Where was This When I needed It? Fosi Audio K5 Review
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- Опубліковано 21 лип 2024
- Fosi Audio K5 amzn.to/3U9UZWc
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Awesome intro video. Great stuff. This may be an option. Thank you for the review of this equipment.
for just about 10 years ive lugged a yamaha receiver from the 90's to just use as a dac/heaphone amp with my computers, so i got this amp after watching this video and i can tell you im very satisfied thanks for the upload!
I'm just getting into headphone listening and wanted a cheap rig to start out with. This K5 rig paired nicely with a pair of Koss KPH40 headphones and has given me a beautiful experience to begin with. Thanks for the reviews on both of these items!
I love all the new intros :)
I just bought one of these. I use it to run a pair of Mackie MR524s and a Kanto Sub 8 using an iFi iDefender+ to bust ground loop noise between the speakers and my PC. Headphone jack sounds much cleaner than the RCA's. I chose it primarily so I could have tone controls over the Mackie's. Sounds amazing for the price range, or even several notches above the price range. Speakers are dead quiet, nicely transparent imaging. An awesome desktop DAC for gaming or near field.
Interesting gadget. I relied on the Micca G2 Origen and the Mayflower ARC2 for travel DAC/amps, but there's always something new competing for attention.
bass and treble is pretty cool to have on a device that cheap.
Hi Randy,
Would you be able to add a headphone recommendation list to your list in the description, maybe in cost brackets like your other equipment.
Love you show and more importantly advice.
Cheers, Adam from Australia 🇦🇺
I have one of these and I just want to add that this can work on the Playstation 5, it recognizes it as an audio source. Some Dacs don't get recognize as such on the PS5. I am a new subscriber to your channel and I find your videos to be excellent, thank you.
thank you for your comment as I purchased the Fosi SK02 and it did not work with ps5, so returning it and ordering the k5 pro
Back in the mid-Aughts I stayed in a lot of hotel rooms, traveling around North Texas doing commercial security installations, mostly at USPS facilities. I had a pair of SoundBug units I would attach to any glossy smooth surface in the hotel room to give me a huge soundstage. The SoundBug was a 2xAA-powered suction cup 'exciter' that would turn pretty much any glass pane (think big artsy framed pictures) or mirror into a large speaker, with an almost Magnepan-wide sound presence. Now I'm not saying they were great speakers, per se. They weren't very loud or powerful, clarity dropped off quickly as volume went up, and I would have killed to have Eneloop Pro rechargeable batteries back then, but two SoundBugs and a Discman was a great mini system to unpack at the day. And when I got my first 512MB MP3 player I was ballin'!
SoundBug was useful
Great bits of kit I went with the iFi uno (mqa) same price I think .
I also reviewed this and still use it while gaming.
need a cheap, temporary substitute doc while I send in my geshelli for repair and was literally just looking up reviews of this dac. Heard a few things about excess noise, but wondering if it's worth the $20 in savings over a Schitt Fulla.
Quite versatile unit. If we move aside headphones and knobs for a second, how does it compare with Modi+ and SMSL SU-1?
Application would be MacBook - DAC - RCA - Powered desktop speakers.
Really nice review of the Fosi Audio K5. Do you know if you have headphones and an amp plugged in does it send the signal to both outputs.
Yes, the sound will come out synchronously from the two outputs.
1 Watt @16 ohms, 0.5 W at 32 ohms, 0.08 W (80mW) at 300 ohms. That’s why Randy gives you the Amazon link.
I would like to see a video on the Emotiva Little EGO and/or Big EGO. Seems hardly anyone knows and discusses them. I tried a couple dongle Dac's to be used with a laptop and a phone (pocketable, and USB C powered being main reqs) and sent those back. I settled on the Little EGO and say settled because it is a bit bigger than I want for the phone and pocket. However, it is the cheapest at $50 and has the best performance out of the three I tried. Fosi DS1 and a Fiio KA3 were the dongle DAC's and they both had this annoying cut out quite frequently on my laptop that the Emotiva does not suffer from. They also got quite hot in the pocket and the bigger Emotiva hardly gets warm.
I looked at this one too and considered it for a dedicated desktop setup, but wouldn't consider it for pocket carrying, mowing the grass listening on my phone for instance.
Seconded. Recently picked up both the Emotiva Little Ego+ and the Emotiva Airmotiv GR1 headphones. Love the headphones, and really hope Randy reviews them as well. They used to be 299, but seem to be permanently marked down to 199 now. So, about the Little Ego+... This is my first dac amp, outside of using my LG G9 with the legendary quad dac inside. The Little Ego+ handily outperforms the quad dac, and is also life changing for pc use. I plan to get something bigger and more powerful for pc eventually, but I also am quite happy with its performance. Like you, I just wish it were a little smaller, but what a value champ. I'm quickly turning into a real Emotiva fanboy here.
