On the Distortion of Cirrus Logic CS431xx-Based Devices: A Comparative Review

[Freezak]

Is it safe to assume that older CS431xx dongles such as Tempotec Sonata HD Pro exhibit the same behaviour?

 

[KDRN]

BIG NEWS... FIIO RELEASED A FIRMWARE UPDATE THAT ADDED A DRE SWITCH FOR THEIR KA15

 

[pangcukaipang]

BIG NEWS... FIIO RELEASED A FIRMWARE UPDATE THAT ADDED A DRE SWITCH FOR THEIR KA15

View attachment 466955

Nice, can't wait for the measurement after firmware update.

 

[KDRN]

Is it safe to assume that older CS431xx dongles such as Tempotec Sonata HD Pro exhibit the same behaviour?

i have the meizu hifi dac which has cs43131. from the test tracks, it is similar to jm20 with the initial 2 to 3 clicking

 

[jkim]

Important Update (8/1/25)

FiiO is the first audio company reacting to the issue of DRE-induced distortion associated with the CS431xx chips! A new firmware release for the FiiO KA15 supports an option to enable or disable DRE. With this firmware installed, it does not exhibit distortion caused by DRE while retaining reconstruction filter options (NOS mode is no longer necessary as a workaround). Further, the 'DRE Enable' mode is different from original DRE operation: it minimizes DRE artifacts by lowering the DRE activation threshold. An analysis based on measurements was added to the KA15 review.

 

[tccalvin]

Just wanted to chime in with my 2 cents since I've had the opportunity to test the S.M.S.L DS100 and M300SE with the Cmajor test and they both behave like the "hump" DACs, with multiple and frequent clicks from beginning to end. The M300SE offers the option to select a NOS filter and that does solve the DRE issue as described in the original post, but without oversampling the source material the high-frequency roll-off is quite severe and ultrasonic images are very loud, and that is why it's going back. Still keeping the DS100 for now.

S.M.S.L, you know what to do.

 

[Amperage]

As has been posted in the KA15 review, kudos to FiiO for their commitment to their products and performance. They've shown a solution to this issue, and are the first to achieve it, also giving the user the choice to engage DRE without effects, or not. The recognition is well deserved!

 

[MBO]

Exactly! Topping and smsl could offer a very interesting option to their CS DACs, at least D70 Octo in NOS mode and with resampling sounds so great that I changed my mind about selling it, although I have better DACs, but D70 does not let go of its "magic".

 

[Freezak]

The complete UA1 line is now discontinued, it was replaced by UA Mini.

And be warned that Hifi Cat is a rogue unauthorized seller, so not recommended to shop there for any Shanling products.

Any idea if the UA Mini is free of distortion? perhaps the DRE setting is disabled? it would be nice if you could tell us some more about your products. Thanks!

Is UA1 Plus completley free of distortion by the way? It doesn't seem to be the case with JM20, how is it with the Shanling one?

 

[Powell2199]

Topping D70 PRO OCTO: did some testing and can hear faint clicks on both C Major and Dune OST clips on every filter, besides filter 5 (NOS mode).
Wonder if it even worth contacting Topping on the issue, considering OCTO is quite an "older" model by Topping standarts

 

[tccalvin]

Topping D70 PRO OCTO: did some testing and can hear faint clicks on both C Major and Dune OST clips on every filter, besides filter 5 (NOS mode).
Wonder if it even worth contacting Topping on the issue, considering OCTO is quiet an "older" model by Topping standarts

Can't hurt

 

[Frankie-Shanling]

Any idea if the UA Mini is free of distortion? perhaps the DRE setting is disabled? it would be nice if you could tell us some more about your products. Thanks!

We are checking on this with our engineers.

 

[Powell2199]

Well I sent Topping an email regarding this issue and they actually replied!:

Dear Sir
Thank you for contacting TOPPING support. We are happy to assist.
Thank you very much for your feedback — this issue has caught our attention. We’ve already reported it to the relevant engineers. If a firmware update becomes available to address it, we’ll let you know right away!

There's hope!

 

[mc.god]

I just wrote to Tempotec via their contact form about the issue and asking for a firmware upgrade for Sonata BHD, outlining that other manufacturers have positively responded and taking action, we'll see if they are responsive.

 

[SlowLife]

The new firmware V1.1.0 for MELODY is now available!
- Added DRE control switch
MELODY firmware download link and update instruction: https://forum.fiio.com/note/showNoteContent.do?id=202508111625053214314

 

[MBO]

Very good work! Many thanks to all!!!

 

[Somafunk]

I just wrote to Tempotec via their contact form about the issue and asking for a firmware upgrade for Sonata BHD, outlining that other manufacturers have positively responded and taking action, we'll see if they are responsive.

Good luck with that, I bought a wee Tempotec V1 dap/Bluetooth dac/amp a month ago and it was working fine till last week, it’s started to have issues rendering it pretty much unusable, others have had the same issues since receiving over a month ago and Tempotec have been promising a firmware update for a month…..no sign of anything yet and they no longer reply

Tempotec Variations V1

5 Core Functions of Variations V1 Local High-Resolution Playback: Supports microSD (TF) cards up to 2TB. Capable of native bit-perfect output for high-resolution audio formats, including DSD256 and PCM up to 384kHz. Online Streaming: Natively supports high-quality streaming services like TIDAL...

www.head-fi.org

 

[Amperage]

The new firmware V1.1.0 for MELODY is now available!
- Added DRE control switch
MELODY firmware download link and update instruction: https://forum.fiio.com/note/showNoteContent.do?id=202508111625053214314

View attachment 469151

This is great. Again, kudos to FiiO as it seems they may be working down their product line.

 

[jkim]

This is great. Again, kudos to FiiO as it seems they may be working down their product line.

Wow, it was introduced this month (8/1/2025) and its firmware updated right away (8/11/2025):

Sure, the wooden case is just an aesthetic touch. At its introductory price ($40 at Amazon), with 10-band PEQ and DRE distortion eliminated, this is a direct competitor of the TRN Black Pearl.

Hope FiiO will also update the firmware of the KA13 to include DRE control. The KA13 is also a great value for those looking for powerful portable DAC/HP amp but not needing onboard PEQ.

 

[TurtlePaul]

I hope Fiio updates the DM13 CD player.