iFi has unveiled its latest small-form portable DAC, the Go Blu Air. The British audio manufacturer is no stranger to a small, slender accessory, demonstrated by the likes of its iFi Go Link and ultra-portable Go Bar Kensei DACs, but this latest model really is a tiddler.
Measuring just 5cm tall and weighing in at a meagre 30g, the new DAC is designed to improve your portable headphone sound. iFi bills the new unit as being "small enough to forget you’re carrying it, yet powerful enough to remind you why you did".
To make good on this promise, the Go Blu Air's acoustic architecture features separated DAC and amplification stages in pursuit of reduced noise and low distortion.
The Go Blu Air also harnesses Qualcomm's QCC5144 chipset for Bluetooth reception, while a Cirrus Logic MasterHIFI DAC chip promises "natural tonality" and a "high-resolution output".
The dinky DAC also uses a twin-mono amplifier stage as part of the audio signal path to deliver up to 256mW of power, while a 3.5mm output includes iFi’s 'S-Balanced' technology to reduce crosstalk for in-ear headphones.
As well as 4.4mm and 3.5mm balanced headphone outputs, the new model offers Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity to your source device, supporting hi-res codecs such as LDAC, aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, alongside the more standard AAC and SBC protocols.
You can customise your sound to your liking, too. iFi's 'XBass' mode boosts your music's low-end signature, whereas 'XSpace' opens up the soundstage for a more immersive experience which seeks to recreate the feeling of a live performance.
As you might imagine, the Go Blu Air is designed to be portable. Offering up to 10 hours of playtime on a single charge, the lightweight unit comes fitted with a detachable magnetic clip so you can secure it to belts, bags, jackets and the like.
It also offers a built-in MEMS microphone with noise cancellation and echo suppression, meaning you can take hands-free calls and access your phone’s voice assistant without needing to manually switch over to your phone's speakers.
The iFi Go Blu Air is available now, priced at £129 / $129 / €149 / AU$229. We liked the more costly iFi Go Blu (£199 / $199 / AU$299) when we tested it a few years ago, so we're hoping for a similar success story from this cheaper model.
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