FiiO Q1 portable headphone amp & DAC

PROS:

-Prioritizes USB connection over AUX-IN.


-Foobar eq works when used in DAC mode. Just remember to enable "Exclusive Mode" under 'Playback Device' setting in windows.


-LED is bright and easily visible.


-High gain gives better audio quality even on non power hungry cans.


-No heating whatsoever.


-Bass Boost is functional and adds enough warmth to the mix to sound musical.


-Volume Pot doubles up as Power switch. As for the Pot, it is very smooth and has a numbered knurled knob.This greatly helps in preserving hearing as the volume has to be minimum for switching it off.


-Aluminium housing feels sturdy. Really a great build quality given the price. And yeah; it does look like a mini flask.


-Pocketable size which makes it really portable, though not as portable as something like the Dragonfly from Audioquest.


-For flawless playback on android(for kitkat and below), buy USB Audio Player PRO from playstore.Though most android devices ahve USB audio routing after the lollipop update.


-Charging toggle switch is a nice touch. If using with a smartphone, you can disable charging. As a side note; I heard slight noise when charging was enabled and the source was my laptop. The noise is really audible on quieter and subtler parts of a track, recently it just disappeared.


-Silicon mats provided are only useful for stacking purposes. FiiO should have provided with some rubber feet as when layed flat, the Pot cant be turned easily as it rubs against the table surface.


-Battery lasts for quite a long time. Not a surprise as FiiO quotes a battery life of more than 30Hrs given the 1400mAh battery.


LED configuration:


Power on: Blue


Charging (while powered off): Red


Charging (while using DAC): Cyan


Charging Complete: Green


-LED colour does not change on the basis of the audio format/bit/kbps like in some high end DACs like the Chord Mojo. But given it’s price point, I may be nitpicking.


-Sound Quality:

-Bass: Full-bodied and lush with nice sub bass extension. With Bass Boost on, there is a slight bass bleed in the mids.

-MIds: Neutral. Just ever-so-slightly pushed forward but makes for a better musical sound. Also, detail retreival is great.

-Treble: Slight roll-off maybe present. I said maybe because the headphones I used(SE215 and B&W P7) have rolled off highs too. Just take my opinion with a grain of salt.

-Soundstage: Has a great improvement if you were using a crappy soundcard. But this also depends on the type of headphones you are using.



CONS:


-Playback is limited to 24 bit, 96Khz only. FiiO should have atleast provided 24bit, 192KHz. Any higher bitrate files are downsampled.


-The convex body shape is a real pain when stacking with a smartphone or just keeping on a table.


-At lower volumes(around 2-3 mark on the pot), there is some audible crossfeed.


-The AMP is’nt that powerful. The amp section is powered by Maxim, specifically the MAX97220. My Shure SE215 have to be driven on high gain to make the listening experience great with the volume pot around 6 given that the SE215 is only 20 Ohms. Also,my B&W P7 have to be driven at high gain with volume pot around 7.5. FiiO was a bit conservative in the amp department.


-Has a slight warm tonality so purists will be left unhappy.

-FiiO should mention about iOS compatibility and how-tos.

The FiiO Q1 is an easy recommendation for those on a budget. You would be hard pressed to find something that performs similarly for the asking price, below $100.
 
I don't usually talk about the packaging or build of products, but in this case I feel like I must. The build is exceptional, I believe it is completely aluminum all around. It is much sturdier and heavier than the FiiO E11.
You get a very short 3.5 mm cable to connect with any phone or portable device, as well as a USB to micro USB connector to use the inside DAC. That means you won't have to go searching around your house for the right connectors. 
Disclaimer, I take an objective approach to my audio equipment. I don't really give in to the belief than multi-thousand dollar amps or DACs sound "better" than budget amps/DACs. I have owned the ODAC + O2 for a while, and the Q1 gives me that sound in even a smaller package, so that says something. It is perfectly neutral, as a solid state portable amp should be. Same with the DAC. 
 
My only complaint is the power. The E11 does have a tiny bit more power on high gain compared to the Q1, at the expense of more audible hiss noise. It cannot fully power my HD650s when listening to Classical, or any other very quiet music. With other genres, it does fine. One thing I am impressed by is the noise floor, which is basically non-existent. It is so dead quiet, even when turned up all the way at high gain with my sensitive IEMs. Very impressive improvements by FiiO. Also, it is extremely simple to set up. Just plug in your computer, and no drivers are required so you can just start playing music right away.
 
For IEMs and low impedance headphones, this amp/DAC may be all you need. For stuff like planar magnetics or Sennheisers, look at a desktop solution. Not that you would get a portable amp/DAC just for hard to drive headphones. Overall, one of the best portable amps for the money IMO.

[Initial review contradicted by more careful testing with good headphones; preserved to paint a fuller picture]
 
I got this while under the impression that any external DAC will be better than integrated audio (false, apparently) and while still believing that the usual widely-quoted specs like SNR and THD could tell you the whole story.
 
My best headphones at the time were the Koss KSC75, so I tested it with those: did A/Bs at the office between the office PC and the Q1, then between my phone (HTC One M7) and the Q1. The differences were so small that I couldn't even be sure there were any differences (that it wasn't all just placebo). But I chalked that up to the noisy office environment and forgot about it.
 
Then a few days ago I saw a discussion in a forum where someone said they were disappointed with the lack of sound quality difference made by the Q1 and had to send it back. Shortly after that I found the Geddes & Lee papers alleging (but failing to prove, as it turns out) that widespread distortion measures like THD and IMD are meaningless, and these two new pieces of information put together made me seriously question my Q1 (again).
 
So I did the A/B comparisons again. This time my best headphones were the burned-in Superlux HD668B, which are pretty bright and otherwise flat, and much better than the KSC75, and thus by all acounts should allow the Q1 to shine. The phone was the Xiaomi Redmi 3. And again my experience was that the differences are so small that I can't even be sure I'm not lying to myself in saying that they're there. If the differences are real, they manifest as better detail in the treble and better imaging (narrower positioning of each instrument). But if I'm going to pay money for an extra device of this kind and if I'm going to carry it around in addition to my phone, I'd like its sonic benefit to be unquestionable. And it isn't.
 
So, long story short: don't buy this as a DAC, chances are it doesn't do much that your integrated audio doesn't already do. I for one am disappointed and I'll be looking to sell mine.
 
 
[18.08.2016 Correction]
 
OK, I've taken the time to test this little thing more carefully in a silent environment at night, again with the Superlux HD668Bs, and this time taking care to switch the cables faster so I don't forget the previous sound like I was doing before.
 
As it turns out, when you have headphones with lots of treble extension and reasonable smoothness, you can confirm beyond any placebo doubts that the Q1 delivers better sound quality than integrated audio in at least two ways:
- better treble extension (there's more to hear up there in the "airy" regions)
- deeper soundstage (artists not so in-your-face but sounding like they're somewhere farther back).
 
Putting this together with all the other features and conveniences, I have to say I've changed my mind and I think this is a recommendable device after all. You do get your money's worth considering the price and the improved sound. Just make sure you're using it with headphones that do a good job of representing the treble, both in terms of extension and neutrality, or you could end up hearing no difference relative to integrated audio (like I did and still do when listening through something like the Koss KSC75s - treble too grainy - or the Philips SHP2000s - hardly any treble extension).