Audiophile up-and-comer, Red Wine Audio, just unveiled the Isabellina HPA integrated Headphone Amplifier and Digital-to-Analog Converter -- combining their highly-acclaimed Isabellina DAC with the headphone stage originally developed for their award-winning Isabella vacuum-tube preamplifier. Featuring simplicity in design, coupled with use of high-current battery power, Isabellina HPA delivers a level of sonic performance not previously available to headphone users anywhere near this price.
Introduced last year as a standalone DAC, the digital converter used in the HPA was initially designed to satisfy audio's most demanding users: High-end, two-channel audiophiles, where pricing is often secondary to their pursuit of sonic bliss. "For most headphone enthusiasts, the sonic improvement they experience listening to this class-leading DAC will bring smiles to their faces," says Vinnie Rossi, Red Wine Audio's President.
HPA's headphone stage has been engineered for music lovers. It couples warmth and tone, while uncovering subtle details and delicate spatial cues hidden deep within the music. This is the same headphone stage found in the award-winning Isabella vacuum-tube preamp. Features include:
• Premium Vcap capacitors -- known for uncompromising sonic performance and long-term reliability
• Ultra-short signal and power paths -- contributing to HPA's audiophile-grade performance
• A very low impedance output driver stage -- allowing HPA to drive a wide range of headphone impedances with ease.
HPA includes a full-featured Isabellina DAC, including RCA output jacks. Here's a case where the digital-to-analog converter in a headphone amplifier performs at a level worthy of driving the finest audiophile stereo systems. So HPA customers are only one interconnect cable away from enjoying class-leading sound from all their audio systems. "For anyone who has dreamed of getting a high-end source to bring their listening experience to the next level, HPA has them covered!" says Rossi.
HPA supports three types of digital inputs, including USB Toslink (optical), Coax or USB, HPA covers them all. And users can easily switch between digital sources, allowing them to attach more than one device.
The Isabellina HPA $2,500 (Remote control included) - Isabellina DAC without headphone stage, available starting at $1,500