iFi Audio ZEN Air Blue Bluetooth DAC

The Cheapest Honest Way to Add Bluetooth

The iFi ZEN Air Blue does one job: it takes Bluetooth from your phone and hands your amplifier a clean analog signal through a pair of RCA sockets. No app, no account, no menu. Pair it once and every phone in the house has a route into the stereo.

What separates it from a generic receiver is the codec list. LDAC, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX Low Latency, plain aptX, LHDC/HWA, AAC and SBC are all supported, so an Android phone and an iPhone each connect at the best quality that device offers.

A Real DAC Rather Than a Bluetooth Chip's Afterthought

Most inexpensive receivers let the Bluetooth chip handle conversion as well. The ZEN Air Blue uses a Qualcomm QCC5100 for reception and a discrete ESS Sabre Hyperstream DAC for conversion, which is the arrangement you find in far more expensive equipment.

The Bluetooth engine can also be updated over the air, so codecs added later are not automatically out of reach. That matters more on a product you will leave connected behind an amplifier for years.

What the Measurements Say

Signal-to-noise measures 109dB(A) at full scale, with dynamic range to match. THD+N stays below 0.0015% into a 10k load, which is well clear of what the Bluetooth link itself contributes. Power draw is under 2.5W.

Response That Follows the Codec

At 44.1kHz, frequency response runs 20Hz to 20kHz within half a decibel. Feed it a higher-resolution codec at 88.2kHz or above and it stretches from 1Hz to 44kHz within 3dB, so the better codecs are doing something you can point at.

The chassis measures 158 by 100 by 35mm and weighs 295 grams. It runs on 5 volts DC at half an amp or more, and the USB-to-DC cable is in the box, so a phone charger you already own will power it.

Who Is This Bluetooth DAC Best For?

• Your amplifier predates Bluetooth — one RCA lead brings it up to date, and you keep the amplifier you actually like.
• You want the good codecs, not just SBC — LDAC and aptX HD are on board, so a hi-res subscription is not thrown away at the last step.
• Guests bring their own phones — Android and Apple devices both connect at their best, and nobody has to be walked through an app.
• You are adding sound to a second room — it is small, light and powers off a spare USB charger, so a shelf and a wall socket are all it asks for.
• If you want a fully lossless link, step up a model — the Air Blue runs Bluetooth 5.0, which stops short of aptX Lossless. Our iFi ZEN Air Blue 2 adds Bluetooth 5.4 and aptX Lossless in the same size box.

How Does It Connect to Your System?

Attach the antenna, run an RCA cable to a spare input on your amplifier or a pair of powered speakers, and power the unit from any 5V USB supply using the cable provided. Hold the pairing button, find it on your phone, and that is the installation finished.

It stays paired, so the next time you just press play.

Pairs Well With

Adding the ZEN Air Blue to a system? These are the natural companions:

• Integrated Amplifier: The box the RCA output is looking for — see our Integrated Amplifiers.
• Powered Speakers: A complete wireless system in two boxes — see our Powered Speakers.
• Interconnects: A tidy RCA pair for the short run — see our Interconnect Cables.
• Bookshelf Speakers: The other half of a second-room setup — see our Bookshelf Speakers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Bluetooth codecs does it support?

LDAC, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX Low Latency, aptX, LHDC/HWA, AAC and SBC.

What does it connect to?

Any line input through its RCA outputs: an integrated amplifier, a receiver, a preamplifier, a desktop headphone amp or a pair of powered speakers.

How do I power it?

From 5 volts DC at half an amp or more. The supplied USB-to-DC cable lets a standard phone charger do the job.

What comes in the box?

The ZEN Air Blue, a USB-to-DC power cable, a quick start guide and a warranty card.

What warranty does it carry?

iFi covers it for one year in the US. Register the product on iFi's website within 30 days of purchase to activate the cover.

See It in Action

iFi's own channel runs through setup and pairing:

AV NIRVANA adds one to a system and listens:

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Learn More

Want to learn more about Bluetooth codecs, wireless streaming, or adding sources to an older amplifier? Visit our Learning Center for guides, tips, and expert advice.