The new Fiio QX13 is a portable DAC with impressive specs on paper—and a surprisingly appealing price tag!
It’s always useful to have a portable DAC at hand—especially one that delivers solid sound quality. And if the price is right, even better. That’s essentially the idea behind the new Fiio QX13. It comes in two finishes: a tough carbon fiber body or a sleek, shiny titanium version.
At its core is the ESS Sabre Pro ES9027PRO DAC chip, which supports fully differential audio. In this case, it uses eight audio channels in parallel. Power is supplied via dual ES9312 voltage regulators. The QX13 handles audio formats up to 32-bit / 768 kHz PCM and DSD512. Still have a collection of MQA files lying around? No problem—the QX13 supports those too.
Desktop Mode
Fiio promises excellent channel separation thanks to four INA1620 ICs, while two OPA1692 op-amps are said to provide excellent dynamic range under a variety of loads.
A handy extra is the Desktop Mode, which allows the QX13 to draw extra power from a USB port—great for desktop use or laptops with a full battery. This increases output power, which can be especially helpful when driving more demanding headphones.
And as promised, the price remains reasonable: the Fiio QX13 is available now for €239.