This precise, analogue volume control is normally found on items at a much higher price point. Its transparent sonic nature delivers a smooth sound with no loss in music retrieval. It delivers the sonic goods.
nano iDSD Black Label
nano iDSD Black Label
The nano iDSD Black Label is a portable DAC and headphone amplifier. It will enhance your personal audio.
On your daily commute or even once you get to in the office, the nano BL will boost the sound quality of your music and supercharge to your day.
Stream, stream, stream…
The nano iDSD Black Label is for those who enjoy great music on-the go.
From your phone, amplify your Spotify, Apple Music or Tidal using an Apple CCK cable or OTG cable for Android.
At home or in the office, use the USB3.0 cable provided to connect to your PC.
Res’ing it up!
The nano iDSD Black Label plays Hi-Res audio up to DSD256
so you can enjoy your tunes in the original format just as the artists intended.
Getting into MQA? The nano BL is MQA ready. Use it with Tidal ‘HiFi’ on your computer or mobile.
Also, Roon tested for simple set-up should you wish to give Roon a whirl.
The mighty nano
The nano iDSD Black Label is small but mighty with 10x more amplification power than an iPhone.
It can drive most headphones and has our iEMatch technology built-in, so it can work with In-Ear-Monitors (IEMs).
The in-built iFi iPurifier means it delivers clean, quality music with no buzz, no hiss and no fuss!
Brilliant balancing act
The iFi exclusive S-Balanced circuit provides all the benefits of balanced outputs such as low-noise and less distortion when used with headphones and IEMs fitted with balanced wiring.
For single-ended headphones, S-Balanced cuts crosstalk in half. The benefits are ‘clearly’ audible.
Listen. Measure.
Fancy getting technical? The nano BL has a Listen option (Minimum Phase Bezier Filter) and a Measure option (Linear Phase Transient-Aligned Filter) for those who like to try a variation to the playback.
We say just switch it on, plug in your device, and listen away.
There is no going wrong with 10 hours of battery life.
Zero Jitter® equals good audio. Is it essential to have a very precisely buffered digital signal before it goes to a DAC.
We pushed the envelope even further by doing this not only with the nano iDSD BL‘s USB input, but the rest of the digital interfaces as well.
This unit has up to 10 hours of non-stop playing time. Always make sure you switch it on first and then plug in your device.
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 we 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 we know how to make the most of it.
Hi-Res True Native® playback of all music formats from MP3 to DSD256, PCM384 and DXD384.
Listen to Master Quality Authenticated audio straight out of the box. Connect to Tidal Masters and check the option to stream MQA.
MQA is an award-winning audio technology that enables music fans to stream the original master recording into their home, car or on their mobile. In the words of Gilbert O’Sullivan, iconic Irish-born singer-songwriter, “The great thing about MQA is that it delivers the finesse that was there in the desk sound. It’s tremendous, it sounds really good.”
Our video tutorials on You Tube show you how.
iFi’s exclusive S-Balanced® circuit delivers maximum performance from single-ended and balanced headphones alike.
See our Tech Note to dig deeper.
