[Review&QnA] AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt USB Digital-to-Analog Converter
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[Review&QnA] AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt USB Digital-to-Analog Converter
About this item
- Native Resolution up to 24-bit / 96kHz
- DAC Chip ESS ES9038Q2M DAC chip with minimum-phase slow roll-off filter for more natural sound
- Plays All Music Files: MP3 to MQA and Hi-Res
- Compatible with iOS Mobile Devices (requires Apple Lightning-to-USB adaptor) and Android Mobile Devices (requires USB adaptor)
- Dimensions: 57mm (l) x 19mm (w) x 12mm (h)
- Connectivity technology: Wired
- Connector type: USB Type A
Reviews
★★★★★
Color: Black | Verified Purchase
Pick Black, Red is unjustifiably expensive
Since there are plenty of reviews addressing various aspects of sound quality, I'll just try to help those who can't decide between the Black and Red.
I own both Black and Red for a few months now, and I listen to both regularly, about 10 hours a week. I can't tell the difference despite listening to each through one of the best set of headphones. Black is great, and knowing what I know now, I would only buy another black model. I see no reason whatsoever to pay extra for an imperceptible difference.
★★★★★
Color: Black | Verified Purchase
Changed my life....
So I mainly for this DAC for it's MQA decoding capabilities, the headphone pre-amp, amp, and compatibility with smart phones were all bonuses. I mainly listen to most of my music from Tidal, I have a few high end headphones and never thought this DAC would make that much of a difference. Boy was I wrong. As soon as I updated it so I could listen to MQA tracks I sat down in my computer room, turned the lights off, lit a few candles, poured myself some wine, picked my song of choice and then pressed play. And then it happened, there I was floating in space.... Suspended in time. I started to cry, i felt every moment of sadness, pain, happiness, anger, sorrow all at once. It was there I knew, I was no longer a mortal man, I had been kissed by angels, my ears would never been the same. Now bound by spirit, machine, and man. I then awoke from trance now a changed man.
★★★★★
Color: Black | Verified Purchase
Great Upgrade that won't break the bank
I have a Schiit Fulla 2 that I use with my Macbook but I needed something smaller that will connect to my iPhone and Audioquest's Dragonfly Black didn't disappoint. For people who've invested a good amount of money on their headphones, this a welcome upgrade to the sound you get from you're headphones. You will need a lightning to USB adapter if you plan to use this with an iPhone. As with any external DAC, your results may vary depending on your headphones. I tried these on the headphones I own( Oppo PM3, ATH-50x, Senheisser HD558 and my newest cans the Sony MDR 1A) the sound from the iPhone is better with the Sony MDR 1A being the fun headphone becuase it's more forgiving than the Oppo and AudioTechnica on bad recordings or lower bit recordings.
★★★★★
Color: Cobalt | Verified Purchase
A great 3 dimensional and fully textured expirience
With out a doubt the Dragonfly
Cobalt is the best "dongle" DAC out there. Using my highly resolving Shure SE846 IEMs and USB AUDIO Pro with Tidal, I found It's very detailed, spacial, and transparent. It easily let's you hear each instrument from both the foreground and background with its own authority at low to normal listening volume with excellent imaging and smooth transients. The main vocalist, and background singers can also clearly be heard and enjoyed. Its slow roll off filter makes this DAC not fatiguing or sharp. Relatively speaking It is also forgiving with older or poor recordings.
Comparing it to the Dragonfly Red which I also own, the Cobalt is truly ahead in Its performance. That being said, the Red is also a great choice and I wouldn't overlook it if I had not so resolving equipment. I'll be listing the Dragonfly Red on e-bay
★★★★★
Color: Cobalt | Verified Purchase
Cobalt is worth the upgrade from Red!
Finally decided to upgrade my several year old Dragonfly V1.2 to the Red on June 27th. Of course, AudioQuest announced the Cobalt on July 8th. Suffering from a case of upgraditis I had to check out reviews of the Cobalt. After reading a couple of comparison reviews I just had to have the Cobalt. Sold my Red to a friend for $100, so essentially the Cobalt cost me $400. And I could not be happier.
As I type this I am listening to a MQA playlist on Tidal on my Sennheiser HD 58x headphones and am totally blown away. Music is clearer and instruments more well defined. Soundstage is wider. Read the comparison reviews online.
