Has the DAC/amp wheel just been reinvented? // FIIO R7 (full review)

[@gearupaaron]

Hey fam, thanks for your support!... I have a large year-end wrap-up next week, so turn on those notifications! And if you're diggin' the R7, please use this support link... amzn.to/3NtqFnl

[@danieldavila8638]

Hey Aaron! This is so cool many thanks 👍 looking forward for the year wrap up 🙌👏✌️

[@gearupaaron]

It's gonna be special (I hope), lol! Have a super weekend.

[@verdeazul333]

I bought this the week it was first available. There were no reviews then to base my judgment on. I just bought it on a hunch. It has turned out to be the most satisfying gadget I've ever owned. Now the R9 is out and I can't imagine what else is there to improve on? R7 is already perfect. I might buy the R9 for my living room and relegate the R7 to my bedroom.

[@Lead_Foot]

Biggest area to improve on is the USB DAC functionality. The R7 lacks an xmos chip so the audio latency can be as much as multiple seconds of lag. I wanted to get the R7 until I heard it has the same USB audio lag as my Fiio M11 Plus.

[@patrickmccrank8414]

Another annoyance is how this thing wont connect to my phone. This is a deal breaker. The devive doesn't event show up in their own list of devises to connect manually. That just plain sucks. What could have rated an 8 out of 10 is now like a 3 or 4. Is it laziness on the part of fiio or just incompetence. Even the EverSolo A6 connects effortlessly. And casts. Go with the EverSolo. 🤠

[@fun-ghi]

Thanks for the video! Since there are Focal Bathys on your table, as there are on mine, can you perhaps tell me whether the Bathys can be connected to the USB-C port of the FiiO with a USB-C cable?

[@gearupaaron]

IIRC, the USB-C port is input only, so you'd need an additional USB-C to Auux adaptor to use the Bathys with the R7.

[@NoFutureDan]

and what its in comparison to the ifi zen dac?? is it better in presenting the sound?

[@gearupaaron]

Hmm tricky one... Depends on your taste. I love both, and I'd dare say that driving headphones, both sound fantastic, but when it comes to speakers, the Fiio is it.

[@jackjones77777]

GearUP with Aaron Thank you for posting.

[@gearupaaron]

Anytime, sir 🙂

[@crshedlak3158]

I never did see a full answer to the question about using this to deliver sound to a living room big audio system. It seems that I should be able to use the optical out, the coax out, or the analog RCAs out to an amplifier. But that RCA option would bypass the R7/R9’s good DAC. I bought the R9 about a week ago but haven’t tried yet. Very exciting.

[@asan1050]

Hey Aaron! Thank you for posting.

[@gearupaaron]

Thanks 👍 What's your favorite video so far this year?

[@jamestaylor954]

Any gaming benefits? Footsteps on cod haha?

[@jp93309]

Best review of this device I’ve seen to date! That includes John Darko. Can’t justify paying over $700 for something ghetto I rigged up to get bitperfect lossless apple music: iPhone > av hdmi camera adapter > hdmi in through a 20yo pioneer elite avr > playback controlled through my apple watch. But definitely aspirational.

[@gearupaaron]

Wha--... JD is one of my favorites 😁! I appreciate the kind words for sure. Your setup is inspiring though, no doubt. Thanks for sharing and happy New Year to you and your fam 🎉

[@prabhuja7554]

Can we just display the now playing on a TV vertically placed ??

[@marioplus321]

Can I connect it to hifi system? Android 10 and no supprot any time in the future bothers me a lot. Cheers , mate!

[@gearupaaron]

Hey man, what connections does your hifi system have? I wouldn't worry too much about the older OS. I still use my OG Google Pixel with Android 10 with no problems in terms of app compatibility. For apps that have stopped support, using previous versions haven't messed with functionality. If you look closely in the video, I used a really old version of Deezer just to test that idea - no problems whatsoever.

[@patrickmccrank8414]

Please do even a short video on using your phone as the control. My FiiO app on the phone doesn't even list the R7 to connect manually. Just a short step by step on getting the app to pair with the unit and then cast for control would be greatly appreciated.

[@Lead_Foot]

It's totally broken. Even if you get it to pair via qr code or manual IP entry it can never reconnect. I have to re-pair via qr code every time I want to use it so what's the point if I have to physically touch the device to start remote controlling it.