Support
nano iDSD BL Diagrams
General |
|
| Input(rear): | USB2.0 type A ‘OTG’ Socket (with iPurifier® technology built-in) |
| Output(rear)； | 1 x audio fixed line out L+R 3.5mm |
| Digital Filter: | 2 positions. 2 filters |
| Outputs(front): | 2 x 3.5mm headphone audio outputs. ‘Direct’ and ‘iEMatch®’ |
DAC |
|
| DAC: | DSD, DXD, PCM DAC by Burr Brown Bit-Perfect DSD processing, Bit-Perfect DXD processing |
| Clock: | Low-jitter crystal clock |
| Audio Formats: | DSD 256/128/64/12.4/11.2/6.2/5.6/3.1/2.8 |
| DXD 384/352.8kHz | |
| PCM 384/352.8/192/176.4/96/88.2/48/44.1kHz | |
| MQA 88.2/96/176.4/192kHz filters | |
| Filter–PCM: | Listen (transient optimised minimum phase) |
| Measure (frequency response optmised) | |
| –DSD: | Listen (extended bandwidth transient optimised) |
| Measure (narrow bandwidth, low output band noise optimised) | |
| –DXD: | Fixed Bit-Perfect Processing |
| –MQA: | Fixed MQA Filter |
Headphone Amplifier |
|
| Amplifier: | Dual Mono 2 x 285mW Direct Drive, coupling capacitor free circuit for highest fidelity |
| Volume Control: | 3.5mm TRRS with Balanced compatible wiring |
| Dynamic Range(including DAC): | > 109dB(A) @ 3v (Direct) |
| > 107dB(A) @ 0.5V (iEMatch®) | |
| THD &N (@ 125mW/30R): | < 0.005% |
| Max. Output (<10% THD): | > 3.5V @ 600Ω Load (Direct) (20mW/600Ω) |
| > 2.9V @ 30Ω Load (Direct) (285mW/30Ω) | |
| > 1.7V @ 15Ω Load (Direct) (200mW/15Ω) | |
| Output Impedance : | < = 1Ω (Direct) |
| < = 4Ω (iEMatchsup>®) | |
| Channel Separation: | > 79dB @ 600Ω Load (Direct) |
| > 79dB @ 15Ω Load (Direct) (1kHz, TRRS plug Balanced wiring) | |
Line Output |
|
| Dynamic Range(Line): | > 109dB(A) |
| THD & N(0dBFS Line): | < 0.004% |
| Output Voltage(Line): : | 2.15V (+/-0.05V) |
| Output Impedance: | < 240Ω |
| Channel Separation: | > 99dB (@ 1kHz) |
| Jitter(correlated): | Below test set limit |
| Dimensions: | 96(l) x 64(w) x 25.5(h)mm |
| Weight: | 139g (0.31 Ibs) |
| Warranty period: | 12 months |
Reviews
Incredible
This thing sounds incredible! It might even be superior to my Schiit stack (Modi 3/Magni 3 Heresy). But I bought it mostly for mobile usage, so now I know I’ll hear everything my music has to offer without having to rely on my phone’s much poorer integrated DAC and amp.
(Click name to read original review)
iFi Headphone Amp/DAC Review
In this video, we review iFi’s lineup of headphone amps and DACs. iFi’s headphone amp/DAC lineup offers plenty of options and has something for everyone. Whether you’re looking for a small, portable DAC for when you’re on the go or a high-performance desktop DAC for working from home or even gaming, iFi has a great option for you.
Watch the full video here…
(Click name to read original review)
iFi audio nano iDSD Black Label under test
“The iFi Nano iDSD BL is a product that we recommend more than warmly by the editorial staff and even more if you are looking for a DAC / mobile headphone amplifier given its format, its autonomy, its weight and the excellent musical performances it offers. offers, especially in headphone output. It is also a pure happiness for its price in line output, even if one would have preferred an RCA output rather than jack, simple practical question.
(Click name to read original review)
Increases sound quality.
Makes audio quality from your cellular telephone sound better if you are using headphones. It requires recharging about once a day with a usb b cable.
(Click name to read original review)
Needed a better audio setup for my PC. I made the right choice!
Had been running my audio via a cheap Fiio optical DAC into a modded (upgraded the internal op-amp to OPA2227) Creative Labs speaker system. I decided to smarten it all up a bit with something more advanced. After some research I settled on this unit.
The dual headphone outputs gave some improved options further down the line if I decided to go more exotic headphone wise. The pure DAC only output is great to pump into my amplified speaker setup. I doubt I’ll use it with my phone or mobile but the option is there. The range of digital media it can handle is pretty wide too.
