FiiO E1 + E7 (speculation-no-more) *now guest-starring: E9 - Page 7

rant x2

Sums up what I had in mind, people that post just to bitch without doing a real comparison (which should be done in a seperat thread) dont bring anything to forums.

Btw clie as soon as you know could you tell us if the amping part of the E7 is the same as an E5, an upgraded version or a totally new system.

First off, anyone who considers a FiiO an Audiophile product hasn't heard good sound, or is just delusional. I think people would even consider the Pico and D10 Mid-fi in the grand scheme of things. While a budget product is really something to look for, at this level are headphone amps really worth it? The FiiO E5 might have been worth it, because 20 dollars spent may not move you into another teir of headphone, and it adds some bass and sound stage. 100 bucks, or even 80 bucks puts you pretty easily in the next tier headphone. Which sounds better, 50 dollar IEMS and a 100 dollar amp or 150 dollar IEMs. Most people would agree with me that headphones are the biggest upgrade. EVEN if you are using a computer, why would you use a budget amp with nice headphones. If you have limited money, is it really worth buying an amp like this, a lot of people come to that question. I have heard the Icon Mobile, and it sounds good, but not that good. It doesn't sound better than using a pair of 250 headphones instead of 150+ amp. Since this is portable, most portable headphones don't even require an amp. I use my Pico just mostly for the DAC. I am pretty pissed with both the T2, and the Headroom Micro amp. The D2 Boa sounded nice as well, and I think is a good investment for someone with a pair of headphones like the D2000's. If you have better gear than this, what does this offer that your better gear doesn't. Like I said, I would be surprised if the DAC and the Amp part competed with the D2 Boa. When the Docking system comes out, How much will that be. You will start getting into money crunching territory. FiiO hasn't ever made a real quality product. They made a cheap product that seemed to be worth it for IEM's and even some headphones.

I love how you mention my low end customs, but they actually make economical sense. It would either be choosing between custom tips or customs shells, they are about the same price with Unique Melody. Low end customs actually sound better than high end universals. Will the FiiO's low end Amp/DAC have something like that to compare to? Also, it would be hard to listen to music without headphones or speakers, and generally they are the most important thing in a setup. Thats why you build around the headphones. People buy K1000's, then spend more on the source and amp that sounds good with them. Buying a FiiO is fine if you have low quality stuff to begin with, but for 80 bucks? Why not just upgrade your headphones.

I am sorry I am actaully trying to have an opinon about a product that is the opposite of what most people think. Maybe people wouldn't waste as much money if there were more people that are actually objective about their purchases instead of pushing a niche audio price range that makes no sense.

-scott

Likewise I could look at your list of amps and wonder why you didnt buy one very good amp instead of getting a very nice one.
You say that people should buy one more expensiove headphone instead of getting headphone + amp. But hasnt it occured to you that some people think its not a crazy thing to own more than one pair of headphones adn that they might consider getting a better pair later on?
Another thing that makes the e5 popular is its size. Ever tried putting a d2 and a samsung P3 in you jeans pocket or coat pockets? My P3 and my e5 fit perfectly.

First off, I didn't say that the Fiio is an audiophile product. I said that headphone amps in general, especially portable ones, have always been confined to a niche market that caters only to the audiophile crowd, and Fiio managed to step out of this niche. It's definitely not necessary for everyone, but I think I got my $20 worth out of my old E5. Some low-end setups benefit hugely from an amp, while others do not. It may be true that putting the amp cost towards a better headphone outright may be a better idea, but some people don't have that luxury. You are treating the $80 E7 like it's just an amp, but it isn't. I, for one, need a cheap-ish portable dac/amp to carry around with my netbook since I am tired of being careful with the D10, so I consider it a good investment. I don't expect it to compete with the D2, which is 2x as expensive. Fiio products are often more a matter of convenience than outright audio quality.

As for the customs, I really didn't bother looking at your equipment to know that you had some. It was a general statement about comparing significantly more expensive equipment to good low-priced products.

I have no problem with people posting dissenting/contrasting opinions, as long as they are using examples that are actually fair to the (yet unreleased and untested) product in question. There is nothing wrong with releasing a product that is not revolutionary - the majority aren't. There is nothing wrong with looking forward to such products, either. As far as I am concerned, if the E7 competes with the Nuforce Icon mobile for $10 less, it has a place in the market and I will look forward to it.

My D2 Boa and Zune 120 fit into my pants pocket pretty easy. I am talking from my expierence, and I REGRET EVERY PURCHASE except the Pico and the D2 Boa. The rest were just side steps, or downgrades. There is not a better portable amp and DAC in the price range of the Pico, from what I know the Pico is very closed to the summit of Portable Amps. You still havent explained why the E7 is a good product. What makes it worth spending the money on. HOW has your expirence with high end headphones told you that you would rather have a 100 dollar pair of headphones and a 100 dollar amp/source instead of a 200 dollar pair of headphones. I think the 50 dollar IEM's and the 20 dollar FiiO amp is a fair thing, even though for 20 bucks more you can get a Cmoy which is so much better it isn't even funny.

I think the market that the Icon and the FiiO E7 are in is a problem to begin with. A Ipod with IEM's sound about as good as the NuForce Icon connect to the computer with IEMs. Why not just use your ipod. The one pair of headphones I could see it being useful for is the Denon D2000's, but I have tried much more equipment than is in my signature. Also the Etyomic IEM's sound very good with portable amps, but not the FiiO E5, it detracts from the point of having the them. Maybe I am just being ignorant, but I think there are a lot of people who just like gadgets here, and are ignoring the sound quality. Liking gadgets is fine, but telling people that this sounds so good is kinda stupid because using that 80 dollars to upgrade your headphones will most likely be better even if you are using on board sound.

if its a warm version of the icon then id like too. the dac and form factor was what sold me on the icon mobile but its quite bright and no optional bass boost mean it really doesnt go so well with everything.

things with a crap form factor i just dont want to know, then may sound amazing but i know id hate having to carry them around so i make a point of not investigating them. so far fiios have been gateway amps, they filled a spot no one else did


i say go fiio, keep making great cheap toys for us to play with

the only advantage of the FiiO amps is the cheap price. as long as they keep it under $70ish there's a good chance the E7'll be a success. any more expensive than that and people (avarage users, first time amp buyers) will think it's just an other expensive dac *thing*. others will think it's not cheap enough and it's just a FiiO (=roleld off highs, bloated bass etc-etc)
so once again: lo price or lo sales

in my opinion.

I was not arguing really with the E5, but the E7

The argument is, lets say I have 200 bucks to spend. Is it worth getting the 130 headphone and the E7 or the 200 dollar headphone. I bet money on the 200 dollar headphone, even if you have a on board sound card. 70-100 bucks is enough to take you into another tier of headphone. It would be like getting a se310+E7 over just a 530.

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My sentiments exactly. Nothing wrong with waiting for an unreleased product with anticipation.

That was not the main purpose of my argument, but its ok to just read snippets of what people write. I am done, this is when a discussion becomes non objective.