FIIO KA17

Introduction:-

Hey everyone today I have the Fiio KA17 in for review. For a long time I wanted a dongle dac which could have a customisable EQ and saved inside the dac, and well looks my wish was fulfilled with the KA17 here.

I have also shared a video version of the review at YouTube any support there in form of a view, A like or A subscribe is greatly appreciated. But if you so wish to read the written version you can read this.




This is a review unit from Fiio and all the thoughts an opinions you are about to hear are my own.

Buy it here (Unaffiliated Link) :-

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256806273951601.html?


I will be as usual following my bullet style format for better readability for those who are dyslexic and in general find it hard to read long paragraphs. I follow this guide in general from the British Dyslexia Association.


So lets get started!

---

Review:-



1. First I want to say that I am really excited for this product, but it turned into disappointment as when I first received the unit there were lot of issues and bugs. But thankfully it was fixed with an update



2. The version I had before was a pre-launch firmware updating to the latest firmware of the KA17 to the version v0.99 it fixed the dac and its issues. I held doing my review until the v0.99 update came as it also fixed a lot of issues.



3. The packaging of the Fiio KA17 is really awesome, The box holds the Dac, USB-C cable, an Usb-C to A adapter and a case.





4. The packaging is fantastic and it has everything one will need. Except maybe the usb c cable is a bit flimsy, but I personally haven't had any issues with it.



5. Also, almost all dongle dac’s case is sold separately but its so nice of fiio to include the case inside the box. Good job fiio!



6. Now the fiio ka17 size wise is a bit chonky and bigger than most dongle dacs out there.





7. The KA17 has 3.5mm and 4.4mm, volume buttons which are independent of the source, a menu button, a usb c port, a second usb c port for supplying extra power (this is a power only port and no data is transferred) which can activate its desktop mode or high gain mode and take the power upto 650mw for your most demanding headphones/iems, desktop mode toggle and the OLED display



8. The desktop mode can also be activated if it is connected by the main port and is receiving enough power from the source, some android phones, laptops, PC’s can supply enough power here.

It supplies 140mw from 3.5, 300mw from 4.4 in normal mode and 270mw from 3.5, 650 mw from 4.4 in Desktop mode!



9. Now talking about the UI of the KA17 and what it can do ( Please Watch my video on my YouTube for better understanding, as i give a live demo there)



10. The default screen shows the Bit Rate, Volume it is at and the Usb mode



11. First there is the gain menu, you can select low or high



12. Then there is the filter menu of which there are eight. Now I personally didn’t notice any difference with all these filters at all. I used the default fast filter



13. Then there is an otpion for volume step, where in you can select between wither 60 or 120 volume steps



14. The fiio ka17 also supports S/pdif so you can also toggle one or off that.



15. Then you have a setting where in you can adjust the left and right shift to the music which is a fantastic feature to have specially if your hearing is a bit damaged in one side or if the source music or video you are playing has some issues with the audio being leaned towards one side



16. After that you have the dimmer switch of which there are 5 preset settings



17. Then comes the EQ mode which has 7 presets and 3 user presets and an option to bypass the EQ completely






18. Now bypassing the EQ completely disables the MQA option too, so if you want to use MQA and don’t want to use the EQ use the option EQ-off. Before the v0.99 there was a separate option of MQA on/off



19. Now the 3 user available EQ are awesome as that gives me a lot of flexibility in having a bass boost EQ built inside the dac so that if I ever wanted a slight bass boost and I don’t want to use EQ on the transport then this works really well



20. Sometimes when listening at low volumes, quite a few iems there is a lack of body to the entire song and a lack of bass so I keep a separate EQ for low volume listening where in I bump the bass a tad bit more than case 1



21. The EQ is a 10 band eq and for each band you can select the gain and the Q value of the band. Which is really awesome! Q value basically means how wide or narrow the range around that band is when you are changing



22. Also each user eq gets a gain of +/- 12db



23. After the EQ section there is a max volume setting, here you can limit the volume above which ka17 wont be going.





24. Next setting is the rotation display which turns the display 180 degrees around depending on your needs



25. Next is the Display off setting of which in increments of 5 you can select from 5 seconds to 60 seconds



26. After that it shows the USB mode you are in, for PS5 and switch you need to be in USB mode 1 to use the ka17 with these devices



27. Language selection is next english or chinese



28. The version number and at last Recovery mode or factory reset the ka17 to its basic state.



29. That was a bit long covering the menu settings and what it does. Now talking about the dac chip and amps of the KA17. It has 2 ESS ES9069Q flagship DAC chips and a THX AAA 78+ headphone amp. A non-plus version of this amp was used in their M11 and M11s DAP’s. Also there are 8 op-amps in a 4 channel parallel circuit.



