# Hiby FC3 Portable DAC&AMP, MQA Compatible



## bluestorm1992 (Feb 6, 2021)

Hiby is launching their new small dongle FC3. Its key selling points are the price point and MQA compatibility. It retails for 458 RMB (70 USD) and supports 4X MQA unfolding. Below I list some of its key functionalities and specs.

DAC chip: ES9281 Pro
Output power: 70mw + 70mw@32Ω
Supports up to PCM 32/384 and DSD128
Has two hardware bottoms for volume control
Only has a 3.5mm output
USB-C input
Update: first impression here!

Update 2: thanks to post #13 for a quick reminder in usage: The device needs to have the load (headphone plugged-in) for it to be recognized by your phone or PC.

Update 3: First review!

The FC3 also comes with a leather protective case and two cables in the box, which is quite nice at this price point. Shipping in mainland China begins on January 8th.


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## bluestorm1992

Some more pics of the FC3 and its leather case.


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## Aerosphere

The DAC chip is interesting, let's see!


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## Sluggist

Looks interesting.


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## kkugel

Just ordered it, will do a review!


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## udesign48

How does this sound when compared to Hiby R5??

Can you use this on your laptop?


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## kkugel

udesign48 said:


> How does this sound when compared to Hiby R5??
> 
> Can you use this on your laptop?


No one has it yet, and yes.


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## Croptop

Looking forward to reading some reviews of this. Very seriously considering purchasing.


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## Capilander88

Mine came yesterday: it took only 3 working days from China to Italy, with no taxes or duties.

Package is very small and the "dongle" is as little as a AAA battery. Leather case has a very tight fit and supplied cables are so-so quality: I ordered a new USB-C to USB-C one as a replacement (the supplied one is veeeery hard to plug/unplug).

Well, how does it sound? It's a lot more powerful than everything I have (e.g. HRT microStreamer) and can drive my 600 ohm Beyerdynamic DT 880 at high volumes. No problems at all with low impedance IEM: no hiss and other issues. Soundstage is very wide, bass is strong and highs are crystal clear: it's night and day compared to the internal hi-res DAC on my Xiaomi Mi Note 10, but also to my other DACs.

The +/- volume rocker is solid and volume steps are perfect: it's a good option for exclusive mode with Tidal on MacOS, but with UAPP on Android you can't control hardware volume with the phone rockers (it's possible on the DAC only).

MQA 4x is done by the DAC, but the first 2x unfold has to be done by the player (UAPP in my case, but not by official TIDAL app). You'll get full unfolding with bit-perfect mode and if the light on the DAC turns purple. I encountered some clicks and pops during 88.2 kHz playback, but once I lowered the buffer to 100ms on UAPP they went away. No problems with DSD64 and 128 DoP: they sound much better and at higher volume than the internal converted ones by UAPP.


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## Croptop

@Capilander88 Thanks for posting your first impressions. Decided to go ahead and order one for myself.


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## eloelo

Capilander88 said:


> Mine came yesterday: it took only 3 working days from China to Italy, with no taxes or duties.
> 
> Package is very small and the "dongle" is as little as a AAA battery. Leather case has a very tight fit and supplied cables are so-so quality: I ordered a new USB-C to USB-C one as a replacement (the supplied one is veeeery hard to plug/unplug).
> 
> ...


how does it sound compared to other usb dongles? warmer or thicker than average?


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## kkugel

Capilander88 said:


> Mine came yesterday: it took only 3 working days from China to Italy, with no taxes or duties.
> 
> Package is very small and the "dongle" is as little as a AAA battery. Leather case has a very tight fit and supplied cables are so-so quality: I ordered a new USB-C to USB-C one as a replacement (the supplied one is veeeery hard to plug/unplug).
> 
> ...


Damn, that arrived fast! Mine is in transit already for 9 days :/


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## parthabhatta (Feb 1, 2021)

I have received my FC3 today. Its a cute little device. But sadly it doesn't work with my phones neither with LG G8X nor with LG V20. I have tried with HIBY Music app in Exclusive USB mode as also with UAPP. None of them seem to recognise the device. I have also tried other USB C to C which works well with my other USB DACs but fails here.
What happens is whenever I plugin the USB C in my phone the light glows up sequentially in all the colours and then goes off when it should glow RED. The sound comes from the phone. The USB device is shown connected in POWER SUPPLY mode. I tried to change to MIDI mode but nothing happens.
Can anybody help?

Edit: Finally could make it work. The device needs to be fitted with the load (i.e., the earphone) to be recognised by the smartphone and the apps. You take out the earphone, the light goes off.


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## Croptop

parthabhatta said:


> Edit: Finally could make it work. The device needs to be fitted with the load (i.e., the earphone) to be recognised by the smartphone and the apps. You take out the earphone, the light goes off.



Glad to hear you got it working. Thanks for coming back to post that tip. I suspect that I'd have been bitten by the same issue if you hadn't given me the opportunity to learn from your experiences.


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## bluestorm1992

parthabhatta said:


> I have received my FC3 today. Its a cute little device. But sadly it doesn't work with my phones neither with LG G8X nor with LG V20. I have tried with HIBY Music app in Exclusive USB mode as also with UAPP. None of them seem to recognise the device. I have also tried other USB C to C which works well with my other USB DACs but fails here.
> What happens is whenever I plugin the USB C in my phone the light glows up sequentially in all the colours and then goes off when it should glow RED. The sound comes from the phone. The USB device is shown connected in POWER SUPPLY mode. I tried to change to MIDI mode but nothing happens.
> Can anybody help?
> 
> Edit: Finally could make it work. The device needs to be fitted with the load (i.e., the earphone) to be recognised by the smartphone and the apps. You take out the earphone, the light goes off.


Perhaps this is designed to minimize the power consumption when you are not using it (no headphone plugged-in)? Anyhow, glad that it eventually works!


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## Fawzay

I almost going pull the trigger on the Zorloo ztella until i saw this cute little device and it does mqa too.  Awesome!


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## parthabhatta

bluestorm1992 said:


> Perhaps this is designed to minimize the power consumption when you are not using it (no headphone plugged-in)? Anyhow, glad that it eventually works!


Yes I am also thinking so now. Its good for us as it is supposed to conserve battery. However, Hiby has never mentioned the same anywhere in their product page or the micro manual, if I have not overlooked. In contrary, I just now was looking in Hidizs S8 product page which works on the same principle and Hidizs has clearly mentioned the same in their product page in bold. Anyways, I am relieved its working now.


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## GlaslowII

Is this better than the tempotec sonata hd pro?


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## snowy8171

fc3 compared to loto paw s1 for mqa playback? any comparisons?


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## gowthe

parthabhatta said:


> Yes I am also thinking so now. Its good for us as it is supposed to conserve battery. However, Hiby has never mentioned the same anywhere in their product page or the micro manual, if I have not overlooked. In contrary, I just now was looking in Hidizs S8 product page which works on the same principle and Hidizs has clearly mentioned the same in their product page in bold. Anyways, I am relieved its working now.



Could you please post a few pictures? Thanks.


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## parthabhatta

gowthe said:


> Could you please post a few pictures? Thanks.


Trying a few pictures alongwith indicator colours for different resolutions.


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## bluestorm1992

parthabhatta said:


> Trying a few pictures alongwith indicator colours for different resolutions.


Thanks for sharing! Looking really good.


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## Croptop

Even more excited to get mine now. Sadly, last update from tracker is just the departure notice from Shenzhen. Not sure when it will land here in Canada.


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## gowthe

parthabhatta said:


> Trying a few pictures alongwith indicator colours for different resolutions.



Thanks a lot. I really appreciate it.


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## gowthe

Croptop said:


> Even more excited to get mine now. Sadly, last update from tracker is just the departure notice from Shenzhen. Not sure when it will land here in Canada.



Same status here. Waiting for it to arrive in Canada. Canadapost have been really slow these days. I have a package shipped from China on Dec 1st and it still hasn't reached.


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## GlaslowII

Size comparison: 
Tempotec Sonata Hd Pro vs Hiby FC3


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## Giangi

Hi! I've connected the fc3 but in uapp with Tidal, shows me only green light in mqa and not magenta. Why?


