iFi GO bar - Ultraportable DAC/preamp/headphone amp

Product Information

Wanting to dislike it, I started with Goldfinger. Unfortunately what I heard was good! First, it feels solid in hand. I’m sure we are not talking about the difference between a Gungnir and a Yggdrasil, where the internal parts contribute to weight of the product. But it feels more desktop stable than the other dongles. Second, there was a subtle but audible difference between it and the other iFi. It had less of the etch, this-is-mobile sound. More of the original recorded sound comes through with less penalty, the bad audible crud that makes me turn-it-down and lessens my immersion into the music. Truth be told, I did not have time during my trip to listen - so all listening was done in just a few hours before and the weekend after travel. But the point at the end of long work days on travel is to forget the work and chill, and to recover for the next day. This one hit the mark.

Such “guess” is also corroborated looking at the Single Ended output figures: there, the lower output impedance option does not feature a much higher attenuation as it usually is the case on IEMatch devices, but rather a slightly lower one, with a phase flip involved. When it comes to build quality, the iFi Go bar is solid, using a full aluminum alloy enclosure. It basically looks like a miniaturized version of iFi’s larger transportable DACs (think micro iDSD Signature), and it feels just as durable while still managing to be extremely lightweight. Finally, “GTO” is ifi’s proprietary filter called “Gibbs-Transient Optimised. It’s a very fast, minimum phase filter. I strongly recommend you read iFi’s whitepaper about why and how this may be technically desireable, or not. The iFi Go Bar I am reviewing is actually from Headphones.com and was sent to me from Precogvision of their team many months ago, but I still have it here for now.I compared all four dongles against each other and, for common frames of reference, my Sony ZX2 DAP and my Lotoo Paw S1. So the differences: Build Quality on Go Bar is standard dongle hard plastic thingy (dunno the build quality) that is better for outdoor use (but still use the included case), while the GOld Bar is in its stupid gold that get marks on it super easy is terrible to look at it. It isn't an OAFAS product, but it looks like one. Really hate the look of the GOld Bar and I would personally never get it since it looks dumb. From high sensitivity/low impedance fussy IEMs, all the way to low sensitivity/high impedance beasts, the M15 can handle everything with ease. The build is solid, there’s sufficient power on tap, and it does not get noticeably warm with usage. The BTR3K, BTR5, and Go Blu can all handle Bluetooth duties, while the Go Link, S9 Pro, DragonFly Red, and Go Bar cannot.

Turbo Mode increases the gain by 6dB. To switch this on or off, press the + and – volume buttons together for ≥ 2s. Turbo Mode on is indicated by 2 white LEDs increasing to 6 lighting up at the same time for 2s. Normal gain is indicated by 6 white LEDs diminishing to 2 lighting up for 2s. Despite the need for a product like this to be as small and unobtrusive as realistically possible, iFi has nevertheless had a go at Doing Some Designing. The result is a USB ‘dongle’ DAC that’s a little bigger and heavier than the norm - but also one that’s very nicely built and finished. For the most part, the Go Bar doesn't do anything wrong. It's quite neutral sounding to my ears, with no real emphasis in any part of the spectrum, unless you enable one of the digital processing effects. XBass+ gives a big boost to the bass region, with what I believe is a +10dB down-sloping curve through the bass region.I intentionally avoided looking up technical specifications or price points on any of the products before listening; so all value/price/spec evaluation was after I had wrapped up the listening session notes. Certainly my favorite is the Gold Bar, but I did not like the lower output from a phone, nor the attraction to fingerprints it has. But as far as SQ, it certainly was the highest of these. The Go Bar is a close second, just watch the boomyness on that one and somewhat softer presentation. Both the Gold and Go bar sounds so much more natural and smooth in the highs and the mids that is certainly more pleasant that the other two. As you can see, the iEMatch feature turned down the gain by -6dB to accommodate sensitive IEMs and might increase the output impedance (presumably this is done through a voltage divider as per this ASR discussion, effectively reducing the efficiency of the amp). And the XBass+ feature basically gives a boost in the bass starting around 200Hz and up to +7dB at 20Hz; potentially a pleasant EQ for many headphones. Otherwise the DAC/amp has a nice and flat frequency response. We’ll discuss some raw specs and get into the sound differences (if there are any) as well as the overall build, aesthetics, and functionality.

I’m leaning towards yes, slightly, but a lot of it could have to do with the fact that it’s just louder. GO Bar is superbly designed, solid, and – last in the list, but of course first for importance – sounds very well. Frankly, the only missing things are a replaceable cable and a Lightning-to-USB adapter for iOS devices. Of course, if you aren’t an Apple user, this will not impact you. Sound and power​GO Bar sounds well, and I should actually remark “very well” indeed, from its balanced output port.The biggest difference between the Go and Gold bars is that the Gold bar sounded less congested during complicated passages and everything keeps its place and shape.The Go bar seems like it is working too hard and gets things start to fight each other. Not to mention that the Go bar is a bit more “boomy” in the low end and less overall controlled and refined. The top end also was slightly hazier and did not have quite the clarity of the Gold Bar. The Chord Hugo 2 is designed for both mobile and home use, either with headphones or in a conventional audio system with a line-level output and full-function remote control. The higher capacity battery offsets the power-hungry THX amplifier, and battery life ranges from about 6-9 hours (about the same as the BTR5), depending on volume and output choice. With GTO on, I also liked the center mids’ openness and warmth, which made things sound a lot more natural than the “Standard” filter. Overall, things were just more lively. I don't know what's the point of being so secretive about the DAC chip used ( Crutchfield says it's the 43131).