Video review of Fiio X5ii.
 

 

DISCLAIMER

I was provided the X5 2nd generation (from here on, I'll refer to it as X5ii) as a review sample as part of the U.S. tour.  There is no financial incentive from Fiio in writing this review.  I am in no way affiliated with Fiio, and this is my honest opinion of the new X5ii.  I would like to thank Joe & James from Fiio for giving me the opportunity to test drive the X5ii!
 
 

ABOUT ME

I'm a 43 year old father who loves music.  From electronic (Autechre, Boards of Canada) to modern/minimalist composition (John Cage, Philip Glass) to alternative rock (Flaming Lips, Radiohead) to jazz (John Coltrane and Miles Davis) to metal (Behemoth, King Diamond) to classic rock (Eagles, Rush), I listen to a wide variety of genres and artists. 
 
My portable music journey started with the venerable Sony Cassette Walkman and then progressed to portable CD players, minidisc recorders (still have my Sharp DR7), and finally on to DAPs like the Rio Karma, iRiver IHP-1xx, iPod 5.5, iPhones, and the newer crop of DAPs from Fiio and iBasso. 
 
I typically listen with IEMs from my ever-growing collection from budget to mid-fi. Less often, I grab a pair of full-size cans.  Recently, I've been listening a lot with my SoundMagic HP200 and T-PEOS Altone200.  I do have a lot of other gear, though.  You can always check my profile for a reasonably up to date gear list. 
 
As with a lot of people my age, I've got some hearing issues.  I've got mild tinnitus and suffer from allergies, which often affect hearing in my right ear.  I'll admit it, I'm not blessed with a pair of golden ears.  That said, I've been listening to portable gear for a long time and feel confident in assessing audio gear - just wanted to be transparent up front. 
 

 

REVIEW

Here's a LINK to Fiio's produt page for the X5ii.  Previous reviews have great unboxing pics and a full accessories list. I'm not going to duplicate that effort and will instead focus on a more experiential take on the X5ii.  I will say that if you've purchased a Fiio product recently, the unboxing experience will be very familiar and you get all the accessories you need to get up and running and to protect your new DAP.  It's really nice that the X5ii comes with a screen film pre-applied.  Thumbs-up, Fiio!  Unlike the recent X3 2nd generation (X3ii), Fiio has not installed nor provided a protection film for the back - not sure why.  However, do yourself (and your X5ii) a favor and buy a Dignis leather case for it when they become available - you will not be disappointed!
 

 

BUILD & ERGONOMICS

My first reaction after opening the box was, "This looks exactly like what I wanted from the X5ii!"  When I lifted it from the box, I was happy that it was smaller and a bit lighter than the original X5. It may be smaller and lighter, but it felt very solid just like the original X5.  I was also struck by how attractive it is, with careful attention to detail. 
 
As with the X3ii, I was again impressed with the attention to detail.  All the buttons were  centered perfectly within the frame.  This is something that can get overlooked even at higher price points.  Not only were all the buttons nicely centered, they felt good when pressing them with just the right amount of resistance. 
 
Some much-appreciated differences coming from the original X5 were the four control buttons, which are now round, recessed, and well-marked.  The four control buttons on the X5 are okay, but their shape as well as being raised makes them much, much easier to accidentally press.  Again, as with the X3ii, having smaller, recessed targets means far fewer navigational faux-pax. 
 

 
The power button has been moved from top right on the original X5 to the left side just above the volume controls.  Surprise, it's exactly where the X3ii's power button is, but whereas the X3ii's power button was completely recessed the X5ii's is just slightly raised.  It's not as raised as the nearby volume buttons, though, which is a good thing.  Again, this means fewer accidental presses, saving battery life by keeping the screen off. Speaking of the power button, it now contains the power indicator LED (Blue = Powered On, Red = Charging, Green = Fully Charged).  The volume buttons are more distinct and separated than those on the original X5, and the X5ii's volume up button has a small raised dot to distinguish it from the nearby recessed power and volume down buttons.  
 

 
Like the X3ii but in contrast to the original X5 and X3ii, the X5ii has a shared Line / Coaxial Out jack. I think this is a quite reasonable compromise to conserve space.  When I reviewed the X3ii, I found one UI quirk that I suggested Fiio fix before final release.  The X3ii's default was Coax Out, which was an odd choice given how many people use Line Out vs. Coax Out.  I could easily see this leading to confusion when people hook their new DAP up to their favorite amp and get no signal.  I'm happy to report that Fiio fixed this and made Line Out the default.  This is just another example of Fiio's responsiveness to customer input.  Way to go FIio!
 

 
I saved my two of my favorites for last: the screen and scroll wheel.  The screen is flush with the X5ii's body.  In contrast, the original X5's screen is raised up a few mm above the face.  Scratching the original X5's screen is something I worry about, however unnecessarily given the screen protector.  With the X5ii, this is much less of a concern. Like the original X5, the X5ii has bezels on the screen, but they aren't as prominent or intrusive.
 

 

And finally the scroll wheel, what a love or hate thing it is. I'm in the love it club and found the X5ii's scroll wheel to be a nice improvement over the original X5's.  Even though Fiio has stated that the pre-production model doesn't have the finalized scroll wheel, I found it an improvement over the original scroll wheel. Maybe it's just a firmware tweak, but I found the X5ii finally has one to one parity with scroll wheel clicks and movement of the selector on screen.  How nice to finally see this.  If this makes its way into final firmware, it's going to make a lot of people happy!
 

 

To sum up: The smaller size and weight, as well as improved placement of controls makes for easier one-handed and increased pocketability.  Attention to detail like "right-sized" buttons with just the right amount of resistance means fewer accidental button presses.  Small details like the nearly recessed power button and raised dot on the volume up button allow Fiio to place important buttons in close proximity while allowing for blind operation.  I'm very happy to see that the physical design improvements I liked on the X3ii have finally found their way to the X5.  For me, this finally made Lockscreen 3 a pocket-friendly choice.  Big thumbs-up, Fiio!
 
 

USER INTERFACE / FIRMWARE

User Interface (UI) can make or break your experience with any piece of technology.  Luckily, Fiio is learning fast!  I was an early adopter, buying the original X3 on pre-order and buying the X5 after reading the initial positive reviews on headfi.  To be  honest, it was a bit of a wild ride at first.  To their credit Fiio not only listened to customer feedback, they actively solicited customer feedback.  I'm proud to say that I was among many fellow headfiers who actively participated in that process, identifying bugs, suggesting new features, and beta-testing firmware, making Fiio's DAPs better and better with each successive firmware release. 
 
Next came the X1 and X3ii, and it was clear that Fiio had learned much from their initial outings.  The X1 and X3ii had sleeker hardware and firmware design.  The X5ii follows the same trajectory, and it should be very easy for anyone who's used the original X5, X1, or X3ii to pick up the X5ii and get going with no real learning curve.
 
 

 
That said, the X5ii shares some weaknesses with its siblings, lacking some features more mature DAPs have with respect to tag-based music browsing.  So if you're used to using a smartphone or a DAP with more mature firmware, you need to go in eyes wide open.  Many commonly-used tags just aren't recognized by Fiio's DAPs - like Album Artist, CD#, and Composer.  For example, when browsing by Genre, you just get a big list of songs for each Genre in numerical order.  IMHO, it would be handier to have Genre browsing act like a filter for Genre-specific Artist -> Album browsing. 
 
To overcome these limitation many Fiio DAP users have become fans of File Browsing, which doesn't rely on the database.  For instance, the 128GB mSD card I used while testing the new X3 was organized at the top level with folders named A-C, D-F, G-I, etc.  Inside those, I maintain the following folder naming scheme: Artist / Year  Album / Songs.  This can be easily accomplished (and even automated) with many tagging programs.  This structure lets me quickly navigate through my artists and once I'm at the album level, albums are all arranged in chronological order - nice!
 
Moving on to themes, the X5ii lets you choose between five themes.  I think Fiio's could've spent more time and attention to these.  The only two I found attractive were Themes 1 and 2, which were fairly simple with black backgrounds (albeit textured).  That said, Theme 1 has transparent white icons in the topbar, so good luck reading them if you've got white album art - so much for Theme 1. Theme 2, you're it!  I didn't use the three remaining themes, which were skeumorphic (denim, leather, and wood).  Of course, there is a flourishing community of themers for Fiio DAPs on headfi, so if you're not completely satisfied with the stock UI just wait a bit and the themers will have you covered!
 


 

Just like the X5 and X3ii, the X5ii features a highly-functional 10-band equalizer with several fully-customizable presets.  If you learn how to mod the firmware, you can even rename them.  I did this with my X5, renaming the presets after my most commonly-used HP / IEM.  This allows me to tailor each preset for my HP / IEM and then easily switch between them without remembering whether my Altone200 was the Metal or Rock preset - handy!
 
One cool "Easter Egg" I found was that the Launcher UI switches to a linear mode when you start use the FFWD / RWD buttons for list navigation.  I'm not sure if this is implemented in X1 or X3ii, but it was a pretty cool nod to some of the X5 themers (you know who you are!) 
 

 
Just as with the X3ii, the new X5ii's "deep sleep" mode works a treat!  Battery life is good to begin with, and deep sleep helps stretch it further by allowing you to set the X5ii to sleep after one minute without having to waste time and energy rebooting when you wake it up.  And man, does it wake up quickly!  No more waiting through the boot sequence after that annoying coworker interrupts you for the fifth time this morning (you know who you are!).  Nope, just push the power button, and you're ready to go - instantly!
 
To sum up: Just like most of the boutique, audiophile DAPs, the X5ii is no iPod and lacks support for some commonly-used tags.  This will frustrate some users - especially classical music fans.  For most users though, this is easily overcome with some basic file / folder organization and File Browsing.  And despite not being as feature rich as a more mature DAP like an iPod, the X5ii is very easy to use and most users will find little to complain about, especially with the lightning-fast response of the new "deep sleep" feature. 
 
 

SOUND

During my time with the X5ii, I used the following HP: HiFiMan HE-400, Oppo PM-2, and SoundMagic HP200 and IEM: Heir 4.Ai-s and T-PEOS Altone200.  I didn't encounter synergy issues with any of these, and could easily recommend any of them for use with the X5ii.  I performed critical listening with X5ii vs. my X5 and DX90, volume matching across the three DAPs using a 1kHz test tone and the Decibel 10th iPhone app.
 

 
I'll be completely upfront here and state that I think there are a lot of other reviewers who are much better at describing what they're hearing than me.  Several of them have already weighed-in on the X5ii's sound - and have done a very good job at it! In light of that, I'm going to make the sound section the lightest part of my review. 
 
I typically switch off between my DX90 and X5, but as soon as the new X3's arrived I started using it as my sole DAP and sound-wise found nothing to be lacking. It drove all of my HP / IEM well with one exception to he noted later.  I typically used High Gain for HP and Low Gain for IEM, as I would with my X5 and DX90. 
 



 
When comparing more closely with my DX90 and original X5, I found subtle differences in the X5ii's sound signature that could sway you towards one of the others.  However, I'd like to make it very clear that to me these were subtle differences that required an A/B switcher to confirm.  Once you grow accustomed to the sound of any of these three DAPs, the differences melt away leaving you with a very satisfying listening experience.  Okay, so what were the differences I heard?
 
