FiiO BTR3-The World' First Bluetooth Headphone Amplifier, SBC/AAC/aptX/aptX LL/aptX HD/LDAC/HWA (LHDC)
Nov 21, 2018 at 3:59 AM Post #706 of 1,870
So I just came across a very interesting video where the reviewer is comparing transmission distances of popular BT receivers inc ESS100, BTR1K and BTR3.

The BTR1K outperforms all of them including the BTR3 by almost 3 times distance indicating that the new BT chip in it is far superior.
I previously heard complaints about the BTR3 having weak BT signal and this video has addded more fuel to my concern.

BTR3 with its LDAC advantage or better BT connectivity with BTR1K is not a choice I want to have to make. I hope we see an updated BTR3K with the same new BT chip and until than I think I’m going to sit back.

 
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Nov 21, 2018 at 4:24 AM Post #707 of 1,870
So I just came across a very interesting video where the reviewer is comparing transmission distances of popular BT receivers inc ESS100, BTR1K and BTR3.

The BTR1K outperforms all of them including the BTR3 by almost 3 times distance indicating that the new BT chip in it is far superior.
I previously heard complaints about the BTR3 having weak BT signal and this video has addded more fuel to my concern.

BTR3 with its LDAC advantage or better BT connectivity with BTR1K is not a choice I want to have to make. I hope we see an updated BTR3K with the same new BT chip and until than I think I’m going to sit back.

How are you going to use your device though? Are you really going to range that far away from your source? Most people I know will have their source (Phone) in their pocket, or within an easy 10m. At that range the BTR3 has been perfect, and thats even through walls. It simply doesn't glitch out. I can get line of sight to about 20m with a pretty solid connection. So personally I think it's dependent on the the actual source you're using (mine is an iPhone SE), and the environment. I use mine all the time, and thoroughly recommend it as a portable device.
 
Nov 21, 2018 at 12:39 PM Post #708 of 1,870
How are you going to use your device though? Are you really going to range that far away from your source? Most people I know will have their source (Phone) in their pocket, or within an easy 10m. At that range the BTR3 has been perfect, and thats even through walls. It simply doesn't glitch out. I can get line of sight to about 20m with a pretty solid connection. So personally I think it's dependent on the the actual source you're using (mine is an iPhone SE), and the environment. I use mine all the time, and thoroughly recommend it as a portable device.


Thanks for sharing your experience which seems to be a positive one.

The guy in the video is testing in open air and the situation in a house can be much more different with doors, solid walls and insulated ceilings etc. Ideally I wanted to be able connect to my media PC and go downstairs to kitchen etc without interference. Not just for when I have phone in pocket with me.
I read another owners comparison with ES100 and his main complaint against BTR3 was the BT reception when going room distance away from the BT transmitter.

Your experience has made me feel a bit more confident in it too. The BTR3 is available at almost same RRP price as BTR1K in UK so i best have a good think.
 
Nov 21, 2018 at 1:22 PM Post #709 of 1,870
Thanks for sharing your experience which seems to be a positive one.

The guy in the video is testing in open air and the situation in a house can be much more different with doors, solid walls and insulated ceilings etc. Ideally I wanted to be able connect to my media PC and go downstairs to kitchen etc without interference. Not just for when I have phone in pocket with me.
I read another owners comparison with ES100 and his main complaint against BTR3 was the BT reception when going room distance away from the BT transmitter.

Your experience has made me feel a bit more confident in it too. The BTR3 is available at almost same RRP price as BTR1K in UK so i best have a good think.
The hard part in trying to evaluate is the different environments, competing signals, different density in obstacles, different source connections and strengths. I guess that is the problem - what works for me may not work for you.
 
Nov 21, 2018 at 1:55 PM Post #710 of 1,870
The hard part in trying to evaluate is the different environments, competing signals, different density in obstacles, different source connections and strengths. I guess that is the problem - what works for me may not work for you.

+1. When I got my BT receiver, I wasn't really concerned with the BT connectivity as long as it worked well in the same room as my phone (ie within 10m). After having used it now for a while, I actually wouldn't complain if it had a crazy long range which would allow me to wander around the house without cutouts. For example, sometimes I hook up my BT receiver to my stereo and it's great to be able to control it with my phone... until I wander out of the room and I get yelled at lol. Anyway, first world problem!
 
