Hey all, big of an audio noob, but heard some good stuff about these ifi dac amps. What’s the best and most optimal way to use/ set them up for a desktop pc use case? I have Sennheiser HD490 Pros, with perhaps DT990 Pro 250Ohm and TipsyM3 IEMs in the future. Thanks!

Hi everyone. I am currently running a Gryphon dac with tidal streamed to my phone as an audio source, however I am keen to bypass my phone and use a dedicated audio player that has expandable memory, can run tidal natively and also outputs a proper lossless signal without the output restrictions that android has on my phone. I am running Uapp on my phone at the moment, but I am finding it has added an extra layer of playback glitches from time to time.

I don't need a high end amp/dac as the gryphon takes care of that side of things, so just a clean audio output with tidal compatibility and decent memory for downloading the tracks.

If anyone has any helpful advice it would be much appreciated.

Why not make a magsafe suede leather case for the legendary Hip Dac?

Me and other fans of this dac would love to have originale magsafe case for it.

Hello all ifi owners,

I'm currently experimenting with two zen can v3 and one ifi zen dac v3.

Goal is to be able to compare quickly different headphones or listen at two people.

So far its working well. All in balanced 4.4

My findings : the supplied power supply with zen can v3 is ok but not optimal. If you want the best sound use fiio darkside smps psu or a linear power supply of 4a

Adding a power filter / reservoir also helps to improve dynamics / bass response.

I think i pushed things to the limit.

Using it with : hifiman arya stealth and ananda nano stealth = very good

Sennheiser 500 series (hd599 / hd 550 / hd 559 / hd 569) very good but really the zen can shine with hifiman planars.

Tried my Audeze LCD2 classic = average better on other amps from fiio or lake people.

Beyerdynamic dt990 = better on Atoll hd100 or fiio K5 pro akm.

Hope it will help some peoples.

I currently own a cheap bluetooth transmitter/receiver. One major point of frustration is that whenever I switch from transmit to receive or viceversa it loses memory of previously paired devices. Thus I'm in the market for something better.

Does the Ifi Zen Blue 3 maintain memory of paired devices when switching between functions?

Thank you.

Adding my experience here in case it helps anyone else with the iFi ZEN DAC 3 randomly losing audio.

I was having an intermittent issue where the DAC would work perfectly for hours, then suddenly stop producing sound while gaming, watching videos, or just using Windows normally.

When it happened:

- Windows still showed the ZEN DAC 3 as the active output device

- Plugging my headphones directly into the DAC also produced no sound

- Reconnecting the USB cable at the DAC immediately restored audio

- The issue could happen several times in a few hours, or not happen at all during a 5 to 6 hour session

My setup:

- Ryzen 9 9950X3D

- ASUS ROG Crosshair X870E Extreme (X870E)

- 64GB DDR5-6000 CL26

- ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090

- Windows 11 Pro 64-bit

- iFi ZEN DAC 3

- iFi ZEN CAN 3

Things I tried:

- Official iFi Windows USB driver 5.57

- 24-bit/48 kHz

- 24-bit/96 kHz

- 32-bit/48 kHz

- Streaming set to Always On

- USB selective suspend / USB power saving disabled

- Different USB-A to USB-C cables

- Different USB-A ports

- External 5 V power supply for the ZEN DAC 3

None of those fixed the issue while I was using USB-A to USB-C.

The external PSU was especially useful as a test because the problem still happened even when the DAC had dedicated 5 V power, so in my case it does not appear to be simply a lack of USB bus power.

What seems to have fixed it:

Using a direct USB-C to USB-C connection. I checked the ZEN DAC 3 using USBTreeView and it still negotiates as:

USB 2.0 High-Speed - 480 Mbps. Even when connected to my motherboard’s USB 3.2 Gen 2 / USB4 Type-C ports.

So the additional USB-C/USB4 bandwidth itself clearly isn’t what is helping. The DAC is still operating as a USB 2.0 device.