As compared to my original X5 (FW 2.5), the X5ii has less mid-bass emphasis which tightens up the low end and overall impact of bass on the sound signature.  This was one sticking point with a lot of people with the original X5, so the X5ii will make those people happy.  I found X5ii's mids to be a bit less lush than the original X5's.  I found the X5ii's upper end slightly more detailed and clear but not fatiguing.  All of these differences were subtle but added up to a slightly more analytical / linear sound signature with a more 3-dimensional soundstage.  Personally, I've been very happy with the original X5's slightly warmer, more intimate sound signature and found it was a toss-up which DAP I preferred depending on the music.  With electronic and metal, I found myself preferring the original X5 for the slightly enhanced low end and slightly warmer sound signature.  With classical and jazz, I'd reach for the X5ii for the more 3-dimensional sound signature and to hear more details.
 
As compared to my DX90 (FW 2.2.0), the DX90 has a slightly more v-shaped sound signature, with slightly enhanced bass, more energetic treble, slightly better separation and layering, and a slightly larger soundstage. There was one area where I found the DX90 to clearly win out over both original X5 and X5ii, and that was driving my HiFiMan HE-400.  The DX90 really filled them out and significantly widened the soundstage.  Other than that, the differences were again subtle.  There are plenty of advocates and detractors in both Fiio and iBasso's camps. While I enjoy both Fiio and iBasso's DAPs, I do find myself reaching more for my X5 and also found myself reaching more for the X5ii partly due to sound signature, UI, and battery life.
 

 
To sum up: I found the differences between the X5ii and my X5 were subtle.  They have similar sound signatures, and I could easily live with either. If you prefer a more linear sound signature, go for the X5ii.  If you prefer a warmer sound signature, stick with the original X5.  As mentioned, I prefer both to my DX90 for various reasons and would recommend the X5ii as a good substitute for those looking into the DX90.
 
 

SUMMARY

The X5ii is a very attractive, well-made DAP with excellent attention to detail that builds on the success of other current-generation Fiio DAPs (X1 and X3ii). Fit and finish are superb.  Its size and design make it more pocket-friendly and ergonomic for one-handed use when compared with the original X5.   The more linear sound signature really allows the unique sound signature of your HP / IEM to shine through without worrying about synergy. 
 
The only detractors for me are minimal and not enough to prevent a strong recommendation.  First - the UI isn't as polished as more mature DAPs like the iPod. However, this can be easily mitigated with basic file management and tagging practices. Second - there's no internal storage, which could've brought the X5ii close to 400GB.  Third - when compared with the original X5, the X5ii's HO and LO jacks are switch which exposed me to some high volumes as I inadvertently plugged into the wrong jack a few times.  Being an original X3 owner, one thing I wish Fiio would bring back is hardware Bass / Treble EQ.  It works a treat!
 
In short, if you're looking for a well-built mid-tier DAP with a neutral sound signature that's easy to use and pocket-friendly, the X5ii from Fiio should be at the top of your list. Fiio's learning how to make very competitive DAPs very quickly, and I can't wait to see what Fiio has in store for us when the X7 when is released!
 
Thanks again to Fiio for giving the headfi community an early taste of this brilliant new DAP!

Disclaimer

I was part of the european leg on the X5 world tour, so I did receive a review unit, free of charge, for ten days, but it was already running FW 1.0.
I am in no way affiliated with FiiO. I would like to thank Joe and James for giving me this opportunity and for organizing the tour. It was a lot of fun discovering the device.
 
Introduction
 
When I received the X5 my first thoughts were „So that's why the X3 is called an ultraportable device“. It's bigger than the pictures can show, yet still handy. It felt great, I couldn't wait to put my card in it and update the database. It's a 128GB SanDisk mSD card containing around 2700 songs, including some DSD albums.
This took pretty long. My X3 2nd gen updates in no time compared to that.
 
Changes from first to second generation:
 
Native DSD decoding
Deep-sleep mode
Dual crystal oscillators
Better amplification
Brushed metal exterior
Smaller and lighter device
Supports in-line remote headphones
 
Headphones used:
 
Final - Sonorus VI (formerly known as „Pandora Hope VI“)
AKG - K240 Sextett (made in the 70's)
 

 
Build
 
The exterior is completely made of metal, which gives it a premium feeling. The colour comes close to the X3's but is a little lighter. One of the things I really like about the design are the edges, unlike the X1 and X3 the X5 isn't rounded at the top.
The buttons are more recessed than on the other players from FiiO, also the screen is now in line with the whole body. The center button was a little too sensitive for my taste, I often found myself clicking it when I didn't want to.
 
 
 
The scroll wheel was pretty soft and when turning it around I hardly felt the clicks, please note here that I had a preview unit, the wheel was changed to a better feeling one (like the X3's). I actually liked the soft wheel. The player has a protector already applied to the screen when leaving the factory.
The volume and the power buttons are located on the left side. The power button also includes the LED indicator which shows you if the device is on (blue), charging (red) or fully charged (green).
 
 
 
On the bottom there are the two mSD slots and the micro USB port for charging, data transfer (computer or OTG) and for docking.
The headphone and line/coax out are found on top of the device.
 
 
 
A very big improvement is the screen. It's a very clear and wonderfully readable IPS screen. You can easily use it outside without making shades to read the screen. It never bugged me that I had to put the backlight to 100% when using my X3 on the outside, but now that I've seen its bigger brother, I know how good it feels to use a higher quality screen.
Another thing that was changed are the jacks on top of the device. Instead of three there are only two remaining on the second generation. Now Coaxial and Line Out share the same output.
 
Package and Accessories
 
The unit comes in a simple and elegant black box with the FiiO logo in the middle. Inside you'll find a quick start guide, an overview of the X5 and a warranty card. Also there are a few accessories like a coaxial adapter, an USB cable (not in the pictures), two screen protectors and some stickers to individualize your player.
There's also a black silicon case for protection, which later got changed to a clear plastic cover, because of complaints about the smell.
Please note, that the coax-adapter is a four pole plug, and won't work with any first generation X player. Also the adapters from the first gen X3 and X5 won't work with the second gens. The reason for this is the shared output for Line Out and Coax Out, you can use any stereo mini jack for LO usage.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
User Interface (UI)
 
FiiO is not known for its great UI, there are yet a lot of improvements to be made. The basics of course are covered. You can browse the database via Artist, Album, Songs, Genres or Favourites (personal made list). Or you can access your files directly with folder navigation.
It also supports gapless playback and has two gain settings (high/low).
When using in the pockets the X5 let's you pick between three different key-lock settings, where different buttons are active even though the screen is turned off.
I would have used lockscreen two (volume and center buttons), but with the super responsive center button it was not very comfortable. The production units might be more suitable for this option.
For me personally the UI is the biggest minus about the device, since there are so many features missing that would increase the usability by a lot. Like a better playlistmanagement. The ability to add songs to a playlist without having to start them first, is one of the keyfeatures I'm hoping for. Or simply to be able to name your own playlists. I know I can create playlists with my computer, but I'm always changing the files on my card and discovering new songs and artist, having to edit a playlist every time is a real pain. Screen time out and Idle standby are set in the system settings. Idle standby sets when the device goes into deep-sleep mode. Currently both times are a little too long for my taste (30s for screen time out, and 60s for idle standby).
There's also a 10-band equalizer, which comes with eight presets (Rock, Classical, Jazz, Pop, Dance, Vocal, Blues and Metal) and a custom one, or you can turn it off and don't use it at all.
 
 
Other improvementwishes include:
- add more shortcuts in now playing (e.g. EQ and Brightness)
- Replaygain
- Crossfeed
- showing the percentage of remaining battery
- database sorting by title and filename
- faster scrolling through the library
- updating the library in the background, so music doesn't stop when updating
- multidisc support for albums
 
Rockbox for the X players would be huge, but that's not going to happen any time soon, even though I've read that one of the keydevelopers bought an X1 some time ago.
 
Sound
 
Hands down, this is the best sounding FiiO to date. I have the current generation players at home. Neither the X3 nor the X1 comes close to the X5.
It sounds more neutral, more precise and natural than any of its siblings. It's very detailed and I couldn't really find it leaning towards any sound. It also has a black background and shows some space and air between the instruments. Which makes especially DSD files sound like you're in the studio with the band.
Needless to say, I loved it.
 
For experiments I tried the X5 with my vintage AKG K240 (600Ω) and surprisingly found them well driven. Still not pushing them to their best, but way better than any other DAP I tried them with.
 
Advantages and disadvantages over the X3 second Gen.
 
The X5 definitely wins the most important part: sound, like I said before, it's the best of the FiiO's right now. It also features two mSD slots, so double space, which makes a lot of sense for people with a giant music collection or someone who has a lot of DSD files. The wonderful screen and it's readability on the outside is also a big plus over the X3.
I noticed that the X5 gets a little warm when using it for a while. I don't know if that's a preview unit issue or if the massproduction samples do the same. The X3 doesn't do that.
The X3 wins two contests in my opinion. First is the portability. For a device that small it makes incredible sound. The second is value. Nothing beats the X3 at its price point, while the X5 has a serious competitor with the DX90, especially the rockboxed one.
 
Working as a DAC

Unfortunately for me, FiiO names all of their devices the same, at least Linux reads them with the same name, when connected as USB DAC. Because of that I had to delete the soundcard configuration on my laptop to make it work. I had the X3 set up as primary device, but since X5 and X3 don't share the same ID it didn't output any sound when connected to a USB port.
After deleting and reconfiguring my setup I was able to use it in DAC mode also.
 
Conclusion
 
The sound definitely improved and is superior to any other of their DAPs to date, but it appears that the only thing that's holding FiiO back is FiiO themselves. They made a wonderful device, and they had to save somewhere to make it this inexpensive. Too bad it hit the software and it's still missing some important features in the firmware. Otherwise there wouldn't be a competition.
Maybe after the launch of their new flagship, the X7, there will be more time to add some of the requested features.
 
So, would I buy the X5? I will. Simply because of it's beautiful and neutral soundsignature and the ability to store two mSD cards to hold my entire DSD library.
 
Final Words
 
Again I would like to thank FiiO, especially Joe for all his work and support through the tour. Also I'd like to say a huge thanks and big up to Tiefparterre Records and Mr. Dero & Klumzy Tung who provided me with their quality music in high resolution.
 
