Last Updated: February 25, 2020 (Refresh Now)
FiiO E10K USB DAC and Headphone Amplifier Black
Last Updated: February 25, 2020 (Refresh Now)
7.5
SCORE
/10
Total Reviews
1000
Old Reviews
693
Unverified
67
Spam Test
PASS
Yes
USB
Review Analysis - 240 recent, verified reviews
Detailed Mode
Sound Quality
79audio, dac, dac amp, audiophile, volume
+91%
-9%
" ... I would recommend this product for anyone that is looking to get the most out of their listening experience. ... "
" ... Secondly, when I tap the metal housing, it sounds almost hollow (which is probably why it is so light). ... Sound quality is decent for the price and will likely sound loads better than your on-board sound. ... "
" ... It’s so compact but the sound quality is incredible! ... "
" ... I've got sound pumping and thumping again. ... "
" ... Fantastic little DAC. ... "
" ... It just sounds a bit better which is about what I expected. ... "
" ... I love this dac/amp. ... I'm a basshead who pretends to be an audiophile, and this unit is perfect for me :) ... "
" ... I'm not entirely sure what ALL a DAC is supposed to do, but what I do know is that my headphones were annoyingly quiet plugging into my Asrock Z170 Pro4s. ... "
Headphones
36sennheiser, headphone jack, ohm headphones, headphone, ohm
+83%
-17%
" ... What can I say good little amp for most headphones ... "
" ... Good amplification for my 598HD headset. ... "
" ... A great way to boost the sound on your headphones. ... "
" ... I'm using this dac with the Phillips SPH9500 head phones and they sound great. ... "
" ... - Headphones handling: As mentioned before, I am using this unit with my Sennheiser HD650 (300 ohms). ... "
" ... I currently use this amp to drive my Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 headphones and Audio Technica AUD ATHWS55BK and the majority of music I listen to is EDM. ... "
" ... I've paired this with a VMODA Crossfade headset, and this really brought life to them. ... "
" ... Able to drive most headphones to reasonable levels, even 600ohm DT880's. ... "
Bass
30boost, gain, switch, bass booster, dac
+100%
" ... Gain and bass boost on at the same time sounds distorted. ... "
" ... After some experimenting with low/high gain and using the bass boost feature. ... My personal favourite setting is low gain with bass boost on. ... Followed by high gain without bass boost. ... "
" ... Sound quality is nice and with the different switches for both gain and bass, I'd say this was a good buy. ... "
" ... I like those headphones and the bass boost on this made them really fun. ... "
" ... sounds great and clean, only a bit narrow and the bass boost ruins the bass ... "
" ... The bass booster function is nice and I don't notice any distortion. ... "
" ... The bass has a very composed (or reserved) and tight feel to it without turning on the bass boost. ... "
" ... From my experience it allows you to hear more of whats going on, adds a cleaner bass and doesn't seem to add any bias to the audio aside from the bass switch function. ... "
Product Reliability
30working, stopped working, lasted, windows, stopped
+20%
-80%
" ... It stopped transmitting left channel audio. ... "
" ... It lasted about an hour. ... "
" ... I've had this for sixteen months. ... In the beginning, it worked great, but over time, it's degraded. ... it seems like some component in the device is failing. ... "
" ... it crashed my computer everyday for almost two years and windows didn't recognize what it was ... so after months and months of troubleshooting and swapping parts that didn't needed change ... my computer never crashed again ... "
" ... This is a piece of junk that lasted 2 weeks. ... Maybe you will get lucky and get a month out of it. ... Better to spend a little more once than buy garbage you will need to replace in < 4 weeks. ... "
" ... I listened to my HD650s and DT770s through this for a few months. ... "
" ... Lasted exactly 2 years before crapping out. ... "
" ... The loose connection in the back caused me many issues and ultimately the device stopped working entirely. ... "
Ports
27micro usb, port, cable, usb cable, dac
+52%
-48%
" ... This is miles ahead of using the standard headphone plug on the computer. ... "
" ... It's also powered through the USB cable and it sounds great. ... "
" ... It worked well with my macbook pro and some USB-C adapter to microUSB. ... "
" ... Just plug it into your PC via USB with the provided cord and plug in your headphones in the front and you're good to go. ... "
" ... I typically use the FiiO E10K USB DAC for my laptop. ... You get a cleaner signal out of the USB vs the headphone jack of most computers. ... "
" ... It shipped with a broken USB cable, but once I figured that out I've been totally thrilled with it. ... "
" ... One point, you must also buy a four into one USB adapter. ... "
" ... I was skeptical that something receiving audio input via USB would fix this, but I was pleasantly surprised to find the DAC not only eliminates all of the EMI buzzing I was hearing, but it also has a lower overall noise floor than my onboard sound card. ... "
