[superuser1]

FiiO AM3B sure is sweet

Another great one from FiiO!

George i cant seem to see any pictures posted by you.

 

[colinallcarz]

Has anyone found a decent remote for this (bonus if it works while the X7 mkii is docked to a K5)? I'm looking for a Fiio rm1, but was hoping there was a better solution.

 

[Dobrescu George]

How does it sound compared to the AM3A? Mine will be here Monday

Thicker. Much thicker on an overall level. Warmer. Smoother, but not by a lot, the treble extension is still pretty good to my ears

George i cant seem to see any pictures posted by you.

You have Twitter blocked in your location? All images are added from Twitter by adding image link, it is visible in Romania, from multiple devices, so it might be that your country blocks Twitter, or specific Twitter pages, situation in which you could not see it, although it should happen on more than this post since I tend to do this for any image that doesn't come from my blog .

 

[tjl5709]

Has anyone found a decent remote for this (bonus if it works while the X7 mkii is docked to a K5)? I'm looking for a Fiio rm1, but was hoping there was a better solution.

Satechi Aluminum Wireless Multi-Media & Presenter Remote Control

 

[colinallcarz]

Satechi Aluminum Wireless Multi-Media & Presenter Remote Control

Thanks. If that one works, now I'm wondering if some of the cheaper, similar Bluetooth remote for Android work.

 

[tjl5709]

Thanks. If that one works, now I'm wondering if some of the cheaper, similar Bluetooth remote for Android work.

They do.I have them as well, but I use the one above on my desktop. Easy form factor to hold and it is rechargeable. Don't have to mess around with button batteries. Bottom line. The X7 responds to any of the BT controllers.

 

[colinallcarz]

I'm loving the fact that the AM3A is able to drive my headphones (LCD-X, Teak, AFO) really well. I'm liking the K5 I just got in for a little extra oomf. I just wish my X7 mkii would power on when I turn on the K5. It will power down when I turn the knob off, but the X7 goes from the welcome screen to the charging screen without turning all the way on when I turn the knob and power on the K5. Anyone else experience this?

Also, I'm liking the X7 mkii a lot more than the first run model. Seems like it runs smoother.

 

[Dobrescu George]

X7mkii works well with FiiO Q5, although they do sound similar

 

[397324]

When the Q5 first came out, I asked how it would sound with the X7ii and was pretty much shot down, being told it wasn't intended for that use. So do you think it sounds better or just different?

Also, it would be nice to be able to purchase it without an amp. I could purchase an AM5 and have the choice of two amp modules on either device, rather than having two AM3A's, or purchase the AM0 and transfer the AM3A to the Q5, save money and I dare say some battery life.

 

[Dobrescu George]

When the Q5 first came out, I asked how it would sound with the X7ii and was pretty much shot down, being told it wasn't intended for that use. So do you think it sounds better or just different?

Also, it would be nice to be able to purchase it without an amp. I could purchase an AM5 and have the choice of two amp modules on either device, rather than having two AM3A's, or purchase the AM0 and transfer the AM3A to the Q5, save money and I dare say some battery life.

There are cheaper and probably better transports for Q5 than X7mkii, the sonics are close enough that it wouldn't make much sense using Q5 with X7mkii

I just tested and found out that it works, but I probably wouldn't recommend this pairing as a practical solution. Esentially, X7mkii and Q5 are really close in terms of sound, it just doesn't make sense to stack them, but boy, stacking X5-3 with Q5 is a whole another story, there you'd get the sonics of X7mkii from X5-3

 

[397324]

Thanks. I saw a review that claimed that stacking any smartphone with the Q5 would sound the same as the X7ii.

 

[Dobrescu George]

Thanks. I saw a review that claimed that stacking any smartphone with the Q5 would sound the same as the X7ii.

Pretty much true, I think that is my opinion as well to the largest extend. At least if you factor in how convenient it is to stack any smartphone with it, Q5 really is a no-brainer at 350USD

I stacked Q5 with:

X7mkii
Xiaomi Mi Max 2
Samsung T580
Hiby R6

I can't tell what it is stacked with really, all of those sound equally amazing when pumping music to Q5

Rather, the differences are less than the convenience factor of being able to use it, at least to me.

Due to the nature of Q5 and its cables, blind switching or very quick tests are not possible, USB cables are different, sources and apps used were different, but it still comes pretty darn close between sources.

What makes a difference is Bluetooth, it is really easy to tell apart APT-X from cable, from normal BT, that is a no-brainer, cabled connection is much much more detailed, more layers of sound, just uncomparable, but then again, APT-X means even more convenience, tho at that point I think that I wouldn';t sacrifice sonics for using APT-X

 

[Brooko]

Not my experience George. I couldn't tell Bluetooth apart from wired connection. Both go through same DAC and same amp. aptX or aac sounds same to me as wired connection.

iPhone SE source > Bluetooth or USB > HD800S Balanced.

 

[Dobrescu George]

Not my experience George. I couldn't tell Bluetooth apart from wired connection. Both go through same DAC and same amp. aptX or aac sounds same to me as wired connection.

iPhone SE source > Bluetooth or USB > HD800S Balanced.

Dear Paul,

I suggest trying a FLAC version of a good death metal that needs to have multiple layers of guitars, you can feel the third and fourth guitars entirely erased even bt APT-X, I can tell that easily, it is like the MP3 algorithms, very much not lossless, and very audible stuff is being erased ***with the right music.

I trust that if you listen to classical, or certain Jazz, lean and laid-back music, you won't really hear the difference. Diana Krall is like the one thing you can listen in MP3 256 and not notice much difference from flac, I know at least some music that won't make this noticeable, and given from your musical pieces noted in your reviews, I think you don't listen to death metal a lot, so you're very honest and not notice the difference with your music.

BTW, also to be noted, if you compare the APT-X or AAC to the lossy version of that same file, then the argument is not fair, I'd only compare a true flac to APT-X, with music that shows the differences easily.

For Youtube, and lossy music, and even for half of music in general, I agree, just not for death metal, and certain music that really shows the differences

 

[Brooko]

George - this sort of generalisation

Diana Krall is like the one thing you can listen in MP3 256 and not notice much difference from flac

is about as accurate as yours suggesting:

trying a FLAC version of a good death metal that needs to have multiple layers of guitars

And me saying most Death Metal is mastered incredibly poorly (which unfortunately in my experience it is)

I have some Krall in 24/96 which is incredibly well mastered, and I guarantee could be used as reference.

But Lets look at the facts.

Because the Bluetooth (regardless of compression) uses the Q5's DAC, you are not going to hear huge differences. AAC256 and AptX are high enough resolution that having someone tell the difference between wired and Bluetooth (remember they are using the same DAC) would be limited to the top 1 or 2 % (if they are lucky). Even tests properly conducted between MP3 320 and FLAC show that differentiation is only possible on very few tracks (do some research on HydrogenAudio). Given both aptX and AAC are arguably superior to MP3 320 - and I have not met a single person who can discern aac256 from FLAC in a blind volume matched test - then I think we can draw some conclusions here.

For you to say you can do it, and whats more, you can tell the difference easily, leads me to believe:
- you are the 1-2%, and the track you are using is one of these killer tracks
- you are normal human being, and your tests were not conducted properly
- you did not do the tests

If you are indeed one of the "privileged few" golden-ears, I actually feel sorry for you. They sound the same to me. Everyone I've discussed this with concurs