[Jack C]

Quote:

is the silicone jacket part of the bundled accessories?

 
Yes it is, and it appears to be black in color. The photos we took of the E7 was from a pre-production sample, which had a clear case. It looks like production packages not only includes a silicone jacket, but also a pouch. Due to the limited supply, we didn't open any of the production E7's to take updated pictures. As faithful practitioiners of gagetry, we believe the initial box-opening experience is strictly between the gadget and its owner.

 

[MorbidToaster]

I got mine in the mail yesterday and it's pretty much been in my ears the whole time. I paired this with a few mediocre pairs of earbuds, and my HD 25-1s. They really give a noticeable boost to the HD 25s even though they're 70ohm. I'll post pictures of my rig soon, FiiO E7 & Fiio LOD with a 160gb iPod Classic. They go great together.
 
Oh, and the bass boost is MUCH better than the E5s. It sounds more natural, I found that the boost on the E5 actually made it sound worse, not the case here.
 
EDIT: Been listening to the new Pendulum album, and it makes Drum N Bass sound even better. Granted, the album isn't great, but that's beside the point. c:

 

[MorbidToaster]

Since getting my E7 I've been thinking of a black silicone case for my iPod as well simply so they match. It'd look great >.<

 

[Hung0702]

Sorry, it is already scratch-sresistant panel! but it can be compare with glass panel which is used on iPhone!
 
We may provide a screen protector from the third batch!
 
 
James from FiiO!

My apologies for jumping the gun. The plastic seems comparable to BlackBerry screens and the Clip's casing. I've had both for a few months and neither have any scratches.

 

[JamesFiiO]

It is ok! not need to apology! All you are our God! just want to let you know the fact!
 
We will try our best to improve the quality as we can! BTW, we adopt lots of advice from Head-fi, and used in E7! hope all you can enjoy it!

 

[Berserker]

This amp is tempting...

 

[ericp10]

Just ordered mine.. So far I have been very satisfied with Fiio products (own the E1 and E5).

 

[koonhua90]

Same here, following Eric's footstep. This is just what I need, a competitively priced amp/dac combo.

 

[nsx_23]

x3. Bought one out of pure curiosity.

 

[Jack C]

Wow... you guys be sure to share your impressions with us.
 
Jack

 

[Mochan]

I just received my E7. It is a wonderful product. All the naysayers... are missing out on what is possibly the best buy DAC/Amp of this year. If last year the uDAC was the best deal to get, this year I think the E7 might be it, and I'm confident to say this not even halfway into the year. Of course I could be wrong but in general I think this is a prime choice for anyone looking for a portable DAC/Amp under $100.
 
For sure we'll have people saying that something so cheap has to be junk, but I really don't think this is the case, it sounds wonderful and the construction and aesthetics are top quality as well. I can't believe this is actually an $80 product.
 
I will say a few things, though:
 
* Great DAC, but not as good as the Mamba
* Great Amp, but not as good as the Little Dot Q
* The bass boost is excellent for bass heads. Level 3 also widens the soundstage considerably
* Can drive anything from TF10s to Turbines to 300 ohm HD650, 250 Ohm Beyers and the K701 with pleasing results
 
I will do further listening to this, on hand will compare with the P4i and will soon compare with iBasso Boa and other amps. Will also hook this up to the uDAC later once I receive it. Anyway this gadget is really, really nice.

 

[kmhaynes]

Do these ship from outside USA (from China)?  If so, I assume shipping is longer than 5-7 days to USA?

