New Dac the FiiO K13 R2R: Early Impressions

[Stuart.W.D]

Hi everyone,

I recently picked up the FiiO K13 R2R, and I just wanted to share a few early thoughts. I’m still very new to R2R DACs, so take this as simple impressions from someone who just enjoys listening.

The first thing I noticed was the tone. It sounds very natural and relaxed. Nothing feels sharp or forced. This is my first experience with an R2R DAC, and I was surprised by how calm yet detailed it sounds. The small details really stood out to me.

For example, I was listening to O by Damien Rice (a CD I ordered from Discogs), and I could hear little things I hadn’t noticed before -- faint sounds of kids playing in the background, Damien taking breaths between lines, even subtle touches on the guitar touching the wood, and the body to the strings is nicely done. These are small details, but they felt very real. I didn’t notice them before with an older Rega DAC, or my iFi Zen DAC, or the DAC in my Cambridge CXN V2. I found that very interesting.

Vocals sound full and smooth. Female vocals have a gentle sweetness without sounding too soft. Male vocals feel textured and natural, with a nice sense of body.

The treble is smooth and easy on the ears, but still detailed. I’ve tried both NOS and OS modes with my KEF LS50 speakers and Sennheiser HD600, and both sound very enjoyable to me.

The soundstage feels open and nicely layered. Instruments are well placed and easy to follow. So far, I’ve mostly been listening to vocal and acoustic guitar music (like Amble), so I can’t say much about the bass yet. It’s only day three with the DAC.

What surprised me most is how easy it is to just enjoy music with this DAC. I stopped thinking about technical details and just played album after album. For me, that’s always a good sign.

I’ll spend more time with different genres before making any strong conclusions. But for now, I’m very happy with it. It feels like a DAC made for people who simply love music.

Is anyone else here using the K13 R2R? I’d really enjoy hearing your thoughts.


Thanks for reading 🙏

 

[PieterG]

I had the little brother K11 for a few weeks. It's an excellent headphones amp with plenty of power for anything that's not extremely demanding. The K13 is very similar and reviews indicate it's a little more refined.

The reason i returned my unit is that i couldn't quite get the sound to open up. I got the best results with medium gain and oversampling. The sligthly warmer character is something i can appreciate, and although i had doubts originally about its ability to resolve detail, it was fine once i realised using the low gain setting was a mistake.

I should mention i use closed back headphones. These Fiio DACs, and perhaps R2R designs in general, might be better matched with open headphones. I didn't try the line out, which is better quality than the headphone output according to tests on Audio Science Review.

If i had picked the K13 i probably would have kept it. The EQ controls, which the K11 doesn't have, probably would have been enough for me to get the sound i was looking for.

Congratulations and enjoy!

 

[RTHerringbone]

I've had my K13 R2R since mid-October and it just works, which for me is a good thing and aligns with your "I stopped thinking about technical details and just played album after album" comment @Stuart.W.D

It's a perfect DAC / Amp for my office and in my view there are only two issues. The PEQ interface is nasty and if you have a power cut, for some reason the unit turns itself on when power returns. That apart, it is a very good option to consider for a headphone setup and appears to offer a good deal of quality for a not unreasonable amount of money.

I use mine with Medium gain (driving open-backed planar headphones with a balanced cable) and having started with the NOS mode, I'm now back on OS. I did find some PEQ settings for my headphones but again, I have elected to use no PEQ at all as I don't want or need to change the default settings.

EDIT: Also it's interesting to see yours at a volume of 40! Mine is usually around the 22 mark and it offers plenty of volume.

 

[Stuart.W.D]

I had the little brother K11 for a few weeks. It's an excellent headphones amp with plenty of power for anything that's not extremely demanding. The K13 is very similar and reviews indicate it's a little more refined.

The reason i returned my unit is that i couldn't quite get the sound to open up. I got the best results with medium gain and oversampling. The sligthly warmer character is something i can appreciate, and although i had doubts originally about its ability to resolve detail, it was fine once i realised using the low gain setting was a mistake.

