Actually, I have another device that can do USB to LDAC transmission. It's the Shanling M0, yeah the little player have received this functionality through firmware update. And it can do the reverse mode too, receive LDAC and output through USB to external DAC.
The New Chromecast with Google TV also has a LDAC transmitter. It works better for my purposes since you don't need to use bluetooth to send audio wirelessly across rooms. You can send audio to it through WiFi with Tidal Connect or Spotify Connect. From there you can split the HDMI signal to get an optical or coax digital output to connect to your stereo, or send the audio out further via LDAC. It's a very handy device with Android TV built in and a remote control.
What type of connection are you using? According to the specs only coax supports the full 192k/24bit. I wanted this unit for the same thing but my only options are USB or optical, so 96k/24bit is as high as I could go. Would I still benefit over my motherboard's built in bluetooth 5.0?
@@DravenC I actually had the same problem in regards to my PC, and my other DACs didn't support a coax connection. I ended up buying a FiiO K3 DSD256 to pair with the BTA30, since it has a coax out. It's actually very good for the money (~$100), and made LDAC transmission through coax actually viable. First two Fiio products I've ever owned, and I'm very impressed with the results.
@@GeraldWithers ty for taking the time to give me the recommendation. Unfortunately though, it appears as though the E10k only goes up to 92k/24bit, which you can already achieve through optical on the BTA30.
@@DravenC You're right, that was my bad! I actually bought the FiiO K3 for that same reason (sorry about that, they show up as the "same" product on amazon but you have to specifically select the "K3" option). It's about $30 more expensive, but worth it!
One important part to mention is LDAC only works with external sources, you cannot use LDAC with the internal usb dac. I learned this the hard way, luckily I have a Topping D50S I can plug digital into.
@@benjammin7469 i dont understand what you asking i use the ifi audio as the ldac reciever then send spdif output of the zen blue to whatever dac i want to ?
@@tee-jaythestereo-bargainph2120 i'm asking about the bta30 being reviewed. Op said you need d50s for optical input to bta30 for ldac transmission. This seems like a big weakness if you can't use usb input for ldac TX.
My Drop Panda was delivered today. I only ordered it on 11\22! DSD64 through coaxial, ASIO and 990 LDAC! I can dance in every room of my apartment! I've been using some sort of BT since 2005! This is an amazing combination!
The multiple I/O makes it a pretty good way to upgrade an old input-starved hi-fi system into a receiver. I'm gonna use one to upgrade my family's old hi-fi system that only has a single aux-in into a retrofitted beast that can do SPDIF-in directly from a Smart TV, and Bluetooth for when I just wanna lounge around and play Spotify from my phone.
I have a small use for this... I could use this to use a headset on my PC while laying on my bed across the room. I was trying to find a way to get amazon music working in my room at two separate locations without needing to use my phone... I am so glad I found this video :D
Zeos your brainstorming is a good kick in the nuts to the industry. I just ordered one of these and FH3's to use with my BTR5. I will use this with Amazon Music HD for CD quality at home and from my phone when I'm mountain biking. I will be plugging a Chromecast audio into this spdif to cast to. I want a higher end version of with these features eventually. This lossless wireless shit is getting real!
For those who want to get this device. Im using it in TOSLINK IN and BT OUT mode. Volume knob allows to change vomule totaly independently on the volume you can control via headphones therfore its posible to lower volume much lover or boots volume much higher then with other devices of this kind. I had 3 devices of this kind before and all of them featured volume control but it was the same volume that headphone controlerd. Same scale. Its great feature !
got this delivered from AE, 2 weeks ago. I had to reset the BTA30 to get the app to work. It's a pain. But,,,,,,,,,It does LDAC TX(!!!) that can connect to my 15TB music collection. The BTR5 and the Fiio EH3 work wonderfully (through 2 walls). I ordered the Drop Panda immediately, I got lucky, Fedex said the Panda gets here Sunday!
Literally just bought this today. I have an Emotiva TA-100 amp, which has a bluetooth dongle you buy separately (!!). The dongle isn't easy to find in Australia and I saw suggestions for this instead (via coaxial / optical to the amp). This is 2x the price of the dongle ($170 aus for the FiiO), but I can use it on multiple devices, and has a ton of great features also (eg using as a transmitter, or a straight up DAC (I know it's not the worlds best, but its something)) Also I agree on hating apps - I was so close to the Yamaha WXA-50, until I saw app reviews of it being so bad (despite sound good), and people commenting that early models had been removed from the app ..... which forces you to upgrade once the supplier decides not to support anymore if you can only control by an app.
Think they might work better if they were both the same model? Shinny top is the BTA30. The all aluminum model is the BTA30 Pro. They made a lot of changes too. Just thinking out loud.
I found some good use for this. I will be testing this with AptX LL for my wireless VR setup. Currently, I'm running the BTR5 on the Quest 2 with some flimsy USB-C adapter in order to simultaneously attach a powerbank because if this headset's pathetic battery life. Only problem is that USB adapter limits the output of that powerbank making it charge less than the headset + DAC drain which is so annoying. Decoupling the audio from the rest should eliminate that limitation and on top of that improve the input stream giving me better sound, overall.
BUT the 990kbs is only for 24bit 96khz not for 16bit 44.1khz so the compression is equal to mp3 320kbs (1:4 compression), so no, it's not even near lossless.
Stop comparing bitrates between codecs as if they tell anything about quality. What they do with it is the question. SBC can reach over 320kbps but sounds like shit while other codecs can do very well at less. About ldac: 303/606/909 kb/s (for 44.1 and 88.2 kHz), 330/660/990 kb/s (for 48 and 96 kHz). Which depends on settings and link quality. Ldac at 303 is still MILES better than aptX or MP3 around 320. Ldac isn't true lossless, I'm very sure that's not claimed anywhere. It is "highres" because it supports higher samplerates but it's still lossy. That said, most differences at the 600 or 900 kbps setting are in the realm of -50 dbfs. Meaning that when something is playing at normal 'proper' volume, the lossyness is around 50db in the background. Good luck picking that up, I don't believe human ears can do that.
