Qudelix-5K Bluetooth USB DAC AMP with LDAC, aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, AAC (Dual ES9219 3.5mm Unbalanced & 2.5mm Balanced Output)

I really enjoy the Qudelix 5K both on the go and at home when plugged in. I use it with my Punch Audio Martilo IEMs on a Tripowin 2.5mm balanced cable, and my Hifiman Ananda Stealth V3 using a Meze Audio 2.5mm to 3.5 mono silver-plated copper cable. Both pairings work beautifully in wireless mode at 2 VRMS. I don’t really take the Anandas outside, but around the house the Qudelix makes them surprisingly versatile and easy to use without being tied to a desk setup. The Martilos are my travel set — great for store runs and general out-and-about use. Wired mode is where things really step up. Listening to lossless audio through USB with both headphones sounds wonderful. Some people say you can’t really hear the difference between lossless and Bluetooth, but in my experience you can — especially in clarity and separation. Bluetooth still sounds very good, but wired lossless has that extra clean edge. When it comes to PEQ, this is where the Qudelix 5K really shines. The parametric EQ system is one of the best features. You can build your own custom PEQ profiles or load presets from well-known audiophile sources. It makes it easy to fine-tune both the Martilos and the Anandas exactly how you want them. Battery life has been excellent in my use. With the IEMs I get over 10 hours consistently. With the Anandas it’s shorter — usually around 5–8 hours — but I solve that by using a low-charge battery pack (important — low charge mode). With that setup I can stretch runtime to around 14 hours with the Anandas and close to 24 hours with the Martilos. For anyone who needs something portable but still powerful and flexible, the Qudelix 5K delivers. The fact that all of this comes in such a small device makes it absolutely worth it.

The 5k is a one-of-kind, highly configurable, reliable, portable bluetooth dac, which you can fully manage via software, on mobile nonetheless, via its app. The app, as well as the dac itself, really, are just perfect. Fully-featered, contioniously updated, and from an obviously passionate team. What truly distinguishes the 5k from competitors, and seems seldom mentioned, is that this thing just f***ing works, always, just how you want it to, on pc AND mobile. If nothing else, know this. You will not be dissatissfied with the audio listening experience it provides. For Android, especially, it really is the best, dac available, full-stop. There are plenty of competiting products with better specs, but hardware isnt everything. Optimization is essential. Crysis made that clear for video games, and the 5k makes it evident for audio. Such an exquiste, universabaly-reliabile and steadfastly- cohesive listening experience, no matter the enviromment, is offered by none other dac. No matter what operating system, software, or hardware you use it with, it does not dissapoint. Additionally, its support is unrivaled. Built by truly passionate developers. Look at the app's update and dac's firmware update changelogs, really. Now look at those from similar products. Insane. No other competitors offer such frequent, high-quality improvements to the users experience at no extra charge. Just one purchase guarantees users will get years of dependable, optimal use out of their device. Thanks to the frequent, high-quality, and most importantly free, improvements, and fixes to all users experience over time provided by the qudelix team. *Highlights* -Equalizer Settings are stored on device, no need to ever even touch them again after the first time. You get the same sound signature always. No swapping devices and suddenly it changes. -Syncs audio volume PERFECTLY no matter what. Regardless, If you change it via hardware buttons or software bars, on PC or Mobile. ------------ *Important Note for PC users* *Desktop operating systems dont have native support for and need third-party software to unlock full ad2p bluetooth protocol compatbility/functionality. You Can't use ldac on Windows without it. (lookup: "AlternativeAD2P Driver")* *On a side note, using it, you can also force SBC audio/ connection settings, and I was able to get the 5k to maintain an overclocked SBC output bitrate of over ~1.1Mb/s. Sounded better than LDAC. Insane. That software really is a game changer for windows bluetooth listening.

I use it with big DJ headphones, and it has the power to get really loud when I listen to EDM. Bluetooth headphones usually won't get loud at all. I can get an experience with this. Great sound quality, lots of options for EQ and other configuration, and plenty of driving power for big headphones. Durable too. I've dropped it several times, and it's so small and light it didn't take any damage. There's a lot of DACs out there but this one is lightweight enough to keep in my pocket. It's really light even in a TPU case. Would buy again.

