Fiio X5iii Firmware Modification Project - PURIST REMIXED WITH 1.0.9 KERNEL

[enragedlemon]

I hear a difference in sound between hibby and neutron/uapp when listening to the same note4/opus 11 combo, just because the hardware is the same doesn't mean there can't be differences.

 
That is because one runs through the Android SRC and the other doesn't. That isn't relevant here.

 

[ballhead]

so, you just don't believe this custom rom sounds different. so what. who cares. what stops you from actually trying it yourself and sharing real impressions, not just spamming your fantasies. sorry, just can't stand useless noise.

 

[enragedlemon]

so, you just don't believe this custom rom sounds different. so what. who cares. what stops you from actually trying it yourself and sharing real impressions, not just spamming your fantasies. sorry, just can't stand useless noise.

Cool story. Glad you were here to offer such a great response to my points. There are claims that this does something. I want to see evdence of this. I don't want to void my warranty to get said evidence. That burden is on the developer. I'm glad you found a difference but until there is evidence, you're the fantasising one, mate.

 

[ballhead]

i found this difference, because i did something myself. took the risk, yes. actually, flashing this rom is no different from any other firmware package, someone has to be really stupid to do it wrong way and reverting to official firmware is possible at any time, now i don't see any real risk here.

 

[Dobrescu George]

  i found this difference, because i did something myself. took the risk, yes. actually, flashing this rom is no different from any other firmware package, someone has to be really stupid to do it wrong way and reverting to official firmware is possible at any time, now i don't see any real risk here.

 
It is counter productive to be aggressive towards someone who doesn't like risk. 

My smartphone has official custom ROMs and official Root and official unlocked bootloader. I have none of those at the moment since I'm pretty good with the performance so far 
 
For X5-3, on the other hand, I would consider something interesting to strip off all the software modules that I do not use. Say, BT module, certain apps and such. 

I really need a very minimal DAP with a great sound - I actually dislike my DAP being able to do too much.  
 
To explain why, consider this: I have a 6.4 smartphone. Any inernet / video / anything visual or games will take place on that phone. 
 
I have a computer. 
 
I only need a DAP to listen to music, and that is it. Maybe to show the cover art since I consider cover art to be a part of music, but nothing more. I want to strip off everything I do not use to gain more battery life and such. 
 
As for the differences in sound, as much as I like the idea of custom ROMs, I don't have an X5-3 to test so I cannot say. In theory, any gains in sound would need a logical explanation 

 

[Hawaiibadboy]

Cool story. Glad you were here to offer such a great response to my points. There are claims that this does something. I want to see evdence of this. I don't want to void my warranty to get said evidence. That burden is on the developer. I'm glad you found a difference but until there is evidence, you're the fantasising one, mate.

​It is utter and complete unprovable snake oil IMO.
Charging $100 for a root level cleaning of a  $499 device is nuts.

 

[Karendar]

Cool story. Glad you were here to offer such a great response to my points. There are claims that this does something. I want to see evdence of this. I don't want to void my warranty to get said evidence. That burden is on the developer. I'm glad you found a difference but until there is evidence, you're the fantasising one, mate.

Flashing custom roms doesn't void warranty. Leaving it on for warranty replacement could though.

There's always a way to flash back to stock and remove all evidence of a flash. The warranty argument is invalid IMHO.

 

[enragedlemon]

  i found this difference, because i did something myself. took the risk, yes. actually, flashing this rom is no different from any other firmware package, someone has to be really stupid to do it wrong way and reverting to official firmware is possible at any time, now i don't see any real risk here.

 
Software dev here. Worked with android quite a lot. I know my way around the platform and flashing ROMs. I have little to no concerns around bricking the device, but 1) it DOES void the warranty and 2) as someone who is at least a little security conscious, I like the stuff I install on my devices to be officially verified first. I am glad you have experienced such great things with this ROM, and I don't doubt you believe what you say. In fact, I have no issue believing it myself - IF SOMEONE CAN PROVIDE EVIDENCE. A difference - any difference, but proven.
 

