Whew, this one took longer than expected to get around to but it is finally done! Thanks to Fiio for including me on the X5ii tour! (I will have pictures up later tonight)
I'm going to skip all details of this DAP with exception of build quality, UI, and SQ. Even though most of this has been covered ad nauseum, those three parts are subjective.
Build Quality
The build quality of the X5ii is superb. The player feels solid in the hand, but not overly weighty as the first gen did. I personally enjoy the button layout, and all had a very good feel to them, with little to no squishiness. While the scroll wheel on the demo wheel has been said to need some work, I didn't find it too much different from the production X3ii. The display is BEAUTIFUL. I didn't think I would want a big display for a DAP until I tried it. Wow.
UI
The UI is snappy and for the most part intuitive. If you've browsed on any trackwheel based Fiio, you know what to expect. One thing I would like to see would be more minimal theme options, or at least more polished ones. This is obviously a minor nitpick and doesn't affect the usability of this player.
SQ
For reference, I didn't care for the first gen X5 (albeit I had different headphones at the time) or the X3ii. They were by no means bad, just not quite there for me. I will take a player with slightly less resolution if it has a tone I like. The DIYmods come to mind: they sound dated, but have a certain sweetness that I always found appealing.
The X5ii is without a doubt one of the most enjoyable DAPs I have experienced. The soundstage when using my UERMs was astounding, and combined with the ALO RX IEM amp was nothing short of stellar. The detail is there, but not so much that you lose the overall flow of the music. I still can't get over the soundstage. A particular album to reference is “Benji” by Sun Kil Moon. The player is very close to a true “natural” sound to me. If I had to find something truly wrong, it would be that it is almost too natural. Even though this is against my goals of a neutral sound, sometimes I like a little more coloration. While the EQ is an improvement from the last generation of Fiio players, I still feel like the EQ changes the feel of the player rather than simply sculpting it.
Conclusion
This is probably the best DAP for your money. It is a jack of all trades, and master of many. The sound signature will work well with several different headphones and IEMs. The USB DAC implementation was flawless across Windows AND Linux. If you can live with the form factor, I would say that you could buy this and leave Head-fi. Leave this forum of constant upgrades, and enjoy the quality that Fiio has produced in the X5ii.
I'm going to skip all details of this DAP with exception of build quality, UI, and SQ. Even though most of this has been covered ad nauseum, those three parts are subjective.
Build Quality
The build quality of the X5ii is superb. The player feels solid in the hand, but not overly weighty as the first gen did. I personally enjoy the button layout, and all had a very good feel to them, with little to no squishiness. While the scroll wheel on the demo wheel has been said to need some work, I didn't find it too much different from the production X3ii. The display is BEAUTIFUL. I didn't think I would want a big display for a DAP until I tried it. Wow.
UI
The UI is snappy and for the most part intuitive. If you've browsed on any trackwheel based Fiio, you know what to expect. One thing I would like to see would be more minimal theme options, or at least more polished ones. This is obviously a minor nitpick and doesn't affect the usability of this player.
SQ
For reference, I didn't care for the first gen X5 (albeit I had different headphones at the time) or the X3ii. They were by no means bad, just not quite there for me. I will take a player with slightly less resolution if it has a tone I like. The DIYmods come to mind: they sound dated, but have a certain sweetness that I always found appealing.
The X5ii is without a doubt one of the most enjoyable DAPs I have experienced. The soundstage when using my UERMs was astounding, and combined with the ALO RX IEM amp was nothing short of stellar. The detail is there, but not so much that you lose the overall flow of the music. I still can't get over the soundstage. A particular album to reference is “Benji” by Sun Kil Moon. The player is very close to a true “natural” sound to me. If I had to find something truly wrong, it would be that it is almost too natural. Even though this is against my goals of a neutral sound, sometimes I like a little more coloration. While the EQ is an improvement from the last generation of Fiio players, I still feel like the EQ changes the feel of the player rather than simply sculpting it.
Conclusion
This is probably the best DAP for your money. It is a jack of all trades, and master of many. The sound signature will work well with several different headphones and IEMs. The USB DAC implementation was flawless across Windows AND Linux. If you can live with the form factor, I would say that you could buy this and leave Head-fi. Leave this forum of constant upgrades, and enjoy the quality that Fiio has produced in the X5ii.