NEO iDSD 2 DAC By iFi Audio

The NEO iDSD is our new 3-in-one DAC/amp. Since release iFi Audio has made some upgrades to the original version to create the NEO iDSD Performance Edition.

With balanced ‘PureWave’ circuitry, unbeatable hi-res Bluetooth5.1 and MQA, the NEO is the ultimate in hi-res playback. Team it with Qobuz to get access to an eclectic catalogue of more than 70 million hi-res quality tracks.

Place it horizontally or vertically to suit its surroundings. The OLED display flips to match orientation and the latest firmware provides a highly requested ‘Display Dim’ function.

One rotary knob controls functionality. Sleek, sophisticated and versatile.
 

All. Bases. Covered.

Enjoy the NEO iDSD as a pure DAC. Connect it to a separate integrated amp or preamp using the fixed-level analogue output.

Or treat it as a DAC/preamp with a variable output. The ideal companion to a power amp or active speakers.

And headphone users will love using the excellent amp stage to create a fabulous ‘head-fi’ system.
 

Movies and gaming ‘upsampled’

Love your music but also love movies and gaming?

The NEO iDSD Performance Edition will enhance your movie and gameplay experience even further.

Add the included S/PDIF iPurifier2 to make movie or game audio match the amazing picture quality of your 4K TV. Feel more immersed than ever before as sound finally matches picture in spectacular fashion.

Pair the NEO with the PS4 or Xbox One X for the ultimate gaming experience.
 

Enhanced engine

The Burr-Brown DAC chipset still fuels the NEO‘s ‘digital engine’.

But iFi Audio has upgraded it up with a new 16-core, XMOS microcontroller that processes the data via USB and S/PDIF digital inputs. Double the clock-speed. Four times the memory.

Since it’s original release iFi Audio has added more digital filters for your listening pleasure. The NEO iDSD now comes with the GTO, Minimum Phase, Bit-Perfect and Standard filters. 

Add in jitter eradication including our GMT femto-precision clock, intelligent memory buffer and the newly included iPurifier3 and super smooth listening is yours.
 

Hi-res heaven

The NEO iDSD supports PCM up to 32-bit/768kHz, DSD up to 512 and DXDx2. All remain ‘bit-perfect’.

The NEO provides full MQA decoding to ensure the best possible sound quality. Check out our MQA set-up tutorial for Tidal, Roon and Audirvana here.

Plus with MQA over S/PDIF, take advantage of any MQA CDs in your collection.
 

Bleeding-edge Bluetooth

iFi uses Qualcomm’s new QCC5100 Bluetooth processing IC.

All current high-definition Bluetooth audio formats are supported – aptx, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX LL, LDAC, HWA/LHDC, AAC and SBC.

The NEO iDSD ‘remembers’ up to 7 devices and has impressive range on Bluetooth5.0.
 

Ride the ‘PureWave’

Not only is the NEO iDSD a purist design – no DSP, no digital filter selection and no change in analogue playback – it is also all designed around a balanced circuit design named ‘PureWave‘. Read more below.

It uses audiophile-grade components and delivers sonic ‘purity’ thanks to the extraordinarily low levels of noise and distortion.
 

Power and poise

The headphone amp stage maintains an engaging balance between sonic power and poise – no matter what it is tasked to drive. From high-sensitivity in-ear monitors to current-hungry planar headphones, it drives them with aplomb.

It has a continuous power output of over 1000mW into 32ohms available through the balanced headphone socket. Plenty of oomph for the headphone user.
 

Just more music

The NEO iDSD and the new Performance Edition contain top-notch audio components to back-up the outstanding balanced circuit design.

Quality components and the Performance Edition extras – the iPurifier3 and S/PDIF iPurifier2 – mean audio with even more clarity and texture.

Plus as a NEOphile, new or old, you can benefit from a 90-day free trial to Qobuz – the world’s premier service for streaming and downloading music is Hi-Res sound quality.
 

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 it use Burr Brown extensively in our products having selected it for its natural-sounding ‘musicality’ and True Native architecture. Our experience with this IC means it know how to make the most of it.

Hi-res audio support is state-of-the-art with True Native® playback. It handles PCM data to 32-bit/768kHz, DSD up to DSD512 and single and double speed DXD.

Thanks to the Burr-Brown DAC chip’s four-channel True Native design, PCM and DSD take separate pathways – this enables DSD, as well as PCM, to remain ‘bit-perfect’ in its native form right through to analogue conversion. This is not the case with all DAC devices from other brands – even if DSD compatibility is stated, many such DACs convert DSD signals to PCM.

The XMOS 16-Core chip processes the audio data received via the USB* digital input.

This new low-latency XMOS microcontroller has greatly enhanced processing power. Compared to the current generation of eight-core chips, this new 16-core IC delivers double the clock speed (2000MIPS) and four times the memory (512KB), 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.

(* Also on S/PDIF on the NEO iDSD/Diablo)

MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) is supported through the USB with full decoding of MQA files up to 384kHz thanks to the processing power of the new 16-core XMOS chip.

Check out how to set up your MQA decoder via Tidal, Roon and Audirvana here.

This means that the full ‘three unfold’ 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.

iFi Audio use Qualcomm’s new QCC5100 Bluetooth processing IC in combination with proprietary circuits to create an audibly superior ‘Bluetooth engine’.

All the current high-definition Bluetooth audio formats are supported – Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive and aptX HD, Sony’s LDAC and HWA’s LHDC, regular aptX and aptX Low Latency, AAC (Apple iOS devices) and SBC (the ‘plain vanilla’ Bluetooth codec).

