BUILD:
 
It's solid, can likely withstand abuse, but it doesn't look high end or refined, imo it looks a bit cheap. The jutting out screen is set on a plastic bed, the screen covering feels like plastic not glass, but can't find info on it. The aluminium case feels very sturdy and looks very good, if only the whole dap followed suit, the jutting out back cover is thinner aluminium and doesn't feel as nice or solid as the main body and looks out of place.
 
USABILITY:
 
I'm not a fan of the side buttons, they are thin and harder to press than some other daps. I also dislike that the buttons on both sides are identical, meaning you have to make sure which way the dap is in your pocket to press correct button. Battery life is average, but that never bothered me. It's slightly heavier than I would like in my pocket personally.
 
SOFTWARE:
 
It is responsive, no complaints there, has a few glitches still on latest firmware, but hopefully will be ironed out with further updates. A few times I had to restart the player because the track seeker would stop responding for example. I'm not one for using streaming or online features so they weren't tested.
 
SOUND:
 
It sounds great, definitely better than X5ii in every way, tighter definition, bigger sound stage, better separation, etc etc. I did find that there was a very familiar underlying sound style in X7 which was also in the X5ii, I'm not going to describe the sound of X7 other than say it sounds very much like an improved X5ii more than any other dap. X7 is no game changer in terms of sound, in the same price bracket I prefer the sound coming from the Onkyo HA-300, which aside from smaller sound stage takes every other sonic victory to my ears. But as usual it is all subjective. And X7 ultimately sounds very good.
 
VERDICT:
 
X7 does not excel hugely in any particular field for me, but at the same time has no major flaws, aside from some people saying it has EMI issues with wifi, which if true make it a flop of a product, but I didn't test that so I won't factor that in, and in any case fiio will probably fix that issue in newer units if that is the case. X7 performs above average in all fields tested, if I hadn't factored in price I would give X7 a 4, but with price factored in I give it a 3.5 because I can't justify it's value personally, in saying that, the X7 is unique in it's feature set, so if it's particular features tickle your fancy then it's value is in the eye of the beholder, if that makes sense lol.

I'm listening to the N6 with Ultrasone IQ Pro.
 
On to the sound, it does sound very good, very effortless, airy, balanced, honestly nothing is lacking from a technical standpoint, many daps I'e heard I could come up with several faults with easily, but N6 really has less faults than the majority of dap I've heard, in fact the N6 only has one fault in it's sound imo, which is quite an achievement.
 
How N6 compares to other dap's in a nutshell:
 
DX90 (fw2.3) has a bit more heft to the sound than N6 (fw3) which has a lighter touch but details are easier heard and sound stage is bigger. N6 sounds more controlled but DX90 might convey energy a little better. Imo The win goes to N6 in nearly all areas.
 
Hum- has a deeper sound stage, but less coherence compared to N6, while N6 has wider airier sound stage. On hum the vocals are authoritative and clean, the bass is controlled but still hit's hard. Overall hum has more heft than N6, like DX90, but a more forward signature than DX90, hum has good tonality in it's vocals. The treble of hum sounds a little splashy compared to the N6 which has absolute control. Overall I feel the N6 is technically better than hum in every way, except maybe vocal tonality.
 
P90SD- has the most different sound out of all these daps, a centered sound stage where sounds bloom outward, I would wager most would not like it for this reason. But, the bass is the most rounded and controlled, yet the most 'solid' out of all these daps. The mids are not as open compared to the very flat N6, but at the same time the timbre is spot on from the P90SD, while the N6 sounds fine in isolation, it doesn't match the timbre of P90SD. The treble is same deal as the mids. In isolation the P90SD sounds fairly balanced though. The hardest part to put into word about P90SD is it's "timing", it exudes groove and funk, I personally think this has to do with superior audio processing (aka timing of I2S signal being sent to dac), the P90SD is the best I've heard in regards to conveying proper timing which conveys energy and emotions through the music.
 
Conclusion:
N6 has a very desirable balanced airy sound that exudes technical capability, It is simply the most balanced sound I've ever heard without sounding boring, and is also one of the most open sound stages I've heard, only Sony S-Master daps can compete with this level of openness. N6 has a much more enticing sound than the X5ii I previously tested. I would like to own N6 personally, but I would probably not buy the N6 purely because of it's low usability, the UI lags very similar to X5ii, and it feels awkward in hand, I don't like using the N6 much, but I'm sure many can tolerate it, I need lightening quick UI to be able to like a dap personally. The N6 is worth it's cost imo just for it's sound, but if it had good usability it would be a must buy. I will say that the N6 equals the P90SD but both have trade-offs, the N6 is probably the better all rounder from the HO due to it's extreme balance and openness, while P90SD needs specific pairings to shine through, but when you find them, they will be phenomenal and better than N6 as the P90SD has unmatched bass, timbre, texture, timing.
I do feel N6 is clearly better than mid-range daps such as, X5ii, DX90, Hum, F887, etc.
 
