Audiolab M-DAC nano
Looking for a high quality DAC for portable use? Audiolab’s M-DAC nano could well be the answer
If you want to improve the sound of your phone or laptop, there aren’t many options. Until now, our recommendation would have been a portable USB DAC such as Cyrus’s Soundkey (£79) or the Audioquest Dragonfly Red (£169).
These are excellent devices and do their job brilliantly for the money, but they’re not ideal for truly portable use. Both need an extra lead to work from a phone, meaning that you have to carry around an unwieldy combination of phone, adaptor cable and DAC. That’s a lot to fit in one pocket, no matter how small the DAC. However, Audiolab is offering an enticing alternative with its new M-DAC nano.
Cream of the crop
The M-DAC nano is a tiny unit, barely bigger than a custard cream biscuit, and light too, weighing in at just 28g. Both are plus points for portability, but the nano’s biggest advantage over its rivals is that the connection with your device is done wirelessly, by aptx Bluetooth (v4.2).
This wireless link removes the need to physically tether your device to the DAC, so, once you're on the move, the nano is considerably more convenient to use than its rivals. It can be in a different pocket from your source, for example, and put wherever is convenient to connect the leads from your headphones.
Audiolab even provides a faux leather belt clip and a built-in microphone, which allows hands-free calls when connected to a smartphone and can also be used for Siri or Google Assistant.
While its rivals take power from your device – reducing power reserves in the process – the nano has a built-in rechargeable battery, which is claimed to give eight hours' use from a full two-hour charge. The DAC powers down after 10 minutes of inactivity to preserve battery life, and there’s also a neat wireless charging pad included in the box.
Audiolab is no newcomer to digital-toanalogue conversion, but it struck gold with the introduction of the original M-DAC. The nano is a very different device, though. Unlike its older, purely domestic brother, it uses a Cirrus Logic CS43130 DAC chip, designed for low power consumption applications. The specs make impressive reading, with the Audiolab able to upsample the incoming signal to 32-bit/384khz (at the press of a button) before converting to analogue.
Build quality is neat, but the need for portability means the casework doesn’t feel substantial. A 64-step rotary volume cog controls play/pause and skip, while the button marked ‘f’ performs functions from on/off, to Bluetooth pairing and changing sampling frequency.
The nano defaults to upsampling off when you change source or your device awakes from sleep mode. It can prove frustrating once you’ve realised that upsampling sounds better and delivers a bolder, more spacious balance. Be aware though, there’s an increase in volume between the modes that favours upsampling. Also, battery life takes a 30 per cent hit due to the extra processing.
If we had had doubts about the nano before testing, they were about the effect Bluetooth may have on its sound quality. At almost £150, it has to offer a significant sonic upgrade from plugging the headphones straight into your device. Being reliant on Bluetooth, even of the apt X variety, could hamper that. We use the DAC with our iphone 6S Plus and Macbook, and it offers a superior sound to both devices. We use a range of headphones, including Beyerdynamics’ T1s, which aren’t an obvious price match, but provide a stern load for the Audiolab to drive.
A tight leash
We listen to alt-j’s All This Is Yours and are impressed with the solidity of the presentation and the improvement in bass punch and power over our source components. Not only does the nano drive our headphones louder, but it also adds a notable degree of refinement to the sound. Detail levels are good too, with the Audiolab keeping a tight leash on the album’s dense production.
We switch to Stravinsky’s The Rite Of Spring and the nano responds with wide ranging dynamics and a pleasing dose of rhythmic drive. Tonally, things are nicely balanced, with no part of the frequency range demanding undue attention.
It’s an exciting and entertaining performance, one that’s comparable to the likes of Audioquest’s Dragonfly Red. That’s some compliment, considering the Dragonfly is hardwired to your device and the Audiolab isn’t.
If you have a decent pair of wired headphones and want to improve your sound on the move, the Audiolab M-DAC nano makes a strong case. We can’t think of a similarly priced alternative that is so convenient, yet so capable.