First I would like to thank @Joe Bloggs, and Hiby, for including me in the review tour for the R6 Pro II. The unit was kindly supplied for 10 days of unbiased review, and all thoughts and opinions in this piece are completely my own.

The R6 Pro II is a brand new model from Hiby, and slots in the range above the (also new R6 III), and below the flagship RS8, and style-wise is quite a departure from fairly conservative appearance of the other models. The review unit came in a striking purple finish, which I found to be far more attractive than in the pictures on the Hiby website. Black is also available. The rear of the unit is a mix of glass, and curved grooves.

Briefly, the Pro II (which I’ll refer to as Pro 2 here on, for ease of typing)uses AK DACs, supports Hi-Rez audio, including DSD and MQA, has headphone and line out in both 3.5mm single ended, and 4.4mm balanced, all of which can be run using either Class A or Class A/B amplification, along with usb C for charging, data transfer, connecting an external dac, and for using the player itself as dac. Volume, play/pause, next/previous track are controlled by push buttons on the side of the unit. A number of other Hiby players use a traditional rotary volume knob, which some prefer, although personally I like button controls, which I find more responsive.

The Pro 2 uses Android 12 as it’s operating system, and has a lovely 1080 resolution screen.
Storage is 64gb internally, plus the player will accept a Micro SD card up to 2TB.

The player comes with its own app, for navigating music stored on the SD card, and also giving access to Tidal streaming (this implementation of Tidal does NOT support gapless playback, so apart from testing that it worked, I chose not to use it), along with access to various set up and eq options, including their own MSEB equaliser, which gives a wide range of adjustment, and is far more sophisticated and subtle than other more basic equalisers.
Being an Android device gives Pro 2 users access to Google Play, allowing the installation of streaming services, and other features the owner wishes to use. I installed my own preferred streaming services, Qobuz, Tidal and Apple Music, along with Neil Young Archives, plus Bandcamp and Planet Rock radio.

Full specifications (and pictures better than I can take!) are on the Hiby website.

https://store.hiby.com/products/r6-pro-ii-gen-2

In the sturdy attractive box can be found the player itself, a protective case, a usb c to usb c cable, plus a usb c to usb a adaptor, along with a spare set of screen protectors (a set are already factory fitted, which is a nice touch). Finally a quick set up guide is included.

This is my first time using an Android based device, as most of my mobile listening is iPhone plus DAC, and consequently it took me a little longer to set up my streaming services and other apps, than maybe other users would, but once everything was up and running I found the player to be extremely easy to use, both via its own app, and third party services.

Once I had everything working it was time for some serious listening. I used mainly HiFiman Sundara headphones, in balanced mode, and Empire Ears ESR iems, running single ended. I also gave the R6 Pro 2 spin with Grado SR-80i, Sennheiser HD-580 Precision, and a pair of budget KZ ZS10 iems, which I use when I don’t want to endanger the Empire Ears.

I also tested Bluetooth, LDAC, into an iFi ZEN Blue connected to a Denon system in the bedroom, and single ended line out into the main system, Schiit Saga/Vidar amplification and Castle Avon 4 floorstanding speakers.

Music sources were local files on the SD card, mainly CD quality, some 24/96 and 24/192 Flac, and DSD. Other sources were Qobuz in both CD and Hi-Rez quality, and Tidal streams in both CD quality and MQA.

Before any serious listening, I experimented with the two different amplifier modes, the three gain settings, and the EQ and digital filter options available on the player. For the ESR I settled on low gain, and class A amplification, when using the Sundara I switched to medium gain, once again using class A mode. I kept the digital filter on the factory setting, as I couldn’t hear any appreciable differences between the different options. I tested MSEB, and it does provide an excellent range of adjustment to compensate for poorer recordings, and I can see it being extremely useful for many users. For this review I disabled all EQ options, so I could hear the player as is. The Pro 2 drove the various headphones I tried with no difficulty.

With both Sundara, and ESR, the quality of sound was what I would describe as essentially neutral, but with a touch of warmth to the upper midrange and treble regions. The treble was clear and well extended, but with very little harshness or undue sibilance, except on some recordings made during the height of the loudness wars (Metallica, take a bow…), or heavily compressed commercial pop music. If I owned an R6 I would certainly use MSEB, as it does help tame these kind of recordings, making them much more listenable.

