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Philips Fidelio X3
May 6, 2023 at 6:06 PM Post #1,847 of 1,965
Off2Geo said:
...where did you order your cables from?
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openheart cables on aliexpress
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May 6, 2023 at 6:27 PM Post #1,850 of 1,965
Just got mine. :xf_cool: (ordering the above cables now) They don't sound harsh at all. I have Senn 600, AKG 7XX, Hifiman HE400 and these cruise right in there with them. I rather like the sound indeed.
 
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May 6, 2023 at 7:04 PM Post #1,851 of 1,965
eeagle said:
Just picked up a set of Philips Fidelio X3's from that great ongoing Woot.com deal. Amazon shipped them out in 1 day for free too.

I plugged them into my favorite iFi Zen DAC V2 using the single ended cable, which by the way isn't much longer than the one that came with my HD600's and I was not at all disappointed with the X3 performance...these are an amazing sleeper HP; I have the X2's as well and like the X3 even more, comfort and sound.

I then ordered this adapter so I could use the 2.5mm balanced cable with the 4.4mm balanced output of the Zen.

The X3 soundstage is just fantastic especially with the Chesky Binaural+ albums IMO, a couple of recommendations:

Amber Rubarth - Sessions From The 17th Ward 2012 HDtracks Binaural+ 24-96
Alexis Cole - A Kiss In The Dark 2014 Chesky Binaural+ HDtracks 24-192

Nothing like new HP fever.
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I got them in the same Woot.com deal and ended up getting the same adapter to use them with my Fiio KA3. It was such a good deal. They sound great. They're super comfortable. I'll have to go check out those tracks. Thanks for the recommendations!
 
May 6, 2023 at 8:45 PM Post #1,852 of 1,965
If you can solder, then you can take apart the X3 cup and move the positive wire on the pcb to make the tip positive. Then you will be able to use any cables that are wired the way most cables are wired-tip positive and sleeve negative on both the L and R channels. If you already have any cables that are wired tip positive and sleeve negative such as HiFiMan and many other brands, you won't need to purchase adaptors or a special cable for the X3.
 
May 6, 2023 at 10:47 PM Post #1,856 of 1,965
dpump said:
If you can solder, then you can take apart the X3 cup and move the positive wire on the pcb to make the tip positive. Then you will be able to use any cables that are wired the way most cables are wired-tip positive and sleeve negative on both the L and R channels. If you already have any cables that are wired tip positive and sleeve negative such as HiFiMan and many other brands, you won't need to purchase adaptors or a special cable for the X3.
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I actually considered doing this.
 
May 7, 2023 at 7:01 PM Post #1,857 of 1,965
keesue said:
Just got mine. :xf_cool: (ordering the above cables now) They don't sound harsh at all. I have Senn 600, AKG 7XX, Hifiman HE400 and these cruise right in there with them. I rather like the sound indeed.
Click to expand...
Note: The earcups do come off. They snap right off. Gotta say, these phones are sounding really good with a break-in.

One thing I neglected/forgot to note: I had a problem with one side right out of the box. It seems the cable wouldn't 'trigger' the connector in the cup. I verified that both sides of the cable worked with one side but not the other and vice-versa so it wasn't the cable. I was all set to send them back for another pair but decided to keep with it. Since I had a true balanced cable I wanted to use, I used it reinserting it a bunch of times and, *poof*, they came to life on both sides. No further issues. Frustrating for sure.

That said, me likey the balanced cable. These cans are smooth as silk. I have no idea why some reviewers called them out on the treble. I don't detect any of that. These phones are an absolute steal at the sale price. I do not regret the purchase even though more than enough phones which I also don't regret. :)
 
May 8, 2023 at 1:45 AM Post #1,858 of 1,965
keesue said:
Note: The earcups do come off. They snap right off. Gotta say, these phones are sounding really good with a break-in.

One thing I neglected/forgot to note: I had a problem with one side right out of the box. It seems the cable wouldn't 'trigger' the connector in the cup. I verified that both sides of the cable worked with one side but not the other and vice-versa so it wasn't the cable. I was all set to send them back for another pair but decided to keep with it. Since I had a true balanced cable I wanted to use, I used it reinserting it a bunch of times and, *poof*, they came to life on both sides. No further issues. Frustrating for sure.

That said, me likey the balanced cable. These cans are smooth as silk. I have no idea why some reviewers called them out on the treble. I don't detect any of that. These phones are an absolute steal at the sale price. I do not regret the purchase even though more than enough phones which I also don't regret. :)
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Just making doubly sure in case you or someone else doesn't know:

Your cable issue might be related to the fact that you mixed up the right and left connectors. They have small embossings denoting whether they are an L or R connector.

The right one is wired differently to almost all other headphones by design. Try swapping L with R and see if you can reproduce it. :) (or not, since you've got it working now, and why mess with it? But for next time)

As others in this thread have commented, you can solder the right cup to be more industry standard, should you have the tools.
Another trick is to bridge* the right Ring and Tip on the connector of replacement cables.
* = eg, using solder or another form of metal to make them make contact across the black isolator, or whatever they are called in English.

Edit-
As for sound quality, I do enjoy them. They are quite relaxed-sounding, so they are my favourite pair for "background music" while immersed in work.
Not great for active listening for the same reason, because I often find myself two songs ahead from when I last paid attention. :p

If they'd had more micro-dynamics, sub-bass and played better with an OTL amp they would be near-perfect imho. But, great companion headphone to the DT880 all the same.

For the 106 Eur* I paid for them two years ago, I'd say they are absolutely worth the investment*. Good value.

* = they were listed as a return of "C stock" quality, meaning they weren't restored to full quality.

This due to a piece of inconspicuous duct tape the previous owner put on the inside of the frame to differentiate the right hand driver. :p

The return was listed as being motivated by the previous owner having a right side driver failure after their first day. Meaning, they unplugged them and then replugged them in incorrectly. Service personnel could not reproduce . :p
 
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May 9, 2023 at 10:17 AM Post #1,859 of 1,965
I've had them for over a year now and love them, especially after changing out the stock pads. Other than the cable issue (and the cables they come with are horrible) they are a must buy at the current price. Very comfortable and non fatiguing. Sub-Bass is there and at times felt without distortion. Never use Bass-Boost on DAC/AMPs...
Never once have I played a track and heard high frequency artifact that some people claim. I prefer them over them over my Fidelio X2HR's, and those are quite good as everyone knows.
 
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