It is Low latency but not low enough.. PLUS you need rear pre-outs on your receiver. PLUS you need power for this, an amp or powered speakers back there anyway.. So just run speaker wire it is easier.
They have the BTA30 Pro now and fixed a few things like full 32bit 384khz over USB and they rolled some of the Chips. The DAC Chip is now better and the US Controller is differrent.
Actually according to the specs from Fiio, the only way to get the full 192k/24bit is through coax. I wanted this unit to use as a dac/transmitter for the benefit of LDAC with my Pandas on PC but my only options are USB or Optical. My knowledge here is lacking, would I still benefit over the standard bluetooth 5.0 from my motherboard going with optical to this at only 96k/24bit?
@@threeedog1 I stand corrected, I own the Avantree Oasis Plus Certified aptX HD . I thought it supported LDAC but you are coorect it does not. It does however support aptx HD which is plenty good enough in my opinion. I love it, great for watching movies which I stream to my Fiio M11.
@@mayurkulkarni1990 Yep, FiiO stated somewhere that implementing LDAC over USB input it a known technical challenge with the Qualcomm CSR8675 chip, It's bad marketing by them to not put that up officially, since the target demographic would most likely be PC users.
Wait, so you mean you need all of these things to run LDAC from the PC to my wireless Sony XB4 headphones? Well that is too complicated for me. I thought that you just connect FiiO BTA30 to the computer and it just works in LDAC with my headphones wirelessly?!
"there both fiio and it should just work" dude that was my exact thoughts setting that thing up. PRO TIP: when pairing make sure you got all other bluetooth stuff off in the area. My Topping D50S had BT on and it was interfering with the unit and connecting to it instead of my BTR5. Took a long time to realize that was what was happening. I finally got this BTA30 working well (range and interference is still disappointing but idk if this is really fiios fault, state of the tech) after a hour or so of massive frustration. Its a tricky device but if you want to run good IEMs wirelessly and be free in your home, this is ze way.
I still have two random BT things that connect to my TaoTronics hubs when I try to live-stream. I don't know where they are or what they are but they suck.
Hey not related to the video. But what would you recommend for gaming and movies out of these two. Ath m40x or akg361? I currently have a shitty steelseries headset and want to switch to a headphone mic combo. I don't know a lot about headphone specs.
I have a question for the Z community. I if I connect the bta30pro to my computer, then go out optical or coaxial to my k5pro, then line out from the k5pro, will the bta30pro mess with the quality? Should I just go from the computer to the k5pro optical, then coaxial from the bta30pro to the k5pro for the bt in??
Does the optical work as a passthrough? And if it does, will sending/receiving stop the signal chain or will it still pass through the optical? How I would set up two of these is the source to optical in on unit A; out in to Unit B; to a DAC, with Unit A in receiving mode and B in sending mode, connected to my phone and a bluetooth receiver respectively. If I want to listen to my source through Bluetooth, just switch on the receiver. If I want to listen to something from my phone on my system, just turn on Bluetooth. All it needs for this to work is a passthrough and a different receiving unit for on the go music listening, but was thinking of using something powerful as a receiving unit at home for headphone usage anyway. At any rate, the solid financial investment this will take is totally worth it to get rid of Bluetooth annoyances and not having to press multiple (!!!) buttons to switch sources.
just to be sure.... I can use this to receive a bluethooth signal from my phone => use the internal dac (that hopefully is good enough for something like the El Amp 2) => send the analog signal to and amp via RCA cable. Right? Do you thinkg the dac would be holding my system bac? Would like to buy the El AMP 2 and Hifimann sundaras.
I know that there probably are better DACs out there. But i dont need the ultra highest end of DACs but still want something that sounds way better than my Motherboard internal realtek stuff.
Thanks for the review! I'm trying to convert my headphones into a wireless gaming setup since Aptx-ll seems low latency enough. Would you recommend using this as a transmitter for Aptx-LL from my PC, or is it overkill for that?
Works well for me in Aptx LL. Instructions to get LL very simple to follow. Also using with KZ AZ09 Pro's paired to IEM, with the AZ09 Pro's set to Aptx LL mode (i.e. "gaming" mode).
Does it allow changing settings when connected with USB? I would prefer they make a new version that only focuses on BT. Given you can A/B, how does LDAC compare to the other codecs?
Dear Zeos, I have this need.. to transmit LDAC from PC to an LDAC receiver (ES100 MK2). Now is 2021... is there anything else I can buy for this purpose? Or BTA30 is still the only option available? Many thanks for the answer and for all...!
If you’re using it as a Bluetooth transmitter, does the volume control mean it’s converting it to analogue and then back to digital over ldac? I’m trying to xbox->optical to this transmitter-> ldac to pandas. I’m hoping the dac in the pandas will be the first time the signal becomes digital. That way the dac in the fiio can’t bottleneck it.
Hello Z, can this "FiiO BTA30 LDAC Receiver Sender" DAC/PreAmp be good for: T5 sub + r1280DBS ? is the knob will work for audio control on both sub and speakers?
Hi Guys, a quick question as I ordered one online. With an optical input on the Fiio BTA30, Will it transfer bitstream Dolby via Bluetooth LDAC to my Panda Headphones? I couldn't find any results online.
Can you connect bta30 to bt hearing aids (transmit to)/connect it to a fiio player via fiio link, ability to plug a aux into it (from m7 to device) for OTA radio, connect to pc (receive from) and connect to tablet (receive from)?
Love it Z...but I hate apps, too. Z, I was with you all the way... Almost trying to figure the connections out. Helping you help me. If that's possible. From the future. But it's the past. Whuut? Ahhh. Fcuk. I need an app
So in theory I can run a digital output from my computer to the BTA 30 and have the BTA 30 stream it in LDAC to my BTR5 completely bypassing my computers Bluetooth?....That would be sweet!!!!!
