| ★★★★★ | I am ZeosPantera and I approve this message.. | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | Well it is hard to believe but FiiO have cracked the code. A portable Bluetooth Dac Amp with LDAC that sounds better then anything else in their line-up and it is under $200? I mean I have a hard time understanding where all the power comes from. Pushing T50rp and HD600 through the balanced out without breaking a sweat. It feels great in the hand it has more then enough battery for a day out and charges fast.
Bravo Fiio. Bravo | | | | ★★★★★ | This is a, "magical music maker." | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | Short Answer: If you are a music lover that wants to be able to use their favorite cans anywhere, you need to buy this. I call this device my, “magical music maker.”
Long Answer: People who give feedback on audio/video products rarely tell you what products they have spent hours listening to. That is important, because I want to know where the reviewer is coming from. I have owned Kevin Gilmore’s Dynahi DIY headphone amplifier, and currently own the Benchmark preamp with the built-in DAC and headphone amplifier, the Wyred 4 Sound preamp with built-in headphone and DAC, the Emotiva pre-amp with headphone amplifier/DAC; and I drive my HiFiman HE-6 using speaker taps out of the Emotiva 50 W per channel speaker amplifier. With regard to headphones, I own the Sennheiser 580, HiFiman HE-6, HiFiman HE-5, Mass Drops HiFiman 4xx, Beyerdynamic T 90 Tesla, Ikko OH10, Mass Drops Noble x, and Ultimate Ears TripleFi.
The one caveat with this review is that I have not used the BTR 5 with a PC or phone using a dedicated hardwired connecting cable. I’ve only used this device with a Bluetooth 5.0 connection. I am blown away by this device. My Head-Fi buddy said to me the other day, “okay, I get it, it can drive power-hungry headphones really well, but how do they sound?” Every headphone I use with this device “sings.” I am not going to talk about soundstage, dynamics, articulation, etc. all I will say, is that if I compare the BTR 5 to my other standalone, desktop amplifier/DAC equipment it holds its own really, really well. That is all you really need to know. If the recording is of poor quality, I use the 10 band equalizer that comes with the Fiio phone app. This software application is a little clunky. For example, every time I try to connect this piece of software to the phone it says it is having trouble “please press the power button briefly on the BTR 5.” Here is a tip. After completing this screen twice I no longer have to hit the power button on the BTR 5 to connect this software application to the BTR 5. Merely choosing the cancel option from the connection screen is all that is necessary. Using the 10 band equalizer lowers the volume on the output, so you’ll need to raise the volume to compensate. The benefit of the equalizer cannot be overstated. It allows me to selectively scale the music to optimally fit the cans I’m using. To give you a sense of what power comes out of the small device, when I am driving, using a single ended output from the BTR 5 to my HiFi Man HE-5, I only use half the power of the BTR 5 (volume 30 of up to a possible 60). The music from my cans sounds like I have them connected to one of my desktop amplifier/DAC’s. I am simply amazed how well Fiio has been able to harness the technology, and get such power out of such a small device. In single ended mode using the 3.5 mm connector I think you get about 84 mV. Using the 2.5 mm connector in balanced mode you get 240 mV output. That is why I am primarily using the BTR 5 using the balanced outputs. The only 2 weaknesses I see with this device concerns it’s 9 hour battery life once fully charged, and the Bluetooth connection range. For example, if in my house I move more than one room away from my iPhone, the connection is lost. For $109 in balanced mode, you get 2 Sabre DAC chips, two headphone amplifiers, Bluetooth 5.0, USB C connection, it can be driven as a dedicated DAC/amp hardwired to a PC/phone, and the phone companion software application allows you several rather sophisticated audio controls. I think the BTR 5 is deserving of audio awards. | | | | ★★★★★ | Likely Replacing Most of My Devices | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | This is Very Very Very good.
