The FiiO's volumetric cube—sound stage—is quite large and, at times, holographic, in that it spans good depth and height and width and, yet, is intimate when called to be so. Positioning and layering are also quite good as is image solidity and there is very good transparency and thus detail retrieval. Though the best and the more expensive across this category would, no doubt, extract more detail, nuance, and microdynamics. Bass: The Bass is clear and has a slight lift but nothing too overwhelming to be honest its well done and the boost digs down deep but quite tastefully but does color the mids if used. The Q3 is equipped with the latest generation of XMOS USB signal receiver chip and high-performance AKM DAC chip, the AK4462. It is capable of decoding PCM up to 32-Bit/768kHz, and DSD up to DSD512 natively. The output with Q3 connected to a normal smartphone or PC is buttery smooth, has powerful bass, crisp detailing, and lush vocals suiting different genres of music very well. It is very clear and can portray a naturally structured and spacious stage that can do justice to most headphones and iems used.

Overall sound profile is natural and pleasant with an even tonal balance and good extension just rolling off at the extremities of both ends.Since 2007, FiiO has been pushing further and away to become one of the top players. And you know what? After more than 10 years of hard work, I think they achieved their goal as the once unknown brand is now on every mouth and ear. We also like a no-brainer device; plug and play are how FiiO Q3 and iFi Hip DAC 2 work with your phone or computer. There is no issue when connecting the device to Mac or Win 10 computers as they instantly recognize it. But, some people may want to install the firmware, especially with the iFi, if you will listen to MQA so we can get full support. If you have an older computer or Win 7 and below, the FiiO may require installation for the USB driver. Also, the switch to toggle charging on/ off is very welcome, as you can control if the host device will charge the Q3, so you can avoid draining a phone's battery, for example

I used the Sennheiser HD 58X headphones to test the Q3. I also used the AirPods Max and the Bowers & Wilkins Px8, but both of those are less than 40ohm headphones. While the sound quality was better with the Q3 on those headphones, it was significantly more noticeable on the 150ohm HD 58X. A convenient modular solution which includes power supply, and can operate from a single 3.6V battery. The FiiO Q3 has a clear, strong and sharp upper midrange presentation with transitions that are in general fairly controlled. The upper midrange of the Q3 is well-tuned and doesn’t show any unnecessary over-sharpness/brightness that could tire your ears over time. From female vocals up to instruments such like violins and pianos, the extension, emphasis and detail retrieval of the Q3 is pretty good. The lower treble region is slightly more emphasized and detailed compared to the upper treble area, which sound otherwise pretty good in this regarding. The general treble presentation is controlled and well adjusted, so that it doesn’t tire your ears even after longer listening periods. Instruments like hi-hats pronounced and do shows a good level of extension, while crash and ride cymbals are fast and detailed. Treble range has a very good speed in metal and jazz music and shows a good amount of intensity and brightness in genres such as EDM or Pop without to disturb your ears.The instrument tonality of the Q3 is neither bold nor too dry or thin and can be in general described as pretty natural, while the timbre of instruments is clear and distinct. Instruments like guitars are slightly bright and do have good extension, while the violin performance of the Q3 in terms of emphasis, extension and detail retrieval is very successful. I of course had to try the FH3 with the Q3. Both made for a great pairing. I found the FH3 to be on the edge of too bright up top sometimes with other gear but the Q3 keeps it accurate and controlled so I really like this pairing. Low end and mids also come across clean and accurate. Soundstage is still small here. Those looking to open up the FH3’s stage will maybe wanna look at stepping up to FiiO’s Q5s. At the rear side of the device are two screws, two switches (one for bass and one for charging on/off), the multifunctional button for “Gain” & “DAC Filter” selection and the USB-Type-C port for both data and charging purposes.

Distortion in high volumes feels lower than with the Q1, but it could be placebo as I don't have the equipment to measure this On a Windows computer, no problem too, my Desktop computer automatically recognized the Eagle, running Windows 10, the same for my laptop. But, for previous generation users, (Windows 7, Vista) you may have to install the FiiO USB Driver. Honestly, I don’t really see the point and will always prefer to use the Q3 as a whole, but it’s nice to have an alternative choice. Short answer, yes… If you want to pair it with big cans on the go. Going from the AKM4452 to the AK4462 doesn’t sound that big of a difference, even head-to-head. It’s slightly more refined, less grainy in the upper range but, honestly, it’s not massively different.As I’ve told you previously in my Kennerton Wodan review, those are so easy to drive by planar-mafia standards that Q3 was more than enough to drive them to ear-deafening levels even on its regular 3.5mm output. Q3 went with me in a long trip, somewhere at higher altitude surrounded by lots of snow and mulled wine, where Q3 was used daily from 9 P.M. to around midnight for several days in a row. Even without any kind of burn-in, I didn’t observe much of a change, it sounded pretty much the same out of the box as it did seven days later. My smartphone is equipped with a Hi-Fi DAC according to its