About this gear
Portable vacuum-tube DAC/headphone amp. Dual Raytheon JAN6418 tubes, ESS ES9028Q2M DAC, dedicated ES9603Q amp stage, fully balanced. 460mW (3.5mm) / 480mW (4.4mm balanced) into 32Ω, THD+N 0.0003%, SNR up to 121dB. PCM 32-bit/384kHz, native DSD256, SA9137L USB. Side volume rocker with memory, "World Gate" cut-out exposes the tubes, triple anti-vibration. 55g, 65×46.5×16mm, no battery (draws from host). USB-C and Lightning cables in box. Launched 8 June 2026.
Specifications
Community Scores
Averaged from 3 reviews
76.0
Tone & Colour
72.0
Texture & Detail
70.0
Dynamics
70.0
Soundstage
55.0
Timing & Flow
89.0
Comfort
83.5
Engagement
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Reviews (3)
The first tube dongle at about US$100: warm, airy and velvet-smooth, tubes only, with nothing to switch.
<p>A pure-tube dongle for tube lovers: warm, smooth and airy, with real power, little heat, no RF noise and over 12 hours of battery from a phone. The trade is a slower, more coloured presentation and no solid-state mode.</p>
Two tiny valves in a 55-gram box that plugs into a phone — and every earphone I put through it came out bigger, warmer, more physical and more alive than it went in.
Buy it before you buy your next earphone. Every IEM I have put through the M3 Ultra has come out bigger, warmer, more physical and more involving — a bigger, more holographic stage, more grip on the groove, and far more emotional involvement. For US$110 that is the best return in my chain.
A pure-tube pocket dongle with no solid-state switch. Warm and rich without going syrupy, smooth on top, and with more bass thump than I expected from a tube.
<p>A pure-tube dongle that decodes, amplifies and gets out of the way. Warm and rich without syrup, smooth treble with plenty of detail, a quiet background and bass that thumps. The exposed tubes are the one worry.</p>