@@buicksbluesbbq So okay, first DAC preferable Topping D10s connected to the pc with usb cable, then coax to BTA 30 and then LDAC to my Sony XM4 cans which have bluetooth 5.0, have i got it right?
@@buicksbluesbbq What a hassle, i'm new to this btw. So the only way to get 32 bit audio if i connect with a 3,5mm cable? But then i need to get an headpnone amp to succesfully connect because going through RCA would be bad or something? The cans have like 30-40 in resistanse.
btr3k fixes those btr5 bt dropout issues!!!!! just a thought for peeps thinking about buying the 5, don't unless you're going public with extremely hard to drive cans. if you're using anything easier to drive than hd600's just buy the 3k and run it balanced (user of both here.)
Dear friend, I think this kind of commodity is basically flawed by two interconected parameters: mediocre internal DAC and price. Lets look at this matter in realpolitik POV. Most of audiophiles out there are using PCs and laptops to send digital trough USB to higher quality DACs that have better conversion that AK4490. Mostly tthese new DACs have LDAC also. For this price I dont see the reason either to send bluetooth to an AK4490 device (hello 2021!) or to recieve signal trough it. BTR5 has a good selling point, being a portable headamp also. In the case of BTA30 I cant imagine a legit setup to justify such a price. So either you lower the price or you stick into the last top notch DAC on the market at that time (look into the DACs in Fiios portable series). Yes, we have Tidal on most smart TV sets, if you want to look at those big screens when listening some music, but I found rather convenient to go with a cheap MINIX android box as source, having the benefit of the splendid USB Audio Player PRO and sending signal to Topping DAC50s that have LDAC also. For good quality bluetooth I use BTR5 together with Sundara or HD650, for the usual TV watching I find the Fiio EH3 NC good enough. My Samsung S9+ and Fiio M11Pro are both good and reliable LDAC sources too. I love toys and I am strugling to find a reason to buy at least one if not two BTA30s, at this rather high step tag, but I really cant find any. Maybe I am not having the most complete picture of that, therefore I will happily accept any (better) point of view. Thanks in advance.
I have the avantree oasis plus because my tv doesn't have Bluetooth and its fantastic and turns on and off automatically with the TV. Sbc, aptx LL, aptx HD, and FastStream all supported. The looks are better than the fiio but doesn't support Ldac.
So if you want to add a DAC/bluetooth receiver this is a good choice since it has the LDAC. Not sure how much I would want to start a track on a PC then walk around with my BTR5 receiving it. That means I'd probably have to return to the PC to switch tracks, seems to defeat the purpose, but as a LDAC bluetooth receiver/DAC for an amp, this seems nice. Does the volume knob mean it can function as a pre-amp as well, or is that just a limiter? It seems like the knob didn't work with the line outputs to your amp, but maybe that was a setting. It looks like you had it going straight to your Liquid Gold, is that the case? I have a Liquid Platium that does not have a DAC or BT, so if this could be a perfect addition. There is also a review saying it disconnects quickly when there is no audio signal like when you pause the song, have you experienced that? Maybe that explains some of your connection issues. If so, that's a dealbreaker until it's patched.
Apologizes for asking such a "noob" question but is it possible for me to combine the BTA30 with my Project Prebox Digital S2 and my Audeze Mobius headphones to use the Prebox just as a DAC to feed the BTA30 into the Mobius with bluetooth?
Same with the Xduoo XQ50 Plus/pro? Its $80 and receives LDAC , outputs coax, optical and RCA and has a screen that shows you the title of what is playing
@@ZReviews its only outputs yes but it has optical coax for digital rca and that 4.4 output where you can get a 4.4 to XLR as well and it can be used as a dac or just as a reciever transport for an external dac
This could be the saviour of my system... But there's a missing link. Turntable is away from the rest of my system, so a couple of MPOW TR+'s are making a bridge between phono-pre + receiver. However cheap tube pre + cheap bluetooth TR = SQ that is appalling. Like un-listenable; the turntable is just decoration. Lets say I go; turntable to -phono pre. Now I need to get an analogue signal into this as a sender... Minidsp? Or can the RCA's on this unit be swapped to an input?... because that will be epic.
Hey Z Reviews Based on, or rather inspired by your video, I did the following: I did not use the Bluetooth (BT) on my iPad (BT was OFF) but instead I connected a BTA 30 Pro via USB (using the Apple dongle to convert lightning to usb) as a BT transmitter. As a BT receiver, I used BTR5 and tried to access LDAC Mode to see if I get a better sound. The thing is that there is a very noticeable and irritating audio latency problem, so such an arrangement is actually unusable. Any thoughts? Is it possible to avoid audio lag?
What are the transmission rates on the USB cable connectors? I just bought a USB-A 3.0 (1meter) to USB-C cable on AliEx for both 3A power and 5Gbps data xmission, for about $4. For the BTA30Pro the advertisement states up to 32Bit/384kHz on USB in. Hoping I can go USB 3.0 from PC direct to BTA30Pro. If not, then there is only optical for my use case, limiting me to 24bit/96kHz.
Hi bro, it can have a auto turn on like btr5 car Mode? İ want use in my car for optic in amp. But i cant always manuel turn on, it can auto turn on for type c power on? Plase help me
Please DON'T buy it if you're using a PC since the CSR8675 chip doesn't support LDAC output if you're using USB input. Making it essentially useless for the vast majority looking to upgrade over their PCs inbuilt Bluetooth.
You need to revise your comment as it is incorrect. If you are going to use it with your PC you MUST hook it up via optical or coax. Most modern desktop PC's have optical out. Laptops can use it with a $20 HDMI to Optical adapter. Me personally I'm running it off a desktop PC using an optical cable and then LDAC to my XM4s.
