Digital Processor Reviews

AudioQuest DragonFly Red & Black USB D/A headphone amplifiers Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Portable, USB-powered digital-to-analog converters. Sampling rates supported: 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96kHz. Digital input: USB Type A, male plug (hardwired). Analog output: three-conductor, 3.5mm phone jack. Maximum output voltages: DragonFly Black (v1.5), 1.2V RMS; DragonFly Red (v1.0), 2.1V RMS.
Dimensions: (both) 2.4" (62mm) L by 0.75" (19mm) W by 0.5" (12mm) D. Weight: 0.77oz (22gm).
Serial numbers of units reviewed: N/A.
Prices: DragonFly Black, $99; DragonFly Red, $199. Approximate number of dealers: 1457. Warranty: 1 year.
Manufacturer: AudioQuest, 2621 White Road, Irvine, CA 92614. Tel: (949) 585-0111. Web: www.audioquest.com.

COMMENTS
dbtom2's picture
Submitted by dbtom2 on August 25, 2016 - 12:43pm

I've had this iMac for three years and until I read this article I didn't know there were USB jacks on either side of the keyboard. Thanks for that.

dalethorn's picture
Submitted by dalethorn on August 25, 2016 - 7:57pm

If I remember correctly, they advise against using any but the main USB jacks for the DragonFlys.

Anon2's picture
Submitted by Anon2 on August 25, 2016 - 5:33pm

I thought about the Dragonfly, seriously.

Then my local dealer had a rock-solid alternative: the Arcam r-Pac. The r-Pac is marginally less "portable" than this product. It is a full headphone amp/DAC offering performance of headphone amps costing many times more.

The r-Pac is a true piece of gear, made with the trappings of Arcam's higher-up-the-food-chain DACs of high repute. I hope that Stereophile will review the r-Pac in the coming days. It even has a Brown-Burr processor.

You can't use the r-Pac on-the-go, though just about any portable DAC would be a tough-sell to use in a less-than-stationary listening environment. It does square the circle on two key dimensions: 1. it is USB-powered; 2. it is a solid piece of gear with a top-rate processor; it might even double as a full home-system DAC while doubling for headphone use during the week at work.

dalethorn's picture
Submitted by dalethorn on August 25, 2016 - 8:00pm

I know people who do like the r-Pac a lot. For me, the amp makes the biggest difference, as this review alluded to. The DACs not so much. So it would be good for someone to compare the Red to the r-Pac, on headphones.

mtymous1's picture
Submitted by mtymous1 on September 2, 2016 - 7:46pm

Dudley wrote:

"To use either new DragonFly with current-spec Apple iOS hardware requires the purchase, from Apple or an authorized Apple supplier (footnote 1), of a $29 accessory: a Lightning-to-USB-camera adapter."

So when AAPL announces removal of the 3.5mm jack next week, I do think the Lightning phone + camera adapter + Dragonfly approach will be a nifty solution for those unwilling to give up their favorite cans. Just remember to carry all of them with you!
;-)

audiobill's picture
Submitted by audiobill on May 14, 2017 - 10:05am

I was directed to this article by a link in an 5/12/17 article on this site written by Jason Victor Serinus entitled "Munich Milestones for MQA."
In reading your (this) article, I noticed on page two, a photo of what appears to be a DragonFly Black connected to an AudioQuest JitterBug, which is connected to the USB port of an unidentified notebook computer (decidedly not an iMac). I find no mention of the JitterBug or the notebook computer in the body of your review or in the listing of Associated Equipment. This photo is somewhat confusing to me. Couldn't you use the very good camera in your iPhone 6 Plus to take a photo of the actual iMac setup mentioned in the article?

temujin114's picture
Submitted by temujin114 on December 15, 2018 - 11:25am

why don't you quantify "musical nuances." FFS you guys are so full of dog $h!t.
are you guys owned by the fox news or what.

I also liked “Now there was no air between notes—just . . . stuff.” ROFL
WTH is that?
Also amusing were “more musical color, sounded a bit mushy, impression of flesh and blood, music exhibited more momentum (omfg lol), huge sound,..”
“high-and-mighty high-end talk”, you mean unadulterated BS.
You guys are some piece of work.

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