[Riley Beale]

Does the Ifi match have any durability problems?  I won't be hard on it, but I have had Apple accessories that were similar made by not Appe like this for ipods and they none of them lasted a month.  I was not hard on the gear.  It was just really bad products.  I later looked at the review for those products and they were terrible.  In short I am a little concerned about this.  Would the Fiio X5 3 pair well with my V-Moda M100?  I have asked some people and I guess I do listen a lot quieter than most people even when on the tractor and such.  How is the battery life?  I will be powering the Fiio X5 3 down completely when not in use not putting it in deep sleep.  The hiss I thought I heard on my X5 1 was actually tinnitus that gets louder when something is in or covering my ears.  My laptop is the only thing that hisses that I can really hear.  Would this pair well with my Shure SE846 from what I have described?  I really want a DPX1A, but my cell phone bill went way up due to having to upgrade in the middle of a contract due to many warranty issues so I cannot afford a DPX1A at all now.
 
Thank you
 
Riley

 

[psikey]

Maybe its your hearing? I can certainly tell improvent of a Mojo over DFR for example with my SE846's. This will be my first DAP in years.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[psikey]

Does the Ifi match have any durability problems?  I won't be hard on it, but I have had Apple accessories that were similar made by not Appe like this for ipods and they none of them lasted a month.  I was not hard on the gear.  It was just really bad products.  I later looked at the review for those products and they were terrible.  In short I am a little concerned about this.  Would the Fiio X5 3 pair well with my V-Moda M100?  I have asked some people and I guess I do listen a lot quieter than most people even when on the tractor and such.  How is the battery life?  I will be powering the Fiio X5 3 down completely when not in use not putting it in deep sleep.  The hiss I thought I heard on my X5 1 was actually tinnitus that gets louder when something is in or covering my ears.  My laptop is the only thing that hisses that I can really hear.  Would this pair well with my Shure SE846 from what I have described?  I really want a DPX1A, but my cell phone bill went way up due to having to upgrade in the middle of a contract due to many warranty issues so I cannot afford a DPX1A at all now.
 
Thank you
 
Riley

My ifi Match may arrive tomorrow but I don't get hiss from Mojo/DFR/S7 anyway to test but will comment on build quality etc. and see if it alters audio quality now with what I use.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[br4lin]

The specs are more than impressive, I wonder how their pair with my k10s

 

[McCol]

I'm eager to hear my Fidue Sirius in balanced mode, not had that pleasure yet. Awesome earphomes as it is and hoping for a wee step up in sound when using balanced. Know it wont be a massive difference though.

 

[Dobrescu George]

  Few things unclear with this:
 
Perhaps it's better to measure the sources' parameters than rely on different set of headphones. This tend to provide the most accurate results.
 
I don't think any sort of Fiio's implementations of EQ can be compared to the level of Rockbox' EQ, which can be set for any individual frequency range. Cover art display feature shouldn't really matter to musical content. Music player interface is OK, but Rockboxed Clip+ offers so much more from crossfeed, Haas surround to extra filters and FX.
Performance per watt for Clip+ is also a whole lot better - with more than 20 times less power consumption.
 
Apart from Clip+ and maybe few unknown models, X5III doesn't offer OGG-Opus or WavPack support.
 
What has the fact of K240DF being discontinued has to do with anything?
 
May I ask what's your testing methodology then?
 

Damn, is sharing one's opinion considered now provocative?

 

 
 
Here some kind opinions that I have, please take them with the same kindness I write them 

 
1. Measuring the parameters is good - but it never tells the whole story with something complex like music. Example: my phone is arguably more energetic than my old phone (Xiaomi mi MAX vs HTC 820). The sound is more dynamic, much better and brighter top end, but bass is nowhere close as fast as x5ii which is able to render the finest textures ever seen in the lower registers!
 
2. Viper4Android has been told to be really awesome for any kind of audio! I own one rockbox Clip+ as it didn't sound so good with ie800, even with a less resolving IEM like ie8...My phone on VLC and stock MIUI sounds worlds better than Clip+ rockboxed, but this was my experience. I need more power, because ie800 and dj one pro are really hard to drive, so maybe this has a role in all, but ie8 was not hard to drive yet sounded much better (worlds) from X5 first generation than clip+
 
Personal thing: I really dislike crossfeed, I want it as small as possible, separation to be as big as humanly possible. 
 
