Upgrade Your Mobile Audio — Periodic Audio Rhodium Portable DAC
Headphone jacks. You remember those right? Save for a couple of remaining phone brands most notably Sony Xperia, the majority of manufacturers have cut the hardware from their handsets over the last several years and especially on those flagship level devices. Even midrange and budget phones are going down this route. This leaves us with very low quality dongles that do absolutely nothing for the experience and have pushed many to opting for Bluetooth earbuds and headphones.
Now Bluetooth earbuds and headphones are perfectly fine and have their uses, BUT what if you wanted to stick with wired audio? What if you had a nice set of in ear monitors (IEM’s) or headphones and you appreciate that Hi-Res audio goodness? Well, Periodic Audio have the perfect mobile solution for you! This is the Rhodium, a universal USB high resolution portable DAC.
So full disclosure, Periodic Audio did send me this out as a kind gesture with no requirements attached other than wanting a little feedback. Very kind of them, and to be honest I am extremely happy that they did. So let’s get into it a little and talk about why this might just be the piece of kit that you need to level up your audio game.
The hardware looks barely any different to a regular USB-C headphone dongle. It’s super compact and portable. As well as making use of a nice set of multi or dynamic driver IEM’s like the Ikko OH2 Opal’s pictured below, it can really make use of some pretty decent studio type headphones too. As part of the package you do get a USB-A to USB-C adapter, which also makes it really good for laptop and PC use.
This is the first bit of kit I’ve owned that was capable of supporting Hi-Res audio so naturally I had to find a service that supported great audio as it was something I never needed before. I tried multiple services including Apple Music, Amazon Music, Qobuz and Tidal. I tended to find more of the music I wanted on Apple and Amazon but Qobuz and Tidal had a lot of tracks available too, especially for more mainstream music.
Then there’s the final part of the audio equation. I needed some in ear monitors. I picked up a £20 set of KZ ZSN Pro IEM’s recommended by Sam, a friend of mine and then my more recent purchase the Ikko OH2 Opal’s which cost me just over £70. I was honestly blown away by how good they both sounded, the Opal’s in particular being very clear with a wider sound stage and are pretty neutral across the board, whereas the ZSN Pro’s were a little bass heavy and a bit muddy. That’s just nitpicking though. I preferred them both to my PLT Backbeat Pro 2 Bluetooth headphones with AptxHD enabled. That’s a set of headphones that still cost around £120 on Amazon right now and they do sound pretty good. For me the £20 ZSN Pro’s and Rhodium combo was better sounding. It does of course come down to the sound signature of the headphones or IEM’s you use and it’s all subjective.
Now whether you want wireless or wired audio comes down to what you want in regards to convenience, quality and reliability. Wired audio still seems to be the way to go if you want quality and could do without having to worry about charging things in a world where we pretty much have to charge everything. For me having so much gear to charge is a big arse chore so I tend to stay away from Bluetooth headphones. And if you’re like me then the Rhodium is DEFINITELY something you should look at purchasing. Periodic Audio also have other great products on their website that would complement said Rhodium.
The Periodic Audio Rhodium DAC will set you back around £50. Coupled with a half decent set of IEM’s it is hard to beat.
The addiction I now have for buying IEM’s is real…