I should mention i use closed back headphones. These Fiio DACs, and perhaps R2R designs in general, might be better matched with open headphones. I didn't try the line out, which is better quality than the headphone output according to tests on Audio Science Review.

If i had picked the K13 i probably would have kept it. The EQ controls, which the K11 doesn't have, probably would have been enough for me to get the sound i was looking for.

Congratulations and enjoy!

Thank you! The real benefit of the K13 over the K11 is better control and refinement. The background will be a little blacker, and there’s more headroom, so the music breathes easier and feels less strained.

What Dac/amp did you settle on in the end!?

 

[Stuart.W.D]

I've had my K13 R2R since mid-October and it just works, which for me is a good thing and aligns with your "I stopped thinking about technical details and just played album after album" comment @Stuart.W.D

It's a perfect DAC / Amp for my office and in my view there are only two issues. The PEQ interface is nasty and if you have a power cut, for some reason the unit turns itself on. That apart, it is a very good option to consider for a headphone setup and appears to offer a good deal of quality for a not unreasonable amount of money.

I use mine with Medium gain (driving open-backed planar headphones with a balanced cable) and having started with the NOS mode, I'm now back on OS. I did find some PEQ settings for my headphones but again, I have elected to use no PEQ at all as I don't want or need to change the defauly settings.

EDIT: Also it's interesting to see yours at a volume of 40! Mine is usually around the 22 mark and it offers plenty of volume.

Great to hear from another K13 owner 🙌

With the Sennheiser HD600, I find medium gain to be the sweet spot. It gives good control and enough headroom without feeling aggressive.

So far, I’ve only put about 30 minutes on my headphones, and my volume has been around 35–45. I haven’t fully settled on that yet. On high gain, I couldn’t go past 27 with the HD600 -- it was already loud.

Between my Marantz PM8005, CD player and KEF Ls50 speakers, the K13 is an excellent DAC. I will connect it to my Cambridge CXN V2 streamer over the weekend and I'm sure it will better the V2 Dac going on early impressions.

Honestly, with my current headphones, I don’t feel like I’m missing anything. The stock tuning already sounds balanced and satisfying to me. Like you, I wouldn’t be surprised if I end up skipping PEQ altogether, especially if the core sound signature is already working well with my setup.

As for NOS vs. OS modes, I really enjoy both through the Dac. For headphones it's NOS. In certain tracks, OS might bring out a hint of extra sibilance in the upper treble, but it’s subtle and track-dependent rather than a clear flaw. It seems more like a presentation difference than a real issue.

Overall, I think I just need more listening time with the DAC. First impressions are very positive, and I’d rather live with it for a while before making any firm conclusions.

Thanks for your response.

 

[nopiano]

I love the design! Who cares what it sounds like! 😉

 

[PieterG]

What Dac/amp did you settle on in the end!?

I got the Topping DX5-ii. Classic delta-sigma implementation with reference level Sabre chips, more power output to the headphones, built-in parametric EQ, and all the connections i might use on a desktop setup.

It's very clean, transparent and detailed. I was a bit concerned that i might need some EQ to tame brightness, but i'm actually using it without EQ and find it excellent. It can match the performance of the Audiolab D9 in my primary setup, but doesn't seem as refined or forgiving with different sources.

To be clear, it's not a leap forward in performance at all. It comes down to gear matching and preferences really. The K13 is similarly priced and i have no doubt it's excellent too. Generally speaking i have more confidence in Fiio as a brand, because i've been using their digital players and IEMs for a number of years, and because they are a fully established brand in our market.

 

[Stuart.W.D]

I've had my K13 R2R since mid-October and it just works, which for me is a good thing and aligns with your "I stopped thinking about technical details and just played album after album" comment @Stuart.W.D

It's a perfect DAC / Amp for my office and in my view there are only two issues. The PEQ interface is nasty and if you have a power cut, for some reason the unit turns itself on. That apart, it is a very good option to consider for a headphone setup and appears to offer a good deal of quality for a not unreasonable amount of money.

