YBA is best known for four decades of French reference-level amplification, but its first portable product borrows just as much from that heritage as it does from the personal-audio world. The YBA VIBE P1 is a battery-powered DAC and headphone amplifier small enough to sit on the back of a smartphone, and it opens a new VIBE Series aimed at headphone listeners and compact desktop systems.
An R2R Ladder in a 120-Gram Chassis
At the core of the YBA VIBE P1 is an R2R resistor-ladder DAC of YBA’s own design, built from 126 high-precision thin-film resistors in a 19+5 segment architecture. Rather than relying on an off-the-shelf delta-sigma chip, YBA has scaled its traditional ladder-DAC philosophy down to a chassis measuring just 93 x 65 x 14 mm and weighing 120 g. A 2.23-inch glass-fronted display lets listeners switch between NOS (non-oversampling) and oversampling modes, and hosts a new 10-band, 384kHz parametric EQ that is configured through a Chrome web interface or Shanling’s Eddict Player app for Android.
The exterior design borrows cues from two very different corners of the YBA catalogue: the “smile window” faceplate from the SIGNATURE Series pairs with the mirror-glass finish of the GENESIS Series, all wrapped in a titanium-coloured aluminium shell. YBA has owned the French marque since 2009, when Shanling acquired the company founded by Yves-Bernard André in 1981, and the VIBE P1 is the clearest sign yet of that partnership’s engineering reach.
Headphone Amplification and a Twist in the Cable Box
The headphone stage pairs two ADA4610 op-amps with four BUF634A buffers, delivering 0.28 W into 32 Ω single-ended and 1.08 W balanced from the 4.4 mm output off the 2,750 mAh internal battery. A separate USB-C power input — distinct from the USB-C data port — lifts those figures to 0.34 W and 1.33 W for harder-to-drive full-size headphones, while output impedance of 0.3 Ω single-ended and 0.7 Ω balanced keeps the YBA VIBE P1 safe for sensitive in-ear monitors. Battery life runs up to 11 hours single-ended and 9.5 hours balanced.
Over its USB-C data port, the YBA VIBE P1 decodes PCM up to 32-bit/768kHz and DSD512 through a USB M1 receiver chip. The unusual addition is an RCA-to-USB-C cable included in the box, which opens the device to coaxial sources such as CD players and streamers — though that route caps resolution at 24-bit/192kHz and DSD64. Bluetooth is deliberately absent: YBA’s Asia-Pacific brand director David Dai has said the decision keeps the signal path focused rather than chasing every possible connection standard.
Pricing and Availability
The YBA VIBE P1 is available this month for €649 / $599. An optional PU leather case is planned, though YBA has not yet announced its price. A second VIBE Series product, the W1 streamer, has already been previewed with a one-piece enclosure and circular display, pointing to where the series goes next.
Key Specifications
- DAC architecture: proprietary R2R ladder, 19+5 segments, 126 precision thin-film resistors
- Dimensions / weight: 93 x 65 x 14 mm / 120 g
- Display: 2.23-inch glass-fronted screen with NOS/oversampling switching and 10-band 384kHz EQ
- Headphone amp: ADA4610 x2 + BUF634A x4; 0.28 W / 1.08 W (32 Ω, SE/balanced), 0.34 W / 1.33 W with external power
- Output impedance: 0.3 Ω single-ended, 0.7 Ω balanced
- USB input: PCM up to 32-bit/768kHz, DSD512, via USB M1 receiver chip
- RCA-to-USB-C input: PCM up to 24-bit/192kHz, DSD64
- Battery: 2,750 mAh, up to 11 hours (SE) / 9.5 hours (balanced)
- Price: €649 / $599, available this month
For another take on ladder-DAC design at a different price point, see our coverage of the Musician Delphinus R2R DAC. Further information on the YBA VIBE P1 is available directly from YBA.
