Zorloo ZuperDAC Max & ZuperDAC Pro Review
Zorloo ZuperDAC Max & ZuperDAC Pro Review
Introduction:
Zorloo is a Chinese Portable Audio Equipment Company that is specialized in Portable Audiophile equipments such like USB DAC/Amplifier Dongles and TWS Earphones.
The ZuperDAC Pro and the ZuperDAC Max are the 3rd generation members of the ZuperDAC series USB DAC/Amplifier dongles. Both the “Pro” and the “Max” do offer MQA support and are equipped with the same ESS Sabre 9281ACPRO DAC Chip. However, the ZuperDAC Max is larger, comes both with 3.5mm SE & 4.4mm Balanced outputs and offers a Boost Mode button in order to increase the power output of the amplifier section.
Disclaimer:
I would like to thank Zorloo for providing me the ZuperDAC MAX and ZuperDAC PRO samples for review purposes. I am not affiliated with Zorloo beyond this review and these words reflect my true, unaltered opinions about the product.
Price & Availability:
The actual MSRP price for the Zorloo ZuperDAC Pro is 99.00 US$, while the ZuperDAC Max is available for 159.00 US$ with Lightning and 149.00 US$ without optional Lightning cable. More information’s can be found under the links below;
Package & Accessories:
Please not that my review samples didn’t come with the original retail box. However, the original retail box should include the following items;
- 1 x Zorloo ZuperDAC Pro or ZuperDAC Max USB DAC/Amplifier Dongle
- 1 x USB Type-C to USB A Adapter
- 1 x USB Type-C to Cable USB Type-C cable
- 1 x USB Type-C to Lightning cable (optional available)
- 1 x User Manual
Design & Build Quality:
The ZuperDAC Pro and the Max are the 3rd generation members of the ZuperDAC series USB DAC/Amplifier series. Both devices do offer a very good overall build quality and minimalistic yet pretty compact design in form of small USB Dongles. The Pro variant is smaller (39mm*12mm*7mm vs 46mm*21.5mm*10.5mm) and more lightweight (4.2g vs 15g) compared to its bigger brother the Max.
The chassis of both the Pro and Max variant is made from aluminum alloy material with a matt finish in black color.
The front and rear surface of both USB DAC/Amplifier dongles sports some product related brandings like the Zorloo and MQA logos.
The main difference is that the Max variant is equipped with two LED status indicators (codec and boost mode) instead one (codec) that the smaller Pro version has.
Another difference is the Boost Mode button on the left side of the ZuperDAC Max that increases the power output of the amplifier section of the device.
On the top of both USB DAC/Amplifier dongles are the USB Type-C interface to connect the device to your host via Type-C to Type-C, Type-C to Lightning or Type-C to USB A cables.
Another remarkable difference is the analog output section of the Max and Pro variants.
The ZuperDAC Pro comes with a 3.5mm Single Ended analog output (phone out), while the ZuperDAC Max features both a 3.5mm Single Ended and a 4.4mm Balanced output.
Specifications:
- Model : ZuperDAC Pro & ZuperDAC Max
- DAC : ESS Sabre 9281ACPRO
- OS Support : Plug and play for Android, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows 10/11
- Digital Input Interface : USB Type-C
- Analog Output : 3.5mm SE (Pro & Max), 4.4mm Balanced (just the Max)
- SNR : 120dB
- THD+N : 0.0003%
- Output Power Max : 3Vrms/5Vrms(boost) for 4.4mm, 1Vrms/2Vrms(boost) for 3.5mm
- Output Power Pro : 1Vrms/2Vrms 3.5mm SE
- Output Impedance : <2 ohm
- Supported Format : PCM768kHz, DSD 22.5MHz, MQA, Bit Perfect
- Dimension : Pro 39mm*12mm*7mm / Max 46mm*21.5mm*10.5mm
- Weight : Pro 4.2g / Max 15g
Hardware & Software Features:
The ZuperDAC Pro and the ZuperDAC Max are pretty small USB DAC/Amplifiers in form of a dongle that are equipped with some interesting hardware specs, which are listed below.
DAC & Amplifier Section:
Both the Pro and the Max are equipped with the same ESS Sabre Technologies 32bit 2channel ES9281ACPRO DAC Chip, which has a native MQA renderer and integrated amplifier. The 9281ACPRO supports ESS Technologies latest 32-bit HyperStream II architecture that delivers a SNR (Signal to Noise Ratio) of 120dB and THD+N (Total Harmonic Distortion plus Noise) value of approx 0.0003%.
Both devices do support PCM up to 32bit/768kHz, DSD 22.5MHz, MQA Rendering and Bit Perfect Hi-Res Lossless music playback.
The 3.5mm Single Ended output of the ZuperDAC Pro has an autodetect feature that automatically varies the output, which offers up to 2Vrms.
