To keep things fair, I compared the same music loaded into the internal memory of each player. It was this album in 24/96 FLAC. Bear in mind, the Sony has no network/streaming capability.
To be fair to the FiiO, it acquitted itself very well. The Sony was just more refined, and the music ‘flowed’ a little easier. Piano notes with the Sony sounded more natural and believable. But we are talking just a matter of degrees. As we always are in this hobby/pastime!
If you have a minute, do you mind explaining what’s displayed on the screen? I don’t understand what app would display “ROON READY” at the top?
Thats the FIIO Roon display that turns it on/off it has its own now playing screen
Oh that’s nice! From other threads, I pictured the app as just a toggle switch. Makes more sense that it acts as the active media player, has on-screen controls, and responds physical buttons.
I did to to, but it gives you basic control and a nice now playing screen. If you close it then Roon Ready is off.
There is one little bug in that the current Android lockscreen widget doesn’t update tracks and reports the wrong track lengths. Fiio are looking into that. Not sure how they missed that but I guess its not part of the Roon Ready certification?
I’ve seen your discussion of this on another forum. That’s annoying but the ongoing investment and engagement on Roon Ready from FiiO is very encouraging.
I’ll have to see how I end up configuring the FiiO. I’ll probably just disable the lock screen, which is what I do now. I don’t customize these in a way that puts me at risk if someone else gets ahold of it, so no PIN. And if no PIN, I don’t see much value in a lock screen.
I’ve discovered a couple of small bugs in the OS too. Nothing major, just to do with control of the unit’s lights. Nothing deal-breaking. But I’m sure FiiO will iron them out.
They work ok on my m11
It’s just convenience mainly but I agree it’s not something I use much as the side button pauses, but nice to see a tracks name if it’s via Radio and I dont know it.
You made the right choice.
In case anyone was a bit confused initally as I was, and I may be wrong but it seemed this way still to me.
Do not use the Roon Remote App on the M17 directly in isolation. It runs the same as it always did and even with the new roon ready function turned on, does not show it as as separate endpoint. It will only give you the ‘device output’ option.
All the amazing benefits I found only occur when you toggle on the roonReady switch and control the M17 as an endpoint from an independent device, such as your phone/PC etc.
Q
A query I do have is, I can’t seem to control the M17 volume directly from a remote device using roonReady, or even via DSP. Only options I have are ‘fixed’ or ‘device’ volume. But they do not seem to change anything
Volume should work just fine when set to device
Volume does on my M11 no problems with remote control at all. I use remote app on my phone all the time to control it. This is for headphones out, if your using line out you have to set the Fiio setting to allow volume control on LO or it will be fixed.
You can still use the remote app on the Fiio if you want to control it you just select the correct zone to control like on any other remote but it’s best to disable the apps own audio zone as it can interfere with Roon Ready output as they overlap. Disable and set the zone to the Fiio Roon Ready output in Settings/Audio.
My M17 arrived today. I’ll share a bit more about it later.
I understand the volume issue you described. The M17 has two volume modes - knob and buttons. It ships in knob mode. In this mode, the buttons are disabled. If you switch to button mode, the knob is disabled.
In knob mode, I see exactly what you describe - regardless of whether the Roon Ready zone’s volume is configured as fixed or device, Roon Remote clients display the volume as fixed. If you switch the device into button mode, and the zone is set as variable, Roon Remote clients can adjust the volume.
The toggle is in Settings > Global > Volume Adjusting Mode.
Here are some early impressions. Intentionally devoid of subjective comments on sound quality.
Roon Ready works very, very well in my home. I can play a 192/24 track (streaming from Qobuz) and walk around the house without issues. This includes jumping between access points. I may have to amend this later but, for now, it just works. I can’t do this with my Roon Ready Chord Mojo2 + Poly. I can’t do it with a non Roon Ready iBasso DX320, either.
The volume control decision between knob and buttons is a little strange - I like the knob but also like the option of using Roon for volume control. This seems to be a function of the choice to use a potentiometer knob. Not a deal breaker.
