FiiO M11S Review: Better Alternative to Expensive M11 Plus?

The FiiO M11S review for design, features, performance, battery life, and price can help us understand the difference between the high-fidelity M11 Plus mp3 music player and the M11S. Up front is that this is $500 versus the $700 DAP music player. So, there is a $200 contrast between the two, but there are a lot of similarities. The M11S is smaller than M11 Plus and has the same Snapdragon 660 processor, which is fast for a DAP player. Also, it has Android 10 OS and is cheaper than the THX-certified M11 Plus. So, what’s the catch? How is it more affordable, and what benefits or cons it has?

The FiiO M11S Review

Talking about the M11S and the DAP review, we will discuss its design and build. Then we’ll talk about the functionality, battery life, performance, and other features. There are a few important things in the DAP mp3 music player FiiO M11S review. The M11S is a cheaper alternative to the THX amps M11 Plus. So, it has no THX amps but offers more power output with dual ES9038Q2M DACs, a 670mW of production. Thus, a few high-fidelity components are missing, yet its audio is great. A performance review, comparison with M11 Plus DAP, and finally, we’ll conclude with a score. To begin with, the unboxing.

FiiO M11S Specs Sheet

The Unboxing

As you unbox the M11S DAC music player, the first thing to pop out is a warning card showcasing that the screen protector comes pre-applied. So, there is no need to buy another. The FiiO M11S review with unboxing, you will find a quick start guide and a USB-A 3.0 to USB Type-C cable. There is also a pre-applied transparent case.

The Design

The more affordable DAP mp3 music player has a smaller and less capacity battery (5,300mAh) than the more powerful FiiO M11 Plus (6,000mAh). However, there are a few similarities. FiiO M11S review for the design shows it has the same layout for the volume key, but it is not a gesture sliding like the M11 Plus. It’s a normal up-and-down button. There is a customizable button with an up-and-down volume key and a power button at the top on the left side.

The play, pause and resume keys are on the right, with a MicroSD slot for expanding storage.

The 2.5mm, 3.5mm, and 4.4mm BAL audio jacks with the USB Type-C port are at the bottom of the Hi-Res Bluetooth mp3 music player. The honeycomb design, side keys, and ports are like the M11 Plus music player, only that the M11S is slightly smaller

FiiO M11S and FiiO M11 Plus Features Comparison

The M11 Plus is a THX amp DAP player with Snapdragon 660 processor, 4GB RAM, and 64GB storage. It supports SBC/AAC/LDAC two-way Bluetooth. But the FiiO M11S review for its specs shows it has a 384kHz/DSD256 Dual ES9038Q2M amplifier and no THX. However, there is a slight audio power output advantage. As the M11 Plus produces 210mW PO and 660mW BAL output, the M11S can produce 200mW PO and 670mW BAL output. A 10mW BAL output difference. Also, the FiiO M11S price is lower. It offers similar MQA 8X, DSD256, SBC/AAC/LDAC/LHDC/aptXHD/aptX Bluetooth transmission.

The new M11S Bluetooth mp3 music player has a 5.0-inch 720p display screen, Android 12 OS, 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, and a 5,300mAh battery. Both M11S and M11 Plus have up to 2TB microSD expandable storage. But the M11 Plus has a 5.5-inch display screen. So, M11 Plus has some higher-end audio. It’s got THX amps, a higher-end ESS DAC. However, that’s a pretty minor noticeable change for the audio performance. And then maybe one other difference that we thought was noticeable was that the M11 Plus has like this touch-sensitive sliding volume keys. Also, the 11S comes with fewer accessories, as it is cheaper. It has standard volume keys, not fancy sliding ones like the M11 Plus.

Performance

So, as the M11S versus M11 Plus comparison shows, the differences are in the amp chipsets, battery capacity, screen size, and BAL output. The rest of the specs are similar according to the FiiO M11S review. It is cheaper than the high-fidelity DAC mp3 music player, M11 Plus, only that it offers 10mW more power for the 4.4mm Balanced output. The question remains: Can you save $200 and buy an M11S Hi-Res portable music player, or do you require THX? There is a big price difference, and audiophiles will not notice huge audio differences. But if you want THX AAA audio for expensive headphones, you may want to select M11 Plus.

UI Experience

The Snapdragon 660 SoC, Android 10 OS, 3GB RAM, and 32GB ROM make all apps and tasks run smoothly. A drop-down menu, technical support, firmware updates, and other Android 10 features are there, as FiiO M11S review points out. Thus, a good overall UI experience. There are shortcuts, the in-vehicle mode, WIFI, Bluetooth, PO, BAL PO, All to DSD, etc. Also, it has a customizable side key, and you can choose various functions to use with it. There is Google Play Store, and you can download Spotify or other online streaming music apps.

There are USB DAC and music modes to choose from, Android, Pure Music, AirPlay, USB DAC, and Bluetooth Receiving Mode. In settings, there are the 3.5mm, 4.4mm, SPDIF, Gain, Bluetooth Encoder, and other audio settings you can change.

Audio Performance

Most DAPs sound just about identical because of similar high-end chipsets. Sometimes there are differences that an audiophile or listener can pick up. Some slight differences only experts can realize. So, for the audio performance FiiO M11S review, we must compare its audio output and features with the higher-end M11 Plus DAP music player.

So, let’s discuss those things for starters. Some of the obvious things are the volume. How much volume can you get out of a player? That’s a very real sound difference that you’re going to hear. The M11S DAC player offers plenty of loudness. The power rating on this heavily favors the balanced outputs. You’ll still get 200mW of power at 32 ohms if you don’t use balanced outputs. That’s enough for even a Sennheiser HD 600 headphones. But if you need more juice, you can get up to 670mW of power on the balance connector, and frankly, that’s a lot.

Noise and Interference

There is no noise testing with different studio-quality headphones. It is not easy to test for a digital audio player to get a 670mW max output as it is extremely loud. However, there is no noise or hissing sound. IEMs earphones, when connected using a 3.5mm audio jack, produce impressive quality. As expected, there are no issues with the balance shifts. Another thing to test for, especially with these Android digital audio players, is digital interference. After trying it, the results show no interference, even at max capacity.

Battery

There is a 5,300mAh battery with PD 3.0 fast charging support. On paper, you can get up to 15 hours of music playback. It takes 3 hours to charge it. However, the FiiO M11S review for the battery performance shows you can use it for up to 13 hours in Pure Music mode. It will depend on what features or apps are running on the player. WIFI and Bluetooth connection will also reduce battery, but you can use it for almost 2 days typically.

Pros:

• It is an affordable alternative to the FiiO M11 Plus.
• Dual ES9038Q2M amps.
• DAC decoding up to 384kHz/DSD256.
• MQA 8x decoding supported.
• There is Android 10 OS.
• It runs on Snapdragon 660 SoC.
• Incredible noiseless high-fidelity audio performance.
• Comes with a pre-installed screen protector and silicone case.
• Great audio performance for IEMs and Hi-Res headphones.

Cons:

• There is no THX AAA amp.
• It takes 3 hours to charge the battery. 

Price and Availability

The FiiO M11S price on Amazon is US$499.99. However, on AliExpress, it is available for US$483.99. You can also collect FiiO store coupons on AliExpress and get a further discount.

Buy FiiO M11S on Amazon for US$499

The Verdict

DealsNowToday.com Rating: 4/5

Price: $483.99

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