[thaistylez]

Hi there,
 
I'm planning to spend my money on a cheap and nice hi-res DAC. I've come across these two DAPs in the $100 category - Colorfly C3 and Fiio X1.
 
I need some thoughts about how these two DACs perform and are good at, also the comparison in terms of SQ and usability.
 
Thanks a lot!

 

[batteraziiz]

Usability, the X1 will have a better UI... Mostly because the C3 doesn't have a UI at all. Or a shuffle function. Or custom EQ. I own one, however, and can firmly say that it sounds amazing at it's price point. Better than anything else I've bought in the sub-$100 price range (YMMV)... Just waiting on a damn X1 preorder page so I can do a side-by-side.

 

[H20Fidelity]

Usability, the X1 will have a better UI... Mostly because the C3 doesn't have a UI at all. Or a shuffle function. Or custom EQ. I own one, however, and can firmly say that it sounds amazing at it's price point. Better than anything else I've bought in the sub-$100 price range (YMMV)... Just waiting on a damn X1 preorder page so I can do a side-by-side.

Actually C3 does have a shuffle function (within one folder) you access it by holding down the menu button on the right / centre of the keypad. but it's not very effective and likes to play the same songs for some reason. I'll be getting an X1 to compare eventually. But to the OP at this current time/date the question you're asking is quite young as not many people have been able to hear X1 yet. Give it another 2-3 weeks we can shed some light on this for you.

 

[batteraziiz]

Well, yes, I meant shuffle all.. Half asleep typing

 

[thaistylez]

Thanks guys!
 

I just couldn't wait so I did the A/B testing by myself. Here's a brief impression, still not yet a detailed review:
 
Fiio X1: It feels really nice in my palm with the cold and sleek aluminium, this makes X1 the best looking DAP so far at this price point. The UI and the menu is obviously the upgrade from its big brother X5 and the spinning wheel is reworked also.
 
The SQ is completely different from those of its brothers X3 and X5 - the X1 sounds more crisp and clearer. I find that some live performance songs sound very fun and realistic in the same time, while some female vocal songs sound OK to me.
 
 
C3: This thing is just sooooo tiny, it doesn't make me feel like holding a music player at all. The UI takes a while to be friend with it and the screen is very small, no wonder why it's an ideal for listening only.
 
However, the SQ actually gave me a goose bump the first time I had cranked the volume up. It sounds even more crisp and cleaner than X1 and the dynamic range is even better in my opinion.

 

[H20Fidelity]

Thanks for your thoughts.

I think I'd already guessed C3 was going to put up a good fight, like say it keeps up and betters most Cowons and iPods. Providing X1 isn't too far behind and gives us a different signature I'll be happy. Plus, the UI seems very inviting.

 

[batteraziiz]

I'd be happy just to have similar sound to C3 with playlist, custom EQ and shuffle all functionality. C3 is already pretty damn swell.

 

[BelialSeraph]

  but it's not very effective and likes to play the same songs for some reason. I'll be getting an X1 to compare eventually.

Oh man, so the "shuffle" is more like a random play than a true shuffle huh. A bit of a deal breaker for what I want to use this DAP as...but still, looking forward to your comparisons!

 

[lesp4ul]

  Thanks guys!
 

I just couldn't wait so I did the A/B testing by myself. Here's a brief impression, still not yet a detailed review:
 
Fiio X1: It feels really nice in my palm with the cold and sleek aluminium, this makes X1 the best looking DAP so far at this price point. The UI and the menu is obviously the upgrade from its big brother X5 and the spinning wheel is reworked also.
 
The SQ is completely different from those of its brothers X3 and X5 - the X1 sounds more crisp and clearer. I find that some live performance songs sound very fun and realistic in the same time, while some female vocal songs sound OK to me.
 
 
C3: This thing is just sooooo tiny, it doesn't make me feel like holding a music player at all. The UI takes a while to be friend with it and the screen is very small, no wonder why it's an ideal for listening only.
 
However, the SQ actually gave me a goose bump the first time I had cranked the volume up. It sounds even more crisp and cleaner than X1 and the dynamic range is even better in my opinion.

 
Thanks for the review, I own a C3 myself & very curious of X1. I wanna to know by overall (C3 firmware update seems dead already), which one will you choose?

