HiBy - FC3

Earphones/headphones used - Sennheiser momentum wired , jays a jays one , Sennheiser hd 599

Source - iphone 7 plus ,iphone 11 pro max , PC , google pixel 2

I use the iphone as a primary source of music with amazon music and jiosaavn with the highest quality streaming possible

Straight out of the box the Hiby doesn't have a lightning to usb c cable included , so look at spending between 500 to 2000 rupees more for it , I did , bought an amkette first , it didn't power up the DAC , thought there might be an issue with the cable , so bought a boat mfi certified cable , that too didn't work.So 2 new cables tried across 2 iphones and an ipad even, without luck .

Tried with the usb to usb c from the PC and the DAC powered up and was pretty much plug and play , acting as the default sound card .

Tried with the pixel 2 , again worked flawlessly - as far as the powering up was concerned

Coming to the sound quality - if you compare with the output of fairly decent earphones , it hardly makes a difference - to put it in Hindi , it is 19-20

The sound stage was minimally expanded , transparency was fair , i don't know what i expected but am pretty much sure that my earphones and the dac on the iphone are doing a decent enough job for me not to spend on the Hiby.

Unsolicited advice : instead of this DAC invest that amount on a higher end earphone / headphone

In my brief use of the HiBy FC3, I've found it to improve the sound on my Meze 99 Neo headphones. The claimed 70mw per channel output is plenty for the efficient (30mw nominal) headphones, and drives them with some authority. I've occasionally heard some popping sounds when connected to a mobile device (iOS and Android tested), but didn't experience this on desktop.

The volume button seems extraneous, but is surprisingly useful. The build is metal and good enough. There's a pronounced seam around the case, diminishing the otherwise nice brushed, monolithic look. The LED at the back glows different colours depending on the bitrate being processed. MQA fans can feel warm and fuzzy when it turns purple. A free MQA subscription is included for the "HIBY Music" app. I'm not sure what to do with that. The output is single-ended 3.5mm headphone only, and the socket feels a bit stiff when plugging things in.

Android/Desktop users are sorted -- usb-c to usb-c and usb-c to usb-a cables are inclided. iOS users are out of luck; the lightning to USB-C cable is optional and costs a bit. The usual ones don't work.

I'd recommend this for someone wanting a low-profile dac/amp for portable use as I did.

Am using this with my Google Pixel 5 and Balanced Armature KZ AS16
This little thing is so powerful Superb sound quality in a compact and attractive package
The sound coming from it is detailed, flat and analytical but highly musical and not boring at all.
If you are looking for a tiny amp for portability with great power, non built in battery, balanced and
unbalanced connections and excellent measurements this is it.

Good and perfect sound USB DAC sound experience is not in words

I am first timer to portable amp for headphone. It was like a new horizon of audiophiles opened up. Enjoyed so much on KZ SZS10 pro IEM right now. Will try on headphones later.