Schiit Audio Fulla

Sound - 9/10: The Schiit Fulla surprised me with the fullness of it's sound. I usually try to keep price out of my reviews, but for a dongle under 100 dollars I tend to expect a frailer sound, and difficulty powering higher impedance headphones. The Fulla can power my HD600s (300 Ohm impedance) very well. The main problem with the sound quality itself is the treble. In some songs, mostly when lost of different types of sound are happening (lots of bass, treble, and high at the same time), the treble is distorted. It's not terrible, but definitely shows that it's power has repercussions. Other than the treble inaccuracy, the Fulla is excellent, especially in comparison to dongles of similar price. 
 
Design - 8.5/10: Though i'm not terrible nit-picky, there are a good few problems I have with the Fulla design wise. The size is great, the weight is excellent, and the build quality, as far as materials and durability goes, is amazing. The main problem is the finishing of the product. The edges could have been filed down, or at least give a rubberized finish. They are very sharp, even more so than other Schiit products. The sides are rough, but not horrible. The only other complaint I have is for the dial. The dial is pretty small, which is okay, it is proportional, but it's oddly hard to turn. The first Fulla I got it was nearly completely stuck, and I got another, which was much better. The second was still difficult to turn accurately. If you want an exact amount of power, you have to be careful while turning it. Once you get used to it, though, it becomes pretty easy. The design overall is great, but the drawbacks are worth mentioning. 

(Update below)

For the past 5 days or so, I've been listening to my most recent acquisition (the DT-770) un-amped because I'm far away for home and I was waiting on my new Schiit to arrive. These cans are considered to be easy to drive, but they sounded flat directly trough my PC. The bass had no punch, the soundstage was rather poor and I had the volume maxed-out all the time. They were decent, but I missed my home set-up. The post-man came by this morning with my new Fulla. I plugged that (surprisingly) small dongle in, changed the audio-settings on my PC and started to search for a song to put them to the test. 
 
I bought the DT-770 to listen to hip-hop mainly since its bass had a good reputation, so I wanted to put it to the test with Run the Jewel, by RTJ. I hit play and just five seconds later I had this stupid grin on my face; I knew I spent my money wisely. There was the bass I was looking for, the detailed sound I came to be used to with my home setup and the soundstage I was looking for with good cans. I could finally push the sound to the level I wanted to with this small, smooth and precise knob (I can't go over half power without bleeding from my ears). 
 
I'll make a direct comparaison in a near future, but, from memory, I'd say that this small dongle puts my Matrix Cube to shame as an amp DAC combo; the Matrix cube sounds rather shy as an amp and doesn't have a lot of power even if it is plugged in the wall and had a way bigger footprint. It is hard for me to compare both purely as a DAC because I can't use the Fulla with the same amp; the DAC section of the Fulla seems to be really good tough, the sound is very detailed and instrument separation is great. 
 
The amp section does its job very well IMHO, it drives the DT-770 with authority at any volume level, it gives the bass good impact, pushes the mids a bit (which is great with these cans) and overall it brightens up the sound a bit (which is not always a bad thing, but when there's a lot of treble on a track, it becomes annoying). The sound with the DT-770+Fulla is kind of "in your face" when compared to my HD-650+M-Stage, it's a nice change for me and fares well with most of the music I listen to (most classical music sounds way better on my home setup tough).
 
So if you are looking for a solid upgrade from your PC sound card without having to cough up 250$+: this is it. If you have a good pair of headphones and never spent money on an amp, I can almost guarantee that this amp will put a stupid grin on your face too. 
 
When I came here about 5 years ago and ended up buying my first set of hi-fi cans (HD-650) I ended up buying a budget amp (PA2V2) for 50$ to drive them before I decided on a decent DAC/Amp (Matrix Cube) and later for a separate amp (Matrix M-Stage). I had to wait for the M-Stage to finally be really happy with the sound my headphones produces. It only took this 80ish$ dongle to make me happy about my most recent purchase. Looking back, I wish the Schiit Fulla was out then, because today buying a Cmoy amp or something alike seems like a really bad decision when you can get the Fulla for that kind of money. 

Update: I finally made a side by side comparaison with my home system (HD-650, Matrix Cube + M-Stage v2) and I'm still extremely happy with my purchase (also after more than 100 hours of listening with the Beyer 770); the difference is hard to tell honestly, the Fulla is certainly powerfull enough for the HD-650, it does sound brighter than the matrix setup and pushes the bass a bit (it has less impact at the same volume tough). The sound seems to be just as detailed if not more. The matrix set-up sounds warmer and less "clinical", it is less fatiguing and overall a bit more pleaseant to listen to for classical music and Jazz, it is also more flexible than the Fulla since it can take different sources and adapt another amp; but sound-wise only, the Fulla offers wayyyy more bang for the buck, I think it even delivers a better performance for pop and rap music. In a blind test I'm not sure I could tell the two appart if the tunes don't have a lot of treble...
 