 

[BlutoSlice]

* Can drive anything from TF10s to Turbines to 300 ohm HD650, 250 Ohm Beyers and the K701 with pleasing results

 

 

Let me start by saying I am really enjoying my E7 which arrived on my desk this morning and has according to the sys clock 11HRS 52mins run time all of which have been happy listening. I have only tried the DAC and like the results with my 50ohm HD555 but I think its a little underpowered even at full volume as I hit the max quite easily although it still sounded as good as I have heard them . I can't imagine the E7 has enough juice to drive 300ohm cans but I'm sure Mochan can elaborate, on the easily driven HFI-780s at 40/60 vol it nearly blew my ears off. This is my first DAC and can only compare it to my Xonar DX HPO it nearly matches SQ but the Xonar wins due with extra EQ and power to better the still decent e7 bass boost.  I dont feel qualified to dip into the audiophile dictionary for a bigger review I'll leave that to the more experienced tho it totally outclasses my CMOYBB that's for sure... oh and it's so shiny its practically mirror finish. 
 
Edit: My lower volume on my work PC was due to mixer settings .doh.. the E7 has more power than first thought.

 

[Hung0702]

I'm pretty busy this week as well. Thought I would have time for a proper review, but it looks like it's going to have to wait at least another week.
 
10 hour impressions? Incredible. I haven't heard the uDAC for any significant amount of time, but with the E7 I get the same initial "Wow" that I got with the NuForce DAC. As an amp (I have to double-amp, unfortunately), it's been stellar and audio is as clean as I could hope. While it's not ABSOLUTELY black, your experience won't be spoiled by hiss during listening (your audio track probably has more hiss during the "silent" segments). The bass boost, by and far, beats any software EQ I've heard. The bass is really the only region that receives an appreciable boost, while the mids and highs sound exactly as they should (still sparkly on the RE0s, with the bass I've always wanted). I LOVE the little touches that show exactly how thoughtful FiiO is (2 audio-out jacks and including pretty much every accessory you would ever need).
 
Does it beat similarly priced amps or DACs? I don't have the experience to say. Has FiiO released a combo product that is literally the BEST value of all time in source gear? Still not enough experience to say.
 
But I wouldn't be surprised if someone with a little less green behind the ear could respond to these questions with a solid "HELL YES."
 
And the best part: INSANE BATTERY LIFE! The indicator reads full and I've listened to it for 11:25 (USB charging OFF). Proposed 80 hours = you can listen every waking minute of a week before you need to plug it in (not considering the fact you'll be using it as a DAC). With my highly sensitive IEMs, the volume never exceeds 15 (else my eardrums explode), so I wouldn't be surprised if 80 hrs is an underestimate. From the quality of this product, I have no qualms about trusting their numbers "under laboratory testing environment." For the battery life alone, it beats any amp I can recall.
 
As a DAC/amp, I really can't suggest any improvements (outside of the firmware, which I hear can only be upgraded with a special cable and not USB?). There's just one thing that would make this PERFECT: its own audio player

. Imagine an affordable HM-801! Put the equivalent of a Sansa Clip in this thing + expandable memory and I'd pay double the MSRP today. Seriously, I'd buy it right now. Even though I love the convenience of Rhapsody-to-go, I'd have no problem reacquiring that music if it didn't support DRM.
 
I'll try to make a more evaluative review when time permits, but if you're plagued by low-powered, low-quality sources, this IS the fix (cheapest as well). But hey Micca, any idea if the price is going to drop soon? I'm still waiting to see if this plays out:

Price Guarantee: This is preliminary pricing, if actual price is lower within 60 days, we will refund the difference to you upon request

 I'm a pretty cheap guy, so expect a request 

 

[nonsupremous]

 
Quote:

Do these ship from outside USA (from China)?  If so, I assume shipping is longer than 5-7 days to USA?

Did you order these from Head-Direct?  If so, you can probably guarantee longer than 5 to 7 days.  When I ordered my E5, I should have received them in 3 days.  Instead it took 20 days.  I'm only 4 states away from the NY office.  I was REALLY unhappy with that.  Not because it takes 20 days, but because I was not told.  I just kept checking my tracking number everyday to see if they had shipped.  Finally 18 days after the order, the notice came that they just left NY.  Hopefully you will have a better experience.