iFi GO Blu

Headphone amplifier/bluetooth DAC

The new portable GO blu bluetooth DAC/headphone amplifier is small enough to take with you wherever you go! It gives you the best sound wired, but also wireless because you no longer have to have a cable connection to your smartphone. GO blu is the perfect partner. It pairs wirelessly with your source device via Bluetooth, and you don't have to worry about whether you have the right cable for your Android or Apple device. The device is really small in size 55x34x13mm and weighs only 26g.

iFi GO Blu uses Qualcomm's latest quad-core QCC5100 Bluetooth chip, which supports all current Bluetooth audio formats, including: aptX Adaptive and aptX HD, LDAC and HWA/LHDC. This means that all possible source devices are processed at the highest resolution that their Bluetooth specifications allow. No other pocket-sized DAC/amplifier offers such comprehensive codec support or high-quality audio via Bluetooth. GO blu is Bluetooth v5.1 compatible, which guarantees the best possible range, stability and performance. Its "Bluetooth Engine" can be updated wirelessly.

Whether you use unbalanced or balanced headphones, you get the least noise and the best channel separation for the most enjoyable music. The GO blu amplifier has Pentacon's 4.4 mm output, which enables headphones with a balanced connection to fully utilize the GO blu's balanced amplifier structure. In addition, a 3.5 mm output that uses iFi's own S-Balanced circuit. This reduces crosstalk and associated distortion, which is especially useful with highly sensitive headphones. Both outputs are gold-plated to prevent contamination and thus maintain optimal contact.

The amplifier produces a voltage of up to 5.6 V, which handles relatively heavy headphone loads with ease. To match the signal strength to the sensitivity of the connected headphones, the automatic gain adjusts the output up or down by 6 dB. Additional sound customization is provided by two user-selectable features familiar to users of iFi's other portable headphone amplifiers. The first is XBass, a sophisticated "bass boost" that enhances the low frequencies without blurring the midrange, which is especially useful for headphones and open-back headphones that can lack deep bass. The second is XSpace, a setting designed to compensate for the "in-head positioning" that can occur when listening to music mixed through speakers on headphones, which expands the headphones' sound space for a more spacious, speaker-like experience. Both optional settings operate entirely in the analog domain, rather than mixing the digital signal using Digital Signal Processing (DSP), and can be switched in or out of the signal path

With a light, soft polymer case and copper-colored ChronoDial crown-style controls, the GO blu is a joy to use anywhere. iFi has even included a high-quality chip-based (CMOS-MEMS) microphone that enables hands-free calling, voice chat for gaming, and access to voice assistants like Apple Siri and Google Assistant.

Flexibility is also enhanced by the USB-C charging port, which also functions as an audio input and enables USB connection from source devices that do not offer Bluetooth connectivity. Go blu supports high-resolution PCM audio data up to 24-bit/96 kHz when GO blu is connected this way . The battery lasts about eight hours, depending on the power demand of the headphones, volume, etc.

Technical information:

• Chipset Qualcomm QCC 5100 series
• Revenue:
  • Wireless Bluetooth 5.1 (AAC, SBC, aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX LL, LDAC, LHDC/HWA Codec)
  • Wired USB-C up to 24/96 kHz
• Headphone outputs:
  • Balanced 4.4 mm
  • UnBal 3.5 mm
• Output power:
  • Balanced 245mW @ 32Ω; 5.6V @ 600Ω
  • UnBal 165mW @ 32Ω; 2.8V @ 600Ω
• Output Impedance:
  • Balanced <1Ω
  • UnBal <1Ω
• SNR:
  • Balanced 111dBA
  • UnBal 106.5 dBA
• DNR: 120dB (A) (BAL/UnBAL)
• THD+N:
  • Balanced <0.009% (6.5 mW/2.0 V @ 600 Ω)/
  • UnBal <0.03% (100 mW/1.27 V @ 16 Ω)
• Frequency response: 20Hz - 45kHz (-3dB)
• Battery: Lithium polymer 450mAh approx. ~ 10 hours
• Power system: Charging via USB-C, BC V1.2 compatible up to 1000 mA charging current and 6.3 volts
• Dimensions: 55 x 34 x 13 mm
• Weight: 26 g