ARC works and behaves as I would have expected. In practice, this means that it up or downsamples to whatever frequency the DAC is “set” at when ARC is launched. By default, this is 384kHz. If, however, you play something using Roon Ready, Qobuz, or some other app which understand how to play at native rates, ARC will play at whatever frequency that other app left that DAC at. If you know what you’re doing you can, with a little effort, have some control over what it does.
The physical transport controls work well for Roon Ready. In ARC, they have the issue discussed elsewhere where a long press causes rapid fast forwarding. The buttons are not easy to press accidentally, though, so this doesn’t seem like much of an issue.
External storage is not adoptable. This is expected.
Open Android is nice. This is Android 10 and the Google Play Store is pre-installed (not so in the iBasso, though easy enough to rectify). FiiO includes their own App Store which is easy enough to ignore.
The last Android security update is from Feb 2020.
It’s warm. MIne’s been updating, charging, and playing for the past couple of hours and has remained warm. I don’t know yet how warm it gets just playing off battery. FiiO says that the aluminum body is for heat dissipation. They also claim VC (vacuum chamber) liquid cooling. I’m not entirely sure the cooling is fully passive - I thought I felt an air current from the side vents, but I’m not sure. If there is a fan in there, it’s not audible to me.
The M17 is big and heavy. This is not a “throw it in your pocket and commute” device. This is a “move it from place to place and set it down on something” device. The android holding one in the photo below is probably 20’ tall. It looks a lot larger in my medium-sized hand.
I think this is a keeper and I’m going to have some gear to sell.
Ditto. After extending listening, IMO the M17 sounds better than Poly/Mojo 1, at least with the headphones I use it with.
It’s also close-enough to the NW-WM1Z to let that go. But not without a pang of sadness. It’s just beautiful. But there is no point in hanging into it.
I’ve been so bowled-over with the M17 that I left a review on Amazon. I don’t do that very often:
Frankenstein’s Bride LIVES!
Ummm… This is curious proposition by FiiO. They’re attempting to ‘shoe-horn’ a desktop-spec DAC/Headphone amplifier into a portable device. Why bother? Well, I’ll come onto that.
As background, at home I use Roon for streaming music. It’s superb. For headphone listening via Roon at home I use my trusted Chord Poly/Mojo combo, which sounds superb. But I’ve never really ‘got on’ with this combo for headphone listening on-the-move. It’s UI is clunky, and although you can use a microSD card in Poly, streaming this using a third-party streaming app on my iPhone is slightly bothersome. Therefore when I’m out-and-about I use my DAP, a Sony NW-WM1Z. This sounds sublime, and it has the added benefit of being able to use my Sennheiser HD800’s and Beyerdynamic T1.2’s in balanced mode with it. Luckily, I have the High-Gain version imported from Hong Kong, which can drive these monsters quite capably. But I can’t use these headphones in balanced mode with the Chord combo at home, as the Mojo is a single-ended DAC/Amplifier. And I hate changing cables!
Enter the FiiO! My interest piqued in the M17 when it became ‘Roon Ready’. Could this DAP replace BOTH my Chord Poly/Mojo combo at home AND my Sony DAP when I’m on-the-move? Well, I took the plunge…
First impressions? Good. It comes sturdily packed in two boxes, one containing the M17/Accessories and the other containing a stand/cooling fan. But BOY, it’s BIG! I thought the Sony DAP was big and heavy, but the FiiO trumps that. It’s heavier and larger. The screen is large and clear, and the Android OS is snappy and responsive. After downloading the latest firmware update, it was detected by Roon on my home network instantly and the ‘Roon Ready’ feature works perfectly. So far, so good.
Right. Time to listen. There is PLENTY of power from the M17. Probably not quite as much as from the Mojo, but it’s more than adequate to drive my balanced cans to unhealthy levels. And that’s just on battery power. There is apparently an ‘Enhanced’ Over-ear Headphone mode that needs a 12V DC power supply to access, which is supplied. The only drawback is that you need to use the supplied stand/cooling fan to access this mode as it generates so much internal heat. But after listening on battery only, I can’t see a need for this mode, unless you have extremely difficult-to-drive cans. It copes with my 600ohm T1.2’s perfectly on battery power.
