This article will explore the new HiFi Rose RD160 digital-to-analog converter. We will discuss the technologies and features of this great DAC to see if it is something that can take your system to the next level.

Company History

HiFi Rose is part of Citech, a South Korean company that has been building custom hardware and software products for over 50 years. One of Citech's head executives is a music lover, so he set out to start a division of the company that focused on high-end audio with fun, easy-to-use products to wring out all the performance from digital audio. In 2017, HiFi Rose was born to tackle this very task.

Since 2017, HiFi Rose has designed some of the most user-friendly, best-sounding components around. Their expertise in human interface design has been paramount in their success with streaming and amplifier products. From their over-the-top RA180 Reference integrated amplifier to their RS130Ultimate Network Streamer, they have a complete product line with streamers, integrated amplifiers, and streamer amplifiers. The RS130 is one of the best-rated network streamers on the market, but it's a streamer only and needs a very high-quality DAC for a complete digital stack. While many top-quality DACs on the market will mate quite well with the RS130, many wanted a HiFi Rose DAC to go with their flagship streamer.

Meet the new HiFi Rose RD160

With the RD160, HiFi Rose has answered everyone asking them to make a standalone DAC. However, in proper HiFi Rose form, the RD160 has some unique and cool features that may entice newcomers to HiFI Rose.

The front panel is the first thing people have noticed on the RD160, and it is unique. When off, the DAC looks like it has a plain front panel with a knob and a few buttons. But once turned on, you notice that there is a hidden screen that comes out of nowhere! This unique OLED screen comes alive and brings a wealth of information from a flow chart showing how the DAC functions to a volume curve and sound waves. All of this is real-time and changes with knob or button input immediately. This is a unique and very different take on DAC function design from what we have seen before. HiFI Rose says this new interface is designed to give the feel of an analog device even though it is rooted in the digital domain. Button pushes, and knob changes are direct, with no latency, much like a vintage analog component.

Uniquely Featured, Elegantly Designed

The front panel is well laid out and offers buttons with various functions like input, filter, clock input, sampling rate, and mute. The fully functional volume control allows direct hookup to a power amplifier. If you are connecting the RD160 to your preamp or integrated amplifier, the volume control is defeatable. How HiFi Rose managed to get all of those functions and a display on the front panel and still make the RD160 look this clean is a magic mojo that HiFi Rose seems to possess with all their products.

The casework on the RD160 is equally as impressive with an all-aluminum case that is machined from one piece of aluminum and has as few joints as possible to minimize vibrations. The color options are silver and black, with The famous HiFI Rose symbol is embossed on the top panel, like the RS130. The side panels are also formed into a heat sink area to help cool down the RD160. DACs don’t generally put out that much heat, but a lot is going on inside the RD160, and when it comes to electronics, cooler running is longer lasting!

The RD160 has a full list of connections, including USB Type-B 2.0, fiber optic USB, I2S, optical digital, coaxial RCA, Coaxial BNC, and an AES/EBU connection. This ensures that about any digital component made will work with the RD160. HiFI Rose wanted to make sure that you would be covered with any type of digital connection that is available today. If you have an old CD player you want to use as a transport, the RD160 has the connections. Or if you have a streamer that has an I2S output, the RD160 has the connection. The USB and I2S connections are capable of up to 32bit / 768kHz, Native DSD512, while both coax and the AES/EBU are capable of up to 32bit / 384kHz, DoP128. The optical Toslink is capable of 24bit / 192kHz, DoP64. While these numbers are much more capable than most of the music available today, it does add a bit of future proofing to the RD160 and its capabilities.

Fiber optic USB, which is an option not seen on many DACs, is a key feature of the RD160. It takes the voltage signal from USB and transfers it to a fiber optic light signal. When the electrical signal is changed to light, all of the noise and distortions from the source device are lost in the conversion to light, meaning the signal is truly clean and noise-free. HiFi Rose’s own RS130 Reference Streamer has this connection as well, and when they are paired with this connection, the sound is magical.

Timing Is Everything

In digital audio, timing is truly the key to great sound. The only true way to get all of your digital components working in perfect unison is with a master clock. Both the RS130 and RD160 have this option. A master clock allows every digital component within the system to connect to one clock source, which sets the timing for everything in the digital chain. If the timing is perfect between all the digital components, then all the jitter from the coax, optical, or AES/EBU connections will truly be eliminated. This gives you the most pristine digital audio signal transfer we have today.

There is a high-precision OCXO(oven-controlled crystal oscillator) in RD160, which is the most accurate and stable clocking mechanism. This enables the RD160 to keep its internal timing perfect for the best and most accurate sound possible. With digital audio, timing is crucial, and Hifi Rose gave the RD160 the best.

