Fiio BTR5
From the perspective of an everyday music lover and loudspeaker enthusiast.
Iām not familiar with all the headphone hype, because iĀ“m allwas broke buying speaker stuff. I use headphones mainly on the road or late at night. Koss Porta Pro have always been with me, from the Aiwa MD players, first iPods to the BTR1, Q1mkII, BTR3 and now the BTR5.
The BTR 3 has a much better DAC than the Q1mkII. The M9 is very warm and in any case far behind the BTR5. With my Beyerdynamic Custom Studio I could not tell the difference between the M11 and the BTR5 at the trade show. I ripped all files with EAC from the CD into FLAC myself.
With Koss Porta Pro the BTR3 seems to me to be quite sufficient. But with the custom EQ of the BTR5 in low gain you can achieve a more balanced sound with the Porta Pro, that will sound good even at high volume. I would have liked 20 or 30 bands much better and also a second user EQ slot. With the EQ it is not possible to use LDAC, which is not audible with the Porta Pro.
I will continue with LDAC and my Beyerdynamic Custom Studio (closed headphones with 80ohm that sound more like an 880 frequency response than 770, Edit: now available in the US too not only Germany THX Mon). The difference to the BTR3 is not only more power but also the better DAC and amplifier. Unfortunately I donāt have any suitable headphones to test the ballanced output but Iāll be modding and reporting on my Beyer soon.
Compared to Lake People G109 and Musical Fidelity V90 DAC (yes I know itās old equipment but itās very neutral). Can the BTR5 get close to an average desktop setup? No, but it is very close!
Lily Was Here - Candy Dulfer
The warm tuning of the BTR5 is reflected here in a saxophone that is somewhat lacking in energy. Guitar strings are missing the metallic tonality. The instruments seem a bit more distant and are less present. A relaxed presentation thatās fun to listen to and presents all instruments well.
Family - Agnes Obel
It is difficult for me to distinguish the individual male voices with the BTR5, the overview gets a bit lost. Unfortunately the stage is a bit smaller and the reverb in the room is not so obvious. Somewhat misleading is that the BTR5, despite the warm tuning, shows the menās S-sounds sharper and more unpleasant. The female voice sounds very natural and there is little evidence of the digital recording heritage in the high frequencies. Strings come across very naturally, mabe a tiny amount less details. There is only a minimal difference in the bass control.
Conclusion: @giova05
The BTR5 is definitely a worthwhile upgrade over the BTR3 and an enrichment for every music lover. The finesse of a desktop setup is not yet reached. But itās so close that you probably wonāt notice it during a train ride or in the plane anyway.