Read more…
(Click name to read original review)
REVIEW: ifi Nano iDSD Black Label – A Portable Powerhouse
“With the Nano iDSD BL, ifi continues its run of quality devices aimed at both the novice and serious audio enthusiast who demands more quality than what most phone makers deem sufficient for today’s fast-paced, disposable-music lifestyle. Given a quality source, the Nano BL will render your music with finesse, and do justice to all but the most stubbornly insensitive headphones. “
(Click name to read original review)
Compare
| micro iDSD BL | xDSD | nano iDSD BL | |
 |  |  |
|
| Primary use | Transportable | Portable | Portable |
| Headphone Output | 6.3mm | 3.5mm | 3.5mm |
| iEmatch | Yes | Yes / Auto | Yes |
| 3D Matrix | On / Off | On / Off | - |
| XBass | On / Off | On / Off | - |
| Max. power | 4,000mW @ 16 Ohm | 500mW @ 16 Ohm | 285mW @ 30 Ohm |
| Output Impedance | <1 Ohm (Direct) | <1 Ohm (Direct) | <1 Ohm (Direct) |
| <4 Ohm (iEmatch) | <4 Ohm (iEmatch) | <4 Ohm (iEmatch) | |
| Battery playback | 6-10 hours | 6-8 hours | 6-8 hours |
| Inputs | |||
| Bluetooth (aptX / AAC) | - | Yes | - |
| USB | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| SPDIF | In / Out | In | - |
| Line Out | RCA | - | 3.5mm |
| DAC | Burr-Brown (Dual) | Burr-Brown | Burr-Brown |
| Formats | PCM768 / DSD512 / 2xDXD | PCM768 / DSD512 / 2xDXD | PCM384 / DSD256 / DXD |
| Filter switch | Bit-Perfect / Min Phase / Standard | Listen / Measure | Listen / Measure |
| MQA | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Clock | Low-jitter crystal clock | Low-jitter crystal clock | Low-jitter crystal clock |
DAC (Digital-to-Analogue Converter)
DACs convert digital information, stored or streamed by computers, into music we can hear through speakers or headphones.
Every device that’s a source of digital sound has a built-in DAC (TVs, games consoles, CD players, phones, portable music players etc). Dedicated external DACs sound much better than standard DACs used in digital devices such as phones.
Apple CCK and Android OTG
So, why don’t we provide these two cables with our products?
The Apple CCK cable can only be purchased from Apple. We can’t make one ourselves as it has a special chip in the cable that we’d need to use for them to actually work with Apple hardware. Sadly, Apple has not released this chip to anyone.
We can and do make two versions of an Android OTG cable – Type C and micro.
DSD (Direct Stream Digital)
DSD is a very high-quality digital audio format that’s even better than CD quality. The higher the ‘DSD rate’ – DSD64, 128, 256, 512 and 1024 – the greater the amount of music information available, which means better sound quality.
Files can be remastered to higher file rates to improve sound quality. The pinnacle of this is DSD1024. Not many machines out there are capable of this feat.
MQA (Master Quality Authenticated)
MQA is an award-winning British technology that delivers the sound of the original master recording. The master MQA file is fully authenticated and is small enough to stream or download. More here.
Tidal Masters
Tidal is a subscription-based audio streaming platform, similar to Apple Music and Spotify, but with lossless-quality audio. Tidal Masters is the section with the highest-fidelity music streamed including some files in partnership with MQA.
Lossless-quality means that no music quality is lost in this format.
IEMs
IEMs stands for In-Ear Monitors.
These fit inside your ear. You’ve been using them for years. You just called them something else.
You will also see these referred to as earphones, ear buds and CIEMs. CIEMs are Custom In-Ear Monitors – IEMs made specifically to fit your ear shape.
File formats
MP3 – this is the most popular format, every device in the world can use it.
DSD – Direct Stream Digital is a very high-quality audio format, better than CD quality. The higher the number (sample rate), the better the recording – DSD64, 128, 256, 512 and 1024.
PCM – Pulse Code Modulation is the most common format for CDs and DVDs.
DXD – Digital eXtreme Definition is a very high-quality PCM format. It was developed to edit hi-res (high quality) recordings recorded in DSD.
Analogue 'v' Digital Volume Control
For cost and convenience, modern DAC chips have a built-in digital volume control. The drawback is that a digital volume control works by ‘truncating’ the signal. Or ‘chopping Bits’ of resolution. For a 16-Bit music file at 50% volume level means the listener is actually listening to 14.5-Bits!
All iFi products bypass the digital volume control and use a separate analogue volume control which does not ‘lose Bits’ so a 16-Bit file stays unchanged which delivers maximum resolution.
Losing Bits of resolution (quality) is like having missing pixels on a computer or TV screen.