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## parthabhatta

You need to enable "Bit Perfect" mode to ON in UAPP. There are two Bit-Perfect settings - both of which should be enabled. Then close and restart UAPP and reinsert the DAC. It should work.


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## Giangi

parthabhatta said:


> You need to enable "Bit Perfect" mode to ON in UAPP. There are two Bit-Perfect settings - both of which should be enabled. Then close and restart UAPP and reinsert the DAC. It should work.


Thanks, but doesn't change anything. Why I don't hear anything if I connect the headphones?


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## parthabhatta

Is the sound coming through earphones for all other tracks except mqa, or the problem is with all tracks?
Secondly, is the light glowing Magenta for mqa tracks after enabling bit perfect?


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## Giangi

parthabhatta said:


> You need to enable "Bit Perfect" mode to ON in UAPP. There are two Bit-Perfect settings - both of which should be enabled. Then close and restart UAPP and reinsert the DAC. It should work.





parthabhatta said:


> Is the sound coming through earphones for all other tracks except mqa, or the problem is with all tracks?
> Secondly, is the light glowing Magenta for mqa tracks after enabling bit perfect?


The problem is with all tracks. I enabled bit perfect but still green lights in mqa tracks


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## Giangi

With Dragonfly Cobalt is perfect


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## 3Putter

I bought Rhodium from Periodic Audio. On my MacBook - really, really good. No lights, no frills, and on sale now for $50! I'm trying to get it to work with my iPhone yet but any Android, Windows, or Mac OS is superb. Not to thread jack. I looked where to buy this and it was a difficult chase.


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## Giangi

parthabhatta said:


> Is the sound coming through earphones for all other tracks except mqa, or the problem is with all tracks?
> Secondly, is the light glowing Magenta for mqa tracks after enabling bit perfect?


Thanks a lot! Now it's all OK. But very poor quality sound compared to Dragonfly Cobalt sigh


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## jsmiller58

Giangi said:


> Thanks a lot! Now it's all OK. But very poor quality sound compared to Dragonfly Cobalt sigh


I am sorry, but I really don’t understand...  why are you comparing a TOTL device costing $300 with a budget device costing $60?  Obviously price isn’t everything, but at least it should not be a surprise that a budget item underperforms a premium item...  

Seems these are targeted at different consumers, or at least different use cases. I would not compare my mid-level SUV with a Ferrari...  

Of course, this is just my opinion.


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## kkugel

Hey guys, I just published the review I promised to do: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/hiby-fc3.24946/reviews


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## kkugel (Feb 6, 2021)

Giangi said:


> Thanks a lot! Now it's all OK. But very poor quality sound compared to Dragonfly Cobalt sigh


This seems weird, I did a review comparing it to my DX7s, which has 2 ESS9038Q2M, whichs sound quality should be at the same level as the cobalt. No difference there. Maybe your headphones need a lot of power? I recommend closing UAPP completely and plugging the DAC in, there should be a prompt asking to start UAPP, then it's fine. Otherwise delete the data of UAPP, I found the app to be extremely delicate, breaking sound quality with diverse issues fast.


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## Giangi

kkugel said:


> This seems weird, I did a review comparing it to my DX7s, which has 2 ESS9038Q2M, whichs sound quality should be at the same level as the cobalt. No difference there. Maybe your headphones need a lot of power? I recommend closing UAPP completely and plugging the DAC in, there should be a prompt asking to start UAPP, then it's fine. Otherwise delete the data of UAPP, I found the app to be extremely delicate, breaking sound quality with diverse issues fast.


Sure. The Cobalt is more detailed, transparent and powerful. The great Cobalt problem is missing dsd and too expensive but one of the best dac/amp/preamp portable system imho


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## kkugel

Giangi said:


> Sure. The Cobalt is more detailed, transparent and powerful. The great Cobalt problem is missing dsd and too expensive but one of the best dac/amp/preamp portable system imho


I can't imagine the Cobalt sounding better than the DX7s tbh


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## GlaslowII

kkugel said:


> This seems weird, I did a review comparing it to my DX7s, which has 2 ESS9038Q2M, whichs sound quality should be at the same level as the cobalt. No difference there. Maybe your headphones need a lot of power?



Yeah, and based on my experience, the tempotec sonata hd pro is  better than the cobalt. 

I do not recommend that device.. It's expensive plus it's 2021 people... There are better devices out there.


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## kkugel (Feb 6, 2021)

GlaslowII said:


> Yeah, and based on my experience, the tempotec sonata hd pro is  better than the cobalt.
> 
> I do not recommend that device.. It's expensive plus it's 2021 people... There are better devices out there.


Which one do you recommend instead?

Edit: Oh you're talking about the Cobalt? Thought you meant better than DX7s haha


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## Giangi

I'm curious about the Lotoo Paw S1


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## bluestorm1992

kkugel said:


> Hey guys, I just published the review I promised to do: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/hiby-fc3.24946/reviews


Thanks for the great review!


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## kkugel

bluestorm1992 said:


> Thanks for the great review!


I saw you have the Hugo2? Would you be able to do a blind comparison to the FC3? Would be super curious about that as its daring haha.


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## GlaslowII

kkugel said:


> Which one do you recommend instead?



Based on my experience i can recommend the sonata hd pro.. But i hate that it has a micro usb slot. (it's not expensive $30 - $40)

One thing attracted me to the fc3 is that it has a usb-c slot.. Which is a joy to use compared to micro usb. 

What i can say that the fc3 is a new device.. And i haven't really able to differentiate the quality of the two devices. maybe I'll post a sound quality comparison in the future.


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## kkugel

GlaslowII said:


> Based on my experience i can recommend the sonata hd pro.. But i hate that it has a micro usb slot. (it's not expensive $30 - $40)
> 
> One thing attracted me to the fc3 is that it has a usb-c slot.. Which is a joy to use compared to micro usb.
> 
> What i can say that the fc3 is a new device.. And i haven't really able to differentiate the quality of the two devices. maybe I'll post a sound quality comparison in the future.


That would be very cool!


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## 40760

This got me interested. Can it power 300ohms decently?


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## bluestorm1992

palestofwhite said:


> This got me interested. Can it power 300ohms decently?


I don't think it will have enough power. 300ohms is generally too much for any dongles IMO.


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## kkugel

palestofwhite said:


> This got me interested. Can it power 300ohms decently?


Let me check, I have some old AKGs here...


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## kkugel

palestofwhite said:


> This got me interested. Can it power 300ohms decently?


I just tried and it powers 600 ohm AKGs pretty loud. 300 should be fine.


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## Brain Damage

I'm very interested in this dongle. Can anyone tell me what it is like versus the Zorloo Ztella MQA DAC?


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## kkugel

Brain Damage said:


> I'm very interested in this dongle. Can anyone tell me what it is like versus the Zorloo Ztella MQA DAC?


They have the same one chip solution so will sound similar, but I heard the Ztella breaks fast, thats why I got this one with better build quality


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## Giangi

Doesn't work in Roon in preamp mode


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## ivo001

parthabhatta said:


> I have received my FC3 today. Its a cute little device. But sadly it doesn't work with my phones neither with LG G8X nor with LG V20. I have tried with HIBY Music app in Exclusive USB mode as also with UAPP. None of them seem to recognise the device. I have also tried other USB C to C which works well with my other USB DACs but fails here.
> What happens is whenever I plugin the USB C in my phone the light glows up sequentially in all the colours and then goes off when it should glow RED. The sound comes from the phone. The USB device is shown connected in POWER SUPPLY mode. I tried to change to MIDI mode but nothing happens.
> Can anybody help?
> 
> Edit: Finally could make it work. The device needs to be fitted with the load (i.e., the earphone) to be recognised by the smartphone and the apps. You take out the earphone, the light goes off.



So you need to plug in a headphone then? Can't just use it for the DAC to process and then the phone to send music over LDAC to Bluetooth headset?


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## parthabhatta

ivo001 said:


> So you need to plug in a headphone then? Can't just use it for the DAC to process and then the phone to send music over LDAC to Bluetooth headset?