Absolutely solid all around. Measures well, sounds as good as it measures, has features that many more expensive and worse measuring portable DAC/amps don't have. Bluetooth worked well enough for me but I didn't stress test its range or stability. Likewise I haven't really stressed it for battery, it's been plenty good (especially if you're used to typical modern wireless earbuds like AirPods). I'd say only downside is the physical control functionality. It's not terrible and works fine once you learn it, but it could be improved. The physical buttons work fine as well but I'd prefer them to be flush mounted or even recessed with maybe a rotary knob of some sort for volume. Also, thankfully there's a good app that you can use instead which makes the physical buttons less necessary so it could be simplified. Maybe could use a more appealing aesthetic design but it's so compact while still offering so much capability, including an integrated clip, that I'm not gonna complain. But they could easily put the same internals in a more appealing enclosure and charge a lot more fore it. I'm considering upgrading to their 8 channel one so I can use it to playback multi-channel movie audio. I look forward to seeing what else Qudelix comes up with, but this is so good that I'd be waiting for proper next gen Bluetooth (lossless stereo, quality multi-channel) before I'd want to replace this for portable DAC. Hoping maybe they can even add some other options ("spatial" audio), and some noise cancellation.

I have playing with this little dac/amp for about a day. I've connected it to both my home PC (windows 10) and my iPad. I've been streaming from Amazon music HD and Pandora. Here's some initial impressions. The device itself is really small and the buttons are very small and awkward. It's tricky to not misfire because of their placement. It would be great if there were clear labels for each button. Curiously there ARE labels on the box it came in. Almost all of the adjustments are made using the Quedlix app. I've installed it on my iPad as well as the plug-in for Windows chrome. The app has a LOT of settings and the instructions are pretty sparse. I was able to get more information searching around on the web however. Although I was able to establish a bluetooth connection with each device, I've been mostly using a USB cable on both my PC and iPad. On bluetooth the quality is not quite as good 16bit/44.1k according to Amazon music. Hardwired I get 24bit/96k. The shining light on this device is the equalization options. There are many! You can switch between multiple configurations, 10 or 20 graphic equalizer, PEQ or use pre-sets. I have been fine tuning for multiple headphones. My go-to headphones are Beyerdynamic 990's. The amp drives these with ease. Once equalized the sound is quite pleasing with a decent soundstage. It is great to finally have an option to have a full-fledged equalizations for iOS devices. For a little over $100 I'm impressed with value and functionality. A few things I would appreciate: A discrete on/off switch and a discrete, well labeled volume control. This is definitely a device that requires some serious configuration to get the best out of it. I will update if I run into any issues. So far, so good. One additional note. There's a case available from the manufacturer's website but not Amazon. It's $2.00 with a $10.00 shipping fee to my areas. It would be swell for either Amazon to carry the product or for the manufacturer to include in the purchase.

