Will this DAC(Fosi K7) work well on/with Linux?

General system Gaming, sound and video
1

I’m thinking of buying a Fosi Audio K7 Desktop DAC i have heard a lot of good about it.

But will it play well with Linux?(Yes it works with no driver needed, answered farther down)

Has anyone here used the Fosi K7?

Have you any experience good/bad of using it?

Or I’m I better to post this in some Hi-Fi forum?

2

I’m not familiar with that at all. But from the link you provided, it may very well be “plug-and-play.”

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3

Yeah i missed that text :person_facepalming: I blame overworked and tired :yawning_face: .

Gonna order one soon and do some tests.

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4

Since it’s an XMOS interface, it should be supported under Linux, I have no problem with an XU216 (Topping E50).

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5

OK thanks for info :+1:

I did also receive an answer from Fosi about Linux support and it looks good:

“Thank you for considering the K7!

  1. Linux: Yes, you can use K7 on Linux.

  2. Firmware updates: Yes. The K7 supports OTA firmware updates through its USB interface, and we can provide the latest firmware package and installation steps when needed.
    Please download the driver from the provided link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1apLNlnELmIxdC1BQo6h1l_Ebvs1_GAyt/view?usp=drive_link

“

I’m gonna order one soon. :smiley:

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6

Beware: when I am not misinformed, it has no XLR microphone input! I considerded this to buy by myself, but cause of no XLR input didn’t bought it.

7

Yeah that’s true but it’s not any problem for me.

8

Audio Science Review tested it and gave an recommendation due to it’s low noise and low distortions in their measurements.

If you only intend to drive some headphones you would spend too much, from my point of view. But I’m not really certain what your intended use case is and what kind of headphones you want to drive.

Fosi Audio recently also release the ZH3 that would be a bit more flexible in terms of integrating it into an audio setup, as it features line-in via RCA as well as balanced XLR outputs. It also achieved excellent results in the testing by Audio Science Review, but lacks an microphone input via 3.5 mm jack. In terms of pricing, they’re identical.

Guess the K7 is more targeted towards gamers & streamers that need some control over their voice channel. The ZH3 is more targeted towards HiFi enthusiasts.

9

Thanks for the links, your link was broken for me(or website hickup?) But I found the review.

I’m gonna run the K7 with my Beyerdynamic dt 900 pro x, and my wife her Sennheiser 373d

I like the futures and look of the K7 :sweat_smile: And the internal komponents is high quality stuff.

10

Well, the K7 as well as the ZH3 are both from Fosi Audio, both are using high quality components.

If I had to choose between the K7 and the ZH3, I would prefer the ZH3 as it is more flexible and could be combined with a ZA3 amplifier if you want to drive some speakers, they share the same enclosure design and dimensions. Alternatively, the balanced XLR outputs could be used to drive active studio monitors. You won’t have that option on the K7.

What I don’t like on the K7 is the fact that it’s bluetooth connectivity options would be totally pointless for a Desktop DAC, imho. I would use USB-C exclusively.

I personally do use an Fosi V3 stereo amplifier and I’m pretty satisfied with it up so far. But I’m using an SMSL SU-1 as a DAC.

11

OK :+1: Yeah I don’t intend to use the Bluetooth any. :sweat_smile: