IKKO Zerda ITM02 Review
IKKO Zerda ITM02 Review
Introduction:
IKKO Audio (IKKO Technology Co. Limited) is a relative new Chinese brand that designs & develops Hi-Fi components like In-Ear Monitors, Wired & Wireless Portable DAC/AMP’s, Docking Stations, Speakers and many more.
The ITM02 is IKKO’s entry-level Ultra Portable DAC/Amplifier Dongle that features a Hi-Res Certified AK4377 DAC chip of the company with 32Bit/384kHz PCM and DSD128 support.
Disclaimer:
I would like to thank IKKO Audio for providing me the Zerda ITM02 sample for review purposes. I am not affiliated with IKKO Audio beyond this review and these words reflect my true and unaltered opinions about the product.
Price & Availability:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 is a budget friendly USB DAC/Amplifier solution that is currently available for 59.00 US$. More information’s can be found under the link below;
Package & Accessories:
The IKKO ITM02 came inside a rectangular small recycled cardboard box with some product related brandings on the top and the illustrator and some technical details/certifications at the rear side.
Inside the box are the following items;
- 1 x IKKO Zerda ITM02 USB DAC/Amplifier Dongle
- 1 x USB Type-C to USB Type-C
- 1 x USB Type-C to Lightning Cable
- 1 x Print Material (Quick Start Guide, Warranty Card, etc.)
Design, Interface and Build Quality:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 is an ultra portable USB DAC/Amplifier in form of a dongle that you can connect to Android, iOS devices with the low profile USB Type-C and Lightning cables or to your MAC or Windows PC via USB Type-C to USB A cable.
The ITM02 is a pretty nice looking little and lightweight device with dimension of 39*17*9mm (exclusive cable) and only 9grams.
The housing of the device is in white color that is made of Aluminum Alloy + ABS material, which has good heat dissipation performance. The surface feels pretty soft and smooth that makes it nice to hold in your hand.
On the front of the Zerda ITM02 is a fancy looking black window with a RGB LED status indicator behind it that lets you instantly know what kind of format you’re playing. The RGB status indicator lights up in Blue when the device is decoding PCM signals, while it lights up in Red for DSD decoding.
On the top is the 3.5mm Single Ended headphone output (analog).
The rear surface sports the IKKO Audio branding that is in light gray color.
At the bottom is the USB Type-C digital input interface in order to connect the device with a cable to your audio source such like a Smartphone (Android, iOS), PC, MAC, Tablet (Android, iOS) and other devices that support DAC/Amplifier dongles.
The build quality of the device is decent for the price, which doesn’t show any imperfections such as burrs or openings.
DAC & Amplification:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 is equipped with a single AK4377 DAC chip of the company Asahi Kasei that has a decoding capability up to PCM 32 bit/192Khz and native DSD decoding up to DSD128. The DAC chip offers a SNR (Signal to Noise Ratio) of about 120dB and THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) of -108dB/0.0004%, which are decent values for such a small and well priced USB DAC/Amplifier dongle.
The maximum output power of the IKKO Zerda ITM02 is 70mW @ 32 ohm, which is sufficient for easy to drive earphones and headphones.
Compatibility:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 is compatible with devices that do have Android OS, iOS, Mac OS, Linux and Windows 10/11.
Technical Specifications:
- DAC : AK4377
- Codec Support : PCM 32 bit/384Khz & up to DSD128
- SNR : 120dB
- THD : -108dB/0.0004%
- Output : 3.5mm Single Ended earphone jack
- Output Power : 70mW @32Ω
- Input : USB Type-C Data & Power Interface
- Dimensions : 39*17*9mm
- Shell : Aluminum alloy
- Net weight : 9g
Equipments used for this review:
- DAC/Amplifier : IKKO Zerda ITM02, Hidizs S3 Pro
- Sources : Samsung Galaxy S22 UItra, Asus TUF Gaming Laptop
- IEM’s : IKKO OH2, NF Audio NM2, FiiO FD3, Tanchjim OLA
Albums & tracks used for this review:
- Adele – My Little Love (Spotify)
- Randy Crawford – On Day I Will Fly Away (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Hayley Westenra – Odyssey Album (Dezzer HiFi)
- Dionne Warwick – Walk On By (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Sarah McLachlan – Angel (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
- Sertap Erener – Aşk (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Edith Piaf – Non Je Ne Regrette Rien (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Diana Krall – So Wonderful (DSF)
- Aretha Franklin – I Say A Little Payer (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Sonya Yoncheva – (Giuseppe Verdi) II Trovatore, ActI (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- George Michael – Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- David Bowie – Heroes (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- Elton John – Rocket Man ((Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Barry White – Just The Way You Are (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
- Isaac Hayes – Walk On By (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Sting – Englishman in New York – (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
- Eric Clapton – Wonderful Tonight (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- B. King – Riding With The King (Tidal Hi-Fi)
- Dave Gahan – Kingdom (Tidal Hi-Fi)
- U2 – Sunday Bloody Sunday (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Bro Safari, UFO! – Drama (Deezer HiFi)
- Armin Van Buuren – Vini Vici (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Daft Punk (feat. Panda Bear) – Doin’ it Right (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Jo Blankenburg – Meraki (Spotify)
- Lorde – Royals (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
- Massive Attack – Angel (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
- Toutant – Rebirth (Deezer HiFi)
- Gogo Penguin – Raven (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- Gogo Penguin – Murmuration (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- Photek – The Hidden Camera (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Portishead – It Could Be Sweet (Spotify)
- Max Richter – On the Nature of Daylight (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Charly Antolini – Duwadjuwandadu (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- Abel Korzeniowski – Dance For Me Wallis (Deezer HiFi)
- Ferit Odman – Look, Stop & Listen (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- Chopin – Nocturn No. 20 In C-Sharp Minor (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Fazıl Say – Nazım Oratoryosu (Live) (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Vivaldi – Le QuarttroStagioni “The Four Season” (Deezer HiFi)
- Otto Liebert & Luna Negra – The River (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- Lunatic Soul – The Passage (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Deftones – My Own Summer (Shove it) (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Metallica – Sad but True (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Metallica – Master of Puppets (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Opeth – Windowpane (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Megadeth – Sweating Bullets (Tidal Hi-Fi)
- Muse – Hysteria (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Rush – Leave That Thing Alone (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Slayer – Angel of Death (Spotify)
- Liquid Tension Experiment 2 – Acid Rain (Spotify)
- Yosi Horikawa – Bubbles (Spotify)
The Sound:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 is an ultra portable UAB DAC/Amplifier solution that offers a mildly warm tonality, which impressed me with its pretty lush and musical overall sound presentation that surpassed my expectation from a device at this price level.