Yes the DAC isn't functional if no load is connected. Secondly, if the DAC would have been functional it couldn't have sent the processed data back to phone to transfer it over BT since it is wired device.  This DAC is not having BT transmission capabilities. For this purpose one need a BT DAC/AMP like FIIO BTR5 as far as my knowledge goes. Experts can throw more light on the subject though.


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## Dannymg123

Can anyone tell me if the FC3 is powerful enough to drive my Final e5000 earphones with iPhone? I’m not too good on the technical stuff! Thank you in advance.


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## GlaslowII

Dannymg123 said:


> Can anyone tell me if the FC3 is powerful enough to drive my Final e5000 earphones with iPhone? I’m not too good on the technical stuff! Thank you in advance.



The tempotec sonata hd pro is more than enough to drive a 20 ohm earphones 
(Some people even use 300 ohm with that device but expect don't expect it to be driven with full potential) , that being said.. The Hiby FC3 is more powerful than the tempotec sonada hd pro and it even comes with a better volume control.


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## Dannymg123

GlaslowII said:


> The tempotec sonata hd pro is more than enough to drive a 20 ohm earphones
> (Some people even use 300 ohm with that device but expect don't expect it to be driven with full potential) , that being said.. The Hiby FC3 is more powerful than the tempotec sonada hd pro and it even comes with a better volume control.


Thank you very much for that speedy response.


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## Croptop

<sigh> Still waiting for my FC3 to arrive. Last update on the tracking site was 13 days ago when it was claimed that the package was arriving in Canada. Since then, nothing.


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## 40760

Forget about 300ohms, but this should drive 150ohms relatively well? I'm deciding between this and the DF Cobalt. Decisions, decisions...


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## kkugel

palestofwhite said:


> Forget about 300ohms, but this should drive 150ohms relatively well? I'm deciding between this and the DF Cobalt. Decisions, decisions...


This drives even 600 ohms pretty well. Draws power like crazy tho, just noticed.


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## kslq

Guys which one do you think is better in terms of sound quality? This, or Fiio BTR5?


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## Croptop

My FC3 finally arrived today. Took a full 30 days to reach me here in Canada. Lesson learned: spring for the express shipping option instead of the free one.

Haven't had a tonne of time to play with it just yet but it was recognised instantly by UAPP on my Pixel 3a XL and is decoding MQA files without issue. No problem driving my HD650s (but then they aren't that challenging to drive anyway).


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## vinek

iPhone user here. You guys are mentionning UAPP to play from Tidal MQA. Doesn't it work directly with the Tidal app? 

I connect it to my iPhone and it shows purple light when streaming master albums. I have no way to know if it's 4x unfold though. 

HibyMusic App looks cheap but plays DSD and flac very well. Couldn't enable the purple light playing MQA files with the HibyMusic app, capped to 16/44.

EQ and MSEB are pairing good with the dongle.


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## Mitr1anton

vinek said:


> HibyMusic app


They will add MQA later.


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## vinek

Thanks for the  info. It’s working well with audirvana but the output keep on switching from 24 to 16 bit even with the same song.


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## Croptop

vinek said:


> iPhone user here. You guys are mentionning UAPP to play from Tidal MQA. Doesn't it work directly with the Tidal app?
> [snip]


I didn't spend a tonne of time playing with things on my Pixel 3a but I found that when playing MQA tracks through the FC3, I could get the purple light via UAPP but if I played those same tracks using the Tidal native app, I only got a green light. So I *think* that the native Tidal app doesn't necessarily fully support bit-perfect output (at least not via the FC3). 

But I was already a UAPP user even before purchasing this USB DAC so it's not a big deal to me and I didn't spend a lot of time investigating trying to get the Tidal app working.


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## Mitr1anton

vinek said:


> I have no way to know if it's 4x unfold though.


Yes, everything is working well
I have a paw s1 also.good that there is screen and he showing all info there.
  Via tidal app 4x unfold



Croptop said:


> my Pixel 3a but I found that when playing MQA tracks through the FC3


Yes, on Android is different. Only Uapp with usb dacs. When you use tidal,sound going via Android. With uuap direct to dac
Cheers!


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## eloelo (Mar 20, 2021)

Are there any pops or clicks with sensitive iems when using this as usb dac for pc/laptop? Currently my sonata HD, samsung dongle get these pops when stopping music on youtube for example. Thanks


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## purpl3F0x (Mar 21, 2021)

Received mine on Friday, sounded good, but broke on the second day, there is an incredible amount of noise, the voltage regulator is probably broken.
The otg cable was also non-functional


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## pkuro

The FC3 arrived.
VERY disappointed.
comparing to the Periodic Audio Rhodium its absolutely ridiculous. the FC3 gives almost no audible change compares to my OMEN laptop's onboard soundcard, while the Rhodium made such a huge impact in every aspect, and its even 19$ cheaper.... I don't know if the FC3 is horrible or the Rhodium is just absolutely amazing.

Paired with Audeze LCD-GX.


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## sebadenied

GlaslowII said:


> Is this better than the tempotec sonata hd pro?


yes, at least I noticed a big difference
both in quality and delivery the presentation of the music
for what it's worth, it's fine for me


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## Ufasas

Fc3 vs Shanling UP4 anyone?


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## Delerue

I recently bought one and it sounds really amazing! It drives my HD650 quite easily. 

I have 2 concerns though. I would like to know if you guys have the same experience:

1- I couldn't find a way to keep the dongle constantly on. What's happening to me is that quite often when in between tracks the dongle shutdowns for a fraction of a second (red light), then when comes the next track in the playlist the dongle automatically turns on again, doing this fade in so that I lose the beginning of the song (around 1 second).
2- I couldn't find a way to turn off this annoying fade in.


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## kkugel

Delerue said:


> I recently bought one and it sounds really amazing! It drives my HD650 quite easily.
> 
> I have 2 concerns though. I would like to know if you guys have the same experience:
> 
> ...


That's not an issue of the dongle but your device. It only switches to red if the audio stream is cut (not even playing silence). Try a different device or music app!


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## kkugel (Apr 30, 2021)

pkuro said:


> The FC3 arrived.
> VERY disappointed.
> comparing to the Periodic Audio Rhodium its absolutely ridiculous. the FC3 gives almost no audible change compares to my OMEN laptop's onboard soundcard, while the Rhodium made such a huge impact in every aspect, and its even 19$ cheaper.... I don't know if the FC3 is horrible or the Rhodium is just absolutely amazing.
> 
> Paired with Audeze LCD-GX.


This is interesting. For me it sounds leagues ahead of any other dongle and on par with my Topping DX7s.

Edit: just checked measurements. The FC3 measures leagues ahead of Rhodium


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## GlaslowII

kkugel said:


> This is interesting. For me it sounds leagues ahead of any other dongle and on par with my Topping DX7s.
> 
> Edit: just checked measurements. The FC3 measures leagues ahead of Rhodium


Leagues ahead of rhodium? Hmm.. People might want to ask you why..


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## GlaslowII

Hey guys.. I have a question.. Is hiby fc3 strong enough to drive the hifiman sundaras?


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## kkugel

GlaslowII said:


> Leagues ahead of rhodium? Hmm.. People might want to ask you why..


Read my review. There's also someone publishing measurements in accord with this soon


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## oldkid

Just to be sure, is this device capable of playing MQA at 384 khz on Android using UAPP?

If I understand correctly, the 2x software unfold included in UAPP means no higher sample rate than 96 khz, while the 4x unfold offered by this Hiby FC3 dongle DAC means up to 192 khz with Tidal Android app and up to 384 khz using UAPP.

Is this correct ?


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## velasfloyd (May 6, 2021)

does the next/prev buttons work with iphone?


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## kkugel

oldkid said:


> Just to be sure, is this device capable of playing MQA at 384 khz on Android using UAPP?
> 
> If I understand correctly, the 2x software unfold included in UAPP means no higher sample rate than 96 khz, while the 4x unfold offered by this Hiby FC3 dongle DAC means up to 192 khz with Tidal Android app and up to 384 khz using UAPP.
> 
> Is this correct ?


Tidal Android App does not support MQA, everything else is correct.


