[ABx009]

  I don't consider myself as having a really good ear, but I've noticed quite a difference between FLAC and playing the same track straight off CD. (Using repeated, blind AB testing)
 
Is there a preferred method, or program that (as close to perfectly as possible) converts CD into FLAC files?

I use J River Media Center. It does pretty much everything, and has lots of audiophile options. The only downside is that it might take some fiddling to get it the way you want it.

 

[StanD]

Grrrrh 

 UPS. Someone is trying to figure out what a FiiO E18 is. Mine was delivered, but not to me. I ordered from Amazon of which the order actually is through Micca. I called Amazon about an hour or so after I got a delivery confirmation from UPS via email. Here's where Amazon shines, the next day they gave me a refund. Once I got the email about the refund, I called Amazon and said that all I wanted was my product. They said, "just order it again," so I did. So, now I wait again.

 

[cswann1]

  I don't consider myself as having a really good ear, but I've noticed quite a difference between FLAC and playing the same track straight off CD. (Using repeated, blind AB testing)
 
Is there a preferred method, or program that (as close to perfectly as possible) converts CD into FLAC files?

 
 
I use Exact Audio Copy to rip CD's to .mp3 and FLAC (for archiving/backup).  You'll need to download the .mp3 and FLAC codec and configure EAC to use them.
 
EAC gives you lots of tools to get your music off of a disc and onto your storage media the way you want it.  It even has a powerful, scripting type interface for naming and organizing your music files.  You can created folders and sub-folders for artist, album, disc, etc and have the file names created pretty much however you want them.  

 

[BillsonChang007]

   
 
I use Exact Audio Copy to rip CD's to .mp3 and FLAC (for archiving/backup).  You'll need to download the .mp3 and FLAC codec and configure EAC to use them.
 
EAC gives you lots of tools to get your music off of a disc and onto your storage media the way you want it.  It even has a powerful, scripting type interface for naming and organizing your music files.  You can created folders and sub-folders for artist, album, disc, etc and have the file names created pretty much however you want them.  

I'm using XLD 

 

[Rayzilla]

  Does anybody know if the final charging light will stop blinking when the E18 is fully charged? Or will it just continue blinking? Because I've been charging it for about 4hours it should be full but the light's still blinking.

When it is fully charged, all of the lights will shut off. If it is still blinking, my understanding is that it is still charging. I generally try to use USB to charge it because I remember reading somewhere that the slower the charging method, the better it is for the battery. I don't know how true that is, so if anyone that knows better, I would like to hear your thoughts.

 

[Rayzilla]

I posted these pics in another E18 thread.
 

 

 

 
 

 

In this picture, the E18 is very comfortable to hold (along with the Note2). I find that the back of the Note2 is very slippery, so the E18 actually makes it easier to hold (aside from the added weight of course). It is also very easy to grip or hold the E18 & Note2 when you are not viewing the phone, i.e. when walking around with the phone while your arms are swinging during your walk.
 

In this picture, I could have placed the E18 a little higher and it would still not interfere with the camera. In fact, I could attach it so that the bottom of it is just about 3-4 millimeters below the Note2. But if I want to take a picture with the phone, I would have to disconnect the headphone because the cable would be right in front of the camera lens.
 
Like this.

A self-portrait.
 
Let me know if you have any questions or if you need more pictures.

 

[Rayzilla]

Looking forward for your impressions. Specially interested in of you find the buzz aznatama is describing.

 
I do not hear any of the buzz that has been mentioned.
 
I am not very good at describing the audio effect so I'll be pretty simple with my explanations. I have been listening mainly to hardstyle music, i.e. Hardwell, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Calvin Harris, and the like, so my comments will be quite limited. I have been testing them primarily with my Ed8 and my Pro 900. I use PlayerPro.
 
Overall, the E18 does its best at making the bass more full. Not sure how to describe it but it sounds like there is more deep bass as well as mid bass. The bass is also quite a bit cleaner. This is even more apparent on lower quality recordings, which some of the live recordings from Tomorrowland and other dj music events are. It helps clean up the muddled bass in these recordings. 
 
It seems to have a greater impact when used with my Note2 than compared to my MacBook Air (using USB connection). I guess that is because the DAC in the MBA is already pretty good compared to the Note2? 
 
Sorry if this is not very helpful. Please let me know if you have any questions and I'll try my best to answer.

