Tempotec V1's Review - Superb Value!

 

General/Packaging/Build

Tempotec is known for producing products with a high price performance ratio. I have reviewed several of their products and most of the time i’m left with a positive experience. I got the new DAP from them today which is the TempotecV1 which features dual CS41313 DAC. Packaging is rather minimal yet it doesn't look cheap. It came bundled with a Type C to A adapter, a short Type C to C cable. Build quality is also very solid all around as the form factor is rather small, and buttons does not give off the brittle/rattling sound when pressed, good tactile feeling. Screen is alright and the touch responsiveness is good without being overly sensitive, only on minor occasion where some on screen buttons are on the edge and took a few try to be able to register the touch.

It also came with a clip and you can clip it wherever you like when you are using it via bluetooth or even as a DAP itself.

Specifications

• Input: TF Card, USB, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi

• Output: 4.4mm BAL, 3.5mm SE, Bluetooth

• DAC & AMP: 2*CS43131 (One for each channel)

• Sample Rate: up to DSD256, PCM 384kHz/32-bit, MQA 8X

• Bluetooth: Two-way Bluetooth 5.1 (LDAC, APTX, AAC, SBC)

• Others: OTG, SPDIF Out, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi

• Battery: 1400mAh

• Screen: 2″/ 240*320 touch screen

• TF Card: Up to 2TB

• Operating System: HiByOS (Linux-based)

• Size: 87.2mm*41.8mm*13.75mm (Tiny!)

• Max output level: 2V RMS (3.5mm), 4V RMS (4.4mm)

• Output power (32Ω): 123mW (3.5mm), 215mW (4.4mm)

Gears used for this review

• Tempotec V1

• Intuaura Balance

Twistura Woodnote

• Dekoni x Hifiman Cobalt

Foreword

My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far

Battery Life

• V1 is quite power efficient based on my test, i did not specifically measure the power draw but purely based on my observation

• V1 uses a 1400mAh battery. The battery lasted approximately 10 hours from 100% to depletion when i left the player running and monitor how long it lasted with volume level at 13 with high gain

• Charging is a little slow given the battery size but given the price, can’t really complain much about it, approximately 2 hours + - 

Features

• Upgradeable firmware (i have yet to try that because i’m a Mac user and unfortunately, the flash tool doesn’t support Mac and my windows VM can’t detect the V1)

• Bluetooth transmitter and receiver

• USB Dac mode when connected to PC

• Line Out

• Built in Tidal and Qobuz streaming

Sound Impression

Tonality wise, V1 doesn’t add much coloration to the signature, i would say it is quite neutral with a slight hint of warmth for the signature. I have tested several dongles with CS41313, including V1 which is not really a dongle per say, it does seem like they have this signature where it sounds quite airy and a little bit of meat at the low end.

Listening Impression with the following gears

Twistura Woodnote

• Bass is punchy and tight, mid bass especially

• Sub bass has slightly better extension

• Mids are slightly being pushed forward instead of sounding slightly recessed prior to pairing with V1

• Slightly bigger soundstage

• Male vocal has slightly thicker texture and sounds fuller

• Female vocal is full sounding as well

• Not so much changes in terms of detail retrieval

• Overall, a very good synergy pairing the Woodnote with V1

Dekoni x Hifiman Cobalt

• Cobalt is a V-shaped and slightly bright headphone, doesn’t demand that much power and has quite good synergy with V1

• The mids are slightly recessed, but when paired with V1, the mids doesn’t sound that recessed anymore and it sounded a little bit more forward, both male and female vocal also have better texture and body to it, making the overall presentation a little bit warmer

• Bass on the other hand has a bit more body when paired with V1, the sub bass doesn’t rumble that much, but mid bass is still punchy, a very refreshing experience if you ask me, still very fun sounding

• Not much changes on the detail retrieval as well

• Soundstage is slightly better in terms of better height,depth and width perception

• As i mentioned above, Cobalt is not hard to drive, but V1 does have sufficient power to push Cobalt to acceptable level

Intuaura Balance

• Intuaura Balance is a single dynamic driver IEM from Intuaura that is not hard to drive but scales well with power

• V1 does have the capability to drive it to optimum performance with a 4VRMS voltage swing on balanced output

• Intuaura Balance on its own is quite neutral sounding with a slight hint of warmth with very wide soundstage, and in terms of tonality, pairing it with the V1 seems to be a good choice where the overall presentation has a bit more body to it due to the close to neutral sound signature from the Balance

• The low end is slightly elevated due to the added warmth, not much changes to the treble yet it doesn’t compromise in terms of resolution

Comparison (Fiio Snowsky Echo Mini)

• Echo Mini sounds warmer to my ears

• The low end is slightly more elevated compared to V1

• Treble doesn’t sound as airy as V1

• The soundstage is rather 2D-ish compared to V1, which gives the impression of bigger and more spacious sound

Final Thoughts

All in all, Tempotec V1 offers a complete and feature rich package in a small form factor with a neutral warm and natural sound, It is an easy recommendation for those who are new to the hobby as well as seasoned audiophile who are looking for something small and portable to carry on a day to day basis. At this price point, i think it is really hard to beat given it can be a dongle, a DAP, or a bluetooth transmitter/receiver if you decide to stream from your phone.

*A big thanks to Tempotec for sending this over for the purpose of this review. I thank them for their support.

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