[violinvirtuoso]

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That's the kind of silly logic that gets people dumping loads of money on scams like HiFiMAN, when testing (on the 801 at least) has shown that it performs little better than a $40 Sansa Clip in most areas.

 
From what I have heard, the HifiMan HM-801 sounds much better than the Clip+. Whether that improvement is worth the extra money is up to you, but the improvement is definitely there to be noticed. In other words, testing doesn't show all.

 

[tds101]

Well, I came to a realization today: I was/am interested in the HUGE beautiful monolith type DAP called the ColorFly - so why shouldn't I give this a try instead?!?!?! The X7 is big, so is the ColorFly AND the hifiman. I should learn to expand my preferences, and the X7 is now my open door.
 
I'll be ordering it as soon as it's released here in the USA, and I'll post my opinions after I have a little honeymoon time. Either a black or Barney purple X7 in 160gb shall be my next addition to the family.
 
Also, I really hope there's a Head-Fi meet soon in NYC, so I can finally get to try one of the hifiman DAP's. Hopefully someone will also (I PRAY!!!) have a ColorFly on hand. I'm dieing to test out some of these players and drool into a lobster bib.

 

[HipHopScribe]

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From what I have heard, the HifiMan HM-801 sounds much better than the Clip+. Whether that improvement is worth the extra money is up to you, but the improvement is definitely there to be noticed. In other words, testing doesn't show all.

It's ultimately subjective whether or not someone finds the sound to be superior when they listen, but RMAA have shown that it's not superior in most technical measures, so I have to wonder how much praise is due to confirmation bias. This isn't a thread about the HiFiMAN, however, so I don't want to derail it even more.
 
Getting back to the X7, what really matters is that just because Cowon doesn't throw out as many dazzling audiophile superlatives or because they offer educational configurations for their device does not mean that sound quality has been ignored in producing this device.

 

[violinvirtuoso]

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It's ultimately subjective whether or not someone finds the sound to be superior when they listen, but RMAA have shown that it's not superior in most technical measures, so I have to wonder how much praise is due to confirmation bias. This isn't a thread about the HiFiMAN, however, so I don't want to derail it even more.
 
Getting back to the X7, what really matters is that just because Cowon doesn't throw out as many dazzling audiophile superlatives or because they offer educational configurations for their device does not mean that sound quality has been ignored in producing this device.

Cowon hasn't made this a brick so it sounds great, instead it seems they made it a brick so that it has insanely good battery life.

 

[Hero Kid]

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But still there's a question- how much of that gorgeous SQ you can admire while walking down a crowded street or while traveling by bus or metro.

Yeah it completely depends on the individual. My portable listening includes studying in library's (quite and allows me to fully enjoy better sounding devices) as well as going on holidays (hotels and the likes). For some people portable is on the go and for that I think too many people get carried away with attaining sound quality for such activities. However if your environment allows for submersive listening without distractions, go go higher end gear.

 

[penartur]

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That's the kind of silly logic that gets people dumping loads of money on scams like HiFiMAN, when testing (on the 801 at least) has shown that it performs little better than a $40 Sansa Clip in most areas.

*facepalm*
I'm not saying hifiman has stellar sound quality, i've said that all the claims "there are people who are purchasing hifiman because of its SQ, so they will purchase X7 as well" are silly.
Ones who believe hifiman has SQ that no other DAP has and want stellar SQ, will purchase hifiman independent of its weight and battery life. They would not purchase Clip or X7.
Others, who don't believe hifiman has SQ that no other DAP has or want not only SQ but great battery life/weight/dimensions/etc, will purchase iPod, or X5, or even clip (if the capacity is not that important for them), but, again, they would not purchase X7.

 

[penartur]

 
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Cowon hasn't made this a brick so it sounds great, instead it seems they made it a brick so that it has insanely good battery life.

It is likely, that quoted 103 hours are for playing off flash memory. It is not "insanely good" for 212gm brick, it is not even "good", it is "so-so".

 
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Getting back to the X7, what really matters is that just because Cowon doesn't throw out as many dazzling audiophile superlatives or because they offer educational configurations for their device does not mean that sound quality has been ignored in producing this device.

All this applies to X5 as well. People who are purchasing hifiman, are purchasing hifiman, not X5, so why would they purchase X7?

 

[tds101]

QFT!!!
 
I agree, as the X7 may have certain somewhat slightly outdated specs, but the battery life and damn fine SQ are 2 great features that stand the test of time. I'll be adding this to my collection the minute it's released, as I mentioned prior. I'm willing to deal w/the larger size, as it'll last a long time on road trips and at airports. And it'll sound wonderful.
 
 
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Cowon hasn't made this a brick so it sounds great, instead it seems they made it a brick so that it has insanely good battery life.

 

[yooss]

I haven't been reading this thread for some time, and you guys have discussed here a lot. Here's what I (and many others in the Korean forums) think.
 
From a Korean perspective, this IS a study tool, nothing more, nothing less, which leads me to the conclusion: the X7 will be a FAILURE outside the Korean market, and I think Cowon knows that. Most of the PMPs that were initially designed as study tools inside Korea has never been that successful in the overseas market, let alone some downright failures. I even think that there is a possibility for not even releasing them outside Korea. Low spec(video capability similar to S9), huge size, extremely heavy for something marketed as a MP3 player. 
 
Well, these are just my opinions, so if you find them attractive, go buy one!

 

[RAFA]

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I haven't been reading this thread for some time, and you guys have discussed here a lot. Here's what I (and many others in the Korean forums) think.
 
From a Korean perspective, this IS a study tool, nothing more, nothing less, which leads me to the conclusion: the X7 will be a FAILURE outside the Korean market, and I think Cowon knows that. Most of the PMPs that were initially designed as study tools inside Korea has never been that successful in the overseas market, let alone some downright failures. I even think that there is a possibility for not even releasing them outside Korea. Low spec(video capability similar to S9), huge size, extremely heavy for something marketed as a MP3 player. 
 
Well, these are just my opinions, so if you find them attractive, go buy one!

Do you know any release date? If it is out in korea, it might be out on ebay too. If it has a good price, I will probably buy it.

 

[yooss]

I believe the release date is 14th. 

 

[RAFA]

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I believe the release date is 14th. 

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLRRRIIIIGGHHHHTTTTTT

3 days to wait. Its big and ugly, still I am excited about it. (Paypal Account in preparation)

 

[tds101]

Well, I'm still interested in getting this, even if it is a huge edamakasionaminal brick. It's even got a big enough screen to view/read comics on, not the highest res, but workable. Me likey, and that's that.

 

[yooss]

Ah, the price. The official price is decided, in case you don't know yet.
 
* COWON X7 80GB : 249,000won
* COWON X7 120GB : 299,000won
* COWON X7 160GB : 339,000won
 
 
The currency is like 1100won=1usd. 

 

[RAFA]

For those who live in europe:
 
249000won ~ 160 €
 
299000won ~ 195 €
 
339000won ~ 220 €
 
BUT, there is the possibility that it will be more expensive, because of the profit margin ebay sellers want and tax.