[griff06]

@fish1050
 
Up till now iv'e been set on buying DSD files for this unit thinking if I pair it with some top headphones then I will be set. But, you and TheoS53 are right; storage, cost and the real possibility I wont actually hear a difference in sound means I should think about a more conservative approach to buying music for portable use.
 
What sample rate/bit depth files do all you other x5 iii users use?  

 

[Hawaiibadboy]

  @fish1050
 
Up till now iv'e been set on buying DSD files for this unit thinking if I pair it with some top headphones then I will be set. But, you and TheoS53 are right; storage, cost and the real possibility I wont actually hear a difference in sound means I should think about a more conservative approach to buying music for portable use.
 
What sample rate/bit depth files do all you other x5 iii users use?  

​I am using flac rips from 16/44.1 to 24/192.

 

[dsrk]

Fiio X5iii ...Maybe a little TOO late to the Audiophile market

Had a chance to compare Fiio x5 iii with LG V20.

High impedance mode in LG V20 (4 dacs triggered ) using Soundmagic E80c (64 ohm) on 320kbps CBR mp3s was a REVELATION (as far as mp3s go.)

From Stings 'Fragile' to Chers 'Lie to me' ,
from Sia 'Cheap thrills' to Miley Cyrus 'My darlin'' , across genres and vocal types , V20 rocked the IEM earpieces to the fullest .
Here is my note about my experience .

V20 packs more amplification comapered to fiio x5 iii .V20 offers a slightly wider soundstage but its beauty lies in proper recreating the soundstage , The background , middle layer, and forward vocals are easily separable .
Fiio X5iii has strength lying in its pristine presentation which more often than not felt a lil bit underpowered .But thats just me tho .

I could hear more separation in V20.While fiio X5III has more Attack , V20 is more laid back . X5iii has a lil more mid-forward approach while V20 has lil recessed mids .


While fiio X5III has a darker silent background hence presentation is pristine V20 has more warm and vibrant background and sounds more musical

While fiio X5iii is Clinical in Nature , the V20 has ability to bring out ORGANIC details , even from the mp3s which I never knew existed before.


Battery Consumption wise , V20 is miles ahead of fiio and charging rate too..but i guess thats unfair comparison with V20 being a smartphone .

As per my view LG music app and Fiio X5iii are equally buggy lol.My 6000 songs playlist didnt offer smooth scrolling in either.

One thing i would like to mention , with volume increasing , while Fiio X5iii gets 'Louder' , V20 gets more 'powerful' ...You CAN possibly withstand V20 volume beyond your comfort level but for fiiox5iii you cant.

Despite the bugs , LG V20 has the inherent quality , intricate musical quality to surpass your expectations from a portable DAP or even DAP+AMP combo as I was pleasantly Surprised by this 'true Audiophile Smartphone' , something unheard till now .

You might need to spend more time with X5 3, then you will be able to appreciate the very differences it makes in sound quality. I listened to LG V20 a lot of times and it couldn't even better X3 2.
It's not just about the details, it's about the space between the instruments and how natural the instruments and tonality. You were able to listen to V20 at higher volumes because it is more laid back sound.
Note: You need to try better headphones to bring out the best from X5 3.

 

[SoundSquare]

Fiio is using Dropbox. So if there's a problem, it's between you and Dropbox.

no they are using dropbox to host the firmwares for manual downloads, not for the OTA

 

[Oletros]

   
Fiio is using Dropbox. So if there's a problem, it's between you and Dropbox.

FiiO is using Dropbox for the manual download, not for the OTA download.
 
From Dropbox I can download it at 30 MB/s, the OTA was downloading at 11KB/s

 

[Sonic Defender]

   
Note: You need to try better headphones to bring out the best from X5 3.

That is a hard to justify argument. I'm not trying to be harsh or critical, but that is far too often the argument used when people don't agree with or hear something the same way they are often told it is your equipment, it just isn't good enough. While I'm not saying that isn't a possible factor, it could be, but really, if the OP used the same headphone for listening to both devices that should be adequate for an evaluation. It could just as easily be that the OP frankly prefers the sound signature of the V20. Phones have come a long way in that respect and I'm sure DAP makers are aware that they represent significant competition in the marketplace.
 
I have said it before and I'll say it again. If I was FiiO, I would want to partner with some big cell phone companies and try to become the official audio circuit designers. So LG might one day advertise in their flagship phone, Audio by FiiO.

 

[ngoshawk]

That is a hard to justify argument. I'm not trying to be harsh or critical, but that is far too often the argument used when people don't agree with or hear something the same way they are often told it is your equipment, it just isn't good enough. While I'm not saying that isn't a possible factor, it could be, but really, if the OP used the same headphone for listening to both devices that should be adequate for an evaluation. It could just as easily be that the OP frankly prefers the sound signature of the V20. Phones have come a long way in that respect and I'm sure DAP makers are aware that they represent significant competition in the marketplace.

I have said it before and I'll say it again. If I was FiiO, I would want to partner with some big cell phone companies and try to become the official audio circuit designers. So LG might one day advertise in their flagship phone, Audio by FiiO.

Well said, and I agree. If the same headphones are used for both devices; then that part is taken out of the equation, which would (hopefully) give an even comparison in sound, barring other items not controlled of course...

 

[Sonic Defender]

Well said, and I agree. If the same headphones are used for both devices; then that part is taken out of the equation, which would (hopefully) give an even comparison in sound, barring other items not controlled of course...

