FiiO BR15 R2R High-Resolution Bluetooth Audio Receiver DAC – Powered By Magnetic Feelings
FiiO BR15 R2R is a $199 USD high-resolution DAC and Bluetooth Receiver based on the Flagship Qualcomm QCC5181 Bluetooth 6.0 chip, supporting LDAC and aptX Lossless codecs, with fully differential true 24 Bit R2R resistor arrays DACs with OS and NOS modes, and multiple Bluetooth, USB, Optical, Coaxial decoding and 2RCA + 1 XLR set of line outs, as well as FiiO’s advanced 10-Band Global PEQ and Auto EQ, with both AC and DC dual power supplies. Today we will review the BR15 R2R and explore how it sounds as well as how it broadly compares to the market.
Introduction
FiiO is known for their popular DAC AMPs, but BR15 is one step ahead of all the other FiiO products we’ve reviewed so far. BR15 is right now the most complete Bluetooth receiver for desktop, and more than that, it is an excellent traditional DAC that just happens to have extra Bluetooth abilities, and an R2R heart. You can find FiiO products on amazon, Aliexpress, and many other websites dedicated to audiophiles.
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Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4s4Dhnw
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3zq1Bq1
Build Quality – Design
Built on the idea of using flagship-grade components, FiiO BR15 R2R is unbound from wires, and it allows you to use speaker amplifiers connected to your PC via Bluetooth instead of your usual wire. FiiO takes great pride in offering BR15 with lossless bluetooth, and to achieve this, FiiO used the QCC5181 Bluetooth chip, which is currently one of the top dogs for BT, and can transfer aptX Lossless and CD-Level quality with no wires. As aptX Lossless goes even higher than LDAC, and as FiiO BR15 R2R uses Bluetooth 6.0, you an expect the lowest latency, and highest reliability available today.
At the core, FiiO BR15 R2R uses a dual DAC combo with a fully differential 24-Bit R2R DAC. This DAC is composed of 48 high precision thin film resistors per channel, with a total of 192 resistors, achieving a 0.1% accuracy and a low temperature drift of 30 ppm. Al,l files follow a schematic where both PCM and DSD files are converted to PCM, processed by the FPGA, split by the Serial / Parallel convert units, and then fed into the 24 Bit R2R DACs, to render the R+, R-, L+, L- signals.
For the outputs, BR15 has two RCA line outs and one XLR balanced line out, plus optical and coaxial digital outputs. This covers basically everything you can expect at this price point, but to sweeten the deal and surpass the average market value, FiiO also has Global 10-Band PEQ that you can set using their software. A feature I don’t think most people will be able to take advantage of is the AC/DC dual power supply, but the trick here is that the internal AC converter is great, and BR 15 R2r automatically switches to DC if you populate the DC input with a source, but the main reason I believe it is not quite as useful as it is for other devices is the price, as even the most affordable LPS or Linear Power Supply is far above the price point of BR 15.
You can explore the menus and settings of BR 15 through the eyes of the custom 1.47″ color display. You can set this to multiple themes which I enjoy a lot. Control is achieved through either using the dual wheels at the front, using the remote, or using the smartphone app for BR15. Technically, BR 15 achieves a FR of 20 Hz – 65 kHz, SNR of 119 dB, Noise floor lower than 5.1 uV, and a THD+N of 0.015% at 0dB, 10 kOHM, which is the ideal condition it will work in.
USB DAC – Subjective Usage
I was quite surprised to learn that FiiO BR15 has two sets of RCA outputs and one set of XLR Balanced outputs. This combo is actually quite useful if you want to power multiple sound systems at the same time (not very recommended), or if you want to power one subwoofer and one sound system at the same time (very recommended).
BR15 as a whole is a solid DAC, with a solid case, excellent foot that allows for ventilation, standard AC input and 5V DC input (not really recommended unless you have a high-quality LPS or Linear Power Supply), and so many inputs that you could get lost. I love that it has USB input, and it works really well, while coax is both input and output. There is no loud or audible pop noise, even if you turn BR15 off with AMPs set at max volume, it has no weird issues at all, in any of the sound modes.
At the front you have the menu and volume wheels, and a display. Most of the actions you will be doing are setting the volume, as most complex functions are set from the computer / android device. There is no audible background noise with its internal PSU, and using a cattle plug cable connected at the back, there is no USB DAC delay, and no signal loss when using bluetooth, if you are in the same room as BR15. I believe this is a limitation of the transmitter as most transmitters don’t have the strength to keep the signal stable through walls, especially if your room has insulation.
Overall, I like BR15, it is nice for a desktop, very stable on my desk, does not get warm and it is reliable for watching movies or playing games, both of which are actions someone will likely do with BR15 besides enjoying music. The only obvious downside is that it has no headphones AMP, which was usually a center attraction for FiiO, but for how good it is as a desktop DAC, I don’t feel the need for a headphone amp within it, as FiiO has plenty of other DAC AMPs.
