- Compatible with PC and Mac
As well as computers with a Linux operating system for use with your existing setup. - Digital audio converter
Bypasses your computer’s internal sound card and directly drives headphones for use as a high-fidelity music source. - Connects to a preamplifier or receiver
Via a 3.5mm-to-RCA cable (not included) for wide-ranging use. - Plays a variety of audio formats
From MP3 to high-resolution formats, including those from games and videos. - Digitally controlled analog volume control
For headphones, powered speakers and amplifiers ensures simple operation.
-36%
AudioQuest – DragonFly USB DAC and Headphone Amp v1.5 – Black
$62.00 Save:$35.00(36%)
Available in stock
Description
Additional information
| Dimensions | 2.4 × 0.74 × 0.5 in |
|---|---|
| Input(s) | USB |
| Model Number | DRAGONFLYBLK |
| Product Width | 0.74 inches |
| Product Height | 0.5 inches |
| Output Level Control | Adjustable |
| Manufacturer's Warranty - Labor | 1 Year |
| Color Category | Black |
| Output(s) | 3.5mm audio |
| Product Name | DragonFly USB DAC and Headphone Amp v1.5 |
| Auxiliary Input | No |
| Manufacturer's Warranty - Parts | 1 Year |
| Brand | AudioQuest |
| Product Length | 2.4 inches |
| Color | Black |
| Maximum Power Handling | 1.2 watts |
| Number Of Channels | 2 |
| UPC | 092592048188 |
Reviews (46)
No products in the cart.
ByeFelicia –
I am a Best Buy employee and I’ve been wanting a Dragonfly for a while now but never pulled the trigger due to lack of support for mobile devices. I never really listen to music from my laptop; it’s always from my phone using headphones or in my car. Audioquest revised this device for customers like myself.
First off, I’ve had this for about an hour now and it took me a bit to start noticing the benefits. I’m currently using this on an S7 Edge with some V-Moda M-100s. There have been a few issues getting my phone to recognize the USB device. I’m running Spotify Premium and the first several times I plugged in the Dragonfly the music was super digitized and there were no highs. It was all bass and sounded like 16 bit music. I researched the Audioquest site and there will eventually be a firmware update client for the dragonfly, but currently the website says “coming soon.” So that was no help.Through some more research on Head-Fi this is apparently an issue with Android Marshmallow. It works fine on Lollipop and iOS devices, but until Marshmallow gets an update, the USB audio support is finicky. The dragonfly does work on my phone but sometimes I have to unplug and re-plug it several times, or have a song already playing when I plug it in to get it to work. Incidentally, it has worked 100% of the time on my laptop.
As for sound quality, as I started to say, I did notice a difference right away, but I didn’t notice how vast it was until I switched back and forth from the DF to the headphone jack several times. Each time I used the phone’s built in DAC I felt it sounded more and more flat and closed off. The soundstaging with the dragonfly is vastly better in comparison. It wasn’t mind blowing, but just so much more preferable than what the Samsung built DAC was putting out. Like I stated I use Spotify Premium which gives me access to 320kbps mp3s, and I don’t have any lossless music to test. I may migrate to Tidal which is a lossless music streaming app. I’ve had it previously and LOVED the audio quality but was not satisfied with the performance of the app itself. I can’t wait to try my dragonfly in the car, even though the quality difference won’t be as noticeable. The best way to use this device is with headphones or through a good home theater amp and great speakers, playing some lossless music like FLAC (no mp3s). So far I am extremely happy with my purchase and I haven’t even put it through it’s paces yet.
Any music fanatic, or even just a casual listener should love this product. There is also a new Dragonfly Red that uses a more advance DAC with higher power output and a more controlled 1 step = 1 decibel volume control
xxmartinxx –
In the audiophile realm, most things are extremely expensive and do significantly less than this device. Even if you just listen to podcasts, this really improves the sound. You can actually hear the room. Well worth the cost if you have a decent pair of cans.
Mike34 –
It is great when you come across the exact tool for the job.
This Digital to Analog Converter is what I needed before I knew it.
I was simply looking for a solution to a ruined laptop 3.5mm earphone jack. One of the Geeks mentioned Dragonfly. I did some checking and decided to purchase. AWESOME!! The 1.5 Black really increases the quality of listening experience. Classical, shows, live concerts – whatever I’m listening to has more depth to the sounds. It takes me back to the era of stack stereo systems. The Dragonfly gives clear and crisp sound from 32hz all the way through 16k. If you don’t have huge bank and want huge sound Dragonfly 1.5 Black will make you very happy!