Midrange was clear and well integrated with both the bass and treble, giving good levels of clarity on vocals, even from full on recordings like Bob Moulds “Blue Hearts”, where on some systems his lyrics can be almost unintelligible. With the combination of the Hiby and the Empire iems, I was able to fully appreciate the words to the songs, and the emotion in his vocals.

More traditionally ‘Hi-Fi’ sounding fare, specifically a DSD file of “The Nature of Things” by Foxfeather, sounding positively luxurious both through the Empire ESR, and particularly through the Sundara headphones. With the latter stereo imaging was excellent, giving an almost speaker like presentation. Vocals had wonderful clarity, and were perfectly balanced with the instruments of the band.

I didn’t have a comparable DAP to pit against the Pro 2, so I did quick comparison with my my Hiby R3 Saber, and the latter was trounced, as one would hope for given the price differential between the two devices. The R3 is still a great sounding budget player, but the R6 just sounds much more grown up, giving a real insight into the music.

My Grado SR-80e are a fun listen, but can err towards harshness if partnered with the wrong gear. Using the Pro 2 tamed that occasional brash edge, but didn’t diminish the fun factor one jot. A fine result.

There has been some internet chatter that the amplifier is underpowered, for some headphones. In my time with the Pro 2, I had no issues with the headphones I had to hand. With the Sundara, I had gain set to ‘middle’, and with the likes of Iron Maiden, Within Temptation, and other hard rock music, the volume was uncomfortable, for my ears, at around 50. With mellower music, or that mastered at a lower level, I had the volume a touch higher, but not much. Using my old Sennheiser HD-580, I preferred high gain, and again had no trouble getting a pretty deafening level at around the 55 level. I inherited a pair of Sennheiser HD-414SL, from my late father, and I barely use them, as I find then extremely difficult to drive. The only thing that I own that really gets then going is the Chord Mojo, and I do have to turn the volume on that. Using the Pro 2, via balanced out, and on high gain, actually gave a pretty good result. Volume was up around 60, but I didn’t have any sense of the player straining. This is just what I found with the few headphones I had available, using my ears. As always YMMV.

Bluetooth worked well, with both the iFi Zen Blue, and a Bluesound Node2i, with connection in both cases being quick and stable.

Used as a source into my main system, in place of the Node2i and Schiit Bifrost 2 multibit DAC, the Hiby acquitted itself well, giving a sound similar to that through headphones, smooth with good clarity; an enjoyable listen. The full size separates did give a more involving, dynamic sound, but the DAP did well, and I can certainly see a dual use as a home streamer and mobile player, maybe in a second system.

The only real gripes I have are that in Class A mode the player can get pretty warm; not excessively so, but enough to get slightly uncomfortable with it stuck in the back pocket of jeans. I also found that the supplied case did make the push button controls a little difficult to operate, so I gave up on it, and used the player naked (the player, not me!).
The lack of gapless Tidal playback, using the Hiby app, needs to be addressed. Use the native Tidal app, and it’s not an issue.
Battery life was pretty much as described in the specifications, so good but not brilliant. Class A and high gain certainly used more of the charge than class A/B and low gain. Not so much of a problem if using it home or in the office, but could be an issue if out and about for a long period.

In conclusion, I recommend the Hiby R6 Pro II very highly, despite my grumbles about the case and battery life. It’s beautifully built, easy to use, and sounds excellent. During my time with it I found it to be an excellent music source, and used it simply for enjoying my music when I wasn’t in reviewer mode. I was sorry to see it go at the end of the review period, and if I was in the market for a new DAP this would certainly be on my shortlist.

iFi ZEN Air DAC review.
First of all I would like to thank Rowan94, and iFi Audio for the opportunity to review the ZEN Air components that are out on tour here on head-fi.
I’ve already reviewed the other pieces from iFi’s ZEN Air range, the Air Phono, Air Blue, Air Can, and finally it’s time to have a listen to the Air DAC, a USB DAC and headphone amplifier, which like the other ZEN Air components, sells for £99.00.
The Air DAC is basically a stripped down version of the ZEN DAC V1, in a less expensive plastic case, and lacking balanced outputs and losing the option to set the line outputs to fixed. On the Air DAC the rear RCA sockets are variable output only, controlled by the front mounted volume control. This also sets headphone volume, via a 6.3mm socket. Also on the the front panel are a switchable gain control, called powermatch, and also XBass+, a form of bass boost. The internal DAC is an MQA renderer, and supports pcm up to 32/384, along with DXD, and DSD 64, 128, and 256.
I mainly used the Air DAC with my laptop, and once I’d installed the relevant driver, I had no operational issues at all. Listening was with HiFiman Sundara. The quality of sound was a big improvement over the Schiit Fulla2 that I regularly use with the laptop, with instruments and vocals having a more natural and accurate tonality, along with a much soundstage. The Schiit is a good sounding amp, but in comparison to the iFi, music sounded one dimensional, a bit boring even. The Schiit sounded much nicer than the laptops own headphone output, whilst the Air Can made music.