 

[thaistylez]

   
Thanks for the review, I own a C3 myself & very curious of X1. I wanna to know by overall (C3 firmware update seems dead already), which one will you choose?

Hey lesp4ul,
 
It's cool, not that detailed review though. I've already chosen the C3 because of its SQ and also X1 hasn't been available in Thailand yet.
 
BTW, my C3 is the modded version from Headphone Guru - He did some sort of tweak with audio grade solder and claimed the modded C3 has wider sound stage than the original C3, I haven't compared them yet though.

 

[lesp4ul]

  
Thanks for the review, I own a C3 myself & very curious of X1. I wanna to know by overall (C3 firmware update seems dead already), which one will you choose?

Hey lesp4ul,
 
It's cool, not that detailed review though. I've already chosen the C3 because of its SQ and also X1 hasn't been available in Thailand yet.
 
BTW, my C3 is the modded version from Headphone Guru - He did some sort of tweak with audio grade solder and claimed the modded C3 has wider sound stage than the original C3, I haven't compared them yet though.

Humm, i see, some of indonesians already had a chance to test x1 never gave a proper reviews. Anyway, And i saw some of x3 board mod to have a wider soundstage also.

Btw, i use c3 with topping nx1 amp, amazing combo but what if I add one amp stack with nx1 lets say Fiio E11K or else to get warm/bassier effect for some tracks (coz c3 lacks of manual EQ)? Will it helps? if so can you suggest which amp within $60 range?

 

[thaistylez]

Humm, i see, some of indonesians already had a chance to test x1 never gave a proper reviews. Anyway, And i saw some of x3 board mod to have a wider soundstage also.

Btw, i use c3 with topping nx1 amp, amazing combo but what if I add one amp stack with nx1 lets say Fiio E11K or else to get warm/bassier effect for some tracks (coz c3 lacks of manual EQ)? Will it helps? if so can you suggest which amp within $60 range?

I have a feeling that the C3 may not be suitable for an Amp technically, due to its lack of line-out jack. The headphone jack is not directly bypassed from DAC so it won'y give you the 'proper' sound, but I haven't tried it though. Please note that it depends on individual's preference.
 
My best suggestion is to have yourself doing some testing at your local audiophile store. Spend a couple of hours on them so you know what direction you wanna go for.

 

[H20Fidelity]

(cross posted from the X1 thread)

I was doing some comparisons late last night with Colorfly C3 and X1.

C3 sounds slightly brighter, more airy, you can feel a good presence of air from the stage above the upper mid-range. it edges out in soundstage width and can come across as slightly thinner sounding and slightly coloured, euphoric. 

Bass response on C3 while good in quality isn't as powerful (due to C3 suffering small amount of low end roll-off in It's design) But X1 sounds tighter in refinement and a little higher in resolution, the mid-range is thicker with more meat to it's bones which makes C3 sound a little underdeveloped.

If we're talking about detail I think C3 does have an edge which mostly pushes out in the upper-mids, take female vocals for example will have more extension to them, they'll reach out further, but take males vocals or a singer reaching down low X1 has great heft to the music that digs in and grabs your attention, it's smoother and still quite close in detail, more even response rather than slightly tilted upper-mids.

Area's like separation C3 has X1 beaten but not by  much as one would think. In a nut shell they're rather different signatures that can live side by side, I would lean to say it really depends what you want from your music and which headphone / IEM you're using.

Does one player pull away from the other quite notably? No, not really, (which is surprising)  but depending on the pairing will matter more so. Take for example my Fidue A83, they need some air to their presentation and extra space, due to my personal preference a slightly brighter DAP works well so the winner is Colorfly C3. Then take Altone200 which needs a slightly warmer source to shine, X1 wins as the better pairing for that earphone.

If you start adding features, usability and settings into the mix X1 completely slaughters the C3 in that department.
People would know I'm a big fan of C3, have been for a long time. But X1 is surprising me more and more as time goes on.

Just some thoughts I've gathered along the way.

 

[mychkine]

Hi,
Which one sounds more smooth and warm, please ?
And which one have the "better sound quality" ?
They sound really better than the Cowon s9, i10 and x9 i have ?

Thank you for helping, I hesitate between those two.
Regards~

 

[jatergb]

Hey H20fidelity, any updated impression on x1 vs c3?