iFi Audio GO Bar Review
Detailed…lively…punchy… expressive…these are just some of the words I would use to describe the iFi GO Bar. The iFi GO Bar fits in the palm of your hand, and yes is a full-fledged desktop DAC/AMP. We will go into more detail about the $330 beast in this review!
What are the specs
The amp’s design combines sonic purity with power.
475mW into 32 ohms
7.5V into 600 ohms
No headphone amp of such a diminutive size can match the GO bar’s ability to drive tricky headphone loads or work with a wider variety of headphones. The GO bar also incorporates two power-tuning technologies:
iE Match – attenuates power to suit high-sensitivity headphones and IEMs, it removes background noise and increases usable volume range
Turbo – ramps up the gain by 6dB to satisfy more power-hungry headphones.
Taken from iFi.com*
To learn more, take check out iFi GO Bar
Technology
The iFi GO Bar is filled with a wealth of technology included in other products much more expensive that has trickled down to the sub $500 level.
When it comes to digital formats, the GO Bar has it covered with XMOS 16-Core chip. Allowing the following:
Ultra-res PCM up to 32-bit/384kHz via USB
Native playback up to DSD256
2x DXD
For those who use Tidal, the iFi GO Bar fully supports MQA, encoding, and decoding of MQA.
So, if you have a digital format out there, chances out there the GO Bar has you covered for on-the-go listening.
As stated, the power section is no slouch, being able to power sensitive IEMs to power-hungry Planars with ease.
The GO Bar is equipped with the legendary IE Match, reducing the already black background even further for those IEMs susceptible to even the Nth degree of floor noise.
A selection of premium capacitors is used from TDK, Panasonic OS-CON, muRata, and Tantalum capacitors are among some used. The TDK capacitors ensure smooth power delivery draws both a low and high. While the Panasonic OS-CON is used for noise reduction. The muRata caps are used for a stable signal, and “Their noise suppression abilities are impressive”.
What is included in the box
In the box, is quite sparse, and that is ok. In the box are the GO Bar, a Faux leather case, and two OTG cables, one USB-C to Lightning and the other USB-C to USB-C. Both cables are high quality and braided. A one-page quick start guide is included explaining the basics of the GO Bar. To learn more go to https://ifi-audio.com/products/go-bar/.
Additionally, along the LED holes are painted descriptions of what format is being used currently. This includes file format, filter, and volume.
The GO Bar has an USB C port on top, and on the bottom an 3.5mm headphone jack as well as a 4.4 balanced jack, both with a firm connection.
One interesting feature is the LEDs will show the current volume for three seconds after the button press, otherwise, it will show data format.
Now to the music
For this music session, I used an iPad 7th Gen and an iPhone 13 Pro Max. Along with Qobuz, Roon. To accompany our GO Bar, I used both a pair of Fir Audio V x Vs, and the new 64 U4S IEMs. iBasso DX320 was also used. The U4S IEMs are quite spectacular. More about those in a separate review!
In our first selection, it was only at first beat that was I taken back by the detail and liveliness the GO Bar possesses with “Beat Devine” by, Alison Goldfrapp. Such as air, depth, clarity, and soundstage. Could it be either the IEMs or the GO Bar? The bass was never muddy on this track, tight, and punchy. Well, I went, listened once more, and pulled out the Big Guns with the iBasso DX320. And then did a comparison to the GO Bar, and honestly, I was shocked, by excellent the GO Bar sounded compared to my reference DX320. So far I’d say a good job iFi!
Let’s try something a bit different that is not at bass laden. In this track, we listen to David Crosby and The Lighthouse Band, Folk/Blue/Rock band. So, one who is more towards the lighter side and is acoustic and clarity matters. In this album, “Live at the Capitol Theatre” the level of detail the GO Bar can retrieve is simply astonishing, as this is not a full-size rig, but something you fit in your pocket.
For our subsequent piece, let’s take beautiful “Right on Time,” from Brandie Carlile. Where we can feel the pain and hear her voice soar! In this song, we can practically hear everything, from that hall that was used, her piano, and guitar. All seaming like you is in the room. I just cannot get over the amount of realism the GO bar provides in a dongle DAC, and at $330!
Suggestions
Is the iFi GO Bar perfect? No. There are a few, hiccups or suggestions I have.
There should be a reminder in the software to tell you to disconnect from the data port when not in use… tell me how I know.
More importantly, there should be an auto cutoff, that stops draining power from the data port when the GO Bar, when plugged in. Otherwise, it will continue to drain the device's power.
The paint used to show the file format is not as legible as the volume is. If this was fixed it would be great.
Final Thought
At $330 is the iFi is the GO Bar worth the money or a recommendation? Hands how yes. There is nothing else out there that approaches the iFi GO Bar Dongle/DAC. Having a desktop-class DAC/AMP that can fit in your hand, even with the small laments.
To learn more go to https://ifi-audio.com/products/go-bar/. Gear Used
Roon Nucleus+
Roon Software (Latest Version-Beta)
Qobuz (Latest Version)
64 Audio U4S
Fir Audio V x V IEMs
Music Used
Alison Goldfrapp - The Beat Divine
https://open.qobuz.com/track/202075710
David Crosby - Live at the Capitol Theatre (Live at the Capitol Theatre)
https://open.qobuz.com/album/kf1nrfbrf63mc
Brandi Carlile - Right on Time
https://open.qobuz.com/track/126886783