Indeed, yes, hopefully the volume was reasonably level matched as that can make a difference. I will admit that I'm often surprised how decent the audio quality is right out of my LG G4. I don't actually use it that way, but when I did try it out of curiosity it was quite good and I could understand how for many people that level of sound quality would be quite adequate for their needs. Now when you consider that the audio circuitry in the V20 was implemented with more discriminating listeners in mind it is at least reasonable to suggest it could sound quite good.

 

[sjb57]

 
One small step for Man, and one giant leap for Music.
 
BUT, how do I get my Playlists from iTunes to Fiio? I can export a file from iTunes (M3U) but I have no idea how & where to import that into my X5(iii). For what it is worth, I could replicate my Playlists in Media Monkey (my CD rips in FLAC) but I think that work would just produce another M3U file and I might as well do that work on Fiio if I have no choice. Please, help as I've used Playlists for too many years and before that loved to record my C90 cassette tapes with my favourites.  New technology, but same listening habits. Surely, it must be easy and I'm just missing something?

 

[Dobrescu George]

  That is a hard to justify argument. I'm not trying to be harsh or critical, but that is far too often the argument used when people don't agree with or hear something the same way they are often told it is your equipment, it just isn't good enough. While I'm not saying that isn't a possible factor, it could be, but really, if the OP used the same headphone for listening to both devices that should be adequate for an evaluation. It could just as easily be that the OP frankly prefers the sound signature of the V20. Phones have come a long way in that respect and I'm sure DAP makers are aware that they represent significant competition in the marketplace.
 
I have said it before and I'll say it again. If I was FiiO, I would want to partner with some big cell phone companies and try to become the official audio circuit designers. So LG might one day advertise in their flagship phone, Audio by FiiO.

 
 
As long as phone companies continue to offer slim phones, this won't be doable. 
 
Smartpones are under 10mm, while DAPs are over 15mm in thickness
 
Plus, I really really really don't want my phone to become my music device. 
 

  You might need to spend more time with X5 3, then you will be able to appreciate the very differences it makes in sound quality. I listened to LG V20 a lot of times and it couldn't even better X3 2.
It's not just about the details, it's about the space between the instruments and how natural the instruments and tonality. You were able to listen to V20 at higher volumes because it is more laid back sound.
Note: You need to try better headphones to bring out the best from X5 3.

 
Not sure if it even beats X1ii 

 

[dsrk]

I would not know about the Mojo as I never demoed it, but as far as SQ goes there is no "beating" one source vs another at similar quality levels, it's all subjective. I'm totally pleased with the micro iDSD, and it is a significant improvement in many ways over my previous already more than decent setup (Modi2U+Magni2U).

Hi jeffhawke,
 
Can I connect X5 3 line out to iDSD BL 3.5 input to pair?

 

[dsrk]

  That is a hard to justify argument. I'm not trying to be harsh or critical, but that is far too often the argument used when people don't agree with or hear something the same way they are often told it is your equipment, it just isn't good enough. While I'm not saying that isn't a possible factor, it could be, but really, if the OP used the same headphone for listening to both devices that should be adequate for an evaluation. It could just as easily be that the OP frankly prefers the sound signature of the V20. Phones have come a long way in that respect and I'm sure DAP makers are aware that they represent significant competition in the marketplace.
 
I have said it before and I'll say it again. If I was FiiO, I would want to partner with some big cell phone companies and try to become the official audio circuit designers. So LG might one day advertise in their flagship phone, Audio by FiiO.

 

  Indeed, yes, hopefully the volume was reasonably level matched as that can make a difference. I will admit that I'm often surprised how decent the audio quality is right out of my LG G4. I don't actually use it that way, but when I did try it out of curiosity it was quite good and I could understand how for many people that level of sound quality would be quite adequate for their needs. Now when you consider that the audio circuitry in the V20 was implemented with more discriminating listeners in mind it is at least reasonable to suggest it could sound quite good.

 
I agree that sound is the matter of personal preference but it just doesn't make a phone better than a dedicated DAP for what it is. X5 is obviously superior than X1 in all departments and no matter how far mobile phones come, for now they do not beat good DAPs like X5 series on their own.

 

[Karendar]

I agree that sound is the matter of personal preference but it just doesn't make a phone better than a dedicated DAP for what it is. X5 is obviously superior than X1 in all departments and no matter how far mobile phones come, for now they do not beat good DAPs like X5 series on their own.

But what if you build a device which pairs seamlessly with the mobile phone in order to handle the audio and your phone is just the UI? Honestly, I have high hopes from Moto for this. Two people are designing hifi dac moto mods and if they're able to deliver, it would save some clunkiness of carrying around 2 phones + 1 DAP + 1 amp... The only reason the DAP market exists is because there was a need for hifi audio products... Phone manufacturers are finally looking into this and I'm glad.

 

[MinnieOne]

  Did anyone else have any issues with implementing the new update? Mine started to unload, then came up with the following crash message. 
Recovery system v5.0
E:failed to mount/mnt/external_sdl (invalid argument)
etc, etc, etc
 
Finished up with OTA failed! Please power off the device to keep it in this state and file a bug report.

​Painfully slow OTA, so did a manual download and got same message you did. Changed out to a blank 2gig SD and process went smooth.
 
Upgrade info and process needs some serious refinements.

 

[George Taylor]

 
​Painfully slow OTA, so did a manual download and got same message you did. Changed out to a blank 2gig SD and process went smooth.
 
Upgrade info and process needs some serious refinements.

Hmm, well guess I'll play with it a bit more and try switching to the other SD, it's pretty much empty.
 
And yep, that seems to have done it. Thanks for the info!