iFi Audio have made a big impact since they were founded in 2012. They are a UK company based in Southport and their Ethos is sound quality above all. Moreover, they have designed and developed over fifty audio devices that enhance the way you live your life. Notably, Their love of music drives the company to create the highest-quality audio devices.
Quality should not be lost when you are on the move. Consequently, portable audio is another iFi Audio specialty. There is no compromise on quality with parts sourced from around the world. The best parts are obtained from Germany, the USA, and Japan. Top-quality materials are used to remove echo and irritating Jitter.
An introduction to the range
iFi Audio make a wide range of products, with Portable audio being a specialty. They also make a range of top-quality Headphone amplifiers for the home. Next, a poor power supply can degrade the sound. As a result, iFi makes a range of power supplies and conditioners. They also make extension blocks that remove noise and interference. Cabling can be another source of noise and distortion. Consequently, they make some unique, hi-end products that will connect your devices.
Ethos
as an example of the ethos of the company we will take a look at the main features of the Uno DAC. The whole point of this device is to maximise the audio quality of the decoded signal. To this end there are three sound modes that match the source. This is a typical iFI Audio design philosophy. Music mode pulls out the detail in the music, while Movie mode enhances the clarity of movie dialogue. Finally, gaming mode pulls out low level sound effects.
Another key for iFi is build quality. Only the best parts are used. Why does this Matter? Note the surface mounted electrolytic capacitors on the board below. Many 1990’s devices are failing because these capacitors leak. The electrolyte gets onto the board and eats through the traces. This can make the device unrepairable. Consequently, iFi use modern capacitor types that will last a lifetime.
The headphone amp feeds a heavy duty 3.5mm socket at the front. This is a balanced output developed by iFi. It is known as S-Balanced and helps to reduce noise and crosstalk. All connectors are gold plated to reduce corrosion and maintain a good contact. Another design feature is analogue volume control. Why is this important? Some lesser DAC’s use digital volume control. This reduces the amount of data going to the decoder, reducing quality at low volumes. iFi sound is great at any volume.
Design Philosophy
Some audio equipment is built to a price while iFi audio are the opposite. They focus on sound quality above all. An example of this is the Zen can range of headphone amplifiers. Some of these are specially tailored for headphones from specific manufactures.
The headphone amp range
The most affordable headphone amp is the Zen Air. It has a class A output as well as XBass bass correction. It also has the ultra low noise OV series op-amps. Performance is amazing for the price.
The OV amps are another example of iFi only using the best components. These are custom components made for iFi that have an amazing low distortion of (0.0001%) and a wide bandwidth.
The Neo network audio streamer.
The Neo brings together all of the iFi Audio innovations in one unit. This is a streamer network player and DAC with unrivalled performance for the price. The platform is specific to iFi. Moreover, it is fully optimised for seamless and superb sonic performance. Notably, you are not tied to a specific app. The Neo is the perfect streamer for music lovers, at a low price.It is also Roon compatible. The Neo will also stream from Spotify or Tidal.
High-end DAC
The iFi Audio neo streamer has a customised built in DAC. It supports hi-res formats such as PCM 768kHz and DSD512. Moreover it has a powerful 16-core XMOS processor that can handle MQA decoding with ease.
About DAC’s
DAC stands for Digital to Analogue Converter and is the heart of modern audio systems. There are many ways of obtaining a DAC. Some are stand alone units while others are integrated with streamers or amplifiers. There are also portable versions that can be used to enhance the sound of built in PC DACs. iFi audio have most types in their range. The processing power of DACs makes a difference. For example MQA files need a lot of power. That is why the Neo streamer has six cores.
Digital audio and bit rates.
Before digital, audio was recorded by analogue means, usually onto shellac and then vinyl. Digital signals are usually Pulse Code Modulated, PCM. That is how CD’s are recorded, the first digital consumer format. The audio signal is sampled at regular intervals, In the case of a CDs, at 44,100 times per second. each sample is then converted into a 16 bit digital “word”. This is known as the bit rate. High resolution files use a higher bit rate. They have 24 bit “words” and a much higher sampling rate of 192,000 times per second. In this way much more information is captured. There is a plethora of different bit rates and coding methods in use at present.
A few words about control applications
There are a range of control applications such as Roon. Roon is a platform not just an app. Notably, it will run on any device, that includes, PC MAC, Android and iOS. The ROON core is the heart of the system. It can be installed on your PC or Mac and will manage the system. Once the core is installed you can connect to it via a Smartphone app.
Additionally, there are two apps, Roon remote and Roon Arc. Roon remote connects to the Roon core when you are at home. It uses your home network so that you can browse your library and play music. User profiles allow you to create favorites and playlists. There is also Roon ARC, this gives you access to your library when you are away at a remote location.
See the fill iFi Audio range on Audio Affair