iFiZen DAC V3 -Desktop DAC Preamp, Digital to Analog Audio Converter - Supports All high-res Music formats up to PCM 768kHz/DSD512 & MQA

I'm going to get straight to the point…This is a high quality DAC. It has premium Burr Brown chips inside and a beautifully designed output circuit that most forget to pay attention to. It's not just the DAC chips inside that make a DAC sound good, it's the power supply and electrical circuity in the output stage that make all the difference and ifi Audio does this incredibly well. If you know about Burr Brown, you know that Burr Brown chips have been used for years for clarity and warmth by the leading Audio Interface manufacturers in Pro Audio (studios). It's a beautiful sound signature that makes every other chip sound analytical and cold. Burr Brown chips can be compared to AKM's high end chips--warm, a lot of impact, but very little distortion. My Adam Audio T8v monitors produce insanely powerful mids and bass with this DAC, but when I look at the 8" drivers on the monitors, they're barely moving. It's incredible how my power this DAC has and how effortless it drives studio monitors. It's insane how much clarity it has, even at high volume. My monitors stay incredibly flat, all the way up to ear-bleeding volume levels...that's very unusual for a DAC at this price....unheard of actually. My volume knob is at 30% most of the time, and that's ridiculously loud. One word to describe this DAC....POWERFUL!ZEN DAC v2Headphone Section Output Power@ 32 Ohms - 280mW (Unbalanced) <—v2 is the Winner@ 50 Ohms - 380mW (Balanced 4.4mm) <—v2 is the WinnerZEN DAC v3Headphone Section Output Power@ 32 Ohms - 210mW (Unbalanced)@ 32 Ohms - 300mW (Balanced 4.4mm)Yes, the ZEN DAC v3 has 32-bit, high KHz capabilities; however, I use the highest paid Tidal subscription for all my streaming and although the music is lossless audio, and the best streaming system today, Tidal does not have ANY master files above 24-bit 192KHz. Therefore, the ZEN DAC v3 would have no benefits/advantages above the ZEN DAC v2.VERY IMPORTANT…v2 - Truebass (Smooth, Deep, Sub-bass Enhancement)V3 - Xbass (Thumpy, Harder-hitting, Bass Enhancement)I prefer the Truebass for all of my music listening, which is Ambient, Ambient Dubstep, Dark Electronic, Deep House, and Progressive tunes.Some people buy the ZEN DAC v2 and the ZEN CAN AMP so that they can use the Truebass feature, AND the Xbass feature. If your headphones have high quality drivers, they can handle both without any distortion. It’s a beautiful experience.My setup: ZEN DAC v2, Truebass ON with HD 599 Headphones and it absolutely blows my Fostex Modhouse Argon MK3 out of the water as far as clarity, bass, and fidelity…..and the Argon’s are known for ridiculous bass.So, this has been a very weird, and confusing revelation, but I’ve realized that pairing is the most important thing with sound, and a $150 headphone like the HD 599 (although highly recommended by everyone) completely obliterates my $1100 setup using the Argons. I’m using the THX 789 Headphone amp for my Argons and STILL, the HD 599 takes the cake.Best sounding setup for all kinds of music (HD 599 with ZEN DAC v2 with Truebass ON)Make sure to burn-in the headphones for a week or two before going full bore with high volume and Truebass ON. If you turn on Truebass before your headphones are burned-in, don't go too high on the volume on the DAC and you'll be fine. Give the driver some time to settle in.Thank me later.

It is a good sounding DAC. I could not detect any "breakthrough" with balanced line out, but they do not claim it in the specs either. I could listen to this DAC for a long time - very pleasant experience. The cheaper cousin Zen DAC Air has a,b(no MQA),c firmware choices and this one has only a,c. Anyway, MQA seems to be inactive anyway when streaming from wiim ultra locally, so standard "a" firmware is fine. The Bass+ only available on line out only when set to variable volume mode (do not forget to use PowerMatch to set line out voltage to acceptable level ~3V max, rotate volume knob to 3 o'clock position - it will be close to standard 2.1V) The fixed line out mode(2.1V) is pretty much straight out of the DAC chip with minimal intervention on the way out. I keep mine in variable mode, so I could boost bass on old/some bass lacking recordings. If you think it is too expensive - there is Zen DAC Air for less than a half price that will deliver pretty much the same sound, just in a cost effective way. It is a keeper for sure.Recently, I learned Yamaha released a while ago a studio subwoofer HS8S. It takes care of high/low pass filtering, so with my older HS80M - it is all I ever needed, so I switched to balanced connections. This sub is very capable, so studio quality audio is back with highs now so detailed, it is on the same level with Sony MDR-6.

I am very happy with my new iFi Zen DAC 3. I use it as a desktop headphone DAC/Amp to power Sennheisser HD660S2 headphones with a balanced cable. I also used my much more reasonably priced JBL wireless/wired headhpones (Tune660) on the unbalanced jack with good results as well.Playing through a variety of music the iFi implementation of the Burr-Brown chip provides a robust and satisfying experience. The incredible depth, color, range and dynamics(21 LU) of St. Saens Symphony No. 3 (organ) was clear and real from the deepest rumble from 32 foot organ pipes to tinkling rain bells and crashing cymbals with strings that sounded authentic and did not seem muddy or contrived.My experience with Dire Straits, Carly Simon, Pink Floyd, 10,000 Maniacs, John Denver, Heart, Pet Shop Boys, Morrisey, Joe Walsh, the list goes on, from Classical to classic rock to new wave, country, electronic, folk, and choral was the same - superb. The genre shifted as did the formats from basic 44/16 and 192/24 flac, DSD 64 and 128, MQA, and even older mp3's sounded great with instant transition between formatsI typically use Roon to manage playing music that is sourced locally or streamed from Tidal.I have not used the ifi Zen DAC 3 with a separate amp and speakers.I also purchased the separate iFi SilentPower iPower2 - Low Noise DC Power Supply with this item. It turns out that the DAC can operate on the power provided over USB and sounds great, but using the separate power supply really opened up and fortified the sound in direct comparison.The iFi Zen DAC 3 is a great sounding, good looking, solid desktop headphone DAC/Amp.