So if you are trying to decide between the Red and Cobalt, go for the Cobalt. You do get a DragonTail USB C adapter and this has improved power filter and does not need the JitterBug so the price difference really is not that great. If you already have the Red and have the disposable income considering upgrading. It is worth it. At least it was worth $400 to me.
★★★★★
Color: Black | Verified Purchase
I've completely downed the snake oil WOW!!!!!!
This is probably the second or third review I have ever written but audio freaks need to know this!!!!! I have a budget system but still enjoy critical listening. My setup includes: Onkyo TXNR-747 receiver, Elac B-6 bookshelf speakers, Def-tech 10" sub, and primarily listen through Spotify streaming through my receiver. The Elacs were a big upgrade from my previous pair and I was pretty happy with it all. Fast forward two years and I'm ready to up-grade this summer to a Marantz receiver and Klipch towers or SVS towers perhaps? Being the audio-geek-wanna-be that I am, I Youtube anything audio all the time and I kept on seeing more and more info and chatter about TIDAL's streaming service and how it has become the go-to for people who want a superior sound compared to Spotify's 320 kbps. Not bad but could it get better??
Short answer: OH HELLS YEAH!!!! And that's where the Audioquest Dragonfly USB DAC comes in. You see, TIDAL is now offering something called MQA or Master Quality Audio rendering. Simply put, through TIDAL's desktop app, It will stream high-rez (96k, way past CD (44k), on there "masters" recordings. But you need a DAC to decode this information. Not only does the Dragonfly (Black in this case), decode MQA, but doing A and B switching between Spotify (through my reciever's DACs) and TIDAL (through Dragonfly attached to laptops USB, and then headphone out to one of the inputs on the back of my receiver) , the difference was astonishing! Stupidly so lol!! And to think I was listening to Spotify for my main listening...... There is a palpable difference. First, the sound stage just went huge. Or rather, there actually WAS a sound stage through TIDAL/Dragonfly lol. I can now hear and place where the vocalist and instruments are. DUDE! Second: The bass tightened up drastically. No more mudd. Third: just the smoothness of everything. I didn't realize how harsh everything was sounding until now through this upgrade. And it's not just the "Masters" recordings that sound this good. Everything does!!! (As TIDAL's entire catalog is at least CD quality). I have spent the last 10 or so days of listening and comparing and my opinions are only stronger. This has been a true WOW moment for me and for everyone I have shown. Every person (band-mates, girl-friend, dudes) Have agreed. (and confirmed I'm a geek) Now I'm just thinking about how much better it will be when I upgrade the rest of the system this summer. Until then I will be just fine thank you very much through this kick-ass little system!
Have any questions please ask. Or hell, come on down to Florida and check it out lol!!! Cheers.
★★★★★
Color: Black | Verified Purchase
Great headphone amplifier with excellent DAC
Great sound quality. I was skeptical since this is a small unit and did not require any other power sources. It didn't seem to have enough room for big size capacitors either, which many considered a requirement for a good amplifier.
For both my MDR-7506 and Creative Aurvana Air, this unit made the sound for every music better. I don't know much about DAC but one this has seems to cover for the lack of bitrate from sound sources like Pandora. I actually tried DragonFly 1.2 when I was using Macbook Pro and decided to return it that time. But now it seems to make everything so much better - clear highs and tight bass. I use it for iPhone 7 (using Apple's USB adapter) and a Lenovo Windows laptop. Music is simply much more delicious. Thanks for keeping on this innovative product.
If I have a small complaint, my earbuds from Creative seem to be too loud even at a lowest output volume setting (5%). It could've been even better if there's an amplifier gain control high and low as some headphone amplifiers do.
★★★★★
Color: Cobalt | Verified Purchase
Expensive but worth it
A desktop USB dac/amp at this price point will sound better. But what this gives you is hugely better sound from your phone AND portability AND power to drive big headphones. The difference in sound from what your iPhone or Samsung produces to this is staggering. There is really no going back once you get used to it. Took a few days for mine to open up, but now I can't imagine not using it for headphones and I will literally drive back home to pick it up if I forget to take it on a drive. NO GOING BACK! It is completely worth it.
