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Big Shoutout to Lawrance and iFi Audio for sending this demo unit, and for their continued support over the years!!
Greetings mate and Welcome aboard. Stuart Charles here, HomeStudioBasics.com helping YOU make sound decisions leading to a beautiful audio experience that will make you fall in love with music (NOT gear) all over again, so…
In this iFi Uno Review, we’ll discuss everything you need to know in order to make the best buying decision possible.
By the end, you should know what the Uno is, who it may or may not be for, its features, how it sounds, and more.
To begin, one minor nitpick I have is that it’s very light and doesn’t really stay in one place on my desk.
The built-in feet on the bottom are nice, but I’m still finding the unit moving around a bit too much for my liking.
In other words,
it borders on cheap feeling, but the volume potentiometer feels pretty good to turn and all the connections/buttons seem solid enough.
You may simply find that the headphone jack tugs on the unit and pulls it around aimlessly wherever it happens to be situated.
Not a huge fan of this especially considering how hefty iFi products usually are.
That said, you may not care all that much but do keep in mind this unit feels kind of like a plastic toy you’d find in your MACKdonald’s Happy ass meal.
Front Panel
On the front, there’s an EQ button that cycles between Music, Movie, and Game modes. More on that later.
Next to that button is your power match (gain) for harder-to-drive headphones.
On the right side is the standard 3.5mm headphone jack.
Back Panel
The back contains the RCA outputs and USB-C jack for use with your PC.
Source: Spotify, 192kHz+ via Audirvana/Blue Coast Music.
Let’s take a look at iFi’s explanation before we dive into my impressions.
uno – the key to great sound
Sophisticated ES9219 Sabre DAC chip with Quad DAC+ technology and premium amplification elevates audio to a thrilling new level.
Music, Movie, and Game modes – adjust the sound to suit your choice of entertainment.
Supports hi-res audio up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM, DSD256, and MQA.
32-bit HyperStream III DAC architecture and Time Domain Jitter Eliminator.
High-quality volume control and switchable gain to match your headphones.
3.5mm headphone output, plus gold-plated RCA to connect to an amp or powered speakers.
USB-C input: connect PCs, Macs, tablets, smartphones, game consoles, TVs, and more.
If you’re familiar with iFi products, you’ll know they nearly always use the Burr-Brown chip and have been implementing it for as long as I’ve been demoing their DACs.
The Uno takes a new approach by using the popular ESS variety, but their “thrilling new level” claim is a bit of market speak since they’re kind of late on the whole Sabre chip craze.
For instance, FiiO’s BTR5 utilized the 9219 chip so I wouldn’t start doing backflips just because iFi has now finally caught up to the new millennium.
It’s not necessarily a knock on them, but let’s call a spade a spade: the whole Burr Brown thing was getting old.
There’s nothing special about that chip, but in reality, is there really anything special about the ESS variety?
To me, it does tend to sound better than most other chips, but that could be a placebo.
I feel as though it tends to come across as crisper, more lively, with a greater sense of spacing, decay, realism, and air and openness, but again, it’s kind of subtle and could come down to other factors – namely the source file in question and how well it was recorded, mixed, and mastered.
So the Uno gives off that same sort of vibe and I really have no complaints. It’s super clean and reliable, with a very low noise floor and a neutral profile.
Power
is sufficiently excellent here, as I’m almost never going to utilize the gain switch but it’s nice to have all that extra headroom just in case.
Features
Game Mode. Seems to add some bass and “meat” for lack of a better word. Could just be a matter of a pure volume increase or a bass boost if I’m being honest. I’m not sure this is going to be ideal for FPS, but it could work for single-player games with lots of cool explosions.
Movie Mode. Seems to constrict the overall sound and comes across as slightly boxed in. This may come in handy for those intimate types of scenes, but I probably won’t utilize this mode that often.
Music Mode. You may prefer this mode out of the 3 as it sounds the most “true” to the source and is in fact the default mode AFAIK.
All in all, I appreciate the sentiment but not sure the modes are all that useful as I may just stick to the music mode 99% of the time.
With Your Console
Thanks to Carlos in the comment section who mentioned the Firmware update that iFi came out with in March!
I just got around to downloading it, and can confirm it’s now Plug-and-Play with my PS4!
Type in your 10-digit serial number found on the back of the box.
Select “Firmware.” Click the orange button to download.
Open The PDF and install the iFi_Too_v1.1 as instructed.
Ensure the Uno is plugged in. It will show the current Firmware version.
Click on File and find your download firmware.
Find the new downloaded .HEX file for your device, select it, and click Open.
Press the Start button to start the install.
Press OK. Don’t disconnect the device, just wait.
It should now say “Firmware update success!”
Now you can use it with a PS4/PS5.
Note: It should just automatically switch to the Uno once you plug it in and turn it on.
Gaming
I like the Uno for gaming but don’t feel as though it’s going to make any difference at all in the actual sound. I look at this DAC as just another that can theoretically work.