MichaelGreen_BBYSTAFF18 –
Lets make this quick, if you love great sound and regularly use over the ear or in ear headphones, buy this product! I use this amp daily and the results are absolutely incredible. Everything will sound more detailed concise and clear through this amp. Its a great value for what it does and its very well built and feels solid in the hand. If you’re looking for an inexpensive headphone amp to give your music and podcasts a boost in fidelity, this is the product for you! The size is small and compact and the light on the front is a cool feature (and tells you what kind of file you’re listening to as well!) I have been very happy and satisfied by this product and look forward to using it for as long as I can! Thanks Audioquest for making this awesome product!
musicman4959 –
I read about this fully and purchased it, very satisfied with it. I ripped all my CDs to Apple lossless. You can hear the music much clearer with my HardonKardon headphones. Sound & Vision Dec 2016 has an in depth review.
Travis22 –
You will love this bad boy. Really makes a difference.
movieguy –
I admit that I was told on this thing actually working as advertised. Boy, was I wrong! This opens up the soundstage with my headphones to levels previously achieved only with my McIntosh amplifier at home. Truly, the best $100 upgrade for a MacBook or surface pro!
summguy –
had a budget DAC for a couple of years but the sound quality seemed a bit ‘off’ . Following the reviews I bought this…WOW what a difference from a generic DAC, the mids and high end detail is astonishing , actuall the whole frequency spectrum is improved especially the highs.Remarkable sound quality from a budget piece, the best audoi purchase for me in a long time
Samsd –
Get yourself a good pair of headphones and this device turns them into great headphones.
BayAreaJ –
This product by audioquest is well worth the price, I have noticed my music sounding more alive now than before since I’ve been using this device. You will need to purchase an app that is recommended by Audioquest on either Android or Apple to use this product so keep that in mind… aside from the additional 7.99 fee for the app this portable Dac is great!
alphie242 –
I thought this DAC would clean up the audio signal from my computer through a dedicated stereo receiver. The product seems to mute the signal but not clean it up. The highs and mids are cut-off and the volume is reduced by the product. I was disappointed with this products performance.
Takomashark –
Wanted to improve the digital music experience on my Galaxy S7. Dragonfly black gets the job done, improves the soundstage, bass sounds better. The key is you have to use USB AUDIO PLAYER PRO. I also use it on my desktop at work, now I can HEAR the music.
Joel –
If you’re finding your phone’s audio doesn’t sound great, check out the Dragonfly Black. And let’s be honest, no phone will keep up with the quality of a home system. Then again, neither will your computer (Macs are known to be better). You have two options: (a) invest in a pricey and quickly outdated sound card, or (b) get this. It’s plug-and-play on just about everything, supports the newer MQA format with a firmware upgrade, and can handle almost any file type.
You will need a full-size USB adapter to use on your phone (USB-C to A type or lightning camera adapter; older Android phones need a micro-USB to A type), but Insignia makes one for 10 bucks that works just fine. Macs and PCs have a simple two step installation process: (1) Plug it into your USB port. (2) Plug in your headphones.
Pros: Excellent sound quality boost on any device. Handles most audio codec formats (FLAC , MP3, MQA, AIFF, WAV, etc.). Plug-and play on anything (except older Android devices).
Cons: No physical volume control (lowers my review to 4.5 stars if I could). Not usable with high-impedance headphones (use the Dragonfly Red for that). Will lower your battery life slightly on phones.
Aldwin –
You will definitely notice the subtle improvement, its not night and day difference but an improvement nonetheless. The mid, high and lows are more defined. If you have decent to great cans then the improvement is much noticeable.
Mike –
I’m truly pleased with the dragon fly black. I Have notice major differences in sound quality, when using my Sennheiser hd599 headphones.
summguy –
this is my 3rd DAC not the priciest but the best sounding one.Highs and mids are detailed and airy the bass is deep and accurate Similar to the Red in spec’s without the HP amp mw.
CAST –
The DAC is ok it provides a bit of louder sound vs your standard iphone DAC. I do prefer the Red a lot better vs the black.
OldMP –
I am an audiophile and had no idea that this tiny little USB device would make such an enormous difference. I love this thing!
ABFrisco –
You need a high quality headphone to be able to maximize the sound quality this amp produces. This will not make your so so headphone sound like a $1000 headphone.
Reldan –
This thing works amazingly well. I previous had tried the Dragonfly Red but returned it and go this instead – I cannot tell the difference in sound but this costs half the price. If you get this, try out TIDAL and enjoy the sound of MQA which this device supports.
Bubba –
good dac the rest of this is padding so I get my points (points?)
we’ll see
JustMyOpinion –
I purchased this after reading an article. I plugged it into my iPhone Xs and was pleasantly surprised. With a GOOD set of headphones the volume was louder and the music was cleaner and crisper. If I had to put a number on it, I would say it was a 20-30% improvement in sound.
