[Koolpep]

 
Yes, and apparently the DAC is a very strong part of the X7. This is based on reading this thread as opposed to first-hand experience.

Hmm, I have the latest firmware on it but can't yet activate USB DAC functionality, maybe that will be only available with the dock...?
 
Cheers,
K

 

[Koolpep]

Ok, here is what I was up to after work: Recording an A/B test for you guys....
 

 
I used the input switcher and my Tascam Linear PCM recorder to let yo guys enjoy the pleasures of AB testing as well. Instead of listening to it, turned the dial and recorded it. Volume matched the players as good as my ears worked late at night with a 1khz sine wave file that I generated and copied on all players. The volume is still a bit off due to my ears and the not super detailed scale on the Tascam. So please forgive the unprofessional setup and execution. There are probably a hundred flaws in this setup. Please excuse this.
 
I recorded the files as WAV 16bit/44khz, the input switcher is transparent according to James from Fiio.
 
Here are the 4 files:
Track 1
Track 2
Track 3
Track 4
 
I switched between the DAPs while the song is playing every 10 seconds (Track 4 every 5secs), it's not a perfect timing of the song, as I had the songs on repeat and some DAPs start with the beginning of the song quicker than others, so with every repeat the difference became bigger.
 
Please read the next part ONLY if you want to know which player you are listening to....
 

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Time	Track1	Track2	Track3
0:00-0:10	Fiio X7	Fiio X7	Fiio X7
0:10-0:20	Gloveaudio A1	Gloveaudio A1	Gloveaudio A1
0:20-0:30	Fiio X7	Fiio X7	Fiio X7
0:30-0:40	iBasso DX50	iBasso DX50 & JDS Labs C5D	iBasso DX50 & JDS Labs C5D
0:40-0:50	Fiio X7	Fiio X7	Fiio X7
0:50-1:00	AK100 Mk2	AK100 Mk2	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
1:00-1:10	Fiio X7	Fiio X7	Fiio X7
1:10-1:20	Gloveaudio A1	Gloveaudio A1	Gloveaudio A1
1:20-1:30	Fiio X7	Fiio X7	Fiio X7
1:30-1:40	iBasso DX50	iBasso DX50 & JDS Labs C5D	iBasso DX50 & JDS Labs C5D
1:40-1:50	Fiio X7	Fiio X7	Fiio X7
1:50-2:00	AK100 Mk2	AK100 Mk2	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
2:00-2:10			Fiio X7
2:10-2:20			Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
Time	Track4
0:00-0:05	Fiio X7
0:05-0:10	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
0:10-:015	GloveAudio A1
0:15-0:20	iBasso DX50 & JDSLabs C5D
0:20-0:25	Fiio X7
0:25-0:30	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
0:30-0:35	GloveAudio A1
0:35-0:40	iBasso DX50 & JDSLabs C5D
0:40-0:45	Fiio X7
0:45-0:50	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
0:50-0:55	GloveAudio A1
0:55-1:00	iBasso DX50 & JDSLabs C5D
1:00-1:05	Fiio X7
1:05-1:10	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
1:10-1:15	GloveAudio A1
1:15-1:20	iBasso DX50 & JDSLabs C5D
1:20-1:25	Fiio X7
1:25-1:30	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
1:30-1:35	GloveAudio A1
1:35-1:40	iBasso DX50 & JDSLabs C5D
1:40-1:45	Fiio X7
1:45-1:50	Fiio X5 & Cayin C5
1:50-1:55	GloveAudio A1
1:55-2:00	iBasso DX50 & JDSLabs C5D

 
Now draw your own conclusions...
 
Cheers,
K

 

[vince741]

First off thanks for the huge amount of works.
Can you, by any chance, do an unedited version of this track? By that I mean for song one, one track with player number one, then player number two and so on.
I have a hard time with the transition on the track you gave us.
 
But once again, thanks for the huge amount of work.
 
e/ What I was trying to say is that you are giving us the best experience to hear the subtlety for a "home" session but it might not be the best way to share it for a "remote" experience.
The transition is lacking smoothness and it may be better to do one track for each player and each song to have a better idea.
 
But again, kudos for the dedication .

 

[Koolpep]

First off thanks for the hug amount of works.
Can you, by any chance, do an unedited version of this track? By that I mean for song one, one track with player number one, then player number two and so on.
I have a hard time with the transition on the track you gave us.

But once again, thanks for the hug amount of work.

Hi. Thanks.