*This is a first impression review based on only a few hours of listening and only one set of cans was used with this device (DT-770 80ohm), I'll update it when I can try it with my other headphones (Pro 900 and HD-650). Also, I'm no hi-fi connaisseur, I don't have any experience with really high-end DAC or Amps, I'm not so tech-savy either so I don't really understand the hardware behind amps and DACS. This is just a review by someone on a budget who enjoys music a lot. English isn't my first language and this is my first review here, I'm open to constructive criticism.*

I'll be honest, after reading a few chapters from Schiit Happened and the hilariously honest, bulls***-free product descriptions and FAQs on their website, I just had to buy something from them. And what does a consumer buy when he wants to buy stuff for the sake of buying? Simple, the cheapest product on the catalog, of course (which produces sound on its own).
 
Evaluation equipment and quick preface:
Shure SE535, Philips SHP9500, a Nexus 5 smartphone and a desktop computer (VIA VT2020@Gigabyte Z77-D3H, but let's face it, most of them sound the same).
The evaluation and ranking of the unit is with regard to its price and advertised function.
 
Sound:
As far as I'm concerned, this little thing is aimed at replacing the crappy little headphones-out of your computer, laptop or stationary smartphone (*). In that regard, the Fulla is a great success. Firstly, the sound is much cleaner, fuller and more extended. If you're a critical listener (i.e., don't own Beats or Skullcandy), you will hear more detail in your music and some records might unveil a bit of ambient detail (I call it musicality, but whatever) - listen to Daft Punk's Random Access Memories and Symphony X's Underworld, and decide for yourself. Secondly, you might argue that some smartphones have excellent sound, but I've yet to witness any coming anywhere near a standalone DAC (iPhones included), let alone being able to properly drive anything power-hungrier than IEMs, which brings me to the next point.
The Fulla has plenty of power, which I feel is great for driving common full headphones (anything under 150 ohm), both in terms of sound quality and output volume. For IEMs however, it has too much power: The more sensitive ones have a pretty noticeable hiss which is audible in music that's considered quiet, and if you crank the volume up, an odd beep begins to be audible as well.
 
From an audiophile point of view, and I'm just mentioning it here for completeness because I don't believe the Fulla is aimed at audiophiles, I find the unit lacks a bit on both ends of the spectrum. That is, it does not produce a low enough bass, nor the highs are open enough in my opinion. Additionally, I feel both ends, bass in particular, lacks detail and smoothness. That's not to say the overall experience is bad, it's just that, say, the HiFimeDIY Sabre DAC ($42) produces more of the bass I described (and slightly less detail and highs)(**). A matter of tastes and compromises, all in all.
 
(*) Office/home listening.
(**) I coupled the Fulla with a Fiio E12A for that conclusion.
 
Package and externals:
I like it. Cleverest use of cardboard I've yet seen, with the only drawback being that it might leave a mess once you take it out. Comes with a short USB cable and a questionable carrying bag. The reason I call it questionable is because the Fulla has jagged edges and I'm pretty sure that if you use that bag often, it'll be shredded to bits sooner than later.
Aesthetically, the Fulla looks great, being this tiny silver-gray thing with folded metal and a volume knob. The materials look and feel good, although, as I mentioned, the edges are jagged to a point of possible injury and the volume knob wobbles - not that it's loose, it's just that the board underneath appears to be not 100% stationary.
 
Bottom line:
This thing is aimed to improve a default setup you get with a computer/laptop, and it succeeds with flying remarks in terms of sound quality and function. If you move around a lot and not fussy about high-end headphones, then the Fulla is a perfect companion. Particularly for full headphones (all sorts of mid-range AKGs, Shures, Sennheisers), it's an easy recommendation. $80 well spent.
For pricier headphones, it can leave a craving for more, particularly if you already own a fancy DAC or amplifier at home and just buying this for portability.
Finally, for earphones and IEMs, I'd advice more caution in regard to how sensitive your phones are, and how sensitive you are to hiss. Shure earphones and old fashioned Jazz, for instance, might be a no-no.
 
On an off-subject note, I've read reviews saying the Fulla is a good first step in the foray into the audiophile world. I won't rule it out, nor I'm going to argue with anyone, just keep in mind this is an all-in-one purpose-guided product. It will not suit everything you throw it, nor is it upgradeable.

Why are there no reviews for this?
 
The Schiit Fulla was released in December of 2014. It is a made in the USA integrated DAC and headphone amplifier. Though Schiit would always say buy your DAC and amp separately to save upgrade money later, in this part of the market convenience is king - joining the components into a single box is pretty much mandatory for the sake of simplicity. And this product could not be simpler:
 

1. Plug one end of the provided USB cable into the Fulla, the other end into your computer. The computer provides both the power and music source.
2. Plug the 1/8 inch phono connector from your headphone into the output on the opposite end of the Fulla. This is the only product from Schiit with the smaller headphone connection, but for the market this too makes sense.