 
 
   
 
   
 
   
 
Price:

MSRP: 349 USD $
it goes around 429€ in the EU
 
General Specifications:

Model/Number - X5 (X5 2nd gen)
Headphone Port - Standard 3.5mm Headphone Port
Color - Titanium
Drive Ability - 16~150 Ω
Dimensions - 109 mm x 63.5 mm x 15.3 mm
Volume Control - 120 steps digital potentiometer
Weight - 165 g
Equalizer - 10-band equalizer (±6dB)
Display Screen - 2.4", 262,144 color HD IPS screen with 400x360 pixels
Line Out - Standard 3.5mm Port (Shared line out / S/PDIF coaxial out)
Digital Out (Coaxial) - Standard 3.5mm Port (Shared line out / S/PDIF coaxial out)
Balance - 10 dB
USB DAC - Supporting up to 24bit / 192kHz and DSD (driver installation required for Windows PCs)
Gain – 3.6dB (Gain=L) // 9.1dB (Gain=H)


Partial Performance Parameters for Line Output:

THD+N - ＜0.001% (1 kHz)
SNR - ≥114 dB (A-weight)
Frequency Response - 20 Hz~20 kHz
Dynamic Range - >110 dB
Crosstalk - ＞115 dB (10 KΩ/1 kHz)
Line Output Level - 1.53 Vrms (10 KΩ/1 kHz)


Partial Performance Parameters for Headphone Output:

Output Power 1 - >245 mW（32Ω//THD+N＜1%)
Output Power 2 - >436 mW（16Ω/THD+N＜1%)
Output Power 3 - >27 mW（300Ω/THD+N＜1%)
Output Impedance - ＜0.2 Ω（32Ω）
Crosstalk - ＞75 dB (1 kHz)
THD+N - ＜0.001% (1 kHz)
Frequency Response - 20 Hz~20 kHz
MAX Output Voltage - ＞8.2 Vp-p
SNR - ≥117 dB (A-weighted)
MAX Output Current - ＞250 mA（For reference）


Power and Battery:

Power - DC5V 2A recommended
Battery Capacity - 3300 mAh
Charge Display - Red light indicates , green light turns on after fully charged
Battery Life - ＞10 h (32Ω; normal volume with display off )
Battery Display - Yes (Accurate battery % readings)）
Charging Time - ＜4h (DC5V 2A)


Audio Formats Supported:

Lossless:
DSD: DSD64, DSD128 (.iso&.dsf & .dff); not DST compressed
APE(Fast): 192 kHz/24 bit;
APE(Normal): 96 kHz/24 bit;
APE (High): 96 kHz/24 bit;
AIFF: 192 kHz/24 bit;
FLAC: 192 kHz/24 bit;
WAV: 192 kHz/64 bit;
WMA Lossless: 96 kHz/24 bit;
Apple Lossless: 192 kHz/24 bit;

Lossy: MP2, MP3, AAC, ALAC, WMA, OGG

 

 
 
Head-Fi, Fiio X5 and me
 
I came out of my lurking in January 2014 to join Head-Fi, I was looking for a DAP to replace my Creative Zen X-Fi's whose display had a 'black ink' spreading disease at terminal phase. I wanted to buy an X-Fi again, but I found out that with the advant of smartphones, MP3 players section had all melted away and all that was left were very cheap 4GB/8GB players or iPods. I couldn't find the Zen X-Fi in any stores in my area. Expensive iPod nano/touches with 32GB/64GB with no SD card capacity was a no go. I had resisted buying an Apple player for all these years (Creative fan since the inception of PC soundcards), I was almost tempted to buy an iPod Classic due to higher storage capacity , but the fear of damaging a micro hard-drive (lost my Zen Micro 16GB to a fall) made me consider going online to find a solution.
 
I discovered about Head-Fi, and oh boy, I felt ridiculous and vain for being an enduring Creative fanboy. My brick & mortar only shopping world was just the tip of the iceberg. DAPs had gotten so much better and DAPs from SanDisk and Iriver still existed! It was time to go submarine mode and lurk through hundreds of pages of threads to get my universe updated (i.e. wow people even carry brick stacks of amps!).
 
After an initial shortlist of the Fiio X3, iBasso DX50 and Astell&Kern AK240 (was enthralled by its beauty), I went back to my local shop to ask if they knew em, if they had any or if I could place an order. Turns out they were Fiio and A&K dealers too but had none in stock (the X5 and AK240 wasn't even in their database for pre-order). If I had to wait for an X3 to arrive, I preferred to pre-order the X-5 online instead.
 
Only ultraportability interests me now. IEMs and a DAP. No cans, no amp stacking. I'm bulky enough to want to carry more stuff around. ;P
 
 
 
My take on Fiio
 
Portable Hi-Fi that works reliably while remaining affordable, simple as that. James and Joe Bloggs are very active on Head-Fi. Great feedback interaction with the members, involving us in the different parts of the design and production process.
 
 
 
Disclaimer
 
I want to give my thanks to James and Joe Bloggs at Fiio for giving me the chance to review this new dap. This is my first review. The unit I had was part of the World Preview Tour, European part. We each had 10 days to play with X5ii before shipping it to the next reviewer. I received no compensation for writing this review, I did not get to keep the review sample, and had to ship it to the next in line from my own pocket (full disclosure/shoutout to the Belgian Post Office, Belgium to Austria  €32.80 ...fleecers).
I've got limited gear and experience so my review won't be very technical, but more oriented on how it affects me directly.
 
Official Fiio X5ii product page: http://www.fiio.net/en/products/41
 
 
 
My review sample box:
 

 

1. Fiio X5ii DAP
2. USB transfer and charging cable
3. COAX cable
4. Silicone body protective case
5. Screen protectors (3 total, one already applied, 2 spare)
6. 3 complete body make-over sticker kits (Carbon fiber / Light grainy wood / American flag)
7. Button operation leaflet
8. Quick start manual
9. Warranty info

 
 
 
X5 and X5ii side to side comparisons
 
  
^
X5ii size H: 109mm W: 63.5mm D: 15.3mm
X5 size  H: 114mm W: 67.6mm D: 15.6mm
X5ii weighs 165g, around 30g lighter than the X5.
 
Coming from the X5 to X5ii, I immediately noticed the width and length decrease, the change of the 4 buttons around the scroll wheel to small slicker round ones matching the color of the body.
I always found the X5 to look like a stove, so the X5ii was pleasing change, much more appealing.
 
The X5ii  facelifting also includes brushed metal finish instead of powdered, and a color change (like the X3ii). I prefer the black original color but since I use the silicone case I admit it doesn't matter anyway. I gotta say the new color is much more coherent overall though, matching the 4 X and center scroll wheel buttons.
 
The actual screen display size remains the same in the newer gen. On the X5 the glass was bigger than the screen display. With the X5ii, Fiio recessed the screen and made the glass flush with the body. A very nice improvement there.
 
While my hands are somewhat average, it's not very proportionate. My fingers are shorter than average, but I got a big palm. The reason why I mention this is because the X5 always was at the limit of my comfort level. I always used it with the silicone body case which adds a bit to the size. It's bulky to operate with only hand only and at times was annoying when you also take into account the scrolling aspect of the Fiio X5/X5ii. So the the smaller size and weight change with the X5ii was a very welcoming advantage for me. Easier to hold and operate, a noteworthy plus for small handed users.
 
 
 

^
The silicone body case of the X5ii feels more smooth in the hands, the X5 case is a bit more sticky, making it easier to slide in and out of my jeans pocket. The X5ii with the 4 new buttons and silicone case give a nice tactile feedback, more convenient use.
 
The silicone material seems different. How it will affect its durability I do not know. In the case of the Fiio X5, the silicone case got a minor shred on the bottom left corner of the screen due to me having to expand it by sliding it on and off each time I need to add/transfer new music (the case covers over the microSD slot). I never could connect the X5 to my pc directly, so relied on the small Fiio USB 2.0 dongle card reader supplied. The X5ii review unit didn't come with such a dongle.
 
 
 

^
The X5ii no longer has dust covers making it bit more elegant. While I prefer the covers for an added safety layer despite already using the silicone body case at all times.
On the other hand it was reassuring that while there's no covers on the X5ii, the micro sd card goes deeper, so there's absolutely no risk of friction.
 
 
 

^
The power+lock button moved to the left side on the X5ii and has a tiny led in its center. Very pale non-disturbing (for those using while in bed) blue color when ON/playing,  orange red when plugged in recharging and green when fully charged. Notice the tiny tactile raised dot on the Volume + button so you don't mistake it for the power button; it's easy to operate in the dark.
 
When the player is locked, holding the Vol+/- buttons will skip tracks. So to change the volume in locked mode, you have to lightly press repeatedly to increment/lower step by step.
 
Notice how nicely flushed the display and 4 buttons are now on the X5ii.
 
 

^
X5ii on the left, X5 on the right. X5 original had 3 distinct output jacks, HP, COAX and Line out. The X5ii changed by having only 2; Coax and Line out have a shared output jack, switchable from within the UI (Multifunctional Outputs under System Settings menu).
 
The visible hard reset pinhole on the X5 has gone on the X5ii, you'll have to press and hold the power button for about 15s to reset the player.
 
Note: the X5ii HP out location switched sides. On the X5 it's at the top left of the DAP. On the X5ii, it's at the top right side. Users coming from the X5 might have the nasty suprise if plugging their sensitive iems to the Line out jack on the X5ii being used on this side, blasting their eardrums!
 
 
 
User Interface
 
Buttons
You can adjust the volume two ways: hold the center dial for a second which displays the volume arc, and you can then turn the wheel to +/- the volume; or you can use the side buttons.
 
The left and right button below the wheel serve as Previous/Next track skip if pressed once, or back/forwarding within the current track if held.
The upper left button opens the tiny submenu where you can add the current track to your favorites (heart icon), change the playing mode like shuffle, repeat all or same track, and delete track.
The upper right button serves as go back up a level or previous menu. If held longer it goes straight back to main menu centered on Now Playing.
 
Deep sleep stand-by
The X5ii comes with a Deep sleep stand-by mode that's a very good improvement I think. In daily/weekly usage I didn't have to shut it down completely, it used very low battery while on stand-by mode, and resumed instantly. My X5 unit with X Relic X's mod takes around 9-10 seconds of waiting time between Power ON booting to being fully functional. So this new deep sleep stand-by mode is quite welcomed.
 
Folder browsing
I solely used my X5 in folder browsing mode. The lack of proper tagging of my library makes the Play by Category mode absolutely chaotic. This is an issue with the ZX2's default music app too because I can't apparently access my memory card in folder browsing mode and only allows categorized mode.
 
Folder browser on the X5 and X5ii is easier for me. My TF card root has artists/bands folders, sub-folders are albums. Here lies a big problem, it can take me up to half a minute of spinning the scroll wheel just to get to the artist/band I want to listen to. There's no progressively accelerating scrolling either from the wheel nor the buttons.
The bottom left and right buttons also serve as scrolling keys, so my only chance at scrolling faster is by using two hands, one is holding the scroll button while the other is spinning the wheel resulting in a moderately faster scrolling up or down, but I can't stress how much absurd this looks and feels.
 
A workaround fix would be to have the root folders be alphabetically ranked and have artists inside them. Like 26 folders; A-Z. But this solution is not fitting for me because of my personal nature in regards to listening music. Which track I pick depends on my mood of the moment, browsing through names which I associate with feelings is the deciding factor. But Cagin, be rational, surely you'd prefer changing your listening habit and put stuff in  A-Z folders first instead of the boring up to 30 seconds of spinning wheel to fit your 'mood' no? Well... ok sure, if it wasn't for a bothersome aspect of organizing by alphabetical folders at the root folder; the lag. I'll come to this on the next paragraph. Now I understand the scroll wheel is mechanical, and doesn't allow acceleration, but I would've liked if at least the bottom buttons could be set to like skip 5 by 5, or a whole screen of folders, or maybe alphabetical letters directly.
 
One quality of life improvement I'd like to see in a future firmware would be the ability to just play the highligthed folder without having to go through its subfolders and pick a certain track before it starts playing. I'd like it if when folder browsing, I scroll down to say an artist folder and I just press say the top left button and it automatically will play it's content starting from the top album, top track and go from there. 1 click instead of 3.
 
