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“Kensei” is an honorary Japanese title bestowed upon swordsmen of legendary talent. The phrase interprets to “Sword Saint,” and it’s the relentless dedication to being the very best that iFi channeled into the masterfully crafted product that’s the iFi Kensei.
That is actually a instrument for the audiophile, so with out getting too deep into the weeds, we’re going to get a bit extra technical on this evaluation than regular, with an eye fixed on holding it accessible.
iFi GO bar Kensei: Worth and availability
The iFi GO bar Kensei is out there from ifi-audio.com, Amazon and different on-line retailers like Sweetwater, for $449. In contrast to the iFi Gold bar, this isn’t a restricted run and will likely be round for some time in line with an iFi rep’s feedback on a HiFi person discussion board sponsored by iFi.
iFi GO bar Kensei: Construct and match
Unboxing the Kensei is an expertise. It’s set in an exquisite, environmentally pleasant, carved wood field. You get two premium braided cables (USB-C, USB-C to Lightning with USB-A adapter) and a leather-based pouch. No greater than a USB flash drive, the GO bar Kensei is made with Japanese stainless-steel and is deceptively heavy for its dimension. Its physique has chamfered edges and feels premium all the best way round, although it does appeal to fingerprints like a magnet. It has branding superbly etched into the underside of the bar, however the face is the place it will get thrilling.
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On the face, you’ll discover a panel with LEDs that point out quantity degree, audio format, frequency, and sound results. The best aspect is the place you’ll discover the quantity and settings push buttons, in addition to the IEMatch change. The highest of the machine is the place the three.5mm and 4.4mm headphone outputs are discovered, and the underside is the place you’ll discover the USB-C enter, which helps as much as 32-bit/384kHz audio.
The Go bar Kensei will get a bit heat throughout use, however not uncomfortably. Although it’s dense and has good heft, the stainless-steel is a bit smooth in terms of exterior put on and can present scratches and scuffs.
iFi GO bar Kensei: Options
The GO bar Kensei makes use of a 32-bit Cirrus Logic DAC chipset with Hi-Res True Native® playback of music codecs from MP3 to DSD256, PCM384, and DXD384. You additionally get full MQA decoding. The Kensei is chock filled with high-end capacitors, which offer you a clear sign, scale back potential distortion, and have premium noise-reduction capabilities. You possibly can examine these intimately right here.
The celebs of the present are the 4 digital filters and two analog modes. The modes and their corresponding LEDs are:
Bit-Good (cyan) I ran this with the Sennheiser IE900 IEMs, and it was brilliant with out sibilance and clear. This one offers you your Hi-Res or lossless audio simply because it was supposed.
Customary (crimson) got here throughout as “clean,” with heat within the vocals as a substitute of brightness.
Minimal section (yellow) is hotter however with tight bass. In the event you’re a basshead, that is the filter for you. Use it with the XBass filter turned on and the K2HD filter activated, and also you’ll get kick-you-in-the-face bass with no lack of mids and vocal readability.
Gibbs Transient-Optimised (white) upsamples your audio to 352/384kHz. I’d simply describe this one as “energetic” general. You’ll really feel it throughout the frequency vary.
The Kensei goes a great distance to verify each headphone or IEM you plug up is handled properly with their IEMatch change, which reduces output for high-sensitivity IEMs just like the Campfire Audio Mammoths I performed with, and their Turbo Mode, which does the alternative and will increase acquire by 6dB to drive energy hungry headphones just like the HiFiMan Planar magnetics I used. It isn’t just like the Kensei lacks the facility to drive what you throw at it, with 477mW or 7.2V out of the 4.4mm output and 300mW or 8V out of the three.5 S-Balanced output.
Relating to quantity degree output, you possibly can management supply audio from the Kensei in sync with the supply machine or bypass the supply machine’s audio controls altogether.