Next I plugged in my iPhone, via CCK, and made a most ungainly portable system, totally unsuitable for use on the move. It sounded great though! I could see myself using an old phone or tablet with this DAC as a compact streaming system in a bedroom, or garden shed. It gave a much more full bodied sound than the Dragonfly Red I often partner with the phone, especially with Sundara.
My only real criticism of the ZEN Air DAC is the omission of the fixed output option for the RCA connections. To use as a pure DAC, through a speaker amplifier means turning the volume up to full on the Air DAC, and then remembering to turn it down before plugging in headphones. Deafness and blown headphones are not fun!
In conclusion, the iFi ZEN Air DAC is and excellent DAC/amp, especially for the price. I’m seriously considering retiring the Schiit, and getting one of these!

iFi ZEN Air Can review.

First of all I would like to thank Rowan94, and iFi Audio for the opportunity to review the ZEN Air components that are out on tour here on head-fi.

I’ve already reviewed a couple of other pieces of kit from iFi’s ZEN Air range, the Air Phono and Air Blue, and now it’s the turn of the Air Can headphone amplifier.
Selling head in the UK for £99.00 the Air Can is a stripped down version of the existing ZEN Can, housed in a plastic rather than metal case, and it loses the balanced input, and balanced Pre-out. It’s still pretty well equipped with connections, with one 3.5mm input, and two pairs of RCA inputs, whilst on the front is a full size headphone socket, plus a 4.4mm output compatible with balanced headphones. Gain adjustment, and an X-Bass selector can also be found on the front panel. Volume is controlled with a nice to use metal knob.

To audition the Air Can it replaced my own iFi ZEN Can in my my main headphone system, with the source being iFi ZEN Stream into ZEN Dac V2. Headphones were HiFiman Sundara, Grado SR-80e, plus I had a brief try with Empire Ears ESR iems.

Using Sundara I noticed very little difference in sound quality between the Air Can and ZEN Can, using the RCA input, other than a little bit more bass weight with the ZEN Can, and maybe a slightly bigger soundstage with the latter. Judged in isolation the Air Can had more than enough power to drive Sundara, and didn’t stray into harshness with any of the ‘phones I tried, unlike some other inexpensive amplifiers I’ve tried over the years. I found the Air Can to be a fine companion for extended listening sessions.

The Grado’s were a good match too, with the iFi amplifier, sounding involving and unfatiguing, which I liked as these headphones can be a bit harsh with some amps and sources. I could easily live with this combination if I was in the market for a headphone/amp combo for around £200.00.

The ESR sounded good with the Air Can, with a decent amount of range on the volume control available, and no audible hissing from the amplifier, although these earphones do have a residual hiss anyway, which was present. I can’t see many partnering this amp with £700.00 earphones, but they worked together, so it could prove to be a decent spare amplifier, to bring out if the main amp goes kaput.
Using the balanced input on the ZEN Can did widen the gap between the two amplifiers, especially when using balanced headphones. Balanced is a nice feature to have, giving more potential for future upgrades, but I can see why it was omitted (to keep costs down). If balanced is important, definitely go for the higher model. The single ended inputs do give excellent results, especially for the low price, so if that’s all you need then I doubt that you’ll be disappointed.

I very much enjoyed using the ZEN Air Can, and if I was in the market for a great sounding amp for under £100.00 I’d buy one. In fact I don’t actually NEED this amplifier, but I do WANT one!

Highly recommended!

First of all I would like to thank Rowan94 and iFi Audio for the opportunity to review the ZEN Air components that are out on tour here on head-fi.

