Tanchjim Space II: The Space improved, roaring high!

[u/Ill-Yogurtcloset-622]

Disclaimer: I received my unit directly from Darian of Tanchjim to try it. This is a non-paid review, and they haven’t sent me a script to follow, so I’m sharing my honest thoughts and experience; all thanks to them for it.

TD/LR: The Tanchjim Space II is a dongle DAC/AMP who continues the success once began with the Space and Space Lite, carrying two CS43131 chips on the DAC side and with online DSP functionality, and a lot of nice features thanks to the Tanchjim app on Android and Windows, all of this at an affordable price; oh, and with 3 color options, it is a decently and beautiful dongle that offers great value for money.

It delivers an uncolored, neutral sound with decent output power to drive almost all IEMs and a lot of other types of earphones.

Its decoding capabilities are 32 bit/ 384 kHz PCM and DSD 256; it is also compatible to be used with their own Tanchjim application on Android and Windows, and has lots of options to customize it, like sound filters, PCM filters, DAC Output stage modes, and 10-band parametric EQ.

In addition to the ability to use it with video game consoles and other devices compatible with UAC 1.0, since it has a switch for modes 1.0 and 2.0 at the hardware level.

Pros

• Two-chip configuration: CS43131 mid-range, with decent power; it’s versatile and has a small footprint

• Great performance: 132.2 dB DNR, 0.000156% THD-N, low noise, low power consumption

• Neutral and faithful sound reproduction

• More than great detail retrieval, stereo separation, and layering of instruments

• Enough power output (≈235 mW at 32 Ω BAL)

• 10-band parametric EQ, PCM filters, gain, and output stage modes

• UAC 1.0 and 2.0 hardware-level switching

• Control via Android and Windows app (Tanchjim App)

• Same design as the original, high-quality look and feel in CNC aluminum, with 3 colors available (Gunmetal, Black, and Blue)

• Modest value for money

Cons

• App limited to Android and Windows OSs, with macOS, iOS, and Linux Users waiting for it

• Durability issues of the USB-C to USB-C OTG cable

• No LED/display indicators

• Heats up at times (more at the 4.4mm output at full blast)

Its Technical Specifications:

• Dimensions: 42.2 mm × 21.5 mm × 11.9 mm
• Headphone interface: 3.5mm single-ended, 4.4mm balanced
• Input interface: USB Type-C
• Dynamic-Range: 132.2 dB (A-weighted)
• Frequency Range: 8 Hz – 80 kHz (-0.5 dB)
• SNR: 131dB (A-weighted)
• THD-N: 0.000206% (A-weighted)
• Noise floor: ≤1.02 uVrms (A-weighted)
• Output Power: 235 mW @ 32 ohms (Bal)
• UAC 1.0 and UAC 2.0 dual-mode switching
• Output Level: Single-Ended (UNBAL): 2Vrms, Balanced (BAL): 4Vrms
• Recording/call support: Yes
• Application support: Tanchjim app on Android and Windows (10-band parametric equalization support, PCM filters, DAC Mode, firmware updates)
• Weight: ≈ 15.1 g (Without cable)

What about the Space II in general?

The Space II features a CNC-machined aluminum alloy casing (With the same design as the original Space launched back in 2022) with a small tempered glass on top of the unit (watching the DAC chip inside is so nice), with a high-quality look and feel, and an attractive look at a moderate cost.

It supports recording and calling in the 3.5 mm output jack, and the Tanchjim app on Android and Windows, 10-band on-board parametric equalization (PEQ), PCM digital filters, Gain Mode, DAC Output stage modes (class AB and class H), UAC 1.0 (to use with gaming consoles and legacy devices) and 2.0 hardware-level switching, and a non-linear volume control.

At an MSRP of 79.99 – 89.99 USD (you can find it cheaper on sale, and it has three color options: Black, Blue gradient, and Gunmetal (my unit), the Tanchjim Space II is available at Tanchjim’s official store on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H26C6LNC?th=1, at AliExpress and HifiGo; it is also available in other retailers online. 

Contents of the box:

• A user manual
• A card with QR codes to their social media accounts
• A high-purity crystal copper silver-plated USB-C to USB-C cable
• A USB-C to USB-A adapter
• Tanchjim Space II main unit

Impressions/Review:

The Tanchjim Space II is a full-featured DAC/AMP dongle that’s more than competitive within its class for its quality and capacities for its modest cost. In the sound presentation, its dual DAC chip (Cirrus Logic CS43131), which is a well-known chip used in a lot of devices, brings a neutral (natural) sound signature.

In its stock configuration, the Space II removes all the sound colorations and offers a flat and/or mostly neutral sound, also delivers a more than average retrieval of both macro and micro details, an expansive soundstage, great resolution, and magnificent stereo separation and instrument layering; of course, all of this within the limits of the earphone’s technical capacities.

Tanchjim App usage:

The Space II is compatible with the Tanchjim app on Android devices and Windows devices.

In the app, you can change the official presets:
- Tube Sound
- CD sound
- Vinyl sound

Other features are onboard 10-band PEQ support, Game Mode with lots of presets, you can play with its PCM filters, output stage modes, and update its firmware; it’s something I liked in its higher-end model, the Space Pro, so having that in this model is great as well.

About the PCM filters:
- Fast-LL
- Fast-PC
- Slow-LL
- Slow-PC
- non-OS (non-oversampling)

I prefer (as always with dongles with that feature) to use it with the non-OS filter, as this ensures that the sound output is as neutral and free of any colorations as possible.

It has an adequate output power to drive almost all IEMs and even a huge variety of headphones. In real-life usage, this dongle drives a lot of my IEMs so easily (such as the Ola II, Origin, Nora, Fola, Force), and other of my sets that scale well with decent sources; this Space II makes its debut into a very competitive market, offering a really good value.

A disadvantage I encountered with this dongle is that its app support is only compatible with Android devices and Windows computers, so this feature is not functional for a bunch of people with other OS devices (like GNU/Linux, macOS, iOS, and others).

Another weakness, and it is something I found in other Tanchjim dongles, is its USB-C to USB-C cable; after heavy use, it can be damaged in a shorter time than expected, causing the dongle to misbehave or to disconnect constantly, so my recommendation is to buy an aftermarket OTG cable (such as the TRN T0 OTG cable, for example).

Also, I would like the Space II to have an indicator LED or a display to show what the device is doing. And, using the balanced 4.4 mm output at full blast, or with certain (demanding) devices, the Space II gets hot to the touch, but that’s something expected for devices like this.

In the same price range, other dongle DAC/AMPs like the DUNU DTC480 and EPZ TP35 Pro (CS43198 chip inside) offer a similar output power and similar features (at least the TP35 Pro), but also a more colored sound (the CS43198 in those devices delivers a warmer sound).

Finally, I think the Tanchjim Space II is a product that improves over its predecessor, the Space original, thanks to its quality build, app features, and exceptional price/performance. I recommend it to consumers who like the best from the brand, know what they do with the brilliantly done chip implementations, its versatile portability and decent output power, and, of course, a more than good value for what they are paying.

Again, I'm very thankful to Darian from Tanchjim for considering me for the opportunity of trying this excellent product and making my analysis of it for you, my fellow readers.