And it sounds DAMN GOOD! It’s silent on full-gain/high volume, although I haven’t tested it with sensitive IEM’s. The sound is authoritative, impactful and SO musical. I was a bit worried about how it would pair with my (bright) HD800’s, but they really sing with the M17. Is it as good as the Chord combo? Well, all I can say is it’s damn close, but to my ears the M17 sounds slightly superior and it also gives me the opportunity to use my headphones in balanced mode, so a point to the FiiO.
Compared to my Sony DAP, even on ‘High Gain’ mode via the Pentaconn 4.4mm balanced output, the FiiO just has so much more power. It drives my headphones with more authority and control. Being picky, the Sony sounds more refined and smoother. But at twice the price of the FiiO it should! The other thing to highlight is the difference in battery life. The Sony can provide around thirty-hours of listening on a full-charge, whereas the FiiO is limited to around ten-hours. This might be a deal-breaker for some. The Sony also used it’s own OS, rather than Android, which is better in use than FiiO’s own proprietary music app on Android OS.
There’s also a world apart in fit and finish. The Sony is a piece of peerless, meticulous engineering at its best. Although it’s UI is far from perfect IMO, in use it just oozes quality and using the buttons etc brings you a little bit of joy. In comparison, the Chinese FiiO ‘feels’ a little cheap. The design and the tactile feel of the M17 just can’t compete with the Sony, which extends to the slightly loose/cheap leather case that is supplied with it. BUT to be fair it is HALF THE PRICE of the Sony.
There are also a couple of ‘bugs’ in the FiiO’s OS. For instance, I disconnected the USB-C charger and it still ‘thought’ it was on charge for a while. Nothing major. Just a slight feeling that the firmware is ‘work in progress’ rather than complete. I expect further firmware updates will fix these bugs.
So could the FiiO replace my Sony DAP too? Although heavier and larger than the Sony, it’s still portable. JUST. And notwithstanding my personal dislike of FiiO’s own music app, yes I think it could. In fact I think it WILL! Just one thing to bear in mind - the Sony comes with 256GB of storage on-board. The FiiO has only has 64GB, of which only around 45GB is available to the user. So you NEED an additional microSD card with the FiiO.
So far, so good then! I think I’ve found the perfect combination of form and function in the FiiO M17. Anyone want to buy a Chord Poly/Mojo and a Sony NW-WM1Z?
That’s a great write-up.
Or a US-based Poly/Mojo 2 or iBasso DX320 with a couple of extra amp cartridges including an AMP 14? 
I need to give myself a couple of days to make sure I’m out o the honeymoon period with the M17 but I do expect that it’ll replace this other stuff.
Glad your enjoying it, Fiio have done a good first job here. I don’t get the dual volume control on the M11 so the issue for me isn’t present.
Hopefully Roon sort out ARC on daps soon it’s on the map that’s for sure. Then no workarounds. Hopefully the option to use SDcard for storage as that’s really a deal breaker for ARC in general.
I would like to ask again…
The Sony has no network. - Streaming capabilities? I.e. I cannot play or listen to any network content (NAS) via the Sony?
Thank you for your feedback.
Hi Thorsten,
Yes, the Sony cannot stream content. It is a stand-alone DAP.
However, its replacement the NW-WM1ZM2 is Android-based, so can stream content from a network etc.
Hello Martin,
thank you for the effort. I was sleeping and mixed up the devices. You’re right.
I’m considering buying the NW-WM1ZM2, but it’s hard to find to try first. Fiio and A&K are currently out of the question as a mobile DAP, I think the Sony unites both worlds and is also superior in terms of sound in Android mode.
Actually, I’m looking for a device that also works as a controller. I sold my KHV (McIntosh+ Naim HE) too early and was too optimistic about Roon and mobile DAP.
