E500 to be or not to be: X5=in, ipod=out

[Michael Chan]

I used to be a happy owner of E5C. Now I am even happier with my new E500 (love the details over E5C). I have been using non-amped 5G ipod because of its compactness, the click wheel, itunes and coolness etc. For SQ it was not bad to me (almost all my files are lossless format) so I pretty much did not follow other countless mp3 player in the market at all. I have been blind until recently I noticed the existence of many glowing praises about Cowon X5 -- please forgive my ignorance. I am aware there are actually many people saying X5 is with THE best SQ and is MUCH better than ipod. It is quite an impact to me. As much as I love my new E500 and appreciate its superior SQ, now I begin to have some doubt whether my ipod can truly bring out the most of E500? Will X5 can reflect more details of E500? Will the ehancement be significant? It really makes me feel itchy. Could anybody give me some advice before my investment? Thanks in advance.

 

[afobisme]

haven't heard the IPOD with good headphones, but i can tell you that the iAudio X5L sound GREAT with my e4cs.

the main reason why i bought my X5L was because of the rave reviews i'd heard about its sound quality... and let's just say i definitely wasn't disappointed.

i'm selling my X5L though, since it's too bulky (any hard drive mp3 player is) for my tastes.

 

[Altoids]

I second that. The X5L is significantly bulkier than the ipod (the regular X5 isn't, though), but the SQ is much better out of the headphone out. Add rockbox and it's just about unbeatable as far as portability + sound.

 

[afobisme]

i wouldn't say significantly... but it's noticeable (not really that bad).

hm i would add rockbox to the player, but it would void the warranty.. to me at least, it sounds a little bright but the sound quality is pretty damn good. only thing i can compare it to is the audigy pcmcia notebook version that i had... and the X5 noticeably beat it.

 

[creyc]

I find the iPod (at least the 5th gen model) to be rather good compared with whats out there. Perhaps not the best, but I've only heard the X5 briefly and didn't notice any "startling" improvements. If its better it's quite subtle.

A major concern for me on portable players an sensitive IEMs however is the noise floor. I find using an in-line attenuator really helps with IEMs. Otherwise there are situations where I'm using the lowest possible volume on my iPod and yet I would still like to make it a bit softer or louder. The attenuator helps with this and greatly lowers the noise floor by requiring the volume to be up a bit.

 

[nothing111]

I think the E500 sound great with the X5L. Definitely the best sound I've heard from any DAP/IEMs combo, and I don't even use an amp. And I never really liked the X5L with the E5c, at one point I almost sold it.

That's with FLAC files and heavy use of the different SQ options (12-6-0-0-2 on equalizer, BBE 1, Mach3bass 6, MP enhance on, 3Dsurround 1). I've tried Rockbox on the X5L, but the sound was not as good as with the original firmware. And there was a lot of distortion when using the SQ.

The only "problem" is there's still some hissing/white noise with the X5L and E500, which increases with the volume. But the problem was exactly the same with the E5c.

 

[Michael Chan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nothing111 I think the E500 sound great with the X5L. Definitely the best sound I've heard from any DAP/IEMs combo, and I don't even use an amp. And I never really liked the X5L with the E5c, at one point I almost sold it. That's with FLAC files and heavy use of the different SQ options (12-6-0-0-2 on equalizer, BBE 1, Mach3bass 6, MP enhance on, 3Dsurround 1). I've tried Rockbox on the X5L, but the sound was not as good as with the original firmware. And there was a lot of distortion when using the SQ. The only "problem" is there's still some hissing/white noise with the X5L and E500, which increases with the volume. But the problem was exactly the same with the E5c.

Thanks for the advice. Have you ever tried the combo ipod/E500 and really come out the conclusion that X5/E500 was better?

 

[Michael Chan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by creyc I find using an in-line attenuator really helps with IEMs. Otherwise there are situations where I'm using the lowest possible volume on my iPod and yet I would still like to make it a bit softer or louder. The attenuator helps with this and greatly lowers the noise floor by requiring the volume to be up a bit.

Attenuator? Sorry for my ignorance. Could you please explain more?

 

[Altoids]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Chan Thanks for the advice. Have you ever tried the combo ipod/E500 and really come out the conclusion that X5/E500 was better?

Don't know about him, but I've A/B'ed the two systems with the E500 and the X5 was clearly better. Though, if Rockbox isn't important to you, I'd go with the Zen Vision:M. It took considerable tweaking to make the X5 sound as good as the Zen does out the box, but Zen doesn't support lossless or ogg to my knowledge. Once Rockbox gets to it (or the Gigabeat) the X5 will be useless.

 

[Michael Chan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Altoids Don't know about him, but I've A/B'ed the two systems with the E500 and the X5 was clearly better. Though, if Rockbox isn't important to you, I'd go with the Zen Vision:M. It took considerable tweaking to make the X5 sound as good as the Zen does out the box, but Zen doesn't support lossless or ogg to my knowledge. Once Rockbox gets to it (or the Gigabeat) the X5 will be useless.

Thanks! I got it. Makes me more itchy to get a X5... I know Zen Vision:M is a good machine too in many aspects but for the very issue of SQ I haven't heard it's praises as much as X5.

 

[nothing111]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Chan Thanks for the advice. Have you ever tried the combo ipod/E500 and really come out the conclusion that X5/E500 was better?

Unfortuately not. But I had a 1st gen Ipod one day, and I didn't like the EQ possibilities at all. If the 5th gen is the same in that regard, I guess there wouldn't be enough bass, at least for my tastes. But if you don't like to EQ I guess Ipod would still be a good choice.

 

[Michael Chan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nothing111 Unfortuately not. But I had a 1st gen Ipod one day, and I didn't like the EQ possibilities at all. If the 5th gen is the same in that regard, I guess there wouldn't be enough bass, at least for my tastes. But if you don't like to EQ I guess Ipod would still be a good choice.

Thanks for the kind advice again. Guess our tastes are rather similar (E5C & bass-loving). Yes, the EQ of ipod is really crappy. However, EQ or not I expect X5 can provide a better original direct output. So far what I heard was quite positive.

 

[afobisme]

when my friend comes over, i'll try her ipod out with my e4cs... see if i can tell a difference.