The draw back to all the wonderful energy unleashed upon your ears is that you simply’ll expertise an honest quantity of battery drain out of your telephones and tablets since that’s what powers the Kensei through that USB-C port. Your laptops received’t be as noticeable since they’ve bigger batteries, and you may simply cost whereas listening, however that drain is there. There is no such thing as a inner battery right here just like the iFi GO blu.
iFi GO bar Kensei: Sound high quality
The “Sword Saint” produces audio that’s, in a phrase, “ethereal” however full-bodied. It’s all there. The sound high quality out of each the three.5mm and 4.4mm ports is easy, with lovely musicality.
This clear DAC/Amp lets you take pleasure in each nuance of a stereo picture. Pair the Kensei with analytical headphones or IEMs, and it’s like turning on a floodlight in a big area beforehand lit by a small 40-watt bulb. That’s precisely what I skilled after I plugged Sennheieser’s IE900 IEMs into the 4.4mm balanced output with the bit-perfect digital filter.
Listening to “Violin Duel” from the Chevalier OST was illuminating. You possibly can hear artifacts and nuances I’d beforehand missed. The stress of the bow towards the violin strings. The assault on the chord adjustments, whereas earlier than, I actually solely heard the assault in numerous actions. Similar with Beyonce’s “Texas Maintain ‘Em” the place the plucking of the banjo and guitars, nonetheless layered towards the again, was richly detailed.
In relation to bass and sub-bass, the transparency actually reveals how a monitor was engineered. The IE900 isn’t a bass-heavy IEM, however its 7mm dynamic drivers can energetically play again deep, darkish bass through PEQ or digital filter tuning, as was the case with iFi’s XBass filter activated. Skrillex’s “Mumbai Energy” and “Begin A Riot” from the Spider-Man: Throughout the Spider-Verse soundtrack each growled and rumbled with sufficient authority and aggression that that they had me making the “stank face” whereas bobbing my head to that nasty bass and sub-bass. That led me down the rabbit gap of sampling a dozen or so hip-hop tracks with this IEM/DAC filter combo.
What’s vital right here is that the digital filters I discussed within the options part could make your music sound even higher relying on which IEMs or headphones you’ve paired to the Kensei. For instance, I ran the $120 1MORE Penta Driver IEMs, which don’t have almost the extent of transparency of the IE900, however with the K2HD, XBass, and XSpace filters activated, they open up and provides the listening expertise fairly a bit greater than what their default tuning presents.
iFi GO bar Kensei: Competitors
The GO bar Kensei is exclusive in that it’s extra like a collector’s version DAC, with its ornate field, equipment, and match and end. On this worth level, there are nevertheless opponents with numerous characteristic choices. Fiio makes glorious merchandise and the Q15 could also be a greater match for some of us’ listening habits because it has a built-in IPS show and a Bluetooth SoC, supplying you with entry to wi-fi hi-res audio connectivity.
Then there’s the iBasso DC-Elite, which I attempted unsuccessfully to get my palms on for a separate evaluation. It has a characteristic set that matches carefully the Kensei, and a design that’s eye-catching. On paper, it seems to be a worthy competitor and is mostly considered a stable piece of equipment.
iFi GO bar Kensei: Do you have to purchase it?
You should purchase the iFi GO bar Kensei if…
- You don’t want Bluetooth
- You want DACs with clear sound
- You don’t need PEQ
You should not purchase the iFi GO bar Kensei if…
- Worth is a priority
- You want Bluetooth
- You need PEQ
The GO bar Kensie is clear with out being harsh or overly clean. It pairs completely with musical IEMs, it is digital filters offer you higher choices as you pair it with completely different headphones or IEMs and the analog processing modes XBass Plus and XSpace breathe new bass and sub-bass life into open-back over-ears. All of this whereas effectively driving the whole lot I’ve thrown at it, though that comes at the price of your cell audio supply’s battery life.
This DAC/Amp will likely be expensive for informal music shoppers. For audio hobbyists, it’s feature-rich and constructed like a tank, so it ought to offer you years of listening pleasure on the go.
Superb sound and options!
For it is transparency, capability to kick up the bass enjoyment, and balanced output, the GO bar Kensei is without doubt one of the greatest cell DACs you should purchase!