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## Fawzay

I went to audition Hiby FC3 is actually it sounded nice and analytical but comparing the Ibasso DC04, they have a similar sound signature, neutral sounding, however, the Ibasso DC04 have more dynamic range and a little bit more detail, but only con is the lack of MQA.
I come to know of a new device called: Questyle M12 same DAC in Hiby FC3 and MQA Capable and it sounded stellar than both Ibasso DC04 and Hiby FC3.


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## oldkid

One of the specifications of MQA is that it supposedly sounds the same regardless of the DAC being used. 
I don't plan to buy multiple MQA DACs to find out if this is true though.
This Hiby FC3 should be sufficient for all my MQA unfold needs


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## Fawzay

oldkid said:


> One of the specifications of MQA is that it supposedly sounds the same regardless of the DAC being used.
> I don't plan to buy multiple MQA DACs to find out if this is true though.
> This Hiby FC3 should be sufficient for all my MQA unfold needs


true MQA sounded same regardless of the DAC, but how the DAC/Amp be implemented is important, you will be surprise how it changes the sound.


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## Robius

So FC1 is on Aliexpress for $35 with coupon right now. Is the sound different or is it just lower powered compared to FC3? I couldn't find any reviews.


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## Paul_in_Maryland

Fawzay said:


> I come to know of a new device called: Questyle M12 same DAC in Hiby FC3 and MQA Capable and it sounded stellar than both Ibasso DC04 and Hiby FC3.


According to this page, the Questyle M22 has just 27mW per channel at 32 ohms. That's one-third the power of the HIBY FC3.


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## GlaslowII

Paul_in_Maryland said:


> According to this page, the Questyle M22 has just 27mW per channel at 32 ohms. That's one-third the power of the HIBY FC3.


Yeah.. That's a huge difference compared to 70mW per channel at 32 ohms.


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## GlaslowII

The Hiby FC3 can drive my Hifiman Sundaras decently.. Although it's not enough to drive it to be loud.. Remember that the hifiman sundaras need an actual amp/dac set in order to reach it's full potential.


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## Paul_in_Maryland (May 21, 2021)

The top-of-the-line Sabre 9281pro DAC can be found in only five DAC+amps: Audirect Beam 2S, Earmen Sparrow, Hiby FC3, THX Onyx, and Zorloo Ztella. Of the five, only the Audirect and Hiby provide physical volume controls. And of those two, only the Hiby lets you use your unbalalanced headphones.


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## Paul_in_Maryland

parthabhatta said:


> I have received my FC3 today. Its a cute little device. But sadly it doesn't work with my phones neither with LG G8X nor with LG V20. I have tried with HIBY Music app in Exclusive USB mode as also with UAPP. None of them seem to recognise the device. I have also tried other USB C to C which works well with my other USB DACs but fails here.


I solved my FC3's conne, too, couldn't get my FC3 to work at its full potential when connected to  LG V20 phone.


----------



## Paul_in_Maryland

I own the FC3 and an LG V20. You need two cables in a chain:
1. USB-C male to USB-A male, and 
2. USB-A female to USB-C male OTG (On the Go) dongle to join the first cable to your V20.


----------



## parthabhatta

Paul_in_Maryland said:


> I own the FC3 and an LG V20. You need two cables in a chain:
> 1. USB-C male to USB-A male, and
> 2. USB-A female to USB-C male OTG (On the Go) dongle to join the first cable to your V20.


I can use my FC3 with LG V20 by using the supplied USB C TO C cable without any problem.


----------



## snake785 (May 26, 2021)

I think mine may have arrived defective as the left channel cuts in and out if I plug in my headphones all the way into the jack and/or turn the headphone cable.  I need to be precise with how I plug my headphones in.  This behaviour started just a few hours after I received it with multiple pairs of headphones.  Has anyone else experienced this?

Also, the FC3 doesn't seem to support 32kHz like the product information says it does.  Playing a 32kHz file in foobar2000 on Windows 10 returns an error that the sample rate isn't supported,  On Android, Neutron Media Player will just resample it to 44.1kHz.  Every other sample rate seems to work on both platforms as I get the FC3 to show the appropriate colour on playback.

Other than those things, this DAC sounds great and is a perfect size to store in my Sennheiser IE300 case (along with the USB Type C cable).  I was also pleasantly surprised that changing tracks with the volume rocker works in windows.  Just wanted to add that the FC3 also drives my HD650 very well.

I found the leather case a bit annoying since it keeps sliding around when plugging/unpluging cables.  Personally, it does look better without the case, however.


----------



## Paul_in_Maryland

snake785 said:


> I think mine may have arrived defective as the left channel cuts in and out ...


Are you using a headphone cable that supports a microphone? If so, that could be the problem.


----------



## snake785

> Are you using a headphone cable that supports a microphone? If so, that could be the problem.



That was it!  The headphone cables I tried had a microphone attached to them.  I swapped out to one without a mic and it doesn't cut out anymore.  Thanks a lot for the suggestion!


----------



## GlaslowII (May 25, 2021)

I think i may have a major issue with this device.. (4 months of daily usage)

This morning as i plug my Hiby FC3 on my phone.. It doesn't work anymore... Well i say doesn't work anymore because it registered as a "High Power Device" and that the connected device needs an external power supply.

I tried to isolate and pinpoint the issue.. But from what I've find so far..
1. The wire is not an issue... Because i tried different wires..
2. Phone is not the issue because the power issue thingy exists on my laptop as well.. (pop-up says something about power limit and port something..)
As i plug the device on my laptop.. It was a little hot.. I don't know if something happened with the internal wirings or the chips inside.

This thing is well cared by me not even a single scratch is received by the brushed aluminum finish.....


----------



## Paul_in_Maryland (May 26, 2021)

It's time I weighed in with my short impressions. I'll begin with a comment I shared under a YouTube review:

"I'm am amazed by my HiBy FC3, using 32-ohm closed headphones. The definition is incredible. In the Sonata line-up, the closest competitor is the E35, which was introduced in the first quarter of 2021. Even so, from the reviews I've seen, the Hiby will sound better. Amazon Prime Music's free MP3s (256 kbps?) are upscaled within Prime, making the FC3's LED quality indicator change from blue to green.  Downloaded 16/44.1 FLAC files upscale to green when played in the HibyMusic 4 app."

When I say "the definition is incredible," here's what I mean. In the Broadway musical Anastasia, there's a song called Once Upon a December. Near the end, the song features a large chorus of men and women. Their voices always blended indistinctly as a muddled mess, even when played through my desktop setup: a JDS Labs OL DAC and a DROP O2 amp. But when played through the HiBy from my tablet or phone, the men's voices can be heard distinctly from the women's. There and in other parts of other songs, the HiBy FC3 has been a revelation.

I use mine with a pair of KRK KNS8400 closed headphones on my Huawei Android tablet and my LG V20 phone. Even on the V20, music sounds better. It could be because the HiBy's 9281pro quad DAC is more advanced than the LG's 9018 or 9118 quad DAC. But I suspect it's more that the HiBy has more power, delivering more dynamic range and punch.

I occasionally use my FC3 with my Samsung Tab S4 tablet. But I haven't been able to get the Samsung to allow the FC3's DAC part to work; I'm just getting Samsung sound through the FC3's amp, and the FC3's blue LED never turns green.

I'm toying with the idea of getting a second dongle, to keep on a different floor, attached to different headphones. The FC3 is a safe bet; on Aliexpress, scores of users give it an average rating of 4.9 stars. But being a good Head-Fier, I would always wonder, "What could I have tried instead?" My possible choices are:

*HiBy FC1* ($35 plus shipping from the HiBy store). An incredible value. Same build, same buttons, same LEDs, but with a slightly lesser DAC (a 9270) that can't be as fully programmed and can't play MQA (which I don't use anyway).
*Tempotec Sonata E35* ($80 shipped from U.S. Amazon). The closest competitor. Dual DACs, similar power (80 mW vs. the FC3's 70), and favorably reviewed.
*Trasam DSD* ($80 shipped from U.S. Amazon). No reviews, and it uses an even lesser DAC, the 9018K2M--the first of ESS's third-generation DACs, where the 9038 marks the fourth generation. But it uses "an advanced MAX97220 low-pass filter and a new increased LDO Low Dropout Linear Regulator, to further reduce the distortion and noise floor, the signal to noise ratio up to 120dB." More important, it has 120mW per channel at 32 ohms. Among single-ended dongles that cost $100 or less, only the Xduoo Link2 has more (150mW).


