5.0 out of 5 stars Among the Best Portables Out There

T. · November 15, 2022

I bought the Fiio BTR7 after seeing some glowing reviews of it on AudioScienceReview.com (ASR), an audio hardware review site that uses a fancy audio analyzer to assess how well DACs and other other audio equipment reproduce sound signals.ASR concluded that the BTR7 is on par with desktop-class DACs and amplifiers in its ability to reproduce music.The sound quality of Fiio's products have always been outstanding, and the BTR7 takes it up another notch. The BTR7's signature is clean, smooth, and satisfying, with no emphasized frequency ranges or audible distortion. The BTR7 uses a two quality ESS DAC chips, a quality clock source, and two THX-certified amplifier chips to produce an exceptionally clean signal, especially for a portable device.I mainly use the BTR7 as a plug-in DAC for my MacBook, but its sound in Bluetooth mode is also exceptional. It supports any Bluetooth codec you can throw at it; I mainly use AAC (as an Apple user), but if your phone supports LDAC or AptX, it can decode and amplify those too.The power output is outstanding. The BTR7 can easily power my Sennheiser HD6XX headphones, at a whopping 300 ohms. I can even power my insensitive HifiMan Sundaras with the unbalanced output, though the balanced 4.4 mm output can drive them even better. The BTR7 will drive any headphone you have with no problem, and turning up the volume won't lead to distortion.The only downside of this product is the software. Not only are the menus on the device hard to navigate, but the companion app, Fiio Control, contains many extraneous features and lacks a user-friendly user interface. For example, the equalizer function is incredibly hard to understand, as it doesn't label the individual frequency bands, so you have to guess what frequencies you're equalizing based on the shape of the frequency curve.Overall, the BTR7 is the best portable DAC/amp on the market right now. If you want a powerful Bluetooth amplifier that will drive your full-sized headphones, or simply want a portable external DAC/amp for a laptop, this is a great solution. I'm impressed with what Fiio has accomplished in building such a compact, well-engineered product at an affordable price. I highly recommend the BTR7, and I'm very happy with my purchase.

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!

M. · July 1, 2023

I've got to say that I am really impressed with this tiny little marvel! It just sounds outstanding! I have owned and enjoyed a Fiio E10-K for several years but it had been serving as a back-up option until recently, when my Audioquest Dragonfly Cobalt disintegrated. It was the second and last of the dongle DAC devices I will ever own. While that one sounded terrific the build quality is absolutely terrible and what happens is that the headphone jack breaks free and falls inside of the casing, leaving it inoperable. Audioquest replaced the first one under warranty but when the second one did the same thing they didn't even respond to my email. It was no longer under warranty I assumed but at least they could have responded to me. It's OK, I just won't support this company any more and have been turning many of my cohorts and fellow audio enthusiast away from their overpriced, fragile products. My cobalt was never abused in any way, it is just not well made.I decided to upgrade my E10K and chose the BTR7 because of the excellent reviews and the respect for the product shown throughout an online audio group of which I participate. This group is over 40,000 strong and there are some real knowledgeable people in it with vast experience with these products. After receiving my new "toy" I had some learning to do as this Fiio isn't exactly plug and play. It took me a little while to figure out how to navigate the tiny buttons and the process itself. I struggled to get it to pair up with my laptop, not because it was terribly difficult, but because I didn't realize that I needed to have the BTR7 connected via the usb-c cable to my laptop at the time I was trying to get it to pair. It wasn't like pairing my phone or my Mark Levinson 5909 headphones. When I realized the err of my ways I felt incredibly dense! Once paired I was ready to have a listen.At this point I have to admit that I have just a few hours of listening time on the BTR7. I have listened to both the 5909 wired, where it really excels, as well as my Sennheiser HD660S2, a wired headphone. The 5909 is an easy to drive headphone but the 660S2 is not at 300 ohms, yet the BTR7 can drive it to plenty loud volume levels with authority. It is absolutely dead silent when no music is present, silent during quiet passages, too. To my ears this tiny piece of kit sounds every bit as good as the $350 Cobalt, and it was just $200. It's far and away better built. If there is anything at all to report on the negative side it would have to be the software. That menu system kind of sucks. But I think once configured it shouldn't be an issue. I managed to figure it out on my own so I can't imagine others not being able to do the same. I can highly recommend the Fiio BTR7 to everybody. I have already started doing so! An excellent choice either out and about or simply away from the desk.

Loving it

t. · January 13, 2024

Love the sound, pretty much do it all, powerful, love the EQ, so far no complaint

FiiO BTR7

L. · November 23, 2024

Top ranked product!Used with Sennheiser IE-600 .

It's larger and superior in most aspects to the btr5.

D.H.W. · February 1, 2023

Ummed and ahhed whether to purchase this, then lost my original BTR5 (which I really liked despite it's poor BT range), decided it was a toss up between BTR7 or Shanling UP5, I also use an ifi GO blu, (the price of which is now a more reasonable and I like a little variation).The BTR7 is a worthy successor to the 5, it's a little larger all around but not massive, still easily pocketable. Control is quite intuitive very much like the 5, but read the manual as the physical controls have dual functions.The presentation is great as always from Fiio (the Chinese do this so well) making unboxing a joy, in the box BTR7, a leatherette protective case, two short leads USB-C to C and USB-C to A and a well printed clear manual in multiple languages.In use.When first switched on, battery was at 75%, the volume however was very low even when turned up and switched to high gain, using the SE 3.5mm output, a firmware update fixed this, so be prepared to update to at least firmware V 1.88.Bluetooth operation has been improved over the BTR5, it transmits over a much farther range and no connection dropouts during use.External controls1. mic at the top.2. on/off menu select/exit,3. Play, pause etc, answer/hangup, pairing, voice assistant.4. Vol +, track select <, switch menus.5. Vol -, track select >, switch menus.6. Charging on off switch.Outputs on upper end 4.4mm balanced, 3.5mm SE. Single USB-C for charging and DAC usage on bottom end.Should you wish to use this as a Windows computer DAC a driver will need to be downloaded from Fiio site and installed first, if using with computer it may be necessary to plug phones/speakers into device prior to making computer connection.In use it sounds delightful, currently connected to iPad via BT and AAC, using balanced connection, settings source volume ~50% BTR settings, LOW gain, volume 30. Moondrop Aria, balanced cable, absolute perfection in all aspects of sound reproduction, from Black Sabbath to Beethoven!Tested with full size head phones Sennheiser, Sony to Koss KSC75s and various iems Shure, Sony, Moondrop to KZs.This little DAC amp has managed to produce great sounds at more than acceptable volume levels throughout my tests, with about 7+ hours useful battery power.Tested with these sources, Android phone and tablet, iPad and iPad pro, MacBook and Windows laptops, not failed or waivered once.On using the Fiio app, it's been "worked on" and has it's uses, it connects easily between host devices and the BTR7 to enable a few tweaks etc. to be made there are better apps supplied with other devices but there's not a lot in it.Conclusion you get what you pay for in most instances and I feel this is worth the price, recommended if you need a compact easily portable capable DAC amp that has sufficient bells and whistles with plenty of power.

Sounds great but issues with connectivity and battery

M. · December 2, 2024

Watch more reviews I guess

Splendido prodotto!

M.U. · February 13, 2023

Alla fine ho tenuto il Fiio BTR7 e restituito l'iFi GO blu e lo SHANLING UP4 2022. Completo per le funzionalità e la qualità generale. Superiore il iFi xDSD Gryphon ma a tre volte il suo prezzo...Gryphon suono con più informazioni in armoniche e stratificazione in tutte le frequenze. Li ho tenuti tutti e due!