In the case of audio fidelity, I look at the headphones making the strongest difference. I used the K702 and find it to be one of the best from the standpoint of directional cues, resolution, etc.
The Uno is simply the intermediary.
Paired with my PS4 (pictured right)
As A Preamp
I do like the Preamp feature quite a bit, as I can connect these to powered speakers rather easily and listen that way if I wish.
I thought it might be useful and/or interesting to compare these units as they seem to target a specific demographic and have a few of the same features at a somewhat similar price point.
FiiO K3 vs. iFi Uno
From a price standpoint, the K3 is around $30 more and comes with a balanced 2.5mm jack, the standard 3.5mm, as well as a bass boost and gain switch.
The back contains a 3.5mm output, a coaxial out as well as an optical out in addition to the standard USB-C jack that the Uno also utilizes.
So both can be used as preamps into separate active speakers, both support up to DSD256, and to my ears, both sound very similar.
The real difference between these aside from price is that the Uno only has RCA outputs and no balanced jack, but does have the multi-function mode (Music, Movie, Game) and is also more powerful.
The K3 unbalanced is significantly underpowered so I think overall, the Uno is a better value at around $79.
The Uno also advertises less than 1 Output Impedance vs. 1.04 for the K3.
Not a huge difference but should be noted.
I was disappointed to learn that the Uno is not plug-and-play with my PS4 and I was fairly shocked iFi didn’t include this feature – especially considering the whole “game mode” thing.
Whatever.
I suppose at its price point this makes sense, but it would have been a nice addition regardless.
FiiO E10K vs. Uno
This comparison is a bit more interesting because the E10K is actually closer in price – around $75 give or take.
The E10K has pretty much all the same features as the K3 but doesn’t support DSD or a balanced connection.
It does however have more power than the K3 out of the single-ended jack to the tune of around 220mW.
So there’s that.
Soundwise, the E10K is slightly grainier but you likely either won’t care or won’t have them both to go back and forth with.
Put another way,
this is an incredibly subtle sound difference and may have just been my imagination.
All in all,
I don’t look at the Uno as a better value than the E10K as it doesn’t actually add any extra features.
Again, the 3-mode feature is nice in theory, but I don’t really find it all that valuable since there aren’t enough discernable sound differences to make it worthwhile.
In other words,
it seems more like a marketing gimmick than anything else.
Yes, the Uno supports DSD while the E10K doesn’t, but let’s be honest, the majority of people won’t be listening to DSD files as they’re uber-expensive and not really worth dropping a bunch of money on.
Final Verdict
Now that we know the Uno is a slightly better value than the K3, is it still worth purchasing?
I would say no, and I’ll explain why.
My recommendations for people starting out are the ATOM, K5/K7, or G6.
I’d much rather someone get a K5/K7 and have a bunch more versatility than get an Uno and upgrade later anyways.
With the K5 Pro,
you can pretty much connect to whatever you want and you’ll likely keep it around for the long haul as I have.
The G6 is something I recommend for FPS gamers specifically (separate mic/headphone jacks), as it has all of your bases covered there as well.
There’s nothing you can do with an Uno that you can’t do with the others, so I’m inclined to just bypass it this time around.
Update: Based on the firmware update that makes the Uno compatible with PS4/PS5, I will have to reconsider whether or not I will recommend it.
After gaming with the Uno for a bit, I still don’t think it’s worth a purchase over something like a K5 Pro or K7; both of which are more versatile units and work with all gaming consoles.
It’s not that the Uno is bad. It’s just not necessary in my opinion. You could even just get the iFi Zen V2 which is basically the same thing and works as a plug-and-play unit as well.
Well, that’s about it for today folks! I hope you’ve enjoyed this iFi Uno review and gained some valuable insight.
Questions? Comments? Requests? Did I miss the mark on something? Please let me know down below or Contact me!!
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Thoughts on the Uno? I’d love to hear from you. Until next time…
Stu is determined to help you make sound decisions, and strives to deliver the best and most in depth content on the internet! In his spare time, he likes to fish, paint, play guitar, pray, rap, make beats, take photos, record videos, graphic design, and more. His sense of humour, coupled with a knack for excellence and strict attention to detail are what allow him to stand out in an crowded industry.
Hi Stu, nice review as always! I believe that a good contender against the uno would be fiio’s e10k, right? They have so many similarities and are $5 bucks apart. I’m from Argentina and the difference between the two here is around $20 so IMO is not worth it but in the US it could be. It would be great if you make a comparison between those two for the budget audiophiles. Thanks a lot for your insight into this product 🙂
Hey Alessio! Yeah, Uno is fine but just not really worth the money. DACS are a dime a dozen nowadays so I’m always looking for the best value. As for your question, what would be an example of one?