Lag?
My 128GB SanDisk microSD card was formatted by my X5 (fat32), it works flawlessly with the ZX2 as well, and is recognized and working with the X5ii fine. But I did notice a major lag issue and perhaps I should've formatted the card from within the X5ii to make sure it wasn't due to format origin, but I admit it was too daunting to it all over again via the X5ii. So take the lag details with a grain of salt ok.
 
In folder browser mode, TF1 main root access had a 2.5 second delay (1.5s on the X5). This means, each time I go in Folder Browser mode, and pick TF1 card, it takes 2.5s before I can start scrolling through folders. Accessing a sub folder brings a 0.5s delay on the X5ii (not noticeable on the X5). Now if I'm in the Artist sub-folder and want to go back up a level to main root, I get a 2 second delay on the X5ii (1.5s on the X5).
 
On the X5ii when spinning the wheel to adjust the volume, if I make more than a few incremental steps, there is a delay as the volume will keep adjusting even if you stopped spinning the wheel.
On the X5, it's more responsive. There's no delay lag regardless of if I make wide volume changes or small increments.
 
Note about the Scroll wheel: Fiio said the production units will have higher damping factor (similar to production X3 2nd gen units) for more positive tactile feedback. Hopefully this will address the delay lag I experience when spinning it fast.
 

^
Main menu  Now Playing / Play by Category / Folder Browse / Play settings / System settings
 
 

^
Play by Category sub menu
I never go here ^^
 
 

^
Play settings
Here you can change things like:

1. Left/Right channel balance (+/-10dB)
2. Low/High gain
3. set which volume you want your player to automatically fix to each time you power it on (avoiding any eardrum blasting suprise)
4. fix a hard volume cap
5. Equalizer has 10 bands and 9 presets, it reduced output -6dB by default when active. You can edit the preset names via firmware if you desire.
6. The 'play through folders' option is nice if say you browse into one artist folder containing like 4 album folders, it will automatically keep on playing by switching to the next folder in line (top to bottom); and once all sub folders player, will go to the next main folder and start from there working through sub folders, on and on.

 
 

^
System Settings menu

1. 3 Key-lock modes. I prefer the one where only the side volume buttons are working when display is locked. I can adjust the volume and skip tracks from the pocket without taking it out. Minimal risk of pressing something wrong.
2. Idle standby and timer. If player is on pause the time lapse before it goes to stand-by mode from lack of user input to save on display battery
3. Sleep + timer. If like me you like to go to sleep while listening to music or some ASMR, will automatically cut the music and go stand-by, alternatively if you're lazy and unsure of when you're about to sleep you can just unplug the headphone jack, it will pause the player, and then Idle out ^^
4. Multifunctional outputs. Switches from Line out to Digital out Coax
5. USB Mode. Storage for data transfer or DAC mode
6. Supports in-line headphone. 3.5mm TRRS cables with track skip/pause/play [volume +/- not incl]
7. Format. Allows the device to format a TF card to FAT32. Recommended you do it via the device for optimal compatibility, avoid hanging ups during library scanning.

 
 
GUI Themes
 
The Fiio X5 allowed users to modify the GUI (Graphical User Interface) via firmware files, we could to change the colors, fonts and placing of objects. This led a growing number of daring creative headfiers to make modded themes.
There's many flavors, from minimalistic to flamboyant ones.
 
Here's the superb repository thread for the X5 original gen: http://www.head-fi.org/t/717947/fiio-x5-custom-modded-firmwares
 
The X5ii takes the theme potential even higher by allowing up to 5 customizable themes. There are 5 default themes that came with the X5ii, but fellow headfiers @X Relic X and @AsianInvasion have already adapted their mods to the X5ii firmware, so you can have a whopping 5 completely different big modded themes available to switch from one to another from inside the menu directly without any need of rebooting. Quite convenient also for having for example one theme made for easier contrasting while outside in a glaring daylight situation.
 
Click here for the X5ii theme mods repository: http://www.head-fi.org/t/771221/fiio-x5-ii-custom-themes-thread
 
Here are the 5 default themes:
 



 
 
 
 
Sound
 
Gear at hand
I've received my X5ii review unit at the same time as my custom EarWerkz Omega iems arrived. Being my 1st set of ciems, I was very critically attentive during my listening sessions with the Fiio X5ii. I also had received my Sony ZX2 a few days earlier, so there were a lot of switching back and forth between the Fiio X5, X5ii, the Sony ZX2, the new Omega ciems and my faithful Zero Audio Duoza's.
During the comparisons my Sony ZX2 was at 50-90 hours burn-in period, was using the Sony Music Player app with the following settings off: Clear Audio, EQ, DSEE HX, Dynamic Normalizer.
The X5 and X5ii were with EQ off
 
All my music library fits in one 128gb SanDisk microSD card, comprising of .FLAC, .wav, .mp3 files, I have no DSD contents to play with sadly. Those with DSD recordings will be interested to know that the X5ii has an "all new digital audio architecture, utilizing dual crystal oscillators dedicated to multiples of 44.1 and 48kHz respectively (including 176.4kHz=4x44.1, 192kHz=4x48 and DSD64 and DSD128 (multiples of 44.1), handling all major sample rates without resampling artifacts and minimal jitter", so no need for PCM conversion.
For all the hardware components, I'll refer the reader to the official product page where it's all detailed very clearly (http://www.fiio.net/en/products/41).
 
Test Tracks
Jardín de la Croix - 187 Steps to cross the Universe EP, especially the "Colorado Springs" track
Cowboy Junkies - live binaural recording by Immersifi (available free right here on Head-Fi forum in the free flac thread); track #1 to #8
Envy - A Dead Sinking Story album - #1 Chain wandering deeply and #2 Distress of ignorance tracks
Florence and the Machine - Lungs album
KOAN sounds - Forgotten Myths EP
 
Sound quality differences?
As much as I could write a page and a half about the difference of sound quality between my Duoza's and the Omega's I just can't reliably notice a difference between the 3 DAPs themselves while playing music. Aside from the hiss, the X5 and the X5ii sound the same to me (even with both equal volume dials). And when I add the ZX2, it's an eye opener on two fronts really. Yes the X5ii is just as good as my ZX2 in the music reproduction. The X5ii didn't feel lacking at all compared to the ZX2. The balance was right, the bass wasn't overwhelming and the trebble clarity was there. I might prefer the drums for a bit more details on the ZX2 but I certainly don't feel confident about it enough to certify in a courtroom for example. Sure ZX2 might not be at the optimal burn-in period but still.
Unfortunately I don't have any equipment/program to volume match the players so I could have a better way to compare.
Another factor why I had a hard time differenciating anything was the impossibility of instant A/B comparisons. Had I two cards I could have one inside each DAP and just switch jacks.
My other revelation was just how good the Duoza iems were as a pairing match for the X5ii and the ZX2. Everything feels just balanced, each parts given an equal footing. No instrument boasting over another. I like bass but not overwhelming bass that ruins the details of distinguishing each element. The Duoza/X5ii or ZX2 pairing avoids a boomy bass so I can actually enjoy the nuances of the bass guitar. The treble is clear and detailed always just below my sibilance treshold, the drum kit's hi-hats, cymbals and snare aren't relegated to the background, they have this sparkling pride, and lasting decay that gives me great pleasure.
The Omega's on the other hand are a bad pairing with the X5ii or the ZX2. Voices can be explosively uncontrolled, non seductive, aggressive. And when I say aggressive voice is not due to sibilance, oh no, the Omega's are completely immune to any risk of silibance whatsoever from any source possible. It avoids sibilance so much that drum kits feels muted, gagged, and relegated to the background. Treble is tamed hard. The electric guitars on the other hand are given immense power and ooze with omph goodness. Electric guitars definitely gets forefront emphasis; too much maybe because it overshadows the bass guitar details.
I seriously need to find a DAP to get enjoyment out of the Omega's.
But I digress, this ain't a review comparison about Omega's or Duoza's, but about the X5ii. And the X5ii still has this somewhat neutral flat signature that I long for (with bit of warmth). 
 
Hiss - background noise
The background noise comparison gave a cleaver cut divide. The EarWerkz Omega's are very easy to drive and overly sensitive, prone to hissing noise.
Using them one the X5 and ZX2 I get moderate hiss noise. The X5 is a bit hissier than the ZX2. When listening to most genres it's not audible, but on slower or more quiet tracks like solo piano or live acoustic it can be distracting. When on pause it's quite audible and annoying.
The X5ii was very suprising because it was in another category regarding background noise, when on pause it was quite low hiss, and inaudible during playback.
With my Duoza's, the X5ii is simply quiet even when on pause.
 
 
 
Battery life
 
With my usage habit of always locking the display after picking a track, and mainly flac listening I get around 10 hours of music before battery going out. Same as my X5. A nice average stamina but when you take into account the power output of it, it's good. The X5ii has 3300mAh battery, the X5 had 3700mAh. If I had to guess why they both having the same stamina despite lower battery on the X5ii has to come from the redesigning of power architecture regarding low and high gain.
 
 
 
Concluding ponderings & alternatives to consider researching/auditioning
 
I think that it's good to have options. Especially when I'm thinking of upgrading. Gives me clarity noticing what matters to me in the end. What functionality I can dispose of, what I can't do without anymore, to reveal what I'm really after.
 
Some questions I feel must be considered:
 
Do I honestly hear a difference noticeable enough to warrant such a price jump? 
 - At time of comparisons, with a burn-in period of 50-80h on my ZX2 , I found the X5ii equal sound-wise.
 
Can my ego take the hit for disappointment after HYPE buying? 
 - Hype and aspirations have to be allowed but also tamed.
 
Does the user interface help me or do I fight it too much? Does it hamper me getting me to enjoy my music? 
 - With my X5 it can take me up to 30sec of scrolling to find the music I want. With a touch sensitive Android based ZX2 it's immensely faster, I personally do no longer want to come back to an UI that doesn't allow a form of acceleration or faster scrolling. (Questyle QP1R and Cayin N5 I'm looking at you; that's why the X7 will get all my attention)
 
Am I ready to change my iem/headphone in case it doesn't pair well with my dap? Or would I prefer to change the DAP to match my gear?
 -Gotta have a matching pair to enjoy. If it sounds good to you, who cares if it looks like a downgrade.
 
To those interested about the Fiio X5ii, I'd suggest considering listening to the X3ii if budget is tighter.
Sidegrades possible are the QLS QA360, iBasso DX90.
Potential upgrades would be the Lotoo Paw 5000 (balanced headphone output and Bluetooth but with a fun/musical signature instead of neutral flat like the X5ii). If patience is your virtue, then these options open up as well, Questyle QP1, Cayin N5, Fiio X7 (to be released in mainland China in August, Fall worldwide).
 
And oh suggestion to consider =/= advise to buy  0
 
 
To me the X5 2nd Gen is clearly an upgrade to the original X5. Smaller, lighter, more tactile feedback makes it easier for me to handle. Very more quiet background (quite important with sensitive iems if you don't tolerate hissing noise). The X5ii can play DSD64/128 and play SACD .iso if you have those. The X5ii still has that great neutral sound with bit of warmth that I liked so much in the original X5.
It still has that oomph of power to not feel the amping requirement if you use iems and some cans. The stand-by mode is the cream on the top.
 