 

[Za Warudo]

  I want a dac/amp combo for my portable headphone/iems but I'm not sure if I should get the E18 for my Galaxy S4 or the X3 DAP.  The X3 costs $40 more but comes with a free Brainwavz R3 iem which retails for $130 on Amazon.  I don't really need another iem so I might sell it to cover the price difference.  Is the DAC and amp on the E18 so much better than the one on the X3 to warrant getting it?
 

 
Can anyone here advise me on this?  Other than the difference in SQ I'm concerned about the track order listing messing up on the X3 and gap-less playback problems.  However the interference might be a problem with my AT&T GS4 if I get the E18.

 

[botakgorilla]

  When it is fully charged, all of the lights will shut off. If it is still blinking, my understanding is that it is still charging. I generally try to use USB to charge it because I remember reading somewhere that the slower the charging method, the better it is for the battery. I don't know how true that is, so if anyone that knows better, I would like to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for your reply. Yes I found out that when it is fully charged, the lights stop blinking. All 3 lights stay on though. On the part about the slower the charging the better, I highly doubt it because for e.g. the Note 3 comes with high speed charging with the USB 3.0 cable via a USB 3.0 port. And btw I do agree with you on how good it feels holding the E18 with a Note 2/3. It's heavy but it makes me feel like a boss lol. 

 

[reginalb]

I am having issues with my phone that might be the cause of this, but my E18 doesn't seem to work with my Galaxy S4 (which I have used other USB DACs with and not had any issues) nor does it work with my Nexus 10 (no issues with it - other than this not working). In both instances, the playback control buttons work, but there's no sound. The phone actually seems like it's trying to route the sound, as it stops making the noise itself, but my headphones get squat. 
 
Works fine with my laptop, but that's not why I got it.
 
Also, for those wondering, there is pretty significant interference from my Verizon S4 if I try to stack them. 

 

[n2it]

  Is there a preferred method, or program that (as close to perfectly as possible) converts CD into FLAC files?

 
I really like dbpoweramp.  Fast and efficient, great tagging (you can compare 4 sources), can rip to multiple formats at once (e.g. I rip to MP3 and FLAC at the same time), Secure / Accurate ripping (compares to other rips of the same album to give you a confidence rating of rip quality).

 

[imeem]

Just curious, when will Canada Computer carry the e18? Canada Computer is an authorize seller. 

 

[headsounds]

I really hope I don't have any problems with the unit they've sent me. Seems like there is already huge quality control issues.

 

[Ashade]

I do not hear any of the buzz that has been mentioned.

I am not very good at describing the audio effect so I'll be pretty simple with my explanations. I have been listening mainly to hardstyle music, i.e. Hardwell, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Calvin Harris, and the like, so my comments will be quite limited. I have been testing them primarily with my Ed8 and my Pro 900. I use PlayerPro.

Overall, the E18 does its best at making the bass more full. Not sure how to describe it but it sounds like there is more deep bass as well as mid bass. The bass is also quite a bit cleaner. This is even more apparent on lower quality recordings, which some of the live recordings from Tomorrowland and other dj music events are. It helps clean up the muddled bass in these recordings. 

It seems to have a greater impact when used with my Note2 than compared to my MacBook Air (using USB connection). I guess that is because the DAC in the MBA is already pretty good compared to the Note2? 

Sorry if this is not very helpful. Please let me know if you have any questions and I'll try my best to answer.

It was very helpful man. Thank you very much. Only one question, which carrier do you use with your note II?

Can anyone here advise me on this?  Other than the difference in SQ I'm concerned about the track order listing messing up on the X3 and gap-less playback problems.  However the interference might be a problem with my AT&T GS4 if I get the E18.

Check this answer and look over the thread, ClieOs can help you better.

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/posts/add/threadId/685414

 

[Coupe]

   
 
It seems to have a greater impact when used with my Note2 than compared to my MacBook Air (using USB connection). I guess that is because the DAC in the MBA is already pretty good compared to the Note2? 
 
 

 
It is probably because the MBA is providing more amplification than the Note 2.  This way the difference when you use the E18 there is not as much of a difference, from a current, voltage.
 
I listened to PRO-2900s during the weekend and, A-B to headphone out on the HTC One, you can tell the E18 is providing more current.  I feel similar to what you post, more expansive bass, but a slight bit tizzy on the highs.
 
Going to bring the PRO-900s for the commute.  Let's see what it does there.