The KA11 debuted final yr to a lot fanfare, and at simply $29, it was probably the most inexpensive DAC in Fiio’s in depth catalog — till now. The Chinese logo has now presented the JA11, and this dongle DAC is available at just $15, or part the price of the KA11. Obviously, I used to be willing to try the JA11 and notice the way it holds up in opposition to the KA11 and the KA3.

The KA11 on its own is tiny, and the JA11 is kind of part its measurement; that is mainly the similar measurement as a normal 3.5mm to USB-C dongle. The JA11 may be offered beneath the Jade Audio label, and that is the reason comprehensible given its entry-level asking worth. As such, you do not get any Fiio branding at the product; there may be only a Jade Audio emblem at the casing of the three.5mm connector.

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The USB-C connector and the DAC housing are constructed from aluminum, and they are attached via a braided cable constructed from silicone and yarn; the construct high quality is far better than the rest you can to find on this phase. It’s to be had in white and black variations, and after 3 weeks of intensive use, I did not see any problems with my unit.

While the KA11 is to be had in each USB-C and Lightning fashions, the JA11 is restricted to USB-C, and Fiio does not have any plans to release a Lightning-enabled possibility anytime quickly. That limits its usability with older iPhones, however I examined the USB-C type with my iPhone 15 Pro Max, and it attached seamlessly. It additionally pairs with Windows and macOS units along with Android, and on this regard, this can be very flexible — you are not looking for any drivers.

Fiio most often bundles its merchandise in a particular package deal, however the JA11 is available in a inexperienced plastic pouch, and you do not get any equipment along side it — that is comprehensible given what it prices. At simply 5g in weight, the JA11 is small and light-weight sufficient that you do not really feel it; the USB-C cable I take advantage of to rate my telephone weighs 4 occasions as a lot.

Coming to the sound, the JA11 has 32-bit/384KHz PCM and DSD128 interpreting, and it facilitates inline controls and a mic, so in case you are connecting earbuds that experience this option, they are going to paintings seamlessly. As the dongle DAC makes use of an built-in DAC chip, it is not in a position to ship reasonably as a lot energy as its siblings; it is going as much as 45mW at 16Ω and 30mW at 32Ω, which is not up to a 6th of the 200mW the KA11 produces at 32Ω.

That mentioned, I did not have any problems pairing the DAC with maximum IEMs; I examined it with the Sennheiser IE200, Fiio’s FA7S and the all-new FD15, and 7Hz Legato, and it did an admirable activity offering ok energy. If you are the use of a not easy headset, you must get the KA11 as an alternative, however when you simply want a dongle DAC to make use of with IEMs, the JA11 holds up astonishingly neatly.

The one factor I had with the JA11 used to be that it wanted an replace out of the field; the DAC has stereo stability problems, and Fiio launched the 1.7 construct to handle this. So earlier than you get started the use of the DAC, you can want to attach it to Windows and use the supplied instrument to put in the construct.

The largest spotlight of the JA11 is that it has PEQ tuning; Fiio is all about this option in 2024 after introducing it at the K19, and it really works astonishingly neatly. You pair the DAC to Fiio Control on Android, and also you get in depth get admission to to tweak the sound profile in your liking. There are presets to be had, and you’ll arrange your individual and proportion profiles with different customers.