I'll conclude with this though, even if I had golden ears, and I don't -I only got to silver ears at the Phillips challenge before I gave up tired ^^- you only have your ears to enjoy your music. I doesn't matter if it sounds great to me; how good will it sound FOR YOU !?! Do your best to attempt an audition.
 

Introduction
 
Disclosure: I received a demo unit of the FiiO X5ii as part of an “Australian tour”. I’d like to thank Brooko for organising the tour and including me in it.
 
Background
 
10 years ago, shortly after it was released, I bought the iPod video 60gb, and it fundamentally changed the way I consumed music. I used it (and its larger capacity relatives) constantly for the next 8 years. The ease of use and the UI was incredible, as were the many playback features.
 
Then, early in 2013, I decided to finally take the leap and get a new DAP altogether. I did this for several reasons, including the need for expandable memory (I’m a bit of a digital music hoarder) and the ability to play a wider variety of files. I was also hoping for possible improvements in sound, although I think the sound from the ipod was good.
 
My first stop after the ipod was the iBasso DX90. I really enjoyed all of the extra features of the DX90, and I think it’s an excellent DAP. However, the UI, while functional, is a significant downside. Especially after the ipod, it felt like a downgrade in terms of UI. Then, about six months ago, I decided to upgrade from the DX90, mainly because of the UI. It might sound a bit insignificant, but I find that with poor UI, I also tend to listen to a smaller selection of artists and albums.
The upgrade came in the form of an AK100ii, after a long period of lurking the “for sale” section for a decently priced unit. The AK’s UI is really miles beyond, and I’ve been enjoying this nifty little machine ever sense. However, the DX90 does have some advantages and extra features which makes it still a very good DAP. As I still own the DX90, I was able to compare the FiiO to both the DX90 and the AK100ii.
 
About the review:
This review is my first ever experience with a FiiO DAP – I never owned one, or even listened to one. Right out of the box, it pushed my nostalgia button with the ipod-reminiscent look. I then loaded some micro SD cards with some of my favourite testing tracks. These include rock (Black Crowes), soul (Donny Hathaway), funk (Funkadelic), country (John Hartford), and jazz (John Coltrane).
My favourite portable headphone is the PSB M4U2, which I use daily, on public transport, at work, and even walking around. I mainly used this headphone to test the FiiO and to compare it to the other devices.
 
Sound
 
First, I enjoyed listening to all 3 devices and the differences were not very substantial. Having said that, I found the X5ii to have a generally neutral tone with perhaps a small hump in the mids. I think that the DX90 has excellent detail but it can also sound a bit sterile at times. The AK100ii brings in a similar amount of detail, but all those details seem to come together more smoothly and organically. Compared to these two, the FiiO held its own well. I thought it sounded a bit more neutral than the DX90. It had similar bass to the DX90, but the AK100ii has noticeably better textures in the bass department. It is hard to say anything definitive about the sound though, given that I didn’t do a proper blind testing, but I would say that the differences are not that big. Winner: Inconclusive without proper blind testing.
 
 
UI
 
In this category, the hierarchy for me is clear. The UI is the “Achilles heel” of the DX90, with fonts that are hard to read and many of the functions are not intuitive. The FiiO is definitely a step up from the DX90 with a more intuitive use, and a much easier to read fonts. However, the AK100ii is on a league of its own here. A huge improvements on both the DX90 and the FiiO. Winner: AK100ii
 
Power output
 
In this category, the more expensive DAP in the group is actually the weakest. DX90 seems to be the most powerful to high gain (3 gain settings), then the FiiO not far behind (2 gain settings) The FiiO should have enough power to drive every portable you can throw at it. Winner: DX90 and X5ii
 
Memory
 
Here, the FiiO has the advantage, with two micro SD card slots. The second slot, for me, more than compensate for the lack of internal memory. The AK has 64gb internal storage + 1 micro SD, while the DX90 has 8gb + 1 micro SD. Winner: FiiO X5ii.
 
Features
 
The FiiO and the DX90 both have some very useful features such as a separate line out port, multiple gain options, and OTG. While the AK lacks those, it does have its own unique features, including Bluetooth and wifi connectivity, although I don’t think that the AK utilises these well enough (the wireless file transfer is still unnecessarily clunkier than via cable. The X5ii does not have a touch screen, but I didn’t feel it was necessary because the wheel worked just fine for me. Winner: DX90 and X5ii.
 
Form and looks
 
The X5ii has a very nice metallic casing, which us similar to that of the AK100ii. The DX90 seems plainer, but it feels smooth and light. However, the AK has the best case out of the 3, and the large colourful screen makes it the winner for me. Winner: AK100ii.
 
Conclusion
 
The FiiO X5ii is a very good DAP with a simple but easy to use UI, and includes many helpful features. It has some significant advantages on similar DAPs in its strong output and dual micro SD. However, the file/folder – based UI still cannot compete with a well-executed android software and a big touchscreen such as on the AK100ii. However, given that the UI of the X5ii is significantly better than the DX90, I may have waited a bit longer before upgrading.

Disclaimer
 
I got this unit as part of New Zealand tour arranged by Brooko, thank you very much for including me in this tour.
 
Introduction
 
I am just another music fans in this world, I love listening to music, and that made me stumble into head-fi around 7 years ago when looking for the best way to listen to my music. I am not in anyway an audiophile, heck not even close, so please forgive any lack of details in my review. Most importantly this is my personal impression on the unit, most likely i heard things differently than you, my ears, my preferences, my brain
 
I listened to the X5 II daily in my commuting from home to work and in the office for about 10 days.
 
I have always wanted to try out the original X5 since the first time i saw it, it just looks so nice and majority of people seems to like them a lot, so i am very happy that I finally got a chance to try out the 2nd gen one.
 
I am going to compare the X5II with a Rockboxed 5th Gen Ipod. 
 
For the majority of my listening i am using Shure SE420 on my travel and Fidelio X1 on the office, i also try out other headphones with them such as AKG K500 and KRK KNS 8400.
 
Build Quality
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
Similar to the X1 and X3II, X5II is build in a similar manner, solid all metal body, really feel good in your hand, they are bit bigger than X1/X3/Ipod 5th gen but i really like the dimension, it just feel good in your hand. I had the chance to use the pre-prod unit and the final production version of the X5II as well, and i can happily report that the scroll wheel is so much better on the final production unit, they have more resistance and an obvious step to them compare to the pre-prod unit.
 
Interface
 
This kind of stuff never bothered me much, but if anyone need to know i found them very easy to use, no problem here, i kinda get used to the interface from my handling with the X1/X3II on my previous tour.
 
Deep Sleep
 
One thing that i really like is their ability to go to deep sleep without shutting them down, this feature was first introduced on X3II and thankfully stays on the X5II ,when i plugged out my earphone X5II will go to deep sleep after it's idle for a couple of minutes, when i plugged my earphone back it will resume the music instantly, awesome!
 
Sound Quality
 
Ok the most important part for me, sound quality, so how do they sound? I would say they sound neutral with a bit of boost in the bass region, it's definitely the most neutral sounding DAP from Fiio that i've heard, at least compare to X1 and X3II. They are transparent enough that when i change my headphones i can immediately hear the difference in the sound signature.

AKG K500 sounds really natural with them, but i love pairing KRK and Fidelio X1 better than K500, i am guessing because they just add more sparkle to the neutral sounding X5II. 
 
The X5II has enough power to drive any of my headphones without using any amps. I tried using headstage arrow 2g out of the line out but honestly i can't hear any major improvement, the X5II is fine as it is.
 
As mentioned above, i am comparing them to a rockboxed 5th gen ipod, i use Fiio headphone switcher to quickly compare the sound between the ipod and X5II.
 

 
 
So how do they fare againts 5th gen ipod? well to my surprise they sounded really really similar. I honestly expected the X5II to be miles ahead, but it's so much closer than that. They both share a
neutral presentation and similar detail retrieval (at least from what i can hear using the same source of music files). There is a difference of course! When listening to Acoustic Alchemy, guitar notes has longer decay on the X5II, the echo of the steel being pluck lasted longer on the X5II, it's interestingly sort of being cut short on the ipod, X5II also provide punchier bass than the ipod, this is all the difference without any EQ being used.
 
Let's not forget that the similarity ends there, the X5II just provide a whole lot more than just a simple music player, it plays DSD, it can act as a DAC (a good one as well, they pretty much just plug and play on my linux box), it's one DAP that can do (almost) anything.
 
Summary
 
Similar to the X3II, They are awesome, sounds good, feels good, work as DAC, work as DAP, and pretty much the only thing you need for your portable music solution, have two microSD slot so you can carry all the music that you need in the world.

While they are really good, i honestly still thing that X3II provide better value for money compare to X5II. If you got the money, X5II is the better sounding DAP, but if you're tight on a budget, the X3II come really close.
 
Note: I don't have the X3II for direct comparison with the X5II, the above statement is based on my lasting impression on them, so please take them with a grain of salt.

I’m sure by now, many people know of the tours that Fiio often hold for Head-Fiers interested in giving their line of DAPs a listen. The X5ii I have in my possession is part of the North American tour and also the third Fiio tour that I have participated in. I’m glad that Fiio has continued to send units out to give those interested in hearing their products a chance to listen to them in the comforts of their own home and set ups, and certainly hope to see more from Fiio in the future.
 
Fiio seems to have gotten their recipe down in terms of making their DAPs. Besides the soon-to-be released X7 DAP, most of their new generation DAPs have the same general layout and design – and it’s a design that I’d say works. You have your scroll wheel with the select button in the middle of the wheel, as well as the four buttons at the four corners of the front and the volume and power controls on the side.
 
The build of the X5ii is very good. Each generation, from the X1 to X3ii to X5ii has shown slight upgrades in the build. I don’t have the X3ii to directly compare the difference in size between it and the X5ii, but they’re certainly very similar. The upgrade from X3ii to X5ii gives you a brushed aluminum plate both in the front and the back of the X5ii, which makes the X5ii look just a bit better. In addition, rather than having rounded edges like the X1 and X3ii, the edges in the front have sort of a geometric angle to them instead – a change that I think really makes the X5ii look more aesthetically refined. I’m sure there are other changes that I’ve missed, but these are just the changes that I can recognize without having both in front of me.
 

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Build Quality and Ergonomics
• Sound Quality
  • High Gain vs. Low Gain
  • Comparisons to other audio gear
• For whom is this player good for?
• Conclusion

 
(Before I even begin with the introduction, I want to warn the reader that my review is somewhat lengthy. So I have included a table of contents above which you can click on to jump to whichever section you want. I’ll also include a tl;dr summary at the beginning of each major section.)
 
Introduction
 
Tl;dr: FiiO lent me the unit for my honest opinion, and a bit of background about myself.
 
Before I begin my review, I would like to thank Joe Bloggs and the rest of the team at FiiO for letting me play with their X5 2^nd gen (from now on referred to as the X5ii) for 10 days. FiiO has not paid me whatsoever in the making of this review and is only asking for my honest opinion.
 
