As I mention in my review, It really depends on your headphone impedence, I am using K10 which is less than 35ohm and is very suitable with i1, it may not be suitable if have a higher imp. The sound quality is in the same league to my ears as Dragon fly red when using with K10. You should try it and if not return it. I have try lots of low power dac for iPhone in the market and this is pretty darn good sound quality.

Purchased this today and because of how good i liked this i didn't find the need to purchase a seperate dap anymore. With low power iems and even my m50x they play pretty good! I was looking to splurge on a dap today with tidal. Looks like my iPhone will be good enough! Great job on these fiio!

I'll have mine Monday. I still intend to pick up a Nextdrive Spectra once they have Apple approval for a lightning version; they told me they had applied and were waiting on approval. It'll be fun to compare the two. Maybe I'll pick up a Nexum Aqua and have a 3-way trial and review. Are there any other DAC-amps that have integrated lightning cables?

Just received the i1 too! From first impression, volume is pretty good and the sound is super clean. I'll definitely be putting it through more testing and will have a full review out soon. Love the form factor and remote works well, I think it's important to note that the i1 is a great option for users of iPods, not just the iPhone 7; I found a very appreciable difference running through the i1 vs my iPod Touch and the i1 doesn't hamper the device's slim form factor at all.

Quick impressions from a casual listener. Using iPhone 7 Plus and Tidal HiFi.

i1 + VE Monk+ = Good and fun sound. Powered well and sounds exactly like the Dragonfly Red.

i1 + fiio ex1 = best pairing. Exact sound again as ADR.

i1 + m50x = taught it may be lacking but so far so good. Need to max the volume a bit. Lively and dynamic.

So far I love 'em and will definetely go around with me the most! My adr will permantly be left for my desktop tidal and i'm happy about that. Hate plugging and unplugging and bringing so much for a decent sound off my iPhone.

FiiO i1 - A swing and a miss


I tested the FiiO i1 driving my Campfire Audio Vega IEM, that have a sensitivity of 102db/mW and impedance of 17.5ohms, from an iPhone 6S and iPad Air 2. Comparisons were only A/B as far as how quickly I could change the cable from the headphone port to the i1.

Sound

I could not pinpoint any volume difference; if there is the i1 is well within 1 volume increment on both sources. The i1 is a very transparent amp. I can’t say for sure there is any sound difference between the sources and i1; maybe there is a little mid-bass bump, and maybe the high mids are slightly smoother but I wouldn't place money on a blind test.

Build

The i1 is nicely built; lightweight but solid, the design is streamlined and attractive. The buttons have a satisfying click. The mic works fine for calls. The cord is pretty long, and it doesn’t really pocket very well when combined with headphone cables. I’m not sure if the intent is to clip the i1 and wrap up the extra headphone cables in a pocket?

Overall

The overall question really is “why”? Unless you’re in desperate need of the mic and buttons, there isn’t really a reason to buy the i1. The DAC isn’t a higher quality than Apple’s internal DAC, and the amplifier doesn’t provide much more power than Apple’s own Lightning adaptor, which provides plenty to drive the low impedence IEM the i1 is designed for (16-32ohm). I'll hang onto the i1 simply to have a Lightning adaptor until AAW ships my MMCX cables with Lightning termination and in-line DAC/amp.

JamesFiiO said:

4, build in battery for 10 hours + playback. micro usb power supply.

Click to expand...

I don't understand this, how can it be charged? I don't see a power supply input?

donunus said:

I don't understand this, how can it be charged? I don't see a power supply input?

Click to expand...

MicroUSB port on bottom right picture I thinks is done sole for this purpose

donunus said:

I don't understand this, how can it be charged? I don't see a power supply input?

Click to expand...

Dear friend,

If you mean the i1, you don't need to charge it.

Best regards

jandr272 said:

FiiO i1 - A swing and a miss

Overall

The overall question really is “why”? Unless you’re in desperate need of the mic and buttons, there isn’t really a reason to buy the i1. The DAC isn’t a higher quality than Apple’s internal DAC, and the amplifier doesn’t provide much more power than Apple’s own Lightning adaptor, which provides plenty to drive the low impedence IEM the i1 is designed for (16-32ohm). I'll hang onto the i1 simply to have a Lightning adaptor until AAW ships my MMCX cables with Lightning termination and in-line DAC/amp.

Click to expand...

I have the AAW cable (Lightning to 2-Pin in my case) and it suffers from constant hiss, which irks me to no end as the Apple dongle is silent. It's such a good idea but so far the execution hasn't quite managed to equal the idea. Other owners have reported the same too.

I might try the Fiio as in terms of the 'why', I worry about the durability of the Lightning to 3.5mm adapter when it's goping in and out of my pocket all the time - it's a delicate little cable.

Does the i1 provide side tone for calls?

Angular Mo said:

Does the i1 provide side tone for calls?

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Dear friend,

No, the i1 doesn't have this function.

Best Regards,

Just got the Fiio i1. I have Cosmic Ear CE6p, and it is very sensitive. I love my Chord mojo, but with CE6p and mojo I can hear a noticeable noise. I also tested dragonfly red and there was noise with that unit to.

I just listened a short while but so far I'm very satisfied with what I hear with the combo CE6p and i1. No noise and to my ears a more satisfying sound compared with apples dongle delivered with iPhone 7. Without going in to detail the sound is more musical and fun. It seems to be a very good synergy.

Right now this little thing feels like the best bang for bucks in a long time. And for my specific needs it solves the problems I had.

Yes, the cable is long together with the cable on the headphones. But as far I can understand i1 is constructed to be used with a short cable that Fiio also make. And the microphone wouldn't be useful if it was close to the phone output.

I will do more listening and compare with apple dongle later on.

All the best to you all out there

MFi seems to have mic issue for both Capri and i1. Does Apple do anything to the mics?

Received my i1 yesterday. Connected it with my Ipad air 2, installed the Fiio app. The app gives me a green OK sign, all the buttons work, but for some strange reason the sound still comes out of the Ipad speaker and not the headphone. Does anybody have any idea?