@@JeremyLynnes Does it go into standby mode when there is no signal? Read a couple of reviews about this and am a little worried before buying. It is important to me that he does not break the connection for a prolonged absence of a signal or low volume. I would also like to ask, do you use an external source to power it, or can it be connected to the USB port of a computer for power, but use optics to output sound? Thank you in advance for your response.
@@tsundereunit3711 It does but then it never gets out of standby, it will keep connecting and disconnecting from my XM4s until I power the unit down and turn it back on. I originally powered my unit via USB on the back of my PC but since I don't have any power only USB cables this was a bad idea as the BA30 kept trying to switch between USB and Optical. I've since changed it to be powered separate from my PC but sleep/connectivity issues remain.
I've been trying to find a nice BT transmitter that I can setup on my TV for gaming and movie watching. So far the ones I've tried degrade the audio quality or have latency. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!
perfect review as always!! This device is amazing, and there is a new PRO version in the market that makes it unbeatable on this category I think. I would really like to know how are you feeding the transmitter set with coaxial from your laptop/pc. What device is there in between? thanks
I have a question relating to bluetooth from phones. If my phone is incapable of sending LDAC, or is just sent through standard bluetooth with no LDAC, will the BTR5 still be able to use LDAC since it was sent through a lossy stream (bluetooth 5)? Or does the btr5 kind of upscale the music like a TV or monitor can do to video?
Your phone needs to have LDAC to stream using that format. The Fiio just receives and plays what is streamed to it. It isn't a music format. LDAC is great for large FLAC files and streaming high quality stuff from services like Tidal and Qobuz. Depending on the music files you have LDAC may not be of any benefit to you, a 10mb iTunes purchase will sound the same streamed through aptx as it does through LDAC. Sorry if you already know this.
On iphone at least with the q5s you are not allowed to pair by yourself but actually turn off bluetooth and reenable. The Q5s needs to be in pairing I think and then the FiiO App does the pairing by itself. It is a pain in the butt.
My BTA30 won't properly connect to my windows 10 pc as an audio device, does anyone know how to fix that problem? It only shows up as "audio, video and gamecontroller" and you can't use it as audio output...
Hi Z Thanks for another great video. Have you ever created a wireless passive rear speaker hack video? DO you know what I mean I'm not sure I do, I.e. two amps + 2 wireless senders to connect two old rear surround speakers. Interested if there was a fun work sound for this.
Great review Thank you world would be les entertaining place without U❗️😃 so Thank you for that even more🌈🏖 Merry Xmas❄️ I would love U to get hands on hifiman Deva some reviewers despise it some love it so I’d love to know how U feel about them... They scale great Anyway Greetings from Prague🙋♂️🇨🇿
Could this work with your home cinema. You spent hours cabling between racks and trying to simplify. If you can resynch the image with the sound you could maybe simplify? Thinking out loud here. I too dislike apps, they are ok but sometimes you just want USB console access to make it go. Old Skool Rulez.
I must have a defective BTR5 because mine has the worst Bluetooth connection of any product I’ve ever used. It’s constantly losing signal if my phone is not right next to it.
Do you have the Bluetooth codec set to LDAC? I found that taking it about 5 yards away from my phone caused it to clip and cut out. If it is set to LDAC only it needs to be very near the phone or player as it cannot switch to another codec to maintain the connection. No idea where I heard this.
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spec sheet says, USB input doesn't do LDAC TX
Hey Zeos, I have new brainfuck Headphones für you: Superlux HD 660 Pro. 33€.
The best part of this review is the struggle of connecting and reconnecting. That is shit that other reviewers just dont do
The Struggle is real, always
I've been wanting to try a transmitter like this, but I was worried about trying to pair two UI-less devices. I guess I was correct to worry.
I know this is a year late but the bta30pro has to be on RX mode to connect to the android app
@@mrip0dtouch YES!!!! I finally figured that out after actually taking 5 minutes to read the English instructions. Mea Culpa.
I've been waiting for this exact type of device for a long time. Good job Fiio!
Actually, I have another device that can do USB to LDAC transmission. It's the Shanling M0, yeah the little player have received this functionality through firmware update. And it can do the reverse mode too, receive LDAC and output through USB to external DAC.
The New Chromecast with Google TV also has a LDAC transmitter. It works better for my purposes since you don't need to use bluetooth to send audio wirelessly across rooms. You can send audio to it through WiFi with Tidal Connect or Spotify Connect. From there you can split the HDMI signal to get an optical or coax digital output to connect to your stereo, or send the audio out further via LDAC. It's a very handy device with Android TV built in and a remote control.
Zeos seriously stop making me buy things I absolutely need.
Ya it's getting fucky aleady.
Bought one of these last week to send LDAC from my PC to my Drop Pandas (sounds amazing). Love it so far. Does exactly what it's supposed to do.
What type of connection are you using? According to the specs only coax supports the full 192k/24bit. I wanted this unit for the same thing but my only options are USB or optical, so 96k/24bit is as high as I could go. Would I still benefit over my motherboard's built in bluetooth 5.0?
@@DravenC I actually had the same problem in regards to my PC, and my other DACs didn't support a coax connection. I ended up buying a FiiO K3 DSD256 to pair with the BTA30, since it has a coax out. It's actually very good for the money (~$100), and made LDAC transmission through coax actually viable. First two Fiio products I've ever owned, and I'm very impressed with the results.
@@GeraldWithers ty for taking the time to give me the recommendation. Unfortunately though, it appears as though the E10k only goes up to 92k/24bit, which you can already achieve through optical on the BTA30.
@@DravenC You're right, that was my bad! I actually bought the FiiO K3 for that same reason (sorry about that, they show up as the "same" product on amazon but you have to specifically select the "K3" option). It's about $30 more expensive, but worth it!
@@GeraldWithers gotcha, thanks
One important part to mention is LDAC only works with external sources, you cannot use LDAC with the internal usb dac. I learned this the hard way, luckily I have a Topping D50S I can plug digital into.
