[sidecross]

An edit to my post above concerning the q5 and btr1k:

The btr1k at 16 ohms has 45 mW while the fiio q5 with am3-a at 16 ohms has an output of 200 mW.

To my ears this is horsepower needed to produce the 'sweetspot' at a higher volume. In my view the fa1 was designed for lower milliwatt power

 

[Sylmar]

Not really, https://www.fiio.com/btr1k_comparison

Thanks for the info!

 

[salla45]

I am using fh5, fa7, fa1, and sony mdr-1am2 with a source of an iphone se and apple music going through btr1k or fiio q5 and running flat eq.

The fa1 really has no advantage while running on the q5, but sounds fine at moderate volume with either the iphone or btr1k.

The the others, fh5, fa7, and mdr-1am2 sound much better on the q5. Their full sound signature can be played at a higher volume while maintaining the 'sweet spot' in an iem's tuning. This is the set up I use for music.

I have the FH5, great iem's. I can often prefer to them to my Beyerdynamic T1's for convenience. I mean, the difference ain't that great to push me to bother with the T1 rig.

 

[archy121]

Is there a big sound difference in BTR3 and BTR1K? Worth upgrading for sound?

It’s more about the additional BT support for LDAC, APTX-LL etc so potentially you could say it has better sound.

 

[Alberto01]

Thank you for documenting the data you provided; it seems like a logical step to program the charging without the use of a trickle charging circuit.

You are welcome.

I would have liked to have the trickle charge circuit to save battery charge/discharge cycles whenever is practical to run the BTR3 connected to a charger. But, knowing that the BTR3 requires just about 0.02 Amperes (at about 5.10 Volts) to run with IEMs, it might not be easy to get just a trickle charge at all times when the BTR3's battery is full. And you don't want more than a trickle charge on a full battery, running the risk of overcharging and getting a non-removable bulged battery. No way!

The BTR3's battery gets recharged at 0.15-0.16 Amperes at about 5.10 Volts, and runs on not much more than 1/10 of that amount of current with IEMs.

 

[Alberto01]

sidecross, I meant to say 0.15-0.16 instead of 0.015-0.016 in my last post. I already edited it with the correct numbers.

 

[sidecross]

sidecross, I meant to say 0.15-0.16 instead of 0.015-0.016 in my last post. I already edited it with the correct numbers.

It is remarkable the resolution that these meters provide.

 

[sidecross]

I have the FH5, great iem's. I can often prefer to them to my Beyerdynamic T1's for convenience. I mean, the difference ain't that great to push me to bother with the T1 rig.

Most of my listening is to audio books, audm audio magazines, and other spoken word media, but when I listen to music the fiio q5 is not that big of a rig for me to use. The difference to my ears is substantial when I compare the diffrence.

 

[mykeldg]

Has anyone tried the Colorfly BT-C1? It has ESS DAC instead of AKM. I find the AKM in general to be a bit unnatural in the mids and bass and narrow sounding compared to my Dragonfly Black.

How about compared to ES100?

I love my BTR3 but I am curious if there are any better solutions out there.

 

[5twnr]

Apologies if the answer is elsewhere in the thread and I haven't found it.

I'm trying to get the BTR3 to connect to my MacBook using AptX HD. I use Bluetooth Explorer to force AptX (over AAC) and the laptop connects to the BTR3 using AptX. Other headphones (B&W PX ) connect using AptX HD. Any ideas?

Would like the answer to this as well!

I'm finding that in usb DAC mode, the onboard Macbook DAC seems to sound better - the soundstage is wider and there is less compression of percussion instruments. Not sure if this is just me? Testing on my DT770 pro.

 

[mykeldg]

Would like the answer to this as well!

I'm finding that in usb DAC mode, the onboard Macbook DAC seems to sound better - the soundstage is wider and there is less compression of percussion instruments. Not sure if this is just me? Testing on my DT770 pro.

Same here, even iphone out seems to sound fuller.

BTR3 sounds like it has more depth but it is less forward in the mids which makes everything sound narrow and less full. But I do notice more details in the BTR3 if your mind has adjusted to its sound signature.

 

[MarkF786]

I tried connecting the BTR3 to my iPhone with a CCK adapter and USB cable and got the message “attached accessory uses too much power”. It’s kinda surprising, considering the device is battery powered.

I guess this only works via Bluetooth with an iPhone?

 

[Janjohnnn]

Same here, even iphone out seems to sound fuller.

BTR3 sounds like it has more depth but it is less forward in the mids which makes everything sound narrow and less full. But I do notice more details in the BTR3 if your mind has adjusted to its sound signature.

That's exactly what I'm feeling with my btr3 rn. It's been a month I've been using the btr3 paired with FH5 and yesterday I just tried using dongle, and do noticed the difference. I actually falling out of love with the btr3 now

The first time i got the btr3 my impression was that it has a bit better details. But now, I also noticed the vocals isn't as forward with the fh5 (that's actually fine) but some of the instruments imaging sometimes gets lost.
Btr3 does make the sound deeper and less full.

Any bluetooth dac that portrays a better soundstage? Not just making it deeper, but also maybe make the imaging better? Do imaging also gets better with some source? Im just a reg consumer and dont know much about audio, sorry xD

 

[5twnr]

After some experimenting, it seems like the audio quality is markedly better when I pair the BTR3 to my android phone, a Oneplus 6. Here it's using the LDAC codec vs what I assume is just Aptx (not even HD!) from my Macbook Pro. What I don't understand is why this sounds even better than wired mode from my Macbook! Is the USB Dac mode not the same as LDAC? Couldn't find any specifics on this.

I would love to hear if it's possible to make my Macbook output Aptx HD to it

 

[jeffri]

That's exactly what I'm feeling with my btr3 rn. It's been a month I've been using the btr3 paired with FH5 and yesterday I just tried using dongle, and do noticed the difference. I actually falling out of love with the btr3 now

The first time i got the btr3 my impression was that it has a bit better details. But now, I also noticed the vocals isn't as forward with the fh5 (that's actually fine) but some of the instruments imaging sometimes gets lost.
Btr3 does make the sound deeper and less full.

Any bluetooth dac that portrays a better soundstage? Not just making it deeper, but also maybe make the imaging better? Do imaging also gets better with some source? Im just a reg consumer and dont know much about audio, sorry xD

The AT-PHA55BT remains my favorite due to the soundstage and imaging, even though technically the BTR3 is better.