FiiO Releases R2R Tube DAC – First Look
All Image Credit: FiiO
FiiO is shortly to release the R2R Tube DAC. This latest minimalist design will please many audiophiles as it uses an R2R decoder driving a tube-buffered output stage and comes with backlit mechanical VU meters. The whole design is squeezed into a half-width box and is available in a black or silver finish. This latest model may not hit the stratosphere in terms of technical specifications with the tube design providing an SNR of >114dBA and a THD +N of <0.053%, but its about the sound, not the specs, with FiiO featuring its “warmer sound”.
First up is the R2R DAC design that use precision resistor ladders to convert digital bits to analogue voltages directly rather than the more conventional delta-sigma DACs that rapidly switch between voltage levels to approximate the analogue waveform.
FiiO’s implementation employs 192 thin-film resistors (48 per channel) with 0.1% tolerance. The ‘warmer’ R2R defaults to non-oversampling (NOS) mode for a purist approach, but a toggle switch on the back panel engages oversampling (OS) mode, upsampling all incoming digital signals to 384kHz before decoding.
The tube buffers uses four JJ Electronics dual triode E88CC tubes. They simply act as a buffer stage without gain, adding harmonic richness by adding even-order harmonics. The tubes run of a ±28V supply with op-amps providing current delivery and impedance matching.
Power is supplied by a low noise analog supply that uses a 46 watt toroidal transformer.
Rear panel connectivity is simple having 2 x XLR and 2 RCA analog outputs plus 1 x optical, 1 x coaxial digital inputs and 1 x USB-C that supports up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and DSD256.
Features At A Glance:
- USB/OPTICAL/COAXIAL inputs
- Fully differential true 24bit R2R resistor arrays DAC
- RCA/XLR outputs
- Four JJ Electronic E88CC tubes
- 46watt low noise, low ripple linear power supply
- Two back-lit true mechanical VU meters
Specifications:
- Hardware solution:
- Master control: GD32F303RET6
- DAC: FIIO proprietary R2R DAC
- USB decoding: SA9312L
- 2 x AMP: OPA1642AIDR
- 4 x JJ Electronics E88CC tubes
- Display: Mechanical VU meter
- Oversampling setting: OS/NOS
- Firmware upgrade: Supports USB upgrading
- Maximum supported sampling rates:
- USB decoding: 384kHz/32bit; DSD256
- Coaxial decoding: 192kHz/24bit
- Optical decoding: 96kHz/24bit
- Ports
- USB portType-C USB*1 (data transmission)
- Digital coaxial input port: RCA port
- Digital optical input port: Optical port
- Single-ended line output port: RCA port*2
- Balanced line output port: XLR3 balanced port*2
- Performance and parameters of single-ended line output (RCA out, USB DAC/Coaxial decoding/Optical decoding mode, OS mode)
- THD+N: 0.052% (1kHz/-7dB@10KΩ)
- SNR: ≥112dB (A-weighted)
- Crosstalk: ≥96dB
- Noise floor: ＜4.5uV (A-weighted)
- Frequency response:
- 20Hz~20kHz: attenuation＜0.6dB
- 20Hz~45kHz: attenuation＜2.4dB
- Dynamic range: ≥98dB
- Line output level: 1.8Vrms (1kHz@10kΩ)
- Performance and parameters of balanced line output (XLR3 out, USB DAC/Coaxial decoding/Optical decoding mode, OS mode)
- THD+N: 0.053% (1kHz/-7dB@10KΩ)
- SNR: ≥114dB (A-weighted)
- Crosstalk: ≥104dB
- Noise floor: ＜7uV (A-weighted)
- Frequency response:
- 20Hz~20kHz: attenuation＜1.5dB
- 20Hz~45kHz: attenuation＜2.4dB
- Dynamic range: ≥105dB
- Line output level: 3.3Vrms (1kHz@10kΩ)
- Color: Black/Silver
- Weight: 2,865g
- Dimensions: 223.5x213x66.8mm (incl. feet)
Pricing (approx.):
- UK: £339.99
- US: $349.99
- EU: €406.00
For more information visit the FiiO web site.
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