----------



## NoGainToBeHad

My FC3 with the HiBy Lightning adapter no longer works properly with my iPad or iPhone. The volume is stuck at maximum and I can’t adjust it using the hardware volume buttons on the FC3 or any of the controls on my Apple devices. It was working properly when I first got It, I wonder if the upgrade to IOS 14.6 was the cause. Is anyone else experiencing the same problem?


----------



## LaughMoreDaily

Paul_in_Maryland said:


> The top-of-the-line Sabre 9281pro DAC can be found in only five DAC+amps: Audirect Beam 2S, Earmen Sparrow, Hiby FC3, THX Onyx, and Zorloo Ztella. Of the five, only the Audirect and Hiby provide physical volume controls. And of those two, only the Hiby lets you use your unbalalanced headphones.


So the Hiby FC3 would be the best value?


----------



## Paul_in_Maryland

LaughMoreDaily said:


> So the Hiby FC3 would be the best value?


Absolutely. Check out this site's raves: https://www.hypethesonics.com/hiby-fc3-minihype/


----------



## kadinh

Anyone interested in the new release, the FD3?


----------



## 3Putter

kadinh said:


> Anyone interested in the new release, the FD3?


I am interested to hear feedback on one. I doubt I'll buy one but I might. How much better will it be from my other dongles?


----------



## Paul_in_Maryland

kadinh said:


> Anyone interested in the new release, the FD3?


Good find. Thanks! The dual 9038 and dual amps intrigue me. But it's sad that the power for unbalanced mode his barely inched, from 70 mw to 85. And I guess I would have preferred a standard dongle form factor for inline use.


----------



## kadinh

3Putter said:


> I am interested to hear feedback on one. I doubt I'll buy one but I might. How much better will it be from my other dongles?





Paul_in_Maryland said:


> Good find. Thanks! The dual 9038 and dual amps intrigue me. But it's sad that the power for unbalanced mode his barely inched, from 70 mw to 85. And I guess I would have preferred a standard dongle form factor for inline use.



I’m almost convinced to buy it but I have a S9Pro that just arrived today.

I’m also wanting to read what Andy thinks about it. I’m tempted to buy one and send it to him so he can review it asap. He said it would be sept/oct before he would have money to buy one.


----------



## kadinh

kadinh said:


> I’m almost convinced to buy it but I have a S9Pro that just arrived today.
> 
> I’m also wanting to read what Andy thinks about it. I’m tempted to buy one and send it to him so he can review it asap. He said it would be sept/oct before he would have money to buy one.


Aaaaaaaaand I bought it last night. There was a $36 off coupon on AliExpress from the HiBy official store, so I decided to take the chance and see how it compares.


----------



## kadinh

3Putter said:


> How much better will it be from my other dongles?


Which dongles do you have?


----------



## 3Putter

kadinh said:


> Which dongles do you have?


Dragonfly Black and Periodic Audio


----------



## kemba1291

Looking to buy the Hiby FC3 soon. I have a moondrop aria that I intend to get the most our of using this DAC.

Apart from that, any idea if it can drive the ATH-50X well? Will it be a good pairing with this dongle?


----------



## kadinh

kemba1291 said:


> Looking to buy the Hiby FC3 soon. I have a moondrop aria that I intend to get the most our of using this DAC.
> 
> Apart from that, any idea if it can drive the ATH-50X well? Will it be a good pairing with this dongle?


If you have the funds, look in to the new FD3 model


----------



## kemba1291

kadinh said:


> If you have the funds, look in to the new FD3 model


Hiby doesn't ship directly to my country, and there are only 2 re-sellers, none of which have the FD3. AliExpress delivery is blocked since a year(border problem) and even if I order from Hiby directly, the custom charges are so high in my country a friend paid double the cost of a hd58x he ordered from drop.com . 
Pretty much stuck


----------



## rlw6534

kadinh said:


> If you have the funds, look in to the new FD3 model



Do you think an iPhone will be able to power the FD3?


----------



## kadinh

rlw6534 said:


> Do you think an iPhone will be able to power the FD3?


It sure does. That's what I am using and there are no problems.


----------



## kemba1291

kadinh said:


> It sure does. That's what I am using and there are no problems.


Is there any headroom beyond acceptable volume levels? Or is the FC3 pretty much maxed out?


----------



## kadinh

kemba1291 said:


> Is there any headroom beyond acceptable volume levels? Or is the FC3 pretty much maxed out?


VERY beyond. I forgot to adjust the volume and started playing music and almost blew my ears out. Also, I have the FD3, not FC3.


----------



## kemba1291

I just received my FC3. However the light doesn't change beyond the blue signal. I tried to play master tracks on Tidal, no use. I have used the Lotoo PAW S1 before, it was able to detect MQA tracks from both my windows and android device, so this feels out of place.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> I just received my FC3. However the light doesn't change beyond the blue signal. I tried to play master tracks on Tidal, no use. I have used the Lotoo PAW S1 before, it was able to detect MQA tracks from both my windows and android device, so this feels out of place.



My FC3 has worked perfectly with my MacBook, iPad and iPhone at high resolution and MQA.  I haven't tried with Windows or Android, but I suspect something needs tweaking in your setup.  Are you using UAPP on Android?  That may be needed depending on your device.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> My FC3 has worked perfectly with my MacBook, iPad and iPhone at high resolution and MQA.  I haven't tried with Windows or Android, but I suspect something needs tweaking in your setup.  Are you using UAPP on Android?  That may be needed depending on your device.


Unfortunately it's not a setup issue, or the lotoo paw wouldn't have been able to grab mqa tracks easily. I tried UAPP as well, FC3 can't stream anything more than standard 48khz. I can hear the difference in audio quality, it's less of an led issue, more of capture issue from the devices.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> Unfortunately it's not a setup issue, or the lotoo paw wouldn't have been able to grab mqa tracks easily. I tried UAPP as well, FC3 can't stream anything more than standard 48khz. I can hear the difference in audio quality, it's less of an led issue, more of capture issue from the devices.


Very odd.  If you would like, I can try to test mine for you if we have similar hardware.  I have a couple of Windows machines and a few Android devices available.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> Very odd.  If you would like, I can try to test mine for you if we have similar hardware.  I have a couple of Windows machines and a few Android devices available.


That would be helpful, but it's definitely an issue with the unit. Hiby's very own Hiby music app on android is not able to force a change in quality, and they sell it highlighting it's compatibility with the FC3.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> That would be helpful, but it's definitely an issue with the unit. Hiby's very own Hiby music app on android is not able to force a change in quality, and they sell it highlighting it's compatibility with the FC3.


What hardware do you have?  I just tested on my LG V30 and both UAPP and Tidal were able to play MQA (purple light) and hi-res.   I am using the short USB-C cable provided with the FC3.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> What hardware do you have?  I just tested on my LG V30 and both UAPP and Tidal were able to play MQA (purple light) and hi-res.   I am using the short USB-C cable provided with the FC3.


It's a local brand, Realme X2. Both Tidal and windows 11 on my device are giving the blue light. Lotoo PAW was able to get the mqa tracks on both UAPP and Windows Tidal.


----------



## kemba1291

kemba1291 said:


> It's a local brand, Realme X2. Both Tidal and windows 11 on my device are giving the blue light. Lotoo PAW was able to get the mqa tracks on both UAPP and Windows Tidal.


Now it's not even turning on. The red light blinks once and disappears. Need to get a replacement now.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> It's a local brand, Realme X2. Both Tidal and windows 11 on my device are giving the blue light. Lotoo PAW was able to get the mqa tracks on both UAPP and Windows Tidal.



OK.  Let me know if I can try/test anything else for you.  Hope you get it sorted.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> Now it's not even turning on. The red light blinks once and disappears. Need to get a replacement now.



Do you have a headphone plugged in?  Mine does that if not connected to anything.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> Do you have a headphone plugged in?  Mine does that if not connected to anything.


Oh sorry. Now it's powered up, headphone wasn't plugged in. Hope the replacement unit can fix the bitrate issue.