   
It is counter productive to be aggressive towards someone who doesn't like risk. 

My smartphone has official custom ROMs and official Root and official unlocked bootloader. I have none of those at the moment since I'm pretty good with the performance so far 
 
For X5-3, on the other hand, I would consider something interesting to strip off all the software modules that I do not use. Say, BT module, certain apps and such. 

I really need a very minimal DAP with a great sound - I actually dislike my DAP being able to do too much.  
 
To explain why, consider this: I have a 6.4 smartphone. Any inernet / video / anything visual or games will take place on that phone. 
 
I have a computer. 
 
I only need a DAP to listen to music, and that is it. Maybe to show the cover art since I consider cover art to be a part of music, but nothing more. I want to strip off everything I do not use to gain more battery life and such. 
 
As for the differences in sound, as much as I like the idea of custom ROMs, I don't have an X5-3 to test so I cannot say. In theory, any gains in sound would need a logical explanation 

 
Absolutely. I suspect once this ROM matures, it will be able to provide a nice and easy way to clean off features people don't use. Unfortunately any efficiency savings are wiped out (and then some) by using an older version of the firmware which is riddled with wakelock issues.
 

 
​It is utter and complete unprovable snake oil IMO.
Charging $100 for a root level cleaning of a  $499 device is nuts.

 
Whilst I don't have your way with words, I do have to agree until someone can actually prove otherwise. The burden of proof is on them.

 

[Karendar]

Man I wish Fiio would release kernel code.

 

[enragedlemon]

Flashing custom roms doesn't void warranty. Leaving it on for warranty replacement could though.

There's always a way to flash back to stock and remove all evidence of a flash. The warranty argument is invalid IMHO.

 
Assuming it doesn't have a hardware switch to detect it (and I can't imagine it would, but nevertheless), if anything goes wrong and you're unable to flash back, you are SOL. Yes flashing custom ROMs DOES void warranty. What you mean is that they can't always detect if you have. My point stands.

 

[Karendar]

Assuming it doesn't have a hardware switch to detect it (and I can't imagine it would, but nevertheless), if anything goes wrong and you're unable to flash back, you are SOL. Yes flashing custom ROMs DOES void warranty. What you mean is that they can't always detect if you have. My point stands.

Nope, no hardware switch. And partition tables are wide opened. And unless you mess up your bootloader (which Fiio doesn't include in their ROMs), there's no way to hard brick this with a flash... But you know, people believe whatever they want to believe. I've been at this long enough to know otherwise

 

[enragedlemon]

Nope, no hardware switch. And partition tables are wide opened. And unless you mess up your bootloader (which Fiio doesn't include in their ROMs), there's no way to hard brick this with a flash... But you know, people believe whatever they want to believe. I've been at this long enough to know otherwise

 
Yes... But that didn't address my point. In most jurisdictions, including the US and Asia-Pacific regions, flashing a ROM voids the warranty. Period. End of. No debate.
 
If something, anything, goes wrong - it develops a fault, even if unrelated to software - you do not have warranty cover. If you are able to flash it back, nobody needs to know. But there are myriad hardware faults that would prevent this.
 
Furthermore this isn't XDA; the assumption here should never be that everyone is able to competently perform a ROM flash. "Buuuttt it's soooo easssy." What was that saying about building better idiots?

 

[Karendar]

Yes... But that didn't address my point. In most jurisdictions, including the US and Asia-Pacific regions, flashing a ROM voids the warranty. Period. End of. No debate.

If something, anything, goes wrong - it develops a fault, even if unrelated to software - you do not have warranty cover. If you are able to flash it back, nobody needs to know. But there are myriad hardware faults that would prevent this.

Furthermore this isn't XDA; the assumption here should never be that everyone is able to competently perform a ROM flash. "Buuuttt it's soooo easssy." What was that saying about building better idiots?

