This and That:
Successor of the original Q1 but doesn't really have much in common with it. It's basically a totally different product.
Plenty of included accessories (rubber pad, four silicone bands, several cables, pouch).
Nice design. Small and flat casing. Good build quality.
Very flexible included Lightning cable. The other cables aren't as flexible.
On/Off switch built into the volume knob.
Needs drivers to be downloaded on a Windows computer. MFi-certified, so it should work directly with portable Apple devices without needing to use Apple's CCK as a workaround.
I couldn't get it to work with my Android devices while other people apparently did. As it isn't advertised to work with Android devices (and doesn't even come with a matching cable), I guess that just like with the Beyerdynamic A 200 p, native Android support is limited for the DAC.
Volume Control:
While the new FiiO Q1 MkII appears to have a typical analogue volume control implementation due to its regular rotary volume potentiometer, this is totally not the case – its volume control is implemented digitally wherefore channel imbalance is completely avoided, even if the potentiometer is in the very low adjustment range.
The Volume is almost muted during the first two, three mm after turning the DAC-Amp on, but then suddenly increases immediately with a big-ish jump, although increments are smooth and gradual above that threshold – in the latter way, the Q1 MkII feels just like a regular device with a traditional analogue potentiometer, but with the advantages of the digital attenuation (ideal channel matching), and this is probably exactly what FiiO wanted to go for.
Ppersonally, as someone who has come from preferring analogue attenuation to clearly preferring fully digital attenuation, I would still prefer a small screen and volume buttons or a pot with infinite turns and probably steps coupled with a small screen for the sake of even higher precision and always getting the exact volume setting I want, ideally with 256 steps in total, but I can totally see why FiiO went the way they did, and over time I even learned to like the Q1 MkII's and Q5's volume control as it feels almost like a typical analogue potentiometer implementation in use but comes with all the advantages that a digital implementation brings.
I wouldn’t have minded a slightly lower starting volume in amp mode in order to being able to listen at even quieter volume levels with very sensitive in-ears when using the Q1 MkII as a pure amplifier. Used as a DAC-Amp, that's no problem anymore and listening quite quietly is possible.
Battery Life:
For this test, I used the FiiO’s single-ended headphone output, with the inexpensive Superlux HD668B connected to it. No bass boost was used, low gain was chosen, and the potentiometer was set to ca. 50%.
Used as a pure amplifier, the Q1 MkII’s battery lasted for roughly 20 hours and 45 minutes, which is even slightly better than FiiO’s stated 20 hours.
Sound:
The only imperfection that one could remark is that
activating and deactivating the bass boost doesn’t happen quietly, but
that there’s an audible glitch when doing so.
I'm always referring to the 3.5 mm headphone output as I don't really care about balanced headphone outputs.
Frequency Response:
… pure Amp (analogue in, headphone out):
… DAC-Amp (USB in, headphone out):
… pure DAC (USB in, line out):
As one can see, a flat frequency response, just the way it should be, is what the FiiO outputs (the minimal roll-off on both far ends that can be seen in some of the graphs is just very slight and still below the audible threshold).
The Q1 MkII also features a bass boost implementation:
Output Impedance:
Using my critical Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10 as load, I can calculate the output impedance that is around 1.2/1.3 Ohms, so it's mostly within FiiO's own specs that state 1.2 Ohms.
That's still fairly good and won't skew most multi-driver in-ears' frequency response (well, or only slightly in case of divas such as my Triple.Fi 10, Campfire Audio Andromeda or Shure SE846, so the perfectionist in me would have preferred below 1 Ohm, but the Q1 MkII's output impedance is still fine and reasonably low).
Hiss:
Using in-ears such asmy Shure SE846, Pai Audio MR3 or the Ostry KC06A through the FiiO’s single-ended output, with the Q1 MkII acting as a pure amplifier, I can happily report that hiss is just very barely above the audible threshold with these three super sensitive in-ears when no music/empty files are playing, wherefore one could call it pretty much hiss-free, just like the DX200. Changing the gain, activating the bass boost or increasing the volume doesn’t change this.
Using the Q1 MkII as a DAC-Amp though, there is some slight hiss audible with those very sensitive in-ears. It’s still rather quiet (quieter than the Cowon Plenue D or Plenue J for example, two devices that already preform quite well in this regard), but unfortunately more noticeable than when the FiiO is used as a pure amplifier.
In this scenario, hiss also becomes more noticeable when the volume pot is turned almost all the way up, however one wouldn’t need that setting with sensitive in-ears, and headphones that need that much power are way too insensitive to make the hiss audible.
Changing gain or activating the bass boost doesn’t have an effect on the amount of hissing either.
Subjective Sound Perception using sensitive In-Ears:
I'm clearly more on the objective side and not into subjective gibberish bullshit.
That said, performing critical listening and comparing the Q1 MkII to other clean sounding devices such as my Apple iPhone 4, Leckerton UHA-6S.MKII, RME ADI-2 DAC or the FiiO Q5 (with the AM1 module) or iBasso DX200 (AMP1 module), it sounds clean and neutral as well, although slightly softer/"smoother" and slightly less "transparent" in comparison, probably comparable to my SanDisk Sansa Clip Zip and latest-generation Apple iPod Classic when using sensitive, well-resolving in-ears (using well-resolving over-ear headphones though, I perceive all devices as subjectively equal). Nothing that would be really relevant in an everyday scenario, but probably still relevant to some.
Comparison with my Leckerton UHA-6S.MKII:
My Leckerton UHA-6S.MKII has got an overall slightly cleaner sound (subjective perception) (a little higher perceived “transparency” and no perceived softness with in-ears).
Price-wise, the FiiO is a good bit cheaper.
The FiiO outputs some slight hiss in DAC-Amp mode whereas the Leckerton still remains quiet when used as a DAC-Amp (when low gain is chosen). In pure amp mode, the FiiO is pretty much hiss-free as well.
Feature-wise, the FiiO offers more, such as the additional balanced output, digitally controlled volume (which is a huge plus) and bass boost, along with the more modern format support for those who need it (I know that I don't). However, when it comes to inputs, the Leckerton offers more (S/PDIF and COAX).
Output Impedance - Leckerton: excellent < 0.5 Ohms; FiiO: still reasonable, ca. 1.2/1.3 Ohms.
The Leckerton offers the somewhat higher battery life in amp-only mode while both offer comparable battery life when they are used as DAC-Amps.
Conclusion:
That the FiiO Q1 MkII doesn’t fully excel in each and every category, aspect and scenario (for example it showcases some slight hiss in DAC-Amp mode while it is pretty much hiss-free as a pure amplifier, and activating/deactivating the bass boost results in an audible glitch), but this was rather clear from the beginning, given FiiO's detailed technical specifications.
However, it still does really well in pretty much all categories (not perfect but still reasonably low output impedance, digitally controlled volume, format support (for those who need it), battery life, pretty much hiss-free as a pure headphone amplifier, many features), and is an overall recommendation for the price.