Of the 24-bit-capable codecs, aptX Adaptive and aptX HD support up to 48kHz, while LDAC and LHDC reach 96kHz.

iFi’s ‘Bluetooth engine’ can also be updated over-the-air, so future codecs may be added.

Extensive jitter-eradication technologies are applied to the digital stage, including our 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.

Balanced, differential analogue circuit design has long been championed for its ability to reduce noise and cross-talk 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.

As with many other iFi audio products, iFi Audio has incorporated a custom OV Series operational-amplifier. This top-notch component contributes to the extremely low noise, low distortion (0.0001%) and wide bandwidth.

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 micro-controller, which only ‘wakes up’ when the user changes a setting, thus eradicating any sonically deleterious interference.

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.

They are pricey but are a perfect addition to our products.

Extensive jitter-eradication technologies are applied to the digital stage, including our GMT (Global Master Timing) femto-precision clock and the intelligent memory buffer.

The low-jitter crystal clock has been updated to provide >20dB better performance

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

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.

AVforums
““The Neo iDSD delivers what we’re coming to see as the norm for iFi Audio these days. It offers a killer spec, real world connectivity and solid build. When you go on to consider the range of options, iFi offers to support it, it’s a winner.””

https://www.avforums.com/reviews/ifi-audio-neo-idsd-dac-review.19435/
 

Positive Feedback
“The NEO iDSD has scooped a Writers’ Choice Award from the team at Positive Feedback. Thanks to everyone there who loves our NEO.”

https://positive-feedback.com/audio-discourse/2021-positive-feedback-writers-choice-awards/
 

HeadAmps
“The iFi Audio iDSD Neo makes an excellent option for any one looking to expand their Computer Audio system into the next level. It’s lush detailed presentation and combination of input and output options alongs make it easy to integrate within existing systems as an all-in-one while also providing a solid foundation for future upgrades.”

https://www.headamp.com/blogs/news/ifi-idsd-neo-review
 

Stereonet
“The NEO iDSD’s connectivity is impressive, to say the least, as there seems to be little it cannot handle. This was a family pleaser in my household, as we are a mixture of Android and Apple users, it was so easy for everyone to connect and listen regardless of brand. Even Spotify via iPhone sounded pretty decent.”

https://www.stereonet.com/uk/reviews/ifi-audio-neo-idsd-dac-pre-headphone-amp-review
 

HiFi News
“Whether you need a high-quality desktop audio/head-fi solution, or a slimline DAC to slot into your main system – or both – the NEO iDSD has much to commend it, from its powerful, weighty and controlled sound to its broad file format compatibility.”

https://www.hifinews.com/content/ifi-audio-neo-idsd-dacheadphone-amp
 

Headfonia
“The iFi Audio NEO iDSD is a hell of a unit. It is an excellent performer with a premium build, design, and internal components. It’s also very versatile with outputs and features. It covers every possible usage scenario, and in terms of sound performance, it’s also excellent with a neutral approach that allows you to add the signature of your speakers/headphones.”

https://www.headfonia.com/ifi-audio-neo-idsd-review/
 

Bloom Audio
“The NEO iDSD has a slightly warm tone and smooth treble response. The soundstage is very solid, and I found it enhanced the feeling of space in virtually everything I plugged into it. It provides excellent detail and scales up nicely with high resolution audio… If I had to pick two characteristics to highlight on the NEO, it would be the soundstage and musicality. The technical capabilities of the DAC, including the detail retrieval and resolution are excellent for its price range”
Read the full review here…”

https://bloomaudio.com/blogs/articles/ifi-neo-idsd-review

Inputs

Digital

• USB3.0 B (USB2.0 compatible)/S-PDIF (coaxial/optical)
• Bluetooth 5.1™ ( AAC, SBC, aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX LL, LDAC, LHDC/HWA Codec)

Formats

• DSD512/256/128/64, Octa/Quad/Double/Single-Speed DSD
• DXD (768/705.6/384/352.8kHz), Double/Single-Speed DXD
• PCM (768/705.6/384/352.8/192/176.4/96/88.2/48/44.1kHz)
• MQA
• Bluetooth 96kHz

Outputs

Balanced XLR

• 6.3V / 7.7V max. (variable)
• 4.4V fixed

UnBAL RCA

• 3.2V / 3.9V max. (variable)
• 2.2V fixed

Zout

• Balanced : <= 100Ω
• UnBAL : <= 50Ω
• SNR : -112dB(A) @ 0dBFS (UnBAL/BAL)
• DNR : >116dB(A) @ -60dBFS (UnBAL/BAL)
• THD + N : <0.0015% @ 0dBFS (UnBAL/BAL)

Headphone Section

Output :
• Balanced : >6.4V/68.6 mW (@ 600Ω),>5.77V/1040 mW (@ 32Ω)
• UnBAL : >3.25V/17.6 mW (@ 600Ω), >3V/295 mW (@ 32Ω)

• Output Impedance : <1Ω (UnBAL/BAL)
• SNR : -112dBA (3.3V UnBAL/6.2V BAL)
• THD + N : <0.0015% (125mW @ 32Ω)
• Power consumption : No Signal ~0.5W, Max Signal ~2.5W
• Dynamic range : -120dB(A)
• Input voltage : DC 5V/2.5A, AC 100 -240V, 50/60Hz (with iPower)
• Dimensions : 214 x146 x 41 mm, 8.4″ x 5.7″ x 1.6″
• Weight : 970 g (2.14 Ibs)
• Warranty period : 12 months

User Manual NEO iDSD