Specialist audio brand iFi has launched its latest product in the form of the iDSD Valkyrie. This is iFi’s flagship portable DAC and headphone amp aimed at anyone who wants the ultimate sound from digital music files on the move. The device gives users the option to shape and create their own sonic signature.
The iDSD Valkyrie offers extensive customization with the latest technology in a compact size. It offers plenty of sonic control thanks to K2HD Technology, DSD Remastering, six digital filters and iFi’s signature analog processing. With quad-DAC architecture, 5,700mW peak output, lossless Bluetooth and a battery life of 18 hours, it’s unmatched by any other portable DAC on the market.
The iDSD Valkyrie is designed for anyone who wants to wring the last drop of musicality and emotional depth from digital music files. The unit uses tools that were once the preserve of the world’s top mastering houses and is inspired by the artistry of mastering engineers. The Valkyrie has iFi’s bespoke DSD Remastering algorithm, powered by a custom-coded FPGA.
Users can choose between the ‘Normal’ setting, in which DSD signals pass directly to the DAC and PCM signals go through a user-selected digital filter, or ‘Remastering,’ with options to remaster to DSD512 or DSD1024.
Like the technology used in Sony’s mastering studios, DSD Remastering is said to improve the audio quality of any file by increasing its resolution, reducing distortion and delivering a richer and more detailed sound, just like a professionally remastered recording.
At the heart of the Valkyrie is JVCKENWOOD’s renowned K2HD Technology, which restores the warmth and emotion of analog recordings, ensuring digital audio doesn’t sound cold or clinical. iFi says it can restore music closer to the original master, infusing it with the rich and natural harmonics that are often lost during digitalization. The Valkyrie offers this K2HD technology in two flavors. The is the ‘K2’ mode and ‘K2HD’ mode, where the former preserves the original resolution of a file.
Alongside these technologies, the Valkyrie also offers six digital filters, including Apodising, GTO, Bit Perfect, Standard, Minimum and Transient Aligned, giving the user more ways to experience their favorite music and discover what sounds best for their ears. Complementing the digital customization suite, the Valkyrie also has advanced analog processing features unique to iFi such as XBassII, XPresence and XSpace.
Unlike other DACs, Valkyrie has switchable analog circuitry for its EQ modes, rather than Digital Signal Processing. iFi claims this preserves audio quality and allows for more natural frequency adjustment, with less phase shift and distortion.
XBassII adds back lost bass frequencies, while XPresence adds mid-presence to the sound for a more upfront midrange. XSpace, also found across iFi products, enhances the audio by creating a spacious sound field, adding depth to the more two-dimensional two-channel experience.
The Valkyrie is built around four Burr-Brown DACs in a hybrid multi-bit configuration, based on iFi’s experience using the multi-bit Philips TDA1541A. iFi says the design captures the magic and impact of the iconic Philips multi-bit chipset, but with lower-level linearity for more detail.
As pioneers of Lossless Bluetooth, iFi has equipped Valkyrie with the latest flagship Qualcomm chipset to provide CD-quality audio using the aptX Lossless codec as well as Hi-Res playback using LDAC.
The Valkyrie provides around 44% more power than iFi’s flagship, multi-award-winning iDSD Diablo 2 when driving 16Ω headphones. It can output up to 5,700mW peak output power or 2,258mW RMS. The Valkyrie can drive the most power-hungry headphones while still being portable enough to go anywhere.
The iDSD Valkyrie supports IEMs using xMEMS, an innovative speaker technology that combines both the actuation and diaphragm in a silicon chip producing some of the fastest and most precise drivers for IEMs. With these next-generation speakers, there’s virtually no phase shift and they are up to 150 times faster than regular mechanical drivers.
To power all its features, the Valkyrie needs plenty of battery. iFi has used four 5,000mAh lithium-ion units, providing 20,000mAh. Not only do batteries provide sound free from electrical interference and noise, but they do so with enough life to last up to 18 hours of playback from a single charge. Fast charging via USB-C means the Valkyrie takes from around 2.5 hours to fully recharge.
Pricing and Availability:
The iDSD Valkyrie is available now from ifi-audio.com or through the brand’s Elite dealers. The price is $1,699 / £1,699 / €1.699.
