FiiO KA15 DAC Dongle Review – Bias And Babes In Toyland
TAPE START
It is nice to finally get our hands on the $89 FiiO KA15 DAC dongle as they are hard to miss when browsing through Amazon and other e-tailers. A new trend has emerged with DAC dongles involving screens to indicate the different settings and also in the case of the KA15 fun graphics. Tapping into nostalgia, the 80’s retro styling appeals to my walkman era generation I suppose. What sets the Fiio KA15 apart for now is the additional settings besides filters, and the additional claimed power output in balanced desktop mode. Does fantasy live up to reality however?
SIDE A FEATURES
Right out of the gate cycling through the 12 menu options first signs of trouble appear for the FiiO KA15. Not all menus were in English, but using the Fiio App it found an update 1.0.2 which corrected the language. There is a toggle setting in the App to fix it to Chinese or English.
One of the new settings available on the FiiO KA15 revolves around toggling between a class H amplifier vs a class A/B. Class H is supposed to be more efficient since it switches between set voltage rails used to drive the amplifier circuit during playback. For example the op amps can be driven with +/-12 or +/- 15V. Exact voltages are unknown that would just be an example, but I am sure the datasheet for the CS43198 would probably list it perhaps 5V and 3.3V.
It should equate to better power management, but there does not seem to be a detectable change, other than class A/B mode seems to pull about 5mA less using the nifty current monitoring function built in. This is opposite of what should be expected. Perhaps the additional workload or electronic parts negates the efficiency savings.
In the first version of firmware when music is paused current consumption drops to 27mA in standby as opposed to operating current at ~138-143mA average. After the firmware update I was seeing 95mA…ummm not sure what they did, but to me it looks like it lost some of the energy savings during idle.
I have to wonder about desktop mode, did FiiO just rename low vs high gain and all other dongles are cheating the limitations of current out of the usb port on phones? It gets scary loud in desktop mode for sensitive IEMs. Phone mode can feel a little strained with the wrong IEMs, 50mW is quite low.
FiiO added a feature to resume volume at a level tolerable to my ears, whereas I had to be careful during switching back and forth with the HiDIZS S8 Pro coming in at full volume at times. When the screen goes to sleep on the Fiio KA15 the volume buttons stop responding. It’s slightly annoying to reactivate the screen by holding the mode button, waiting for the settings screen to timeout, and then I can adjust volume. There has to be a better way, it does offer a setting to keep the screen alive, but I still prefer some way to exit the settings quickly.
Other features included with the FiiO KA15 involves a built in 10 band parametric EQ with presets, a leather case which makes it harder to feel the correct button. I opted to not use it. There is also a microphone enable for built in mics on the headphone cable. Surprisingly FiiO opted to include a SPDIF coaxial output option through the headphone jack, this renders the device as an interface to another DAC. I find it odd to bypass the DAC, but it is there.
FiiO paired the KA15 with a good cable for the USB-C, it is flexible and would tolerate being jammed into a pocket. As I have continued to use the HIDIZS S8 Pro, the stiffer cable included with it tends to cause disconnection issues when jostled or strained in my pocket during walking.
SIDE B SOUND
Tested with PC, LG G8 paired with BGVP DM9 and Sennheiser HD6XX.
Compared to HIDIZS S8 Pro that used the same dual CS43198 DAC, the KA15 tends to favor the upper midbass region while the HIDIZS sounds warmer with more punch and offers more subsonic bass tilt. The Apogee Groove has a similar bass presentation as the Fiio KA15 but has more sustain on the bass decay. Treble between the KA15 and S8 Pro offer more contrast with KA15 sounding slightly more vivid up top while the Apogee Groove offers a smoother resolution to both. Cymbal hits on Pink Panther have shimmer while the S8 Pro blunts it.
Powering higher impedance headphones such as the Drop Sennheiser HD6XX (300 ohm), the KA15 will get loud enough for normal listening volumes, but not enough to properly extract necessary performance in single ended mode.
I attribute most of these differences to the op amp amplifier circuitry as HiDZS tends to have their house sound, and it appears Fiio tends to use the same opamp throughout their lineup as well. The Apogee Groove is only designed to be used with PC’s unless using some type of powered adapter with a phone like an Iphone camera adapter.
TAPE END
While the HiDZS S8 Pro wields the same dual DAC, there are obvious differences excluding feature set. If one prefers a warmer punchy sub bass tilt with less treble vividness, the S8 Pro fits the bill. If one prefers shimmering treble and less bass pull, opt for the FiiO KA15. Just consider the FiiO to be more anemic in mobile mode. With all the options available on the device, it offers great value at $89.
Disclaimer: One of our short timers Rudi hooked us up with FiiO to provide the KA15 for a free analysis, we thank them for the opportunity.
SPECIFICATIONS
You can find that info here.
DISCLAIMER
Get it from FiiO’s Store and lots of other e-tailers.
Our generic standard disclaimer.
