Ferrum Wandla GoldenSound Edition: The Sound Your Headphones Deserve

The video is in Arabic.

Hey everyone,

The Ferrum Wandla is a high-end DAC from Ferrum, and this review compares the original firmware with the GoldenSound Edition. Thanks to the owner of the unit, brother Abdulrahman, and to reviewer GoldenSound for the firmware. A single ES9038 Pro chip, supporting PCM up to 768 kHz 32 bit and native DSD512. Output up to 10 volts on XLR and 5 volts on RCA, and 120.2 dB dynamic range according to the company. It has a touch screen, a remote and HQPlayer upsampling filters. This edition was $2800 (about 10500 riyals) at the time of the review.

Who is it for?

• Anyone shopping in this price class who has a strong amp, as long as they update to the GoldenSound edition.

Strengths

• After the GoldenSound update the signature became neutral with a touch of warmth, and it improved in eight areas for me.
• The soundstage grew by 15 to 20% after the update, and layering and separation improved.
• Clarity is excellent, the background is a work of art, and resolution is really excellent.
• The Impact+ feature raises the bass by 2 to 3 dB with amazing dynamics.
• Crosstalk measures -140 dB.
• Voltage control options I’ve never seen on any device, plus an analog preamp.

Weaknesses

• Before the update the stage was small (intimate), and the treble and upper mids were forward.
• It needs a strong amp (like the Holo Bliss, which costs more than the DAC) to give its best.
• The dynamic range doesn’t match its price, and the distortion above 1 kHz in volume mode is weaker than expected for a device at this price (even if it isn’t audible).
• I didn’t hear any effect from the Tube Mode feature.
• It’s sensitive to recording quality and not forgiving.

Verdict

Before the update I wouldn’t have bought it: it sounds almost identical to the ES9039 Pro chip in an XDUoo unit. After the GoldenSound Edition my opinion changed a lot, and it became one of the options I’d tell you to read about in its class, as long as you get it with this edition.

Note: this review is from 2024, so the price may have changed.

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