The R3 pro can do that
I will be reviewing the d50 soon 😃 but ifi audio zen blue is my end game bluetooth reviever
You cannot transmit ldac from a laptop without d10s?!!
@@benjammin7469 i dont understand what you asking i use the ifi audio as the ldac reciever then send spdif output of the zen blue to whatever dac i want to ?
@@tee-jaythestereo-bargainph2120 i'm asking about the bta30 being reviewed. Op said you need d50s for optical input to bta30 for ldac transmission. This seems like a big weakness if you can't use usb input for ldac TX.
Pop your Motion sickness Tablets and strap inn :)
My Drop Panda was delivered today. I only ordered it on 11\22! DSD64 through coaxial, ASIO and 990 LDAC! I can dance in every room of my apartment! I've been using some sort of BT since 2005! This is an amazing combination!
That might be a good way to send music to my front porch without drilling a hole in the wall
Use case for two of these devices: you can share a good streamer across living room and desktop setup with no cables.
The multiple I/O makes it a pretty good way to upgrade an old input-starved hi-fi system into a receiver. I'm gonna use one to upgrade my family's old hi-fi system that only has a single aux-in into a retrofitted beast that can do SPDIF-in directly from a Smart TV, and Bluetooth for when I just wanna lounge around and play Spotify from my phone.
I have a small use for this... I could use this to use a headset on my PC while laying on my bed across the room. I was trying to find a way to get amazon music working in my room at two separate locations without needing to use my phone... I am so glad I found this video :D
You can be so minimalist and have like half foot wires for your set ups and let the ldac signal do the rest
This review is why I like Zeos' reviews. Not just another obvious 'objective' sponsored advertorial but down to the nitty gritty.
Zeos your brainstorming is a good kick in the nuts to the industry. I just ordered one of these and FH3's to use with my BTR5. I will use this with Amazon Music HD for CD quality at home and from my phone when I'm mountain biking. I will be plugging a Chromecast audio into this spdif to cast to. I want a higher end version of with these features eventually. This lossless wireless shit is getting real!
For those who want to get this device. Im using it in TOSLINK IN and BT OUT mode. Volume knob allows to change vomule totaly independently on the volume you can control via headphones therfore its posible to lower volume much lover or boots volume much higher then with other devices of this kind. I had 3 devices of this kind before and all of them featured volume control but it was the same volume that headphone controlerd. Same scale. Its great feature !
got this delivered from AE, 2 weeks ago. I had to reset the BTA30 to get the app to work. It's a pain. But,,,,,,,,,It does LDAC TX(!!!) that can connect to my 15TB music collection. The BTR5 and the Fiio EH3 work wonderfully (through 2 walls). I ordered the Drop Panda immediately, I got lucky, Fedex said the Panda gets here Sunday!
Quarantine has been ok. Considering all the wild shit that came out of it, it’s ok.
Thanks for asking, Z!
The BTA30 Pro supports up to 384kHz/32bit over usb. The non-pro is limited to 48/16
Literally just bought this today.
I have an Emotiva TA-100 amp, which has a bluetooth dongle you buy separately (!!).
The dongle isn't easy to find in Australia and I saw suggestions for this instead (via coaxial / optical to the amp).
This is 2x the price of the dongle ($170 aus for the FiiO), but I can use it on multiple devices, and has a ton of great features also (eg using as a transmitter, or a straight up DAC (I know it's not the worlds best, but its something))
Also I agree on hating apps - I was so close to the Yamaha WXA-50, until I saw app reviews of it being so bad (despite sound good), and people commenting that early models had been removed from the app ..... which forces you to upgrade once the supplier decides not to support anymore if you can only control by an app.
Think they might work better if they were both the same model? Shinny top is the BTA30. The all aluminum model is the BTA30 Pro.
They made a lot of changes too.
Just thinking out loud.
I found some good use for this.
I will be testing this with AptX LL for my wireless VR setup.
Currently, I'm running the BTR5 on the Quest 2 with some flimsy USB-C adapter in order to simultaneously attach a powerbank because if this headset's pathetic battery life. Only problem is that USB adapter limits the output of that powerbank making it charge less than the headset + DAC drain which is so annoying.
Decoupling the audio from the rest should eliminate that limitation and on top of that improve the input stream giving me better sound, overall.
BUT the 990kbs is only for 24bit 96khz not for 16bit 44.1khz so the compression is equal to mp3 320kbs (1:4 compression), so no, it's not even near lossless.
Stop comparing bitrates between codecs as if they tell anything about quality. What they do with it is the question. SBC can reach over 320kbps but sounds like shit while other codecs can do very well at less.
About ldac: 303/606/909 kb/s (for 44.1 and 88.2 kHz), 330/660/990 kb/s (for 48 and 96 kHz). Which depends on settings and link quality. Ldac at 303 is still MILES better than aptX or MP3 around 320.
Ldac isn't true lossless, I'm very sure that's not claimed anywhere. It is "highres" because it supports higher samplerates but it's still lossy.
That said, most differences at the 600 or 900 kbps setting are in the realm of -50 dbfs.
Meaning that when something is playing at normal 'proper' volume, the lossyness is around 50db in the background. Good luck picking that up, I don't believe human ears can do that.
I got my BTA30 today but it only connects to my Sony 1000XM4s in SBC for some reason (blue light). Can't get it to switch to the white light for LDAC
Maybe there's something in the sony app?
Low latency rear powered speaker is possible now?
It is Low latency but not low enough.. PLUS you need rear pre-outs on your receiver. PLUS you need power for this, an amp or powered speakers back there anyway.. So just run speaker wire it is easier.
They have the BTA30 Pro now and fixed a few things like full 32bit 384khz over USB and they rolled some of the Chips. The DAC Chip is now better and the US Controller is differrent.
I love the live setup and testing!
Actually according to the specs from Fiio, the only way to get the full 192k/24bit is through coax. I wanted this unit to use as a dac/transmitter for the benefit of LDAC with my Pandas on PC but my only options are USB or Optical. My knowledge here is lacking, would I still benefit over the standard bluetooth 5.0 from my motherboard going with optical to this at only 96k/24bit?