@@CraigCougar I'm waiting for the B1+ to be available again. Kicking myself for not getting the open box deal a while ago.
For $30 you can get a behringer um2 it's actually a audio interface but it has a high output headphone jack
The intros are killing me, awesome.
What about how it sounds when playing through a sound system using the rca out?.Not everybody uses headphones,
I just bought one intending to use the dac between my TV (optical output) and a 1990s vintage receiver (L&R RCA inputs). One question is, which input do I connect to? Options are TV/Audio (currently using the 3.5mm headphone out to RCA in) , CD, Tape 1 or 2, or Phono. Is there any concern for the output wattage damaging the receiver? Speaker outputs are 8 ohm.
Also, I'm hoping the user manual has better info about power supply than I find on-line. It will be nowhere near a computer. Does the power supply output amperage matter (1.2A vs. 2A) if I use an old, extra phone charger wall adaptor I have? If that is a problem, I will have to send it back. HELP, please! Power supply recommendations? Thanks!
I own the dan Clark aeon closed x. I need a portable amp dac to take to work with me to power them. Any suggestions?
ThanksMuch!
Hi, I have a Marantz CD6005 cd player, can I connect using coaxial cable from the Marantz to the coaxial input on the Fosi K5 Pro?
Do you think this would pair well with the Hifiman HE400se? And you should check out the Aiyima dac-a2pro, which have similar features and price (may even be a clone or something) but also includes a usb hub
I have one, and I'm looking for alternatives, the HE400se have such a low volume with it even when it is maxed out
Why would I want this over plugging my headphones to my laptop? Is it about sound quality coming out of this DAC vs the headphone jack?
There is a little extra convenience factor with volume and tone control knobs but I am trying to understand what else I’m missing.
Great video!
It depends on the headphone. Most high end headphones will need more power than is available via the HP jack. But to be fair, not all. Also, mfg uses the cheapest dac chips and components in their HP stage. Using the external DAC helps maximize the sound coming from Qobuz/Tidal or lossless files. But this Fosi is a monstrosity for travel. I would check out Fiio or Dragonfly for travel, and I would check your HP specs. Chances are, they aren’t power hungry. For example, the ATH line works fine with HP out and the 50s are great cans. If your HP are noise canceling, you don’t need an amp. And if you’re using IEMs, you don’t need an amp. They have very high sensitivity.
I have the fosi k5 and want to know if I can connect this to a pre amp or should I connect to an amp?
How do you think this would go with the HEx4 or HE4xx?
Great review..... would this be good with my Grado SR80 headphones or should I look at something else?
I have those headphones and they aren't all that demanding to drive. I use them with my Vali 2++ and don't need to move the volume knob past the 7pm or 8pm position. This amp will put out enough power. As far as the sound signature matching, Cheap Audio Man says mid-forward presentation. I think my sr80e have good mids and highs and lack in bass, they probably don't need that push in the mids, IMO.
Thank you for the advice - much appreciated.
Is this better then the fosi audio q4 that's what I have and I was looking to up grade to this. Or should I upgrade to the ifi zen air dac
Why I don't see anyone praising them for having base and treble adjustment at your fingertips?
I really like any audio equipment that allows this.
Hey i recently purchased the K5 Pro for my PS5 and phone. I am interested in buying an independent amp to combine with my k5 pro any recommendations thank you
I'm pretty sure there was an earlier video where a commenter was raving about the Fosi Audio K4 - for some reason it's difficult to purchase apart from directly from them.
K4 is a model we developed and sold in 2021, but unfortunately it wan’t good enough. So we absorbed the criticism and made effort to invent this K5 Pro. It’s a total upgrade version of the K4.
Didn't know that .. Will have a look. Thanks 🙏
Just curious, what issues have you had with iOS with USB dongle DAC's? As long as the cable is MFI certified there should be zero issues but there are a lot of fake cables/adapters on Amazon and other places claiming to be MFI certified but they aren't and Apple actually does firmware updates to make fake MFI cables simply not work. That and Apple gets 10 percent of the money for each cable sold to be MFI certified which is why they cost more, and they require a dedicated MFI chip in the cable which I have always found silly for a cable.
A good example would be DDhifi cables. While not cheap, USB C to C is 50 dollars while C to lightning is 65 dollars because they pass those costs off that they have to give apple to the consumer which anybody would do. I can understand MFI for other third party stuff but a cable is pretty silly IMO. With that said, the MFI program is supposed to guarantee everything will just work with apple devices.
for what its worth you def play the game at a high level! keeps me comming back . but dam those stoopid emogi things.