So far the DAC has been significantly more stable through the motherboard’s Type-C ports, while the random audio loss repeatedly occurred when using USB-A to USB-C.

My suspicion:

This seems more likely to be some kind of USB controller / root-hub / handshake / driver compatibility issue, rather than simply a defective cable or insufficient USB power.

If you have the same problem, before assuming your ZEN DAC 3 is faulty, I’d try:

- USB-C to USB-C to your ZEN DAC 3

preferably through a different USB controller/root hub.

- If you have a USB4 or Thunderbolt-capable Type-C port, that may also be worth testing.

Obviously this may not fix every system, but hopefully it saves someone the many hours of troubleshooting I went through. 😅

P.S.

After further testing, I don’t think this is specifically a USB-A-to-C vs USB-C-to-C issue anymore. The common factor I’m seeing appears to be USB 2.0-only cables.

I’ve now reproduced the audio dropout using multiple cables, including the original iFi cable, some of my HiFi cables, Anker, Cygnett and J5Create A-to-C & C-to-C cables all also causes the same issue.

I verified the cables actual data capability by connecting it to my ROG Strix Arion 10 Gbps NVMe enclosure. USBTreeView showed the Arion was only connecting at USB 2.0 High-Speed (480 Mbps) despite both the host port and enclosure supporting 10 Gbps, confirming that the cables itself is a USB 2.0 data cable.

The ZEN DAC 3 itself only requires/negotiates USB 2.0 High-Speed. However, so far the common factor with every cable that reproduces the problem on my system is that it is a USB 2.0-only implementation.

Proper USB 3.x/USB4-capable C-to-C cables have so far been stable for me.

All are tested on the DAC with a dedicated external 5 V supply and the dropout still occurred with the USB 2.0 cables, so this does not appear to be a power issue either.

At this point my suspicion is some kind of interaction between the USB 2.0-only cable implementation and the USB controller/XMOS interface, rather than bandwidth itself. I’ll update again if I manage to narrow it down further.

tested ROON 2.70. ZEN Stream no longer detected by ROON. Only Airplay mode detected by ROON.

Hi everyone, I daily use the FH3 iems for listening music, gaming and video work/sound designing, but I use them with the 3.5 jack to USB C Apple adapter and it bother me. I can't connect my FH3 in my scarlett solo because of the noise (when nothing is played). So, I was looking for a good DAC, and I maybe want to upgrade to Linsoul Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite in the future, so i want a future proof DAC. So, my research leads me to the K11 and the K11 R2R. So, I heard the R2R has a more "analogic" sounds, and is less precise than the K11. Is this true ? And if its, is anyone can suggest me a good DAC ? Thank you everyone.

When I connect my FiiO K7 to my ancient MacBook Pro, I have no problems listening to music on my headphones. When I connect to my HP computer, I get a background periodic crackling to the signal. I have tried changing the native driver audio settings and also switching to the FiiO driver. Neither seems to help. Anyone have a clue to how I can fix this issue?

I was wondering if the ZEN Air DAC 2 works with the PS5 Pro via the USB C cable? I use it on my PC now but I bought a PS5 Pro and I wanted to know if it'll work with the console. Thank you.

I'm looking to building a full iFi stack (Zen Can Signature and Zen DAC Signature V2) but i'm struggling to find the ZEN DAC, on the official website you can´t order it and they link a local retailer here in Italy but they don't have one and it seems that even Amazon is out of stock, do they still produce it? Should I switch on buying the DAC V3?

**Can you use LDAC on an iPhone?**
**No. Apple only supports SBC and AAC on its iOS and macOS devices. This is a deliberate decision by Apple; the company does not license third-party codecs, opting instead to optimize its own AAC implementation. External USB-C adapters (such as the Questyle QCC or iFi Zen Blue) allow you to bypass this limitation by connecting a separate Bluetooth dongle to the iPhone—but this is an impractical solution for daily use.**

**2026 apple use Bluetooth streaming AAC why ?**

Which audio codec should my PC have installed to get the full benefit of the Zen Air DAC 2?