Device Compatibility
25laptop, dac, usb, windows 10, fiio
+60%
-40%
" ... It really does beat onboard audio and especially on older/cheaper devices. ... "
" ... paired with beyerDynamic dt770 pro (80ohm) ... "
" ... This amp is very portable, but it has barely any ports and this hinders the number of headphones that you could connect this to. ... "
" ... Works pretty good with my laptop. ... "
" ... I have a set of the Beats Studio3 Wireless. ... I was kinda back and forth about spending $76 for this but I am completely impressed with this little device . ... "
" ... So I plan to only use this when traveling for my laptop now I have since moved to using the Schiit stack for my desktop, and dont regret the change. ... "
" ... Not only does this work perfectly for the PC, but it surprisingly also works on all the other electronics I've tested it out with. ... As an example, if you own a PS4, you can seamlessly connect this DAC to it and completely use it with no further setup. ... "
" ... Using this with the Audio Technica M50x and pc and laptop! ... "
Build Quality
23build quality, feels, metal, rubber, build
+74%
-26%
" ... Well constructed, high quality. ... "
" ... Really small really nice quality feels very solid adjustment dial is smooth turning and easy to grip ... "
" ... Solid switch feel. ... "
" ... Pretty simple and good build quality. ... "
" ... The package arrived well shipped and brand new wrapped in plastic. ... "
" ... Metal finish is sleek. ... "
" ... Nice solid and not too big metal, assuming aluminum, body. ... "
" ... Materials are nice. ... Package came with six little rubber sticker feet that I've attached to the bottom, which helps keep it in one place. ... "
Volume
22volume knob, loud, hissing, gain, loud enough
+82%
-18%
" ... Sound quality is great, but make sure you turn everything to 100% volume on your device and use the provided slider to control the volume instead. ... "
" ... It amplifies my DT 990 Pro 250 OHMS just fine, volume and ohmy quality. ... "
" ... I bought this wanting the option for an inline volume knob, and better audio quality. ... "
" ... This is a small dac/amp, but don’t let it’s size fool you. ... "
" ... Better SQ and much more volume versus PC sound card. ... "
" ... Plenty of juice to run the HE400is far above listening volume as well. ... "
" ... I use it primarily as volume control for my PC, but also, better quality sound than being directly plugged into the default jack on the motherboard. ... "
" ... Not only is this crisp and clear, it also gets uncomfortably loud (its a good thing) while not distorting! ... "
Size
19portability, smaller, pocket, compact, size
+100%
" ... Form: Compact and not too flashy with a single blue LED light. ... "
" ... The amp is very handy when it comes to portability. ... "
" ... It's sound is pretty much true to source, it can get up there in volume and it's sturdy, doesn't overheat and portable. ... "
" ... Small and packs a punch! ... "
" ... I also love the size. ... "
" ... He may be small, but he packs a punch! ... "
" ... smaller than i thought which is good, and build quality is nice. ... "
" ... For portability, convenience, features and quality the Alpen 2 is the way to go, folks! ... "
Cables
17usb cable, port, amp, micro usb, jack
+35%
-65%
" ... There was an issue with the connection in the back to where if the cable moved at all the sound would completely cut out and it would crash my computer. ... "
" ... Anyone looking to get this product beware of the cheap connection for the power cable. ... "
" ... The cord also unplugged very easily which I found slightly annoying. ... "
" ... bsod your computer if cord(horrible connection out of the box) disconnects while in use. ... "
" ... Tapping the cable would result in the power light randomly shutting off. ... "
" ... I don't think it's the connector, either ... "
" ... I didn’t feel like I should have to purchase a potentially higher quality cable to correct an issue using included parts. ... "
" ... Even though all cables are still in place and secured, the audio invariable cuts out and requires the unit to be unplugged and plugged back in again. ... "
Controls
14volume knob, control, knob, easy, button
+79%
-21%
" ... The switches and rotating knob feel good during operation. ... "
" ... I use it primarily as volume control for my PC, but also, better quality sound than being directly plugged into the default jack on the motherboard. ... "
" ... Sound quality is great, but make sure you turn everything to 100% volume on your device and use the provided slider to control the volume instead. ... "
" ... I bought this wanting the option for an inline volume knob, and better audio quality. ... "
" ... The Alpen 2 has a nifty 2 button and click-wheel interface that's very easy to navigate. ... "
" ... and a cool blue light and the volume dial is sturdy and is the on/off as well. ... "
