iBasso Audio DX120 Review – Powerful, Pure, Passion

iBasso DX120

$299.99

9.1

Sound Signature

9.0/10

Build Quality/Design/Functionality

9.2/10

Value

9.0/10

Pros

• Excellent Value, fast charge, decent battery life
• Powerful driving ability, Clean pure signature style
• Compact, ergonomic, great design, fast and responsive

Cons

• no full protective case
• some hiss on sensitive earphones

iBasso Audio have been producing a number of exciting audio products for a number of years now and have developed quite a reputation and avid strong following.

So the team at earphonia.com was delighted to have the chance to review their new DX120 Digital Audio Player.

From a price perspective iBasso Daps have been extremely competitive, challenging players priced much higher, the DX200 certainly is one that falls in this category.

Listening to the feedback from their customers and realising that not all audio fans have a need for streaming apps or wireless connectivity, iBasso Audio have produced the DX120 which is straight to the point, purely about the music and stripped down to the essentials to keep pricing down without any compromise of audio quality.

Lets see whats in the box:

As shown in the  earphonia.com DX120 unboxing video above you can see the items that come with this beautifully designed player.

The DX120 supports Type-C QC2.0, and MTK-PE+ rapid charge. With rapid charge, the DX120 can be fully charged in two hours.

There is no power plug is included in the box but  in our experience this seem to be a standard these days, as helps keep packaging compact, pricing lower and most customers have their own preferred charging setups.  I personally am a fan of the RavPower range of chargers.

The iBasso Audio fast charge claims were true and I was able to charge the player in 2 hours however there was quite a bit of heat generated by the player, hopefully it wont have any long term implications.

Included is also the standard burn-in cable iBasso Audio supply with their DAPs, that can be used in place of earphones to ensure – official quote ‘The burn-in process helps the DX120’s sound reach its full potential by forming the capacitors and stabilizing the electronic components used.”

We will not cover the nature of DAP burn-in as there are a number of differing views on the subject best kept for other audio discussion forums.

A TPU case is included, which is transparent coloured, it feels sturdy and will help to protect the player from any unexpected drops, it also acts to avoid any unwanted button presses as much more force is required to press the buttons when the case is attached.

It is a wrap around case and wont protect the screen or the back but will protect the edges. See unboxng video showing case installed.

I’m sure the many respected brands specialising in audio accessories will release some attractive cases to further customise this great looking player in time.

Seemingly un-compromised by the relatively low pricing, the DX120 certainly looks to be a winner based on the advertised specifications and design aesthetics.

The DX120 is available in two elegant colour choices – Sky Blue and Earth Brown.

The design shape is very attractive and there are contour grooves that have a nice tactile feel, they are a very nice touch of quality. The 3.5mm single ended headphone output and the line output socket have gold bevelled connectors which certainly grabs your attention. The 2.5mm balanced out does not follow suit with just a plastic port, it would have been nice if this port has a similar style, like the ones on the Pioneer XDP dap range.

The size of the player is perfect, fitting in your hand comfortably. The button placement means all button functions are carried out from one side of the player, resulting in ease of usability, with nice distance of spacing and intuitive identification of all the button types, Top button ‘Power’, Large buttons ‘Volume up and down’ and the 3 standard navigation buttons.

We decided to get the Sky Blue model as looks more striking in our opinion.

Supporting the technical specification below:

2.5mm Balanced:

Output Voltage: 3.6Vrms

Frequency Response: 10Hz-45kHz+/-1dB

THD+N: 0.00028%，-111dB (without load) 0.00032%，-110dB（32Ω@2.4Vrms）

DNR：-117dB

S/N: 117dB

Crosstalk：-116dB

3.5mm Single Ended:

Output Voltage: 1.8Vrms

Frequency Response: 110Hz-45kHz+/-1dB

THD+N: 0 0.00042%，-107dB (without load) 0.00056%，-105dB（32Ω@1.2Vrms）

DNR：-115dB

S/N: 115dB

Crosstalk：-115dB

Output Impedance : 0.24ohm

3.5mm Line Out:

Output Voltage: 1.8Vrms

Frequency Response: 110Hz-45kHz+/-1dB

THD+N: 0 0.00042%，-107dB (without load)

DNR：-115dB

S/N: 115dB

Looking at the specifications, the extremely low Total Harmonic Distortion measured is very welcoming and ensures that the signal is not compromised by unwanted noise. It is unclear what areas of software and hardware implementation have provided this impressive measurement, but I suspect the option to not have any RF, steaming or Wifi components included have helped keep the THD-N very low.

Supporting: Standard 3.5mm Single Ended, 2.5mm Balanced, Line Out and Coaxial outputs

Charging, data transfer, OTG Storage and using the player as a PC DAC is provided using the USB Type C port.

Both single ended and line out ports have a great design with the contoured lines wrapping around the underside curves.

The DX120 has 2.5mm instead of the new 4.4mm balanced out , I suspect for compactness and wider cable support.

All ports were tight and secure with all the cables we used, resulting in smooth signal transmission, without any crackles or disconnects.

3.5mm single ended output had a secure tight fit with the Audeze iLCD4 silver cable.

The top of the player has the fast charging Type C usb port previously mentioned, as well as 2 Micro SD card external storage slots and coaxial output.

Line out worked perfectly feeding the Shure KSE1500 electrostatic amplifier.

There was no optical out port but we feel the range provided is excellent for most users needs.