In this article we review the FiiO DM13, the first disc player from the brand, priced at just $149 USD.

Disclaimer: The FiiO DM13 was sent to us, free of charge, by the brand in exchange for our honest opinion.

FiiO

Established in 2007, FiiO has become a powerhouse in the audiophile realm, offering an impressive line-up of affordable and high-quality products. From IEMs, headphone amps, DACs, to DAPs, FiiO has consistently delivered top-notch devices, setting benchmarks for other brands to follow like the FiiO M23, the mighty FiiO Q7, or the everlasting E10K, which has remained on the market for over a decade.

An unceasing saga of success, propelled not only by a steady flow of high-end devices but also by the introduction of smart, budget-friendly products. Their latest series of USB DAC/Amps is a prime example—compact dongle-sized gadgets that hark back to the venerable FiiO E5 and E3, first revealed over a decade ago. An expansive range that includes the delightful FiiO KA13, the formidable FiiO KA17, and the lovely KA15 we had the chance to listen to a few months ago.

And if that line-up already seemed very complete to me, the brand pushed even further this year, with products seemingly out of FiiO’s usual bracket :

• the FiiO KB3, a mechanical keyboard embedding its own DAC/Amp
• the FiiO SP3 / SP3 BT, a set of desktop active speakers
• the FiiO SR11, a compact desktop streamer designed to complete the KA11
• or even the FiiO ESTICK, a mini power bank made especially for the FiiO KA17, so you could use the desktop mode on the go

But, those were just the tip of the iceberg, and the brand decided to go even further, with… a vintage line-up! Yes, you read that right, the most famous chi-fi brand (if still considered chi-fi) developed their own line of retro devices.

What kind of product do you say?

• the FiiO CP13 first, a cassette player for those missing the Walkman era – a device strangely popular, like the Wearerewind K-7 player
• the FiiO TT13, an automatic turntable, surfing on the spectacular hype trend initiated a few years ago by the vinyl – a device we reviewed a few months ago now
• and last but not least, the FiiO DM13, a portable stereo CD Player for those missing the CD Era, packed with many nice features such as a ripper option, balanced outputs and a battery for portability – like the original CD player

Good news, this is the one we are reviewing today!

FiiO DM13 – Design & Build Quality

Casing

Designed to match their new range aesthetics, for the FiiO DM13 the brand didn’t think too far and simply took the K11 box, switched the 6.35mm output for a 4.4mm one, extended the screen and kept everything else. A portable uptake of the SR11 and K11 design that feels like a relic to the past, mimicking the old Walkman, but perfecting the antic design in every way.

A good choice in my opinion, seeing how popular the FiiO K11 has become, plus the fact that you can easily pile up the DM13 over the K11 to create your own, affordable, all-in-one desktop station. You get the usual, neat CNC’ed, anodized silver aluminum case, with the same mini-mac-mini design for a minimal footprint, superb tempered glass on top (in my version at least) and a nice digital screen upfront, allowing you to check what’s playing and other playback options.

As usual with the brand, build quality is flawless, with no gaps and premium materials everywhere your eye can see, and your hand can touch – my favorite feature being the extended I/O, which comes very handy as we’ll see later on.

Size-wise, the FiiO DM13 is slightly smaller than the previous SR11 (144 x 137 x 27 mm) and slightly heavier with 450g on the scale, mainly due to the integrated battery. Still, those dimensions should allow you to fit the player on every work desk, or any bag if you were to carry it on your daily commute.

Top that with flush buttons plus a surprisingly crisp screen and, for the price, you’d be hard pressed to find anything as good.

How about the layout then ?

Layout

In terms of I/O, the FiiO DM13 is simply outstanding, even surpassing most digital source found in this price range in terms of versatility. You could use it as a portable source, desktop transport, digital ripper… all on the go!

Upfront you get:

• 1x 3.5mm headphone output for your single-ended headphones
• 1x 4.4mm pentaconn headphone output, for the balanced ones

On the back side you have:

• 1x 4.4mm balanced line out, to pair that with a balanced amplifier
• 1x multi-use 3.5mm output that can either be used as a line-out, a coaxial out or an optical output (mini-toslink)
• 1x USB-C port, designed to be used as a rec-out output connected to your computer
• 1x ESP switch, an option that can be enabled when the player is used on the go (buffer option) and disabled with the DM13 is used at home or at the office
• 1x USB-C for the power input
• 1x Desktop mode switch, allowing full power bypass when connected to a computer, to save the battery

And finally on top, you’ll find:

• the power button
• a play/pause button
• previous + next track buttons
• volume up + down buttons
• a function selection button

So yeah, it offers everything you might ever need and the only option that I miss would be and USB-DAC port, but this is a CD player first and foremost so that’s understandable.

Now, let’s set it up!

Daily use

On a daily basis, it’s hard to get something simpler than the FiiO DM13. If you’re new to this, this CD player might be your ideal step into this world.

All you have to do is open the lid, put a CD, turn on the player, plug a headphone et… voila! Once powered on, you’re greeted by a charming animation – some hello text, displayed on the screen – and a few second after the magic happens: music into your ears.

From there, you can up/down the volume, change track or even seamlessly switch between the singled-ended phone out and balanced one. If you want to go further, the function button even gives you some features like shuffle, repeat or favorite, in case you’d like to put one song in perpetual reading.

On the go, I also tried the ESP mode and was pleasantly surprised to found out that whatever I did, the music never skipped a beat – those that owned a CD player with no jog proof option know what I’m taking about. On my desk I disabled it, but as we’ll see later on this review, I couldn’t really grasp any sonic difference with or without, so I just kept it on.

Line out / Digital out

Like a desktop CD player, the FiiO DM13 comes with various analog and digital outputs, designed to fit a higher-end setup. Labelled as a three-in-one output, the jack port can serve three purposes:

• line out: a classic, allowing you to plug the CD player to an headphone amplifier, or even a classic amplifier. I did try it on my new dining room amp and it worked flawlessly.
• coaxial out: this way, the DM13 only push the unaltered digital stream, for those who prefer to plug their own DAC and use the CD player as a digital transport
• optical out: same as before, but with a toslink port for DAC that do not support coaxial inputs

In addition to that, the player even comes with a 4.4mm balanced line out. A clever option that we get in more and more products nowadays, giving you an alternative to the bulkier XLR ports, even if professional will keep on relying to the old (but sure) format

Bluetooth

For those of you who’ll get the DM13 BT instead of the “regular” one, FiiO gives you the possibility to plug your own Bluetooth headphone/speakers, thanks to their integrated Qualcomm chip. Compatible with all aptX format (aptX, aptX LL, aptX HD) this will allow you to pair whatever headphone you want to this CD player, without any sonic loss.

USB REC out

Last but not least, the FiiO DM13 comes with one magical option for CD lovers: an USB REC out.

Thanks to that, you get two options:

• first, connected to a computer, the player can record your CDs directly to you computer, leaving you with a full set of .wav, unaltered files, like your good old cd player on your desktop PC
• or, you could plug an USB key directly to the USB-C power input of your DM13 (fat32 only) and do the exact same thing but… on the go!

Yes, that’s a very niche demand, but strangely enough I know a few people in my friend list that may be (very) interested by this option.

The review continues on Page Two, after the click HERE or by using the jump below.