This review has been written after a burn-in period of approx 40 hour. My sounds impressions below are based on my auditions with the IEM’s like the IKKO OH2, Tanchjim OLA, NF Audio NM2 and FiiO FD3 IEM’s.
Sound Analysis (Bass / Midrange / Treble / Soundstage):
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 shows a slightly grade of saturation/coloration in the lower frequency area that has a focal point located in the midbass region. The subbass region offers in general an efficient level of depth and rumble while listen to songs like Lorde’s “Royals”, Daft Punk “Doin’ it Right”, Armin Van Buuren’s “Vini Vici” and Massive Attack’s “Angle” especially when paired with the NF Audio NM2 and FiiO FD3. The midbass region shows a tad more intensity compared to the subbass area, which sound pretty rich in terms of impact and body, while it does that in a pretty controlled manner. Here are no negative conditions such like a midbass hump or muddiness with all IEM’s I have listened to it.
The midrange is one of the highlights of the IKKO Zerda ITM02 that is produced in a mildly warm, lush and pretty musical manner. The sense of transparency, airiness and resolution is decent, especially with respect to the price of this little but highly entertaining sounding device. The lower midrange is represented with nice level of depth and fullness, while listen to male vocals like Isaac Hayes, Eric Clapton or Sting or to instruments such like acoustic guitars or violas. The upper midrange on the other hand is moderately highlighted and shows in general a pretty good performance in terms of clarity and resolution. It has a smooth and nicely controlled nature, with sufficient sense of extension and brightness when I do listen to female vocals like Adel, Diana Krall, Aretha Franklin or Sertap Erener. Instruments from cellos to side flutes, from violins to pianos are reproduced in a pretty musical and controlled manner.
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 has a mildly bright treble character that offers an efficient grade of information with all IEM’s I have paired with it. The sense of controlled and extension is again decent for a USB DAC/Amplifier at this size and price tag. The level of airiness is on an adequate level, which is pretty enough for a relative clean and lively presentation. The lower treble area is shown with a fairly good grade of presence, clarity and definition when I do listen to soprano voices or to instrument like hi-hats or snare drums. The upper treble region on the other hand is able to produce an efficient sense of airiness and sparkle while listen to percussions such like such like hi-hats, crash cymbals or snare drums.
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 offers a fairly suitable soundstage atmosphere for a relative precise separation and placement of instruments and vocals. It sounds fairly wide, while the depth and height is on a sufficient level for a product at this price range.
Comparison:
IKKO Zerda ITM02 versus Hidizs S3 Pro:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 shows a tad warmer tonality and a smoother overall character. The subbass region of both devices is pretty similar in terms of depth and extension, while the midbass area of the ITM02 shows a more natural and musical sense of presentation.
The midrange of Hidizs S3 Pro is slightly brighter in tonality and shows a more energetic character, while it sounds a bit dry and digital to my ears in direct comparison to the IKKO ITM02, which offers a more natural and richer presentation in this area. The lower midrange of the ITM02 sounds a bit fuller and organic while listen to male vocals or to instruments such like an acoustic guitar or piano.
The upper midrange of both devices is pretty equal when it comes to the presence and resolution. However, the IKKO ITM02 is the one with a more natural timbre, while listen to female voices or to instruments such like violins, flutes and cellos. Treble region of the Hidizs S3 Pro is slightly more highlighted and energetic compared to those of the IKKO ITM02, which sounds on the other hand smoother and with better level of controlled in this area.
Both the IKKO ITM02 and the Hidizs S3 Pro do show a pretty equal performance in terms of separation and placement of instruments and vocals. The soundstage of the IKKO ITM02 is slightly wider, while the depth of the stage is relative similar.
Conclusion:
The IKKO Zerda ITM02 is maybe a device that looks small both in terms of “Size” and “Price”, but what it offers when it comes to the sound performance and build quality is impressive for an entry level device. Moreover, it comes even with both a USB Type-C and Lightning cable that puts other devices with almost double the price to shame.
All-in All Highly Recommended!
Pros & Cons:
- + Highly Musical Overall Presentation
- + Very Small Form Factor
- + Excellent Build Quality
- + Comes with both USB Type-C & Lightning Cable
- + Decent Value for Your Money
- – Limited Output Power for High demanding Headphones
- – No MQA Rendering
Thank you for the Read!