Hi.. I'd like give my view on Qudelix 5K after using it for almost 3 months. Hopefully what I share below could help others to understand better about this device. Qudelix 5K is a very sophisticated audio device. I notice it captures firstly/mostly the 'serious' audio lovers/enthusiasts. I myself like it so much and really amazed by its sound quality that I feel it necessary to introduce it to greater audience than just the audio enthusiasts. For this reason, I'm going to try explain it in a more simple than technical approach. In simplest term, device like Qudelix 5K can do two things: 1. As Bluetooth receiver (receive BT audio and send out analog audio) 2. As USB to analog audio dongle (USB-C to analog audio out) The USB-C port on 5K is dual function port. We could use it to charge the battery on 5K, or use it as interface for USB-to-analog audio dongle, or both. Qudelix 5K send out analog audio via the 3.5mm or 2.5mm jack on top of the unit. On either of this port we could connect earphones/headphones or send the output across to the external audio amplifier (i.e. home audio or car audio). (Note: the 2.5mm port is intended to operate in 'balanced' audio mode. If you have no idea what it is all about, please avoid to use it. Don't try to put in just any 2.5mm plug/cable, without proper 'balanced' wiring. 5K could be damaged by the wrong 2.5mm connector/cable.) Depend on how we like to use 5K, how deep we want to dig 5K capabilities and tinker with their accompanying mobile app, we could turn this device from sounding great to amazing. We could use Qudelix 5K just as simple BT receiver/audio dongle. The device have been pre-set up by manufacturer with optimum default settings. IMHO, the default settings on 5K is more than enough to make average/most listener to be happy with it. Enough to open them up to the world of improved audio reproduction and that while having the freedom of detached (i.e. wireless) earphone/headphone from their mobile phones. Please don't feel degraded/depreciate when I mention 'average'. By 'average' is I mean for people enjoying music more than concerning with how their audio equipment perform (that's why there's the term 'audiophile for this kind of love :) ). I myself is more of a music lover (80% of time) than audiophile, though I really love to hear my music sounding their best. Qudelix provide 5K with an accompanying mobile app (available for iOS on AppStore and Android on PlayStore). The app is intended to do many things such as: - to regularly upgrade the 'software' inside Qudelix 5K; to improve its performance and stability - to formally start the warranty of the 5K with the manufacturer - to adjust behavior when it is connected as USB dongle - to enable/disable certain Bluetooth audio codecs (note: by default all codecs are enabled) - to adjust the buttons behavior/actions - to adjust the power/battery management - to adjust it to get the maximum sound quality (remember: this one is not mandatory to get good sound out of 5K, as I mentioned above) - to set the built-in equalizer in 5K to adjust it to sound more to our flavor (note: human hearing and ear profiles are never the same person to person), or to 'correct' the imperfect characters of earphone/headphone, or compensate the room response of home/car audio system. - and few more The interesting part with the app is, the Qudelix app is actually just a user interface to set these settings on 5K. All the settings we do on the app are not saved on the app but directly on 5K and the app is no longer needed for 5K to perform. Settings on 5K will follow it everywhere regardless of the mobile phone or computer using 5K as BT receiver or USB audio dongle. So if in one occasion I used 5K with my friend's mobile phone or I used to test a mobile phone in the store, all the settings (including the sound profile) will just follow with 5K. With such capabilities of Qudelix 5K, the app then is a little bit complex to use. You'll need time to really understand and to use all the features. I myself confused on my first time using it. But don't feel too overwhelmed but the app, if you found it is too complex to understand it, just leave it. Qudelix 5K sounded already good with its all default settings. I don't want to cover all the settings and Qudelix capabilities here. Those could be found on their user guide. I'm going to list the things that I found amazing on Qudelix 5K. 1. Amazing Sound. I've repeated this many times above. It simply sound amazing. Be it used with just basic AAC/Apt-X codec, or very advanced codec like LDAC, or using as USB-audio dongle. It sounded many, many times better then my other BT receiver Maceton WM4U. It sounded two or three levels above my LG V20 phone; a phone that is highly respected for the sound quality: better resolution, better music layers, better power, more finesse. 2. Long battery life. This depend whether we want to maximize it for longer battery life or set it for best audio performance, we can get between 10 hours to 20 hours of play. 3. Powerful Driving Power Device like Qudelix 5K is technically referred to as DAC (Digital Analog Converter). DAC will receive audio in digital format and convert it into analog audio. Analog audio is then converted by the interaction of amplifier and transducer (i.e. speaker, headphones, earphones, etc.) to become audio wave so that we human can listen to it. Normally analog audio output from DAC alone is quite low and need external amplifier to sound louder. In Qudelix 5K case, it has built-in little amplifier that is powerful enough to drive various headphones/earphones load. The 3.5mm port is powerful enough to drive many headphones. But the 2.5mm balanced port would deliver double of power. In balanced, it's quite powerful to drive my very demanding Hifiman HE5LE planar magnetic headphone to sound quite loud. 4. Amazing Bluetooth range. Qudelix hype about the 5K unique BT antenna design, and they are not just hyping it up. I could get 5K play 8 meters away from my LG V20 phones, across 3 layers of brickwall (of about 6 inch each) at my home and that while I use LDAC as codec, and that streaming from my LG V20 that can only do BT4.2. 5. Amazing Equalizer Qudelix 5K come with two flavors of 10 bands equalizer; Graphic Equalizer (GEQ) and Parametric Equalizer (PEQ). Equalizer is done on digital domain with 64 bits precision calculation, which mean the EQ could adjust the level of frequency and amplitude of the sound without degrading the quality of the modified sound. GEQ is something that most people familiar with. But PEQ is a beast of equalization tool. It provides a much more flexibility for us to shape the frequency of the sound to affect the response of our earphone/headphone or room response of external audio system. Note that PEQ is usually considered as professional tool. But not necessarily professional audio equipment would have PEQ in it. Some lower/mid end even only have 3 to 5 bands PEQ. Amazingly 5K come with 10 bands very high precision PEQ in such a small package. By now, you should be able to see why I mentioned that Qudelix 5K is such a sophisticated audio device. Inside its understated appearance, Qudelix 5K is really an amazing, highly customizable and state of the art audio device. Below is the list of audio device I used with 5K this far. Earphone: Sony MH755, Blon BL-03, Fiio FH1 Headphone: Drop E-MU Purpleheart, Audeze Sine (in balanced), Hifiman HE-5LE (in balanced) Source (BT transmitter): LG V20 Music/songs: I don't limit myself with certain genre of music. I listen everything: classical/romantic/baroque/renaissance, rock (progressive, rock'n'roll, hard rock etc.), jazz (all derivatives), metal, pop, folk/country, vocal, etc. PS. Qudelix 5K has built-in microphone, which is very sensitive, but don't have noise cancellation. The voice coming out from the microphone is actually very good, but if we clipped Q5K to clothes it could easily pickup the noise of 5K rubbing the clothes and send across the sound to the other end. If we don't like this, and our earphone has built-in microphone, we can turn the 5K microphone off and instead using the external microphone on our earphone/headphone. In the other way around of usage, if our headphone/earphone don't have microphone (or we send audio output to amplifier for example) we could use the built-in microphone on Q5K for making a call. PPS. Comparing Graphic Equalizer (GEQ) and Parametric (PEQ). In GEQ, frequency range of human hearing (20Hz to 20KHz) are divided into about factor of two frequency scale (31.5, 63, 125, 250, 500, 1K, 2K, 4K, 8K, 16K) with fixed width of frequency range 'impact' for boost or cut as peak/valley. PEQ is a much more sophisticated equalizer in that this frequency scale can be adjusted freely by us, for how wide the impact would be, and whether the impact is affecting as peak/valley or as shelfing filter. Don't be confused and overwhelmed by this PEQ. It seems complicated at first but is really not that difficult to use. What makes it complicated is to effectively use PEQ to shape a headphone for example, we would need to have the frequency response measurement of the headphone. With that we will know on which part of response the phones are the lacking or having too much of volume. Then we rectify these with the PEQ. Luckily some sites readily share their measurements such on this list: https://www.reddit.com/r/oratory1990/wiki/index/list_of_presets The PEQ sample I attach as one of picture, show my way to correct the response of my Fiio FH1 IEM. I don't follow any 'Harman' Curve but use other excellent sounding IEM for reference. Without the EQ, it sounded smooth but flat and unexciting. PEQ turn it into a lively sounding IEM I could never imagine before.