----------



## kemba1291

Wow, it got fixed on its own. Both android and windows now play MQA as intended. Purple LED and everything.
Huh, guess all it took was for me to put the brown leather case.
In all seriousness though, I have no idea how its working now. Let's see if it's consistent tomorrow and the day after.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> Wow, it got fixed on its own. Both android and windows now play MQA as intended. Purple LED and everything.
> Huh, guess all it took was for me to put the brown leather case.
> In all seriousness though, I have no idea how its working now. Let's see if it's consistent tomorrow and the day after.


Glad to hear.  Hope it stays that way...


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> Glad to hear.  Hope it stays that way...


Hasn't been 5 minutes and a new problem. The MQA now works only if I disable passthrough MQA on windows(the entire point of a MQA ceritifed DAC).
It's impossible to catch a break, what have I done to you HiBy?!


----------



## rlw6534 (Sep 9, 2021)

kemba1291 said:


> Hasn't been 5 minutes and a new problem. The MQA now works only if I disable passthrough MQA on windows(the entire point of a MQA ceritifed DAC).
> It's impossible to catch a break, what have I done to you HiBy?!



The FC3 is a MQA renderer, not a decoder.  The first unfold has to be done in software so complete MQA passthrough won't work.  It's the same quality either way.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> The FC3 is a MQA renderer, not a decoder.  The first unfold has to be done in software so complete MQA passthrough won't work.  It's the same quality either way.


Ahhh got it.
Is that why my Lotoo Paw S1 never asked for a MQA addon purchase on UAPP, but the FC3 did?


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> Ahhh got it.
> Is that why my Lotoo Paw S1 never asked for a MQA addon purchase on UAPP, but the FC3 did?


Absolutely correct.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> Absolutely correct.


Got it now, thanks for the help!


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> Got it now, thanks for the help!


You are welcome.


----------



## Liberte

I've been listening to the same music through my phone with the Hidizs S9 Pro and Soditer for hours everyday this past week and the sound has been very good, today I switched to the FC3 and the sound is genuinely awesome. Absolutely love it.


----------



## oldkid

Liberte said:


> I've been listening to the same music through my phone with the Hidizs S9 Pro and Soditer for hours everyday this past week and the sound has been very good, today I switched to the FC3 and the sound is genuinely awesome. Absolutely love it.


I own the Hidizs S9 non pro version and I also think that the FC3 is a better DAC except for the very specific use case of DSD 512 listening


----------



## aviationwiz

For those of you that have used the FC3 on an iPhone, did you have to do anything special to get it to work? I'm using the Apple USB-C to Lightning cable connected to the FC3, and no dice getting audio to play.


----------



## rlw6534 (Sep 12, 2021)

aviationwiz said:


> For those of you that have used the FC3 on an iPhone, did you have to do anything special to get it to work? I'm using the Apple USB-C to Lightning cable connected to the FC3, and no dice getting audio to play.



I have used my FC3 with my iPhone X, iPhone SE and iPad Air 2 successfully and without issues.  I have used the Fiio, Hiby, Lotoo and ddHiFi lightning to USB-C OTG cables and the Apple USB3 CCK with the Hiby USB-A to USB-C cable.  I did not have to do anything special.  Note that you must have a device attached to the FC3 headphone jack for it to work. I do not have the Apple branded cable to test.  Perhaps it doesn't support OTG.


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> I have used my FC3 with my iPhone X, iPhone SE and iPad Air 2 successfully and without issues.  I have used the Fiio, Hiby, Lotoo and ddHiFi lightning to USB-C cables and the Apple USB3 CCK with the Hiby USB-A cable.  I did not have to do anything special.  Note that you must have a device attached to the FC3 headphone jack for it to work. I do not have the Apple branded cable to test.


Is there a big difference between the FC3 and Paw S1 when it comes to sonic performance? Was looking to upgrade if given a chance.


----------



## rlw6534 (Sep 12, 2021)

kemba1291 said:


> Is there a big difference between the FC3 and Paw S1 when it comes to sonic performance? Was looking to upgrade if given a chance.



I'm afraid I can't answer that question.  I canceled my Paw S1 order after I ordered the FC3.  The FC3 seemed like a better fit with my iPhone for Apple lossless and hi-res, especially for battery life and modest IEM power requirements (unbalanced).


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> I'm afraid I can't answer that question.  I canceled my Paw S1 order after I ordered the FC3.  The FC3 seemed like a better fit with my iPhone for Apple lossless and hi-res, especially for battery life and modest IEM power requirements (unbalanced).


Ah no worries, I'll be able to answer this under 24 hours though, as soon as my Paw S1 is delivered.


----------



## rlw6534

kemba1291 said:


> Ah no worries, I'll be able to answer this under 24 hours though, as soon as my Paw S1 is delivered.


Let us know what you think. The new S2 is tempting as well...


----------



## kemba1291

rlw6534 said:


> Let us know what you think. The new S2 is tempting as well...


For sure.
I wanted to wait for the S2 as well, but the availability of Chinese products in Indian markets is rather rare (border problems). There is only Lotoo reseller here, and there was a single piece left on his website. I had to jump on it before losing out completely. Very solid chance I might regret this next month or so if the S2 stocks arrive with the reseller, but one in the hand is better than two in the bush.


----------



## aviationwiz

rlw6534 said:


> I have used my FC3 with my iPhone X, iPhone SE and iPad Air 2 successfully and without issues.  I have used the Fiio, Hiby, Lotoo and ddHiFi lightning to USB-C OTG cables and the Apple USB3 CCK with the Hiby USB-A to USB-C cable.  I did not have to do anything special.  Note that you must have a device attached to the FC3 headphone jack for it to work. I do not have the Apple branded cable to test.  Perhaps it doesn't support OTG.


I reached out to HiBy and that was it - the Apple branded cable isn't supported. Thanks.


----------



## rlw6534

aviationwiz said:


> I reached out to HiBy and that was it - the Apple branded cable isn't supported. Thanks.



That's a bummer...   I guess that's Apple for you...


----------



## crodrig

Hey everyone, this is my first post to headfi after lurking for a while. Really enjoy learning about this stuff so thanks to everyone contributing to this community.

I have also been having trouble keeping my fc3 working with iPhone se. The first cable from manufacturer died very quickly, got two aftermarket replacements from Amazon that also failed quickly.

Using 18 ohm earbuds, wonder if the low impedance is demanding too much current for the cable, or maybe the device itself is malfunctioning somehow and frying the cable. Any ideas? 

Been looking for cables with little luck and maybe alternative dongles for a couple days now, but I dunno this one seems to fit well and sounds really good to my ears.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated!


----------



## Fourier transformer (Jan 30, 2022)

Hello, do you also have a glitch noise when the LED of the FC3 goes from red to green for example ? Between two songs for example. It's not a big problem, i think the FC3 goes on idle mode, it's like a trade-off.  I'm using it on pc windows 10.

The sound is better than my SSL 2 interface and it drives my HD600 loud enough. I can hear bass at like 15/20 hz on tone-generator (https://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/). I'm very happy with the FC3.

Also, can you somehow configure the FC3 with the Hiby Music app ? Or it is just a player ? I don't have phone 

And there was no leather case in my box ! Anyway, it's better for heat.


----------



## Paul_in_Maryland

Fourier transformer said:


> Hello, do you also have a glitch noise when the LED of the FC3 goes from red to green for example ? Between two songs for example. It's not a big problem, i think the FC3 goes on idle mode, it's like a trade-off.  I'm using it on pc windows 10.
> 
> The sound is better than my SSL 2 interface and it drives my HD600 loud enough. I can hear bass at like 15/20 hz on tone-generator (https://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/). I'm very happy with the FC3.
> 
> ...


I have not heard that glitch noise.
Yes, the FC3 works with the Hiby app. I don't use the app because all of my music is through Amazon music.


----------



## kemba1291

Fourier transformer said:


> Hello, do you also have a glitch noise when the LED of the FC3 goes from red to green for example ? Between two songs for example. It's not a big problem, i think the FC3 goes on idle mode, it's like a trade-off.  I'm using it on pc windows 10.
> 
> The sound is better than my SSL 2 interface and it drives my HD600 loud enough. I can hear bass at like 15/20 hz on tone-generator (https://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/). I'm very happy with the FC3.
> 
> ...


