Ikko ITM05 is the Most Portable Amp/DAC for Your Mobile Phone

Many people dream of a world where Hifi can be had for cheap. But those people might be forgetting that it’s 2019 and China is producing some very interesting tech relevant to audio lovers all over the globe.

One such company called Ikko has begun building a name for itself by launching a myriad of new IEMs and DACs onto the audio community, and one of their newest products happen to have caught our eye; the Ikko Music Patch ITM05.

While that might look like a jumble of letters and numbers, it’s so much more. The ITM05 is an Amp/DAC combo made specifically for audiophiles who use their phones as their primary means of listening.

Sure, devices like the Fiio Q1 MKII exist for this same purpose, but they’re missing a key component of portability: form factor.

The ITM05 resolves that problem with a designing engineered to work with your mobile device that won’t interfere with the screen or provide an obtrusive mass that becomes difficult to hold or fit in your pocket.

It’s clear that the product is meant for phones and not other flagship media players like the Fiio M11 Pro. This is evident by not only the form factor, but also its usability and choice of interface connections.

Ikko says that it will produce the DAC with both USB-C and Lightning connectors, meaning that Apple and Android users alike with be able to use the product with ease. At this time, it’s not clear if these will be separate versions, or if the device will make use of the USB-C connector in the back (which we suspect is for charging an internal battery) for non-Apple devices.

The pocket size DAC measures just two inches along either side and will only add around half an inch of thickness to whatever device you pair it with.

As for output, expect the pocket-size DAC to support both 3.5mm and 2.5mm jacks – 4.4mm gets no love here.

Like several of Ikko’s other products, the ITM05 is fitted with the Cirrus CS43198 DAC. Specifics on the exact performance the Music Patch will deliver has not yet been made public, though we expect the details to be explained in-depth when the product launches on Indiegogo in December.