ЦАПы — FiiO Tiny

The Tiny is an ultra-compact USB-C DAC and headphone amplifier sold under FiiO's Snowsky sub-brand, the Chinese company's line of low-cost portable audio products. Launched at around USD 22, it plugs directly into a phone, tablet or computer to add a wired headphone output with hi-res decoding, and comes in two versions - the Tiny A with a 3.5mm output and a USB-C charging port, and the Tiny B with both 3.5mm and 4.4mm outputs.

Key specs that matter

Both versions decode PCM up to 32-bit/384kHz and DSD256 and carry Hi-Res Audio certification. Output impedance is below 0.5 ohms on the 3.5mm socket and below 0.2 ohms on the 4.4mm socket. Signal-to-noise ratio is 105dB (3.5mm) and 100dB (4.4mm), with THD+N of 0.0034% and 0.01% respectively. The Tiny A's USB-C port passes through charging at up to 20V/2A. The body measures about 29 x 22 x 10mm, and the Tiny A weighs 7g, the Tiny B 10g. An RGB indicator shows the sample rate being played.

Engineering and use context

A dongle DAC like the Tiny bypasses the phone's own audio circuitry entirely - digital audio leaves the device over USB and is converted and amplified inside the dongle, which is also why it restores a headphone socket to phones that no longer have one. FiiO does not name the conversion chip, but the high level of integration keeps the body small enough for a cable-free T-bar format. Output impedance below 0.5 ohms means the amplifier's response does not change with the varying impedance of multi-driver earphones. On the Tiny B, the 4.4mm socket uses a single-ended common-mode arrangement rather than a true balanced output, and both sockets can be used simultaneously, allowing two listeners to share one source. The Tiny A's 3.5mm socket supports microphone pass-through and in-line controls for calls, recording and voice chat, and its charging port lets a phone charge during playback. Support for both USB Audio Class 1.0 and 2.0 makes it compatible with game consoles such as the PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, which require UAC1.0, as well as Android, iOS, Windows, macOS and Linux devices. The FiiO Control app or web interface switches the UAC mode and sets the volume precisely. The all-metal body is CNC-machined and offered in several colours.

Pairing

The Tiny suits in-ear monitors and efficient portable headphones driven from a phone, laptop or console. It drives multi-driver IEMs comfortably, although power-hungry full-size headphones need a more powerful amplifier.

Alternatives

FiiO's own KA11 is a slightly larger dongle with a Cirrus Logic CS43131 DAC and higher output power.