 


 
 
Digital out review:
I was listening from the Digital out of N6 through my home dac, NAD M51 and Fostex studio monitors, it never ceases to amaze me how dap's sound different to each other through their digital out's, it represent's an area which many people don't pay much attention to despite it's major effect on the rest of the audio chain, aka the audio processing and signal being sent to the dac is somewhat represented by the digital out performance just as the line out performance is somewhat representing the dac's performance + audio processing.
 
The N6 has a very airy and balanced sound through the digital out, I can instantly tell that the N6 is very refined in sound. My reference quality in digital out's is my P90SD, it has a much louder digital out than the N6, not sure how this works, but I need to substantially turn up the volume of the NAD M51 with the N6, by 10dB versus the P90SD. P90SD has a 'meatier' sound, while N6 is softer and refined, with the N6 you can clearly hear all the detail, it surpasses digital out of DX90 for example, in pretty much all aspects, but with the P90SD it's like you can almost taste and 'feel' the texture, rather than just hear it, if that makes sense  The N6 does have a bigger sound stage, but I feel the P90SD is better in aspects that are hard to describe relating to 'groove' and 'feel', the P90SD get's me dancing, or get's me emotional, the N6 doesn't do this for me.
 
Let me re-iterate that I feel the N6 digital out to be very technically competent, it is better than sources like DX90, X5ii, where you can instantly hear where there could be improvements, N6 is on same level as P90SD from a sound quality perspective, but the only things missing are the things that are hard to put into words that I was talking about before.
 
Bottom line, I feel like the N6 digital out performance is on par with P90SD from a technical standpoint, and surpasses DX90 and other midrange daps, but it's sound just doesn't get me emotionally involved like P90SD. It might come down to preference and pairing in the end.

I will mainly be comparing to A65.
 
Build of these is excellent, but not quite as nice as A65 due to the half plastic housing. It is of very high quality though, it shouldn't affect durability.
 
The bass hits way harder than A65, but is also faster compared to the slower thicker bass of the A65, It's a tie for me, I like some aspects of both bass performances, my ideal bass would be right in the middle of both styles. The mids on A73 are clearer and better separated than A65, but also thinner, male vocals sound better on A65 while female vocals sound better on A73. The treble of A73 is more detailed and better separated than A65, I prefer treble of A73. The sound stage of A73 is also bigger and airier than A65.
 
Overall a good number of improvements in A73, but A73 also has an overall bombastic sound, while A65 is more mellow, so it will come down to preferences imo.

Just a short review, as there is really not a lot to say, which is a good thing, nothing to complain about with these.
 
Build is excellent, they feel supremely solid, I mean even 1k+ iems don't feel this solid. The cable looks and feels great, is tangle resistant, and feels very robust, gives the impression that it won't crap out at the strain reliefs. The jacks, divider and iem housing are all made of what feels like steel (I don't know what material it actually is) but it certainly feels more solid than some other iems that use aluminium, maybe it is thicker or alloyed.
 
The sound is fairly balanced, but not in an analytical way, the bass definitely carries the body of the sound, but is done in moderation, and the treble is non fatiguing yet present. I think these are excellent all rounders. The mids have great body like the bass, vocals sound very clear and open yet at the same time carry weight, the are done excellently. The bass is enough in quantity to keep things interesting for electronic, a thicker lower mid bass makes male vocals sound fantastic, it isn't the most quick, but it isn't overly slow. The treble conveys all the info and rhythm but manages to not sound sharp, but slightly splashy, the iem in general carries a thicker sound throughout. The sound stage is very open and not skewed to left and right.
 
All in all it is highly recommended by me, flawless build and excellent sound at a modest price it.

I have a lot of closed headphones. These are as good as any other closed headphone at this price, in fact, I prefer these to the DT770, K550, UE6000.
 
The DJ1 Pro have a bigger and airier sound stage of the four headphones. 
Treble is refined and detailed but doesn't pierce like 770 and 550, while UE6000 treble is lifeless.
Mids are recessed on all four headphones, but not too much, the DJ1 Pro still has the most fleshed out mids of the four.
Bass is in line with treble, only slight V shape, DJ1 Pro bass hits the hardest and deepest of the four, quality bass hard hitting bass, but still fairly balanced and detailed. If you want more bass than this you are beyond help, go get beats by dre. I think the DJ1 Pro are great headphones to have a fun listen that is still within the audiophile realm.