Fosi Audio DS3 Dongle DAC AMP Review – They Got Me Twice
Fosi Audio DS3 is a $129 USD dongle DAC AMP with Hardware-Level 7.1 Spatial Audio enhancements, Gaming Sound Effects and high sample rate for your audio. Today we will review the Fosi Audio DS3 and see how it matches against other audiophile dongle DAC AMPs.
Introduction
Fosi Audio has always had a soft side for gaming and audio processing, so DS3 is only a natural evolution in their product catalogue, now a dongle mini DAC AMP for phones, tablets, with exceptional support and an interesting tuning. Fosi Audio products are available from their own shop, Amazon, Aliexpress and it is a brand generally easy to source and purchase.
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Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4sMZNk3
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3HOxScP
Build Quality – Design
Fosi Audio DS3 is a mini dongle DAC AMP that looks unassuming, but inside has an interesting Fosi made spatial audio algorithm that supports native 7.1 channel audio input and reconstructs the sound space to convert multichannel game audio into a 2-Channel surround that emulates the 7.1 surround, creating a 360 immersive experience. It has a maximum output power of 220 mW, a sampling rate of 32 Bit / 768 kHz, and supports Native DSD rates up to DSD512.
Fosi recommends DS3 for headphones with impedance between 16 OHMs and 300 OHMs, it is very light at 16 grams and has an audiophile-grade DAC at the heart, namely the ES9039Q2M DAC. The face of the DAC is inspired by watchmaking, but it is not a display as I would’ve believed at first. This being said, DS3 does deliver UAC 1 and UAC 2 modes, so it can work with consoles and portable gaming devices.
To learn how to set it up, please do check out the manual. Short version is that you have to keep a button pressed while inserting a cable into it to put it in UAC 1, then keep both volume buttons pressed to cycle through the sound modes.
Subjective Usage
I find Fosi DS3 to be very convenient and easy to use, it is lightweight, consumes very little power, and it is convenient to carry around. Sadly, configuring it means you have to have the Fosi page and manual open the first few times. I find it hard to configure it at first, keeping both volume buttons, pressing both volume buttons and everything you have to do.
This being said, it has no noticeable USB DAC delay and it is adequate for real-time playback for video, playing games and exploring real-time content. I find that DS3 is best for IEMS and portable headphones, as even in high gain it does not have a lot of driving power, and it is best for easier to drive setups. It is not scratch-prone and generally it will work with anything I tried to pair with it.
Sound Quality
Pairings – Judging from the quoted power, I am fairly sure that Fosi Audio DS3 will only handle very easy to drive earphones and IEMS, but I did give it a chance to drive both full-sized headphones and IEMS, so I combined it with Faith Audio E1000, Grell OAE2, Lily Audio Genesis One, Palma DHS-1, KBEar Cepheus, Crosszone CZ-10 Enhanced, Erzetich Thalia, TinHIFI T7, NFAudio NE4, Sivga Peng, Crosszone CZ-8a Enhanced, Soundz Flame, YanYin Canon PRO, Dunu Vulkan 2, Moritz Aura, HarmonicDyne Romantic, Hiby Digital Yume, HIFIMAN Audivina LE, HIFIMAN Ananda Unveiled, Westone Mach 80, BQEYZ Winter II, Fosi Audio IM4, Aune AC55.
Fosi DS3 is very quiet with sensitive IEMs and has almost no audible hiss, only a faint one with Campfire IEMS, but at the same time, maximum power is limited, and I would use it only with in-ear models or extremely easy to drive full-sized headphones, as it struggles to drive anything harder to drive, including Fosi i5, which are harder to drive than DS3 can handle.
