Audirect Atom 3 3.5mm Portable DAC Headphone Amp Review – Tiny Dancer In My Cranium

Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of DAC/dongles—those that aspire to present the source faithfully and those that impart their own sonic signature on the source. The $47 Atom 3, much like its predecessor the Atom 2 (review here), definitely falls into the latter category—it is an aggressive-sounding piece which markedly adds dynamic slam and body to the presentation.

The Atom 3 sports a cable-less design which plugs directly into the source. I usually don’t like such designs, which are prone to getting snagged and dislodged in my pocket, but the Atom 3  fits securely and I appreciate its diminutive size (this may be the smallest, lightest DAC on the market). The Atom 3 runs cool and seems energy-efficient.

Despite its modest power output spec (62mw at 32ohm) and absence of a balanced out, the Atom 3 has a surprisingly rich, LOUD presentation which thickens note texture and enhances midbass. Said midbass can bleed into higher frequencies and get bloomy on more efficient phones, which will blur high end detail. However, tonality is quite natural and appealing—like a good vinyl rig you trade some transparency and fine nuance for a more “live” quality.

Soundstage on these is well-rounded but narrow. As a result of the narrow stage and the bass overhang, instrument separation can be imprecise. However, the Atom 3 wholly avoids the sterile quality of more analytical DACs—it’s ballsy and fun. The Atom 3 remind me quite a bit of the $59 iBasso DC-05 (review here), which also imparts an energetic, bass-forward quality to the proceedings, albeit at the expense of some high-level detail. Both are exciting listens but would not be optimal for fans of a less colored, more revealing sound.

Specifications Audirect Atom 3

The net effect of the Atom 3 is to enliven flat, neutral-sounding phones like the Philips SHP9500, which sound brighter and bassier with the Atom 3. Likewise, my (wired) Sennheiser Momentum were transformed into a completely different phone—punchier, with richer note texture and much more subbass throb. For all that, the Atom 3 seemed to pair best with phones of somewhat lower efficiency—low end on my (150 ohm) Beyerdynamics was better-controlled than on more efficient IEMs.

Overall, I’m a fan of the Atom 3’s cool, tiny form factor, unexpectedly robust driving power and analog-ish tone.  It’s not endgame, or even necessarily a daily driver, but properly paired makes the music sound better and I’d be a buyer at this pricetag. 

Disclaimer: This unit was sent to me (along with a bunch of other new products) for review purposes directly by Audirect (Hilidac), who imposed no conditions or requests whatsoever. 

Unlike the stubby, cable-less SD2, the bespoke aluminum-and-glass Plus utilizes the same traditional cabled design as its S9 forbearers, but adds volume buttons which allow for much finer adjustments than most source’s volume control and which double as selectors for six different digital filters (fast roll-off, linear phase slow roll-off etc.).

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