FiiO KA11 by Jade Audio DAC/AMP Dongle – Mini CS43131 For The Win
FiiO Ka11 is a $29 USD DAC / AMP / dongle with a nice ergonomic, high quality CS43131 DAC chip, and with up to 245 mW of power output per channel. Today we will review the Ka11 and explore how it sounds.
Introduction
Jade Audio is a sub brand of FiiO focused on offering high quality products at entry-level prices, and recently FiiO began to be the main brand advertised for Jade Audio products by most shops, so I decided to stick with FiiO Ka11 instead of going with Jade Audio, yet the sub branding still exists within FiiO. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. A huge thanks to FiiO for providing us with the sample for this review.
PROs – Great minimalistic design, good driving power, low background noise, extreme price / performance ratio, Bright and airy treble, good background and foreground separation, good detail for the price point, and a bold bass that balances the brighter treble.
Cons – It gets hot during usage, high drive sound tuning.
Product Link
You can grab one here – https://amzn.to/4bE7tfS
Build Quality/Aesthetics
FiiO KA11 isd a mini dongle, which has a simple concept, a Type-C connector, and a larger body with a 3.5mm headphone output. It is a practical solution that works driverless with all devices, has no noticeable USB DAC delay, but it gets quite hot during usage. Pairing with my smartphone, the S23 Ultra from Samsung, is native, and everything works perfectly. It should work with the Nintendo switch as well.
There are no buttons, or other controls, although there is one LED light to show you it is working. It does support Hi-Res music playback, up to 32 Bit and 384 kHz for PCM and Native DSD256. The CS43131 DAC can be found on many other devices and using them does not guarantee a specific sound, the DACs being available on SMSL DO200 PRO, ddHIFI TC44PRO, SMSL AO300, iBasso DC04PRO, iBasso DX170, and even Soundmagic A30. All of those have a different function and design, so it is interesting to see what each company can squeeze out of the DAC.
This is a DAC aimed at replacing embedded listening solutions, or for smartphones that have no DAC inside. It is practical, ergonomic, cheap and simple, and even at 32 OHMs, it still has plenty of power, at 200 mW per channel. The OP-AMP inside is a SGM8262, and there is no other DAC/AMP that uses the exact same SGM 8262 OP-AMP, but Shanling H2 does use a SG Micro 8262-2 model.
I could not hear any background noise when using the KA11, and with the app you can select a filter, along with changing the RGB lights, but that would be about it. You could have more volume control with the app, as Android devices will only allow you to use about 7-9 steps of volume.
Sound Quality
Overall Signature – The sound of Ka11 is a natural one, with a clean bass, good balance of treble brightness and extension, and with a really good detail for the pricing. The soundstage is on the intimate side, having two well defined layers, foreground and background. The middle layer blends into either the foreground or background, and the little dongle always sounds a bit overdriven with a powerful, forward and slightly aggressive sound, having a little too much texture and punch, but that’s to be expected given that FiiO implemented a high power amp section in the Ka11.
Pairings – To explore the sound of KA11, I have paired it with Spirit Torino Twin Pulse Beryllium, 7Hz Aurora, Tripowin x HBB Kailua, IMR Dark Matter, RAPTGO LEaf D01, Letshuoer D13, and Questyle NHB12. Ka11 is able to drive all of those IEMs, and it has a quiet noise floor that I can barely notice, only in perfect silence, but my air conditioner battling the 42C outside makes it hard for me to notice the hiss. Overall, the sound is great with all IEMs, and it has plenty of power left for headphones, the signature also sounding great with Crosszone CZ-10, and Erzetich Thalia.
Bass – Starting with a bold and clean bass, Ka11 has a strong bottom end which balances the sound and gives it weight and impact. While the bass is not the central element of the sound, there is plenty of it, and the bass has a full and clean presentation, with a slow and sloppy speed and impact. There is a bit of warm coloration to the midrange, but it is mild.
Midrange – The mids are colorful and clean, with an emotional, slightly on the sadder side, with the sound emphasizing female voices, violins and pianos and slightly dampening male voices and guitars, or basically anything played in a major chord. This makes bands like Sirenia and Haggard sound really magical, but takes away a bit of the happy tone from bands like The Offspring. There is a good distinction between the foreground and background elements, as the DAC allows each song to present what was originally recorded as the background there, and the foreground in the foreground.
Treble – We have a strong, punchy treble, with strong extension, up to 14 kHz – 16 kHz, but as the bass is fairly full and has a strong outline, the whole sound ends up being balanced and pleasing. If anything, the midrange is left slightly behind, but the sound is fairly pleasing overall.
Dynamics / PRaT / Textures – There is a bit of an overdrive element applied to all music, and that high-power amp inside does sound a bit overdriven, everything has a compressed dynamic range, and a slightly strong texture, with a slightly loud sound to it, and a slightly high THD in general. Even at low volumes, the sound feels powerful and has a high drive factor.
Value and Conclusion
For the mere price of 29 USD, FiiO Ka11 has a lot of driving power, good impact and a clean sound, and although it doesn’t have a lot of features, it works with no bugs and no drivers needed, plus offers a clean and detailed sound, all of which are what it should be doing at this price.
At the end of the day, if you want a dongle DAC/AMP with a lot of driving power, a clean and punchy sound, and a beautiful design, FiiO Ka11 is an excellent choice, and one of my favorite options to recommend for those who really have to stay on a tight budget.
Product Link
You can grab one here – https://amzn.to/4bE7tfS
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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