Joined in 2023 
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63 About this deal
As I’ve told you previously in my Kennerton Wodan review, those are so easy to drive by planar-mafia standards that Q3 was more than enough to drive them to ear-deafening levels even on its regular 3.5mm output. Q3 went with me in a long trip, somewhere at higher altitude surrounded by lots of snow and mulled wine, where Q3 was used daily from 9 P.M. to around midnight for several days in a row. Even without any kind of burn-in, I didn’t observe much of a change, it sounded pretty much the same out of the box as it did seven days later. The bass gain was stupid in the Q1 mk2, not in a matter of being an exaggerated gain, but it feels like the low-shelf starts at 500Hz, because a lot of frequencies are amplified instead of just the bass. With the Q3, I feel it's a little bit more refined but still exaggerated to my taste. If I had to guess, I'd say the low-shelf now begins at 400Hz... It might sound good with certain IEMs and it's definitely good with the 4XX, but it screws up with the FH3's amazing region between ~500Hz down to the mid bass (mid bass is where the low-shelf was supposed to begin IMHO) One of the most important factors you may want to consider when buying a dedicated DAC is what they support. The FiiO Q3 and iFi Hip DAC 2 support DSD and PCM. As for the DSD, both support DSD64/128/256, but the Q3 also supports DSD 512. The Q3 also supports a very high PCM 768kHz/32 bit for PC in which the Hip DAC 2 is 384kHz. We are unsure whether Q3 supports DXD, but this DAC’s amp does not support MQA, which the Hip DAC 2 supports up to 384kHz. FiiO Q3 and iFi Hip DAC 2 Output Using the USB input of the BTR5, I felt that it has a comparable sound quality to the Q3 in this mode, though it is primarily intended to be used wirelessly, rather than wired.
The FiiO Q3 has a close to neutral, transparent and bright treble presentation with good level of airiness and extension. I really enjoyed the treble tuning that is smooth but don’t falls short in any register of this region. Every song, from Chopin’s “Nocturn” to Gogo Penguin’s sharp jazz, sounded successful in terms of treble extension, intensity and sharpness, which brings me to the conclusion that the Q3 performs above its price range when it comes to the treble performance. A convenient modular solution which includes power supply, and can operate from a single 3.6V battery.
UI & Usage
Alongside that, there are two gain modes, two digital filter modes (which, for me, did audibly nothing) and a 6dB bass boost, which turned out to be too much even for the fairly flat/neutral-sounding Campfire Ara IEMs. Maybe if you're one of those people who listen to hip-hop and rap, or possibly very old pop tunes, quite a bit of which is recorded with a surprisingly low amount of bass, this overkill bass boost will suit.
The Q3 is equipped with the latest generation of XMOS USB signal receiver chip and high-performance AKM DAC chip, the AK4462. It is capable of decoding PCM up to 32-Bit/768kHz, and DSD up to DSD512 natively. The output with Q3 connected to a normal smartphone or PC is buttery smooth, has powerful bass, crisp detailing, and lush vocals suiting different genres of music very well.
Scalability that allows incorporation into any headphone or in-vehicle amplifier design, with the flexibility to match the required fidelity, output power, and price point. More outputs, new DAC, better amps, slightly more expensive. Those are the rough sketches. The FiiO Series FiiO K5 Pro Reduction of harmonic, intermodulation, and crossover distortion by up to 40dB, resulting in a realistic and fatigue-free listening experience The Q3 is fully compatible with iOS and Android devices plus windows PC and it can also be used with Sony walkman players with an adapter cable that is sold separately.
A convenient modular solution which includes power supply, and can operate from a single 3.6V battery As for the pairing, the FiiO Q3 and iFi Hip DAC 2 should work well for most people but also depends on your listening device. The DAC 2 is not ideal for sensitive headphones or monitors. Its balanced output is 400Mw@32Ohm; 6.3V@600Ohm, and if you have a headphone that is more on the sensitive side and prefers to listen to the music in a quiet tone, the DAC will be too loud. But, on the other hand, it is better if your can is very demanding. FiiO Q3 and iFi Hip DAC 2 Connectivity It has digital volume control, just like the Q1 mk2, which is a must have for me. In this case, there's a potentiometer but the analog audio signal doesn't pass through it, it's encoded to digital and then the digital value is used to control the output volume. This ensures there's no channel unbalance, which is a common thing when the signal passes through a potentiometer, specially with low volumes FiiO Q3 uses the highly reputed THX AAA Amplifier Technology. Previously used for the replaceable amplification module for the Q5s, FiiO this time they used it at the heart of their Q3. The fully balanced THX amp module has a patented feed-forward error correction topology paired with rigorous OP-Amp components. It helps the Q3 to achieve a powerful output capability. The Q3 also shows low distortion, rich bass, and an overall outstanding music experience. These will be my impressions overall with the Q3’s sound signature when used with all the iems and headphones I threw at the Q3.
If the default sound isn’t to your taste, the Q3 has the BASS switch for more low-end. Sliding this to the on position does enhance the bass frequencies; I did not care for this. You can also boost the gain by pressing the gain button. This will increase the signal, making everything louder and bumping up the dB. I didn’t care for this either—finally, the gain button cycles through preset sharp and slow roll-off filters, like an EQ. Double-tapping the gain button will cycle through those presets, and you can stay on one you like. Like the Q3, and the old Q1, the FiiO gives you full volume controls on the Q11 allowing you to handle that aspect, directly from the device. No +/- button this time, all you have to do is turn the knob and the volume level will rise/lower accordingly, with the additional comfort of a gain switch, directly accessible.
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