If I have both speakers and headphone plugged into this K5, is there anyway to switch between them?
Sooo which is better( the fosi k5 for 112$ ) OR ( the m-audio air 192|4 for94$ ) Or ( the evo4 for 116$ ) ? Im using the DT 770 250ohms & the dynamic shure pga48 With EVGA NU audio SoundCard
You are comparing 2 DAC for one use case with another DAC that has an absolutely different use case … the K5 is an Gaming DAC and this is what it’s meant for
They really need separate USB power and USB data ports to be more versatile, powering from a powerbank etc..
So, I could connect my Bose Companion 2 computer speakers into the back of this thing and it'll sound good?
The highs in the K5 are horrible I thought it was my speakers but my headphones sound the same. Audio out of the PC sounds way better just using the headphone out.
Can it send a signal into a power amp? Or would the signal be weird....
It does have the RCA lineouts on the back, and will work as a preamp, as Randy mentioned.
Even USB dongle DAC's can be used as a preamp but you have to buy a 3.5mm to RCA cable, or 4.4mm to XLR depending on your AMP, USB dongle DAC and what input you want to use on your AMP. They also work good for gaming because most have built in MICs but obviously they have to be close to you where this device would give you more options including inputs/outputs and is cheaper than most USB dongle DAC's like say, FIIO. I do wonder what DAC this uses, I don't think Randy mentioned that in the video.
Is this the k5pro for gaming that's on there Web site randy,?.
Yes it’s the K5 Pro.😁
I already have the Fosi Q4 dac. Should I upgrade?
This K5 Pro can handle headphones with larger impedances than Q4. Generally speaking it’s an upgraded version of Q4.
The man The legend
Can this run 300ohm+ för my hd650?
Yes it supports headphones up to 300 ohms.
This seems large for travel. I’m a big fan and long time user of the Fiio E10k. About the same price but much smaller, is indestructible, and works like a charm as HP/DAC combo on the go or standalone DAC for laptop at home/office. The headphones I use are Sennheiser HD598 and Hifiman HE400i. Not crazy hungry but the HEs are planar and need the extra punch, which the Fiio does with ease.
🤦♂️🚫🖲, that silly robot didn't listen and started another great review.
I bought a K5 Pro for AU$60 (US$40) after a coupon code and it straight up destroys my Sound Blaster G3 dongle (normally AU$75 on sale) in every respect. The K5 Pro certainly isn't a masterclass in clarity or richness but it's much better than the boomy muddy disaster of the G3. Features and build quality are spot-on. From an electrical engineering perspective I think the PCB's could be improved by removing the split grounds and using a thinner PCB to reduce EMI, so hopefully they exploit that in future revisions. There's also an issue with audible crackling that I can hear occasionally (reason: it was picking up interference from my mobile phone). I don't think it needs additional features like bluetooth, just refinements to the internal electronics.
NO NO NO NO NO........
We want USB C Powered @ 19 Volt with Supercaps inside to handle the dynamics when more than 65 watts is required
We want an SD card slot to play our music directly from the AMP
We want Shuffle Play as the default play from the SD card
and we want a remote control that doesn't suck + bluetooth input
But you can keep it @ $70 if you like
Thnx!
👍
how will it be a preamp?
It has preamp outputs.
@@cheapaudioman I think I just don't understand the use case of preamps, the analog outs from the DAC go into the integrated amp. What are preamps used for?
@@nottooliveYour integrated amp has both a power amplifier and preamplifier within one chassis (hence the word "integrated). The preamplifier and amplifier can be separate units and the K5 can be used as the preamplifier in this scenario.
PC38X best combo for this GAMING DAC
Oh yeah? I was thinking of pairing this with my game one epos headset
@@Redino20 yep I just love and it’s nearly 1 year now and I have no plans to change the setup in any way. The only thing is the Fosi it self. I created and printed a mount for it and uploaded it to Thingiverse so it’s lifted and tilted also the base is more stable
fantastic. Thank you! decided to order my first dac amp because of this. Also because I was borrowing my uncle's dac amp and my ears were SPOILED with 'em, and so when I switched back to plugging in to my mother board it left much to desire@@RichardMar
@@Redino20 let me know if you like it :)
alright I just got it today! and so far it's pretty okay! Gonna keep using it for a few more days and see if my opinion changes :D@@RichardMar
Looks like a great, cheap product.
Currently traveling, I could of used this! 👍👍👍
And then there is a screw right there 😂
I know you said you didn't try to microphone, but has anyone else has crosstalk issues. I've reached out to fosi and they have been no help at all.
No problem at all it even boosted the Quality on my PC38X
Just for the record, jazz is not stupid.