iFi stereo and hi-fi equipment

The reports, as CPSC published them

1. Hurt, no treatment

   Made Jan 26, 2022 · , sent to the company Mar 22, 2022 · , published by CPSC Apr 14, 2022

   The product, in the report: iFi xDSD Gryphon “A hi-fi system in your pocket - Premium HD DAC + Powerful Balanced headamp.” https://ifi-audio.com/products/xdsd-gryphon/

   The iFi (brand) xDSD Gryphon (product) is a headphone amplifier and digital audio converter that allows you to stream high-definition audio over the internet using a computer, phone, or tablet. The device three times suddenly went to maximum volume and as a result my tinnitus that had been stable for decades has now increased.

   Everything below describes what happened in more detail and is a copy of what I sent to the manufacturer’s support team:

   I wanted to bring a safety concern to your attention that I have with the iFi xDSD Gryphon. I also wanted to warn you that I’m going to raise this concern with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, who can force recalls, so please warn the appropriate business teams on your end as well.

   My concern is with the digital volume control and your CyberSync feature. On my first day of use with the xDSD Gryphon, three times I experienced the volume suddenly rising to its maximum level, 100%, or close to it. This happened with three different connected devices: a desktop computer, a laptop, and a phone. This has caused an increase in my tinnitus which had otherwise been stable for the last couple decades.

   My first question is: can this feature be disabled so that the sole control over the volume is the knob on the xDSD Gryphon? My second question is: do you have a volume limit feature similar to iOS or other platforms?

   As for the instances with the desktop and laptop computers, I’m still not sure of the actions, keystrokes, accidental mouse swipes, or what exactly caused the volume to rise to maximum immediately.

   However, I do know how it happened on the [REDACTED]. With the [REDACTED], there seems to be a delay of a number of seconds between when you click the volume up button on the phone and when the xDSD Gryphon reacts. Combine that with the fact that one click on the xDSD Gryphon’s knob raises the volume by 1db, but one click on the volume button on the phone raises the volume on the xDSD Gryphon MANY decibels… that was the disaster. 1db is insignificant. So I believe, pressed volume up once and heard no change… and then pressed it a few more times thinking the volume change was minute per press—but it turned out that the volume increase was huge, but just delayed. And then I got full volume. Again.

   The safety concern is threefold: (1) damage to human hearing, (2) electronic damage to equipment, and (3) physical damage to equipment. Physical damage (3) because a human has no choice but to immediately knock the headphones off their head to minimize the hearing damage, thus risking them dropping to the floor or dropping the xDSD Gryphon to the floor, or both. And we know how expensive headphones can get.

   Even if it turns out that CyberSync can be turned off or the volume can be limited, or both, I still must report this to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, because this risk is the same for all users when the product comes out of the box at present. But I strongly suggest these two features in future firmware updates if they do not presently exist, and I suggest that something be done so that by default, my experience becomes impossible.

   I will most likely return the xDSD Gryphon to where I bought it if the firmware doesn’t support disabling CyberSync and making a volume limit. It’s a real shame too, because this is the best portable DAC I’ve heard.

   Thanks, [REDACTED]

   Description of Risk of Harm: Product Caused Hearing Damage

   Model

   xDSD Gryphon

   UPC

   5060738786381

   Serial number

   1503000385

   Bought from

   Beach HiFi

   Bought

   Jan 18, 2022

   Where

   San Francisco, California: Home/Apartment/Condominium

   Who was involved

   Age 47, Male

   The reporter’s relation to them

   Self

   As this report names them

   Brand iFi, made or sold by AMR/iFi audio (USA)

   Reports CPSC links to it

   20220318-74CED-3631729

   How badly, in CPSC’s words

   Injury, No First Aid or Medical Attention Received

CPSC’s disclaimer

Sources