Today’s feature from Louis is a review of the xDuoo XD05T, a new portable integrated DAC and hybrid 1.5W-capable solid-state and tube amplifier. It is priced at $549.
Disclaimer: This is a sample sent in exchange for my honest opinion. Headfonics is an independent website with no affiliate links or status. I thank Shenzhen Audio and xDuoo for their opportunity.
Click here to read more on xDuoo products that we have previously reviewed on Headfonics
This article follows our current scoring guidelines which you can read in more detail here.
In recent reviews, we’ve covered part of the xDuoo’s XD05 portable audio gear line which consists of about six models in total and so far we’ve covered the Pro, the BAL 2, and the Plus variants. In this write-up, we will take a look at the latest addition to the line called the XD05T.
The xDuoo XD05T carries over the same basic hardware design. It’s a portable digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and headphone amplifier combo unit with a Bluetooth receiver but with an interesting implementation that makes it different from some competing units.
The XD05T is considered a portable model, but I would rather call it a desktop model with portability capability for a few reasons. Read on to find out why.
Features
The XD05T is a hybrid dual miniature NOS vacuum tube and transistor-based portable amplifier with an integrated DAC.
It has a plethora of input options, hardwired or OTA which includes USB-C, coaxial, optical, and auxiliary ports. Plus on top of that, it includes Bluetooth connectivity.
Decoding
The xDuoo XD05T is equipped with a dual ESS ES9039Q2M DAC capable of PCM up to 32-bit/768kHz, DSD64-512, and MQA 8X.
The DAC section also has eight selectable filters which audibly, are subtle, to say the least.
For Bluetooth connectivity, the XD05T employs the BT5.1 capable QCC5125 SoC with codec handling up to LDAC and including aptX HD and LL.
Amplification
The XD05T’s is rated at 1500mW at 32Ω max output rating and capable of up to 556mW at 300Ω balanced.
The XD05T also has a three-step gain switch upfront. The switch to me is mislabeled as a turbo switch implying every setting is a turbo setting. It should just say gain.
The first position is for IEMs and the other two settings are tweaked for driving full-sized headphones and they do well at each task.
Design
The XD05 line has always been a well-built machine in that xDuoo uses aluminum shells. I would consider this unit to have medium-thickness skin since you do get a sense of hollowness when you tap on the body. Heads up.
It’s a tasteful design with a half X venting on top and bottom, lots to look at upfront and on the back panel, and it is keyed in a unique anodized Green finish. The display sports a black background with orange glow letters and it contrasts nicely with the green.
There’s a tempered glass insert on top with the xDuoo logo but the bottom just has those vents, allowing you to slap on some included rubber feet. That lifts the unit off the mounting surface enough for the bottom vents to be effective.
Form factor
I have to be honest here, this guy is too large for someone who wants to pocket-carry their gear. On top of that, the cabinet is vented because those tubes get rather warm, even if you use this model inside a backpack.
That would probably be unhealthy for the unit because it would block those vents. It’s good to know, however, that the XD05T has overheating protection. There’s also overload and DC protection as well built into the unit.
The rectangular-shaped unit measures 168 x 78 x 23 Millimeters and almost 2 ounces shy of a pound which is not that bad but it’s certainly a lot of coinage to pocket carry.
Aesthetics
This is the main reason I mentioned previously that the XD05T is not the best choice for use on the go, particularly. It would make a great table-top companion, at home or while traveling.
Another observation I made was that the X vents are completely open. This is another reason I would hesitate to take this unit outside because a drop of water could easily fall inside the unit and cause major damage. Be cautious of rainfalls and liquid spillage with this model.
Its design versatility lies in the fact that it can be fed Bluetooth from a mobile source, on LDAC, and that would be the preferable way to use it unless you want to strap your phone to the XD05T.
Otherwise, it’s more at home, at home. The rear-mounted inputs make it an uncomfortable unit to pocket but ideal in a desktop setup.
I/O
The xDuoo provides an ample amount of connectivity upfront and on the rear panel. Upfront you can see two headphone ports, a full-sized 6.35mm plug and then there’s the 4.4mm connection.
The rear panel is a busy one. There are six connections on the back panel. Two of them are USB-C taps. One of them is used strictly for charging the battery and the other is to tap into the XU316.
This setup allowed xDuoo to isolate the charging process from the USB audio input.
The rest of the connections back there are two 3.5mm IO ports and a single 4.4mm tap which is an analog balanced input.
The 3.5mm taps are analog and digital combo plugs but bitrates are the highest on the USB-C input port. They’re still capable of 96k audio which is fine. The rear ports are fixed outputs when used as such.
