[calico88]

What is better than M17 as a Transport only ?
And What DAC you recommend that can beat M17 in term of SQ not Power ?

 

[The1Signature]

Here is a dedicated forum where people rank their top DAPs. Have you seen it?

 

[bflat]

since i am going to buy the wm1zm2 soon, i might be better off with the usb-c to usb-c cable.

coax is limited to 192 hz.

remember: you can charge the fiio only when using the right usb-c (host) slot.

You will have the same USB connection option for the new WM1zM2 since it only has USB C. On TA-ZH1ES there are only 2 USB type inputs - USB B which in the back and the WM Port which is on the side. On the later I've tried USB C to micro USB OTG adapters and could not get it to work.

One correction - you can charge your M17 with the the DC port or the USB port. I haven't used USB charging for the past couple months.

 

[bflat]

What is better than M17 as a Transport only ?
And What DAC you recommend that can beat M17 in term of SQ not Power ?

For transport only it depends on how you listen to music:

Streaming apps - I would just use your smartphone with the appropriate app to ensure bit perfect pass through.
Local music files - I would go with a Sony A series Walkman. They are fairly inexpensive and battery lasts a very long time. Also if you have a smartphone with enough storage or supports micro SD Card, then I would just stick with the smartphone.

It also depends on what you connect to your transport. If it's a portable device then the above recommendations would work. If you need a transport for a desktop class DAC, then I would also look at an iPad or Android tablet since the UI experience is much better than a smaller screen. The only thing that can be a major pain for Android is finding a tablet where the sound processing can be bypassed or else you are stuck with 48 kHz sampling rate.

As for your last question, once you get to M17 class of DAP it is far more a matter of your specific gear and personal taste. There is no universal "best" DAP. Even when you factor in SQ, then you have to factor in how you will use a DAP for your own personal cases. I use to think I needed a TOTL DAP when I fly on a plane or a long drive when I'm a passenger. It turns out I would rather catch up on TV or movies instead since it makes the time go by faster. I am much happier in that scenario with my wireless Sony IEMs with ANC. My personal use case for DAP is at home, but moving around to different rooms since I don't have a dedicated music room. In that regard I prefer the M17 since it sounds great on all my headphones and I don't need to be close to a power outlet. I doubt I will ever travel with my M17.

 

[sabloke]

Fiio M17 plus Sony IER-Z1R. This must be one of the best pairs for the office. Shockingly good sound! Streaming Qobuz mostly but the 1TB card inside the beast is waiting to be filled with high resolution files. A task for the weekend

 

[e-dub]

Teardown from Fiio posted on YouTube.

 

[hmscott]

And, in case you missed it, the M17 Assembly video from back in Oct '21

Assembly demonstration of FiiO M17, Portable Desktop-Class Player
​

 

[calico88]

For transport only it depends on how you listen to music:

Streaming apps - I would just use your smartphone with the appropriate app to ensure bit perfect pass through.
Local music files - I would go with a Sony A series Walkman. They are fairly inexpensive and battery lasts a very long time. Also if you have a smartphone with enough storage or supports micro SD Card, then I would just stick with the smartphone.

It also depends on what you connect to your transport. If it's a portable device then the above recommendations would work. If you need a transport for a desktop class DAC, then I would also look at an iPad or Android tablet since the UI experience is much better than a smaller screen. The only thing that can be a major pain for Android is finding a tablet where the sound processing can be bypassed or else you are stuck with 48 kHz sampling rate.

As for your last question, once you get to M17 class of DAP it is far more a matter of your specific gear and personal taste. There is no universal "best" DAP. Even when you factor in SQ, then you have to factor in how you will use a DAP for your own personal cases. I use to think I needed a TOTL DAP when I fly on a plane or a long drive when I'm a passenger. It turns out I would rather catch up on TV or movies instead since it makes the time go by faster. I am much happier in that scenario with my wireless Sony IEMs with ANC. My personal use case for DAP is at home, but moving around to different rooms since I don't have a dedicated music room. In that regard I prefer the M17 since it sounds great on all my headphones and I don't need to be close to a power outlet. I doubt I will ever travel with my M17.

There is no difference if I use M17 and ipad/android or other DAP as Transport only ? As long ad Bit perfect ?

In term SQ.

 

[bflat]

There is no difference if I use M17 and ipad/android or other DAP as Transport only ? As long ad Bit perfect ?

In term SQ.

No difference in SQ from a bit perfect USB stream in my opinion. However, that assumes two things:

1) DAC has an asynchronous USB input. Most DACs do so that allows your DAC to manager jitter.
2) DAC has a galvanically isolated USB input. Not all DACs have this which means the quality of USB power from source has an effect on SQ. However, devices that operate on battery power generally have very clean power.

This is all under the assumption of "digital is digital" but there are some folks who claim they can hear differences in SQ from different USB sources. This has resulted in expensive USB cables and re-clocking devices but that is a whole different discussion and there are many threads on this with no consensus agreement.

 

[calico88]

No difference in SQ from a bit perfect USB stream in my opinion. However, that assumes two things:

1) DAC has an asynchronous USB input. Most DACs do so that allows your DAC to manager jitter.
2) DAC has a galvanically isolated USB input. Not all DACs have this which means the quality of USB power from source has an effect on SQ. However, devices that operate on battery power generally have very clean power.

This is all under the assumption of "digital is digital" but there are some folks who claim they can hear differences in SQ from different USB sources. This has resulted in expensive USB cables and re-clocking devices but that is a whole different discussion and there are many threads on this with no consensus agreement.

Thank you

 

[The1Signature]

This is all under the assumption of "digital is digital" but there are some folks who claim they can hear differences in SQ from different USB sources. This has resulted in expensive USB cables and re-clocking devices but that is a whole different discussion and there are many threads on this with no consensus agreement.

this is so true...

@calico88 my friend, don't dick deeper into those "digital is(n't) digital" topics for now. it will make you just crazy at the end and you will forget what you actually wanted to do... just listen to good music.

 

[merinowool]

.

 

[merinowool]

@calico88 my friend, don't dick deeper

If you say so

 

[viffer]

@FiiO
I’ve just got your UTWS5 and I am surprised to have noticed that the M17 has no support for Aptx Adaptive, or LHDC. These are flagship products that when connected to each other, should play at their maximum quality seamlessly. With that in mind, Will these codecs be supported in a future M17 firmware update?
And if that’s not possible, will the UTWS5 be able to support LDAC or Aptx-HD in a future firmware update?
it will be interesting for FiiO to elaborate as to why the M17 Bluetooth receiver supports SBC/AAC/aptX/aptX Low Latency/aptX HD/aptX Adaptive/LDAC but the transmitter only supports SBC/AAC/aptX/aptX HD/LDAC.

 

[nonamerat]

Thanks for the replies. Maybe my Ifi Power Elite was missing the correct adapter. Lucky me.

Did you ever find a better adapter? My iPower Elite does not fit snug either. The iPower connector is longer than the stock M17 power adapter which means it bottoms out inside the plug and not on the outer housing of the plug. This makes it 'loose' even though it's connecting power just fine. None of the provided adapters were the correct length. I don't think it's a huge deal because it's still connecting just fine internally, it's just annoying that it can move around because the tip is too long.