[Buddhasense]

No, there is not a BIG difference.  That said, there is a noticeable difference.  The X5ii is more resolving and has a slightly broader soundstage.  The differences are more nuanced than they are "night and day."

I've owned a few around 15 Apple iDevices (various iPods, iPhones and iPads) and nothing sounds as good as the X5ii.  The only portable device I've owned that sounds better than the X5ii is my Entrance M8, but it's a total pain to use on-the-go.  


What sold me on the X5ii was the following:

• It's bulletproof.  Arguably built better than any iPod classic.
• The UI is descent, but not as sharp as Apple (yet, but FiiO is getting there).
• The storage is expandable.  Although I am a raving Apple fanboy, I detest the logic of Apple to not allow for storage expansion.
• I'm weird and I don't want my DAP to also play Angry Birds, to have a camera, a flash, check email, surf the web, be bluetooth and wifi enabled.  I have an iPhone for that.  I just want it to store a ton of my music, not crash, be easy to navigate and sound great.
• Well, it sounds great!
• It has an easy line-out to pair with a portable amp for more demanding headphones.

The Apple devices lost me when they went to the Lightning port.  The audio from the Lightning port is no longer analog so you have to use the headphone-out to amp, which is actually double amping.

Don't expect the X5ii to be the Second Coming of Christ, but it's very-very good.  I think it's FiiO's most thought out, sharpest device to date.

You're forgetting dynamics. Ipods have next to none. If you listen to complex stuff with a lot of layers like Nine Inch Nails or classical music the difference is indeed night and day. On an ipod you end up having to increase the volume to harmful levels in a vain attempt to penetrative the Vale.

 

[Mestizo75]

Hi
 
Im new to head-fi, but have some questions.
 
I use iPhone and iPod Nano for portable players with my headphones.
 
But I think the volume is a bit to low, when turning it up to maximum.
 
Is this because the amp in iPhone and iPod is not powerful enough to drive the headphones?
 
My headphones are by the way, B&W P5 Series 2, B&W P7 and B&O H6.
 
Volume is not a problem when I use the Apple EarPods.
 
How is the amplifier in Fiio X5?, will I be able to play louder with a Fiio player?
 
Sorry for my bad english.

 

[bruce1967]

You're forgetting dynamics. Ipods have next to none. If you listen to complex stuff with a lot of layers like Nine Inch Nails or classical music the difference is indeed night and day. On an ipod you end up having to increase the volume to harmful levels in a vain attempt to penetrative the Vale.

I have to agree. When I purchased my FiiO X3ii I found more than a little difference in the sound quality between my old ipod touch 5th gen and the FiiO X3ii. Now with the X5ii I find it to be an upgrade over the X3ii but not as dramatic as is over the ipod touch but still noticeable enough.

 

[Brooko]

You're forgetting dynamics. Ipods have next to none. If you listen to complex stuff with a lot of layers like Nine Inch Nails or classical music the difference is indeed night and day. On an ipod you end up having to increase the volume to harmful levels in a vain attempt to penetrative the Vale.

 
Depends on the model.  iPhone 5S is pretty darn good - and there isn't a "night and day" difference. No doubt to me that the X3ii & X5ii is better for music.  Why - because it plays more formats, has more power, has expandable memory, and has a decent EQ.  But volume matched (with an SPL meter) and testing blind, the SQ is almost up there on the iP 5S, and it has no lack of "dynamics".
 
Sounds  a little different - yes.  Sounds hugely inferior - no.
 
Can't speak on your generalisation about iPods though.

 

[mochill]

fiio x5ii with beta 1.11 is awesome sauces

 

[bruce1967]

  fiio x5ii with beta 1.11 is awesome sauces

I agree with that! I can't believe how good the scroll wheel is now...smooth and accurate.

 

[SoulSyde]

  Thank you for expanding on that. It was very helpful. Is the UI on X5 laggy (don't have any stores that sell the X5, so I can't check for myself)?
 
Could you further expand on the audio from the lightning port thing? Won't the certified MFi cable work the same as using a camera connection kit?

 
The UI is not as snappy as the iPod Touch or iPhone but it's also operating with much less processing power.  It's about as snappy as I recall the iPod Classic being.  I would call it "acceptable" but not "industry leading."  It's not a deal killer in my opinion.
 
With regard to the lightning port, the only audio signal is digital.  There is no analog signal like there used to be on the older 30-pin port.  This means that you cannot pull analog audio from the lightning cable into an external amp without the use of a DAC in between.

 

[mochill]

IPod classic slow in comparison

 

[bruce1967]

   
The UI is not as snappy as the iPod Touch or iPhone but it's also operating with much less processing power.  It's about as snappy as I recall the iPod Classic being.  I would call it "acceptable" but not "industry leading."  It's not a deal killer in my opinion.
 
With regard to the lightning port, the only audio signal is digital.  There is no analog signal like there used to be on the older 30-pin port.  This means that you cannot pull analog audio from the lightning cable into an external amp without the use of a DAC in between.

Probably more snappy than the iPod classic as far as I can tell. It seems to have alot of lag.

 

[HiFiDJ]

I see. Thanks for the info!

 

[SoulSyde]

 
Probably more snappy than the iPod classic as far as I can tell. It seems to have alot of lag.

I really have no idea what you mean by "a lot of lag."  The ONLY lag I have with the X5 is the play screen switching the name and album art from track to track if I skip a track.  The rest of the UI is quite snappy and I've experienced no lag with the audio when switching tracks.

 

[El Zilcho]

 
I really have no idea what you mean by "a lot of lag."  The ONLY lag I have with the X5 is the play screen switching the name and album art from track to track if I skip a track.  The rest of the UI is quite snappy and I've experienced no lag with the audio when switching tracks.

 
 
I think he means that the iPod Classic has a lot of lag.  I'm guessing this because of the "Probably more snappy than the iPod Classic" part of his post.

 

[Luvdac]

Beta 1.11 is tops! Fixed all my scroll wheel issues, but would really like an update that allows me to increase the font size for my poor aging eyes.

 

[bruce1967]

 
I really have no idea what you mean by "a lot of lag."  The ONLY lag I have with the X5 is the play screen switching the name and album art from track to track if I skip a track.  The rest of the UI is quite snappy and I've experienced no lag with the audio when switching tracks.

I mean the ipod classic has alot of lag not the X5ii.

 

[bruce1967]

  Beta 1.11 is tops! Fixed all my scroll wheel issues, but would really like an update that allows me to increase the font size for my poor aging eyes.

Yes, a larger font would be nice,