1) Unlocking bootloader voids warranty based on terms of contract following purchasing a device. Unless directly stipulated in your contract, warranty CANNOT be voided for software modifications. This doesn't apply to countries, but device company contracts.

2) Again, if you know what you're doing, you can recover from most (if not all) issues. Hardware failure is hardware failure and most vendors honor that even though bootlader is unlocked. This is based on my personal experience and professional experience.

3) XDA is riddled with newbies. Head-fi has newbies and more knowledgeable people, just like XDA. People learn and people teach. If properly taught, anyone can do the right thing. If you go blindly into something without knowing the risks, that ends up on you.

My point is that Fiio's devices (much like most Rockchip devices I've owned) are pretty much fool proof to minimize risk of software issues and easy recovery. So scaring people with a "YOUR WARRANTY IS VOID" is not doing anyone any good. Learning the ropes on the X5iii is actually a pretty safe experience for anyone curious. This coming from someone who's bricked and unbricked multiple devices.

 

[enragedlemon]

1) Unlocking bootloader voids warranty based on terms of contract following purchasing a device. Unless directly stipulated in your contract, warranty CANNOT be voided for software modifications. This doesn't apply to countries, but device company contracts.

2) Again, if you know what you're doing, you can recover from most (if not all) issues. Hardware failure is hardware failure and most vendors honor that even though bootlader is unlocked. This is based on my personal experience and professional experience.

3) XDA is riddled with newbies. Head-fi has newbies and more knowledgeable people, just like XDA. People learn and people teach. If properly taught, anyone can do the right thing. If you go blindly into something without knowing the risks, that ends up on you.

My point is that Fiio's devices (much like most Rockchip devices I've owned) are pretty much fool proof to minimize risk of software issues and easy recovery. So scaring people with a "YOUR WARRANTY IS VOID" is not doing anyone any good. Learning the ropes on the X5iii is actually a pretty safe experience for anyone curious. This coming from someone who's bricked and unbricked multiple devices.

 
Not just the EULA that governs what is an is not covered under warranty. Most if not all resellers will have their own rules, which in turn has to comply with the law of the land. For example, NZ has the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 which requires anything sold within NZ to last "a reasonable amount of time" so even though the warranty may be a year, most things are covered under law for longer than that. A reseller in a country may choose to accept or reject a warranty claim, based on local law, independent of what the EULA or anything else may say. The OEM could still choose to honour it separately, but that is outside of the standard legal process.
 
As you may or may not recall, I was a vocal opponent of those who scare-mongered in the main thread about enabling developer options and disable apps. Likewise, I would happily recommend and support this ROM when and if any evidence is supplied to justify a reason to support it. I honestly DGAF about most of these points. Just show me the bloody proof! If there is none, then QED there is no reason to support or recommend this ROM.

 

[WindowsX]

After reading for a while, I'd like to add some notes about X5iii.
 
1. I didn't modify kernel, I only replaced older ones from Fiio which didn't break anything on device itself like unlocking bootloader. So this won't void warranty nor risk breaking your device.
2. I found something and shared in forum FOR FREE. You can try my ROM FOR FREE and decide if you want to keep it or leave it yourself FOR FREE. No one forces you to use it.
3. I did charge services in past because some people asked me for it. Maintaining ROM is time consuming and it's not about rooting but doing deeper level of modification to improve sound quality/battery life/other requests I received.
4. I refrained myself from posting about commercial ROMs since last thread was removed and I respect that. It's never my intention to sell modded ROMs.
5. I also contacted Fiio and they told me they won't support or obstruct my modded ROM.
 
If you want to find evidence about sound signature changes in this ROM, I have none. I'm too busy with other things to make some proof and you probably won't believe in the proof I'm going to write anyway. Did you guys remember Sony's proof about reduced noise in Premium Sound micro SD card? No skeptics believed in that. Haters' gonna hate so let's move on and keep each to our own.
 
Regards,
Keetakawee