The AIR AMP is a palm-sized streaming amplifier that puts a network streamer, a high-resolution DAC and a Class D power amplifier into one box, so a pair of passive speakers is all you need to add for a complete streaming hi-fi system. It is built for anyone who wants to bring existing bookshelf or compact floorstanding speakers into the streaming era without a rack of separates and the cabling that goes with them, whether that is on a desk, a bookshelf or a living room shelf. It sits alongside the LEVEL 1 in FiiO's power amplifier range, adding streaming and decoding to the compact amplifier formula. Available in Black and Silver; this listing is the Silver finish.
Amplification
Power comes from the Texas Instruments TPA3255, a Class D amplifier chip chosen for its combination of low distortion and high efficiency. With the supplied 48V/5A power adapter the AIR AMP delivers 120W per channel into 4 ohms and 90W per channel into 8 ohms (THD+N below 1%), which FiiO says is enough to drive most bookshelf speakers and small-to-medium floorstanders. Pair it with an optional 48V/10A supply and output rises to 155W per channel into 4 ohms at the same distortion figure, or up to 235W per channel at 10% THD+N. Post-filter feedback (PFFB) is applied around the output stage to lower distortion and keep the sound consistent across speakers of differing impedance, and the amplifier is rated for 4 to 8 ohm loads with a damping factor of 80. The signal chain uses an XMOS XU316 USB interface and an ESS ES9020Q DAC, and FiiO specifies imported audio-grade capacitors and dedicated circuit optimisation for cleaner power and a lower noise floor.
Streaming and playback
The AIR AMP is Roon Ready and supports AirPlay and QPlay, so it slots directly into a Roon system or takes a stream from an iPhone, iPad or Mac with a tap. It can also play music files stored on a USB drive or portable hard drive plugged into its USB-A port, or from a NAS on the local network, with track selection handled through the FiiO Control app. Network connection is by Gigabit Ethernet or dual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 5.2 reception with SBC and LDAC codecs is built in. Streaming and local playback run at up to 384kHz/32-bit PCM and DSD256; the USB DAC input accepts up to 768kHz/32-bit and native DSD512, and MQA full decoding is supported.
Connectivity
Connectivity runs to two USB Type-C DAC inputs, a USB-A port for storage, optical and coaxial digital inputs and an RCA line input alongside the network and Bluetooth sources, with a two-position input sensitivity switch to match different source levels; FiiO counts seven inputs and three outputs in all. Outputs are 4mm banana speaker terminals that also take bare wire, an RCA subwoofer output and a 3.5mm single-ended line output, the last of which lets the AIR AMP feed a headphone amplifier or a separate system. A housing grounding terminal is also provided.
Control and tuning
Two encoder knobs on the front handle input selection and menu navigation on one side and volume, standby and mute on the other, with a 1.1-inch LCD between them and knob indicator lighting whose colour and brightness can be customised. An infrared remote control is included. Sound tuning is handled through the FiiO Control app or a web interface, both of which offer ten built-in EQ presets, ten custom slots and a 10-band parametric equaliser, and firmware can be updated over the air. The chassis measures roughly 207mm wide, 188mm deep and 42mm tall and weighs about 930g.