The track itself is not edited at all. I started the song on all players at the same time. Then switched via the input switcher between the players. The output was recorded by the tascam.

I would have to find some royalty free music I can use, as I don't want to be in trouble pirating and distributing music

PM me.

Cheers,
K

 

[Sonic Defender]

 
Hmm, I have the latest firmware on it but can't yet activate USB DAC functionality, maybe that will be only available with the dock...?
 
Cheers,
K

I could have sworn that I read a review in this thread where the poster mentioned the DAC function as being excellent. My apology if I was incorrect, hopefully somebody can confirm this functionality for you.

 

[Brooko]

  Do people think it's worth spending 700 dollars on a dap? (just wondering)

 
In my limited time with it so far - yes.
 

  Does it have a usb dac function?

 
Yes - but it hasn't been unlocked with firmware yet.  Expect it upcoming hopefully later this month.

 

[frifox]

I currently own X5ii and want X7 as an upgrade. I searched this thread but didn't find the answer so pardon if the question have been asked already.
 
Will X7 have ability to toggle charging on/off while acting as a usb dac?
 
X5ii will always draw power when on USB which kills my phone 100% to 0% in less than 1 hour. Would have been bearable if I could provide external power but my Galaxy S6 does not have that option - it's either OTG or Charge, never both.
 
Thanks!

 

[Brooko]

Unfortunately that is impossible for us to answer (until DAC use is implemented). Not sure if someone from Fiio can advise though.

 

[mathi8vadhanan]

  I currently own X5ii and want X7 as an upgrade. I searched this thread but didn't find the answer so pardon if the question have been asked already.
 
Will X7 have ability to toggle charging on/off while acting as a usb dac?
 
X5ii will always draw power when on USB which kills my phone 100% to 0% in less than 1 hour. Would have been bearable if I could provide external power but my Galaxy S6 does not have that option - it's either OTG or Charge, never both.
 
Thanks!

Did you try a OTG y- cable, like this?
 

 

[frifox]

  Did you try a OTG y- cable, like this?
 

 
Yup, bought like 5+ different ones from amazon and so far none worked. I even went as far as making my own to try all different resistance variations for pins 4/5 hoping to somehow trigger phone's charging + otg mode but so far no luck. It's been driving me (and my phone's battery) nuts for past few weeks since I've bought the x5ii to the point where i'm considering return it and just waiting for x7 (if it actually will let me my phone live).

 

[twister6]

2 days, 3 hours, 30 min with a few % left - in pure music mode with wi-fi/BT off and idling (screen off, despite inaccurate indication of 79%).  Maybe used it to play music for half an hour, but mostly wanted to find out how long it will last without shutting it down.  Not bad for an idling Android DAP

  Perhaps with some deep sleep optimization it could get even better.
 

 

[listen4joy]

when it will going to market? 2016?

 

[ClieOS]

  ...Perhaps with some deep sleep optimization it could get even better.

 
I won't expect too much of a battery life improvement even after firmware optimization.
 
Note that (1) James already mentioned that the SoC doesn't support deep sleep like that of X3II or X5II. This is somewhat related to the fact that (2) Android being a smartphone OS doesn't really have a deep sleep function, or else you won't be getting any call when you turn the screen off. (3) Plus, Android saves battery life by suspending unnecessary processes (widget, background data exchange, etc) during screen off. But in the case of X7, especially in pure music mode, it is already running on minimum processes. Therefore it is not likely you will get much out of any optimization.

 

[twister6]

 

  ...Perhaps with some deep sleep optimization it could get even better.

 
I won't expect too much of a battery life improvement even after firmware optimization.
 
Note that (1) James already mentioned that the SoC doesn't support deep sleep like that of X3II or X5II. This is somewhat related to the fact that (2) Android being a smartphone OS doesn't really have a deep sleep function, or else you won't be getting any call when you turn the screen off. (3) Plus, Android saves battery life by suspending unnecessary processes (widget, background data exchange, etc) during screen off. But in the case of X7, especially in pure music mode, it is already running on minimum processes. Therefore it is not likely you will get much out of any optimization.

 
I guess pure music mode is like "deep sleep".  In android mode it barely lasted a day idling.  I thought maybe there is a possibility to power down the DAC while X7 is idling after some timeout, not sure if it's feasible.
 
I'm just thinking from a perspective where you can use X7 on and off throughout a day in pure music mode without shutting it down.  Then at night put it on charger (the one James mentioned as an upcoming accessory) and have it ready for the next day.

 

[yoyorast10]

So I guess this will be able to drive any headphone?