A little bit about me so you know where I’m coming from: I consider myself to be a relatively inexperienced audiophile, having only taken this hobby seriously for the past 2 or 3 years. Funnily enough, I actually began to take an interest in my headphone system with the purchase of a FiiO E7, which was already a significant step up from the onboard computer audio that I was previously listening to. The next logical upgrade from there was the FiiO E17, which I bought and appreciated but soon found it a bit lacking in sound quality after I was exposed to different headphones and audio equipment. Fast forward a year or two, and after having been away from FiiO for a while I’m now looking for a great sounding DAP, which FiiO’s X series of players seem to be. So I’d like to thank FiiO again for letting me evaluate their excellent players.
 
A bit more about me: I actually haven’t owned a serious DAP (the only portable music sources I’ve used are a cheapo Sony Walkman and my smartphone) even at the time of this review – hence the relative lack of comparisons to other mobile sources. I actually also like full-sized headphones more than I do IEMs, so the focus of this review will be how well the X5ii powers headphones. As for what kind of music I listen to, I like a large variety including rock, pop, jazz, classical and orchestral, J-Pop and J-Rock, and C-Pop.
 
With all of that out of the way, let’s jump into the actual review.
 
 
Build Quality and Ergonomics
Tl;dr: Build quality and ergonomics are excellent, and are definitely worth the X5ii’s asking price. No obvious glitches with the firmware or the USB DAC functionality. Responsive UI and good battery life.
 
I’m not going to focus much on the user interface (it’s responsive and fairly intuitive) of the X5ii here as other reviews have already gone over that very well. But I do want to talk about how the X5ii physically feels and overall usability (including its function as a USB DAC).
 
First of all, the overall build quality is fantastic. It feels well-built, with enough heft so that it feels like it isn’t fragile at all. Edges are nicely smoothed out, so you won’t cut yourself on any angle of this player. I also really like the brushed metal finish of the player, and it reminds me of how FiiO built their older products such as the E7 and E17, which also looked particularly nice. I actually prefer this finish to the X3 2^nd gen’s (from here on referred to as the X3ii) smooth metal finish and how the X5ii ditches the plastic (?) cover on the back compared to the X3ii, because to me these changes make the X5ii look and feel classier.
 
 
 
 
 
 
The buttons on the X5ii are not too small, easy to press down and have good feedback. Of special note are how the volume buttons and the power button are located on the upper-left side of the player. Exactly as in the X3ii, I really like how the volume and power buttons are clearly distinguished from each other by having the power button recessed enough, and how even the volume up and volume down buttons are distinguished from each other due to the volume up button having a slight protrusion to it. I also personally like how the power status indicator (whether it’s charging, on, etc.) is now integrated into the power button. This may annoy some people who were used to the X3ii and how they just had to glance at the front of the player to see its status, but I don’t really think it’s such a big deal.
 
The scroll wheel of the X5ii seems to finally have one-to-one operation – that is, one click on the scroll wheel physically leads to one movement up or down in the UI of the player. The non one-to-one operation of the scroll wheel of previous FiiO X-series players didn’t really bother me before, but it’s nice to finally have the on-screen actions exactly correspond to each physical movement of the wheel.
 
 
Another thing that I want to mention is the screen of the X5ii. Wow, it’s a nice screen, especially considering the price point that it’s selling at and all of the other stuff crammed into its chassis. Compared to the X3ii’s screen, text is sharper, colors are much more vibrant, contrast is greatly improved, and viewing angles are much larger. Also, it’s much brighter and much more legible in sunlight (so it’s actually usable outdoors) compared to the X3ii, which was pretty much unusable even at max brightness in a lot of outdoor conditions. Honestly, I think the screen is one of the big reasons why FiiO charges more for the X5ii compared to the X3ii, because it’s that much better.
 
 
 
A quick note on USB DAC functionality – it works flawlessly, and I couldn’t find any bugs or glitches with the X5ii when using it as such on Windows 7/8/8.1 (which I can’t say the same for the X3ii). And FiiO has now included a detailed but easy-to-read instruction guide on how to set up the driver and even DSD playback on Windows when you download the driver. Nice, FiiO!
 
Finally, I wanted to quickly mention battery life. I’ll just say that the X5ii lasted about nine hours driving my modded Fostex T50RP (a bit of a difficult headphone to drive) at a volume of 55/120 on high gain. This was with the X5ii playing a mix of CD quality audio, high-resolution PCM (24 bit 48 kHz files and above) and even DSD. I would say that’s not bad, considering the greater voltage swing capabilities under high gain mode.
 
Sound Quality
 
Tl;dr: The X5ii’s neutral signature allows it to pair well with a variety of sound signatures. The X5ii drives lots of full-sized headphones with authority, even when compared to desktop equipment. There’s not a big difference in sound between the high and low gain modes. While the X5ii does well against its little brother, the X3ii, and even against some desktop units, the X3ii offers much of the X5ii’s sound quality for a lower price, which kind of diminishes the X5ii’s value.
 
Now here’s the part that everybody is interested in. How does the X5ii sound?
 
Before I go on, I would like to mention that I primarily used the following headphones to evaluate the X5ii: Klipsch Image X10, Sennheiser HD598 and HD700, HiFiMAN HE-400i, and Fostex T50RP (self-modded).
 
Overall, tonally I would say that the X5ii is extremely similar to the X3ii, if not identical. That is, it has a very neutral sound signature, with perhaps a (very) slight dark tilt. To me, this allows the X5ii to pair well with a variety of headphone sound signatures. For example, the X5ii’s neutral character allows me to enjoy warmer sounding IEMs and headphones like my Klipsch Image X10 and my self-modded Fostex T50RP (which I purposely tuned to be warmer) without overly suffocating me with warmth. The very slight dark tilt also allows me to enjoy brighter headphones such as the HD700, which manages to sound very clear without being very fatiguing on the X5ii. Of course, the neutral nature of the X5ii also allows listeners to enjoy the relatively neutral HD598 and the HE-400i as they are.
 
Soundstage is of medium width – it’s not the biggest soundstage out there, but it isn’t exactly small. The X5ii also has good depth and layering to its soundstage. Imaging and separation is also done well too, so that one can clearly distinguish where sounds are coming from since they aren’t all mashed together. The X5ii also has pretty good detail retrieval, and even the most complex of music never sounds blurred or smeared together on this player.
 
One strength of the FiiO X5ii is that it can drive most full-size headphones without much problem, even when compared to full-sized desktop units. It had no problem whatsoever powering my Klipsch X10 or Sennheiser HD598, nor did it have any problems powering my Heiman HE-400i or Sennheiser HD700. Heck, it didn’t really have too much problems powering my modded Fostex T50RP or even the HiFiMAN HE1000 beta unit. The latter was especially surprising, since the HE1000 is a relatively power hungry beast, but the X5ii actually made the HE1000 quite enjoyable to listen to (though obviously the headphone didn’t sound its best here).
 
High Gain vs. Low Gain
 
An interesting feature of the X5ii is that the low and high gain modes don’t only affect the gain of the volume – it also toggles between different voltage swing modes, so that in low gain there is a lower voltage swing range to save power, and in high gain there is a larger voltage swing range to drive more power-hungry headphones but also consumes more power in the process.
 
While FiiO says that in high gain mode the voltage swing range is 40% greater than in low gain mode, does this really make a difference in how a headphone or in-ear monitor sounds?
 
After volume-matching between the different gain modes using an SPL meter with C-weighting, to be honest the differences are extremely subtle. In fact, I would say that with most types of music (with the exception of classical, as we’ll see below), one will be hard-pressed to find any meaningful differences in direct comparisons.
 
For example, with the 35 ohm impedance planar magnetic HiFiMAN HE-400i, under high gain mode with non-classical music, I thought I heard that drums to perhaps have a bit more impact, the bass to seem to be slightly more controlled, and perhaps the more minor elements in the mix to be slightly more defined and separated from the rest of the music. However, with classical or orchestral music, I heard a bigger difference. There seemed to a sense of greater effortlessness to the sound with mids and highs being slightly less raspy and grainy, subtle nuances in changes in the volume were more obvious, and the sound seemed to be a bit more airy in that I could hear more of the room reverb in the recording. For example, the sound string instruments such as the violin and erhu seemed to reverberate more distinctly in the air with high gain mode.
 
With the 150 ohm dynamic Sennheiser HD700, I pretty much heard the same subtle differences between high and low gain mode. However, there was a subtle, but audible difference to its bass presentation between the two different gain modes no matter which type of music I listened to. While the HD700’s bass did not necessarily increase, the bass seemed to go deeper and hit harder under high gain mode. But again, this wasn’t a huge difference and did not fundamentally change the nature of the headphone.
 
Overall, the high gain mode to my ears does sound a bit better, but you really wouldn’t be missing much if you choose to listen in low gain mode as opposed to high gain mode.
 
Comparisons to other audio gear
 
Note: All of the following comparisons were done under volume matching with a C-weighted SPL meter.
 
Vs. the FiiO X3ii
 
How does the X5ii’s little brother fare against it? Quite well, in fact.
 
Before I go further, I listened to the X5ii’s high gain mode and the X3ii’s low gain mode (because I could not hear a single difference between the X3ii’s high and low gain modes).
 
The X5ii, compared to the X3ii, has more refined and smoother edges to its notes. The X5ii is slightly more detailed, though the greater perceived detail is more due to the blacker background (of which I explain more below) The X5ii also has more emphasis on the sub-bass rather than the mid-bass as opposed to the X3ii, as well as the bass being more solid, coherent, and overall of better quality than with the X3ii.
 
In regards to soundstage, while the X5ii has a slightly larger soundstage, the depth between the two FiiO players is really about the same – I could not detect a difference in the latter aspect.
 
One of the biggest differences between the X5ii and the X3ii is that the X5ii has a blacker background. This in turn affects lots of parts to the sound. With a blacker background, I find that not only does everything sound a bit clearer, there is better separation on the X5ii so every instrument (and vocals) comes through more clearly and distinctly in the mix compared to the X3ii. With better separation, the X5ii also seems to have a bit more accurate imaging and slightly layering imaging capabilities. That is, with each sound more separated from each other, you are better able to perceive where the sounds are coming from horizontally and how far or close each sound in the music is from you. On the X3ii, occasionally instruments will sound like they’re on top of each other, while I find this not to be the case with the X5ii.
 
Another big difference between the two FiiO DAPs is that the X5ii is much better able to drive power hungry headphones. However, this isn’t as big of a difference you might think it to be. This is because I honestly could not say that the X5ii sounded like it drove the Klipsch X10, Sennheiser HD598 and HD700, or even the HiFiMAN HE-400i with any more authority than the X3ii. However, there was a pronounced difference between the X5ii and the X3ii when powering the modded Fostex T50RP or the stock HiFiMAN HE1000 beta unit. With the modded T50RP, while the X3ii slightly sounded underpowered with slightly grainy mids and highs, the X5ii did not sound underpowered at all. With the HE1000, there was a huge difference in that while the X3ii definitely sounded underpowered with grainy mids and highs as well has only producing a small soundstage, the X5ii eliminated this graininess to the higher frequency sounds and produced a much larger soundstage. (I find that the HE1000’s soundstage tends to shrink in when underpowered.) But how many people are actually going to buy a DAP like the X5ii and use it to drive something crazy like the HE1000? That is why I say that the difference between the X5ii and the X3ii in terms of driving power is not as big as you might think my words would imply, since the difference is only really apparent with very power hungry headphones.
 