" ... Solidly built, smooth volume control, simple design. ... "
" ... Smooth volume control for headphone feed. ... "
Drivers
14driver, windows, fiio, e10k, cause
+21%
-79%
" ... Causes Blue Screens- drivers suck ... "
" ... Absolute trash driver support, not even the much touted windows drivers actually work. ... "
" ... Tryed different ports and uninstall of driver different cables. ... "
" ... I did however find a short term fixed, there were drivers for this amp which I installed to my PC, removing the flickering completely! ... After installing the drivers for this product, it began to BLUE SCREEN my computer?! ... Uninstalled the driver and the blue screening stopped, yet the audio flicker continued and was no longer usable again. ... Asked around to other owners of this and the same exact issue happened with them, including the blue screening with the driver. ... "
" ... here's the bad thing: drivers haven't been updated in a while ... "
" ... They released a driver that ruined the product or windows updated and ruined it ... "
" ... Driver issues are unbearable. ... "
" ... Messed with the drivers, tried a different device and it's still just stuck on whatever settings it was on when it froze. ... "
Price
13money, best dac, dac, worth, waste of money
+85%
-15%
" ... Good product for the price. ... "
" ... Look no further, this is the best dac you could get for this price. ... "
" ... The price is very convenient for what this amp can do . ... "
" ... Extremely satisfied for the price. ... "
" ... I researched it, bought some 200 dollar headphones that needed it and I did not want to spend the same for a DAC that I did on the headphones. ... "
" ... No doubt, this is the best DAC for the price. ... If you are interested in the best DAC for the price, this is the one ... "
" ... I feel as if these are meant for headphones in the $200-$300 range with somewhat lower impedance. ... "
" ... Thanks to modern technology, products like the E10K could exist at such a low price point. ... "
Ease of Use
11easy to use, use, simple, setup, button
+100%
" ... Easy to use and setup . ... "
" ... The product is truly plug and play and very simple to use. ... "
" ... Small portable and easy to use. ... "
" ... Easy to install and even easier to use, it's volume button is efficient and effective. ... "
" ... The Alpen 2 has a nifty 2 button and click-wheel interface that's very easy to navigate. ... "
" ... Easy to use, works great. ... "
" ... Easy to use. ... "
" ... Product was easy to install/setup. ... "
Comfort
10hand, ears, sound quality, ear fatigue, solid
+60%
-40%
" ... Really small really nice quality feels very solid adjustment dial is smooth turning and easy to grip ... "
" ... I’m skeptical on most audio equipment because I don’t believe my own ears are that good but the placebo is really working for me on this one. ... I definitely feel an extra oomph now, but I unfortunately can’t pull out all the buzzwords about how rich and ungrainy the soundstage on these bla bla. ... It’s also surprisingly small, fits neatly in my hand. ... "
" ... I have a basic pair of Shure headphones but still notice the awesome difference. ... "
" ... Man, my ears love this thing. ... "
" ... The FiiO E10K is great, but not that great, I find it a value for the money and would be comfortable gifting one to someone else that has never owned one. ... Buy one right now and never experience your headphones the same way again. ... "
" ... It works pretty good with the beyer dt770 headphones, but i'd like just a bit more power out of it. ... "
Software Platform
8windows, driver, crashing, windows 7, usb
+13%
-88%
" ... it crashed my computer everyday for almost two years and windows didn't recognize what it was ... "
" ... Recently, across several PC's, the device has stopped working with windows giving the error not enough USB resources, without even all of the ports on either computer being used. ... "
" ... when its not crashing my computer. ... "
" ... This is just as likely Apple's problem as FiiO, but this does not work in OSX at all. ... "
" ... It started getting so bad my PC would start crashing. ... "
" ... I read that it is not compatible with Windows 10 but its not working on Windows 7 or Mac which is just ridiculous. ... "
Overall performance
7yes, solid, seems, definitely, computer
+71%
-29%
" ... This thing is small and definitely gets the job done. ... "
" ... For the price it does a great job! ... "
" ... Yes, seems to do the job, all right. ... "
Setup
6easy, install, windows, plug, play
+100%
" ... Easy to use and setup . ... "
" ... Real easy plug and play, took me 3 minutes to discover everything and find a setting I like. ... "
" ... As an example, if you own a PS4, you can seamlessly connect this DAC to it and completely use it with no further setup. ... "
" ... Installation was easy, works very well with Windows 7 and gives me all the volume I could ever need for production. ... "