The ZuperDAC Max that is equipped with both 3.5mm SE and 4.4mm Balanced outputs is even more powerful. The 3.5mm SE out has an output level of 1Vrms in normal mode and 3Vrms in Boost Mode; while the 4.4mm Balanced output has offers 2Vrms in normal mode and up to 5Vrms in boosted mode.
Both the ZuperDAC Pro and ZuperDAC Max do have pretty clean almost pitch black background with ultra low to none level of hissing.
Connectivity:
The ZuperDAC Pro and ZuperDAC Max do offer driverless Plug and Play functionality for devices with Android OS, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows 10/11 operating systems.
Equipments used for this review:
- DAC’s : Zorloo ZuperDAC Pro & Zorloo ZuperDAC Max
- Host : Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, Asus TUF FX505DU
- IEM’s : Westone MACH10, FiiO FH7S
- Headphones : Moondrop Void, HiFiMAN Editon XS
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 – 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)
- Portishead – It Could Be Sweet (Spotify)
- Max Richter – On the Nature of Daylight (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
- Charly Antolini – Duwadjuwandadu (Flac 24bit/192kHz)
- 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)
- Opeth – Windowpane (Flac 16bit/44.1kHz)
- Megadeth – Sweating Bullets (Tidal Hi-Fi)
- Rush’s – 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:
Both the ZperDAC Pro and the ZuperDAC Max do offer a pretty natural tonality and timbre, along with a general frequency response is fairly balanced from the top to the bottom. The bass is produced with decent level of controlled and layering, the midrange on the other hand sound is quite transparent, natural and textured, while the treble range is nicely smooth yet detailed for DAC/Amplifier devices in form of dongles.
This review has been written after a burn-in period of approx 55 – 60 Hours (both Pro & Max). I have used the Stock low profile USB cables and have attached the devices with sources like the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and Asus TUF FX505DU. My sound impression below are mainly based on IEM pairings like the Westone Audio MACH10 and FiiO FH7S and headphones like the Moondrop Void and HiFiMAN Edition XS.
Bass / Midrange / Treble / Soundstage:
The Zorloo ZuperDAC Pro & Max do offers a pretty identical bass response that is quite natural, controlled and deep, depending on your IEM or headphone. There is just a slightly coloration that is not overdone, which adds the overall presentation a good sense of musicality. The subbass region paired with the FiiO FH7S shows a good level of depth and rumble, while the midbass region has an excellent grade of authority and body, without to show negative conditions such like a midbass hump or muddiness. The main difference between the Max and the Pro model is the additional dynamism that the 4.4mm Balanced output of the Max offers.
The midrange of both DAC’s shows a slightly warmer than neutral tonality. The level of transparence, airiness and resolution is excellent for USB DAC/Amplifiers at this price level. The 4.4mm balanced output of the ZuperDAC Max shows a tad more body and depth I the lower midrange area. The upper midrange of both devices is very similar in terms of clarity and resolution; while the 4.4mm Balanced output of the Max shows a bit more extension, for example while listen to female voices and instruments such like violins and pianos.
The treble range Zorloo ZuperDAC Pro and ZuperDAC Max offers a pretty successful performance in terms of attack, presence and airiness, which was quite audible when paired with IEM’s like the FiiO FH7S and headphones like the HiFiMAN Editions XS. The treble range of both devices sounds in general natural and controlled while strings and percussions. There is no significant difference between the Pro and Max variant when it comes to the overall treble performance.
The Zorloo ZuperDAC Pro & ZuperDAC Max shows a pretty wide/open soundstage atmosphere, which creates good conditions for a precise separation and placement of instruments and vocals. The soundstage of both devices sounds in general pretty airy and wide, while the depth of the stage is on an average level.
Conclusion:
The Zorloo team has created two solid products for audiophiles who are looking for a budget friendly source with excellent overall sound performance. You really can’t go wrong with either the smaller ZuperDAC Pro or the more powerful ZuperDAC Max. The Pro variant with its smaller price & size will fit those, who are looking for a source that can easily drive any In-Ear monitor. The ZuperDAC Max on the other will be ideal for those who can spend slightly more for a source with both SE + Balanced output and boots/gain option, which can be used for both sensitive IEM’s and full sized headphones.
Pros & Cons:
- + Great sound performance for the size & price (Pro & Max)
- + Pretty Clean Background (Pro & Max)
- + Plug and Play capability (Pro & Max)
- + Solid Build Quality (Pro & Max)
- + Balanced Output & Boost Option (Max)
- + MQA Rendering (Pro & Max)
- + Price to Performance Ratio (Pro & Max)
- – Average soundstage depth (Pro & Max)
- – Additional cost if you want the Lightning cable (Pro & Max)
- – Low profile USB cable feels a bit stiff (Pro & Max)
Thank you for the Read!