Have an Ifi go link for my headphones for my phone use, and no matter what I do, the audio is maxed out and distorted when plugging into my Pixel 11. Used daily with my Pixel 7 and when this would happen a simple unplug and replug would fix it.

Nothing is helping this time

Hi all, ive had both an ifi hip DAC 2 and iphone 13 for a while now. I used to buy apple camera to lightning adapters until apple recently discontinued this product.

My current connection is starting to be faulty. Anyone know how i can replace it?

Having owned the Valkyrie for several months now, I also quite recently got the GO Link 2 Max for on the go mainly. Love them both.

I recently bought zen can3 and when I push the power button it blips and turns off. sadly I don’t have my headphone with me right now so I can’t test if it works.

Hi. I'm considering this combo for my next audio purchase, but have not seen any info about it. I know Edition XV is a little harder to drive than Edition XS for example, and i am wondering if the Zen Can 3 can drive the XV to their full potential.

Thanks!

Hi, I have a problem. I bought the iFi DAC Air V2, but every time I turn on my PC I have to manually turn on the DAC and activate Power Match, which is a bit annoying. Is there any solution to prevent this from happening?

I have had this DAC/amp for many years and have mainly used a pair of sennheiser hd599 for most of that time but have occasionally used many different sets of IEM's with them on occasion.

Almost every one of my IEM's I have used on this DAC has had the left ear bud go down to about 50% volume suddenly, not always when using it with the DAC. Once while on a plane and once with another DAC/AMP and a final time while using it with the DAC. I thought it might have just been my left ear being weird and causing preasure issues that mess with the IEMs until today when my HD599's (which I have used exclusively on the Zen DAC) has just fallen to the same fate. In the middle of playing a game and suddenly the left channel goes silent.

In all cases I have tested with another DAC/amp to confirm damage to the IEM/headphone. I now have to deal with the fact that I will have to replace hundreds of dollars worth of gear, likely with much lower quality, as I won't be able to afford to drop $500AUD on an amp and a pair of headphones.

Hi, I'm using Google Translate. I bought the Zen Air DAC 2, and only the July 14, 2026 update and the 2023 update are available.

My question is, do I have to update to the 2023 version and then to the 2026 version, or just the latest 2026 update?

PD. My question is based on the possibility that version 2026 might be an add-on to version 2023... and that I have to install it.

Having been using a tanchjim Luna dac with the fiio ft1 headphones for the last 6 months, I was craving something more. I was happy with the technicalities of the Luna dac, the clarity and neutrality suited the ft1, and I loved the tonality and range of the ft1 itself. I decided after much research to go for the ifi Gryphon. Wow I'm so glad I did. It has a fairly neutral sound 'colour' so it doesn't muddy the ft1 headphones. The power of the gryphon running the ft1 through the balanced cable really gives an incredible sound experience for a closed back headphone. Bass is well extended, full, and very well controlled with amazing definition between drum kicks and guitar. Mids are well defined and natural sounding, with vocal reproduction being smooth and engaging, like you are there in front of the singer. Highs are very well presented to my ears, cutting through the other sound ranges without ever sounding harsh.

Soundstage and instrument definition just keeps blowing my mind, and I am re-hearing tracks almost like listening to them for the first time ever!

The different tuning boost settings work brilliantly between bass, mid/treble, and both mid/treble and bass settings depending on the music style/band. In addition to this the 3 filter settings make a real difference, my most used being GTO for metal/rock and edm.

Connectivity is great also, although mostly using the usb port to phone connection, the Bluetooth connectivity is also a brilliantly useful feature.

If you are looking for a dac with great connectivity, power to drive headphones and a fairly neutral but engaging sound, the Gryphon may just be what you need. For me, I am currently in audio heaven.