Headphone Review
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Firestone Audio Fubar III USB DAC and Headphone Amplifier

A one-box integrated headphone amp and USB DAC
The Good

A very convenient and satisfying one-box solution to get great music from your computer. Eliminates the need to lug around multiple units by combining both a DAC and headphone amp in one tiny unit. Plug and play ready – no need to install anything.

The Bad

Doesn’t provide the best sound we’ve heard, but for its retailed price, who’s complaining? Also, it may not be the easiest product to locate on the web.

Full StarFull StarFull StarFull StarEmpty Star The Verdict

Overall, the Fubar III is a great buy. It combines everything you need for a great listening experience with your laptop. Moreover, the OP amplifiers are exchangeable. We were surprised at the musical character of the amp, which is very warm, full and transparent.

Editor Reviewed

Firestone Audio Fubar III USB DAC with Headphone Amp

Overall, the Fubar III is a great buy. It combines everything you need for a great listening experience with your laptop.

It's always nice to meet enthusiastic headphone lovers from around the globe.  Rasmus Horn of www.HeadAudio.dk kindly supplied this little headphone gizmo to be reviewed for www.OnHeadphones.com.

The Fubar III (or FubarIII) USB DAC and Headphone Amplifier is Firestone Audio’s newest product.  The metallic-encased Fubar III combines everything the Fubar II (or FubarII) USB DAC offers with a Battery Cute ll (or CuteII) Headphone Amplifier in one tiny little body product.  This makes traveling a breeze, because instead of lugging around multiple units, you’ll only need the Fubar III for a worthy listening experience.

The same technology of the Fubar II USB DAC is used in the new Fubar III, so you’ll still be able to simply plug and play without having to install any annoying drivers (with PC Windows, Mac OS or Linux operating systems).

The included Burr Brown OPA2604AP op amp can be altered according to your personal preferences.

Before even looking at the Fubar III, I could get an overall feel for the product inside by merely looking at the packaging.  That “don’t judge a book by its cover” saying isn’t always right, especially in this case.  It’s evident that Firestone took the time to make sure their new Fubar III is packaged nice and securely.  The contents of the box were nicely organized and conveniently packaged.

When initially taking the Fubar III into the palm of your hand (it’s so little, it fits), you’ll instantly feel the quality that’s gone into this little product.  Its thick aluminum encasing is sleek and luxurious as well as a good protector for the precious contents inside.

Connecting the Fubar III was no brainer. Just hook it up to your PC or Mac via USB cable that’s conveniently included. My MacBook Pro recognized the driver within a second and I had absolutely zero trouble getting audio through the Fubar and to my headphones.

I tried it with numerous headphones, from Westone’s In-ear Monitors to my Sennheiser HD 650s. For an optimal experience, you'll have to play music with high-low gain switch on the back side of the Fubar. For high impedance headphones like HD 650, 600, etc., you'll be extremely satisfied with high output gain.

The musical character of the amp is very warm, full and transparent. I must say, I was quite impressed with this powerful combination.  For the retailed price of $349, the Fubar III is a very nicely integrated USB DAC and headphone amp combination!  You can purchase the Firestone Audio Fubar III here.

Matej Isak
mi@sgn.net

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