FiiO did not take a breather in 2023 with a constant flow of new products in the Dongle DAC, DAP, desktop DAC/headphone amplifier, IEM, and headphone categories; it would be fair to say that they have become the Chinese equivalent of Schiit Audio with very few misfires to discuss. Their focus on the personal audio category has begun to expand with a range of desktop streamers and DAC/headphone amplifiers like the new FiiO R9 that will be making its debut at CES 2024.
There are so many connectivity options on the R9 including HDMI ARC which could be used with your TV and analog outputs (RCA and XLR) for a pair of active loudspeakers, it would be fair to call this one of the most forward thinking hi-res streaming hubs we’ve seen recently and for a lot less money than some of its competitors.
It is also rather compact at 160mm x 115mm x 27mm (H x W x D) and only weighs 5 pounds.
The new R9 flagship Desktop Audio Player/Streamer & Balanced DAC/Amplifier builds upon the success of FiiO’s award-winning R7, launched in 2023.
Equipped with dual high-performance 8-Channel ESS Sabre ES9038PRO DACs and high-power 8-Channel THX AAA 788+ desktop-grade amplification — delivering up to 7300mW of power output — the R9 is a truly powerful and versatile solution for listening to your digital audio.
Featuring a wealth of input and output options — including HDMI ARC — the FiiO R9 has been designed to work brilliantly with a host of devices, including: wired headphones, wireless headphones, active speakers, smartphones, PCs, and more.
The FiiO R9 supports high-resolution PCM up to 768kHz/32-Bit, native DSD512 audio, and features MQA decoding. Sporting 4GB of RAM, 64GB of onboard storage (expandable to 2TB via SD card), your personal collection of audio files can be played back using the highly intuitive pre-installed FiiO Music application.
In addition, all of your favourite streaming applications — including TIDAL, Apple Music, Qobuz, Amazon Music, Deezer, Spotify, Soundcloud and many more — can be installed directly on to the R9 via either the pre-installed Google Play Store or FiiO Store apps.
The R9 runs on a customised version of Android and bypasses Android’s SRC restriction globally — meaning the FiiO Music app and other 3rd party streaming applications will deliver their audio in its native quality. Nothing is downsampled as can sometimes happen on other Android devices.
Navigating around the FiiO R9 is easy, thanks to its full-colour Full-HD 6-inch touchscreen display. In addition, the R9 comes supplied with a Bluetooth remote control.
The FiiO R9’s 64GB of internal storage is complimented by SD, USB, Optical, Coaxial, and Ethernet inputs, with the FiiO R9 also supporting wireless connectivity thanks to having both 2.4GHz/5GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0 on board.
Access your music files stored on the onboard memory or SD card; physically connect your audio source, such as an external HDD; wirelessly send audio to the R9 via DLNA or Airplay, or utilise the R9 as a Roon Ready endpoint. You can even transmit music via Bluetooth from your smartphone or PC.
Thanks to its 8-Channel THX AAA-788+ amplifier and dual 8-Channel ESS Sabre ES9038PRO DACs, the FiiO R9 is a highly accomplished and powerful headphone amplifier, offering a choice of wired and wireless connections to your favourite headphones.
Single-ended 6.35mm and balanced 4.4mm connections feature, as well as a balanced 4-pin XLR output. With a power output of up to 7300mW, the R9 is more than capable of driving both low-and high-impedance headphones.
In addition, the R9 is able to output audio via Bluetooth using a wide range of different standards — including AAC, SBC, aptX, aptX HD, and LDAC — meaning you’re sure to get the best quality connection, whatever wireless headphones you’re using.
The FiiO R9 is available from mid-January, priced £1,399 / $1,499
For more information: fiio.com/r9