Case should be present in all units. Might want to contact Hiby about that.


----------



## Liberte

The FC3 I ordered from HiBy directly a few months ago didn't come with a leather case either, I prefer the metal feel though.

The only issue I have with the FC3 is the volume steps are a bit harsh, otherwise it still sounds great.


----------



## Fourier transformer (Jan 30, 2022)

kemba1291 said:


> Case should be present in all units. Might want to contact Hiby about that.


Well, on their website they don't say that the package includes a leather case, just in the reviews here and there.

and for the little popping sound when the LED changes from red to an other color, i'm pretty sure it's normal, like if the dac wakes up.


----------



## rlw6534

Fourier transformer said:


> Well, on their website they don't say that the package includes a leather case, just in the reviews here and there.
> 
> and for the little popping sound when the LED changes from red to an other color, i'm pretty sure it's normal, like if the dac wakes up.



FWIW, the leather slipcase was very flimsy and thin, mine didn't last a week...


----------



## kemba1291

Fourier transformer said:


> Well, on their website they don't say that the package includes a leather case, just in the reviews here and there.
> 
> and for the little popping sound when the LED changes from red to an other color, i'm pretty sure it's normal, like if the dac wakes up.


Maybe the newer units stopped shipping with the leather case. Looked nice, wasn't the strongest material unfortunately, very easy to tear.


----------



## Fourier transformer (Jan 31, 2022)

kemba1291 said:


> Maybe the newer units stopped shipping with the leather case. Looked nice, wasn't the strongest material unfortunately, very easy to tear.


look nice but maybe not a good idea for heat.

I'm surprised that no one hears the pop/noise when the FC3 goes to idle when the led turns blue/green to red, or when it wakes up (red to blue/green), it seems to be frequent for dongles. Maybe we have different firmware.


----------



## Rick Calland

Gostaria de saber se o Motorola One Fusion empurra o Hiby FC3. Pois acabei de efetuar a compra desse Dac. Já uso o app USB Áudio Player Pro.


----------



## mfny

I recently ordered a FC3 and it arrived today .

Some observations: 

It is so very small.

When playing MQA via the windows Tidal app the LED lights purple as expected however it sporadically flickers to blue during playback of the MQA, is this normal ?

There is some looseness with the volume control button leading to a rattle noise when the FC3 is lightly shaken. Also the mounting of the PCB inside seems to have a bit of give in its mounting as when the USB C cable is nudged/wiggled when connected I can see/feel the volume button shift in its mounting.


----------



## mfny

Anyone still reading this thread ?


----------



## Croptop

mfny said:


> Anyone still reading this thread ?


I do.


----------



## rlw6534

mfny said:


> Anyone still reading this thread ?



Sure.  There probably isn't much to say on the FC3 as it works perfectly and there aren't any real issues.  Yes, I do see some flickers from the LED occasionally but mine doesn't seem to rattle when shaken or move around internally.


----------



## mfny

Ive contacted Hiby about both these issues, they want to see a video of the LED sporadically blinking blue when playing MQA to check that it seems which I shall be sending them. Also regarding the QA issues(rattle from buttons etc) they are suggesting this is not how it should be and asking me where I bought it from, implying they may suggest I obtain a replacement.


----------



## slick1ru2

Does this not work with Apple Music? I tried it on my android phone and it only shows Blue: playing at PCM 32-48kHz. Should be green.


----------



## Joe Bloggs

slick1ru2 said:


> Does this not work with Apple Music? I tried it on my android phone and it only shows Blue: playing at PCM 32-48kHz. Should be green.


Unless your smartphone bypasses the Android audio subsystem systemwide like a HiBy R player does (which works for most but not all apps), that's exactly how it would be with any app other than specific ones like HiByMusic or any app that has its own provisions for bypassing the Android audio subsystem.


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## Joe Bloggs

mfny said:


> I recently ordered a FC3 and it arrived today .
> 
> Some observations:
> 
> ...


When does it flicker to blue, would that be right at the beginning of a track or right after a track seek by any chance?


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## slick1ru2

Joe Bloggs said:


> Unless your smartphone bypasses the Android audio subsystem systemwide like a HiBy R player does (which works for most but not all apps), that's exactly how it would be with any app other than specific ones like HiByMusic or any app that has its own provisions for bypassing the Android audio subsystem.


How would it play at all if it doesn’t bypass? Here’s the lit on it.


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## Joe Bloggs

slick1ru2 said:


> How would it play at all if it doesn’t bypass?



It would... play with resampling?  The literature you quoted doesn't mention Apple Music doing anything to bypass Android system sample rate conversion.

Not that this is as harmful as people think it is... (this coming from us who market technologies to bypass it)


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## slick1ru2 (Jun 14, 2022)

Joe Bloggs said:


> It would... play with resampling?  The literature you quoted doesn't mention Apple Music doing anything to bypass Android system sample rate conversion.
> 
> Not that this is as harmful as people think it is... (this coming from us who market technologies to bypass it)


It plays and the blue led is li, but being lossless higher bit rate I expected green.  Also changing the file type while playing you can hear a change in the song. I think the issue is the file format. I downloaded a song and then seached the phone with the Hiby music app and it didn’t find it. Also am going to try using this with my iPad when I get the cable.  Really hope it works.


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## slick1ru2

Joe Bloggs said:


> When does it flicker to blue, would that be right at the beginning of a track or right after a track seek by any chance?


On the android it’s solid blue all the time music plays. Good news though, it works properly with Apple Music on iPad.


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## TrantaLocked

I have read some people having their FC3 go into idle mode and cause a delay even between tracks on Windows. Is that really a thing or a rare issue? If so that is extremely annoying and nonsensical.


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## Fourier transformer

TrantaLocked said:


> I have read some people having their FC3 go into idle mode and cause a delay even between tracks on Windows. Is that really a thing or a rare issue? If so that is extremely annoying and nonsensical.


It is not a rare issue, it is on all devices the manufacturer said to me. It depends also on the player used, some players keep the FC3 "alive" even if it makes no sound, or for example with VLC when a music is "pause" the FC3 won't idle.


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## TrantaLocked

Fourier transformer said:


> It is not a rare issue, it is on all devices the manufacturer said to me. It depends also on the player used, some players keep the FC3 "alive" even if it makes no sound, or for example with VLC when a music is "pause" the FC3 won't idle.



But even in the split second between tracks? Like on spotify?


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## Fourier transformer

I don't have spotify i can't tell. With VLC the red led flashes very briefly between tracks and yes you can hear it. There are various workaround to keep the FC3 alive if it bothers you too much.


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## TrantaLocked (Jul 6, 2022)

So they can't even add a proper time out limit for the power saving? What is it with badly designed chinese DACs. Always like they have no idea what they're doing and entirely rely on the Sabre chips they use with no engineering of their own. Just take a Sabre and put it in a hunk of aluminum and call it a day. My SMSL Idea's left channel literally shorted and caused my earphone to overheat, then it died shortly afterward. And people still buy from these amateur companies and seem to completely ignore they do literally nothing other than put Sabre chips in aluminum casings with no proper implementation or engineering. Literally some of the dumbest, ZERO testing scamming companies I have ever seen and people act like nothing is wrong.


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## Fourier transformer

TrantaLocked said:


> So they can't even add a proper time out limit for the power saving?


There is one but somehow with certain music players the timer is bypassed. On youtube with autoplay the red doesn't flash beetween songs, no click noise unless the music stop playing for few seconds.



> What is it with badly designed chinese DACs. Always like they have no idea what they're doing and entirely rely on the Sabre chips they use with no engineering of their own. Just take a Sabre and put it in a hunk of aluminum and call it a day. My SMSL Idea's left channel literally shorted and caused my earphone to overheat, then it died shortly afterward. And people still buy from these amateur companies and seem to completely ignore they do literally nothing other than put Sabre chips in aluminum casings with no proper implementation or engineering. Literally some of the dumbest, ZERO testing scamming companies I have ever seen and people act like nothing is wrong.


blame it on the reviewers^^

honestly at start i was disapointed with this idle mod, but it is not soooo annoying (maybe with sensitive iem) and you can counter it if you really want and i think it's better when you don't use FC3

the main problem of this dongle is the noise floor. Max iem sensitivity is 100-105 db/mw before you hear the background noise i think.