For this review I shall be having a look at, and a listen to the ZEN Air Blue bluetooth DAC.
The Air Blue is basically a simplified version of the ZEN Blue, with the major differences being the loss of both the digital outputs, and the 4mm balanced connection found on the ZEN Blue. Along with other ZEN Air products the Blue also uses a cheaper plastic case as opposed to the metal of the higher range. It’s well built, but I don’t like the colour of the case! Common to both DACs is the ability to decode a wide range of Bluetooth codecs:

▪ aptX

▪ aptX HD

▪ aptX Adaptive ▪ aptXLL

▪ LDAC

▪LHDC/HWA ▪ AAC

▪SBC

To test the Air Blue I mainly used it through our bedroom system, a Denon 107 with Tannoy 632 speakers, as a convenient way of streaming music from the iPad. The AAC connection was quick, and proved to be very stable, with it not breaking up until I was almost at the bottom of the stairs.
I found the sound of the Air Blue, even using AAC, to be very listenable. Streaming from both Tidal and Qobuz gave a very crisp, clear sound, one that is well balanced across the frequency range, and after a couple of tracks I forgot that I was listening to a lossy signal, and simply got on with enjoying the music.

I also tried LDAC from a Hiby R3 Pro Sabre DAP, and the upgrade in sound quality was obvious, and, to my ears, pretty much indistinguishable to a CD played through the Denon CD player.

AptX from my laptop also worked fine and sounded good.
In comparison with the ZEN Blue, playing through the Denon system, I really couldn’t tell much difference between the two, however comparing them through the main system, did give a slight edge to the ZEN Blue, with the Air sounding a touch harsh in the treble, but it was a small difference. The big advantage the ZEN Blue has over the Air is the presence of optical and co-ax digital connections, which allows users of the more expensive unit to add a higher quality DAC of their own choosing. I see why it was omitted from the Air, to keep costs down, but did miss it sometimes.

I very much enjoyed my time with the ZEN Air Blue, and I recommend it as very cost effective way of adding good quality Bluetooth to an older system lacking streaming, or as a handy addition to a secondary system, in a bedroom or kitchen.
Yes, the ZEN Blue has the edge in revealing systems, but for just £99.00 here in the UK, the ZEN Air is excellent value for sound per pound, and I recommend it highly.[/USER]

First of all I would like to thank @Rowan94 , and @iFi audio for the opportunity to review the ZEN Air components that are out on tour here on head-fi.

In this review I shall be taking a listen to the ZEN Air Phono, a compact phono-stage, selling here in the UK for £99.00.

The Air Phono is based upon the existing ZEN Phono, and to keep the price low a number of changes have been made. The balanced output, and load adjustments for MC cartridges have been dropped, whilst MC compatibility and RCA outputs have been retained. The Air Phono keeps the unique style of the ZEN Phono, but the metal casing of the higher model has been replaced with one made of plastic. The build quality is still good, and the sockets feel nice and sturdy. Also retained is a subsonic filter, to reduce noise caused by warped records. I tried it, and it works without any effect on sound quality.
All testing was done using a Technics SL-1210II, fitted with a Linn Akito arm, and Ortofon 530 MkII moving magnet cartridge, running through Schiit Saga pre-amp, Schiit Vidar power amp, into Castle Avon 4 floor standing speakers.
Even before cuing up the first record I was struck my how quiet this phono stage is. Turning the volume up to full, I could hear a faint hiss from the cartridge, but no humming or buzzing noises, which is not the case with my usual Schiit Mani phono stage.
The first record I played was The Beatles “Abbey Road” which is over 40 years old, and has seen some serious use over the decades. It has it’s fair share of pops and cracks, but through the ZEN Air, these were nowhere nearly as intrusive as when using the Mani. The music itself was presented in what I would call an accurate manner, with the ZEN Air adding very little in way of colouration. Stereo imaging was excellent, as was pace, rhythm and timing.
With everything I played, from Nick Drake through to Bob Mould, I was impressed with the results I was getting. Music was dynamic, clear, and above all involving and entertaining.

I briefly tried the ZEN Air through a 1990’s vintage Arcam Alpha 7 integrated amplifier, and was a definite improvement over the decent enough onboard phono stage.

I really like the ZEN Air Phono, and to be honest I’m struggling to find fault with it, especially for the paltry amount it sells for. Being picky, I can’t see many people using it with a moving coil cartridge, and mono button would be nice for those vintage album moments, but that’s it.
This phono stage is going to be a fine way to upgrade those budget turntables with built in phono facilities, older amplifiers like the Arcam I used, as well as adding vinyl playback to those amplifiers that don’t have a dedicated phono input, such as the Schiit Saga I use.
I highly recommend this excellent value phono stage.