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The engineers at FiiO don’t seem to sleep. Hardly a day goes by without a new product launch being announced by the audio brand. The latest is the FiiO K11 R2R – a desktop DAC and headphone amplifier for desktop use.

Offering multiple inputs – including USB-Type C, optical and coaxial – the device has 6.35mm and 4.4mm headphone outputs, as well as an RCA stereo line output for powering a hi-fi system. To keep track of the various settings, the K11 R2R has a 1.1-inch VA display that displays information about the audio files being played.

This latest DAC headphone amp is a follow-up to FiiO’s original K11 unit. The K11 R2R features some significant improvements and is the first FiiO DAC/amplifier to feature a four-channel, fully differential, 24-bit R2R (resistor-to-resistor) DAC that has a smoother, more natural sound. The K11 R2R also supports 32-bit/384kHz files and native DSD256 Hi-Res audio, plus it has an output power of up to 1300mW.

The K11 R2R has a multi-function volume knob that also functions as a power switch. The button accesses menu items and adjusts volume levels. Users can switch between Line Out (LO), Pre-out and Power Out (PO) modes just by double-pressing the knob.

The K11 R2R features FiiO’s first four-channel fully differential 24-bit R2R DAC. The brand developed this in-house and features 2 x 48 precision thin film resistor arrays per channel. That’s a total of 192 resistors with 0.1% tolerance and low temperature drift (30 ppm).

The K11 R2R’s fully differential architecture provides lower noise levels than typical DAC architectures, and FiiO claims a smooth and highly musical sound signature. Complementing the DAC is a 4-channel electronic volume controller with low distortion and low noise, as well as precise volume adjustment.

With three independent gain levels and volume curves (high, medium, low), FiiO says its engineers designed the K11 R2R to drive a wide range of headphones, such as sensitive models or high-impedance headphones.

FiiO K11 R2R has two playback options: Non-Oversampling or Over-sampling. NOS mode is designed to maintain the original sample rate of the file being decoded, while OS mode upscales the audio to a maximum sample rate of 384 kHz.

Other features include an illuminated FiiO logo. This RGB lighting provides a quick way to identify the sample rate of the current file being decoded. Brightness, color and lighting patterns are fully adjustable.

FiiO says its K11 R2R is ideal for use with the recently announced SR11 streamer, which has an identical form factor and together makes a compact headphone listening system.

Prices and availability: The FiiO K11 R2R will be available in Obsidian Black or Midnight Silver from the end of July and is priced at $169 / £149. A rather attractive red version of the K11 R2R will be launched later this year.

Technical specifications:

• DAC: Fully differential, true 24-bit, R2R resistor arrays.
• Main control chip: GD32F303RET6.
• Output: (6.35mm unidirectional) L+R≥460mW+460mW (32Ω, THD+N<1%) / L+R≥50mW+50mW (300Ω, THD+N<1%).
• Output (4.4mm balanced): L+R≥1300mW+1300mW (32Ω, THD+N<1%) / L+R≥220mW+220mW (300Ω, THD+N<1%)
• Inputs: USB Type-C, Coaxial, Optical.
• Outputs: 1 x 6.35 mm (unidirectional) / 1 x 4.4 mm (balanced) / 1 x L/R RCA / 1 x coaxial.
• USB input decoding: PCM 384kHz/32-bit / DSD 256.
• Coaxial input decoding: PCM: 192kHz/24-bit.
• Optical input decoding: PCM 96kHz/24-bit.
• Line-out (LO) mode: Yes.
• Power Off Mode (PO): Yes.
• Display: 1.1-inch LCD VA segment display.
• Adjustable RGB lighting: Yes.
• Dimensions: 147 x 133 x 32.3 mm.
• Weight: 420g
• Colors available. Obsidian Black or Midnight Silver.