This is a fine dac/amp. Not the greatest by any means, but for the price it gets the job done. You don't need anything expensive to get great sound. By default this dac/amp has a nice clean sound, and it gets loud enough on it's own (though the volume on the PC has an impact on this). But I'll share a little secret that some of you probably do not know about. I'll begin with saying that some people probably get bummed out if they get a dac/amp and they don't 100% enjoy it's overall sound signature, or disappointed with it's bass boost, or other EQ's that dac/amp's might come with.
Now I will share with you on how to fix all of this. Simply put, get foobar2000 and Equalizer APO (both are free). Foobar2000 has it's own built in equalizer, and unlike some equalizers that are on your PC right now, it can communicate with your dac/amp through output settings. Just be sure to set up layout mode and replace one of the UI's as equalizer (it will be on the bottom of the UI list). Equalizer APO will be the real treat though, it's sound is a lot more clean when using it's equalizer, but I tend to play with both of the above mentioned software since they both have a certain something to offer. This is the for sure way to get the sound you're looking for out of your dac/amp without having to spend additional money, or having to upgrade your dac/amp.
The reason why I say that Equalizer APO in particular has a cleaner sound when using it's equalizer, is because even though it's managed in Windows, it installs directly to your dac/amp and optionally any other audio source you may have on your PC (though you can only install to one source at a time without restarting your PC). It has a built-in (software) preamp that can increase your volume as well, with a total of 3 methods to increase your overall volume, which are 1.) Your PC's volume, since it has an impact on this particular dac/amp's overall volume. 2.) The physical volume knob on the dac/amp itself (4 methods if you want to include the L/H Gain switch). 3.) And of course, the preamp on Equalizer APO (that can set the dB extremely high). With that said, I must warn you that with Equalizer APO you can set not only the preamp dB rather high, but any of the 31 frequencies it has listed as well, which does not seem to have a dB limit. So please, keep the dB under 15, or 20 at the most, or you could destroy your headphones and/or dac/amp by volume overload.
This is just merely to show you how you can get the most out of your sound without spending a lot, but it does not come with drawbacks. So please, use Equalizer APO with extreme caution. Foobar at least has a 20 dB limiter on it's equalizer, but doesn't sound as clean (especially when comparing to APO installed on a dedicated dac/amp), and doesn't have as many frequencies to choose from (18 vs 31). Also, a couple more things to add - APO will change the sound of EVERYTHING, not just music, or what's playing on foobar, but everything running in Windows, period (so keep that in mind).
It can act a little weird if you play around with it too much and will stop adding effects or volume changes, so be sure when you set what you like that you go to file on the top left of the APO software and select 'Save as' so you can make a settings backup file, but you must know that any backup file will not be 'played' because APO is a little stubborn with file names apparently. So what I do, is I make my settings, make and save a backup file with whatever name I want (especially if you want multiple EQ presets/settings). Then save it again, except this time save it over the default config file and overwrite it. This is the only way to get it to work, especially when it doesn't want to play nice. Once everything is up and running you don't have anything to worry, it only does this if you're messing around with the frequencies and preamp for a while and seems to just bog up the software, but other than that it's terrific.
I know this seems to be more of a review on software rather than the dac/amp I bought that is hardware, but I feel that more people should know about this sort of thing. You don't have to spend a lot to get a lot. But other than that, the FiiO E10K is a fine dac/amp, especially the price you pay for it and it can tolerate a lot with what I throw at it. It does get a little warm when I push it to the max (I do mean PUSH), but stays cool with it's all metal construction. I try not to push it like that often and only for a short period of testing, because well, any hardware has it's limits and you don't want to do that really. It's small and compact which makes it very portable, travel friendly, feature rich and most importantly, well built.
All and all, this is a very nice dac/amp for what you pay for. Sure it's not the greatest, and there is definitely better, but for more cash. Your decision :)
At least this way I have shown you a way to change the overall sound signature of pretty much ANY external dac/amp and not having to settle with it's own EQ's, or it's own sound signature. I have given you a way to change the sound how you like it, and that an external dac/amp will provide superior cleaner sound when using this method over onboard from your motherboard due to electrical interference.
Thank you for baring with me. I hope this helps a lot of people.
PS : For those running Windows 10, please do not use the FiiO ASIO drivers from their website, it doesn't really place nice with this particular OS. It works but you might BSOD on occasion, especially when you suddenly unplug/stop the device while it's in use i.e. listening to music etc. Just simply use whatever driver Windows automatically installs for it and it will run fine. If you have already downloaded the ASIO driver from FiiO, please delete the driver zip/rar file package. Reason being is because when Windows automatically installs a driver, it searches locally on your PC, not just online. It will automatically assume that the FiiO driver is the best driver for it, naturally. On Windows 10, this is not the case.
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Great DAC/Amp
This DAC/Amp is a great little unit. Download the driver from the FiiO website, connect the unit with the provided USB-C cable, power it in, and you are good to go. Sound quality is fantastic and equalizer profile flat. Unit is surprisingly small but feels durable and built to last. I am using IEMs and headphones under 100Ω so I cannot say what this unit is capable of powering but the impedance recommendation is 16-150Ω.*Make sure to use provided USB-C cable. I tried other cables but they had connection issues. One cable would cut audio for a second or two every minute or so and the other cable did not recognize the unit at all and did not work at all. Zero issues with the cable provided though.*
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Tim Cho
Lots to love at this price
Reviewed in Canada on March 23, 2019Size: regularColor: BlackVerified Purchase