- Build quality A+
- Design A
- Portability A
- Sound Quality A+
- Power A
This is the BTR1, BTR3, ES100 and Dragonfly Red all rolled into one. | | | | ★★★★★ | Amazing new portable DAC as usually by FIIO | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | Amazing sound with new BTR5 compare to BTR1
Battery life - allows you forget about charging during a day
No more issues with reconnecting after you got out of range.
Solid premium feel with glass and aluminum materials.
Connected to HP Spectre and Apple pro with no issues, however pixel 3 cannot connect.. need to research a bit (shall update if solved)
Update 1: basically need to download the FIIO Music app for Android and you'll get all configuration through app on the phone.
Overall 5+ satisfaction on product and purchase for the price | | | | ★★★★★ | Best in class Bluetooth DAC/AMP at a great price | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | I've been looking for an upgrade to my DragonFly Black for a few months now but I just couldn't pull the trigger on the Dragonfly Red, Cobalt, Oppo HA2-SE or other more expensive DACs because they all seemed to be overpriced and lacking something.
Seriously considered the ES100 but it's ugly design and micro USB charging port caused me to second guess my decision and didn't order it.
Queue in Fiio announcing a new flagship Bluetooth amp/DAC and it immediately grabbed my attention: USB-C, sleek design, top of the line DACs, balanced output and a decent price? Count me in.
A few weeks later and now that I've used my unit for several hours all I can say is WOW. Audio quality is just excellent even though it's "only" Bluetooth, I don't hear compression artifacts or background noise/hiss like I have with other Bluetooth amps.
If I had to nitpick on this unit there's only two things I don't particularly like: battery life (9 horus is enough but it could definitely be better) and the audio controls when used in USB mode since the host device loses volume control and you have to adjust the volume from the BTR5 itself by using the slow, single-increment volume buttons.
Overall I think this is a great device well worth the asking price, especially now that most smartphones are removing the headphone jack and DAPs are slow, clunky and expensive. | | | | ★★★★★ | This Is the Only Bluetooth Dac You Should Need | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | | THIS IS IT. I have the FiiO btr3. I said to myself, can anything really sound better? Genuinely, LDAC is LDAC so what else can be done. After hearing the btr5, a TON can be done. The instrument separation, clarity, smoothness, and fidelity is stellar on this device. There is a ton more DEPTH to the sound and I cannot believe how smooth this thing sounds. The processing pulls out so much detail. If you're on the fence to buy this, do it. FiiO, you did it. | | | | ★★★★★ | NO F*#’g way this is Bluetooth | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | | Ok, it is really Bluetooth but OMG. I own a Radsone ES100, bought it when it was the new kid on the block and it is a great piece of kit. Amazing sound, unparalleled software, so-so materials and construction. But this FiiO is like the candle you burn from both ends, you know, twice the light but half the time. This thing will drive ANY IEM’s you have to ear bleeding levels and when you look you’re at 45, OUT OF 100 on the volume scale. And while I am an IEM guy I do own a pair of HiFiMan HE-400i planars and I rarely see anything above 55 on the volume with it on Hi Gain. And granted they are only 35 ohm I have it on good authority that they will drive the big boys with out breaking a sweat. The only gripe I have is the battery life. I only run 2.5mm balanced so the battery usually taps out after about 5-6 hours. Not bad, but not the ES100’s 10 hours. But the power, man this sucker punches way above it’s weight. I use it mainly with my Samsung Galaxy phone and strictly LDAP. Everything else is disabled in the software/app that FiiO provides. And that is my second gripe. The ES100 rules on the app side. If FiiO put some time and money into providing similar functionality into their red headed stepchild app they could ask twice the price and I’d still think it was a bargain. But all the gripes aside it is definitely a step up from the ES100. Some told me if you have the Radsone that you’re good to go, no need to buy the FiiO. Fiddlesticks, BahHumbug and all those other quaking aphorisms. Buy it. It will make you smile. | | | | ★★★★★ | A truly excellent option for the pragmatic audiophile! | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | In general, I've been a fan of FiiO audio gear ever since I first got into higher end headphones, and prior to getting the BTR5, I had been daily swapping between a FiiO BTR3, and a much cheaper "Konecta Soundwhiz" bluetooth receiver. I am not a fan of being tethered to my desk, so I would just kinda use one of them until it died, and then I'd swap it out for the other. I was using these to drive my pair of Sennheiser/Massdrop HD 58X most of the time, and occasionally my Monoprice M1060's, and while there was a subtle improvement in terms of clarity on the BTR3 compared to the Konecta, the difference was very slight, and it ended up not really being a meaningful improvement. On top of that, the cheaper Konecta receiver also clearly was able to output at a higher max volume, which furthered my very lukewarm general opinion of the BTR3. It's a fine product, but battery life was pretty dismal on big cans, and in general, I have found that there are cheaper products out there that perform nearly identically.