I use mine with Medium gain (driving open-backed planar headphones with a balanced cable) and having started with the NOS mode, I'm now back on OS. I did find some PEQ settings for my headphones but again, I have elected to use no PEQ at all as I don't want or need to change the defauly settings.

EDIT: Also it's interesting to see yours at a volume of 40! Mine is usually around the 22 mark and it offers plenty of volume.

Great to hear from another K13 owner 🙌

With the Sennheiser HD600, I find medium gain to be the sweet spot. It gives good control and enough headroom without feeling aggressive.

So far, I’ve only put about 30 minutes on my headphones, and my volume has been around 35–45. I haven’t fully settled on that yet. On high gain, I couldn’t go past 27 with the HD600 -- it was already loud.

Between my Marantz PM8005, CD player and KEF Ls50 speakers, the K13 is an excellent DAC. I will connect it to my Cambridge CXN V2 streamer over the weekend and I'm sure it will better the V2 Dac going on early impressions.

Honestly, with my current headphones, I don’t feel like I’m missing anything. The stock tuning already sounds balanced and satisfying to me. Like you, I wouldn’t be surprised if I end up skipping PEQ altogether, especially if the core sound signature is already working well with my setup.

As for NOS vs. OS modes, I really enjoy both through the Dac. For headphones it's NOS. In certain tracks, OS might bring out a hint of extra sibilance in the upper treble, but it’s subtle and track-dependent rather than a clear flaw. It seems more like a presentation difference than a real issue.

Overall, I think I just need more listening time with the DAC. First impressions are very positive, and I’d rather live with it for a while before making any firm conclusions.

Thanks for your response

I got the Topping DX5-ii. Classic delta-sigma implementation with reference level Sabre chips, more power output to the headphones, built-in parametric EQ, and all the connections i might use on a desktop setup.

It's very clean, transparent and detailed. I was a bit concerned that i might need some EQ to tame brightness, but i'm actually using it without EQ and find it excellent. It can match the performance of the Audiolab D9 in my primary setup, but doesn't seem as refined or forgiving with different sources.

To be clear, it's not a leap forward in performance at all. It comes down to gear matching and preferences really. The K13 is similarly priced and i have no doubt it's excellent too. Generally speaking i have more confidence in Fiio as a brand, because i've been using their digital players and IEMs for a number of years, and because they are a fully established brand in our market.

I had the Topping DX-ii on my shortlist. The Topping is pleasing to the eye and I'm glad that you're happy with it. 😃

 

[Jasonovich]

I have the baby sibling K11 R2R, it doesn't have the expansive window of bigger brother K13 but it has given me a small glimpse of the benefits and strengths of R2R, i.e. musicality.

I'm having dirty thoughts of upgrading my Eversolo Z8 DAC to R2R Denafrips, Laiv or even Gustard R26 but I applied the brakes, Why is this necessary?
I'm getting great sound from Eversolo ESS Chipset.
Music should be king and not your hardware, surely?

 

[skinnypuppy71]

I have the baby sibling K11 R2R, it doesn't have the expansive window of bigger brother K13 but it has given me a small glimpse of the benefits and strengths of R2R, i.e. musicality.

I'm having dirty thoughts of upgrading my Eversolo Z8 DAC to R2R Denafrips, Laiv or even Gustard R26 but I applied the brakes, Why is this necessary?
I'm getting great sound from Eversolo ESS Chipset.
Music should be king and not your hardware, surely?

A bit like you Jason..I often have thoughts of moving to a r2r design but I already have around 3 very good dacs and I have to give myself a shake and think....yes it might be a bit better or slightly different but am I really missing out.....and I have to answer myself...probably not.....Although Tarun at a British Audiophile does give the k13 a rather excellent review.

 

[Stuart.W.D]

I have the baby sibling K11 R2R, it doesn't have the expansive window of bigger brother K13 but it has given me a small glimpse of the benefits and strengths of R2R, i.e. musicality.