3. X5-3 has Android! You can install any app your heart desires so you can decode virtually any codec in this world! I also have a feeling that OGG and Wav works since I vaguely remember usinng OGG -q10 and wav on X5ii. I know I have a few songs in those formats, but memory is fuzzy whether I ever listened to those tracks or not - I will test for you 

 
About how is your opinion provocative, it isn't exactly. The difference between two DAPs measured after volume matching is usually smaller than the difference between headphones - that is true. At the same time, if you are using a TOTL headphone / IEM, two DAPs can have arguably big differences in sound, especially due to synergy.
 
I have only recently adapted volume matching recently and I also got the fact that differences are a bit smaller after volume matching,  but Clip+ rockboxed did lose a lot of details and micro details, textures and wasn't able to fully power neither ie800 nor dj one pro for me 

. 
 
Please expect me to write an in detail thing about V4a and it's abilities and to have a better comeback about this. I strongly prefered X5 and X5-2 EQ implementations to clip+  - to the point where there was no comparison... 

 

[fish1050]

I've never heard two DAPs that sounded alike.

Comparing my A17 to the X3-II volume matched with no audio enhancements I found they sound virtually identical to me.  A sentiment echoed by some professional reviews I read on the A17.

 

[jmills8]

Hello fiio, there are no apps pre installed and I only installed online streaming aps which I have not started using it. All connections are off. And yes. I'm using a fast charging chaeger with fiio cable, I have not seen any quick charging at the bottom notification.

It charges very fast.

 

[jmills8]

Comparing my A17 to the X3-II volume matched with no audio enhancements I found they sound virtually identical to me.  A sentiment echoed by some professional reviews I read on the A17.

Nice so you have no need for a new dap. Bet your wallet is happy.

 

[Riley Beale]

Fiio,  please include a US compatible quick charger for the US market product as it would be most appreciated.  I am currently using an old Apple ipod charger with my 1st gen X5 and it does the job, but it takes longer.
 
Thank you
 
Riley

 

[Dobrescu George]

Nice so you have no need for a new dap. Bet your wallet is happy.

 
That is the best approach to the statement! 

 

[fish1050]

   
I totally agree with this! 
 
 
 
What Pinky said was not something bad or out of ill will! 

 
Certain headphones don't resolve the differences between DACs as much as more resolving ones! There are headphones that are far more resolving but still keep the same tuning as the ones you have, so there's a lot of space to explore and enjoy! 

 
I'm not sure what to tell you to start with, but Sennheiser ie800 for TOTL, Ultrasone DJ One Pro for cheap but amazing are the ones that come to mind as really resolving from my extended experience with them! AKG K550 was also interesting if you want to stay with AKG. Of course, there is HD800 which is the most notable headphone when it comes to how much of a difference sources can make, and there are far more interesting headphones for every taste and option. 
 
The more resolving headphones are, the more new things you will hear in music and the more of a difference source will make. 
 
At any rate, you're looking at an Android DAP with streaming, dual mSD, touch screen, really amazing music player interface as seen from @Hawaiibadboy  's video, you're also looking at it boasting V4A, a much better EQ function, cover art support, so there's not much comparison you can make with Clip+. 

Even when comparing the new X5-3 with X3-2, there is a huge difference between them starting with the operating system - which opens many doors for your enjoyment, but also when it comes to having dual mSD slots. While I do recommend X3ii as one of the best budget DAPs and like it a lot, I do think that you should give the other models a shot if you're looking for the best you can get! 
 
 
When it comes to headphones, K240 DF are not bad at all, but having heard the series and knowing that they're discontinued, you might be better off looking for a more resolving pair! I can easily hear the differences between headphones, even two close models from the same producer, and many times the differences are not only in the signature. There are amazing cheap and expensive headphones out there, price is not always the best indicator of quality when it comes to headphones - especially as your tastes might be extremely specific. 

There is another factor that needs to be considered when discussing what can and can't be discerned audibly.  That is age, as I am 52 years old now and I have been listening to high end audio products for 35+ years.  I know for a fact that I can't hear music as well now as I did even 10 years ago.  That is partly why at my age I will never spend over $300.00 on a DAP as I simply can't discern fine details like I use to.  
 
So maybe when we start discussing things like the resolving abilities of headphones we should age of the listener into account.  This will certainly be a mitigating factor as I would expect someone in their 20's to have better hearing than someone in their 40's or 50's generally speaking.
 
When I say I can't hear a noticeable difference between DAP A and DAP B and you can etc...  I am speaking as a 52 year old audiophile who likes classic rock and you might be significantly younger than me and like electronic music that tends to have a cleaner more detailed sound.  There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to expressing opinions on what we hear.  We all hear things slightly differently based on several factors including age and musical taste.
 