So when I saw Z Reviews' video on the BTR5, I was immediately interested. FiiO really seemed to understand all of the small things about the BTR3 that were holding it back from being truly excellent. And now, after over a month of use, I can say without any reservations that the BTR5 is the best execution of this type of product I have ever used, by a wide margin as well. The BTR5 has a very noticeable larger battery, giving me what feels like nearly double the battery life of the BTR3, and all the while, it is doing it while being able to output at significantly higher levels of power and clarity. I also have an xDuoo XP-2 BT receiver/dac/amp, which is a significantly larger device than any of the FiiO's, and yet the BTR5 in my opinion sounds cleaner and also somehow can push up to virtually the same high output levels as the xDuoo, all without sounding muddy or underpowered.
Seriously, if you're looking at other options that are bigger and heavier than you think you would actually like, don't sleep on the BTR5, the hype is real, this thing sounds so good, and has so much power, I find myself using none of my other BT receivers anymore. The balance of size, features, and performance in this thing is about as ideal as I could imagine it ever being. Do I still find myself wishing it had more battery life? Sure, but that's an unavoidable aspect of something like a BT receiver. I use this thing literally all day long sometimes, and when it is getting low, I can just plug it in to any USB-C charger, whether that's a phone charger plugged into a wall socket, or a battery bank, and it seamlessly will continue to crank out the audio without any downtime whatsoever. Thankfully, as with the BTR3's, the BTR5 doesn't have to reboot itself or anything when you plug it into power, so you really can use it for any arbitrary stretch of hours or days, as long as you're able to plug it into power for something like 30-60 mins, 2-3 times per day.
All of this is great, but to me, the most impressive thing about the BTR5 really is the massive output power and truly excellent and clear audio you get out of it. As I mentioned above, with the BTR3, I typically wasn't using it with my M1060's, as it just kinda felt underpowered and not ideal.
This is not the case with the BTR5, for multiple hours each day I have been driving my M1060's with this little BT receiver, and it really is shockingly close to the wired experience in terms of the audio. My desktop setup is a DAART Canary ESS9018K2M XMOS DSD DAC fed via S/PDIF, line out feeding a Syba Sonic SD-DAC63106, pre amp out of that ultimately feeding a Micca Bluetooth transmitter, which is what my BTR5 connects to.
All that being said, let me just say, being able to adjust the audio levels of my M1060's via the analog knobs on my Syba amp without being tethered to my desk is just one of those things you'll probably only find satisfying if you're really really into your audio gear, but for me, as a pragmatic and obsessive audio indulger, it's one of those experiences that never truly felt complete until I got the BTR5 as the final link in my audio chain.
TLDR:
I love this thing, and will instantly buy another one if I ever lose it, highly recommended! | | | | ★★★★★ | This little device will open up a whole new world of range of music you already love. | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | I am absolutely blown away by this little device. First off this device is deceivingly small, about the size of your finger to be exact. That does not mean that this little guy does not pack a punch. At first the product is a bit difficult to understand as the manual is really not that helpful, especially if this is your first portable DAC. That said I highly recommend downloading the app along side it as it opens up a variety setting and tools and you don't need to use the thumb nail size screen. If you decide to plug this in to a PC, do update the firmware before you mess with the settings on the device as it can freeze your device and think you bricked it, but it's a bug in the older firmware.
