iFi Audio iDSD Diablo 2 Portable Balanced Headphone DAC/Amplifier

The Diablo 2 is the world’s first portable DAC/Amp with Bluetooth 5.4, it supports aptX Lossless, the only Bluetooth codec for lossless CD-quality streaming without sacrificing audio quality.

The predecessor of Diablo 2 pioneered support for xMEMS solid-state microspeaker technology, enhancing IEM and headphone performance with several unique benefits:

• A 15 µs mechanical response, 150 times faster than typical drivers.
• A 2° flat phase response for precise sound and precise +/- 1° phase matching for enhanced spatial sound accuracy.
• A speaker diaphragm made of silicon, 95 times stiffer than plastic, reducing speaker break-up and delivering clearer mid-high frequencies.

Due to the high-voltage requirements of xMEMS, iFi has partnered with them to integrate this technology into the new Diablo 2. It utilizes the piezoelectric effect to create paper-thin solid-state speakers by converting electrical energy into mechanical energy, exciting an integrated silicon membrane to generate powerful acoustic sound waves for enhanced audio output.

The Diablo 2 offers three power modes:

• Normal for in-ear monitors (IEMs)
• Turbo for mid-sensitivity headphones
• Nitro for demanding headphones, boasting a 19.2V maximum output

A switch underneath activates iFi’s iEMatch technology. This feature is tailored for high-sensitivity headphones and earphones, greatly benefiting your IEMs. It removes background noise and increases the usable volume range.

The Diablo 2 accommodates a wide range of headphones, from IEMs to power-hungry over-ears. It features a 6.3mm single-ended headphone socket and a 4.4mm balanced output. Additionally, a 3.5mm to 6.35mm adapter is included for versatile connectivity.

• The Diablo 2 features the latest Bluetooth 5.4 technology, supporting the new aptX Lossless codec, which provides a maximum bitrate of 1200 kb/s. In comparison, aptX Adaptive has a maximum bitrate of 420kbps, while LDAC offers a higher bitrate of 990 kb/s.
• The Diablo 2 used Qualcomm’s new QCC518x Bluetooth audio chip, is qualified to Bluetooth 5.4, supporting all Bluetooth formats including: aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive, aptX, LDAC, LHDC/HWA, AAC, and SBC.
• Dual Core Burr Brown chipset provides bit-perfect DSD and PCM support at sample rates up to 768 kHz, DSD512, and Full MQA decoding.

• The Diablo 2 comes with four wings that you can customize to position it horizontally, like a desktop DAC/amp, or vertically to save space.
• Additionally, it features twenty-two rails for improved cooling performance, with eight of these rails being compatible with the Diablo wings, enabling desktop stand use.

• When examining the Diablo 2’s front panel, you’ll find a new Volume Lock switch next to the volume control, preventing accidental adjustments during transport.
• At the back panel’s left side, there’s a switch for mode selection and Bluetooth pairing. On the right side, two USB-C ports streamline cable management—one for audio and the other for charging.

• The Diablo 2 can be powered by battery or mains
• Battery power provides ultraclean and stable DC current, avoiding mains electricity issues like dips, spikes, and noise inducing RFI/EMI pollution. However, there are sonic downsides due to low output voltage and inconsistent output impedance as batteries discharge
• The bundled iPower2 power supply features Active Noise Cancellation II, effectively cancelling out all incoming EMI and RFI noise and making it more than 10 times quieter than most audiophile power supplies
• To make less efficient headphones, like planar magnetics, sing, the voltage needs to be stepped up from 3.7V to +/- 15V. iFi Audio uses a step-up converter operating at 1.2 MHz—a frequency far beyond audibility and easier to filter than a typical switch-mode supply, ensuring high linearity and ultralow noise

• The XMOS 16-Core chip processes the audio data received via the USB digital input.
• This low-latency XMOS microcontroller has greatly enhanced processing power. Compared to the current generation of eight-core chips, this 16-core IC delivers double the clock speed (2000MIPS) and four times the memory (512 KB), as well as the latest SuperSpeed USB standard.
• iFi’s in-house digital development team has programmed the XMOS firmware to optimise sound quality and ensure a perfect partnership with the Burr-Brown DAC.

GMT Clock

• Extensive jitter-eradication technologies are applied to the digital stage, including iFi's GMT (Global Master Timing) femto-precision clock and intelligent memory buffer. This represents a total out-of-the-box systematic digital solution that solves jitter once and for all.

Burr-Brown MultiBit

• The Burr-Brown True Native chipset means file formats remain unchanged or bit-perfect. This means you are listening to music as the artist intended in the format in which it was recorded.
• At iFi, they use Burr Brown extensively in their products, having selected them for natural-sounding musicality and True Native architecture. iFi's experience with this IC means they know how to make the most of it.

Direct Drive

• An important aspect of the circuit design is its direct-coupled nature (no coupling capacitor is present), achieved without a conventionally applied DC servo.
• DirectDrive equals a direct signal path which means less signal degradation. This direct signal path is unequalled in audio and is the reason why the sound is so ‘true’.

MQA

• MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) is supported through the USB with full decoding of MQA files up to 384 kHz thanks to the processing power of the new 16-core XMOS chip.
• This means that the decoding process is performed internally as opposed to only the final unfold in the manner of an MQA renderer.
• Globally, MQA has become an important consideration for any comprehensively equipped DAC. It is available through for Tidal Masters, Audirvana, and Roon.

OptimaLoop

• Negative feedback is used in amplifier circuits to compare the output signal with the input signal and correct errors, in order to control gain and reduce distortion.
• For sound quality, this is positive; but commonly applied, one-size-fits-all global negative feedback can also highlight different problems at the same time as solving others—corruption of the error signal, phase shifts, group delay, and so on, can all have a negative impact on sound quality.
• iFi Audio recognised that different parts of a circuit benefit from specifically optimised feedback loops and have developed a negative feedback system that is much more accurate than the usual approach. This incorporates multiple feedback paths instead of a global loop, each path optimised for a particular function and working synergistically with the others to deliver optimal overall performance.

