Hi, has anyone some experience with this DAC: http://www.offerany.com/p-538328917958.html   It seems to be well implemented ES9018 DAC. Balanced output using all 8 internal DACs, good selection of op amps: LME49710 recommended by ESS, and OPA1632. Transformer is German i think.    My main...

I guess, that X3K won't be more powerful than X3. It will rather be designed for IEMs and easier to drive headphones, however when plugged into E09S, it'll have enough juice for more demanding headphones. It'll propably lack the balanced line out compared to X7. CS4398 is not a good choice...

X3k was (a kind of) confirmed by FiiO: http://www.head-fi.org/t/651769/the-fiio-x3-thread/8190#post_10202167 I'm one step from buying Aune M1, but maybe it's worth waiting for X3K :D

It matters just because of the 1/8 rule. Not a problem for Alien, I think, it's meant for IEMs so the OI should be very low. X5 has OI of 0,26Ohm. M1 10Ohm... :)

The reviewer is wrong. I bet he didn't have a chance to listen to HD600 on a good, powerful AMP. Volume-wise, even FiiO X1 can drive HD600, but they won't sound very good. This headphones need some juice to sound as they should. I think that even Shozy Alien could "drive" HD600 like X5 does. But...

Nope. HD600 plays loud enough on the X5, but it lacks dynamics. Don't confuse loudness with proper drive.   X5 sound better with Cayin C5 attached. Alien could benefit from that AMP also.

Regarding the power, Alien is not suited for headphones, I think. Someone mentioned pairing with HD600... FiiO X5 can't drive them properly, so Alien won't either. The review said that DT1350 were a little underpowered, and they are 80Ohm portable headphones. Maybe it could drive 32Ohm dynamic...

I think, that simplified (to the bone) design of Alien is what makes it so special and so good at it's price.   The equastion should be headphone impedance @1khz / OI > 8, that's why Aune M1 won't work well with low impedance headphones. Which is strange, as it's got enough power to drive...

So, Shozy Alien plus some serious portable AMP like Cayin C5 should be more universal solution than Aune M1. Does Alien have ability to switch to HO to LO, in order to work well with an external AMP?

Did you have a chance to compare them directly? I have a pair of 32Ohm Senngrado headphones, which is way too low for 10Ohm output impedance. Are you sure it's the correct value, as the rated headphone impedance is 32-300Ohm? What is the Alien's output impedance?

With FLAC and DSD support and better components... The price will rise significantly.

Hi, I'm looking for a portable music player. I don't care about usb dac functionality, sound only. It will be used with headphones, not IEMs. I prefer natural, detailed sound with great soundstage and smooth, beautiful mids and some kick for rock/metal music.    For now, I'll be using it with...

Hi, are there any owners of the Aune M1 WAV Player? I'm really interested in buying it.

Anyone knows if this little beast sound better than Aune M1?

Yeah, it has got the Cirrus Logic chip, which is similiar to the one in iPhone 4. Ipod Touch 4 has got the CR 338S0859 chip, and in your iPhone you've got 338S0589. As you can see, the chip in Ipod has a higher number but I am not sure if it means that it's better...