FiiO BTR13 - Three in one

Foto © FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. | FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier

The new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier from FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. is said to be particularly versatile.

A solution that is said to be particularly versatile and flexible is now being presented by the Chinese specialist for personal audio devices FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. with the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier. This compact product is said to be able to perfectly fulfil three tasks, namely to function as a sound dongle, Bluetooth decoder and computer sound card, with these three modes being available here.

No matter what task the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier is supposed to perform, it can deliver impressive sound quality and is offered at a very attractive price, according to the manufacturer.

One device, three operating modes

The key feature of the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier is the three selectable operating modes, because depending on which one you choose, it will interact optimally with the respective source device. Above all, this affects the power supply, which is provided either by the integrated rechargeable battery or by the external source device.

As already mentioned, there are three modes available, which the manufacturer refers to as Sound Dongle, Bluetooth Decoder and Computer Sound Card, abbreviated as Phone, BT and PC on the corresponding selector switch.

In Phone mode, the FiiO BTR13 connects to a smartphone, tablet or even a game console such as the Nintendo Switch or a Sony PS5 as a USB DAC audio dongle in UAC1.0 plug & play driver-less mode, with power supplied by the phone’s own integrated battery.

In BT mode, it functions as a Bluetooth decoder and headphone amplifier, once again relying on the integrated battery, which can be charged at the same time.

In PC mode, the FiiO BTR13 functions as a USB DAC and headphone amplifier, whereby it can be used equally for PCs and Macs, with the operating systems Microsoft Windows and Linux or Apple macOS. In this case, the power supply is provided exclusively by the computer.

Bluetooth 5.1 with all relevant Bluetooth codecs as well as USB-C

The centrepiece of the signal processing is a Bluetooth chip from specialist Qualcomm Inc. – a Qualcomm QCC5125 CPU in dual-core architecture that also features a sophisticated DSP and supports Bluetooth 5.1 with a variety of the latest Bluetooth codecs. In addition to SBC and AAC, aptX, aptX HD, aptX LL, aptX Adaptive and LDAC are also available.

For direct connection to a smartphone, tablet, game console, PC or Mac, this solution has a USB-C port that can also be used to charge the integrated battery.

Balanced signal processing

It is particularly noteworthy that the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier can rely on two DACs of the type CS43131 from Cirrus Logic Inc. to process signals at up to 24 bits and 96 kHz and on a symmetrically constructed output stage.

A 10-band parametric equaliser allows you to adjust the playback to your own preferences, and a 3.5 mm unbalanced stereo mini-jack and a 4.4 mm balanced Pentaconn are provided for connecting headphones. The highest power is also available at this, according to the manufacturer, the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier can drive almost any headphone with 220 mW at 32 Ohm without any problems. However, up to 100 mW at 32 Ohm are also available at the unbalanced jack.

Easy to use, special car mode

The new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier features an IPS colour display with a screen diagonal of 0.96 inches and 80 x 160 pixels, and has all the relevant controls, including CTIA-compliant volume and playback control buttons.

According to the manufacturer, the special car mode of the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier is particularly noteworthy, as it automatically switches the device on and off in the vehicle.

Finally, it should be mentioned that the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier can, of course, be controlled using the FiiO Control app, which also offers any updates.

The integrated battery is designed as a lithium polymer battery and has a capacity of 460 mAh. This should allow a playing time of up to eight or even ten hours, depending on whether you choose the symmetrical or asymmetrical connection for headphones. Charging takes about two hours.

The new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier measures 63,2 x 30 x 18,8 mm and weighs around 29 g. These specifications already include the very practical metal clip on the back.

Prices and availability

The new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier is to be offered in the near future in black or blue for a price of just € 64,-.

Getting to the point

If you are looking for a truly universal Bluetooth decoder or USB-DAC and headphone amplifier at a low price, you might want to consider the latest addition to the FiiO BTR range from FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd., the new FiiO BTR13 Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier.