[catom]

Hi!

Does anyone have experience with these two portable dac/amps in USB mode?

I like the idea of Bluetooth and wireless and all, but I do suspect I'll want to connect via USB at the office.

The two devices seem almost identical (perhaps except the amp power vs battery life trade-off) except the FiiO BTR5 has a dedicated chip for USB DAC. ... Does that matter?

I find myself caught between the two. Not sure which is better or better for me.

Thanks!

 

[chickentender]

I find myself caught between the two. Not sure which is better or better for me.

Which did you go with?
I've been running both but have finally decided to send back (dissenting opinion) the BTR5. SQ differences are negligible to me and overall I prefer the slightly rounder presentation of the UP4, though it's minor. More than that I just prefer the operation of the UP4 and I always seem to get much better range/fewer dropouts when running it in BT mode compared to the FiiO. The UP4 is also lighter and i sticky velcro my DACs to the top of my notebook machine when using them that way and the UP4 is just easier to both adjust volume and stay put better due to being lighter.

 

[catom]

I went with the FiiO and I love it. I can't compare it, but am happy enough. The separate usb chip, EQ, and amp was what drew me to it. Though the EQ doesn't even matter because it doesn't work on USB or LDAC. It wouldn't have changed my mind, but it's a shame that's not more obvious.

The battery life has been ok for my needs. That's the only thing I'd probably change about it and that's from a paper specs perspective. Again, it's been long enough for me so far. How it wears over time is anyone's guess.

Quality is great for the price in my opinion. Especially considering what I spent on a Dragonfly years ago.

 

[chickentender]

Cool. Yeah that's probably the right choice if you're using as USB DAC on mobile device; that's the one thing the UP4 can't do (to my knowledge, at least no my android device). Doesn't bother me though as I never use them in that way on a mobile, only on PC. I'm preferring the UP4 by a large margin but it's mostly usability based, e.g. button control etc.. (Just got my FiiO boxed for return tomorrow, so considering they're always sold out at least someone else out there will be happy with an Amazon warehouse deal coming down the pipe. )

 

[Hamlap]

I'm torn between these two too. I won't be needing it to be able to do USB DAC. I have my E17 for that.

Would just use it on the go with my phone (no USB out, sadly). Don't really know which one to get, the UP4 or BTR5. Seems to be mostly personal preference that sets these two apart...

 

[CTR640]

Me too am looking for a bluetooth receiver to use my Amiron Home and DT770. BTR5 is on the list too aside the UP4 and ES100. And yeah, the BTR3 too.

 

[catom]

I do think it's mostly personal preference given the chips and most features are the same. The biggest difference will be more amp power or more battery life. After that, interface and looks. I don't think many people care about the software features, but some might.

On the interface and design side there's another difference that may not be talked about much. The UP4 has a wheel while the BTR5 has two buttons for the volume. I'm not sure if it's easy to accidentally crank the volume on the UP4 in your pocket or not. Again, I haven't compared the two, I just got the BTR5. On the flip side, adjusting the volume can take a while pressing the button over and over on the BTR5. I'm fairly certain you can't just hold it (though I can double check later on if anyone is curious).

I had my 400i's plugged in which needed much more power than my Meze 99 Noirs. I switched back to the 99 Noirs and wow, my ears were ringing for a bit as I forgot to turn down the volume and I tried to do it with the headphones on...I realized I couldn't quickly bring the volume down. Of course, if a wheel turned by accident in my pocket it'd also be equally as bad.

So long story short, I think volume control may be a considerable personal preference. Not the end of the world though.

 

[chickentender]

I preferred the UP4 (already mentioned) by a big margin - it's just easier to use. The single LED at the front is easier to figure out than it might seem and it's just simpler to get between the things I really need with double-taps or long pushes of either of the buttons. If you have it in a very tight pocket you might accidentally turn the volume dial, but otherwise it's fine. The wheel is has "stops" as it were, so it doesn't just turn freely, but with tiny graduated increcrement - it feels really nice. It's a double-tap of that wheel to track-forward, and triple to go back, while single-tap is pause/play. The top button moves between gain settings with double-tap, and filter settings with long-press.

Also, one thing I didn't realize is that there is a voice in your earphones that tells you what the device is doing, e.g. if your phones are in your ear and you turn it on it's not different beeps or what not, but a voice that says thing like "powering on", "pairing", "your device is connected", etc.

The BTR5 was just too fiddly for normal stuff for my tastes - certainly not bad, but it was enough to irritate me frequently. Also, no, you can't just press-hold the Vol Up/Down on the BTR5 to change Vol quicker; instead that will track forward or backward - you have to keep pressing the button up or down repeatedly til you get where you want to be.

Other than all that, it was also that the UP4 was $20 then $30, and now $50 cheaper. Plus it's smaller and lighter. The clip isn't as good, but meh. It works.

 

[catom]

Also, no, you can't just press-hold the Vol Up/Down on the BTR5 to change Vol quicker

That's what I recalled but couldn't for certain say. It is definitely a gripe but not major. The lower price point of the UP4 is nice too. Just not enough that I was going to return althe BTR5 for it.

 

[chickentender]

That's what I recalled but couldn't for certain say. It is definitely a gripe but not major. The lower price point of the UP4 is nice too. Just not enough that I was going to return althe BTR5 for it.

Yeah - I scooped up the UP4 honestly just to see, so I had both for a while. Amazon's easy that way. If you're using primarily as a DAC (the FiiO) it's nice to have the signal info there on the screen, e.g. if it's actually receiving 24/96 or whatnot. I think that's about the only thing I miss though. All in all, they're both good devices for certain.

 

[thesheik137]

Just got the UP4 myself, and I have to say the volume wheel is great and its something that differentiates it from the BTR5. Everything else works and sounds pretty great so far too. Just wish they had a case to protect the front glass.

 

[CTR640]

How are the battery life?

 

[chickentender]

UP4 is supposed to be 10hrs balanced, 15hrs single-ended. I honestly don't know how accurate that is but seems reasonable - I usually use it for only an hour or two with BT and go back to using it as a DAC when I can, so then it's charging while doing that.

 

[carpler]

Cool. Yeah that's probably the right choice if you're using as USB DAC on mobile device; that's the one thing the UP4 can't do (to my knowledge, at least no my android device). Doesn't bother me though as I never use them in that way on a mobile, only on PC. I'm preferring the UP4 by a large margin but it's mostly usability based, e.g. button control etc.. (Just got my FiiO boxed for return tomorrow, so considering they're always sold out at least someone else out there will be happy with an Amazon warehouse deal coming down the pipe. )

This point for me is important. Someone can confirm that UP4 doesn't work as USB DAC on Android phone?

I add another question.
Neither model supports MQA mode: but is it a feature that can be added via firmware update or is a hardware requirement missing?

 

[kerryland]

Someone can confirm that UP4 doesn't work as USB DAC on Android phone?

The UP4 does work as a USB DAC on an Android phone if you use an OTG cable.