ЦАПы — iFi Audio ZEN Air DAC 2

The ZEN Air DAC 2 is a desktop USB DAC and headphone amplifier from iFi Audio, the British company, positioned as the entry point of its ZEN family and sold at GBP 129. It follows the original ZEN Air DAC and adds a balanced 4.4 mm headphone output along with more output power. The casing comes in a midnight blue finish with a metal front panel and a dedicated power button.

Key specs that matter

Inside is a bit-perfect Cirrus Logic DAC chip that accepts PCM up to 32-bit and 384 kHz and native DSD up to DSD256. Signal enters through a USB-C port. Headphone outputs are a balanced 4.4 mm socket rated at 5.57 V or 484 mW into 64 ohm and a single-ended 6.3 mm socket rated at 3.02 V or 286 mW into 32 ohm. Output impedance at the headphone sockets is under 1.4 ohm balanced and under 0.7 ohm single-ended. Line output on RCA delivers 2 V, rising to 3.4 V maximum with variable gain, from a source impedance of 50 ohm or less. Both SNR and dynamic range measure 118 dBA, and response runs from 20 Hz to 90 kHz at -3 dB. THD+N is 0.0011% or lower from the 6.3 mm jack at 1.27 V into 16 ohm, and 0.0015% or lower from the 4.4 mm jack at 2.4 V into 32 ohm.

Engineering and use context

Two analogue circuits give control over the output. XBass+ is a low shelving filter that lifts the bottom end, while PowerMatch raises the gain for less sensitive headphones. Power draw is about 0.55 W with no signal and about 3.55 W at maximum output, so the unit can run from a computer port. The chassis measures 158 x 100 x 35 mm and weighs 315 g, small enough to sit next to a laptop on a desk. iFi gives a 12-month warranty, extended to 24 months in the EU. Because the RCA sockets carry a line signal, the box can also act as a simple USB DAC feeding a stereo amp or powered monitors when no headphones are connected.

Pairing

Low headphone output impedance suits multi-driver in-ear monitors, whose balance between drivers changes when fed from a source of higher impedance. Planar headphones and less efficient full-size models are better served from the balanced socket with PowerMatch engaged. On the line side, powered monitors with RCA inputs or an integrated amplifier with a spare analogue input complete a compact desktop system, with the volume set either on the ZEN or on the downstream device.

Alternatives

The iFi ZEN Air DAC is the earlier model in the same series, offered as the lower-cost predecessor without the 4.4 mm balanced headphone socket.