TechRadar Verdict
As a DAC add-on for a computer-based system, this is a real audiophile blessing. As a headphone amp, its trump card is compatibility of headphones with portables
Pros
- +
Can be used as a DAC
- +
Great sound improvement
- +
Compact form factor
- +
Good I/O options
- +
Op amps can be changed...
Cons
- -
...And we think you will want to change them
Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.
The iBasso D10 Cobra is more than just a headphone amp, it's also a three-input DAC.
Miniaturisation is a wonderful thing and despite this unit's diminutive dimensions of 55mm wide by 21mm high by 104mm deep, it includes both optical and electrical S/PDIF inputs and a USB socket for connection to most flavours of portable or desktop computer.
Oh, and because it's portable there's a battery in there, plus enough circuitry to charge it from the USB connection (for those without a handy computer, iBasso provides a plug-in charger and USB-type lead). Too bad so few iThings have any kind of digital output.
Sound personalisation
That's already a decent feature list, but iBasso has really gone all the way for the tweaker and made it possible to change the op-amps in the output circuit so as to personalise the sound to some extent.
The fitted op-amp is a perfectly respectable type, but a couple of higher performance ones are provided – surface-mount devices, mounted on adaptors to allow them to be easily plugged in. A pair of blank adaptors are provided, too, and you could, in principle, use almost any through-hole mounting op-amp with an industry-standard pin-out.
Operation is simple, though it can seem a little confusing that the 'Aux' socket on the front is both an input (when using the D10 as an amplifier) and an output (when using it as a DAC).
The volume control includes the on/off switch and it seems pretty hard to turn on by accident. Battery life in DAC mode is about 20 hours or 30 in amp mode.