It's What's Inside That Counts

The RD160 has special chips inside it from AKM. The AK4499EX and AK4191 are the newest and best-measuring chips that Asahi Kasei Microdevices has produced to date. In fact, it is the only Delta Sigma DAC circuit that requires two chips to function. The AK4191 handles the digital filtering and initial delta-sigma conversion stages. Then, the AK4499 chip does the actual digital-to-analog conversion. By separating the chips, AKM claims class-leading specs that would not be possible with one chip. The signal-to-noise stays extremely high, and the good analog characteristics of the audio output remain. The RD160 has a full set of these chips per channel, so channel separation is kept at its maximum. Cortex A9 processors control all of the inputs and signal routing from the inputs to the AKM chips and then on to the output stage.

Another important feature of the RD160 is its use of separate power supplies. There is a linear power supply for the digital input stage and one linear power supply for each of the two analog output stages. This is specifically designed for low noise and the best channel separation possible. Having oversized separate power supplies will give you a better overall dynamic range, transparency, and a more effortless sound to the music.

The output section of the RD160 features the use of J-Fet input dual op-amps. These specially developed devices allow the analog output of the RD160 to have excellent responsiveness, dynamic range, and low distortion beyond what a standard op-amp-based output section can do. Muses, a company specializing in op-amp-based devices, helped HiFi Rose develop this output section. This is a very important feature that differentiates the RD160 from a lot of DACs on the market. You can have the best digital section in the world, but if your analog output section is limited, then the sound will take a hit in quality.

The HiFi Rose NRA Filter is a special filter built within the RD160’s output stage. It is specifically designed to allow the RD160 to have a completely flat frequency response even at very low frequencies. Due to this filter, the RD160 will have a ruler-flat frequency response at about any frequency signal.

The internal wiring of the RD160 has been taken to the next level as well with the use of oxygen free copper wiring in power and audio output sections. As well as high-purity single-crystal Ohno Continuos Casting cables in the unbalanced analog output section to ensure excellent conductivity. HiFi Rose wanted the RD160 to be a reference level device and upgraded cables help to do just that.

Something For Purists and Adventurers Alike!

For the purist who wants their music untouched from its original bitrate and sampling frequency, there is a NOS function that does just that. For the adventuring type that wants to hear what oversampling and digital filtering can do with their favorite music, the RD160 has you covered. It provides four options: NOS, PCM, DSD, and ALL. PCM(supports up to 32bit/768kHz, and DSD supports up to DSD512) This allows you to take your music's digital signal and boost its sampling rate up to a full 32-bit, or even into DSD! Also, there are different digital filters with 6 different types of impulse responses. Having all of these options a front panel button away gives users who want to explore the world of oversampling the option. Another cool thing is that the front panel display will show these changes in real-time allowing users to fully see how their music is being processed by the RD160.

Our Take

We heard the RD160 at the Audio Advice Live show in a system with HiFi Rose and MoFi components and were blown away by the sound and looks of the RD160. This was backed up when our unit was hooked up in our test room and discovered its features and technology. HiFi Rose has certainly upped their game with the new RD160. This unit is extremely warm, with great bass extension and attack. The soundstage it presented was well beyond our speakers and very deep, with each instrument and musician perfectly placed. It really came to life when we tried feeding it Hi-Res Audio tracks from Qobuz or downloads from HD Tracks. If you have been holding back on diving deep into digital because you wanted a warm analog sound, you really want to take a close look at the HiFi Rose stack.

We were really interested to see how the upsampling would work on the RD160, but our unit was a pre-production prototype, and it was not working yet but would be by the time of its release. We will come back and do a short video on how well that worked once we get our hands on a production unit.

The connections and feature set are better than about any other DAC in its price range. And we liked how the RD160 seems perfectly made for the RS130 streamer. After hearing the RS130 and RD160 together, we can’t think of a better reference level combination in their combined price class.

Conclusion

If you are in the market for a great DAC, one with a litany of features and connection options then the RD160 should be on your short list. If you own a RS130 or one of HiFi Rose’s streamers or integrated amplifiers, the RD160 is a reference level companion. We like how future proof the RD160 is with its full list of capabilities and connections. Yes, this combination is not inexpensive, but it is beautifully made and you will be proud to display it in your system. And most importantly of all, we liked how it sounded. It is a very musically engaging DAC that does its job perfectly and allows the music to flow without a touch of jitter, or noise affecting the music.

If you have any questions or want to see if the RD160 will work in your system? Please call, chat or email us at Audio Advice and let our knowledgeable staff help to see if the RD160 is for you.

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