It is a portable amp, and since I'm just getting into audio, I wouldn't really hear the difference between the DAC of the iPod and the DAC of another platform, but others on this forum curse the iPod's DAC.

What I hear about the Fiio E11 is that the audio quality isn't too good compared to even an E7. Because you can use it as a D/A converter, I'd go with a Fiio E7/17 (just a bit more, but most likely worth the $10-60 more). Don't forget something like a L9 LOD too for the sound. IIRC the E7/17 has...