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The iFi ZEN Blue 3 is the world’s first lossless wireless DAC
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We’re feeling submerged under the number of products that iFi has released in 2024, with news that the audio brand has launched two more.
The iFi Zen Blue 3 and Zen CAN 3 are the latest additions to iFi’s sprawling number of audio devices, and they’ve both got neat tricks up their sleeves.
Starting with the Zen CAN 3, it’s a headphone amplifier that supports xMEMs speakers (which we wroteabout over here), and its presence here allows for, in iFi’s words, “superior clarity and fidelity during listening sessions to reach a new dimension of audio quality”.
But it’s not just music that the Zen CAN 3 wants to improve but gaming and movies too. With two new analogue EQ modes, the Movie EQ is able to enhance dialogue clarity; while the Game mode makes low-level sounds audible so you can hear everything that’s going on within the game world.
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There’s also been a step up in power output to 2000mW to help the Zen CAN 3 drive a range of headphones with various impedances, along with 0 – 18dB adjustable gain and +6dB steps to match your headphones.
The Zen CAN 3 is out now £229 / $229 / CA$229 / AU$229 / €229.
The Zen Blue 3 claims to be the world’s first wireless DAC that is able to transmit and receive lossless CD quality data with no data loss. It supports Bluetooth 5.4 and Qualcomm’saptX Lossless codec, as well as Hi-Res 96kHz streams viaLDACand LDHC/HWA.
This jump up in quality carries benefits for your mobile devices, enabling services such as the Tidal andQobuzto be heard as intended (although this requires an Android compatible smartphone), while iFi states that home cinema lovers will be able to enjoy high-quality audio withHi-Res Bluetooth headphones.
It’s not just wireless audio that the Zen Blue 3 can boost, as it can also act as a traditional wired DAC through its USB-C or S/PDIF inputs.
The price for the Zen Blue 3 is £299 / $299 / CA$299 / AU$299 / €299, though it’ll be available to purchase from July 9th onwards.
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Kob began his career at What Hi-Fi?, starting in the dusty stockroom before rising up the ranks to join the editorial and production team as the Buyer’s Guide editor. Experienced in both magazine and …
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Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.
Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
