MAGICAL SYNERGY — FIIO Q3 THX & FINAL AUDIO SONOROUS III

WHAT

The FIIO Q3 ($149.99) will lift any and all smartphones and computers and iPads to stellar heights. And at its current price point, it should be written upon anyone’s short list, who is looking to upgrade the sound quality of all of the above. Further, it’s small, not on the scale of the AudioQuest Dragon Fly series, but still small enough to pocket, palm, or to easily band to a smartphone for OTG listening. It is also stylish, minimalistic, and clean. Then, of course, there are its technicalities, which allow for DSD512 upsampling and 768kHz/32-bit decoding and at a price point of $149! This renders the entire Qobuz catalog completely under one’s playback control and all DSD purchases/downloads easily handled. However, lacking MQA, to date, provides for ever-shrinking access to an ever-increasing percentage of MQA files in Tidal’s growing catalog. 

That said, we, AudioKey Reviews, highly recommend the FiiO Q3 for the things it does so very well—technical upsampling/decoding abilities (at price point) and its beautiful, transparent rendering of music across all genres, and its design aesthetic.  Bravo!

As I wrote in the review of the Final Audio Sonorous III ($399):

“Fun, Fun, Fun, Til Her Daddy Takes the T-bird away,” this is, of course, to say that if you are a lover of music, across many genres, and/or movies you will have fun, fun, fun and enjoyment, that will truly hold your attention, until someone takes these headphones away. CONS: Someone takes your Final Sonorous III headphones away!

The Final Sonorous III will mate well and easily with the AudioQuest DragonFlys Red and Cobalt, and Black, DAC/Amp combinations, and DAPs—Cayin N6ii. We happily recommended the Final Sonorous III headphone for those who may be seeking headphones at or even above this price point, who like to have fun, fun, fun, and who love music and movies! Yes, they will happily do double-duty!

WHY

The “Fun, fun, fun” that the Final Audio Sonorous III delivers will dovetail beautifully to the musical, though more neutral, very detailed, and all comers sampling—DSD512, 768kHz/32-bit—that the FiiO Q3 brings to the table, and the bass, incredible! Indeed a perfect Magical Synergy in so many respects!