Overall, going along with the general theme of the previous paragraph, the X5ii definitely is a step up in terms of sound quality compared to the X3ii, but it’s not a night and day difference and is somewhat subtle. I know that I’ve described what seems to be a lot of upgrades in the sound quality of the X5ii compared to the X3ii – but I will say that I’ve actually had to listen to the two players in direct comparison very closely for quite a while before I could actually articulate these subtle differences. Basically, while these differences will be apparent to the most sensitive audiophiles, most people are going to be hard-pressed to tell any big differences between the sound of the X5ii and the X3ii, especially if they compare the two only for several minutes. Admittedly, this does kind of diminish the X5ii’s value relative to the X3ii – but this is not to say that the X5ii sounds bad or doesn’t even sound better than the X3ii at all.
 
Vs. the Aune T1 mk1
 
How does the X5ii compare to a desktop unit? Specifically, the Aune T1 mk1 which for the purposes of this evaluation I’ve outfitted it with an upgraded Amperex Orange Globe (OG) tube? (The T1 mk1 and the OG tube altogether cost me about $200.)
 
In short, to my ears the X5ii sounds better than the T1 even with the upgraded OG tube.
 
The X5ii and the Aune T1 mk1 with the OG tube are comparable in soundstage size – both in width and depth. Both also do well and are equally good in layering, imaging, and separation capabilities. Surprisingly enough, even though Aune claims the T1 mk1 can deliver 1000mW of power into 32 ohms (compared to the X5ii’s 245mW into 32 ohms), I felt that the two drove headphones such as the HE-400i, HD700, and even the T50RP with equal authority.
 
While I felt that the X5ii and the T1 with the OG tube were equals in terms of the aspects above, I also felt that there were a number of areas in which the X5ii was better. The X5ii seemed to have smoother, more refined notes to its sound compared to the T1 with the OG tube. I could also hear the “airiness” and more reverb of the sound in the recording environment more easily with the X5ii. The X5ii also not only had more bass, it also had the deeper and more detailed and texture bass compared to the T1 with the OG tube.
 
Overall, while I felt that the X5ii and the T1 were comparable in a number of areas, the X5ii wasn’t worse in any single area and in fact bettered the T1 in some parts of its sound. So to me, the X5ii is the clear winner of this comparison.
 
 
For whom is this player good for?
 
Tl;dr: The X5ii is good for those who want the best as of now from FiiO, as well as those who have hard-to-drive headphones. But many others might want to gravitate towards the X3ii instead.
 
The X5ii should be considered by anybody who’s looking for good-sounding, mid-priced DAP due to its fantastic build quality and ergonomics as well as its sound quality. Also, anybody looking for a reasonably priced portable source looking to drive more power hungry full-sized headphones should also give the X5ii a serious look. I would also say that the X5ii is good for anybody looking to minimize their collection of audio equipment by having just one source for both home and on-the-go usage, since the X5ii is able to drive a wide variety of headphones and IEMs very competently and has flawless USB DAC functionality.
 
However, the X5ii’s own worst enemy is its own little brother, the X3ii. For anybody who is not extremely sensitive to how their source sounds, doesn’t really care too much about the screen, like the slightly smaller size of the X3ii, doesn't need/doesn't care about the extra features of the X5ii (such as the two micro SD slots and not having a 5800 song limit), and/or has easier to drive headphones, they should probably look at getting the X3ii, since that offers much of the sound quality of the X5ii for a lower price.
 
Conclusion
 
Tl;dr: The X5ii is a great sound player that’s definitely worth its asking price. However, many people (and their wallet) may be served better by the X3ii.
 
Overall, I feel that the X5ii is a great-sounding DAP that is especially useful for difficult to drive headphones and physically feels as if it’s worth every cent of its asking price. It’s a great portable music player.
 
However, for those who don’t necessarily want the best sound but still want great sound, they might be better off with the X3ii, which I find to be fairly close in terms of sound quality to the X5ii but for a decently lower price (and it’s a bit smaller too, which helps portability though the X5ii itself isn’t huge). But for anybody wanting the best of FiiO, the X5ii is definitely the way to go.
 
While the X5ii is overall a great DAP with no real flaws, the fact that the X3ii exists and offers an amazing value leads me to give the X5ii 4 out of 5 stars. (Add another star to that if you really care about the better screen, the two micro SD card slots, and the greater than 5800 song limit because there are no real big flaws to the X5ii.) Don’t get me wrong, the X5ii is still a great player and is still a good value – it’s just that for most, the X3ii may be the even better value.
 
Thanks for reading my review of the X5ii!
 

I really like this DAP but it does is make me want to get a top one. At times it really delivers and then on some tracks the vocals take a back seat.  I was debating on the ipod 6 with bigger storage or this. I find it very neutral with a nice sound stage. Its track dependent as some songs suffer. I copied all my iTunes songs and some ripped cd's and even some flac files and the unit is hard to figure out. I am constantly adjusting the volume even a few flac tracks. The ipod touch is  louder and works very well with all low impedance headphones/iems where as the FIIO is not as consistent. It can drive my 650's and he400i's at larger volumes but still is track dependent. When I a/b the ipod with it the FIIO sounds cleaner and I actually hear more but like I said the vocals can be recessed. The ipod is a more fun unit but I really like the clarity of the FIIO. If you love your ipod and music and need to replace it. Buy  another. The ipod is still a great portable music player with wifi/Bluetooth and a very good sound. If you want to listen analytically to experience sound and move into the audiophile(not sure its a gift, more like a curse) DAP's the FIIO X5 seems like a good starting point but it may make you want more which means a lot more $$$$ like an Astell and Kern ak240. Technically the FIIO is a better DAP but the ipod touch is more fun/practical/portable, easier to use, cheaper and can do more than just play songs. My ipod 16gb is low on storage but it still gets the bulk use of my listening. The FIIO I am still trying to figure out how to enjoy it more. 
 
Edit: Well I spent the day with FIIO and changed some IEM tips and found my Westone w40's really do well.  Even my audiofly af78's which I never used much of(changed tips) sounded great. Some tracks still need volume bumps but I have to admit its a very relaxing experience listening to the FIIO X5. I then put on my ipod and I was surprised that I felt the music was not clear and I actually didn't like the loudness. I noticed micro distortion. I have no carrying case or protector for the FIIO so its not going to be used on the go. That's fine the ipod does the job and it's clearly a great portable music player. I was never one for a forward  sound but I am tempted to try the Shure 535's with the FIIO X5 might be a good match to put some fun into them.  So I have to say my Ipod will now be an outdoor dog only.

Firstly, I'd like to thank Brooko for including me on this product review tour. I did not purchase the X5 and have only had a week with the unit. Though, in my opinion, a week is nowhere near enough to fully evaluate a DAP or any kind of source gear (I know from experience, as I'm still learning new things about DACs I've had for over 6 months), please take my opinions with a grain of salt or two.

 

Introduction

I don't think I need I need to tell people about the legacy that is FiiO. FiiO has been bringing a lot of very well designed budget priced gear for a few years now, and continue to flood the market with some of the arguably best pound-for-pound portable and tabletop source and amplification gear to date. With great build quality, technology, user experience and cheap prices, they blow away their competition.
So it's not surprising that I was very excited to get my hands on the new X5, which to date is FiiOs TOTL DAP. I came into this review with extremely high hopes that it will absolutely blow me away with exquisite sound, build and user experience quality. While it didn't exactly live up to my expectations, I can only blame myself for putting it up on such a pedestal. My impressions were mostly positive, but unfortunately not where it matters most to me. Let's get into it...
 

A little about the FiiO X5

Normally, this is where I'd post the juice specs, but as the FiiO X5 has so many, I'd rather just post the link to the FiiO website for you to have a gander yourself. Saves me from flooding the pages with a giant table of numbers. 
 

FiiO X5 2nd Gen Specs: Click Here

 
 

 

Conclusion

Again I will parrot that I believe the amount of time spent is not enough for me to properly review any DAP or source. The X5 is a beautifully designed and built device. It has a truly top of the range UI and features packed to the rafters. But for me it lacks in the most important aspects that I look for in a DAP. I may have ruined my expectations of it by putting so much pressure on it to sound really, really good, but for a TOTL DAP can you really blame me. All I can do now is cross my fingers and really hope for the X7 to blow me out of the water like the X5 should've.
 
Cheers!
 
 

Not as stylish as an A&K but very well built, apart from the flimsy wheel. Good materials and nice finishes and overall intiutive U.I. give a quite nice experience.
First of, some APE and DSD files won't play. Some will play only from the files. It doesn't happen that often but it is driving me mad.
The sound is quite pleasing, very detailed, smooth and warm even when using flat and clear phones like the AKG K550. The sound stage is quite narrow compared to the Ibasso Dx90. It doesn't shut down the trebbles like the previous X5 so the extention is not anymore an issue. It lacks air and sounds a bit artificial, not that musical, which is disappointing especially when listening to classical music only like myself. With my Shure Se215 it sounds a bit like you are being locked in a silent room in some kind of mental institution. Not fatiguing at all , quite relaxing but I will be looking for some clearer IEM's.
Everything is well controlled, pleasing but not very truthfull to the original recording, tonally speaking. Same result when plugged (line out) to the Marantz PM6005 + B&W CDM1.
It made me think of when they introduced Dolby : very impressed at first and later realising it couldn't be further from a live concert.
The only long term comparison I can share is with my ASUS Xonar STX sound card (Muse02) : The PC is the clear winner even though the Fiio is more relaxing.
At the end you just realise a 400€ DAP will never sound like a true hifi system, and that's understandable. I would be really interested to hear a double DAC A&K or Hifiman to compare.
Decent performer but no miracles !

Many thanks to Brooko for arranging this tour unit
 

Pros:

External Playlists:
 
Pretty much my number one priority after sound, this took some fiddling to get working from my Mac/iTunes but I got there in the end. This feature could do with some work (see Cons) but is, I’m happy to say, operational!
 
Size, Build, Feel:
 
Nothing to complain about here, the X5ii is very well built, the fit and finish are to a high standard and it feels great in the hand
 
Interface/Usability:
 
 
Pleasantly surprised here, I had no issues during the short period I spent - it played all my formats with no issue.
 
Line out (analogue)
 
This is an important feature for me, I hooked it up to my home system and it sounded great
 
Price
 
The X5ii has a lot of features, and as such I feel is keenly priced 
 

Cons:

There's not many!
 
External Playlists:
 
I have this in both pros and cons: pros because it's there and it works, cons because I'd like it to be better - took me a while (and a few crashes) to get it going which might put off some users, I'd also like to see them showing up in categories and to show album info whilst browsing
 
Interface:
 
Hopefully Fiio will continue to improve the interface, including adding album artist, showing artist and album info when browsing tracks and playlists 
 

Sound:

Tested mainly with JH-13 Pro and against my Hifiman HM-801:
 
I found the X5ii to have a black background with good levels of detail, in my opinion surpassing the HM-801. 
 
The X5ii has a warm, smooth and slightly bassy signature with large left to right separation.
 
I initially liked this sound but as time went on thought that the sound was a little too flat and without energy, the left to right is there but the front to back is slightly missing for my sound preference
 

Summary:

The X5ii has so much going for it at the price point and I really enjoyed using it, I personally prefer a livelier presentation so will be interested what the X7 has to offer

Firstly a big thanks to Brooko and Fiio for providing me the X5ii for review. I am not affiliated or been financially compensated for the review.
 