30. The digital and analog portions of the circuit are on totally separate circuit boards, each board is equipped with a shielding cover for total isolation.






31. This also has the XMOS XU316 USB receiver, which is a first for a dongle dac if I am not wrong



32. The KA17 supports upto DSD512, 768kHz/32bit and full MQA unfolding



33. Now talking about the meats and potatoes, the sound



34. I will be talking about the sound without any EQ and I will be using the EQ bypass mode to test the sound.



35. Now before talking sound I want to say one thing, is that it is very hard to judge sound characteristics of a dac. And the sound is clearly dependent on the iem you are using and also comparing it with other dongle dac’s





36. The overall sound of the fiio ka17 is very neutral with a slight tinge of brightness.



37. This tinge of brightness isnt something which will make your bright iems unbearable to listen to but rather your warm sounding treble shy iems gets a small dose of treble which makes it sound nice and clear.



38. This neutral sound signature doesn’t mean that the bass authority has been lost, with iems like nova and kz castor the bass had authority and deep punchiness which made the bass sound crisper too. Something like my tanchjim kara in the desktop mode really benefited from the extra power and its bass sounded more fuller, crispier and very nicely texture here.



39. The mid range here is crystal clear and sounds exactly how I would want. Again the kara in desktop mode was really a treat to listen too! Chris cornells voice which sounds a bit lackluster in the kara in most underpowered dacs it sounded really good here.



40. The treble of the ka17 is very good, that tinge of brightness doesn’t cause any issues to any of my bright iems even at moderate volumes. The kara in desktop mode sounded very nice here too, the instruments sounded very good too. The treble notes here arent too blunted and they are really crisp.



41. The soundstage of the KA17 is phenomenal and so is the imaging. When listening to live songs specially the 1985 live album by Cassiopea it is immediately apparent. I was really surprised by this! Watching any movies like the top gun movies was awesome here and fly by of jets too was awesome and it was very crisp.





42. I cannot specify how good the ka17 powers and opens up something like the tanchjim kara in desktop mode. Kara is very hard to drive and seems like it is meant to be paired with the KA17.



43. Now for battery life. I tested it out with a moondrop chu 2 at 30% volume in low gain mode via the 3.5mm mode I got around 9.5 hours of battery. Yes it is very low and on my battery rank list this is the lowest, but thats sort of expected with the amount of power it pushes. Even when idle the KA17 pulls a lot of battery from the transport and it stays quite warm.



44. The ka17 does get heated up a lot, specially when using it in desktop mode. There is an overheating notification present on ka17 which will notify you when the temp is too much. I suggest using the ka17 out in open specially when using the desktop mode.



45. Now comparison to other dac -



46. v/s the Aune Yuki – Well in terms of features the KA17 wins here no doubt. Now previously I had given the yuki as my favourite dongle dac in terms of soundstage. But well the Fiio ka17 beats the yuki when it comes to that! If you still want something a bit analog sounding then the yuki is still a great option, but if you want a great soundstage and imaging along with a very neutral sound and detailed sound along with EQ then the KA17 is where it is at. The battery is much better on the yuki than on the KA17



47. v/s The colorfly cda m2 – In every aspect of sound the KA17 is just a superior product here, specially with ka17 having eq. But when it comes to battery life the colorfly is much better when compared to the KA17



48. v/s The Hiby FC6 – Well the fc6 is my favourite dongle period! But the ka17 is just superior when it comes to soundstage and imaging. When talking about the overall quality of the sound still prefer the analog sounding fc6 here. But I have to say that the KA17 takes the first spot too on my list of favourite dongles along with the FC6. If I want something with greater soundstage and neutral sound signature then the ka17 it is, if I want to relax and enjoy my music then its fc6.



