Audioquest Dragonfly USB DAC Black 1.5 $99 Delivered @ Minidisc

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whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 15:58 minidisc.com.au (310 clicks)
Last edited 20/11/2023 - 15:18 by 1 other user

The original Dragonfly boosts the market for micro-DACs.
Due to its USB power draw, the device functions well with computers only.
But as we all know that the use of portable versions such as
Apple and Android smartphones and tablets has been increased,
the demand for updated DAC versions has been emerged.

That is why, the Dragonfly is now offered its clients,
a reliable and improved version, which is known as DragonFly Black.

Versatile Behavior

Convenience and performance is combined with the latest DragonFly Black.
It works as a true highly fidelity music player, when coupled with any computer,
tablet, laptop, or smartphone. Music lovers will enjoy the wonderful sound of this device,
no matter, whether they are at home or travelling to any other place.

Innovative Design

The new DragonFly Black model incorporate improved
32-bit ESS 9010 Sabre DAC chip which uses minimum-phase filtering
to get naturally detailed, more authentic sound.

Also, the DragonFly Black uses the same fine quality headphone amp
and analog volume control, which is found in the DragonFly 1.2.

This model uses analog volume control as it is a better-sounding approach
than other digital volume controls.

DragonFly Black yields 1.2 volts power,
which is enough capable to drive all preamplifier input circuits
and other reasonably efficient headphones.

Related Stores

Minidisc Australia

• 

  jasswolf on 18/11/2023 - 16:02

  +5

  Way better value for money coming from the Chinese designers at the moment. The Truthear SHIO walks all over this and is regularly cheaper when on sale.

  There's plenty of value to be had in the $50-$110 range if you want to research further, and these days there's even R-2R DAC dongles in the range of $300, which is wild to think about.

  • 

    whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 16:10

    I agree.

    I have a Cayin R-2R dongle DAC myself.

    I just thought I would post a deal
    for those that are non-ChiFi oriented :P

    • 

      jasswolf on 18/11/2023 - 16:11

      I mean they sell Fiio and HIFIMAN…

      • 

        whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 16:18

        hahaha

    • 

      HaydosK on 18/11/2023 - 16:42

      chifi is the future

  • 

    whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 16:33

    I wanted the Cayin RU7 at $385 from Musicteck now,
    but $50 shipping kind of kills the intent.

    • 

      jasswolf on 18/11/2023 - 18:33

      That's a used/open box model, you could do better from AliE when discount codes come around again in a week's time.

      Expect $40 USD off $250 USD spend (total minus tax and shipping)… looking at 11.11 sale prices that works out as $375 delivered before considering any cashback.

  • 

    japes on 18/11/2023 - 22:27

    This may be a left-field question as I'm not familiar with audio equipment, but are any of these offered with TRRS interfaces for headsets?

    • 

      jasswolf on 18/11/2023 - 23:10

      +1

      It's fairly rare AFAIK… off the top of my head there's this in terms of reasonable local deals](https://au.creative.com/p/super-x-fi/creative-sxfi-amp) (but don't expect massive amounts of power).

      There seems to be a few threads on Head-fi, but not a long list.

      For most people they wind up having an actual desktop setup for a mic, or using bluetooth/wireless. LE Audio means mic quality will be pretty good from well-made bluetooth headsets going forward, but that's not going to help you today.

      • 

        japes on 19/11/2023 - 16:31

        +1

        Thanks. I've git a pair of Audio-Technica ADG1X's and gave been using their USB interface from my previous pair. No complaints but figured there may be something better.

        Ive grabbed one of the Creative X1's because its worth a crack at $80.

• 

  HaydosK on 18/11/2023 - 16:08

  this is so outdated

  • 

    whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 16:11

    It's the "gateway drug" into the rabbit-hole,
    ie. someone can go and test this DAC out,
    before being convinced!
    … but the thing with this DAC
    is that it's USB-A plug, and for computers.

    • 

      HaydosK on 18/11/2023 - 16:40

      -1

      this is a better start and you will never have to upgrade https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005632023075.html

      • 

        whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 16:46

        There are many dual CS43131 designs,
        and I don't know which one is actually good.

        I prefer AKM chipset or R-2R sound, over ESS,
        and already have too many DACs , ha

        • 

          HaydosK on 18/11/2023 - 16:49

          +1

          @whyisave: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/t…. well i cant say about the sound but it works very well with very low distortion.

          • 

            jasswolf on 18/11/2023 - 18:35

            @HaydosK: Distortion in tone tests is too easy a barrier to jump, and pretty much tells you nothing these days. Ignore ASR beyond ensuring it's not going to hiss or throw sparks at you.

            Truthear SHIO should be a better deal than anything from Tempotec at the moment. They have repeatedly struggling with either implementation, power output, or costs, and their after sales support is extremely combatitive.

            • 

              HaydosK on 18/11/2023 - 19:26

              @jasswolf: i was more showing how much power it has for a portable device

          • 

            whyisave on 18/11/2023 - 21:07

            -1

            @HaydosK: if Amir recommends it, then it must be good ! :D

            ( I got his recommended RME DAC , but the Dan Clark Stealth headphones are too expensive ! )

            I got too many DACs, and even one of my dongle DACs is more powerful than this TempoTec Sonata BHD Pro .

            I've also listened to the AKLiAM PD4 and that's pretty good for the price.
            It's more warm than I expected, but depends on the pairing
            and it's good enough for the price.

            PS:
            Tempotec has a major redesign of the BHD Pro,
            ie. it's the " TempoTec Sonata BHD " (non-Pro),
            with BALANCED and SE outputs,
            same SNR and maximum power as the Pro,
            advertised THD+N=0.0004%
            (better than what Amir measured for the Pro),
            no MQA,
            dded 3-gain button and lower price (AU$ 85+ )

            TempoTec Sonata BHD
            https://aliexpress.com/item/1005006195974359.html

            • 

              Budju on 19/11/2023 - 01:38

              @whyisave: Pretty old at this point. Things change, and the dac/class d landscape is changing rapidly.

• 

  tonyjzx on 18/11/2023 - 16:24

  +5

  says a lot about western companies when they sell a $2 decade old dac chip usb converter for $169 lol

  there's nothing in it

• 

  Raj09 on 18/11/2023 - 16:29

  +1

  Get an ifi hip dac. These are way overrated. I bought 3 of these and can say they are a waste of money compared to the ifi

  • 

    HaydosK on 18/11/2023 - 16:41

    i love ifi products but they are also a bit overrated also. 1000x better than anything from audioquest ofc

    • 

      Raj09 on 18/11/2023 - 19:11

      Yes ifi is but they do deliver

• 

  belrose on 18/11/2023 - 16:51

  Saw it this morning but bought FiiO BTR5 from aliexpress for around $115 delivered, can be used as bluetooth receiver too.
  https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001670765946.html

• 

  dfg555 on 18/11/2023 - 19:57

  -2

  ahh audiophile equipment, another classic rabbit hole snake oil market

  • 

    HaydosK on 20/11/2023 - 14:14

    Not everything is snake oil but audioquest definitely is.