I'm having dirty thoughts of upgrading my Eversolo Z8 DAC to R2R Denafrips, Laiv or even Gustard R26 but I applied the brakes, Why is this necessary?
I'm getting great sound from Eversolo ESS Chipset.
Music should be king and not your hardware, surely?

Upgrading when you’re already satisfied is usually driven by curiosity, not need. And curiosity is fine as that’s the hobby. But if music is emotionally landing, if you’re not thinking about gear while listening, that’s already the goal. 😃

 

[Jasonovich]

A bit like you Jason..I often have thoughts of moving to a r2r design but I already have around 3 very good dacs and I have to give myself a shake and think....yes it might be a bit better or slightly different but am I really missing out.....and I have to answer myself...probably not.....Although Tarun at a British Audiophile does give the k13 a rather excellent review.

You know, the Gustard R2R R26 will match my Gustard H26 headamp hmmm?

Little voice in my head.................stop right there, wash your mouth with bleach..... 🤣

 

[skinnypuppy71]

You know, the Gustard R2R R26 will match my Gustard H26 headamp hmmm?

Little voice in my head.................stop right there, wash your mouth with bleach..... 🤣

View attachment 10993

That's funny...the Gustard came up on my Amazon feed "you might like this".🤣🤣🤣

 

[Juzzie Wuzzie]

R2R would make my tube system seem even warmer, so I don't think it is a starter for me. Pity as I'd like to get their R2R DAC with the VU meters as that would be cherry on the cake from a old school looks perspective.

I'd like to see if there was noticeable different between my Topping E30II and a Topping E50II and / or a Schitt Modi. That's about as far as I'd go.

 

[Revolutions]

You know, the Gustard R2R R26 will match my Gustard H26 headamp hmmm?

Little voice in my head.................stop right there, wash your mouth with bleach..... 🤣

View attachment 10993

You probably don’t need to see this, Jason: Primare SC15 mk2 only £999 with code at Audio Affair. If it had balanced out, I’d possibly find it difficult to resist.

https://www.audioaffair.co.uk/primare-sc15-pre-amplifier-network-streamer

 

[Jasonovich]

You probably don’t need to see this, Jason: Primare SC15 mk2 only £999 with code at Audio Affair. If it had balanced out, I’d possibly find it difficult to resist.

https://www.audioaffair.co.uk/primare-sc15-pre-amplifier-network-streamer

It is tempting, really nice! 🙂

 

[Al ears]

You probably don’t need to see this, Jason: Primare SC15 mk2 only £999 with code at Audio Affair. If it had balanced out, I’d possibly find it difficult to resist.

https://www.audioaffair.co.uk/primare-sc15-pre-amplifier-network-streamer

It's a preamp streamer, what's that got to do with a DAC / headphone amp???

 

[Revolutions]

It's a preamp streamer, what's that got to do with a DAC / headphone amp???

Very little.

 

[Gray]

It's a preamp streamer

...and the internal photo shows it half full of empty space.
(For 1800 quid I want them to have trouble putting the lid on 🙂)

 

[Jasonovich]

...and the internal photo shows it half full of empty space.
(For 1800 quid I want them to have trouble putting the lid on 🙂)

I believe £900 with the Audio Affair voucher. If I was needing of a preamp with streamer this wouldn't be a bad choice. My Atoll amp has a pre-out.
The combination of the two would be interesting, I don't have the luxury of space, unfortunately. Nice idea though 🙂

 

[RomanticWarrior]

........ What surprised me most is how easy it is to just enjoy music with this DAC. I stopped thinking about technical details and just played album after album. For me, that’s always a good sign. .......

Exactly Stuart!

I bought mine when it was recommended to me on this forum as a cheaper way of tackling the 'harshness' of my recently purchased Rotel CD player (rather than trading it in for another player). And it has worked a dream. Like you it has made me enjoy the music again. It is easily the best (and cheapest!) upgrade I've made in a long, long, time.

I use mine on OS with medium gain. It's currently set to 50 on the volume scale. It should really be less to balance with other line inputs but I'm reluctant to meddle too much when it sounds so nice.