49. Well the I had a lot of hopes for the KA17, it just broke all that and quickly became my favourite dongle along the FC6. If anyone wants a do it all dongle I highly highly suggest checking the fiio ka17 out. At its $149 price point I would say its definitely worth it, and I have never said this but even at 200 this is a really great product.



50. Being able to power most iems and headphones without any issues in desktop mode is an awesome thing to have. But it has one con is that it does suck up a lot of battery when connected even in normal mode, so do be careful of that when using it.



51. I am sorry if I come across a bit excited about this, because how the KA17 sounds is just fantastic and the EQ function + its price makes it an overall fantastic device to own.



52. Well that's my review of the KA17, I hope you liked it. If you have any questions please do comment and I will try to help you out. Thanks for stopping by!

---

If you have any questions please feel free to ask me and also if you have any issues regarding this format of review please do comment I will try to mend it. Also sorry to those who are used to reading long paragraphs of review in headfi. I hope my review was upto the mark, I appreciate any feedback.

Again a big thanks to Fiio for making this review happen.

Have a great day ahead Bye!

With the detailed pros and cons above, I will try to expand on them briefly and provide some comparisons and perceived synergy with several IEMs, rather than going through all features already described in other reviews.

First, I have purchased KA17 entirely with my own money for ca. $135 in the recent AE sales, so the subjective opinion is entirely my own.

Fiio in part started me in my audiophile journey: with Q1 first, then Q1-II with the 2.5-mm outputs engineered to push consumers to the world of balanced cables (perhaps, Fiio can request its cut from cable makers). Then I also got BTR3K and BTR5 that are very good products in my experience. (While FD11 became decisively my very last Fiio IEM: shabbily-made shell, proprietary connectors, hardly competitive even at $20-25, IMO.) Lastly, KA17 is my first Fiio product of the “7” series (feel BMW-inspired somehow).

While acquiring KA17, I pretty much knew what to expect: power hogging of a new ESS chip (being strongly Cirrus-biased now, I would prefer Cirrus implementation); good THX amps and a nice design and build.

I pretty much got all of this. Below is the unboxing image:


Then the sound was even better than I expected: sharp and precise, especially in the desktop mode and the high gain. KA17 rendering feels quite neutral for ESS-based DACs, though switching from Cirrus DACs, the perception of some ESS treble glare is there (perhaps a but psychologically and possibly also the feature of the sharp precise sound delivery). For those bothered with this glare, the slow filter option seems to alleviate it a bit. Also very nice colours to my taste again: charming shades of blue for both the DAC and the case!

The power consumption also exceeded all expectations. Notably, amps seem to be reasonably power-efficient, given their output. The ESS chip takes a lot of juice, and no idle shutdown, not ESS.

So in the desktop mode KA17 draws 250-260 mA, while playing music, and 224 mA in idle (music processing is always on with ESS, perhaps some MQA background rendering…)

In the normal mode, 200-205 mA and 185-190 mA, respectively is drawn by KA17, not drastically less compared to the desktop mode, so one may very well enjoy the power and might of all amps firing in the mighty desktop mode.

Surprisingly to me, at least at first (then making some sense given that the chip and amplifications circuits are separated), even with the battery connected, the desktop mode still consumes 25-35 mA playing music and 18-20 mA in idle, respectively.

Lastly, in a normal mode, the power consumption of KA17 with the battery connected is 8-10 mA and 5 mA respectively, finally gentle to the phone battery.

Notably, I could not perceive much of a difference in sound when a battery is connected – KA17 seem to be able to draw the power smoothly for its full operation. While many other DACs in my experience sounded noticeably better with the battery connected, e.g. E1DA.

For comparison numbers, Muse M3 (my previous record power hog) consumes 145-150 mA and 185-190 mA playing music and in idle, respectively; and no mistake – more power consumption in idle – one is expected to always play music with the Muse and those ESS chips.

E1DA SG3 takes only 92 mA and 80 mA playing music and idling, respectively.

Kuang Pai Plus4 uses 122 mA and 104 mA respectively, twice less than KA17, yet a lot of processing power consumed for a Cirrus-based DAC.

Nicely efficient Tempotec E44 uses 62 mA and 0 mA (!), with more than enough power delivered and still competitive sound.

