Got the X3 in today. So far, no complaints about the sound. It's smooth and enjoyable. The EQ works well. Very slightly darker than the E17, IIRC, but take that with a grain of salt, as I haven't heard the E17 in months. People should have zero problems with the SQ, honestly, and especially at this price point. I'd say the AK100 is ever so slightly more delicate and refined-sounding (all things being equal, and OI not being a significant factor, with an 150 ohm earphone), but that's it. Definitely not a $400 price gap.
I'm
very picky about UI and interface, though, so I have a few things to address:
- The menu system, while not horrid, is not idiot-proof. Consumer level products like <$300 DAPs should have idiot-proof UIs. I realize that we "shouldn't" expect amazing UIs considering all this quality hardware put inside, but if anything, the X3 should be the platform by which FiiO hones its UI, as it is the player that has the mainstream (non-head-fi) appeal, over something like the X5, which would be pricier and have limited appeal restricted to enthusiasts.
- The way the UI advances deeper into a menu is kind of clunky, and it's not consistent across each selection item.
- The choices of background don't lend themselves well to readability. There should be a plain black option to contrast with the white text.
- The button layout, while it looks fine in pictures, doesn't lend itself to speedy use in real life. I can't navigate through menus quickly using one hand. Often, I have to use both hands, which is not ideal. I would've liked to see external volume buttons and a floating window for volume level indication.
- Text has no anti-aliasing or subpixel rendering, which should be easily implementable considering the core dedicated to graphics processing. Basically, the text doesn't look great, and it starts with the ugly-ish typeface chosen for the interface. The screen doesn't have great resolution, but that doesn't mean the text can't look good.
- Even with FW 1.0, I've already had a few system hangups. It went on strike and refused to play music a few times. This is with the internal memory (didn't grab an SD card yet).
If it were up to me, for the second generation, I'd up the price of the X3 to $299 or so and use the hike in MSRP to
greatly improve the UI and incrementally improve the build quality (which is not bad, but can be better). The hardware is fine. It really needs no changes.
(Sorry for the crap cellphone pictures. Didn't have my DSLR handy.)