[@Lead_Foot]

I just got the R9 and while I love it as a standalone streamer and USB/toslink DAC connected to both a TV and multiple PCs, it has a lot of issues that also exist on the R7. Like how the bluetooth remote doesn't work when you're in bluetooth receiving mode, or how the fiio cast app barely works at all, or how Fiio Roon crashes constantly when using 5GHz wifi or playback fails for multiple tracks and they get skipped.

[@gearupaaron]

I need to see if Fiio Roon on mine crashes the same way yours does too. Thanks for sharing your experience! Did you upgrade from a R7?

[@Lead_Foot]

​@@gearupaaronI tested out a friend's R7 but decided against getting one because of the latency in USB DAC mode.

[@mohamedahmed1023]

Does the equalizer for the R7 go into effect with all inputs? Bluetooth, Wifi, USB, Optical, Coax, etc?

[@gearupaaron]

Yup, the EQ is system wide. Also, when in something like Music mode, there's also an EQ. Hope that helps some!

[@adamcanterbury]

Didn't know you could do viewing and game play on it

[@gearupaaron]

It'll run whatever app it can handle. And you connect it to an external display, too.

[@shamrock4840]

Can I run this directly to my receiver? Or amp to receiver or amp to speakers?

[@gearupaaron]

As a pre-amp?

[@shamrock4840]

@@gearupaaron no I’m asking how I could hook this up to my Home Theater receiver and still get the benefit of Hi-Rez music especially from Apple

[@KenKenho100]

Wish you can do Fiio R9 soon.

[@gearupaaron]

Fiio is very picky on who gets to review their stuff, so we'll see 😁 Personally I don't see that much of a jump from the R7 to justify the cost.

[@Lead_Foot]

​@@gearupaaronMain reason I got the R9 is it has an xmos chipset for USB input. The R7 and every Fiio dap(except the m17) lack an xmos chip and often have massive amounts of latency when used as a USB DAC.

[@1980ify]

Soundcore space one vs Soundcore liberty 4 nc. Which would you rate higher on ANC?

[@gearupaaron]

Random question for an unrelated video, lol! Technically, the 4NC is better, but my preference is the Space One (partly because headphones inherently have better passive seal).

[@1980ify]

@@gearupaaron thanks for the input Aaron ❤️

[@fatshrimp2167]

Can i ask if this amp will improve Sony 1000XM5 performance when plugged in ? Thanks

[@gearupaaron]

It should, but it's not going to be a night and day difference.

[@fatshrimp2167]

@@gearupaaron 🙏

[@joncruz]

Is is possible to turn the screen off in standby mode like you do with a cell without turning the device off? I'm afraid of the screen life.

[@gearupaaron]

Great question, I'll need to check to see if there's a complete screen off. As it is, there are a couple of screensavers which do help.

[@JosephDawson]

At some point some of the apps your using will not work anymore with Android 10. So at that point if you use Apple Music or some other method you may not be able to do that if your stuck on an old version of Android.

[@gearupaaron]

Good point, although I have to say I've been surprised by how my OG Pixel is still able to run end-of-life apps just fine, for example.

[@adamcanterbury]

I want this bad….😊

[@gearupaaron]

White or black version?

[@adamcanterbury]

@gearupaaron white would be nice but either would do 😊

[@fmeyer]

菲奥; it's 'Fēi ào'

[@gearupaaron]

It's 飞傲

[@joncruz]

Fiio lost their mind with the R9 double the price.

[@gearupaaron]

Couldn't have said it better myself, lol.

[@joncruz]

@@gearupaaron you know what’s worst? I just got it today lol 😂 and the R7 tomorrow so let’s see which one I’ll keep

[@joncruz]

@@gearupaaron Is is possible to turn the screen off in standby mode like you do with a cell without turning the device off? I'm afraid of the screen life.

[@hahafunny988]

Play lofi in hifi😂

[@gearupaaron]

😁

[@spencerjeremiah]

18:39 no need for racism

[@gearupaaron]

You mean "niggle"?

[@spencerjeremiah]

@@gearupaaron Yeah, just being silly - giving you a hard time

[@gearupaaron]

Lol!

[@kruegerman2222]

just use your finger. screw driver is annoying

[@josebrivera1716]

Stream? Why stream when you can own? Baby Boomer buy, own our stuff. When you rent, stream, you own nothing. A waste of money

[@gearupaaron]

On this, you can own AND stream what you own, somewhat like a NAS!