Lastly, Apple DAC draws 23 mA with 0 mA in idle, while most efficient DACs (Moondrop Droplet, Samsung AKG USB-C OEM IEM (also sold as Urban X) draw 5 mA to produce comparably loud sound, that is 50 times less power (!!) than consumed by KA17).

IEM tested with KA17:
recent KZs including ZAT, AS24 and my favourite wide-nozzle modified ASX; CCA Trio; Celest Phoenixcall and Plutus; 1More Penta; Simgot E6ML; Tempotec T800; Hisenior T4; and old Brainwavz B400, among few others.

Main  take on IEM synergy: softer sounding IEMs benefited from the precise punchy delivery of KA17, it also helps a bit with the overly prominent mid-bass of some IEMs. For instance, Penta has been pushed to sound a bit better, though more mid-bass taming would be still great. Polite E6ML sounded more engaged and assuring, hence feeling more competitive. Plutus benefited nicely accentuating its prominent bass with more treble energy; while Phoenixcall behaved more neutrally. Trio sounded nicely as well, though I think the difference with hybrids is a bit more (?)
A lot of benefits of KA17 for quite a few IEMs overall.
For already punchy and engaging all-BA IEMs, KA17 may be a bit too much for many. I still liked the overall rendering of all that I tried, but I am not a long-term listener, and lower volumes if sonically overhelmed, for the records.
Overall, this synergy story is just a scratch of the surface with already more than a half a day spent, so definitely my last review weaning off HeadFi.

Finally, few DAC comparisons with the images continuing with the background of “musical instruments”:


In the last image, left to right are E1DA SG3, Fiio KA17, Kuang Pai Plus4, and Muse M3. I thought to compare with more DACs (and with some I did) , but all the comparisons already happened to be quite exhaustive. Really feeling here for good reviewers (and sadly remorsing how copy-paste ones "win their game").

Overall, KA17 sounds most energetic of all my DACs, especially in its ESS-rendered treble; again, prominently precise, powerful and clean sound delivery.

First, ESS-based comparisons:
Muse M3 sounds noticeably more mellow, not unlikeable and also synergizing easier with more engaging and punchy IEMs.
Muse M3 is much bulkier and heavier compared to KA17 for the practicality of the fully portable use. KA17 is of the nice size for me, only a touch larger than Plus4 that I use everywhere.

E1DA SG3 is then in between KA17 and M3, being quite neutral, but with some touch of the bass added in its rendering - still a very competitive sound to my ears. The main downsides of E1DA are EMI and those prominent pop-ups on connecting/disconnecting that are most noticeable among all the DACs that I have.
Nicely contrasting, KA17 is free of those “pop ups”. Also E1DA strongly benefits from an external battery, while with KA17, even with my old S10, enough power is provided to operate KA17 fully; only the battery drain is mighty.

Then if to mention Shanling UA2 here – its warm ESS rendering with the noticeable added background noise, perhaps an attempt on mimicking AK-like “velvet” sound, as well as those lamp amps, coupled with the “famous” Shanling software support, made it my last Shanling product. To continue digressing: iBasso is also out for me with their two out of two dongles not recognized by Samsung phones without extra efforts. It is really great that there are many diverse competitors in the DAC market.

Now, my favourite Kuang Pai Plus4 still remains my preferred DACs for its many appealing aspects. Cirrus rendering is cleaner and more transparent. When switching back from ESS, Cirrus-based DACs can be perceived as more plain, but this neutrality is arguably better to appreciate all the subtle differences in IEMs.
The filters of Plus4 are definitely more functional with nicer more meaningful difference compared to KA17 filters. Furthermore the stage expansion of Plus4 is simply unmatched. The button operation of Plus 4 is also quite straightforward even without the screen.
In its turn, KA17 features the screen that is definitely useful. The design of KA17 is also more to my tastes. Lastly, the precise punchy sound of KA17 can synergize better with several IEMs, especially on a mellow side. So KA17 is quite closely completive with Plus4, just my current strong bias for Cirrus is decisive in preferring Plus4. Hopefully, Fiio will consider making a Cirrus-based KA17 analogue.

