Designed in the
USA
1 Year of
Warranty
Ideal for
Audiophiles
Best Suited for
Portable Use
ESS ES9038Q2M
DAC Chip
2.1 Volts
Power Output
Pair with Laptop
via USB
Super Lightweight
Design
DESCRIPTION
THE ULTIMATE PORTABLE AMP/DAC
The AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt has been developed in partnership with Gordon Rankin and Microchip Technologies. It has a better signal to noise ratio and a much lower power consumption than the original DragonFly. It consists of Gordon’s monoClockยฎ (single ultra-low-jitter clock). Thanks to the new Microchip PIC32MX274 microcontroller, the processing speed increases by 33%. This makes it perfect to play music at all kinds of resolution (including MQA) and from any music streaming app of your choice.



ESS ES9038Q2M DAC CHIP & 9601 AMP FOR POWERFUL SOUND WITH LESSER NOISE
The DragonFly Cobalt has an output of 2.1 voltsโenough power to successfully drive all preamplifier input circuits and a wide range of todayโs efficient headphones. Its improved power supply filtering specifically reduces the noise of WiFi, Bluetooth and cellular signals. It comes with a 32-bit ESS ES9038Q2M DAC chip that employs minimum-phase slow roll-off filtering for naturally detailed, more authentic sound. The ESS Sabre 9601 headphone amp and bit-perfect digital volume control add that much-needed power. You can use the source device’s volume controls to adjust the DragonFly Cobalt’s volume.




WORKS BEST WITH ANY DEVICE OF YOUR CHOICE
The DragonFly Cobalt’s software can be easily upgraded thanks to the Desktop Device Manager. It includes a form-fitting DragonTail USB-A to USB-C Adaptor. All DragonTails use AQ’s Carbon-level USB cable. Streamlengthโข asynchronous USB code ensures low jitter, low resource load, minimal packet errors, world-class audio playback, and reliable connectivity between the DAC and any computing device with a USB input. It requires no additional drivers, making the DragonFly Cobalt virtually plug-and-play for Apple, Windows, iOS and Android users.


SUPPORTS MQA FOR MASTER-QUALITY SOUND
The Dragonfly Cobalt supports Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) playback. This is an award-winning audio technology that’s meant to deliver the sound of the original master recording. MQA files are tiny and can easily be streamed using Tidal. 

SPECS
| STATUS/SAMPLE RATES SUPPORTED (LED INDICATOR COLOR CODE) | Standby (Red), 44.1kHz (Green), 48kHz (Blue), 88.2kHz (Yellow), 96kHz (Light Blue), MQA (Purple) |
| VOLUME CONTROL | 64-position, 64-bit, bit-perfect |
| OUTPUT VOLTAGE | 2.1 |
| HEADPHONE AMP | ESS Sabre 9601 |
| DAC CHIP | ESS ES9038Q2M with minimum-phase slow roll-off filter for more natural sound |
| MICROCONTROLLER | Microchip PIC32MX274 reduces current draw and increases processing speed by 33% over DragonFlys Black and Red |
| DIMENSIONS | 12mm H x 19mm W by 57mm L |
| SUPPORTED INPUTS | 3.5mm Stereo Jack |
| WEIGHT | 22g |
| BOX CONTENTS |
1. AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB DAC |
|
2. DragonTail USB-A to USB-C Adaptor |
|
| 3. Travel Pouch | |
| 4. Flight Manual |
FAQS
DOWNLOADS
Warranty & Media Reviews
1 Year Warranty
Don’t sweat it, this AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt comes with a 1 year warranty from AudioQuest that covers manufacturing defects. All products featured on Headphone Zone are backed by an original manufacturer’s warranty.
Read more about AudioQuest’s warranty in India.

PRODUCT DESIGN WINNER
The Absolute Sound
Mar, 2020

RECOMMENDED COMPONENTS
Stereophile
Mar, 2019

PRODUCT DESIGN WINNER
The Absolute Sound
Mar, 2018

EDITOR’S CHOICE AWARD
Sound & Vision
Dec, 2016
โIf you loved the DragonFly Red as much as we did, and are looking to make the next step up without compromising on size or form, the Cobalt is a no-brainer.โ
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“The AudioQuest – DragonFly Cobalt for sure is the best DragonFly AudioQuest has released up to now. Itโs small, pretty, sounds great, is affordable and does full MQA.”
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“If you’ve already invested in decent wired headphones or IEMs and don’t want to go wireless, the AudioQuest – DragonFly Cobalt is well worth considering!”
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โOverall, the differences between the two AudioQuest DACs were relatively small, but I preferred the Cobalt for long-term listening.โ
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“Also new to the Cobalt table is โimproved power supply filteringโ that specifically targets WiFi, Bluetooth and cellular noise. Thatโs electrical noise (not acoustic).”
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” Its sound was obviously more open, quiet, devoid of any slightly grainy or “fizzy” tinge, and effortlessly dynamic. And the bass was just all-around better: deeper, tighter, more everything.”
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