Nov 21, 2018 at 10:01 PM Post #711 of 1,870
@FiiO Is there a way to fix the inaccurate battery indicator? Just got them and it goes from 90-70-50-30. Sometimes it goes 30 to 50 back to back and i kept hearing the low battery notification sound. Maybe future firmware update? Or did I get a faulty btr3? I just got them nov 16
Dear friend,

Because of the low precision of the Bluetooth power meter, the battery indicator would show the approximate battery value, which is just for reference. Most Bluetooth products in the market also have similar phenomenon. We will report to the engineers about that and try to improve this.

Best regards
 
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Nov 21, 2018 at 10:07 PM Post #712 of 1,870
Not really sure if I'll be phrasing my question correctly... But I'll give it a shot.

I am currently using a HA-2SE... Love it... But I'd like to make it more portable. I was considering the BTR3 for it's AptX and LDAC receiver capabilities.

Now for the question(s)

Is it possible to use the BTR3 just as a stand alone receiver... bypassing it's internal DAC? If so, how?

I've installed the Fiio app to give it a test drive... I see the BTR3 has the option for usb out... What are the three options, (DoP, D2P, and native) for. Can I use this USB option to export digital audio to my HA-2SE via an OTG cable?



Thanks for your help.
John
Dear friend,

The option for usb out is not used for the BTR3. The USB DAC function for the BTR3 is used for the computer originally, we could not promise whether it could work in your mobile phone. When you are using the Bluetooth output, the internal DAC of your player is bypassed, and the Bluetooth headphones or amplifier work as the DAC instead.

Best regards
 
FiiO Stay updated on FiiO at their sponsor profile on Head-Fi.
 
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Nov 22, 2018 at 1:25 AM Post #713 of 1,870
Hi, the guy in the video wears BT receivers sometimes behind his body, sometimes left of the body, differently for each receiver. Human body is one of the biggest obstacles for receiving BT signal, so I dont take video as very relevant. But yes, BRT1K distance is amazing but not worth loosing LDAC at least for me.

As for the BTR3 sound quality - I use it with Samsung J5 for spoken word with APTX and with Samsung S7 with LDAC for music both with USB Audio Player. I can compare with Fiio Q1 mk2 + S7. Headphones KZ ZS6 or AKG K-701.
BTR3 LDAC is relatively good if you have nothing to compare what is better. :) Problem is probably analog part not the bluetooth or DAC. Comparing to Q1 mk2 - it is much better - but bigger, needs usb cable.
I connected both to my advanced home system and with Q1 sound was more clear and space separation much better. Source was S7, when playing from Windows with Foobar Q1 was even better than from S7.

So for me BTR3 is very good for BT, but if I want to listen to music in best quality outside my home, I stack Q1 to my S7 and connect all cables, load some SACDs and hires music and enjoy.

In the future I plan to buy some successor of Fiio Q5 which will have also LDAC.
 
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Nov 22, 2018 at 10:24 AM Post #714 of 1,870
Hi guys,

I just wanted to share my updated thoughts. Initially I was disappointed with the connectivity issues compared to the ES100 as I mentioned. But after using it daily for a couple of weeks. I have found it to be absolutely fine. Walking around with the product in my pocket i'm experiencing very few issues and i have definitely grown very fond of it! It makes my AKG N5005s sing and it is just so compact ! To be honest this is what I bought it for. Sure it would be nice to think you could walk around the house with the phone in one room and not have any issue, but I think perhaps it is unfair to expect the product to perform this way.

Ultimately anyone who is considering using the product in the way that I am, I would say go ahead and buy it. I don't believe you will be disappointed!

@FiiO I have a question regarding the EQ functionality that will hopefully be launched soon. Will the EQ be applied system wide or just for music being played from the FIIO music app please? Thanks.
 
Nov 22, 2018 at 11:54 AM Post #718 of 1,870
My old ears cannot hear the difference. On the other hand, if I had taken the time and trouble to build a library of high bit / DSD files, I would probably want that feature just to be consistent. I didn't, so I don't. :wink:
 
Nov 22, 2018 at 1:29 PM Post #719 of 1,870
..Ultimately anyone who is considering using the product in the way that I am, I would say go ahead and buy it. I don't believe you will be disappointed!...

Thanks for confirming my concerns.
I’m in no rush so will wait for BTR3K/BTR4 to arrive.
 

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