Now, this section is strictly for the “believers” and “believers in the believers” and "total believers" (others must totally skip it).
Thinking about the double amp of KA17, it occurred to me: what about bringing together two Plus4 DACs for twice more of the mighty audiophile mental power and beliefs! This doubling setup coupled with a prowess of the nice supporting short cable circuit (pictured as a contrasting heart of silver and gold below, made of super proprietary graphene one and Penon’s renowned connectors), delivered the sound that transcended one or two levels up (beautiful smooth and penetrating harmonic transients, extra clarity and the stage totally mushroomed in 4 dimensions); so you know, close and beyond even if compared to DAP totls. The mighty power of audiophile imagination totally ultimately rulz!


Lastly, my experience with AK chips, as with AK4493SEQ-based Kuang Pai KP1, made me feel that “velvet’ rendering is the furthest from my tastes. Cirrus implementations are the cleanest and delivering more transparent rendering that fully enable IEMs to display their own unique characters.
ESS rendering can be more engaging, but more of the imposed colouring requires more specific matching for the synergy that can be somewhat more limiting.

Overall, KA17 sound rendering definitely deserves 5-stars; while an appreciable list of shortcomings made me think about 4.5 or even 4 stars overall. Now, 4 stars would be rather unfair, given that new products pushing the boundaries further are bound to have more initial limitations.
So 5 stars for the sound and 4.5 stars overall with a great potential for further improvements.

Future work for Fiio (I feel free to suggest here, Fiio may feel equally free to dismiss these suggestions): building a similar DAC with similar amps, PEQ and external power that is based on Cirrus chips for better power management and more engaging filters. Fitting between, KA13 and KA17, this “KA15” with the MSRP of $120-130 will be a great DAC/amp (I would be in). For true audiophiles, KA19 based on the latest and greatest AK chips and with the power delivered close to 1 W can be a mighty attractive proposition.

Disclaimer:​

Good morning, readers! Today FiiO sent me the FiiO KA17, a portable dongle with an almost desktop configuration. I currently believe it to be one of the most powerful and complex dongles in my possession.


The review will be more complex than usual and possibly longer. To make comparisons, I don’t have any recent desktop Dac/Amp so I deduce that any comparison would be superfluous but I will try to do my best.


The review, as always, will be completely unbiased and uninfluenced.


I would like to remind you that I am just a person who enjoys trying out new items and listening to a lot of music; I am not an expert.


My opinions are obviously subjective.

Tech Specs:​

More information:

• https://fiio.com/KA17_parameters
• https://fiio.com/KA17
• https://www.esstech.com/essnews/ess...nnel-audiophile-digital-to-analog-converters/

Packaging:​

The packaging of the FiiO KA17 is simple but refined. Just opened, we have the KA17 and its imitation leather case, a very welcome accessory, in my opinion, given the price of the dongle.


Under the first layer, we then find the type C cable and the USB A adapter (thank goodness).


The set of accessories is, in my opinion, correct for the price; if we want to be picky, I would have liked a slightly more robust type C cable. The cable for the additional power supply is missing but personally, I have so many cables at home that it is the least of my problems.

Build quality/First impressions:​

The FiiO KA17, being a flagship dongle, also boasts excellent build quality. The product is solid, not too heavy, and not too large considering the double PCB it contains; in fact, FiiO has kept the analogue part separate from the digital one to avoid background noise and possible disturbances. The Oled display is excellent, I think it is the same model that I have already seen on the EPZ TP50.


Honestly, I hope to see more and more displays on dongles, as they allow you to manage various settings without having to use apps. In my opinion, the screen is much faster than using the app. Returning to the build quality, it seems excellent in every respect, metal shell (the dissipation seems good even with the case), volume buttons, desktop mode, and a button to access the menu. On one side, we have the red type C input for additional power. Another very small constructive criticism is that I would have used two metal audio outputs like those seen on the Fosi SK02.

App & Firmware:​

I waited a while to test the FiiO KA17 and after a quick check with the factory firmware, I immediately updated following the instructions that we can find on the official FiiO website. Currently, the most recent firmware is 0.99 but I believe some other updates will arrive in the short term. In any case, the main improvement is the possibility of using the PEQ app, one of the most complete I’ve seen so far. However, when the FiiO KA17 switches from EQ ON to EQ OFF and vice versa, playback is interrupted. This happens because the interfaces are somewhat separate. When the equalizer is active, the dongle is limited to 24 bits at 192 kHz, and when you enter and exit these modes, the device it is connected to recognizes it as a new connection.