FiiO achieves total channel separation using a Fully Balanced audio circuit, as the signal pathway is split and fully separated between channels from the R2R DAC, with fully separate buffers, LPF, Volume control, Buffers and Pop Cancelation systems. This makes BR15 sound quite a bit more separated than the market offers around the same price point, but as we will find out, the sound isn’t necessarily the most separated one, but actually this matters most for the background noise levels and for the best control.
Sound Quality
Pairings – I have paired the FiiO BR15 R2R with a collection sound systems and speakers including a set of Topping B100 Monoblock Amplifiers feeding the mighty Pylon Jasper Monitor 18 Speakers, FiiO SA1 Active Speakers, Audience ClairAudient 1+1 Speakers powered by a Burson Funk, and Keces S300+ powering a set of Pylon Diamond 30 mkii. In all those situations FiiO BR15 acts as a DAC, both with volume control and without (in the case of Funk). As some of those AMPs are pure AMPs and have no volume control, I was able to check for the background noise at max levels.
You cannot talk about the power as BR15 has no driving power, but I can talk about how well it matches, and for most systems, the matching is excellent. While it has a unique signature, it is never a bad combo with any system, unless it is a laid-back system and BR15 can make the sound a bit too relaxed.
Overall Signature – FiiO BR15 is a high-resolution, clean, and relaxed sounding desktop DAC with excellent impact and dynamics, but it has a different sound between NOS and OS mode. While with some R2R DACs, you can choose to use them in NOPS mode for the full R2R effect, BR15 in particular sounds much better in OS 384K mode, where it applies a filter over the NOS DAC sound. It has a wide / natural soundstage, excellent resolution and sounds fast, revealing.
Bass – At the bottom end, FiiO BR15 R2R has quite a bit of energy and depth, revealing a bass that can easily reach 20 Hz, if your speakers and amplifiers are capable of it. BR 15 is quite impactful and creates a natural-fast bass, with a deep, and warm presentation. It can be a bit soft in the impact, and a bit laid-back too, basically it is revealing, but relaxed, and this is audible in the bass, where it has a smoother, softer sound than what I consider default or pure neutral.
Midrange – Voicing of the BR15 is clean and relaxed, laid-back and a bit slower than the bass. BR15 sounds quite relaxed and smooth, delivering a slightly more present upper midrange than the lower midrange, revealing a bit more life and personality in female voices than it does for male voices. This tuning works well if you mainly listen to songs with a female lead voice, EDM, Pop or smoother, relaxed music. It does not work well for rock and songs with a male lead, especially deeper male voices.
Treble – At the top end, BR15 is quite sharp, revealing, and this seems to be true for both OS and NOs modes. In fact, the OS / NOS only seems to affect dynamics and textures, while treble is the same for both, sharp, revealing and crisp. It is laid-back in texture though, which gives the top end a non-aggro presentation that works well for all sound systems, including the more affordable and entry-level ones.
Dynamics And Textures – BR15 has a smoother, leaner texture and in NOS mode it can sound quite grainy, with a lower level of dynamics and a more tuned off sound, almost like an unplugged version of that song. In OS 384K mode, it sounds sharp, detailed and crisp, with excellent resolution and impact. It is quite good at delivering a natural or even high resolution texture for EDM songs, and overall it is excellent for all music styles.
Soundstage – As there is no difference relative to the volume of BR15 and it has a consistent volume, I can explore the soundstage, which is natural-wide, with a clean voicing, natural towards lower separation between layers, a slightly more blended sound that sounds cohesive and like the whole song is made out of one piece. This kind of presentation is a bit of the magic that R2R lovers seem to like a lot, and BR15 has an excellent sound for mid-fi music, jazz, relaxed songs, or songs with a female lead, where you want a more fuzzy, warmer tune.
Value and Conclusion
FiiO made BR15 their best priced desktop DAC and it has a technical performance that can rival their own much pricier DAC AMPs, but at the same time it has fewer features for headphone systems, serving a completely different purpose. If you’re comparing it with other ~200 USD desktop DACs, it is a brilliant choice and much more powerful and technically more capable, so it can easily outshine the likes of Fosi Audio K7, Topping DX5II, SMSL C200 PRO, and TempoTec March V. While having a completely different sound, it is easier to recommend both for wired and wireless sources, having a higher value than the market average.
At the end of the day, FiiO BR15 is excellent, it is a nice bit of kit, has a strong technical resolution but relaxed sound, complex EQ available globally and configurable with ease, it has a solid core, strong software, reliable bluetooth connection and a top choice for an entry-level DAC in our in-depth written review today.
PROs
- Simple and efficient design
- Straight to the point desktop DAC usage
- XLR balanced DAC line out
- Dual RCA line out
- Good internal PSU
- Multiple inputs
- Reliable bluetooth codec
- Volume control
- Clean with no audible noise for the XLR output
- Minimal noise with the RCA output
- Great value
- No Pop noise even if you switch it off with AMPs set to max
Cons
- Sound is much better in OS 384K mode than NOS mode, making NOS mode a bit useless
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4s4Dhnw
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3zq1Bq1
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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