I have had a plethora of DAPs for review in the past couple of months so this provides an excellent base to work off and judge the relative strengths and weakenssess of the X5ii.So without much ado, lets dive into it.
 
The package was very simple but smart and had all the necessary cables and other accoutrements
 
The FiioX5ii retails at USD$349 and the accessories and the build quality feel pretty solid and well worth the price. No shortcuts here from Fiio and the X5ii should last a fair bit.
 
To start with the exterior, its nicely finished metal and carries a smooth finish and well weighted buttons throughout although the wheel like the previous version still needs a bit more finesse and better gearing as it tends to slip a bit. Other than the wheel, the rest of the buttons are great to work with.
 
The interface also seems to be much more tidier and streamlined compared to the X5 and thats a big plus point for the newer version but internally it still seemed to mess up the ID3 tags and some playlists although that might be due to incorrect tags or mistakes on my side.
 
 
Without much ado lets jump to the meat of the review.
 
Treble: The treble is best described as being very smooth with good extension but lacks the very last bit of sparkle and openeness. Guitars come across as crunchy but need just that extra bit of sharpness and sparkle alongwith the cymbals. The treble just seems to linger about without really coming upfront, something the X5 was really good at.
 
The mids are very slightly recessed compared to the original X5 and while the majority of the mids sound just fine and clean, there is just a very tiny bit of cloudiness in the upper mids which could need a bit more cleaning to standout and probably the reason why the mids seem slightly recessed compared the the X5.
 
Coming to the bass, its clean, very tight and delivers the right amount at the right time without interfering with the rest of the spectrum. Could use a bit more punch and impact but I reckon it would satisfy most overall critical listeners who might find excessive bass a turn off and intrusive.
 
The biggest roadblock in the X5iis way is the Original X5, there I said it!!
 
To elaborate, I listened to the original X5 for a fair bit and was astounded by the price to performance and the overall sound quality. The Line Out on the X5 was a revelation and the Headphone section was very clean too with barely any frequency humps or anything else out of order. As much as I tried I just couldn’t love the X5ii considering the original was an absolute 180 from the typical warm Fiio house sound and delivered a fantastic sound signature, which somehow was lacking from the X5ii.
 
I tried both the Fiios extensively in my car with a pretty comprehensive setup and the X5ii just seemed to go back to the “Fiio of old” sound which while listenable is not what I am guessing it was aiming for.
 
 
Tracks used:
ATB- See You Again. FLAC 16/44
 
Digimax & Javiera Mena - Complejo de Amor. WAV 16/44.
 
Hammer & Bennett – Lost. FLAC 16/44.
 
Alizee- Veni Vedi Vici. 320 kbps mp3 16/44.
 
Kraftwerk-Das Model. WAV 16/44.
 
Javiera Mena – Otra Era 320kbps mp3 16/44.
 
 
 
The headphones used were:
 
JVC FXZ200.
 
JHAudio JH16.
 
Sennheiser Amperior.
 
MDR-SA1000.
 
Maddog 3.2.
 
JVC-SZ2000.
 
 
 
 
 

Just on sound quality, meh. It's very quiet, and detailed, but on my main headphones, AKG K712, the mid-treble balance is just too bright. The bass is nice and deep and honest, and midrange is OK, not particularly sweet or warm. In all a very analytical and a little tiring to listen to.
 
To put it in perspective, a headphone amp I heard that to me was MUCH worse than this is the Oppo HA1. If that is an amp you like though you'll love this one too.
 
To my ears and multiple headphones, the Pono is much better than the X5II or Oppo HA1 either of these two. The Pono is also currently more expensive, and has far too limited storage as well as an eco-system I don't want to jump into.
 
The X7 with it's Tidal support is really kind of ideal, but twice the price as the X5, and I've never heard it. The DSD capable UFO DAC's are also GREAT sounding, almost as good as the Pono, but were not portable and mine died after 60 days.
 
I'm really really sad this isn't going to work by itself. Perhaps the K7 warms up the sound, I'll update if I can later. EnjoyTheMusic's review says it does good things for it. Of course you could argue I could get different headphones, but last audio show I went to the AKG's sounded really good on most amps except the Oppo, so I don't think they headphones are the outliers. Of course, please your own ears, not mine.

THOSE GREEN BARS DO NOT REPRESENT THE RATINGS I GAVE.  THEY APPARENTLY CANNOT BE CHANGED WHEN I EDIT MY REVIEW.
 
i participated in one of the fiio x5ii tours.  i would like to thank fiio and all those who helped organize the tour.  i was eager to participate because i almost bought an x5 [1st gen] but then decided on a dx90 - i'd never heard either when i made that decision and wondered how they compared.  so given a chance to listen to the x5ii, i signed up.  my goal was to compare sq on the two daps. 
 
i am grateful for the opportunity provided by fiio, and feel badly to post a critical review.  yet if a friend were to ask me for a recommendation, it would not be the x5ii, and i wanted to share my honest observations with the head-fi community.  
 
other reviews describe the physical object, the interface and controls, and i'm not going to repeat all that.  i will just discuss sq.
 
the music i used to evaluate it were the following tracks, all redbook, flac encoded:
 
charlie hayden and pat methany - first song for ruth  - i use this the evaluate bass. hayden goes very deep in his solo.  a four string bass gets down to about 30hz, a five string about 25hz.
 
melos quartet - schubert's quartet 14 "death and the maiden" - 2nd movement - andante -   i use this track to evaluate treble - the violin can get up to about 3500hz and of course produces overtones as well.  the first violin in this movement has runs getting quite high.  i also listen to the cello to see if the richness of the instrument is fully conveyed, and i listen to hear how well the individual instruments are defined.
 
radu lupu- schubert piano sonata 18 - 1st movement - i have 8 versions of this sonata and lupu's is for me head and shoulders above the others.  in the first movement the left and right hands sound pretty far apart, i.e. the left hand's bass is quite separate and distinct from the right hand's treble.
 
kleiber vienna phil - beethoven's 7th symph- movements 1 and 2 - i use this to hear how the massed instrumental sections sound.
 
these are tracks i have heard many times and know very well.
 
my method was to first listen to a track on the x5ii and then on the dx90, and then check my impressions by listening again on the x5ii.  i listened directly from HO via my k812's - the best headphones i have that can without doubt be driven by these daps without any extra amping.
 
i had certain expectations as i approached this evaluation.  from things i'd read, i expected the x5ii to sound somewhat colored and, in particular, warm.  the first thing i noticed when i listened to the hayden/methany cut was that my expectation was wrong.  the x5ii sounded quite pleasant and quite neutral.  "hey," i thought, "this is pretty good."  i was shocked, however, when i played that cut through the dx90 - there was a ton of bass i was experiencing that had been missing from the x5ii.  without the comparison i don't think i would have noticed, but the difference was enormous.  the bass gets low enough that i felt vibration in my lower throat and upper chest.  as a check, as i am writing this i am playing this track through my speaker system- and there's very deep bass, bass that the x5ii did not convey.
 
next i played the schubert quartet movement.  this sounded nice but the violin sounded a little thin.  i wondered if the dx90 would sound much different.  when i played it through the dx90, though, my immediate reaction was "AIR!" - something i hadn't thought about and wasn't looking for but it hit me in the face.  the sound was much more open and the 4 instruments more well defined.  i noticed that the cello sounded much richer - there's that difference in the bass frequencies showing up.  the violin sounded more textured, thicker.  i suppose this means that there are more harmonics reproduced, but i really don't know what is happening at the technical level.  the difference is comparable to a painting done with acrylics compared to the same image done in oils.
 
i decided to listen to some piano music and queued up lupu.  the left hand sounded muffled and distant, almost missing.  again the dx90 gave full accounting to the bass frequencies and the left hand was contributing fully.
 
i then decided to listen to some orchestral music.  here the difference was the increased texture and richness of e.g the massed violins in the 2nd movement.
 
i said i had certain expectations - the 2nd expectation i had was that the differences between these daps would be subtle and take work to discern.  this had been my experience when i compared the dac sections of the dx90 and the ifi idsd.  i had used coax out of the dx90 to run the signal through the ifi's dac and amp, and compared this to using the dx90's dac and running a line out to the ifi's line in so that the signal would go through the same amp.  i went back and forth many, many times before i finally concluded that the dx90's dual sabres revealed a bit more detail than the ifi's dual burr-browns.  i expected this comparison to be like that.  it wasn't.  the differences were very marked.
 
obviously this was not a blind comparison, and i suppose i could be somehow conditioned to the dx90's sound.  otoh i actually do most of my listening through my speaker system - vortexbox -> squeezebox touch -> DSPeaker anti-mode [just set to correct the room's effect on the bass below 150hz] -> nad c375 bee -> focal chorus 836v.  it is really my speaker system sound which is my reference for both daps, and through which i have great familiarity with my chosen test tracks. also, the differences were shockingly MUCH greater than i expected.
 
so i feel a bit of an ingrate saying all this, but this is what i heard.

Can’t believe nobody has commented on the lack of an extremely basic feature that exists on 99% of MP3 players but missing from this and many other Fiio units — which is the ability to bookmark. Without it, this player is garbage IMO — making it impossible to listen to audiobooks and flick between different books and music.
 
Fiio developers have had dozens of people pleading with them since 2014, (all there in google on their forums) begging for this most basic functionality. Supposedly their support / forum moderator made the devs aware of this as something to: ‘maybe make it into the next firmware’. Well it did not — in any firmware on any of their products in over two years. They listened — but chose not to ignore the requests. Even in assembly language, adding this functionality is a few days work max by any competent programmer.
 
I’m not interested in reviewing the hardware or sound quality in this review — as the only thing about this product and company that is noteworthy, (and not in a good way) is the contempt it has for its customers. I have only just bought the X5ii and it was obsolete before I even received it, (given that it had it’s final firmware in June 2016) which still did nothing to address bookmarks.
 
I don’t care if Fiio was able to make a product that had £30,000 worth of sound costing £300 — when missing the most basic functionality — it is garbage. As is their ability to address their paying customers very reasonable requests, (that Fiio has known about for at least two years).
 
If they had omitted the ability to pause it would be no more annoying. This player and this company are a joke IMO. I will be taking a lump hammer to my 1 week old unit — as that will be the only satisfaction this player will ever give me.
 
******* response to Cinder below -- as I can't comment on their comment *******
 
Are you a Fiio rep ? I’ll assume you didn’t take a cursory look in Google — otherwise you’d have seen you’re mistaken with regard to my: ‘making a mountain out of a mole hill / loan nut’ assertion and see there’s plenty of people saying the exact same thing.
 
You’re right about one thing —  I’m a little salty on it. £269’s worth of salt to be exact, (not USD which is all the form accepts).
 
You seem to suggest that valid criticism of a product is unwelcome and dismiss it as: ‘fix in a few minutes / user error’, (by creating a playlist). However, there are people who call a spade a spade and afford no product or company sacred cow status if dissatisfied with a product. 
 
A playlist is not a bookmark — nor can it ever serve that function; (some audiobooks have dozens and some even hundreds of files). I’m sure you don’t really think that the majority of all mp3 player manufacturers that do have bookmark capability took the trouble to implement an unneeded feature. I don’t even think I could find an Mp3 player without it, (except for the one I just bought).