Now some small gripes. This is a lot easier to use on the iphone than android because the MQA via Tidal works straight up on the iphone but needs another app on the android (Audio player pro). Also, on android, you need bit-perfect mode to get MQA quality, which means you can't have any equalization which is a bummer since many headphones really benefit from the EQ. The cobalt showed me that MQA is not a gimmick but an actual improvement in sound. On android I prefer it directly on the TIDAL app for all non-MQA content because I can add EQ, but for MQA content I would use Audio player pro and bit-perfect mode as it gets better results.
For comparison, I like the sound of the Schiit Modi Multibit better than the Cobalt, but the Cobalt outperforms the Audioengine D1. It is able to drive the Sennheiser HD650 sufficiently and does great with the Beyerdynamic 770 80ohm version and the Sennheiser PX-100. All with significant improvement over the phones. It also sounds phenomenal in the car via Aux cable. Way better than bluetooth or the phone's own dac via aux cable. Given the portability it provides, I recommend it without reservations.
★★★★★
Color: Cobalt | Verified Purchase
Reduced Noise, Quieter Quiet, More Portable
I used to own the Red, which I kept at work. My comparisons are to the Red, and typically in the workplace, where I do most of my listening. I had given away my Red to a colleague when I upgraded my desk solution, and later purchased the Cobalt when I had to do a bunch of traveling.
They've noticably reduced the noise, i'd guess on the power rails, improving the overall performance of the dac/amp, including most notably the spatial cues, and silence.
Noise in the silence--this is something you don't think about actively. It's something you tune out, like a desk fan. But, at the end of the day, when you turn the fan off, you hear the silence, and it's wonderful; and that's just what AQ has done here. Compared to the Red, the silence is _really_ silent, and that helps across the board.
Lastly, on portability: they've reduced the size a small amount, but enough. A few millimeters made the difference between fitting it nicely in my headphones case, and not.
Thanks, AQ, for yet another wonderful device.
★★★★★
Color: Cobalt | Verified Purchase
Easily the Best Portable DAC on the Market today!!!
Thing is just awesome, for anyone who says you don;t need this or should get better headphones first, your Just wrong. I have hooked this up to several different formats, Desktop, Laptop, iPhone, and with several different types of headphones and wow, what a difference. This DAC is miles ahead of anything you have OEM. like MILES and MILES ahead in sound quality. Just buy it and do the same thing I did, plug your headphones in to your computer and then listen to a song you know well, then plug the Cobalt DAC in and listen again and results don;t lie, and it really doesn't matter what kind of headphones your using to get massive results, $30 to $600. Now me being a Audiophile hobbyist, I would say you should definitely also get a great set of Cans to get the very best sound quality you can afford. But if you can only do one right now, I would definitely say buy this first then save and get yourself a great set of headphones around the $400-600, for most will get the job done. I personally have the BeyerDynamic DT 1990 Pro's and would HIGHLY recommend those, they are as close to an end game set of CAN's as there are. Good luck and enjoy.
Question & Answer
Question :
i know these DACs are mainly for high end headphones , but anyone know if it will make a better (or slightly better) audio on $10 -$30 earphones?
Answer :
The answer is that it might make a big difference, but you won't know until you try. I have a $3000 headphone amp coupled to a $15000 DAC. I normally use them with headphones in a price range from $1000 to $4000, for which both components, independently make a huge difference. Now for the surprise: I have a pair a cheap, no-name headphones -- the only name on them is "digital." That speaks volumes. On those cheap headphones, the headphone amp makes a totally unexpected, MONUMENTAL difference. My point is that you never say "never." That said, I recommend that if you're considering investing $300 in this device, you should consider investing in better headphones. Look at the less expensive models from Grado, for example.
Question :
Can you still use inline headphone controls when using the dac with an iPhone?
Answer :
No you cannot nor can you use the mic in the headphones for making or recieving calls ...luckily you do get notification ...and you can just pull the lightning connector to answer the call ..using iphone in normal manner ..i had this exact Q after recieving my unit ..
Question :
I have powered speakers that I plug into my laptop 3mm headphone jack. Can I use this product to get more volume & better audio quality
Answer :
That's what I use the Dragonfly (Black) for. I expected a subtle improvement, but found it to be night and day! The cheapo DAC and output stage circuitry that's built into the laptop was really limiting the sound quality.
Question :
Will this work on my airport express digital output? if so, i can't find a mini-rca output that adapts to the dragonfly usb input.
