INTRODUCTION

   Whether you're in the market for a new sound card for your PC or you just want to improve audio coming from your laptop, tablet, smartphone or even from your TV a DAC (digital-to-analog converter) could be the way to go. For all of you who may not know what DACs do well they basically improve audio quality by converting digital audio into analog thus providing superior results across the board. One of the key selling points of standalone DACs is their balanced outputs which optimize audio quality by pretty much eliminating issues like crosstalk and noise. Today with me i have what could be the most affordable MQA capable USB DAC & Headphone Amp in the market today, the ZEN Air by iFi audio.

   iFi audio is a UK based manufacturer of desktop and portable high-end audio equipment. Innovative high-end audio should be available to everyone, everywhere, so iFi uses the latest technology, materials and consumer feedback to provide an audiophile quality listening experience at an affordable price. You listen to music, we listen to you.

   The iFi audio ZEN Air (and the rest of the new ZEN line) was introduced back in early 2022 with a single goal in mind, to continue the successful path laid out by the original ZEN series and win the hearts and minds of audiophiles on a tight budget. To achieve that inside the plastic housing of the ZEN Air iFi audio has placed a 16-core XMOS microcontroller, Bit-perfect DSD & DXD DAC by Burr Brown, OPA2673 High Output Current OP-amp by Texas Instruments and C0G capacitors by TDK. Thanks to this combination the ZEN Air can output PCM and DXD at up to 384kHz and DSD at up to 12.4MHz and has a single headphone output rated at 230mW at 32Ω and 36mW at 300Ω (1Ω impedance). iFi audio has also added features like their Power Match and Xbass+ which can be used to produce more power and richer bass respectively. Yes, this might be an entry-level DAC but it does seem quite interesting so let's see just how good it really is.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The small box which iFi audio uses has a product picture at the front and both their logo and the Hi-Res logo.

A picture of the rear is located on the left side.

Both the product features and specifications are printed at the rear of the box.

Packaging is more than sufficient for such a small and light device.

Aside the ZEN Air and its USB host port (power & data) inside the box you'll also find instructions on how to use the MQA firmware, warranty information paper and the quick start guide.

THE ZEN AIR

The ZEN Air is a compact standalone DAC & headphone amp which weighs just 315g and measures 158mm in length, 117mm in width and 35mm in height.

At the front we find a LED used to display format and sample rate (Green for PCM 44.1/48/88.2/96kHz, Yellow for PCM 176.4/192/352.8/384kHz, Cyan for DSD 64/128, Blue for DSD 256 and Magenta for MQA), power match button for the one-step gain control (not to be used with IEMs), volume control knob (analog mind you), 6.35mm single-ended headphone jack and the Xbass+ button (analog bass extender).

Turning the device around we find an L/R RCA output, USB host port and a 5V in.

The ZEN Air sits on 4 small round rubber feet.

Even though my ZEN Air arrived with the latest firmware installed I still needed to upload the MQA version (you can download the firmware package from iFi audio’s support page seen above).

CONCLUSION

   iFi audio is a name I’ve known for years now but it wasn't until quite recently and after many of you asked that i decided to reach out to them. Now i can't say that the ZEN Air was on top of my review list and its plastic housing didn't leave the best impression to me but in the end it all worked out. In regards to testing i used numerous uncompressed FLAC tracks (including some MQA ones) with the ZEN Air during the 2 weeks i ended up testing it (with the S1000DB speakers by Edifier and the SP3 speakers and FT3/FT5 headphones by FiiO - review soon) and even though i didn't have high expectations from it (obviously due to its low cost) i was genuinely surprised to see that it did very well across the board from bass levels to detail and even soundstage (alas limited at times). Yes, the ZEN Air may not come quite close to the likes of the FiiO R7 (unfortunately i don't have another iFi audio DAC here to compare it with) in liveness, detail, accuracy, separation, soundstage and even bass but for a budget oriented DAC the ZEN Air did very well indeed. Once again however not all is perfect and so there are 3 things that stood out in a negative way (at least to me), the lack of an 3.5mm output, DC charger (especially since the USB host cable is too short) and an on/off button. Yes, this is probably me nitpicking considering the cost of the ZEN Air (although i seriously doubt an on/off button would add to it) but these two are things I’d really like to have regardless of cost.

   As mentioned, many times in this review the ZEN Air DAC is an entry-level DAC & Headphone Amp and with a current price tag set at USD99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and at 103.16Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) it’s exactly that. Long story short the ZEN Air DAC might not be quite as good as it’s higher end brothers by iFi audio or its higher end competition but it does offer a very good price/performance ratio and since that’s exactly what it was released for it clearly deserves the Golden Award.

PROS

- Overall Audio Performance
- 16 Core XMOS Microcontroller
- PCM/DXD 384kHz & DSD 12.4MHz
- Power Match & Xbass+
- MQA Support
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- No On/Off Button & Power Adapter
- Short USB Host Cable
- Lack Of 3.5mm Output