonassi]

many thanks @sdolezalek .  Having recently discovered the benefits of upsampling to 176.4 (max my current DAC can do), I have some faith that moving to DSD will be even better.  So I'm taking the plunge and buying the iFi micro iDAC2 coupled with nano iUSB3.0.  However, my concern is that with all the CPU power required to interpolate a DSD file, my Mac may be the bottleneck.  Especially with my AU plugins.

 

Can you point me to a thread that discusses CPU requirements perhaps?  I'm new to the site and still figuring out the searching techniques.  Just for info, my chain is below:

 

Mac Mini late 2014 2.6ghz i5 8gb memory with 256 SSD

Audirvana+ 3 w/ Tidal Hifi account

     AU-Goodhertz Canopener Studio 3

     AU-Fab Filter ProQ2

[buonassi]

very helpful, thx gents.  plowing my way through the 3.1 topic now.  boy, we audiophiles really like to suffer for our hobby.