PureWave

• Balanced differential analog circuit design has long been championed for its ability to reduce noise and crosstalk within the signal path by fully separating the left and right channels.
• PureWave is a new, balanced, symmetrical dual-mono topology with short, direct signal paths. The name refers to the sonic purity it achieves thanks to exceptional linearity and infinitesimally low levels of noise and distortion.

• iFi Audio incorporated a custom OV Series operational-amplifier. This top-notch component contributes to the extremely low noise, low distortion (0.0001%) and wide bandwidth.

MOSFET

• Switching between settings has been engineered to ensure sonic transparency with advanced trench technology MOSFET is used as a muting switch.
• This FET-based switching is handled by a microcontroller, which only wakes up when the user changes a setting, thus eradicating any sonically deleterious interference.

TDK

• TDK C0G (Class 1 ceramic) capacitors offer high stability and low losses for resonant circuit applications.
• Getting ever closer to the theoretical ideal of pure, frequency-constant capacitance, these capacitors reduce capacitor-induced distortion to vanishingly low levels.

Vishay MELF resistors—complex, costly, but superior.

• These metal electrode leadless face resistors have excellent accuracy, stability, reliability, and pulse load capability. They provide optimal power rating and pulse load capability. They show some of the lowest noise and distortion of any resistor available in the market, period.

Panasonic OS-CON

• Panasonic OS-CON caps totaling 5410 uF give very-low Equivalent Series Resistance (ESR), excellent noise reduction capability and frequency response characteristics. In addition, OS-CONs have a long-life span and its ESR changes little even at low temperatures since the electrolyte is solid.
• They are not often found in products costing<us$1000.< li=""></us$1000.<>

Texas Instruments

• Texas Instruments low-noise ICs offer great unity-gain bandwidth, very low noise and distortion, high output drive capability, Common-mode and Power Supply Rejection Ratios of over 100 dB, wide maximum-output-swing bandwidths and high slew rates.

muRata

• muRata control-type, low-ESR high-Q multilayer capacitors. The ESR control aspect of the Murata is something special. Their noise suppression abilities are impressive

Key Features

• Portable High-Resolution Audio Playback
• Delivers Up to 5180mW of Power
• Lossless Bluetooth 5.4 Portable DAC/Amp
• Compatible with xMEMS Microspeaker Tech
• Gain Modes: Normal, Turbo, and Nitro
• iEMatch for High-Sensitivity Headphones
• Balanced, Symmetrical Dual-Mono Topology
• 3.5mm and 4.4mm Headphone Outputs
• USB-C and 3.5mm Coax/Optical Inputs
• Includes USB Cables, Adapters, and More

Technical Specifications

• Specifications
  • Number of Headphone Channels: Single Channel
  • Recommended Headphone Impedance: 32 to 600 Ohms
  • Headphone Output Power
    
    • 4.4 mm Balanced: 611 mW into 600 Ohms
    • 4.4 mm Balanced: 5180 mW into 32 Ohms
    • 1/4" Unbalanced: 153 mW into 600 Ohms
    • 1/4" Unbalanced: 2450 mW into 32 Ohms
  • Digital Chipset: DAC: Burr-Brown
  • EQ: No
  • Display: No
• Connectivity
  
  • Analog Audio I/O
    
    • 1 x 4.4 mm Balanced Stereo Line Output
    • 1 x 4.4 mm Balanced Stereo Headphone Output
    • 1 x 1/4" TRS Unbalanced Stereo Headphone Output
  • Digital Audio I/O: 1 x Mini-TOSLINK / 3.5 mm Optical S/PDIF Input
  • USB
    
    • 1 x USB-C (Power/Charging Input)
    • 1 x USB-C (Digital Input)
  • Wireless: Bluetooth 5.4 (*Built-In)
  • Bluetooth: 5.4
  • Supported Audio Codecs: AAC, aptX, aptX Adaptive, aptX LL, LDAC, LHDC, SBC
• Performance
  
  • Frequency Response: 20 Hz to 90 kHz -3 dB
  • Maximum Output Level:
    
    • 4.4 mm Headphone:
      
      • 19.2 V (600-Ohm Load)
      • 12.87 V (32-Ohm Load)
    • 1/4" Headphone:
      
      • 9.6 V (600-Ohm Load)
      • 8.85 V (32-Ohm Load)
  • Impedance: Outputs: < 1 Ohm (Balanced or Unbalanced)
  • THD+N: Headphone: 0.002% (at 200 Kilohms)
  • SNR: ≥ 114 dBA
• Digital Audio
  
  • Sample Rates: 44.1 / 48 / 88.2 / 96 / 176.4 / 192 / 352.8 / 384 / 705.6 / 768 kHz (PCM)
• Compatibility
  
  • Mobile App Compatible : No (*As of November, 2023: Check with manufacturer for the most up-to-date compatibility)
  • Mobile Device Compatibility
    
    • Android Smartphone (with USB OTG (On-The-Go))
    • iPhone (with Lightning Connector)
• Power
  
  • Power Requirements: AC/DC Power Adapter (Included), USB Bus Power
  • AC Input Power: 100 to 240 VAC, 50 / 60 Hz
  • Ground Lift: No
  • DC Input Power: 5 VDC
  • Power Consumption
    
    • 2 W (Eco Mode)
    • 5 W (Typical)
    • 12 W (Maximum)
  • Internal Battery: Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Polymer (LiPo), 4800 mAh
  • Battery Charging Time: 12 Hours