For example, Tidal will request access in exclusive mode again. The FiiO application can also record both interfaces but you will only need the interface that you can record with the EQ ON. I can’t tell you if in the future they will be able to make this functionality more fluid, currently, it is absolutely usable, just leave the EQ on and if by chance you don’t want it, there is the EQ bypass, which allows you not to turn off the PEQ but still hear the sound without any change. Having said that, once you have created your presets or modifications, the app is not strictly necessary as you can easily access everything via the display.

For the functions of the menu, I leave you a small reel, which is certainly more practical and useful.​

1. Gain Selection: High or low gain selection
2. Filter selection: 8 digital filters
3. Volume steps: you can choose between 60 and 120 volume steps
4. S/PDIF: you can enable this function
5. ADV-L/R: To adjust channel balance
6. Dimmer: Display brightness
7. EQ: 7 preset EQ + 3 Custom profiles
8. Max Volume: You can limit the volume
9. Rotate Display: Display orientation can be adjusted
10. OFF Display: display auto off after inactivity
11. U-audio: USB mode selection
12. Language selection
13. Version: Firmware check
14. Recovery: Factory Reset

Firmware Download: FiiO Forum


MQA disappeared from the menu in the latest update and is now automatically activated when playing an MQA file, as long as EQ is deactivated. On my POCO M4 PRO, I noticed some micro-interruptions in playback when I switched from one interface to another (the problem could easily be attributable to the smartphone), however, once I entered MQA mode, if by chance you have a mixed playlist, I noticed that it was not able to exit that mode, playing no sound in the case of FLAC.

Power:​

The FiiO KA17 has certainly raised the bar on the market; even if it doesn’t have to be a race to see who has the most powerful output, this dongle makes me smile so much. Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of space for desktop dac/amps and seeing such a small dongle be able to deliver such power is truly fantastic. FiiO did an excellent job with two ES9069Q chips and two OPA1662 Op amps, accompanied by a balanced THX AAA 78+. A real madness that could be seen on a desktop DAC/AMP but hardly on a dongle. To make the 3.5mm output a little difficult, I asked for the help of the 75 Ohm impedance adapter but I can tell you that even when approaching 100 Ohms in total, the FiiO KA17 does not seem to be affected.


Honestly, I had no doubts since even the slightly less powerful Fosi SK02 had no problems.


Below are some of the tests I carried out.


The tests were carried out in high gain and desktop mode, using supplementary and non-supplementary power.

Test of the SE 3.5mm with 270+270 mW at 32 ohm:​

• Kefine Delci: Another pairing that particularly stands out. The Delci are truly great IEMs and together with the FiiO KA17, they are truly a spectacle.
• HIFIMAN Sundara:You need to squeeze the volume a little more until you reach 40/60. Openback planars really need a lot of power. It doesn’t make much sense to stick with an SE cable if you can use it balanced.
• EPZ Q1 Pro: Obviously, no problem. I feel like she added a bit of bass.

Testing the BAL 4.4mm with 650+650 mW at 32 ohm:​

• Hidizs MP145: The sound signature goes with any IEM. The MP145 has enough power. The bass is full and powerful, and the details and soundstage seem better than usual. Really good synergy. 25/60 of the volume needed.
• Letshuoer S15: is pretty similar to the MP145 in terms of needed power. 20/60 of volume due to his brightness
• Kefine Klanar: Similar result and same volume of MP145 needed. No efforts at all.
• EPZ x Tipsy Star One: 64 ohm Star One on balanced only needs the volume at 20/60. At 30/60, we are already well above the volumes considered safe for long listening sessions.
• EPZ Q5: Obviously, no problem; it would work fine even on a 3.5mm output so on a balanced 4.4mm, it needs very little volume on the FiiO to play correctly. The synergy of this pairing stands out particularly.
• HIFIMAN Sundara: On a balanced cable brings literally life; the power of the FiiO Ka17 unleashed the dynamics. With the volume at 30 out of 60, we already have excellent sound pressure and good volume. Hifiman headphones and especially planar openback ones, also need a lot of current due to the very high dispersion they have outside.
• HIFIMAN Sundara Closeback: Also, having the closeback model allows me to make an objective assessment and say that openbacks really have a lot of dispersion. Compared to the same volume, we have a much higher volume.