There is nothing provocative about stating an opinion so lets not over react if that opinion differs from yours.  If we all had the same opinions then these forums would get pretty darn boring.

 

[TLBS5]

 
 
1. Measuring the parameters is good - but it never tells the whole story with something complex like music. Example: my phone is arguably more energetic than my old phone (Xiaomi mi MAX vs HTC 820). The sound is more dynamic, much better and brighter top end, but bass is nowhere close as fast as x5ii which is able to render the finest textures ever seen in the lower registers!
 
 

 
While music is very subjective measuring parameters depends on the measurement device as well. If you're dealing with something that goes in steps of ones and your detector goes in 10's then a 10 looks the same as a 14. If your "detector" is a pair of headphones trying to read the frequency they're being driven by a DAC or AMP, the difference between frequency regions begins to blur if your headphone (detector) resolution is insufficient. At that point your "parameter measurement" loses significance as it fails to capture the distinguishing elements between one data set (one DAC) and another. This same argument applies to source files so there's a three-way codependence on "parameter measurement." My point is that there is a pretty objective motivation for your position as well.

 

[fish1050]

Nice so you have no need for a new dap. Bet your wallet is happy.

That would be true if the X3-II was the only other DAP on the market.   Just because I can't hear a difference between an A17 and a Fiio X3-II with my headphones doesn't mean I can say the same about every other DAP on the market.  I certainly expect the upcoming X3-III to sound better than the X3-II.  I am also waiting for the chance to audition some other DAP's that hopefully will be available locally sometime this year.
 
Until then I will happily listen to my A17 which is now 2+ years old and still holding its own. 

 

[Dobrescu George]

  There is another factor that needs to be considered when discussing what can and can't be discerned audibly.  That is age, as I am 52 years old now and I have been listening to high end audio products for 35+ years.  I know for a fact that I can't hear music as well now as I did even 10 years ago.  That is partly why at my age I will never spend over $300.00 on a DAP as I simply can't discern fine details like I use to.  
 
So maybe when we start discussing things like the resolving abilities of headphones we should age of the listener into account.  This will certainly be a mitigating factor as I would expect someone in their 20's to have better hearing than someone in their 40's or 50's generally speaking.
 
When I say I can't hear a noticeable difference between DAP A and DAP B and you can etc...  I am speaking as a 52 year old audiophile who likes classic rock and you might be significantly younger than me and like electronic music that tends to have a cleaner more detailed sound.  There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to expressing opinions on what we hear.  We all hear things slightly differently based on several factors including age and musical taste.
 
There is nothing provocative about stating an opinion so lets not over react if that opinion differs from yours.  If we all had the same opinions then these forums would get pretty darn boring.

 
I love your view, mate! 
 
Yeah - you're totally right! 

I'm one of the younger ones in here and I listen to electronic or pumped up metal or pop that has a lot of detail and texture inside so I honestly believe that you're absolutely right! 
 
For classical, to be honest, the difference can be much smaller - for example I don't really hear that much difference either with classical, even tho I enjoy it very much at times! One thing that might sound weird, but when listening to Jazz, I focus more on bass and treble than on the mids - so cymbal fine hits and bass notes need much more than mids for me to fully enjoy and I either use U shaped headphones or EQ for this. 
 
Gotta say, there isn't a single genera that doesn't have it's beauty but if we were to be honest, electronic music does have the most detail in texture and such revealed by a more revealing source. I mean, it's easiest so spot 

 
 

   
While music is very subjective measuring parameters depends on the measurement device as well. If you're dealing with something that goes in steps of ones and your detector goes in 10's then a 10 looks the same as a 14. If your "detector" is a pair of headphones trying to read the frequency they're being driven by a DAC or AMP, the difference between frequency regions begins to blur if your headphone (detector) resolution is insufficient. At that point your "parameter measurement" loses significance as it fails to capture the distinguishing elements between one data set (one DAC) and another. This same argument applies to source files so there's a three-way codependence on "parameter measurement." My point is that there is a pretty objective motivation for your position as well.

 
Thank you! This is a very nice way of putting it in words! It's hard to accept that some headphones don't have enough resolution, but it is the truth! 

I always recommend getting the best headphones possible, they make a lot of difference, and sometimes their signature is very different! Knowing what you want is also important, some people might be using the wrong headphones without being aware of it 

 (Happened to me!)