This is my first DAC/amp. I bought it mostly based on the hype and positive reviews, and because I wanted something portable with a lot of flexibility. Overall this is an excellent DAC/amp for the price with a really strong feature set. Bluetooth supports most of the important codecs, and the balanced 2.5mm output is a big plus for something this small. In 2025 I do kind of wish it used 4.4mm instead, but it’s not a deal breaker. Sound quality is clean and has more than enough power for the headphones and IEMs I’ve tried. It also has battery passthrough and lets you set safe charging limits, which is a nice touch if you care about battery longevity. The app is one of the best parts. There are a ton of options, it’s actively updated, and it feels like the developers actually care about supporting the product. Build quality seems fine for daily use, but it’s basically a chunk of plastic with a clip, nothing fancy. The buttons take some getting used to, and there’s a lot I still haven’t messed with yet. This probably isn’t the device for someone who just wants super simple plug-and-play. But if you want flexibility and control in a small portable DAC/amp, it’s hard to beat for the price.

Great little amp. The key feature for me is the app Auto EQ preset that is based on an extensive bank of measurements and the ability to superimpose user EQ preference. It fixes my HD800s (which it can drive easily), Focal Clear, Monarch Mk 2, etc. For lower listening volumes, I can add my own Fletcher-Munson type compensation (iso-loudness EQ). There are also selectable DAC filters and balanced output. It's conveniently small and light and looks fine but performance for the price is the real highlight.

I used the QUDELIX 5K for a few months, sold it to switch to similar Bluetooth devices only to buy it again. The 5K is superior, and here is why: • Exceptional proprietary app, with instantaneous response time, undoubtedly the best on the market. Extensive EQ capabilities and customisation, making the devise a miniaturised professional amp. • Elegant and discrete design, with customisable light so you don’t feel festively decorated all year round. • Despite the minute design, the 5K has great control buttons, easy to locate and operate. • Truly integrated clip, which does not add bulk to the slick design. • Discrete battery life, 8hrs. • The crisp and balanced sound of the ES9219C DAC chipset. • Seamless automatic switching from Bluetooth amp to Dongle amp function (many other similar DAC amps require manual switching). • Finally, size and weight. This is the smallest and lightest Bluetooth DAC amp available. Mine is paired with IE200s and, clipped to the original Sennheiser cable, or 2.5 balanced cables by OpenHearth wrapped around the neck, is virtually impossible to feel. Obviously, a personal consideration but, based on my experience, the QUDELIX 5K is unrivalled in the space of ultraportable DAC AMPs.

