Review : FiiO Q5S – S for Super

This review is about the FiiO Q5S, the revised version of the first FiiO Q5.

Disclaimer : the FiiO Q5S was sent to us free of charge by FiiO in exchange of our honest opinion. You can find it directly on their website, or your local retailer.

About FiiO

Founded in 2007, FiiO is a chi-if superstar. In a decade, they rose from a simple lo-fi manufacturer to the famous brand, acknowledged by both reviewers and customers. From DAP to IEM, FiiO covers almost all range of products, but it’s all thanks to the DACs and AMPs that we are aware of them now.

So today, we are gonna review the FiiO Q5S, the upscale version of the FiiO Q5.

The fall-2019 range

Like other manufacturers, FiiO revamps their products range each year. That can either be all-new models, or just an upgrade from the previous design, much like Apple with their iPhone. Let’s take a quick look before we dig into the review!

FiiO M6

The FiiO M6 was the smallest player from the brand, until the M5 came out. It packs the same circuit as the FiiO M7 – Sabre 9018Q2C + Exynos 7270 – but ditches the aluminum housing. That said, the sound is superb – for the price – and thanks to the wireless connection, you can use it as a standalone DAP or as a Bluetooth/Wifi receiver.

We reviewed it a few months ago and to quote myself :

“ Let’s cut to the chase: for 150€, the FiiO M6 is a no-brainer. It blends good performances – neat design – great battery life – extensive capability and it can even be connected to another DAC through USB. “

FiiO FH7

The FiiO FH7 is the best IEM the manufacturer has to offer, up to this day. It packs 5 drivers – 4 balanced + 1 dynamic – inside the same exquisite metallic housing, we found on the FiiO FH5. The new beryllium driver is no less than 13.6mm wide and all the balanced drivers come from Knowles. On top of that, you get different tuning filters, as RHA did back in the days.

FiiO FH7

Berkhan reviewed it recently and said :

“Yes, now we’re talking. The FH7 is the most sophisticated and successful IEM from FiiO, therefore I decided to include it in our Best Universal IEMs recommendation page. In the process, I removed the iBasso IT04, as the FH7 costs a little less with better build quality, flexibility and overall better sound.”

FiiO M11

The FiiO M11 is the new middle range player that intends to replace the old FiiO X5 Mark III. If the FiiO M9 and M6 allow the use of streaming applications, the M11 goes further by giving you the full Android experience. It’s one of the most smartphone lookalike DAPs available, but that’s also what makes it so cool – the double AKM DAC also provides.

I reviewed it not so long ago and…

“ It’s becoming hard to write bad things about FiiO players, even more with models like the M11. The $450 FiiO M11 is well designed, got great specs, sounds superb and… cost less than 500 bucks.“

FiiO K3

If the FiiO E10K was a massive success, the FiiO K3 seems to be more discreet. This is a shame as I really think this is one of the simplest solutions to get a good sound out of your computer. It got an AKM AK4452, a Coax/Optical output, an unbalanced/balanced output and most of all, its footprint is even smaller than the FiiO M6.

“ Let’s cut to the chase, I wanted the FiiO K3 to be good… and it is. It’s so versatile, allowing you to plug almost anything to it on your desktop. It’s powerful enough to drive classic headphones and if you plug another amp to the line-out, it’s just brilliant. It’s a carefully designed product which had to be at least as good as its previous iteration, but the K3 is better in every way.”

FiiO M11 Pro + FiiO K5 Pro

Even if we have not received them yet, these two devices are becoming available through the retailer’s channels fast. As soon as they enter our review pool, we’ll keep you updated 😉

That said, time to dig into the review and see what’s the FiiO Q5S has to offer.

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