Answer :
I cannot offer a confirmed answer but I'm guessing the answer is no. It may be possible with some sort of mini optical > USB converter but I couldn't find one with a quick search.
From my iPhone I use the Apple Camera Connection Kit (Lightning to USB) to connect and it works great.
Question :
Should i get this one or the v1.2? Is it worth the $50 extra? I'm planning to use this with a Audio-Technica ATH-M50
Answer :
No, I'd save the $50. Love those headphones, BTW. The V1.2 is the same only better and cheaper
Question :
Mqa compatible
Answer :
To answer your question, yes it is but it's not a full on mqa decoder. It's a renderer...which means that as long as you are using the tidal desktop application it will play mqa. You have to go to settings and make sure you're set to master. Then at the bottom your audio output must be switched to the audioquest dragonfly. Then to the right of it there is a gear icon. Click that and make sure to check exclusive mode. Only use force volume if using a separate amp to control volume. And do not check pass through mqa. The tidal desktop application will start the first decoding of the mqa files and the dragonfly handles the other part. You would only check off pass through mqa if your dac (not this one) can fully decode mqa on its own. The dragonfly will light up "purple" for mqa...but it looks more like a darker magenta. Sorry for the detailed post...hope this helps!
Question :
Have a mini mac server with audio problems, I want to transfer audio out via USB to speakers. But i was told i would need a converter, would it work?
Answer :
In theory, yes. If your speakers only connect through USB this won't work as it converts USB to a standard headphone jack. Otherwise it should be fine assuming your USB ports aren't fried
Question :
Does this need any software to work, and if so is it supplied with the unit?
Answer :
Yes the newest Dragonfly Black (version “1.5”) comes with software that you can run on a Windows PC or Mac. I use my new Dragonfly (I also have a 5-year old original Dragonfly ‘Black’) with three different Windows 10 based PCs (two with touchscreen) and an iPhone 8+. The Dragonfly installation software for Windows is called ‘DMForWindows’ and comes with a “setup” executible. I believe the use of this installation software is OPTIONAL (it does include a convenient way to download the latest Dragonfly device software and it will capture your Dragonfly serial number for future reference). In either case just ensure you have the Dragonfly Black installed in a PC USB port BEFORE powering on the PC. A Windows 10 PC should automatically show the Dragonfly as an operational audio option under “Device Manager”. You can make system choices (such as declaring the Dragonfly your default audio driver when plugged in plus equalizer settings) under “Device Manager”. In short getting a Dragonfly to work with Windows is easy and you won't regret it!
Question :
would i hear any improvement if i connect this to my phone and and then connect to the 3.5 jack of my Marshall Stanmore, instead of going blue tooth ?
Answer :
You would almost certainly hear a noticeable improvement:
- Bluetooth uses “lossy” compression, meaning that it removes some of the digital sound information to make it smaller and easier to transfer, but also sounds worse if you have a decent speaker and decent ears.
- going straight from your phone’s headphone output into the 3.5 jack of the speaker will already sound better than Bluetooth.
- you phone likely has a DAC that cost $5 or less. Even the entry-level Dragonfly Black will be a *significant* improvement over that. Plus, you get the same improvement when you use headphones too.
Question :
Can a non-audiophile really hear the difference between the cobalt and the red? Using with Sony 1000xm3 and Sennheiser hd25 headphones.
Answer :
Most users with most equipment in most environments will not. The primary benefit of the Cobalt over the Red/Black is that is supports higher resolution files. The Cobalt can support PCM up to 768khz and DSD 512 (it also supports MQA). Most bus-powered (USB) portable units cannot. If you have very high resolution digital music files, this unit can play them. This is due to the onboard DAC chip used - the ES9038Q2M. This is ESS's flagship 2-ch low-powered chip. There is no better technology available in a device like this (circa 2021). The headphone amp (ES9601) is also top quality for this type of device. You may hear improvement due to the quality of Cobalt's amplification tech, depending on the equipment you use now. The worse the equipment you use now, the more likely it is that your ears will detect a difference. The same headphone amp is used in both the Red and Cobalt. You may also notice the ability to play at higher volumes with the Red/Cobalt headphone amp, particularly if your headphones are inefficient or if the amplifier in your current setup is weak. For me, the increase in volume was very noticeable. There is other technology present that will provide theoretical sound improvements, such as for clock synchronization, but the benefit can probably only be detected through the use of measuring equipment.
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