 
There is no line output. There is no gain switch. There are no drivers to download. That is it uses the USB Audio Class 1 standard, so you just plug and play audio up to 24-bits and 96 kHz. Other than selecting the device for default audio playback, there is no software volume control or anything else you must do through the computer. The Fulla has a real physical, true analog volume knob. Just play your music, adjust the volume, and you're done. Very simple!
 
How does it sound?
 
Well, this is why I wish there were more reviews. There's a great mantra from Jason Stoddard, which I will repeat before I begin:
 

This is only my opinion, I am biased like everyone else, and I have not heard everything on the planet.

Click to expand...

 
I should also state that this little device is what truly got me back into the headphone hobby. I have a little love affair with it, thus my perspective may be a little jaded. I have owned a Sennheiser HD650 since it was first released in 2003. Though I knew it was a good headphone, I was never happy with the sound. Listening to the HD650 plugged into the Fulla in December of 2014 was what convinced me that things had changed a little in headphone industry in the 10 years between. More specifically, I liked the sound I heard through this little $79 combined amplifier and DAC more than through my dedicated $700 HeadRoom Home and that connected to any of a number of transports of MRSP values between $1000 and $2000, I had collected through the years. In isolation, I had mistakenly thought an amp was an amp was an amp, and my transport was at fault. I currently own 6 different USB DAC/AMP and sold another 2. I have also since sold or still own 6 different dedicated desktop amplifiers, with 2 more on order that I have heard at headphone meets. I promise not to use the word little again after this next sentence - I do think I have a little to say about the Fulla.
 
I would describe the sound as a warm, gratifying, and engaging. For comparison, the Peachtree Audio DAC iTx is a DAC I have owned. It is not hard or unforgiving, but much cooler sounding. I wanted to like the Peachtree, but I did not find its sound as lively and inviting as the Fulla. When the Fulla is paired well, it is a satisfying sound. If you have an AKG Q701 or AKG Kxxx headphone, I highly recommend you give this pairing a trial. I did not personally care for the Q701 headphone, but when a friend pointed it out to me, how good the Fulla sounded on his K702, I was tempted to keep my headphone. I sold it still, and recently bought the more balanced K7XX. I find the pairing to be very nice.
 
How does it scale?
 
It depends. Some headphones, such as the HD600/HD650/HD800 not only scale, but only do well IMHO at full scale. Some people may disagree, but that is how I hear it. Not just in terms of defeating the well-known veil on the HD650, but also in terms of taming treble harshness. To my ears, if the amplifier is not smooth, I find it grating through my HD650, as I had for 10 years on my HeadRoom Home. Though the Fulla sounded better than what I was using for 10 years, it still does not sound good, as I hear music today on my HD650. Examples of headphone amplifiers I have found more recently not to be harsh with the HD650 are the JDS Labs The Element and the Meier Audio Corda Rock.
 
In contrast, some songs played on the Fulla through the HiFiMan HE-1000 were quite good. In fact, it amazes me that something at such low cost can sound so good. I'm having trouble continuing my review because I am listening to this pairing at the moment (Tori Amos - Me and a Gun). With some songs, it can be quite a distraction in a very good way. It certainly brings to mind the common saying that sound quality is not proportional to cost.
 
So what does more money buy you, and what does the Fulla lack? Well, using the Fulla for an extended time with the HE1K would probably not work for me. Putting back on my reviewer hat, there are a couple of points from the sound glossary that I personally find to be vitally important to my personal listening pleasure:
 

1. Grainy - there is certainly a non-fluid nature to the Fulla sound. How much grain is relative to technology, such as this is certainly more fluid than the older AudioQuest DragonFly 1.2. However the Fulla is not as fluid as the (4 times the cost) Apogee Groove.
2. Harsh - I may not be using the terms correctly, but peaks in frequency response between 2 and 6 kHz seems to be the issue I am having with the HD650, driven more likely by the high impedance and wildly changing impedance at different frequencies. To a lesser extent, I feel the highs have more presence than I would prefer on the HE1K. Neither of these were issues for me with the AKG.
3. Naturalness - this where I feel Schiit products excel. There is no upsampling, DSP, etc. When listening to something that was recorded in a natural sense, their products play it back with all the realism of the recording in tact.
4. Resolution - it depends. There are other AMP/DAC boxes that allow my ears to focus on foreground and background information at the same time. With some music on the Fulla, the foreground sound does not allow my ears to hear the background sound. If however the only sound is the background sound, I can hear it quite easily.
5. Sub-bass - it is good on the three headphones I have listed. On a headphone which already has a lot of bass, the Denon AH-D2000, I would simply not use the Fulla. I found the bass to be too boomy with that pairing, with likely more fault on the headphones than the amplifier.

 
TL;DR
 
This is really good Schiit. More money will likely buy you an AMP/DAC capable of handling the peculiarities of high-end headphones. But as I see it, this thing is marketed right where it should be. The headphones people are likely to try will likely work quite well with this AMP/DAC. And if you have not heard it, definitely give this a trial with AKG headphones.