So I am far from audiophile here. I like my music to sound good but lossy music usually doesn't bother me as long it isn't compressed to hell. This little device while right off the bat may not seem like it does a whole lot, there will be a point where your listening and you hear parts of instruments you never heard before in a song you know and a overall wider range of sound really giving you a new appreciation of music you already love.
This device really shines when you are playing your own ripped music or streaming from a service Tidal where you get unfiltered raw lossless sound. The more you just fiddle with the device and the app itself and just mess around with setting you really get a full appreciation of what this device can really do that you just will not get out of just some basic EQ settings on a basic music player.
I don't have a ton of space and specifically in my room is where I listen to most of my music. I have a decent sound bar hooked up to my TV, and as we all know TV sound is pretty terrible, and I don't have the money or space to set up a full on sound system. That all said, it has a AUX jack, and when I hook up this DAC to it via a AUX cable and connect the DAC to my sound bar and connect this device through Bluetooth to my phone it really opens up this rather dumb sound bar that I have. Now is it nearly as good as listening to a good pair of headphone. No, not at all, but if I want to jam out and not have to blast my music this opens up a far more dynamic range to this rather decent sound bar. Also with the low pass filter, I can watch videos on my phone and there not be much if any delay in audio and video from what I can tell.
There is one weird very specific quirk that I honestly do not understand how or why this is happening but for some reason when I am on Youtube on my Roku TV and have my phone connected via casting feature in Youtube from my phone and my TV and when my DAC is connected via bluetooth to my phone the play/pause button will pause Youtube videos on my Roku TV. I do not know how or even why this is happening, but that said, I just found it very strange and a bit funny.
All that said, this device is absolutely wonderful. I never though a device little bigger than a thumb drive would pack such a punch and for a rather reasonable price as well. The more I listen to the more I am impressed in just how full and more dynamic everything is. I feel like I opened up a whole new world here. I don't have to blast my music to feel I am getting everything out of my music, and in a sense saving my hearing from whatever damage I have already done listening to music to loud as a teen. It does take some time to get used to at least with the app itself, as there is a lot there, but if you mess around and fiddle with thing you get a better understand of what may or may not sound better IMO. | | | | ★★★★★ | Got it for APTX LL tv watching, AMAZING! Don't waste money on the wireless headphones racket! | | Color: Black | Verified Purchase | I got this unit primarily for a most likely non standard use case.
I have been trying to get a decent wireless headphone option for tv/video/game listening at night when the family is asleep. We live in an apartment and while we have an excellent sound system, and I love my DT770 Pros.. having to move the kids toys and child gate and everything and then plug in and stretch the cord and reverse when I head to bed, well it was annoying.
That set me off into the rabbit hole of the horrible APTX LL wireless tv listening industry. All I can say is holy crap, what a racket.
Eventually it dawned on me that hey, wireless/bt DACs may have APTX LL... See.. what I needed was a bt receiver with APTX LL that could also control volume.
After much searching I came upon these bad boys, I opted for the btr5 because it had more power and I figured beyond the primary use case I would likely find these in a common rotation during code sessions for work and such.
I have to say, first, they worked PERFECTLY for the intended use I had. They are paired with the older boltune by xmit/Rx box in ApTX LL and there is 0 delay. I get crystal clear audio with my DT770 Pros and it sounds effing amazing. They drive them like a champ on both high and low gain no problem all night long.
Volume control is excellent and can reach volumes I could not comfortably listen to at all, which is fine but fair warning.
So if you need to do the wireless tv viewing crap and you have some great cans laying around, get this, a decent bt APTX LL xmit box and for 1/4 to 1/2 the cost you have a wayyyyyy better sounding setup. The BTR5 sounds amazing.
It's easy to forget I am listening to a bt source, and APTX LL no less, not even HD which would sound much deeper and richer naturally, but kill latency.
Can't recommend this enough. It is amazing. | | | | See more reviews |
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