Fosi Audio Q4 Headphone Amplifier DAC Converter, Mini Stereo Digital-to-Analog DAC Amp, USB Coaxial Optical to 3.5MM AUX RCA Jack, for Computer Desktop Powered Active Speakers Up to 24 bit/192 kHz

Having previously purchased two ‘cheap’ DAC Converter units and really struggled to get any decent level of sound through them, I decided to bite the bullet and pay a bit more for the Fosi Audio Q4 Headphone Amplifier DAC Converter. I am using this unit with a TosLink optical cable and it has exceeded all my expectations. This little device punches above its weight and delivers a remarkable listening experience that I think would be hard to match in its price range. It is a very compact and sturdy design, with a solid and premium feel to it. I am using this device with an LG Smart TV that is fitted into a bed unit (so TV rises from foot of the bed). As such, we only ever use this TV with headphones, so achieving decent sound through headphones is essential to us. As previously mentioned, I had struggled to get any decent level of sound through two cheaper versions of DAC converters (the sound levels were so quiet we had resorted to always using subtitles when watching TV), but I just left the cables in place that were used with those and plugged them into the Fosi unit – which clearly showed me there was nothing wrong with the cables I had been using and the issue was with the cheap DAC units. With the Fosi unit, everything works brilliantly and the sound quality and levels are awesome. I am not using particularly expensive headphones – they are wired and have an impedance value of 32 – which should have been good enough with the original ‘cheap’ DAC converter but simply wasn’t The Fosi Audio Q4 Headphone Amplifier DAC Converter is an absolute gem – although it should be noted I have only tried connecting via Toslink optical cable so cannot comment on other connection options. It’s hard to believe that such a small, affordable device can provide this level of audio performance. Highly recommended!

I asked the question if this would work as a gaming DAC and output sound to my headphones and still have the ability to mic into the motherboard of my PC. I was told no but I can say that this setup configuration works without issues for me. (Runbing Windows 10, b550 motherboard, V-moda BoomPro mic, Philips shp9500, splitter cable). I was advised by a friend, researched throughly and came to the conclusion that this would be a good quality setup. The addition of this DAC has made it a perfect gaming setup for me and at a good overall cost. PROS: • this DAC played a part in delivering better performance than most gaming headsets. • I didn't think that bass and treble control would be very useful but I now find myself regularly tweaking them in various situations to optimise game sound and music to my taste. • Nice weight to the unit yet quite compact in size. • Control dials have a nice quality feel to them. • Noticeable cleaner sound when compared to motherboard output. • Good sound stage which is perfect for gaming. • I HAVE NO PROBLEMS WITH MIC INTO MOTHERBOARD WHILST USING USB TO DAC. CONS: • For convenience only, it would have been nice to have the mic pass through without having to split into mobo. CONCLUSION: I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a decent gaming sound experience at a good price point.

I recently recieved a Beyerdynamic DT-990 Pro 250 Ohm, so I decided to do some research on the best budget DAC/Amp as the motherboard sound card is pretty bad and I had static white noise on loud volumes and random crackling. So I came across this one in some YouTube reviews and they all mentioned how it's a great budget USB DAC for the price. And I knew I had to try it out and see if it's good ( I could return it if I didn't like it ). And the sound quality had a reasonable improvement, it wasn't mindblowing but it wasn't worse than my current setup, and I can esure you it's great for the price. The soundstage is decent and the volume is perfect for my 250 Ohm headset. I've spent some time messing around with the 'Bass' and 'Treble' knobs on the front to get my ideal sound and i've settled with the Bass being about halfway and Treble about a third a way up. This balances out the Bass and enhances the treble ( good for gaming ).

I don't very often leave reviews but I felt this deserved one. I brought this in the hope I could take sound from my smart TV which at the time of purchase I never realised didn't have a 3.5mm headphone jack. I was completely baffled by this as I hadn't seen it before. So my only option was Bluetooth headphones, after months and months of crackles and sound dropping out and very bad audio/video sync issues I started looking into possible solutions and reasons why it was happening. I found many posts and pages claiming its the firestick or its the streaming service, possibly the TV, but then I came across posts about Bluetooth headphones and TVs, specifically about how it's a poor way to listen to audio? By this point I'd already brought a 2nd pair of headphones thinking mine were faulty. I started researching into ways of getting sound from TVs into headphones via amps and discovered these DAC amps.. I was skeptical about this purchase as its fairly expensive and some mixed reviews on here but the sound produced from this little amp (and I mean little) is extremely impressive. I've not tested it on any big over the top action movies but the sound is very clean and clear the bass and treble make a noticeable difference. Now onto music... Playing some bassy songs from YouTube and my headphones came to life and they boomed. Bass was hard and full, very clear mids and treble no distortion or crackling or white noise, I'm using some very old turtle beech headphones that I no longer use for my xbox, admittedly they were around £200 when released but nowhere near some of the headphones available today and the sound was awesome, volume turned up around 3/4 and you can take headphones off and hear the music and bass clearly without needing to put them on, I imagine a good action film with lots of explosions will also sound brilliant. If you've managed to read this far I apologise for the long review 😊 if your in the same boat as me and need to get sound from your TV then get this, it's highly rated Compared to others more expensive in its class, I got this on sale with a additional 15% off so cost around £56 and I would of been happy at full price. I can now watch TV without 1-2 seconds sync delay 👌👌 BTW I'm using this via the optical cable which is supplied, and powered by USB from my TV, again this cable is supplied. I hope this helps people in the same position I was in.

So I bought a set of open backed headphones, Phillips fidellios x2. Excellent headphones but with the standard headphone socket from by gen 2 iPad Pro, were very bright and congested, then needed a bit of oomph. I search around, I wanted a dac that would both amplify and adjust treble and bass, and I stumbled on this little gem. Just to make my life a little more difficult I also decided to change the headphone cable as the Phillips are three meters long which just trips up the dog, so I also invested in some audioquest cable, but at £50 a bit pricy but do give a bit more clarity. Anyway this dac/amp is excellent, it gives far more oomph and bass/treble control, the result is more sound separation and the bass boost fills in a gap usually there with open backed headphones whilst the treble boost enhances the spatial quality of the music. At roughly a quarter turn for bass and treble you get a wider sound stage and a balanced treble and bass. I could now go on and buy a £150 dac but as the headphones only cost that it seems unbalanced expenditure so this is about right. The sound is really great particularly for classical performances, although even this set up is no substitute for the bass response from closed back headphones when listening to rock or dance music. But I still firmly believe there is no set up that works for everything, you mix and match depending on your preferences and if you like rock buy a different complimentary set up, any excuse to buy some more kit eh?

If your TV has synchronisation problems with Bluetooth headphones, then this little device could be the answer - used with conventional wired headphones. Easy to install, good sound quality and no annoying delay between sound and vision. I connected it to my LG TV with the supplied optical cable

Seems to work well - no hiss on mouse movement or interference at this point. Whats not obvious at first glance is that for PC, it needs two inputs, the USB to PC (expected), but also a USB to USB C (provided), but what it doesn't provide is an adapter. Two shortcomings here: 1) Could have been powered over USB, no need for a second connection. 2) Cheaped out by not providing a USB AC adapter I would have powered off my PC (microUSB to PC USB), however I have run out of ports.

Perfect for my purposes, I guess my only complaint is that it would be nice to have a reference level so I know I'm not distorting the audio. But otherwise it was really easy to use low power and good price