Introduction

FiiO is a stalwart in the personal audio market, having enjoyed an established presence longer than most brands we have covered here. It also happens to be much bigger than the vast majority of audio brands still in operation today, with product lines spanning not only IEMs and music players it is known for but also headphones, speakers, and DACs + amplifiers directly targeting the PC desktop space. FiiO releases so many products each year that it puts out an annual roadmap which I always go through to see what to expect. For example, recently we saw the new portable DAC/amp generation including the Q11 and the KA13, with the desktop sources getting similar treatment soon after. The flagship K9 series was updated with the newer FiiO K19 that added a lot of cool features. Today we examine the other end of the price spectrum, and it also happens to be FiiO's first R2R offering.


FiiO's naming scheme might not be the most intuitive, but it doesn't take a genius to recognize the K11 would fall in a lower price and feature tier compared to the K19. There was a FiiO K1 before, albeit it's a discontinued portable DAC/amp and not really a desktop source as with the new K11 which is instead treated as a next-gen update to the K5 Pro ESS we saw two years ago. But adding potentially to the confusion is the part where there is a new FiiO K11 too, released a few months before the K11 R2R did. The K11 R2R shares a lot in common with the K11, be it the two color options, the RGB indicator lights, the onboard screen, or even the very similar hardware solutions. However, as the name suggests, the K11 R2R goes for FiiO's self-developed 4-channel 24-bit R2R DAC implementation, compared to the Cirrus Logic CS43198 in the K11. This alone has got a lot of people excited, given the K11 R2R is shaping up to be an excellent budget option for those who want a taste of what R2R DACs can sound like. As usual, we begin with a look at the product specifications below, so be sure to click the image twice to fully open it and go through all the details. Thanks to FiiO for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp!

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

The FiiO K11 R2R ships in a small box which is basically identical in size and design to the K11, in case you have seen that before. There's a semi-glossy finish to the gray background resulting in the lettering on the front being iridescent. This includes the brand logo and product name, salient features and certification stickers, as well as a render of the same color unit inside. Some basic specifications are on the back in addition to contact information for FiiO. The outer box opens from the top or bottom, as seen above, to reveal the contents inside.


First up is a set of paperwork in a black booklet, and here we get a multi-language quick start guide (online copy here) going over the setup and use—including the onboard menu that you will absolutely need this guide to understand. There is also a generic warranty card here, with the rest of the accessories found in a separate cardboard box placed in the right compartment of a thick foam piece. Here we see a 3.5 mm to 6.35 mm (1/4") adapter, a short USB Type-C to Type-A cable, and a two-piece AC mains power adapter cable—I have the UK version here—and power supply that accepts 100–240 V and up to 1.5 A while providing up to 24 W on the 12 VDC rail. This is how you know for sure the FiiO K11 R2R is a desktop source, and the external power supply is also an indicator that the product itself will be on the smaller side. Speaking of which, the K11 R2R comes safely packed in a wax paper wrap and surrounded by more of that thick foam to minimize any mishaps during transit.