Thanks for your wonderfully detailed review!

Hello Brooko,
 
Great and detailed review. Would the X1 be an improvement over the Cowon D2? Would it pair nicely with the FiiO E17?
 
Regards,
Dragos 

It is really cheap at USD99 only. It must be one of the best buy. However, Fiio is virtually no customer service if you have any issue on the product while it is not uncommon.
 
It will be perfect if it can play .dsf file and it becomes unbeatable.!

Thanks for the kind words.  I haven't heard the D2, but from my reading it may not be a fair comparison as the D2 is both more expensive, and also a great deal larger.  So it's kind of comparing apples and oranges. However I can say that I still went ahead and bought the X1 myseldf - despite owning the X5 (and that is in a superior league).  My reason was pretty simple - the X1 is more portable, and you don't lose too much in SQ when on the move.  If you value that - then it's well worth getting.  As far as the E17 goes, it'll be larger than the X1, and I'm not sure how much improvement you'll get - but they would work together.  Personally I prefer something more neutral, and better form fitting - so the E11K suits better IMO.  You could always sell both the D2 and E17, and buy the X1 and E11K.  Likelihood is that you wouldn't lose anything on the deal.

Thanks Brooko. The E17 is also a DAC, which is its main use, while the E11K is only an AMP. Also, the D2 is quite small, maybe thicker, and it's not in production anymore. At the time it was a bit more expensive than the X1. The difference is the D2 is more of a multimedia device, being able to play movies, supports some apps and flash games and does have a FM radio module. Except for the radio, i have my mobile phone for the rest, so my main concern is in the music section only. For the future i'm thinking of adding an E09K to the E17 to pair them together and have a nice desktop DAC+AMP. The other variant would be to sell the E17 and buy a dedicated desktop DAC+AMP, as i don't use any high-impedance cans for the outside world. Do you have any cheap & good suggestion for such a device under the 250-300$ mark?

If you're looking for a real bang for the buck desktop - I'd thoroughly recommend the Audio-gd NFB-15.  Plenty of power, nice foot print, good inputs and outputs - and a real quality product.  I've gone from entry level to a T1, and the one constant for me (after I upgraded from the E7/E9 combo I owned a long time ago) has been my NFB-12.  I'll probably upgrade one of these days, but for now it does everything I want - including power my passive bookshelf speakers, and allow me to isolate the DAC and run my LD MKIV (when I feel the need for tubes).

Thanks. The problem is i can't find where to buy it.

Thanks for the review.
I totally agree with your comments.

Awesome review. I'm probably going to pick one up now.

Awesome review. I'm probably going to pick one up now.

Awesome review. I'm probably going to pick one up now.

@dragoss - you order the Audio-gd products direct from their website
 
@singlasing - sorry can't agree.  Fiio's service has always been top notch as far as I've been concerned, and especially if there has been issues.  Also - why would you want dsf on a sub $100 ultra-portable DAP?

Thanks a lot for the detailed review !
 
It looks surprising nice with the wooden sticker !

I'm not sure what to expect but I received mine yesterday, listened to it for and hour, boxed it up and sent it bad....IMO, there is nothing special about this. Every headphone I tried didn't sound that great, hell my rockbox clip sounds better.....I know it's only 100 bucks, but I was terribly disappointed

Well enjoy your Clip then - I on the other hand shall go on enjoying my X1.

Thanks for the excellent review. It caused me to order an X1, arrived yesterday, and I'm happy. The beta firmware update makes it perfect for me. So far, using it both the E6 or the E11 (whichever has a battery charge), DBA-02 mkII, and it all sounds incredible.

Thanks again!

This is the first review where I read anything about the playlist function. So it is actually possible to add songs to the playlist on the DAP. Is it possible to add songs to the playlist, while playing other tracks? Or do you have to be playing the one you would like to add to a playlist? Is it possible to move songs in the playlist?

Thanks for a great review, hope you can enlighten these questions aswell

Nice review, pretty much agree, with your findings, however regarding the amplitude reduction not being there when using the EQ, is incorrect. When I use the custom setting the max volume gets limited to 88 out of the Max 100, which where it is set in the menu. I only realized this when I plugged in my AKG Q701, which needs considerable more output then my NAD Viso HP 50, and my AT ATH M50. I'm guessing you never had to turn the volume that high, to find out about this, though it's hard to imagine with the HD 600, which has much higher impedance then my Q 701. 

Thanks for the info.  My X1 is currently on tour in Australia - so I'll check that when it gets back.  As far as the HD600 vs Q701 (power requirement) - the HD600 is higher impedance, but more sensitive, so in fact it's actually easier to drive  The Q701 requires a lot more current.  I also owned the Q701 at one stage.  Good headphone.

Excellent review! After I read it I got one