Zeos. I guess you have not heard of Avantree. They have been doing this for a long time, I own one, it works superbly.
theirs don't do ldac though
@@threeedog1 I stand corrected, I own the Avantree Oasis Plus Certified aptX HD . I thought it supported LDAC but you are coorect it does not. It does however support aptx HD which is plenty good enough in my opinion. I love it, great for watching movies which I stream to my Fiio M11.
Thank you for video! Finally I made up my mind!
there is a known issue with this,
1. you cannot transmit LDAC via usb input.
2. you cannot transmit Aptx LL to multiple device,
you cannot transmit LDAC via usb input.
really? this makes it useless for me then. can you please elaborate?
@@mayurkulkarni1990 Yep, FiiO stated somewhere that implementing LDAC over USB input it a known technical challenge with the Qualcomm CSR8675 chip, It's bad marketing by them to not put that up officially, since the target demographic would most likely be PC users.
I didn't even try LDAC via the USB since it is stuck on low bitrate mode anyway.
I thought it was just what I need...
I wish there was a hipdac sized battery powered version of this so that you can hook it up to portables that don't have bluetooth built in
What is the need to have 2? I still don't get it
i want to connect my Sony 1000XM4 with LDAC to my TV/Soundbar, looks like, this is the way to go!
Wait, so you mean you need all of these things to run LDAC from the PC to my wireless Sony XB4 headphones? Well that is too complicated for me.
I thought that you just connect FiiO BTA30 to the computer and it just works in LDAC with my headphones wirelessly?!
"there both fiio and it should just work" dude that was my exact thoughts setting that thing up.
PRO TIP: when pairing make sure you got all other bluetooth stuff off in the area. My Topping D50S had BT on and it was interfering with the unit and connecting to it instead of my BTR5. Took a long time to realize that was what was happening. I finally got this BTA30 working well (range and interference is still disappointing but idk if this is really fiios fault, state of the tech) after a hour or so of massive frustration. Its a tricky device but if you want to run good IEMs wirelessly and be free in your home, this is ze way.
I still have two random BT things that connect to my TaoTronics hubs when I try to live-stream. I don't know where they are or what they are but they suck.
2x RCA male to 1x RCA male for 'coax in' - would that work? want to get my turntable to transmit, that only have 2x rca out (from built in pre-amp).
Hey not related to the video. But what would you recommend for gaming and movies out of these two. Ath m40x or akg361? I currently have a shitty steelseries headset and want to switch to a headphone mic combo. I don't know a lot about headphone specs.
Thats why I'm here. Did you figure it out?
I have a question for the Z community. I if I connect the bta30pro to my computer, then go out optical or coaxial to my k5pro, then line out from the k5pro, will the bta30pro mess with the quality? Should I just go from the computer to the k5pro optical, then coaxial from the bta30pro to the k5pro for the bt in??
can a smart TV control the volume output once connected to FiiO? I'm in search for new DAC/preamp for TV
Does the optical work as a passthrough? And if it does, will sending/receiving stop the signal chain or will it still pass through the optical?
How I would set up two of these is the source to optical in on unit A; out in to Unit B; to a DAC, with Unit A in receiving mode and B in sending mode, connected to my phone and a bluetooth receiver respectively.
If I want to listen to my source through Bluetooth, just switch on the receiver. If I want to listen to something from my phone on my system, just turn on Bluetooth.
All it needs for this to work is a passthrough and a different receiving unit for on the go music listening, but was thinking of using something powerful as a receiving unit at home for headphone usage anyway.
At any rate, the solid financial investment this will take is totally worth it to get rid of Bluetooth annoyances and not having to press multiple (!!!) buttons to switch sources.
Hi just bought one and it won't pass through. Hope this isn't too late.
just to be sure.... I can use this to receive a bluethooth signal from my phone => use the internal dac (that hopefully is good enough for something like the El Amp 2) => send the analog signal to and amp via RCA cable. Right? Do you thinkg the dac would be holding my system bac? Would like to buy the El AMP 2 and Hifimann sundaras.
I know that there probably are better DACs out there. But i dont need the ultra highest end of DACs but still want something that sounds way better than my Motherboard internal realtek stuff.
Thanks for the review! I'm trying to convert my headphones into a wireless gaming setup since Aptx-ll seems low latency enough. Would you recommend using this as a transmitter for Aptx-LL from my PC, or is it overkill for that?
Works well for me in Aptx LL. Instructions to get LL very simple to follow. Also using with KZ AZ09 Pro's paired to IEM, with the AZ09 Pro's set to Aptx LL mode (i.e. "gaming" mode).
Would it be feasible to make a wireless home theatre with this?
Which one u suggest ?? This one , bluMe hD or some other DAC ?
Does it allow changing settings when connected with USB? I would prefer they make a new version that only focuses on BT. Given you can A/B, how does LDAC compare to the other codecs?
Hi friend! What is the best for edifier s2000mkiii - FiiO BTA30 or FiiO K3?
Dear Zeos, I have this need.. to transmit LDAC from PC to an LDAC receiver (ES100 MK2). Now is 2021... is there anything else I can buy for this purpose? Or BTA30 is still the only option available? Many thanks for the answer and for all...!
If you’re using it as a Bluetooth transmitter, does the volume control mean it’s converting it to analogue and then back to digital over ldac? I’m trying to xbox->optical to this transmitter-> ldac to pandas. I’m hoping the dac in the pandas will be the first time the signal becomes digital. That way the dac in the fiio can’t bottleneck it.
THIS IS PERFECT !! wow could separate setups now =DD
Hello Z, can this "FiiO BTA30 LDAC Receiver Sender" DAC/PreAmp be good for: T5 sub + r1280DBS ? is the knob will work for audio control on both sub and speakers?
could we up the gain signal distance by replacing the antenna?
