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Macoptimizer k9 reddit3/28/2023 ![]() This is the same receiver as you will find in the M17 with a similar performance level also in terms of decoding. Yup, you get wireless inside the K9 Pro ESS also with the use of Qualcomm’s latest BGA BT5.1 capable QC5124 chipset with an external antenna for receiving, (no transmission). That means upsampling 48kHz containers will be a maximum of 384kHz. You also get MQA and no surprise for guessing it has the same 8X unfolding capability as the M17 and the previous K9 Pro. That means you get up to DSD256 and PCM 32BIT/384kHz from its which might feel a bit behind the best out there which can do DSD512 and 768kHz such as the 2019-released DA10 from Yulong but it is similar to the M17 at a much higher price. The decoding is also quite similar to the M17 and has no change from the original K9 Pro AKM version. From there the data is reclocked via an overclocking High-Precision PLL Delay Matrix and dual independent Femtosecond clock system before being received by the DAC. There is no FPGA inside the K9 Pro ESS to the best of my knowledge. ![]() The digital bridge inside the K9 Pro ESS is managed via an MQA capable XMOS XU-208 USB stage with a TI MSP432 microcontroller. You should get some improvements in SNR, (up to 129dB), and a lower THD+N (<0.0025%), as well as more subjective elements using balanced mode in terms of channel separation and lower noise floors. ![]() This is the same chipset used inside their flagship M17 DAP and in the same dual-channel configuration also.Īll 8 parallel outputs are active with a set of 8 TI OPA1612 opamps for I/V and a built-in linear PSU. Here FiiO has swapped out the original single AK4499EQ chipset with a dual-mono ES9038PRO implementation in current mode. We start with the DAC which is where the ESS name is derived from. There are some dimensional, weight, and venting adjustments on the physical side, not to mention the filtering and some improved cleaner output power on the electrical side. However, it does seem that the K9 Pro ESS is not just the same “MK2” with a different chipset. That was always going to be a product with a finite supply given the problems AKM has had over the last year or two after the factory fire and discontinuing a lot of chipsets from the Velvet range. I guess you can call the K9 Pro ESS round two because we did have the AKM or AK4499EQ version which came out in limited quantities last year. One has to wonder, if you can’t afford an M17 and you want to drive some headphones, is the K9 Pro ESS the next best thing? Copyright FiiO 2022 Tech Highlights That includes the same DAC chipsets and the same THX amplifier. What piqued my interest, however, was the striking similarity of this integrated amp and DAC with some of what is under the hood of the flagship DAP, the M17. This is desktop ‘everything’ for a reasonable price with an integrated balanced engineered headphone amplifier, a dual Sabre DAC implementation, Bluetooth, and line-out capability. Granted the K5PRO and its various iterations have a desktop theme, but the K9 Pro ESS (and the older AKM version) is a whole new level of ‘larging it’ for the company. FiiO is not normally known for stuff like this.
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