Power management:​

After a month of using it, I realized that the second power supply is not extremely necessary to activate desktop mode. If the device you connect it to has the capacity to supply at least 5V and 1A, there will be no need for the other power supply. Nowadays, I believe that both the latest Mediatek and Snapdragon can easily handle it. If you don’t want any drain on your phone’s battery, then you’ll have to use external power. On my Poco M4 Pro, I don’t seem to notice any lack of power, but it is also true that the KA17’s power supply is very efficient; there is no interruption or background noise when connecting the external power supply. FiiO did a great job of isolating interference.


On my smartphone, despite the dual power supply on the FiiO KA17, the volume is lower than on the PC. I deduce the limitation is not due to the lower current but mostly due to the phone’s software. I am in Europe and unfortunately, we have limitations to prevent hearing damage.


The only background noise is heard when you leave it connected to external power but the data cable is disconnected.


In the meantime, I bought two type C testers. In the future, I will update the review to tell you how much current it requires.

Sound Signature:​

The sound signature of the FiiO KA17 somewhat follows what I heard on the FiiO KA11. It certainly follows the FiiO sound style, very technical, excellent neutral tendency, only slightly warm. I think it is the dongle that is closest to the iBasso DC04PRO, or at least I think they are very close. Since PEQ is available, you can still adjust the sound to your liking, making the versatility of the FiiO KA17 absolute. You can make it as cold or extremely hot as you like. I love the sound of it as FiiO produced it. Being neutral, it pairs well with any IEM without significantly changing its sound.


The combination of DAC, OP AMP, and THX amplification is truly remarkable, and I must say that this dongle is truly absurd. I would have liked to bring you some comparisons with some Cayin, but unfortunately, I don’t own any.

Fast Comparison:​

vs Fosi SK02


The Fosi SK02 is probably the dongle/dac/amp that comes closest to the power of the Fiio KA17. Their similarity ends there. They are two completely different products. The Fosi is very bulky; it is more suitable for desktop use, its sound signature is brighter than many dongles on the market; but it also has its own type of IEM, which it pairs excellently with. There are two totally different prices that are difficult to compare but if you are looking for power and not mobility, this is a monster.


vs iBasso DC04 Pro


Even though it is an outdated model, it is still one of my favorites. Its extremely refined sound has made it one of the best CS43131s. Obviously, it doesn’t keep up in terms of power but to this day, it remains one of my favorite dongles. The FiiO KA17, in my opinion, with all its features, takes it off the throne.


vs EPZ TP50


The EPZ TP50 seems to share the same display as the KA17; graphically, I don’t notice any substantial difference, but some heavy graphic animations on the KA17 have changed. The TP50 is a very technical and analytical dongle, from what my ears hear. It doesn’t look out of place next to this monster. Even the TP50, despite the specifications being more modest, seems to me to have a lot of power; in fact, I never know whether to trust the declared specifications. Unfortunately, the PEQ is missing, I don’t know if EPZ intends to add some presets in the future but the customizable part would probably be missing. To be honest, the price difference is very little and the FiiO has much more present support.

Who do I recommend this DAC to?​

The choice of a similar product can happen for various reasons. FiiO decided to make a similar product to see the market reaction. If sales go well (and I think they will), we will probably see a sequel. Many who enter this hobby at the beginning may buy a DAC for around 60 USD with a double Cirrus Logic chip; today, their level has improved considerably and the choice makes sense. But if by chance the hobby takes you, know that after the first dongle, the second or perhaps third will probably also arrive. The search for something better and better is constant; too many products come out and as it is always technology, it evolves every week. The FiiO KA17 is a dongle that will take away the desire for future upgrades for a while. A similar product has raised the bar so much that for a while I feel fully satisfied. On Amazon.it, it currently costs less than 160 USD, which is an absolutely interesting price. It costs more on AliExpress or in stores. It costs less than two good dongles so as far as I’m concerned, it’s worth it!

The final rating takes into account the cost, accessories, and particularities of the product.

Where to Buy?​

Amazon.it


Aliexpress