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Fiio E6 or Fiio E11

post #1 of 10
1/31/12 at 1:22am
Thread Starter 

My expectations aren't too high considering both are very cheap but is the Fiio E11 significantly better sounding than the E6 or not really worth the extra 20 or 30 dollars.

Thanks...

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post #2 of 10
1/31/12 at 6:27am

You'll probably get a better response in the portable amplifier forum, I think most people would say that the E11 is worth the upgrade over the E6 if you're willing to pay for it.

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post #3 of 10
2/1/12 at 7:17am

 

From the reviews I've read, the E11 has significantly less distortion when paired with very high impedance headphones compared to the E6. It's also supposed to have a more level bass boost, with two settings, instead of on/off for the E6.

 

I have the E11 myself, but if your headphones' impedance isn't around 300+ ohms and you aren't a basshead, the E6 would probably be fine. It's small size certainly is attractive.

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post #4 of 10
2/1/12 at 7:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ytisawfulnow View Post

My expectations aren't too high considering both are very cheap but is the Fiio E11 significantly better sounding than the E6 or not really worth the extra 20 or 30 dollars.

 

It depends on what headphones you intend to use. But here is a table that compares the performance of the amplifiers, maybe you will find this information useful:

 

Measurement FiiO E6 FiiO E5 FiiO E11 O2 AMB Mini3
Frequency Response +/- 0.5 dB A +0/-3 dB C +/- 0.1 dB A +/- 0.1 dB A +/- 0.1 dB A
Phase Error 100-10K 4 deg N/A 4 deg < 1 deg < 1 deg
THD 1 Khz 150 Ohms 0.008% A N/A 0.004% A 0.0016% A 0.002% A
THD 1 Khz 15 Ohms 0.03% C 0.012% B 0.011% B 0.0023% A 0.017% B
THD 20 hz 15 Ohms 0.1% C 0.7% D 0.017% B 0.0023% A 0.01% B
THD 10 Khz 15 Ohms 0.04% C 0.05% C 0.011% B 0.010% A 0.45% F
IMD CCIF 15 Ohms 0.006% C* N/A 0.002% A 0.001% A 0.043% D
IMD SMPTE 0.019% C 0.006% A 0.0079% A 0.002% A 0.009% B
Noise A-Wtd -95.2 dBu -93.8 dBu -101.3 dBu B -114 dBu A -103.2 dBu B
Max Output 15 Ohms 122 mW A 108 mW A 63 mW B 337 mW A 104 mW A
Max Output 33 Ohms 59 mW C N/A 101 mW C 613 mW A 98 mW C
Max Output 150 Ohms 24 mW D N/A 52 mW C 355 mW A 38 mW C
Output Impedance 0.25 0.7 0.5 Ohms A 0.54 Ohms A 0.9 Ohms A
Crosstalk 15 Ohms 48 dB B 46 dB B 48 dB B 65 dB A 40 dB C
Channel Balance < 0.1 dB N/A 1.1 dB B 0.6 dB A 1.14 dB B
Battery Life 10 hr rated ? ~10 hr rated ~8 hrs / ~30 hrs ~5 hours

 

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post #5 of 10
2/2/12 at 10:25am

I've never heard E6, but I can say +1 for E11.  I've tried it with 3 IEMs and one set of cans.  For the UE TF10's and Klipsch x10's they sound fantastic on it (much better than stock iPod Touch output when using LOD), for the Sure SE535 theres a lot of background hiss.  They're very sensitive IEMs, and most amps leave a hiss in them, but with music playing it does sound excellent (and better than stock iPod.)

 

E11 has the power to drive HD650s to very good volume at mid-way up the dial.  I prefer the sound signature to my Headroom Micro Amp ($350) when paired with HD650s, though neither compare, even closely, to my Lyr for those. 

 

So E11 is definitely a capable amp and IMO, comparing the paper specs I'd splurge for the E11...it's a good amp that so long as batteries are available could take you very high into the realm of cans before the "need" of a serious upgrade would be your next limitation.  But whether there's an audible difference between E6 and E11 probably depends on how demanding your headphones are.

 

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post #6 of 10
4/5/12 at 5:36am

Just to add to this a bit, it's not just about specs.  I have the E6, E11, and the E17 and they all have slightly different sound signatures.  The E6 really isn't that great of a headphone amplifier in terms of sound quality.  The biggest factor here is that it modifies the frequency bands too much - basically just about every setting on the E6 modifies either the bass or the midrange and there's nothing balanced, so using this on headphones such as the ATH-M50's (which are just about perfectly balanced), you lose the quality that you're used to while adding more juice to go louder.  There's no denying that there's a lot of features for a product that costs roughly $30, but the E11 is leaps and bounds better than the E6 in terms of sound quality.  It is ALMOST flat on the 0 EQ setting (with an ever so slight bump in the bass regions that gives it a richer bass sound, but not boomy) and then the bass just gets stronger as you bump the EQ to 1 or 2.  Hands down, I would spend the extra $35 and get the E11.  

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post #7 of 10
4/5/12 at 1:51pm
Thread Starter 

Idk about amping the ATH M50, they're pretty easy to drive already.

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post #8 of 10
4/5/12 at 2:34pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ytisawfulnow View Post

Idk about amping the ATH M50, they're pretty easy to drive already.



This. I've used them on my iPhone 4 and they already sound great without an amp. When I pass them through my Fiio E7 there really isn't any kind of difference (maybe a SLIGHT amount of deeper bass , really not something you would notice unless you forced yourself to pick it out).

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post #9 of 10
4/6/12 at 4:50am

They do sound great without an amp, but the max vol of my iPhone is just moderately loud on the M50's, and putting an amp on there does open them up (at least in terms of the E11 and the E17).  I've not had a chance to try out the E7 so I don't know how it's signature differs from the other two.  For what it's worth, I, and several of my friends have tried the M50's with both these amps and a majority feel like the M50's paired with the E11 is a glorious combo.

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post #10 of 10
4/6/12 at 5:34pm

I have the E11 and it is a great little amp for the money. It will drive pretty much anything I throw at it, and do it fairly well.

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