[Ekul61]

Ive been playing flac files. from a laptop > dragonfly red dac > amp.
I want something smaller than my 17 " laptop
Would u go to a 13" laptop
Or go with a portable device like a fiio x5iii
Either wil be plugged into to a external amp.
Thx

 

[Karl2009]

I usually listen music from my computer (12ª HP laptop). I use Foobar+eq (dsp) directly with iems/earbuds or with a usb dac+amp with other headphones. I use mainly music in flac and Spootify through Foobar.
I have been lent a Fiio X5-III for a month. It moves well all my iems, earbuds and portable headphones with a good sound. Though it could run Spotify, Tidal and other apps, it is not fluent and I still prefer the Foobar versatility from the computer version.
If you use iems or portable phones, do not use regularly eq, size and mobility is important, and main music to listen is in files, you can try the Fiio X5, it's a great stuff.
The software has some flaws, I would not recommend to ones listening from apps mainly (tidal, jazzradio, etc.)

 

[lcasadonte]

I started with the x5ii which i loved. Ultimately I wanted to take the computer out of the equation (didn't want to be dependent on it). I have an rpi 3, simaudio moon mind 180, auralic altair and a sonore microrendu all using roon as a result. The price ranges from 140 for pi to 1800 for the altair (which required an external dac in my opinion). Ultimately it depends on how much you want to spend and what quality/function point you are trying to hit. In terms of sound quality the microrendu w/an external psu was way beyond my expectations. You need a hard wired connection for the microrendu and the pi requires external support for wireless. Feel free to ask my any questions if you have an interest in these devices. Happy New Year,

 

[Ekul61]

Thx Above. Very nice set ups you have.

 

[lcasadonte]

Thx Above. Very nice set ups you have.

Thanks and Happy New Year!