[franz12]

I decided to hear how the Andros sound directly from my iPhone. Not bad at all. And very little hiss. I’m going to try them this way for a while and see if having the Q5 is needed since these aren’t hard to drive IEMs.

IPhone itself is a very good music player itself. I don't see myself carrying around a separate amp to drive IEMs. However, IPhone is not powerful enough to drive my over-ear headphones.

 

[torifile]

IPhone itself is a very good music player itself. I don't see myself carrying around a separate amp to drive IEMs. However, IPhone is not powerful enough to drive my over-ear headphones.

I take back my comments. I decided to try the Q5 using the single ended cable rather than the balanced cable I was using. Hiss was substantially reduced and they sound so much better out of the Q5 than directly from the iPhone. The iPhone is a good music device, sure, but it doesn’t compete here.

 

[superuser1]

IPhone itself is a very good music player itself. I don't see myself carrying around a separate amp to drive IEMs. However, IPhone is not powerful enough to drive my over-ear headphones.

Well if you dont have issues with or perceive any difference in SQ and the hiss is minimal then you have your answer.

It's not just about power.

 

[franz12]

Well if you dont have issues with or perceive any difference in SQ and the hiss is minimal

It's not just about power.

I know. But I use my IEMs when I am moving. With ambient outside noise, it is hard for me to discern subtle difference between them.
If you use it in a very quiet environment, it would be a different story, but I use headphones in that situation.

 

[FiiO]

Hi Fiio,

when will the Q5 be released in Japan?

Dear friend,

May in next month.

Best regards

 

[FiiO]

Gotcha. Even at 96KHz, it is cracking intermittently. So I lowered further a bit to 88.2KHz.

Yes, it does seem picky. First, Q5 recognized it incorrectly as the coxial input, it didn't work at all. I pulled the optical input adapter off (included in Q5) and plugged it again in the opposite direction, and then it started to recognize it as the optical input. Dumbfounded. Anyway, it is now working.

Dear friend,

The issue with the 96kHz files remains same or has been solved now?

Best regards

 

[FiiO]

Can anybody confirm for me that the balanced output on the Fiio Q5 amp section uses the same wiring as Astell & Kern? I am asking for compatibility with after-market cables that don't mention the Q5 explicitly.

Dear friend,

Here is the definition of the balanced output of the Q5:

Best regards

 

[ronkupper]

@FiiO - Is there a way to verify that Q5 is working in AptX HD?

I couldn't find an indicator and really wish there was.

Perhaps you could consider adding a new indicator color for AptX HD in one of the next firmware upgrades?

 

[Lay.]

Hi,

I have been using my FiiO E7 portable DAC/Amp for years. Yesterday I got Q5 and everything (bluetooth, USB etc.) seems to work like it should except when using 3.5mm line-in.

My question: Can FiiO Q5 be used to amplify the sound from a 3.5mm headphone output?

At least my unit does not amplify the sound at all even when the volume is maxed out in Q5. The bass boost and gain are working though.

 

[franz12]

Dear friend,

The issue with the 96kHz files remains same or has been solved now?

Best regards

Hi @FiiO,

No. Still it is crackling like every 40 seconds with the 96kHz.
It's fine with the 88.2kHz.
Do I need RMA?

Thanks,

 

[KopaneDePooj]

Hi,

I have been using my FiiO E7 portable DAC/Amp for years. Yesterday I got Q5 and everything (bluetooth, USB etc.) seems to work like it should except when using 3.5mm line-in.

My question: Can FiiO Q5 be used to amplify the sound from a 3.5mm headphone output?

At least my unit does not amplify the sound at all even when the volume is maxed out in Q5. The bass boost and gain are working though.

Hi and welcome to head-fi
To the 3.5mm line-in of the Q5, it is best to feed signal coming from a line-out source which is stronger in volume and cleaner that the signal coming from a headphone-out.
Otherwise you're double amplifying and the end result is not the best. If not possible to feed line-out signal, try to raise the volume of your headphone-out source to nearly max.

 

[hbmorrison]

Hey @FiiO I purchased a Q5 from Amazon a day days ago. It worked fine yesterday but today the volume knob does not have any effect. The Q5 is stuck on a fixed volume and does not change when I spin the knob from 0-10. Can you advise how I should get this fixed?

 

[superuser1]

Hey @FiiO I purchased a Q5 from Amazon a day days ago. It worked fine yesterday but today the volume knob does not have any effect. The Q5 is stuck on a fixed volume and does not change when I spin the knob from 0-10. Can you advise how I should get this fixed?

You could try resetting the device.

 

[Lay.]

Hi and welcome to head-fi
To the 3.5mm line-in of the Q5, it is best to feed signal coming from a line-out source which is stronger in volume and cleaner that the signal coming from a headphone-out.
Otherwise you're double amplifying and the end result is not the best. If not possible to feed line-out signal, try to raise the volume of your headphone-out source to nearly max.

Hi KopaneDePooj,

Thank you for the welcome and help.

I would normally use the 3.5mm line-in just with my Astro MixAmp TR Pro when gaming on PS4. The MixAmp does not have enough power to drive better headphones without a headphone amp. I know it is not ideal but sounds still way better than using normal headset with just MixAmp.

I just received (after my first post) a balanced 2.5mm custom cable from Custom Cans and with that Q5 amplifies my HD 660 S enough even from 3.5mm line-in. I'm just a little bit surprised that my old E7 works so much better when using 3.5mm headphone-out source and unbalanced cable.

Ps. That new cable is just amazing

 

[hbmorrison]

You could try resetting the device.

Thanks for the tip. That's fixed it (and now I know how to reset).