I really like the CP-13 a lot except for the fact that it’s really thin on bass. To qualify that statement - I do not like exaggerated bass in my music. I never use the “Super Bass”, “Xtra Bass” or whatever a manufacturer calls their overbearing bass switch. So the FIIO’s bass is really thin, even for me. The upside of the CP-13 is a very low noise floor with great clarity, separation, imaging, and wide sound stage. It had enough going for it so I decided to take a chance on a good quality headphone amp with separate bass, mid range, and treble controls. I purchased the Fossi SK-01 amp and I can report that it makes a huge difference in the sound quality. The elephant in the room is the headphone amp cost as much as the CP-13 itself ($80). For me, it was worth the cost. It allowed me to greatly improve the sound of a brand new modern cassette player as opposed to fiddling with vintage Walkmans. The boost in amplification improves what the CP-13 already does best - clarity, separation, imaging, sound stage. The bass control only needs a tiny bump to fill in the low end. Hugely improves the sound. Anymore than a small bump forward and the bass starts to run over the midrange and treble. I’m currently using Zero:2 IEM’s with the FIIO and they sound fantastic with the amp. Looking forward to trying the amp with my iPhone 15 and some of my vintage personal cassette players!
Interesting add-on solution! Reading up on the Fossi SK-01 amp I see it has a built in 2500mAh battery.
It does have a built-in battery. The more I use it the happier I am with the purchase. It’s the missing link for the CP-13!
