A transportable headphone amp may appear anachronistic on this age of Bluetooth headphones. Why be tethered to wires when wi-fi is the longer term? Whilst many BT headphones be offering spectacular sound high quality, they are inherently restricted of their design. Integrated batteries and electronics absorb house and upload to the full price. Many makers of stressed headphones and earbuds be offering fashions that, in concept, be offering identical costs as BT fashions however with higher or extra drivers. Others have fashions that experience drivers which are too power-hungry to be pushed neatly by way of integrated batteries.

7.5

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt

Like

• 
  Tiny
• 
  Robust for its length

Do not like

• 
  A little bit costly
• 
  No changes or app

That you must persistent those stressed headphones from any headphone jack, however integrated ports like that hardly have a lot persistent. As an alternative, a transportable headphone amp may give audiophile headphones the juice they want with out tying you to a chair or table. 

Which brings us to the DragonFly Cobalt from AudioQuest. It’s been out for a couple of years, however is now 30% less expensive and going ahead would be the best fashion within the DragonFly line. More or less the dimensions of a small thumb, it connects to any telephone or pc by way of USB. Within is an amp and a DAC, or digital-to-analog converter, that declare to carry the listening enjoy. We will see. Or listen. We will listen. 

Specifications and such

• DAC Chip: ESS ES9038Q2M
• Max sampling price/frequency: 24-bit/96kHz
• Amp chip: ESS Sabre 9601
• Energy: “2.1 volts”

The Cobalt looks as if a USB thumb force, if any person recalls the ones. Integrated is a brief dongle that converts the USB-A at the Cobalt to USB-C to be used with telephones and lots of laptops. To connect with Apple merchandise you unsurprisingly desire a particular adapter, which is to be had one by one. You additionally get a small pleather case, which is a pleasant contact even though I do not consider it is going to get a lot use.

Within the Cobalt is a ESS Sabre 9601 headphone amp and a ESS ES9038Q2M DAC. The Cobalt maxes out at 24-bit/96kHz, which is lower than some USB DACs. There isn’t any ton of tune to be had at larger charges, however there may be some. For my part I believe there may be worth in higher-than-CD sampling charges (16/44.1) however I am skeptical of any person who says they are able to listen a distinction between 96 and 192kHz.

The claimed persistent ranking of “2.1 volts” is unclear and nearly deceptive. Just about all amplifiers are rated in watts and it is simply probably the most recognizable audio spec. Watts is volts instances amps, and no tool like that is striking out the rest with reference to 1 amp. So unquestionably “2.1” is way more spectacular a bunch than no matter milliwatts this (or any, to be fair) headphone amp supplies. For comparability, the older and less expensive DragonFly Black had a claimed 1.2 volts whilst the identical iFi Pass Hyperlink (overview coming quickly), claims 70mW into 32 ohms and and a pair of.05V into 600 ohms (which converts to 7mW). 

The dragonfly at the DragonFly lighting fixtures up other colours with other sampling charges: Crimson for Standby, inexperienced for 44.1kHz, blue for 48kHz, yellow for 88.2kHz, gentle blue for 96kHz, and red for MQA. A minimum of, that is the concept. Hardly did this fit up with the claimed sampling charges on content material I examined with my Pixel 7. It matched higher, or a minimum of sooner, with my Sony NW-A306 moveable media participant.

Sound

I examined the Cobalt the usage of some high-end headphones, two of that are borderline what might be regarded as “moveable.” A minimum of within the sense that I don’t believe most of the people would stroll round with them. The ones will be the Audeze LCD-3 ($1,945) and the Sendy Audio Apollo ($500). Those are headphones made for sitting in a single position and playing. I extensively utilized the Meze Audio Rai Penta in-ear displays ($1,100) which are not specifically tough to force, however have superb readability. Why use ultra-expensive, and in two circumstances massive, headphones to check a $200 amp? Neatly, if it might persistent those it might persistent absolutely anything. I used a mix of CD-quality and high-resolution FLAC from Qobuz.

Now not short of to concentrate in a vacuum, as a way to discuss, I when put next the Cobalt to a number of different amp/DACs, beginning with the headphone jack on my pc after which the analog output of my Pixel 7 by way of a USB-C-to-1/eighth analog dongle. I additionally when put next the Cobalt to the iFi Audio hip-dac2. This could also be technically a transportable headphone amp, and priced in a similar fashion to the Cobalt. Alternatively, it is a lot, a lot greater, and has a fairly bulky connection procedure that is not one thing I might be expecting most of the people to make use of strolling round. 