Does this work with a game console, like the PS5 and what’s the latency like?
Honestly, any!
Yes, the Vanatoo Speakers need an app !!!
Does the BTA30 auto turn on when it gets power via the USB port?
Hi Guys, a quick question as I ordered one online. With an optical input on the Fiio BTA30, Will it transfer bitstream Dolby via Bluetooth LDAC to my Panda Headphones? I couldn't find any results online.
Can you connect bta30 to bt hearing aids (transmit to)/connect it to a fiio player via fiio link, ability to plug a aux into it (from m7 to device) for OTA radio, connect to pc (receive from) and connect to tablet (receive from)?
If I hook this up via usb to my laptop can I connect to my zen blu tooth dac on my hifi and send ldac thru just the USB connection on the laptop?
Love it Z...but I hate apps, too. Z, I was with you all the way... Almost trying to figure the connections out. Helping you help me. If that's possible.
From the future. But it's the past. Whuut? Ahhh. Fcuk. I need an app
So in theory I can run a digital output from my computer to the BTA 30 and have the BTA 30 stream it in LDAC to my BTR5 completely bypassing my computers Bluetooth?....That would be sweet!!!!!
As long as the digital output is not USB, then yes
@@buicksbluesbbq So okay, first DAC preferable Topping D10s connected to the pc with usb cable, then coax to BTA 30 and then LDAC to my Sony XM4 cans which have bluetooth 5.0, have i got it right?
@@oleglysenko Yes, that would be right.
@@buicksbluesbbq What a hassle, i'm new to this btw. So the only way to get 32 bit audio if i connect with a 3,5mm cable? But then i need to get an headpnone amp to succesfully connect because going through RCA would be bad or something? The cans have like 30-40 in resistanse.
Hey, i'd like to ask what's the music app you're using on your pc? Thanks
btr3k fixes those btr5 bt dropout issues!!!!!
just a thought for peeps thinking about buying the 5, don't unless you're going public with extremely hard to drive cans.
if you're using anything easier to drive than hd600's just buy the 3k and run it balanced (user of both here.)
Dear friend, I think this kind of commodity is basically flawed by two interconected parameters: mediocre internal DAC and price. Lets look at this matter in realpolitik POV. Most of audiophiles out there are using PCs and laptops to send digital trough USB to higher quality DACs that have better conversion that AK4490. Mostly tthese new DACs have LDAC also. For this price I dont see the reason either to send bluetooth to an AK4490 device (hello 2021!) or to recieve signal trough it. BTR5 has a good selling point, being a portable headamp also. In the case of BTA30 I cant imagine a legit setup to justify such a price. So either you lower the price or you stick into the last top notch DAC on the market at that time (look into the DACs in Fiios portable series). Yes, we have Tidal on most smart TV sets, if you want to look at those big screens when listening some music, but I found rather convenient to go with a cheap MINIX android box as source, having the benefit of the splendid USB Audio Player PRO and sending signal to Topping DAC50s that have LDAC also. For good quality bluetooth I use BTR5 together with Sundara or HD650, for the usual TV watching I find the Fiio EH3 NC good enough. My Samsung S9+ and Fiio M11Pro are both good and reliable LDAC sources too. I love toys and I am strugling to find a reason to buy at least one if not two BTA30s, at this rather high step tag, but I really cant find any. Maybe I am not having the most complete picture of that, therefore I will happily accept any (better) point of view. Thanks in advance.
I have the avantree oasis plus because my tv doesn't have Bluetooth and its fantastic and turns on and off automatically with the TV. Sbc, aptx LL, aptx HD, and FastStream all supported. The looks are better than the fiio but doesn't support Ldac.
So if you want to add a DAC/bluetooth receiver this is a good choice since it has the LDAC. Not sure how much I would want to start a track on a PC then walk around with my BTR5 receiving it. That means I'd probably have to return to the PC to switch tracks, seems to defeat the purpose, but as a LDAC bluetooth receiver/DAC for an amp, this seems nice. Does the volume knob mean it can function as a pre-amp as well, or is that just a limiter? It seems like the knob didn't work with the line outputs to your amp, but maybe that was a setting. It looks like you had it going straight to your Liquid Gold, is that the case? I have a Liquid Platium that does not have a DAC or BT, so if this could be a perfect addition. There is also a review saying it disconnects quickly when there is no audio signal like when you pause the song, have you experienced that? Maybe that explains some of your connection issues. If so, that's a dealbreaker until it's patched.
Apologizes for asking such a "noob" question but is it possible for me to combine the BTA30 with my Project Prebox Digital S2 and my Audeze Mobius headphones to use the Prebox just as a DAC to feed the BTA30 into the Mobius with bluetooth?
19:14 gotta coaxial coax co coa...
The ifi zen blue is like 130 does LDAC but it's just a reciever im planning on running coax into my dac so I have bluetooth into my speakers
Same with the Xduoo XQ50 Plus/pro? Its $80 and receives LDAC , outputs coax, optical and RCA and has a screen that shows you the title of what is playing
@@ZReviews its only outputs yes but it has optical coax for digital rca and that 4.4 output where you can get a 4.4 to XLR as well and it can be used as a dac or just as a reciever transport for an external dac
This could be the saviour of my system... But there's a missing link. Turntable is away from the rest of my system, so a couple of MPOW TR+'s are making a bridge between phono-pre + receiver.
However cheap tube pre + cheap bluetooth TR = SQ that is appalling. Like un-listenable; the turntable is just decoration.
Lets say I go; turntable to -phono pre. Now I need to get an analogue signal into this as a sender... Minidsp? Or can the RCA's on this unit be swapped to an input?... because that will be epic.
Hey Z Reviews
Based on, or rather inspired by your video, I did the following: I did not use the Bluetooth (BT) on my iPad (BT was OFF) but instead I connected a BTA 30 Pro via USB (using the Apple dongle to convert lightning to usb) as a BT transmitter.
