Enhanced Sony PHA-2 Headphone Amplifier for Superior Performance Review

Well made, a little weak, needs an optical input, expensive but it's good to see the old Sony production quality coming back.

Great sound quality and premium design, although the battery life could be better. I've used this with custom IEM ACS T1 and Audeze LCD-X headphones.

I like this amp. Bought used and works like new. A DAC that offers digital-to-analog conversion and amplification in lossless formats, as well as DSD. Great offer at good prices. I would buy from this seller again.

Works great as both DAC and headphone amp. Compared to the sound directly from the iPod, the sound has significantly more depth and dynamics. Everything just sounds fuller and richer. It just sounds better with PHA-2. It also looks and feels very good!

Expect more than just Volume Boost, like better EQ and compression. Tried from different sources (iPhone, iPod, iPad), same result. Decided to bring it back as the lack of those features meant you were stuck with a brick that doesn't give you the Ahhhhhhhhh sound advertised.

Didn't realize it would cost $. Couldn't there be such a big difference? Yes there is! My first audition was Hillary Hahn Bach's Concerto for Violin, Strings and Continuo in E Major 1st Allegro. The dirt is gone! Crunchy, beautiful. The second audition was Keith Jarrett's Bregenz, May 28, 1981, Part I. Again, a crisp, clear sound. clear clean sound! Oh well, I guess it won't come back!

So far so good although I've only had mine for a week. I was looking for a small rechargeable DAC/amp that I can use with an iPod both in the car and with headphones. The fact that it plays hi-res files is nice, but not essential to me as the iPod can't play anything higher than 24/48 and I doubt I'll see the difference to 16/44.1 in my car or most of them can hear the time with headphones. But for years I dreamed of plugging the iPod dock port's digital output into a small DAC and then…

Gets quick and to the point. For a sub $600 rugged wearable that is compatible with iDevice, this is the best solution. I looked at other big players like Nuforce. Fostex, CEntrance, beyerdynamic, cypher, Fiio and more and it's pretty good. Built like a mature tank with excellent sound performance and qualities. I also used some line outs with my Rudistor NX-02 and the DAC worked fine. Long battery life and replaceable lithium battery. The downsides are that the input toggle button could be…

Having used the Sony PHA-2 for over 6 months I thought it was time to talk about it. I really want to love the amp, but two issues keep getting in my way. 1. The amp cannot be charged while in use, which I think is a real design flaw. (Compare to any Fiio amp at all costs). But to make matters worse, the battery life of the device when used as a DAC/amplifier is just terrible. I recently did an experiment to find a number. I fully charged and connected the PHA-2 [using the Sony recommended…