Yellow Mode – Default, no Effects on
Blue Mode – FPS, a Basshead mode
Purple – 7.1 Mode, Big Soundstage Mode
Overall Signature / Gaming Modes – Fosi DS3 has extremely different soundstage and presentation between modes, and the 7.1 mode has the widest soundstage, but it expands the stage unnaturally, it gives a LOT of width to the sound, creates a little too much width, scatters the sound quite a lot and has a bias of sounding louder on the left channel. FPS mode sounds a bit unnatural too, it is very bassy and forced, but it is much more enjoyable than the 7.1 mode. It feels like a Bass enhanced sound mode, with a bit of soundstage push, but it is mostly natural and enjoyable. Normal, Yellow mode is the most enjoyable one, and it has the best channel balance in this mode, has best overall resolution and clarity and should always be used this way. This means that all impressions have been taken in Yellow, no effects on mode.
Bass – Fosi DS3 starts the bass at 20 Hz with all modes, but has the most sub-bass and bass in general in FPS mode and the least bass in the purple 7.1 mode. Bass is most natural, has best resolution and most even presentation in the yellow mode which is a default mode. It has a warm-ish bass, but not a lot of body in this mode. Bass will be mostly controlled and bouncy with IEMS, but it lacks body and control for hard to drive headphones, as it is limited by that 220 mW of power it can push into headphones.
Midrange – The mid is very different for each mode, it sounds unnatural for purple and blue, and it is at default for yellow. It feels like Yellow is the only mode that has pure channel balance, while other modes have a bit of bias on the left channel. Voices in yellow are natural, male voices are lush and deep, while female voices are happy and energetic. It feels like it has a slight bias towards sounding happy and sweet rather than serious and emotional, present in all modes.
Treble – Treble is relaxed, smooth, and in all modes it is gently rolled off, starting around 6 kHz, with a limited treble sparkle and punch. This means that it will sound laid-back and will always be free of offensive parts. This limits the max resolution slightly, but it still is ok for the price range, as it is plenty detailed in the midrange.
Dynamics And Textures – Fosi DS3 has a detailed mid, with a lot of information presented in the vocal range, has plenty of information in the bass too, but it generally has a smoother, relaxed texture. As per Fosi sound, especially in yellow mode, it will sound a bit vocal centric, and that is where most detail will be.
Loudness Saturation Gradient – Here my feelings are split two-ways. This is because theoretically, DS3 can sound exceptional, it delivers a ton of power with lower than typical voltage, ensuring more body, better control and better bass than most of the alternatives in the price range. The issue is that it is very quiet, even with ultra sensitive earphones, it barely reaches 105 dB, so it always sounds kind of quiet, limited, and it feels like volume is partially missing, it would need far more push and punch to really come alive.
Soundstage – you will get the largest difference in the soundstage between modes, yellow is the narrowest, but most natural and where the soundstage actually sounds good. Purple is the widest one, but sounds very big, scattered and loses the definition that DS3 can provide for layering and instrument separation. Blue or FPS mode is wider than yellow, not that exaggerated, but you can hear the processing slightly. It is great for gaming for sure, but works less well for music listening. The point of those settings is playing competitive games and having an advantage over your adversary, works even in StarCraft 2 where I can hear where events are on the map and pinpoint them in FPS and purple modes.
Value and Conclusion
Value is great, DS3 has an interesting sound, multiple sonic modes and has a nice design, consumes little power, and especially if you don’t listen too loud I would fully recommend it and it has top value.
At the end of the day, Fosi DS3 is a specialized product, I would absolutely recommend it for gaming and special usage, but it is not ideal if you’re going to listen to just music, as max volume is a bit limited and special effects work best for games and competitive content, movies, rather than music. It is still an excellent DAC AMP but it will truly shine for those that buy it for its best usage scenario.
PROs
- Excellent special effects
- Low noise with sensitive IEMS
- Two gain modes, three sound modes
- Smooth and relaxed overall sound
- Big and bouncy bass in general
- Top performer for the right scenarios
Cons
- Low maximum driving power
- Low maximum volume, does not go above 105 dB with any IEM tested
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/4sMZNk3
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3HOxScP
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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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