As a BT receiver, I used BTR5 and tried to access LDAC Mode to see if I get a better sound.
The thing is that there is a very noticeable and irritating audio latency problem, so such an arrangement is actually unusable.
Any thoughts? Is it possible to avoid audio lag?
What are the transmission rates on the USB cable connectors? I just bought a USB-A 3.0 (1meter) to USB-C cable on AliEx for both 3A power and 5Gbps data xmission, for about $4.
For the BTA30Pro the advertisement states up to 32Bit/384kHz on USB in. Hoping I can go USB 3.0 from PC direct to BTA30Pro. If not, then there is only optical for my use case, limiting me to 24bit/96kHz.
Hi bro, it can have a auto turn on like btr5 car Mode? İ want use in my car for optic in amp. But i cant always manuel turn on, it can auto turn on for type c power on? Plase help me
Finally!! chat thought I was crazy T_T
Please DON'T buy it if you're using a PC since the CSR8675 chip doesn't support LDAC output if you're using USB input. Making it essentially useless for the vast majority looking to upgrade over their PCs inbuilt Bluetooth.
You need to revise your comment as it is incorrect. If you are going to use it with your PC you MUST hook it up via optical or coax. Most modern desktop PC's have optical out. Laptops can use it with a $20 HDMI to Optical adapter. Me personally I'm running it off a desktop PC using an optical cable and then LDAC to my XM4s.
@@JeremyLynnes Does it go into standby mode when there is no signal? Read a couple of reviews about this and am a little worried before buying. It is important to me that he does not break the connection for a prolonged absence of a signal or low volume. I would also like to ask, do you use an external source to power it, or can it be connected to the USB port of a computer for power, but use optics to output sound? Thank you in advance for your response.
@@tsundereunit3711 It does but then it never gets out of standby, it will keep connecting and disconnecting from my XM4s until I power the unit down and turn it back on. I originally powered my unit via USB on the back of my PC but since I don't have any power only USB cables this was a bad idea as the BA30 kept trying to switch between USB and Optical. I've since changed it to be powered separate from my PC but sleep/connectivity issues remain.
Just ordered mine👍🏽
Can BTA30 connect to EH3?
I've been trying to find a nice BT transmitter that I can setup on my TV for gaming and movie watching. So far the ones I've tried degrade the audio quality or have latency. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!
Apple TV + AirPods
perfect review as always!! This device is amazing, and there is a new PRO version in the market that makes it unbeatable on this category I think. I would really like to know how are you feeding the transmitter set with coaxial from your laptop/pc. What device is there in between? thanks
usb to coaxial?
I have a question relating to bluetooth from phones. If my phone is incapable of sending LDAC, or is just sent through standard bluetooth with no LDAC, will the BTR5 still be able to use LDAC since it was sent through a lossy stream (bluetooth 5)? Or does the btr5 kind of upscale the music like a TV or monitor can do to video?
Your phone needs to have LDAC to stream using that format. The Fiio just receives and plays what is streamed to it. It isn't a music format. LDAC is great for large FLAC files and streaming high quality stuff from services like Tidal and Qobuz. Depending on the music files you have LDAC may not be of any benefit to you, a 10mb iTunes purchase will sound the same streamed through aptx as it does through LDAC. Sorry if you already know this.
@@mrfrosty3 so how would I stream LDAC from my phone to a BTR5? Or would I have to hook my computer up to an ldac sender like the BTA30?
Oh! The pain, Will Robinson! The pain!!.........
On iphone at least with the q5s you are not allowed to pair by yourself but actually turn off bluetooth and reenable. The Q5s needs to be in pairing I think and then the FiiO App does the pairing by itself. It is a pain in the butt.
But you need a good connection for LDAC, it will go down to 660 or 330 with a bad connection
My BTA30 won't properly connect to my windows 10 pc as an audio device, does anyone know how to fix that problem? It only shows up as "audio, video and gamecontroller" and you can't use it as audio output...
Hi Z
Thanks for another great video.
Have you ever created a wireless passive rear speaker hack video? DO you know what I mean I'm not sure I do,
I.e. two amps + 2 wireless senders to connect two old rear surround speakers.
Interested if there was a fun work sound for this.
Great review Thank you world would be les entertaining place without U❗️😃 so Thank you for that even more🌈🏖 Merry Xmas❄️ I would love U to get hands on hifiman Deva some reviewers despise it some love it so I’d love to know how U feel about them... They scale great Anyway Greetings from Prague🙋♂️🇨🇿
FINALLY! Nice one Fiio.
9:08 you want digital to be ZEOS.. MMD! 🤣🤣👍
avantree ?
U have btr5 and not using the symmetric output :P, Neither do I but wanna test, just need to make that cable I guess ...
has NFC ??
Could this work with your home cinema. You spent hours cabling between racks and trying to simplify. If you can resynch the image with the sound you could maybe simplify? Thinking out loud here. I too dislike apps, they are ok but sometimes you just want USB console access to make it go. Old Skool Rulez.
can you try if the usb in works with android?
Chewy you’re drunk, go home Zeos Bacca, you’re PanteraFaced!
Can I connect 3.5 headphone into this?
No
Looking at what's holding up that Emotiva still making my eye twitch with anxiety.
I took it apart yesterday. Officially moved across the basement.
oh man I was looking for a device that could transmit LDAC! Unfortunately there're sold out :/. Any other products like that. Using WF-1000XM4.
@Z Reviews bro we need your help, please help spreading awareness to this #stopDMCA
I must have a defective BTR5 because mine has the worst Bluetooth connection of any product I’ve ever used. It’s constantly losing signal if my phone is not right next to it.
Do you have the Bluetooth codec set to LDAC? I found that taking it about 5 yards away from my phone caused it to clip and cut out. If it is set to LDAC only it needs to be very near the phone or player as it cannot switch to another codec to maintain the connection. No idea where I heard this.
Ah yes... been waiting for it...