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## TrantaLocked

At what headphone sensitivity (or impedance) is the out of idle sound audible, and does it ever become intrusive? Is there always a startup delay along with the sound or can one happen without the other depending on certain conditions?


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## Fourier transformer

TrantaLocked said:


> At what headphone sensitivity (or impedance) is the out of idle sound audible, and does it ever become intrusive?


the FC3 won't have enough power to drive so low sensitive headphone



TrantaLocked said:


> Is there always a startup delay along with the sound or can one happen without the other depending on certain conditions?


the two are simultaneous as far i can tell
more info in ES9219 Datasheet


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## TrantaLocked (Jul 8, 2022)

I found a video with a recording of the idle click sound: 
So it isn't annoyingly loud like it can be on the worst offenders. I am still surprised it can trigger between tracks depending on the application being used, just bad design.


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## Fourier transformer

TrantaLocked said:


> I am still surprised it can trigger between tracks depending on the application being used, just bad design.


bad design of the application or the FC3 ? you don't have the issue between tracks with foobar.


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## TrantaLocked (Jul 11, 2022)

I got the FC3 and when it connects it cycles through the three LED colors then turns off. Happens on multiple cables, both computers and my phone. Installed driver on one of the computers, still isn't recognized. I will definitely come back and edit in my thoughts on the FC3 assuming the replacement actually works.

Edit: So it isn't even detected by the computer unless you plug in a headphone jack! now I can do my comparison.

Headphones: HiFiMan RE400
DACs being compared: EarMen Eagle, HiBy FC3, AudioEngineD3

My first impressions of the Eagle when compared to the AudioEngine D3 is that the Eagle has better macro dynamics but worse micro dynamics and instrument separation. Likely part of the reason for this audible difference is the Audioengine D3's 10 ohm output impedance, which when paired with the RE400's impedance curve causes the 2khz and 10-20KHz regions to increase in volume comparatively to the rest of the frequency range. The amp chosen gives the Eagle really good macro dynamics and a solid mid-range. It isn't really missing treble detail per se, but is just slightly warmer than the other two DACs.

The Audioengine D3 is the brightest of the bunch. The FC3 is the punchiest in the sub bass but has an upper treble forwardness closer to the D3. The Eagle is more mid-range and upper bass forward and as a result has a slightly less forward upper treble than the FC3 while still being punchier in the bass than the D3.

Overall, all three DACs are _extremely _clean sounding with no audible noise floor and amazing sound stage and dynamics. If you already own a D3, I wouldn't urge an upgrade to the FC3 or Eagle unless you want something smaller or that doesn't get as hot to the touch as the D3 does.

For use with my RE400 I actually prefer the D3 the most due to how the output impedance colors the sound, but at the same time the FC3 and Eagle do sound slightly cleaner and natural than the D3. Between the FC3 and Eagle, both sort of do their own thing, but the main difference is that the FC3 is puts slightly more emphasis on sub bass and treble, while the Eagle is comparatively more lower mid-range and upper-bass focused. These differences aren't big though and pointing them out is difficult even when comparing side by side.

The D3, due to its output impedance, is just overall brighter, but would probably sound more like the others when matched with an 80+ ohm impedance headphone like an HD 600. It is still an amazing performer after nearly ten years on the market and I would never give mine up! I will be looking for a custom 10 ohm adapter to pair with one of the other DACs to see if it gives me the same result.


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## OniChap (Sep 2, 2022)

Hello, I wanna post my recent experiences with HiBy FC3 DAC. I have only tested it with PC - was my intention to use it that way.

Also I replaced stock usb cable with cheap UGreen USB A to C one (https://aliexpress.ru/item/32678087...691&spm=a2g2w.orderdetails.0.0.3bcc4aa6rZhUxG). Stock cable is too short to use it with PC and its rather stiff.

I won't say anything about the sound because a lot a things were said already by the others.

Microphone on headset works as intended and is really clear, but lacks volume compared to other solutions like cheap gaming dacs. It has no boost option in software. I was only testing it with mic on a cable from my headphones PT 15 stock cable. Maybe it will be sufficient with some boom mic close to your mouth tho or some post processing.

*About problems and solutions:*

1) Clicking and poping sounds. Yes I had this issue and it was completely *SOLVED* by installing HiBy drivers on Win 10 to prevent power saving mode. Here is the guide:

 - first download driver from official site, you can google FC3 drivers and then in search bar type FC3, or use this link (https://drive.google.com/file/d/15rF7Aukb2mzX6cBn-_BicrcNx3FmZPP5/view?usp=sharing)

- go to C:\Program Files\HiBy\USB Audio Device Driver\W10_x64 or your installation path on find HiByUsbAudioCpl.xml file. Remove read only in the properties and copy it to your desktop. Open it with any program u like and find this line:
    <PageOptions>
        <!-- Supported values for this page: Hidden (default), Visible  -->
        <Visibility>Visible</Visibility>     
    </PageOptions>

It should say visible. Save the file and replace the original one with this new one. It may prevent you from doing that try saving it with different name elsewhere then changing manually to original name, deleting original file and pasting modified one instead. This unlocks power saving option in driver panel. I actually put Visible on all options to see what they are hiding, but there was nothing usefull there.

- Then click hiby icon in tray and open the control panel. Now you should see options tab - put it in Always On. You are done.

Maybe there is a way for mobile like that with dev options for usb connection to turn off power saving.

2) My unit sometimes after few PC reboots won't turn on. Replugging DAC solves issue, but it is kinda annoying.
While I was using Win 10 auto drivers it would not show any indicator ligth at all, Windows won't see it.
Btw my headphones are always plugged in, replugging them doesn't make a difference.
While using HiBy USB driver same thing happends - but instead indicator light is on in white color and DAC is warm to the touch as if it was working normally. Still won't show up in the system.
Also I turn off the powerstrip which powers my PC before going to bed. Using USB 3.0 port on motherboard IO.

Any thoughts guys?

- I have setup all my USB controllers power management to off in device manager for now. I will monitor the situation.
- I have contacted the manufacturer about this.

If some of this info helps you make sure to *share* it!


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## Delerue (Sep 3, 2022)

@OniChap, thanks for the tips!

I noticed that the dongle enters in red mode (power saving) between tracks if they have different sample rate, so I set my Linux audio player (Audacious) to always sample rate at 44100 Hz.

Also, on Linux we need to change /etc/pulse/default.pa and comment the line: *load-module module-suspend-on-idle*. By doing that the dongle is always in blue mode, regardless if any player is open. 

On Windows the dongle usually enters in power saving mode if it's connected to a laptop -- I haven't tried OniChap's tips though.


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## Surf Monkey

Delerue said:


> @OniChap, thanks for the tips!
> 
> I noticed that the dongle enters in red mode (power saving) between tracks if they have different sample rate, so I set my Linux audio player (Audacious) to always sample rate at 44100 Hz.
> 
> ...



FWIW, on iOS the FC3 waits about three seconds before dropping into standby. As a result, songs with long lead-out of silence will sometimes trigger standby and I get a click when the amp turns back on for the next track. In the case of iOS it seems like a slightly longer time before standby would solve it. Maybe 5 seconds instead of 3.


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## Peti

I wonder if I control the volume on the device while playing back DSD materials it gets converted to pcm?


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## alexLP

Hello, recently I have a new version of hiby fc3 (line-shaped led) and I have two questions.  With MQA files enabled purple color, from time to time it flashes blue.  this is normal?  also on xiaomi mobile it has a problem if I am using Tidal and I want to use another application such as Spotify or Youtube, the sound will be played through the speaker and not through the earphone.  The same thing happens in reverse as well.  This does not happen if I use iPad. the software is up to date


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## Joe Bloggs

Peti said:


> I wonder if I control the volume on the device while playing back DSD materials it gets converted to pcm?


If the light remains the appropriate colour for DSD, then no.  The FC3 is capable of receiving volume commands in the form of stream metadata.


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