- The new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player from FiiO Electronics Technology Co Ltd. should prove to be a DAP with an almost unique price-performance ratio.
The Chinese company FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. has always been known for offering products with a remarkable price-performance ratio. It is fair to say that the Chinese company has shaped the market for personal audio devices in recent years with its innovative, state-of-the-art products, most of which are very favourably priced, and has helped solutions such as portable Hi-res audio players to achieve widespread success.
In this respect, it is particularly remarkable that FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. is now talking about a solution that sets new standards in terms of price-performance ratio as part of the presentation of the new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player.
A DAP that sets new standards in terms of price
With the launch of the new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player, an elegant and powerful portable digital audio player, or DAP for short, is ready to push the boundaries of entry-level Google Android-based solutions. Combining world-class hardware elements, robust design and intuitive retro aesthetics, the FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player makes high-resolution sound available to discerning listeners everywhere.
The DNA of a flagship DAP
The new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player does not have to make any compromises, as it is equipped with features that you would expect from a flagship DAP solution.
The centrepiece of the new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player is therefore an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 SoC chipset processor, which, in combination with 4 GB of RAM, provides sufficient performance. 64 GB of internal memory is available for audio data, while up to 2 TB can be used for your own content via microSD cards.
Google Android 13 is used as the operating system and the combination of a 4.7-inch HD IPS touchscreen and a series of physical buttons on the sides of the FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player should make operation particularly intuitive.
What the FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player does not lack, of course, is network integration via WiFi, whereby streaming via UPnP as a dlna-certified streaming client is just as possible as via Apple AirPlay. The DAP also supports WiFi song transfer and is labelled as Roon Ready.
The DAP also makes contact with the outside world via Bluetooth, using Bluetooth 5.0. When transmitting, this module supports the SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, LDAC and LHDC codecs; when receiving, it supports the SBC, AAC and LDAC codecs.
There are also two USB-C ports that support USB 3.0, one of which is designed for data transfer and for charging the integrated battery, while the second is also designed for data transfer, but also as a so-called power supply.
Separate desktop mode
This allows the special desktop mode of the FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player to be used, which FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. is offering here for the first time on a DAP in the entry-level segment.
When the FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player is connected to an external power source via the secondary USB-C port as a power connection, it bypasses its integrated battery and delivers up to 21 V peak voltage and thus 950 mW per channel at 32 ohms, achieving an output power comparable to high-quality desktop DACs with integrated headphone amplifiers.
Sufficient power even when travelling
In portable mode, however, there is no lack of power either, as the high-quality output stage is capable of providing up to 405 mW per channel into 32 ohms via the 3,5 mm stereo mini jack or even 540 mW per channel into 32 ohms for headphones operated symmetrically via the 4,4 mm Pentaconn, in so-called super high gain mode.
Thanks to the desktop mode, the FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player can also easily be used as a streaming component of a High-end HiFi system. The 3,5 mm stereo jack or the 4,4 mm Pentaconn then serve as an unbalanced or balanced line out.
The FiiO M21 also uses the updated FiiO Control App, which allows full control via smartphone in addition to settings and advanced PEQ filters.
32 bit 384 kHz, DSD256 and MQA
The FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player uses Cirrus Logic Inc. converters for signal conversion, specifically CS43198 DACs, four of which are used for fully balanced signal routing. The clock is set by two femtosecond crystal oscillators, one for 49.150 MHz and the other for 45.1584 MHz.
The FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player is therefore able to process signals in Linear PCM with up to 32 bit and 384 kHz as well as DSD up to DSD256 natively. It also supports signal processing in the lossy MQA format, offering full eightfold decoding.
To explain this in more detail, the output stage is based on two Texas Instruments TI OPA1692 SoundPlus low-power, low-noise, high-performance dual bipolar input audio op-amps and two SG Micro SGM8262-2 voltage feedback operational amplifiers.
High-quality aluminium case
It goes without saying that the new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player comes with an elegant, robust, high-quality aluminium case. It measures 68 x 121 x 17 mm, is available in either Titanium Gold or Dark Blue and weighs just 193 g.
Long battery life
The battery life of the new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player is said to be up to 15 hours when using unbalanced headphones and 11,5 hours when using balanced headphones. The 4.000 mAh lithium-polymer battery is said to be fully recharged after just 1,5 hours using fast charging.
Optional retro case
Vintage HiFi is in vogue, even in the personal audio device sector, so FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. offers a separate retro-style protective case for the FiiO M21. This makes the DAP look like a portable cassette player with a vintage user interface and tactile buttons for an authentic old-school look.
Pricing and availability
The new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player is now available from specialist retailers. The recommended retail price is € 329,-.
Getting to the point
The Chinese company FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. has always been known for offering solutions with an outstanding price-performance ratio. The new FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player is nevertheless impressive, as it is now a DAP that lacks nothing, actually offers the features you would expect from a flagship DAP, and at a price point that is clearly in the entry-level segment.
| Product | FiiO M21 Portable High Resolution Music Player |
|---|---|
| Price | € 329,- |
| Brand | Guangzhou FiiO Electronics Technology Co. Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | FiiO |
| Distribution | NT Global Distribution GmbH |
| More about this manufacturer at HiFi BLOG |
