The FiiO K17 R2R desktop DAC and headphone amplifier has now officially launched, according to the Chinese manufacturer.
We first reported on the FiiO K17 a few months ago, and the manufacturer has now announced that it is officially available. That also means we finally know the price of this combined R2R desktop DAC and headphone amplifier: $972, through FiiO’s official AliExpress store.
The K17 is a comprehensive desktop DAC built around FiiO’s patented R2R ladder network for the actual D/A conversion, using a 24+5-bit architecture. Internally, the audio signal follows a fully balanced signal path before reaching the Class AB output stage. This delivers a maximum of 4,000 mW into 32 ohms through the balanced headphone output, or 2 x 1,850 mW when using the standard unbalanced connection.
Via USB, the K17 supports PCM resolutions of up to 32-bit/768 kHz, while DSD playback is supported up to DSD256. An XMOS XU136 handles the USB interface. A dedicated DSP enables features including a 31-band parametric equalizer. The DSP itself is a 64-bit M21586Q, running at a clock speed of 360 MHz.
Also worth mentioning is the headphone amplifier section, which uses discrete op-amps, combined with ON Semiconductor MJE243 and MJE253 output transistors.