With the Cobalt vs the (admittedly anemic) desktop PC’s headphone jack the usage of the LCD-3s, the sound by way of the Cobalt sounded fuller on the identical quantity degree. Percussion had a tighter, extra speedy assault. Maximum significantly, I used to be in a position to get a far larger quantity with higher bass by way of the Cobalt. With the PC’s quantity regulate all of the approach up, I may get a legitimate that was once slightly larger than conventional listening quantity. With the Cobalt, that very same approximate quantity was once completed with a atmosphere round 60, with 75 being lots loud and 100 being past comfy. Now not unhealthy for a thumb drive-sized tool and enormous planar magnetic headphones. Admittedly, the sound at most wasn’t as blank because it was once at decrease volumes.  

With the Sendy Apollos there was once higher readability with the Cobalt in comparison to the pc’s integrated headphone jack. Switching to my telephone’s output by way of the dongle, the Apollos had fuller bass when performed in the course of the Cobalt, and sounded extra open. As soon as once more, quantity was once the largest distinction. With the amount regulate all of the approach up on my telephone, the Apollos have been simply above what I might name a regular listening quantity. Throughout the Cobalt, alternatively, most quantity was once louder than I might concentrate to for any period of time. 

With the Rai Pentas, there was once much less of a noticeable distinction. Regardless of their worth and 5-driver design, they are no longer specifically tough to force. So even the Pixel 7’s dongle may force them with sufficient quantity. Was once there slightly extra realism to the overtones and excessive frequencies with high-resolution tracks? Perhaps. As an example, the glockenspiel initially of “Sloop John B” from the 24-bit, 192 kHz model of Puppy Sounds had a richer, extra real looking timbre, in spite of the Cobalt’s downconversion to 96 kHz. It would even have simply been a slight alternate within the tonal stability, because the Rai Pentas have a extra mellow sound with lesser amplifiers. I am not certain I might wager my area on a blind A-B take a look at both approach. Actually, there may be some distance much less distinction between trendy DACs than the entirety else within the audio chain.

Finally, I donned the LCD-3s once more to match the Cobalt to the iFi Audio hip-dac2. In case you are searching for one thing that will provide you with higher audio at the move, the hip-dac2 is most definitely too massive. It’s kind of smaller than a flask. That more room contains beefier electronics, even though, so in case you generally concentrate at your table or seated, it is a attainable choice. As a result of that, the hip-dac2 simply has extra persistent. Now not best can it force the LCD-3’s louder, it sounds cleaner doing it. The hip-dac2 sounds much less compressed at larger volumes. The variation is not massive, however is noticeable again to again. 

Pass-balt?

There are two questions that get up from a product and overview like this. First, does it beef up the sound over an inexpensive baseline? Sure, with any hard-to-drive headphone the Cobalt will completely sound higher than a headphone jack and inexpensive dongle. Even many easier-to-drive headphones will most likely sound a minimum of slightly higher (or on the very least, louder). 

2nd, does it carry out neatly sufficient to justify its worth? That is a little tougher to mention. Do you could have headphones that both want an amp or will sound higher with one? Do your same old resources restrict the efficiency of your headphones? Since maximum computer systems and telephones (dongle required or no longer) have horrible headphone amplifiers, the solution to that latter query is steadily sure. To the query of worth, the DragonFly turns out slightly costly. There are a greater variety of amp/DAC dongles just like the Cobalt available on the market now in comparison to when the DragonFlys first took flight (pun supposed), and lots of are so much much less cash. We’re going to be checking some out quickly.

Finally, in case you should not have headphones that may justify the cost of a $200 accent, this should not be your first acquire. It isn’t going to make $50 headphones sound like $500 headphones. In case you are best ever being attentive to amp-deserving headphones whilst seated in a single position, the hip-dac2 has slightly higher sound at the price of portability and general comfort (the more moderen hip-dac 3 has a extra user-friendly twin USB-C connection).

That every one stated, in case you do have compatibility within the above-outlined area of interest, I can say the Cobalt inspired me greater than I anticipated for its length. For one thing smaller than a thumb it without a doubt progressed the sound of a few great-sounding headphones in some way that was once exceptionally moveable.

In addition to masking audio and show tech, Geoff does picture excursions of cool museums and places world wide, together with nuclear submarines, large airplane carriers, medieval castles, epic 10,000-mile highway journeys, and extra.

He wrote a bestselling sci-fi novel about city-size submarines, and likewise Finances Trip for Dummies. You’ll observe him on Instagram and YouTube.