Sonic Compass · Mojo Review · DAC/Amp · Session Review
NiPO A200 Pro
A cassette-shaped, phone-mounted DAC and amp that is quiet, wide and detailed, with real power from the 4.4mm output. A warmer, more open step on from the A100.
A big step on from the A100. It keeps the detail and adds a wider, more holographic stage, a smoother tone, a silent background and triple the power in a slimmer, lighter body.
- Wide, holographic stage
- Deadly silent background
- 1.6W from the 4.4mm output
- Tight, deep, punchy bass
- Smoother and warmer than the A100
Where it sits
Sonic Compass does not score gear out of ten. Gear and listeners are plotted on the same seven axes, so a review tells you where a product sits — and you can see how far that is from where you sit. A position is a description, not a grade.
- Tone ColourWarm · 62%
- Texture DetailVery detailed · 85%
- Dynamics JumpVery punchy · 82%
- Space & ImagingVery spacious · 90%
- Timing & FlowVery rhythmic · 80%
- Comfort & FatigueVery easy-going · 86%
- Emotional EngagementVery immersive · 82%
Neutral to warm and musical, slightly deeper and smoother than the A100 (high = warm on this scale).
Highly detailed and smooth, with the resolution of the A100 kept and a smoother treble.
Tight, punchy, deep bass that snaps back quickly, and more dynamic than the A100.
A wider, clearly more holographic stage than the A100, with improved imaging and the band all around me.
Excellent transients and bass that snaps back quickly on Morph the Cat.
A deadly silent background, smooth treble and no sibilance with sensitive IEMs.
Feels more alive, with a powerful, rich voice and a sense of being in the middle of the band.
Sonic Compass does not grade gear. We plot gear and listeners on the same seven axes, so a review tells you where a product sits and you can see how far that is from where you sit.
NiPO sent me the black A200 Pro for review. I met the NiPO team at the Shenzhen audio show and reviewed the earlier A100 on Head-Fi. NiPO had no say in this review.
I listened with a Samsung Z Fold 7 streaming Tidal, mainly through HCK NX8 IEMs, with some time on ZMF Tesseract headphones, and compared it with the A100.
Listening journey
You Should Be Mine, CC Catch (pop) — On the A100 the guitars sit about 15 to 20 cm to my left at my temple, and the harmonica comes in down to my right behind my ear. That is good, but not class-leading, and imaging is excellent. On the A200 Pro the stage is wider and clearly more holographic, with the whole song around me as if I'm in the middle of the band.
Paranoid, Black Sabbath (heavy metal) — A slightly deeper, warmer and smoother presentation, with no loss of detail. It seems more dynamic and imaging is definitely improved over the A100. The band is all around me. This is desktop quality.
Morph the Cat, Donald Fagen (jazz-pop) — The bass run slams. It is tight, punchy and deep, and snaps back quickly, with excellent transients. Fagen's voice is powerful and rich. The A100 also sounds great, but slightly crisper, with cymbals a touch sharper that stay short of sibilance.
Winter, Vivaldi (club mix) — Both punch hard, but the A200 Pro goes deeper, has greater dynamics and feels more alive. The imaging within the stage puts me in the middle of the track.
| Track | Position | Note |
|---|---|---|
| You Should Be Mine | 90% | Wider and more holographic than the A100, the song all around me |
| Paranoid | 86% | Deeper, warmer and smoother, more dynamic, better imaging |
| Morph the Cat | 88% | Slamming, tight, punchy bass with excellent transients |
| Winter (club mix) | 88% | Deeper and more dynamic, in the middle of the track |
Critical observations
Where the A200 Pro sits — Neutral to warm, musical and highly detailed, on a deadly silent background. Space, Comfort and Detail are its strongest axes. It gives ground on price.
Stage and imaging — Wider than the A100 and clearly more holographic, with better imaging.
Tone and treble — Slightly deeper, warmer and smoother than the A100, without losing detail. The A100 has a little extra shimmer up top, and stays short of sibilance. Both are airy.
Bass and dynamics — Tight, punchy and deep, with quick transients. More dynamic than the A100.
Design and tech — A cassette-shaped body in black (a gold version also exists), with large, tactile copper-coloured buttons. About 112g. An AKM AK4497SVQ DAC with dual SGM8262 amplifiers, rated at 1,620mW per channel into 32 ohms from the 4.4mm balanced output, with a 3.5mm output as well. A 3,900mAh battery gives about 12 hours. The 0.87 inch OLED screen shows the settings: gain, filters, five EQ presets plus off, line out, power-off memory, coaxial output, UAC 1.0 or 2.0, brightness, screen timeout and language. It has a hold switch, an independent 0 to 100 volume scale and a dedicated USB-C charging port.
NiPO A200 Pro vs A100 — The A100 is brighter and more clinical, with a fun, punchy, V-shaped ESS tuning that makes rock rip, a maximum of 525mW at 32 ohms, no screen, about 9 hours of battery and an awkward start and charge routine. It also ran hot on a phone. The A200 Pro has a warmer, smoother tone, a much wider stage, triple the power, a screen, about 12 hours and a proper charge port. I preferred the A200 Pro side by side. The A100 figures are from my own notes.
Cons — The price. US$599 is not cheap, but I saw it as low as US$508 at one retailer, which is a much better proposition. I can't hear any difference between the digital filters. I also got caught out by a loud volume setting when I swapped to IEMs, and it was slow to bring the volume down by holding the button.
Read this against your own profile — I used very good IEMs. On a poor pair the experience would be nothing like this.
Honest limits — Supplied by the maker. By ear, with no measurements. Mostly sensitive IEMs. EQ and filters barely used. The A100 comparison was not described as level-matched.
- You Should Be MineCC Catch
- ParanoidBlack Sabbath
- Morph the CatDonald Fagen
- Winter (club mix)Vivaldi
- Driver Configuration
- Portable magnetic DAC and headphone amplifier
- Driver Details
- AKM AK4497SVQ DAC, dual SGM8262 amplifiers (maker)
- Weight
- 112g (maker and retailer listing)
- Build Materials
- Metal cassette-shaped body in black or gold, with copper-coloured buttons
- Cable Connectors
- USB-C data, separate USB-C charging port, 3.5mm and 4.4mm balanced outputs
- Power Requirements
- 3,900mAh battery, about 12 hours (maker and reviewer). 1,620mW per channel into 32 ohms from 4.4mm.
- Accessories
- Magnetic mounting for a phone
- Build Quality Notes
- US$599. 0.87 inch OLED screen, five EQ presets, UAC 1.0 or 2.0, PCM to 768kHz and DSD512. Photos: NiPO.
A big step on from the A100. It keeps the detail and adds a wider, more holographic stage, a smoother tone, a silent background and triple the power in a slimmer, lighter body.
<p><strong>Buy it if</strong>… you want a wide, immersive stage and a very quiet background; you want serious power from a phone-sized source; or you own an A100 and want a smoother, more open step up.</p><p><strong>Skip it if</strong>… US$599 is more than you want to spend and you can't find it cheaper; you prefer the A100's brighter, punchier tuning; or you want to tweak with digital filters, since I couldn't hear them.</p><p>Until next time: stay safe and stay metal.</p>