Brickinthezep –
Not what I wanted, thought it would do wonders like it said, but you can’t turn water into wine. Wait….. can you?
Arval –
better than i thought!
great sound delivered, very happy
Exteach –
Dragonfly now offers 3 devices . If you’re just looking for the least expensive the Black is the way to go . A quality product . Just wish they gave you advice on what adapter to purchase while buying it . Not after you get product or look it up online. Delivery was on time .
Ram1105 –
I was looking for a dedicated sound card for my newly built PC but couldn’t find anything that provided the enhancements I was looking for without breaking the bank. After poking around some PC forums researching what other people were using I stumbled on the Dragonfly USB DAC product that had very good reviews. I leveraged a $40 Best Buy coupon to get the Black Dragonfly USB DAC and was blown away by the sound improvement with video, music, and gaming outputs, especially with my headphones. The technology behind this is amazing considering how petite the device is so I have nothing but goods things to say about it. Highly recommeneded.
iwillnot –
Yes I just hooked this up to my i-phone and listen to some hi res Neil Young and it sounded fantastic.
boboquisp –
I bought the Audioquest Dragonfly black DAC for improving my listening quality from my lossless files and streaming. It sounds great with headphones or connected to my integrated amp. Very pleased.
PsychoZoldier –
Very nice DAC, it’s a huge difference, thanks best buy for this great product
Sennheiser560s –
Works as advertised. Easy to use. You notice it more when you don’t have it on than when you have it on.
iceman25 –
I needed a hi-fi audio solution that was portable, discreet, and easy to work with (i.e. plug and play) without having to worry about a multitude of settings to configure. This product works wonderfully and has been a wonderful experience owning and using for the past many months between desktop and laptop PCs, as well as various phones. The audio quality is far and away better than most of the integrated audio solutions found on any of the devices I use so this YMMV, but I have been more than happy with the audio quality that this portable DAC delivers.
Tobor89 –
Made listening to Apple losses possible and also connected to my preamplifier which doesn’t have a Apple connection, the DAC is good and playback is mesmerizing, thoroughly enjoying the buy, i can only guess that the red and cobalt are probably better but the price of this combined with performance is all i need
Parks101 –
This thing ia fantastic. The audio quality is INSANE I truly am mind blown that there are two more expensive “better” options. If you want good quality audio, get this. Best purchase i have made in a while.
TaiBeats –
I have the red dragon fly dac and it’s definitely a little noticeable in sound quality but not enough to lower my rating of the dac.
David –
Clean and crisp audio, can’t get any better than this
PedroCorleone54 –
I had only heard about these but never really gave them much thought. But now that i have one, i understand why people recommend them. I immediately noticed the difference, and I highly recommend them!
dell –
besides improvment in headphone audio was able to plug into pc usb port and with shielded 3.5 connector to aux in a seperate amp worked as dac to amp speakers improving audio.
CasanovaCarl –
This puts my old Sound Blaster to shame.
For gaming, it has much better sound imaging and it’s easier to pinpoint footsteps earlier.
XeonX48 –
I have these doing a pretty easy job of powering my Sennheiser HD280’s.
Yes, I enjoy frying my ears out. But frankly, these can power some pretty ridiculously power hungry headphones. A friend of mine had some Beyerdynamic T90 tesla driver headphones that were 300ohm rated, and this powered them better than you’d think.
Will it beat a dedicated amp and dac combo worth over $400? Gosh, no.
But will it surprise you given it’s about the size of a flash drive, and it’s plug-and-play? YES. There are multiple reviews of people using this in mobile phone setups as well, since Type C can support high power output.
Excellent pocket amp/dac.
Ramjet –
I purchased this USB DAC to use as on my PC. For some reason the sound card was not working. I can also use this DAC on my IOS devices. But to be honest I could not notice any difference while using this … but I am 70 years old and I know my hearing is not what it used to be.
user970792 –
This small DAC provides a significant improvement in audio quality when used with headphones from a USB source such as a laptop, and can also be used to provide an analog audio signal for connection to a stereo system preamp.
SJC66 –
Much improved sound when using this DAC than previous.
Jesus –
Makes all my music sound great, and it helps get truely lossless audio from my apple music
paulyi –
Dragonfly Black makes a huge difference using Grado headphones on my iPhone. Clarity and depth is so much better also louder too.
rick –
I thought this really made a big difference in sound of streaming music.
ShemeelL –
Works like magic incredible sound Unbelievable what this device can do and make compress music files brought to life