Bluetooth pairing is done via a side-mounted button but it’s a two-step process. You press and hold the side-mounted input button to force the unit into pairing mode and the XD05T should appear on the available devices list.
Controls
We already discussed the 99-position side-mounted rotary volume, now let’s discuss the other side of the unit which displays three pushbuttons.
One of them was already mentioned previously which is the Bluetooth pairing button. There’s another button for input selection and a third button for filter selection.
On the rear panel, there’s that single power input selector switch which is, again confusing because you have to slip it into the correct mode for the battery to charge up and I forgot to do so at times, I was left with a dead battery because I was in the wrong mode.
The front panel has three similarly looking switches. The first is the power switch. The second is the three-position Turbo switch.
The third switch is a bass boost feature but the boost has a wide Q and it affects a wide range of the spectrum, including the entire midrange portion.
It’s an interesting implementation in the fact that at times it produces a fun-sounding character but sometimes it becomes high-handed.
Battery life
The xDuoo XD05T uses a 6000mAh Lithium that allows the XD05T to run a little over 5 hours using full-sized headphones and over 8 hours using IEMs.
My only concern here is the amount of time it takes to charge it up which is a long time by today’s standards. It takes over 3 hours on a fast charger and it could take over 8 hours if you use a weak charger.
I would consider the internal battery charging circuitry implementation to be a trickle charger at best, but that can also extend battery life in certain cases.
So let’s add the long charging times and we could throw in the inclusion of the 6.35mm headphone jack instead of a 3.5mm to denote further that this is a desktop model that is more at home on a desktop, but not so much as a portable device.
Packaging & Accessories
It was no surprise to me that the xDuoo XD05T would come in a hard shell, green-colored box. The main unit is contained within a custom hard foam mold inside, alongside an xDuoo metal badge.
Most of the contents come inside two separate flat boxes and they contain two USB-C cables of around eight inches in length. One cable is terminated with a Lightning connector. There’s another long 40-inch dual USB-C cable that’s braided and orange-colored. Quite nice, I must say.
There’s also a total of ten rubber feet and that’s good because these types of rubber feet with adhesive can come off and you could lose one. This way, you have some extras just in case.
The rest of the contents consist of an xDuoo USB-C to USB type A adapter, a 6.35mm to 3.5mm adapter, and a foldable user manual. The manual is not thorough enough in my opinion and some descriptions are missing, plus there’s no downloadable version available yet.
Sound Impressions
For this listening session, I pulled out the HIFIMAN ARYA Organic, the Ananda Nano, the Sundara open-backs, and the MEZE Audio 99 Classics in Walnut which I thought would all make a good aggregate with the XD05T.
As far as IEMs are concerned, I used a combination of models to get an idea of the drivability ability of each type of IEM. For example, to get a single dynamic driver perspective, I used the HIFIMAN Svanar. To test multi-driver drivability, I used the FiiO FH19 plus the FA19.
The XD05T was fed by my custom Windows 11 PC, off a 3.2 USB port, and Foobar was used with known FLAC files.
Summary
The xDuoo XD05T is a hybrid and its sound reflects it because it has a hint of tubbiness combined with the cleanliness of a solid-state amplifier. It almost reminds me of an old Marantz receiver I had years ago.
It has a sound signature that blends warmth with precision, catering to a wide range of listening preferences.
The mids are smooth and detailed, ensuring vocal and instrumental clarity without veering into harshness. High frequencies come through articulate and crisp, offering excellent sparkle and air without sibilance.
Its tonal profile is characterized by a slightly rich and inviting low end, where bass notes are tight and controlled but have a subtle fullness that avoids overpowering other frequencies. Except when you engage the bass boost feature which affects the lower portion of the mids up to the 1kHz mark.
The XD05T’s overall tonality is both warm and transparent. It’s an enigmatic blend of emotion and technical prowess, evoking the duality of analog and solid-state characteristics.
Staging and Dynamics
The soundstage of the xDuoo XD05T unfolds like a panoramic window, offering a sense of openness that stretches outward with natural ease, creating a spacious environment where each instrument and voice finds its place within the panorama.
Depth is conveyed with a subtle, layered nuance, allowing sounds to emerge not just from left to right but in multidimensional spaces that feel immersive. Rather than presenting a flat plane, the XD05T sculpts the music into a dynamic sphere, where proximity and distance are vividly conveyed.
Separation seems natural and never forced, allowing every element to coexist in balance with others. Each instrument not only occupies its own space but interacts seamlessly with its counterparts, creating an immersive, three-dimensional performance.
Click on page 2 below for my recommended pairings and selected comparisons.