" ... Install was a breeze, just hook up the usb from E10k to pc, no need for driver install. ... "
" ... Product was easy to install/setup. ... "
Returns
6return, product, worth, use, seller
+17%
-83%
" ... I had to return this. ... "
" ... Also It has been returned ... "
" ... I'd like to return it if possible. ... "
" ... Returned next day. ... Cause it's trash. ... "
Fit
6pocket, fit, table, size, put
+83%
-17%
" ... But it is small and fits into a pocket fine I suppose. ... "
" ... It’s also surprisingly small, fits neatly in my hand. ... "
" ... I cant say much about portability aside from the size being pretty nice and compact, I'm sure it would fit in my pocket with a phone. ... "
" ... The sound is good and it works fine EXCEPT if the unit is bumped or slips off my computer onto the carpeted floor. ... "
" ... Don't forget to attach the small stickers to the bottom if you put it on the table, so it's much more stable. ... "
Gaming
5gaming, audio, sound card, positional audio, onboard
+80%
-20%
" ... If you dont get the audio crash problem for your windows, then this is a great little thing for gaming/music and driving midfi headphones. ... "
" ... Using for music/gaming on an MSI GS65 laptop. ... "
" ... This product is pretty sweet, the sound card on my PC is a mid-high gaming board so it has fantastic onboard audio. ... "
" ... Can really hear the music much better and for gaming it's a huge difference. ... "
Frequencies
5bass boost, bass, treble, mids, highs
+100%
" ... My personal favourite setting is low gain with bass boost on. ... "
" ... It boosted the bass and refined the entire spectrum making the mids and highs clearer, more defined and more lively. ... It's got bass & treble adjustments for tweaking individual files. ... "
" ... I set the bass boost to off and used iTunes' equalizer setting instead. ... "
" ... Note: I recommend using this with an equalizer to fine-tune your output. ... "
" ... Little instruments in the background, or subtle vocal. ... "
Design
5small, metal, finish, feels, course
+100%
" ... Was expecting it to be more aesthetically tech-y but instead it’s just really cute, which is of course also neat. ... "
" ... While the build is small and cute, it feels durable. ... "
" ... FiiO has always have good aesthetic design and the material used is of high quality. ... Quite cool looking. ... "
" ... Metal finish is sleek. ... "
Resolution
4audio, onboard, sennheiser hd 598, pc, hd 600
+100%
" ... sounds way better than my onboard audio and drives my sennheiser hd 58x perfectly. ... "
" ... Sounds pretty clear and it makes my Sennheiser HD 380 Pro worth it. ... "
" ... This works pretty well with my Sennheiser HD 600. ... "
" ... My current setup was a pair of Sennheiser HD 598 hooked up to my pc with integration audio supported by Creative Sound Core3D which I was satisfied with. ... "
Marketplace
4advertised, seller, product
+100%
" ... Works as advertised. ... "
" ... Ordering again to actually see if I get this product. ... "
" ... Works as advertised. ... "
" ... I hope that the seller reads this and can offer me a replacement. ... "
Features
4blue, led, features, bright, volume
+100%
" ... Kool blue light for power on indicator. ... "
" ... For portability, convenience, features and quality the Alpen 2 is the way to go, folks! ... "
" ... I also really like the front blue LED light when the unit is on. ... "
" ... Form: Compact and not too flashy with a single blue LED light. ... "
USB
4device, never, micro usb, connection, computer
-100%
" ... Literally would never recommend this amp to anyone because of the poor choice of the micro USB. ... "
" ... This is the worst USB device I've ever got. ... "
" ... I've never had a USB device that has given me such issue. ... "
" ... Slight oversight on my part-- Didn't notice that you can only do USB input. ... "
Call quality
4phones, much, hissing, hearing, enemies
+75%
-25%
" ... I enjoy that I can hear and pin point enemies now 👍 ... "
" ... You will hear sounds that you thought weren't there ... "
" ... I didnt realize how much hearing loss I had in the lower tones till I got this and had them boosted by so much. ... "
For Running
3headphones, results, love, hear, e10k
+100%
" ... Would love to hear some replies from other folks running the same headphones to hear what settings they prefer. ... "
" ... The results are exactly what I expected and pushes my headphones perfectly. ... "
" ... The E10K brings out the best of my HD650 without a sweat. ... "
For Kids
3loves
+100%
" ... Son says he's happy with the performance. ... "
" ... Son loves it ... "
" ... As a college student, getting into headphones is a pretty expensive endeavor. ... "
Delivery
3arrived, well, shipped, package, little
+100%
" ... The package arrived well shipped and brand new wrapped in plastic. ... "
" ... Still in excellent condition. ... "
" ... Item arrived in seemingly good condition. ... "
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Specifications
Connectivity
USB: Yes