Deze bluetooth DAC overtreft mijn verwachtingen: heel detailrijke klank, mooie textuur en timbre. Ik gebruik hem voornamelijk met een Queen Of Audio Vesper IEM en een Sennheiser/Drop HD58X hoofdtelefoon. Voor geen van beiden heb ik EQ nodig met de DAC. Zelfs een 30 jaar oude Sennheiser HD480 II klinkt, met slechts een beetje lift in de lage tonen, beter dan ooit tevoren. Het belangrijkste verkoopsargument van de DAC is de EQ, maar die is voor mij minder belangrijk, de instellingen in de app zijn zeker zo interessant. Er zijn enorm veel mogelijkheden. Een raad voor nieuwe gebruikers: doorloop aandachtig alle instellingen. Zoniet zal je enkele cruciale functies over het hoofd zien, zoals de 2 volumeregelingen in cascade. Uiteraard zijn er beperkingen: een hoog-ohmige hoofdtelefoon zoals de Sennheiser HD250II (300 ohm) is weliswaar nog net aanstuurbaar, maar daarvoor is de DAC niet gemaakt en dan moet hij echt "zwoegen". De bediening is een beetje wennen omdat de knoppen geen labels hebben, maar daar is een oplossing voor: de Qudelix 5K sticker by Sproketz.

so happy to be able to keep using my Shure earphones on the go when I was forced to upgrade away from my 3.5mm jack equipped phone. The sound is absolutely just as good as when wired!

The Qudelix - 5K is really a wonderful small HIFI component, which I have now been using for one year. Its extremely compact and light weight, so one can easily clip it to a pair of open back headphones, the range of codecs supported and the stability of the connection are excellent, the companion app offers many settings and customization option, the EQ tool is great and easy to use, one can also use it as a desk dac/amp while preventing the (over)charging of the battery, etc, etc... Everything that Qudelix and other reviewers say about that product and its qualities and functions is true. Honestly, I can't think of anything negative to say about it. The best audio equipment purchase I have made in years !

Questa recensione è dedicata al DAC Bluetooth Qudelix, un dispositivo straordinario che offre un'esperienza audio superba. Questo DAC ha superato le mie aspettative sotto molti aspetti e merita sicuramente una valutazione di 5 stelle. Una delle caratteristiche che apprezzo maggiormente di questo DAC è la clip integrata, che consente di agganciarlo facilmente al bordo della maglietta o del pantalone. Questa funzione è incredibilmente pratica, poiché mi permette di avere il DAC sempre a portata di mano senza doverlo tenere in mano o cercarlo tra gli oggetti. La presenza di un jack da 2.5 e uno da 3.5 millimetri è un grande vantaggio. Questa versatilità consente di utilizzare il DAC con una vasta gamma di cuffie e dispositivi audio senza dover ricorrere a adattatori o cavi aggiuntivi. Sia che tu stia utilizzando cuffie di alta qualità o dispositivi audio di vario genere, questo DAC si adatta perfettamente alle tue esigenze. I due tastini laterali, uno per l'accensione e il pairing e l'altro per il controllo del volume, sono ben posizionati e facili da usare. La semplicità di queste funzioni garantisce un'esperienza di utilizzo senza intoppi e un controllo rapido e preciso sulle impostazioni audio. Un grande punto di forza del DAC Qudelix è l'app dedicata. L'applicazione Qudelix permette di configurare il profilo delle frequenze in base alle cuffie di cui si dispone, consentendo una personalizzazione ottimale dell'audio. Questa funzione mi ha permesso di sfruttare al massimo le mie cuffie (delle CHU della Moondrop), regalandomi un suono impeccabile e bilanciato. Un'altra caratteristica interessante è la possibilità di bloccare la carica della batteria all'80%. Questa funzione è estremamente utile per preservare la longevità della batteria nel tempo, evitando sovraccarichi che potrebbero influire sulla sua durata complessiva. Infine, le dimensioni molto ridotte del DAC sono un grande vantaggio. È incredibilmente compatto e leggero, occupando uno spazio minimo e risultando facile da trasportare ovunque. Questo lo rende l'accessorio audio ideale per gli spostamenti o per l'utilizzo quotidiano. In conclusione, il DAC Qudelix offre un'esperienza audio eccezionale con un'ampia gamma di funzioni utili. La clip per l'aggancio, la presenza dei jack da 2.5 e 3.5 millimetri, i tastini intuitivi, l'app di configurazione personalizzata, la funzione di blocco della carica e le dimensioni compatte sono solo alcuni dei punti di forza di questo dispositivo. Se stai cercando un DAC di alta qualità per migliorare la tua esperienza audio, consiglio vivamente il Qudelix.