The FiiO M17 was first revealed unexpectedly when the iF Design Award 2021 disclosed the finalists that qualified for the second round of judging earlier this year.
During its 2021 Autumn New Products Launch Event IV, the Guangzhou-based audio manufacturer has officially rolled out the FiiO M17.
Positioned as a Portable Desktop-Class Digital Audio Player (DAP), the FiiO M17 is capable of more than three times the power output of the M15 through its balanced connection (3W @ 32Ω vs 0.8W @ 32Ω), made possible with the implementation of a pair of THXAAA-788+ amplifier module first introduced on the FiiO K9 Pro earlier this year. In addition, users can select from low, mid, high, headphone mode or super headphone modes depending on the headphones connected. On paper, the jointly developed amplifier module by THX and FiiO ensures that increased power output capability doesn’t compromise on low distortion levels expected from a Hi-Fi product with THD+N rated at less than 1% across all modes.
DAC wise, the FiiO M17 sports a pair of 8-channel ESS Sabre ES9038PRO Flagship DAC chips in a dual-mono configuration that allows eight parallel outputs for each audio channel, ensuring superior quality resolution with minimal distortion. Equipped with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal memory, the storage of the DAP is expandable via the microSD card slot supporting up to 2TB. Like the FiiO M11 Plus LTD, the FiiO M17 also features the Snapdragon 660 SoC from Qualcomm for more excellent computing capability on Android 10. Coupled with the XMOS XUF208 USB controller, the DAP supports USB 3.0 on one of the two USB-C ports and USB 2.0 on the other, playback of up to 32 bit / 768 kHz PCM and Native DSD512. In addition, it supports MQA audio technology unfolding up to 8X through local playback and streaming from the TIDAL Masters catalogue.
FiiO has equipped the FiiO M17 with Qualcomm’s latest QCC5124 Bluetooth SoC, supporting Bluetooth 5.0 and Bluetooth codecs AAC, aptX, aptX LL, aptX HD, LDAC and SBC for reception and aptX, aptX HD, LDAC and SBC for transmission.
In addition to the standard 3.5 mm Single-Ended, the 2.5 mm Balanced and the 4.4 mm Balanced headphone jacks, the DAP also has a 6.35 mm Single-Ended headphone jack and an RCA coaxial port for hooking up to a Hi-Fi system.
With a 9,200 mAh battery, the FiiO M17 supports up to 10 hours of continuous playback via the Single-Ended outputs and 8 hours of continuous playback via the Balanced outputs on a single charge. Charging wise, the DAP supports QC 4.0 (USB-PD compatible) fast charging allowing the device to be fully charged in four and a half hours.
Available in black, the FiiO M17 is priced at USD 1,799.99 and will be available in November from FiiO and its authorised dealers worldwide.