Yeah, those look cool. I’m actually adding pieces to my humble home theater setup. Got 2 Andrew Jones Pioneer right and left. About to add the center and maybe the rear ones. The problem is that running wires in an apartment from the back is kind of a pain.
hey stuart, so from your conclusion, their are better dac/amp for the price. i’d have like the uno, coz it’s cheap, small and has versatile connections. i’m trying to future proof but also want to improve the sound of my full sized closed back earphones (32 ohm resistance and 96db sensitivity).
in the immediate future, i’m buying some iems, so i hope to run that out of a dac/amp to. maybe within the next 2 yrs, i might be in a bigger place that can have desktop speakers i’d want to run from the same thing. by the way, thanks for mentioning the presonus e series — i’m liking the look of the 4.5 from the reviews. so i guess i’m asking, if my budget is 100 usd, what your recommendation is that can do what i’m looking for.
It’s not necessarily that there are better options, it’s just that there are too many amps and dacs now and I always evaluate based on overall price/value.
In other words, there’s no reason for me to recommend an Uno (or any new product) simply because it’s new. They’re mostly unnecessary. Does that make sense?
I’d rather stick to a couple of solid recommendations and ones that I’ve been endorsing for many years now. They are the ATOM or K5 Pro for desktop use primarily.
If something better does come along, I’m not opposed to swapping/replacing it with a product that I feel is a better value. But that doesn’t happen very often.
This is because a lot of companies just copy each other and attempt to stay relevant by releasing something that’s really similar to something else. Such is the case with the Uno and many other small desktop DACS.
To me, there’s no reason for the Uno to exist but it doesn’t mean it’s bad.
I hope that helps!
As for your question, are you asking for a recommendation for an amp/dac or speakers?
And you’re welcome about the Presonus! I very much like a budget set that works really well for mixing and is flat and neutral enough to get the job done.
11 comments
Hi Stu, nice review as always! I believe that a good contender against the uno would be fiio’s e10k, right? They have so many similarities and are $5 bucks apart. I’m from Argentina and the difference between the two here is around $20 so IMO is not worth it but in the US it could be. It would be great if you make a comparison between those two for the budget audiophiles. Thanks a lot for your insight into this product 🙂
Federico,
Thank you for the comment! Nice call. I will certainly add that one in soon. -Stu
Hey dude, added a little section about E10K. 🙂
I was interested in the Uno, but now I think I’ll pass.
A different question… how about reviewing Hi-Res Micro Hi-Fi systems? Do you have the chance to do that?
Hey Alessio! Yeah, Uno is fine but just not really worth the money. DACS are a dime a dozen nowadays so I’m always looking for the best value. As for your question, what would be an example of one?
I don’t own it, but for example I know of the Panasonic SC-PMX92:
https://www.panasonic.com/uk/consumer/home-entertainment/hi-fi/sc-pmx92.html
or the successor PMX94:
https://www.oliviermultimedia.ch/data/web/oliviermultimedia.ch/uploads//feuilles%20produits/PANASONIC/sc-pmx94.pdf
Cheers
Yeah, those look cool. I’m actually adding pieces to my humble home theater setup. Got 2 Andrew Jones Pioneer right and left. About to add the center and maybe the rear ones. The problem is that running wires in an apartment from the back is kind of a pain.
hey stuart, so from your conclusion, their are better dac/amp for the price. i’d have like the uno, coz it’s cheap, small and has versatile connections. i’m trying to future proof but also want to improve the sound of my full sized closed back earphones (32 ohm resistance and 96db sensitivity).
in the immediate future, i’m buying some iems, so i hope to run that out of a dac/amp to. maybe within the next 2 yrs, i might be in a bigger place that can have desktop speakers i’d want to run from the same thing. by the way, thanks for mentioning the presonus e series — i’m liking the look of the 4.5 from the reviews. so i guess i’m asking, if my budget is 100 usd, what your recommendation is that can do what i’m looking for.
Hey Pao!
It’s not necessarily that there are better options, it’s just that there are too many amps and dacs now and I always evaluate based on overall price/value.
In other words, there’s no reason for me to recommend an Uno (or any new product) simply because it’s new. They’re mostly unnecessary. Does that make sense?
I’d rather stick to a couple of solid recommendations and ones that I’ve been endorsing for many years now. They are the ATOM or K5 Pro for desktop use primarily.
If something better does come along, I’m not opposed to swapping/replacing it with a product that I feel is a better value. But that doesn’t happen very often.
This is because a lot of companies just copy each other and attempt to stay relevant by releasing something that’s really similar to something else. Such is the case with the Uno and many other small desktop DACS.
To me, there’s no reason for the Uno to exist but it doesn’t mean it’s bad.
I hope that helps!
As for your question, are you asking for a recommendation for an amp/dac or speakers?
And you’re welcome about the Presonus! I very much like a budget set that works really well for mixing and is flat and neutral enough to get the job done.
-Stu
It seems the latest firmware update for Ifi Uno gives support for PS4/PS5
Thank you for the update man! I will have to pull it back out and give it the old college try. Will report back!