Overall, the driving power is also pretty good, and so are the dynamics, making the Soundkey a very impressive DAC/AMP in terms of sonics. This is an interesting part in this review, because I wasn’t expecting the SoundKey to be anything special, but actually, it is a really good portable DAC/AMP.

Cyrus’ soundKey is a portable USB DAC (digital-to-analogue converter) and headphone amp, aimed at use for smartphones and tablets. While these devices have their own built in DACs, they are often low quality units which can really hinder your music. The soundKey bypasses onboard DACs and uses it’s own dedicated circuitry to provide you with a much better sound performance. We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each! It also boasts a dual high-density battery customized power system designed to separate digital and analog power to eliminate digital circuit noise from the source. Cyrus Soundkey vs FiiO K3– Starting with FiiO K3, they are pretty different devices. The thing that is interesting here is that K3 is a desktop device only, and drains a portable way too fast to be practical as a portable DAC/AMP, and its physical size and shape makes it even less ergonomic for portability. In terms of sound, when placing them side by side, the Soundkey sounds more bright, more open, more airy, where K3 sounds more hot and a bit metallic in the treble. Both have good details and similar size for their soundstage, and both are pretty clearly good products, but they are intended for different usages, but, this being said, you can use the Soundkey both for portable and desktop usage, while K3 is only for desktop.Cyrus Soundkey vs Audirect Beam–I noted in my review that the Beam is a bit on the smoothly textured yet bright in signature. Since both are DAC/AMPs, the only thing I want to mention about the differences in build quality between the Cyris soundkey and the Beam is that the Beam gets MUCH hotter during actual usage, and that the Beam is smaller physically, and has a volume / song change knob, which may be good, or bad, depending on whether you assume you’ll be using that. In terms of sound, the soundkey feels like an upgrade from the beam, with more textures, more resolution, more details and clarity, and with more impact. The Soundkey is also almost 50% more expensive though. It’s likely no surprise to anyone who has heard of the Questyle M15 to see it top our ‘best-of’ list for this year. Liquid gold describes the M15 aptly, with musicality meeting technicality. Switching to Hifiman HE-400i was less satisfying. Bass performance was not there. And at high volumes I thought the highs got a bit distorted. Deoaece magazinul care mi-a oferit sample-ul pentru acest review este din Romania, voi adauga si un mic rezumat in Romana.

If we're asked to make a trade-off between transparency and ultimate dynamism, we'll come down on the side of the Cyrus every time.iFi’s products rarely disappoint on the compatibility front, and this one is no different. The hip-dac will work with up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and DSD256 files. MQA is also on the menu. In short, there's a great chance that the hip-dac will play whatever you want it to. If you have a dime to spare, please donate, and help us! It would make the day brighter for me and my wife- Key specs – Dimensions: 306 x 224 x 44mm; Max bit depth/sampling rate: 32-bit/384kHz; Inputs: USB, balanced XLR, unbalanced RCA, coaxial, TOSLINK optical; Outputs: XLR3, XLR4, 6.3mm, 4.4mm